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[Baldilox219]

Congratulations! You just won the big one!! (no, not really) So, how much do you love Dwarf Fortress? If you came across a ton of money would you send a crack global programming squad to Toady's front door with instructions to be his keyboard slaves thereby creating the 8th wonder of the modern world? Or do you spend it on RL? No 50/50's, its all or nothing baby. Mansion, Sports cars, and helicopters, or DF? Would pumping tons of money into Dwarf Fortress even be a good thing? Or is the current process the reason why this game is so good? Let me know what you think.

[Taricus]

Donate the lot of it, apart from what I need.

[Tarran]

I wouldn't pay for a programing team for Toady. Not because I'm greedy, but because, from what I think I remember hearing from others and him himself, he would prefer to do it alone.

[Girlinhat]

The team would slow him down.  Let the man work his vile magic in peace 

[bobhayes]

Congratulations! You just won the big one!! (no, not really) So, how much do you love Dwarf Fortress? If you came across a ton of money would you send a crack global programming squad to Toady's front door with instructions to be his keyboard slaves thereby creating the 8th wonder of the modern world? Or do you spend it on RL? No 50/50's, its all or nothing baby. Mansion, Sports cars, and helicopters, or DF? Would pumping tons of money into Dwarf Fortress even be a good thing? Or is the current process the reason why this game is so good? Let me know what you think.

I worked in software development for about ten years before getting thoroughly sick of it.

The best way to slow down a software project is to add people to the team.

Which is not to say that giving Toady a bunch of money might not help. He could build a lab with five rocking development machines in it. He could hire an assistant to handle extraneous, non-programming tasks - although, depending on his management skills, that could also throw a wrench into his productivity. He could order takeout every night instead of wasting his valuable time boiling water for mac and cheese. Etc.

But adding new programmers to an existing project is death. And not the fun kind of dwarfy death with spikes and poisoned pus and goblins.

[Berserkenstein]

Are you kidding? I would build a real life fortress full of magma and hire a bunch of BDSM folk to dress as elves and keep them in cages. 

[jonny211]

I'd buy a PC that could run a 200 dorf fort (with one ghost) without FPS death.

Failing that a masterfully designed pimpmobile, encircled with bands of faux leopardskin and menacing with spikes of bling.

[cog disso]

If you wanted to help Toady, pay his student loans.

[anon_outlaw]

jonny211, i have a year old $2,700 rig that can cruise through a 150 dwarf map with no drop in fps, im assuming there would be no fps death with a meager 50 more dorfs. for an top-top-top of the range lotto money powered rig... you would go into the ints and edit the pop cap to be 1,000. the results may include a drop form 60fps to 59fps.

[NobodyPro]

I'd buy a PC that could run a 200 dorf fort (with one ghost) without FPS death.

Failing that a masterfully designed pimpmobile, encircled with bands of faux leopardskin and menacing with spikes of bling.

I'm running a 220 Dwarf Fortress right now at 20fps with all optional features on, on Vista! Why does everyone think it's such a big achievement.

[Qinetix]

Hmm donate money to him.... he might know what to do with the money , not all the money I want some cake to , if its a million of dollars then 10.000 dollars , that might help him.

[Cydonian Monk]

If I won "the big lotto" (as the Nigerian scamsters keep telling me I have), I certainly wouldn't waste it on something as trivial as a computer game.

The best way to slow down a software project is to add people to the team.

...

But adding new programmers to an existing project is death.

Nice "Mythical Man-Month" quote there. 

My current software overlords, who hold me captive in a white, padded, and sound-proof code-monkey cage (complete with a window in the door so the zoo visitors can watch!), understand my true nature all too well.  They've used exactly that threat of adding "a couple more people just to 'help out'" to coerce me into finishing things faster than logical.  I won't say I hate them for it, because I want today's allotment of peanuts, but I also don't like being played like that.

[fervor]

I worked in software development for about ten years before getting thoroughly sick of it.

The best way to slow down a software project is to add people to the team.

Which is not to say that giving Toady a bunch of money might not help. He could build a lab with five rocking development machines in it. He could hire an assistant to handle extraneous, non-programming tasks - although, depending on his management skills, that could also throw a wrench into his productivity. He could order takeout every night instead of wasting his valuable time boiling water for mac and cheese. Etc.

But adding new programmers to an existing project is death. And not the fun kind of dwarfy death with spikes and poisoned pus and goblins.

Wha?

Any big project has people leaving and new people joining all the time.  If it's death to add new programmers, than practically no big projects would ever get finished.

If your projects are slowing down when you add good people, then you can blame it on crappy managers.  Of course, initially there is a period of adjustment where new people have to get up to speed.  Some of the current staff might take a productivity hit because they have to help train or something.  But usually, big projects and managers have an established process in place to handle new people.

No way that anyone could convince me that adding a top tier programming staff to DF wouldn't provide a big kick and boost to the game.  The only issue is Toady himself and whether he wants the help.

The reality of today's world is that no one can be good at everything.  It's just too complex.  That's why you get specialists.  Right now, Toady is trying to do everything, which means that he's had to make a lot of compromises.

[AWellTrainedFerret]

Well, I'd might send him a generous donation and let him use it any way he see's fit. But unfortunately, 3 years ago I made a vow what to do if I ever won the lottery and I'm sticking to it:

I'd buy the >original< Planetside game off of S.O.E. and host it on my own servers, free to play, for the thousands of die-hard fans like me who can never forgive S.O.E for ruining the greatest MMO ever made.

[The_Fool76]

What? Heck no, I'd start my _OWN_ company to make games with my own team of artists and coders and then produce stuff to compete with the likes of toady and Notch.  >_>

One of these days I'll be able to quit my day job and work on stuff full time... one of these days...
(I'll probably be saying that when they bury me in the ground, I spend way too much time playing other people's games rather than working on my own stuff. :/)