Contest Bridge?

I apologize for the time it has taken to respond.  We decided to take a day off yesterday (I know, what were we thinking?http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>).  

Regarding the settling period:  We will wait until we feel the bridge is "settled" before we test the bridge.  We do not want to specify an exact time, nor do we feel like we should.  Our point is that we don't want bridges that only work under certain conditions (TT'ability being one of them),   we want bridges that, once settled, will always work.  The reason we said we'd wait a few seconds, is that we have yet to see a bridge that takes more than that to settle, but in the event we do, we'll give it the time it needs.

Mendel, the point of having rules is to regulate behavior.  The point of motivating people a certain way is to encourage behavior.  Your question is, in essence, the same as the one by Calis.  Why don't we have a separate forum for contest discussion?  Simply put, because we don't want people to discuss their numbers.  It gives an unfair advantage to those would use the forum, not to mention, violates the individuality that we are seeking in the contest.  We have no problem with people discussing their bridges with friends, we just have asked you not to make your numbers public knowledge.

We hope this clears up these issues, and if there are any more questions, we'll be here.

[street]

I'm really glad to see everyone actively participating in the discussion.  It looks like a considerable amount of people purchased the game!  I just finished my contest bridge after many long nights of polishing.  I tried many different kinds of bridge.  It made me really try to cut the cost until the bridge nearly collapsed (and beyond).

I'm really glad that posting Prices for bridges was not allowed.  I could not have possibly made my final bridge any cheaper, and if I had seen that someone else had, I wouldn't have even bothered to submit mine.

Now that I have submitted one though, I feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and I even think I might win still.  :o

Anyway, everyone should play carmageddon 2 if they haven't already, the crushing physics are fantastic.

[mendel]

Hmm... slight misunderstanding here, I fear.
I don't question having rules, and I didn't suggest changing them for this running contest.
I am just advocating regulating behaviour differently the next time around :-)

You talk about "individuality" and "discussing with friends". You can't control the latter, so the first is moot. This is no written exam after all, this should be fun. Real bridges are always constructed as a team effort, and often there are public hearings.

A seperate forum is not an unfair advantage.
How is having something that everyone can use unfair?

Not having people to discuss the contest with is a disadvantage you impose by denying this forum. You impose it on those who don't have friends to discuss pontifex with (or friends who are not as good at it as my friends are ;-). People who discuss with friends do not have the disadvantage. Having the forum would be more fair.

It's your contest, you decide.
If I don't like your decisions, I don't need to participate. I could even run my own contest :-)

But still there's the urge to put in my 2 cents ;-)

[JohnK]

Quote: from Dreadnough on 2:17 am on Oct. 25, 2001

BTW: How do we take screenshots?

The F8 key saves them as .bmp files in the pontifex/screen directory.

[mendel]

To make a posting error into humor, what would the minimum Pontifex contest ruleset be?

"Send in any bridge, someone will win."

(Edited by mendel at 12:47 am on Oct. 23, 2001)

[scarmody]

Bought the game 2 days ago, i love it soooooo much.    Its the best AUSี dollars i've ever spent.

Ah anywayz, just woke after spending all last night getting a contest1 bridge working.  Finally @ 4am the #### thing was humming.  I'm another believer in not knowing the scores of other people, sort of promotes my ego a bit, thinking that my $###### bridge is the cheapest :-)

Again i'd just like to say nice work fellars.

[beaujob]

Speaking of links that break that serve no structural purpose, what if a bridge design made no usage of the roadway structural steel?  Perhaps this should be a post to future versions, but every once in a while a bridge design doesn't require the metal on the sides of roadway.  Is it fair to require that these links don't break either?

[falkon2]

The tension is killing me!

*blows up*

[VRBones]

The tension is killing me!

Ahahaha, Don't "Collapse under the strain" http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'>

(Edited by VRBones at 8:29 pm on Oct. 25, 2001)

[Argonut]

Ah, finally had a chance to try to make a bridge for contest 1. Due to time contraints I only got about 2 hours in, and tried two different bridge designs, getting weirder/cooler with each one, and I know I'm gonna lose, but I definitely agree with the decision to not talk about bridge costs. I like the anticipation of seeing how everyone compared once the deadline is complete http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'> kind of reminds me of getting results back from tests back in school.

Speaking of results, how will they get posted? will we see a list of the complete results, so we can satisfy our curiosity by seeing how many people entered, and look down the list to see how other people we know did?

But I do have one question that isn't clarified in the rules. What speed will the train run at in the official tests? slow, medium, or fast? or all? My bridge doesn't mind what speed, but I could definitely see that some designs might break with a fast train, or even fail with a slow train instead of fast, etc.

anyway, enough for now. Great game, thanks for putting together the new version, guys http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

[baggio]

I wish we could submit new designs... I thought I'd optimized my bridge perfectly, submitted, and then almost a week later, I've been able to shave about Ūk off the design.

I think it should be possible to resubmit newer designs, but with the more recent design resetting your submition time.  Kinda like an EBay auction.  I may not win the contest now, but my newer design might have.

I understand CLs decision in this, to prevent people submitting every bridge they designed, but next time maybe the limit should be no more than 3 entrees.

edit: I rechecked, and I shaved even more off than I had thought... :/ บk

(Edited by baggio at 1:40 am on Oct. 26, 2001)

[Dreadnough]

When the contest is over I would like if everyone would keep their scores a secret untill the winners are made public.
Thanks.

[Ramjet]

I asked a friend of mine to build a bridge. He did and told me at what cost. Uhhh 70K lower than mine,, Whatta !#¤"  BUT when he told me how it was designed i wondered !,,,, Whould that work in RL ?? No way, but he still made a VERY cheap bridge...

Me personally want to see how you all designed youre bridge, not so much how much i cost.. Well thats me and im not angry/pissed that I know im not going to win this contest,but more interested in how it looks...

(Dont mind the english guys, long time since my last essay http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

[mendel]

Post 100 on this thread :-)
(Numbers start with zero, so it's the 101th post really http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>.

Beaujob, the deck cheat goes like this:
Build light steel where the back of your deck will be, after that, build the deck. The deck will use the pre-built steel, at much lower cost, but same strength. The light steel will still show up as the usual line in the editor if you look closely.

You can use heavy steel as well; that way, it'll cost more, but you have added strength.

The seed to this was laid with my http://pontifex.mendelsohn.de/forum/crooked1.pxb" target="_blank">crooked1 bridge published on the http://www.chroniclogic.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard/topic.cgi?forum=6&topic=9" target="_blank">Turns thread (which cost less than it ought to have, without me noticing), and Gray and I realized what this meant while we were chatting about it on icq. http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

Imagine the agony of deciding whether to use this advantage clocking in at more than 񙖰 for the contest bridge, whether rule 3 stating "Anything other than the previous two conditions is fair game." covered this eventuality, what would happen if we decided not to use this advantage, someone else had indepently discovered it from the "Turns" posting and won with it, etc.
In the end, we decided to ask ChronicLogic, which resulted in the announcement you all read. ;-)

(Edited by mendel at 4:02 pm on Oct. 27, 2001)

[Entroper]

I think you guys handled it the right way -- whenever there's a question of fairness, take it to the judge.  http://www.pontifex2.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>  It was interesting how you found out about it too.  Anyway, kudos for doing the right thing.  If people had submitted similar bridges with a noticeable difference in cost, there could've been a big mess about disqualifications and things like that.