Critical mass in network gaming
Having run the Frodo-Wii network for around two weeks, I can now make some observations of the usage.

• The pre-release saw more use than I had intended and is probably still in us. This is a slight problem since the pre-release and the final v9 are not compatible network-wise and the pre-release won't work any longer (but fails silently)


• Most people connect as clients and few seem willing to host games. Before I thought most people would agree over IRC (or something) with a friend and connect together, but it seems like most people prefer connecting to games by chance


• The statistics show that around 8 people per day connect (although the daily count varies a lot)

The last two issues together create a bit of a problem: Frodo/Wii networking still simply doesn't have enough users to allow browsing for active game hosts. It's not quite as popular as Mario kart yet.

So how should I make it more popular? One improvement I've implemented for the next version is the ability to send text messages to the other peer when Scroll Lock is pressed on the keyboard - the obvious application is taunting the other player. Another thing I'm considering is to start creating builds for other targets than the Wii - after all I'm mostly using it from Linux myself and it should still be portable to most other operating systems. The only issue there is where to announce that? I only know about Freshmeat.net, but I doubt that would generate much interest for something like this.

Well, well. I've been enjoying the nice weather together with Linda, eating out, doing sports and taking a long bicycle ride to Saltsjöbaden. Nice!