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Posted by: phillosopherp Mar 3 2010, 10:35 AM

So I stumbled on to itabletop and was wondering if anyone out there was using it for SR? I personally just dled it and haven't even started using it yet but wanted to see if anyone else is.

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 3 2010, 06:45 PM

I presume this is an iphone app? I'm unable to locate it.

Posted by: Delarn Mar 3 2010, 06:51 PM

I'm a long time user and it is great ! I am also one of the crasy dude that are with a lifetime membership with iTabletop and the silverlight version of it will be wonderful ! They added shadowrun because of me in the game.

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 3 2010, 06:53 PM

Nevermind, google gave the answer.

Posted by: Delarn Mar 3 2010, 08:32 PM

I can have up to 11 floating on my account. When Silvertable is actually out I'll try a game with some of you !

Posted by: phillosopherp Mar 6 2010, 12:00 AM

I was actually going to ask if I could get in on someone's floating lic just to test the product. The cost is a little prohibitive unless it is just an amazing product, at least for me.

Posted by: Delarn Mar 6 2010, 12:48 AM

Do you have a 32b OS or a 64 ? (Windows) It would be simple for me to install it on my Win7 pro 64 to let you try the V1 of it. V2 is not out yet.

Posted by: phillosopherp Mar 6 2010, 08:02 AM

Yeah I could run it on my moms laptop just to test it out. I want to see if I want to go about buying it. Plus I am thinking that my group might want to shell out for the lifetime membership split between us all.

Posted by: Commiekeebler Mar 7 2010, 08:17 AM

I was looking at multiple programs that do the same thing and I found that rptools did what I wanted it to do the best and cheapest.

There's a bit of a learning curve and you need to set up your own server (can you deal with your router and do you know how to forward a port?), but the software is free and open source.

http://www.rptools.net/

Here you are, enjoy.

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 7 2010, 01:51 PM

I am intrigued by the initiative tool, especially as I was looking to program something similar to make my home games less of a chore. Does anyone have any experience setting it up for shadowrun?

Posted by: Delarn Mar 7 2010, 02:19 PM

(Ini)+IniD6s5= Total ini

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 7 2010, 04:59 PM

The string entered is not in a valid die roll format. Man i wish there was documentation on this now.

Posted by: sinthalix Mar 7 2010, 05:46 PM

We've done some testing using the free ITabletop version and really loved it. I'll be running my first SR session later this month since almost all my players went ahead and bought the one year subscription.

Just download the free version and get another friend to do the same and have fun. You don't need a subscription with just two people, but you don't get the few extras that the subscription provides.

Have fun with it...it's an awesome tool so far...I'll find out during the real session just how good/bad it is.

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 7 2010, 07:19 PM

Can you go into some details on what tools they have to make shadowrun run, I'm interested both as a GM planing tool as much if not more then a telegaming tool. In your opinion would it work in this regard?

Posted by: Delarn Mar 8 2010, 12:52 AM

You can load PDFs, maps, character sheets, roll dice and so on. I'm testing V2 and there are too much features Playlist, video chat and so on.

Posted by: sinthalix Mar 8 2010, 02:26 AM

In addition to loading the PDFs, etc, you can hide areas of the map from the players and reveal them as they move through the map. You can upload "tokens" such as pics, .pngs, etc. for the players and yourself to use on the maps. It will also allow you to upload video/music/sound effects so that you can play them at certain times or when certain events happen.

They have battlemats you can draw on as well in realtime or in advance and use the hide feature. Sticky notes are also a nice feature that you or the players can utilize.

You can import just about anything into it to use...and as long as you do your prep work, it goes quickly. I didn't have stuff loaded on the server the first test, so it took a while to load.

The software also allows you to create a tunnel to one or more players so that you can speak with them without the other players hearing/seeing. This is great for SR when you have to deal with the hacker or the astral projecting mage and you don't want everyone else to know exactly what's going on.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 13 2010, 12:39 PM

We use Skype + OpenRPG and have been very happy.

I would say that it *looks* very cool, but the subscription price is a lot prohibitive, especially if you're a person who only makes a 1-2 online games/month. When I had the time to get the value from a subscription, I sure couldn't budget that.

Posted by: Delarn Mar 14 2010, 01:41 AM

Multivideo chat. Not just 1 on 1. The subscription price can be split between your players if they are willing to help their GM pays for the tool they uses.

Posted by: LurkerOutThere Mar 14 2010, 03:19 AM

I guess it goes down to how much of an asset do you think video chat would be for your games. For me personally i'm not sure video confrencing adds enough to justify the costs involved when all I need is strong vocal and a robust gaming system.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 14 2010, 07:34 PM

Then I'm charging a fee to my gaming crew. That is a slippery slope when I start accepting money for GM'ing.....

I did try to check it out the other night, but my laptop is running Vista-x64 and I was discouraged to find I needed to install a Virtual-PC trial to try the software.

Back to topic though, if I only do 1-2 online games/month, the subscription price is pretty steep at $24-36. I understand the developer is trying to make a living and that in niche markets you are dealing with a very limited pool of buyers. Its just that that's equal to most people's DSL bill.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 15 2010, 01:05 AM

I installed it into a Windows XP VM Session, tested and watched part of the video tutorial. I will say that it definitely holds some great potential.

Posted by: Dumori Mar 15 2010, 01:21 AM

I'd love to try it out in a game but I cant really afford the cost I'm amazed I have a net connection XD.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 16 2010, 04:44 PM

So I have been continuing to play with iTabletop, not actually in a game but just learning what the tool can do.
Things I like:
1) Choice of video &/or audio
2) Server store
3) Private conversation function
4) Ability to share documents and files without allowing the ability to download
5) Fog of War

Things I dislike:
1) No peer-to-peer option
2) Subscription model
3) Concerns about financial viability/longevity of the company
4) Lack of video tutorials on the website/Minimal product documentation

The owner is definitely a good programmer, but could use a better marketing strategy of his product. The website interface is geared towards selling you the subscription instead of selling you on the product. I had to work to appreciate the product, rather than walk away with that initial "Wow! This is different that other products."

Posted by: Delarn Mar 17 2010, 01:50 AM

But you know that's the V1 that is going to be discontinued when the V2 comes out.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 17 2010, 02:14 AM

Could you please expand on the relevance to the conversation?

Posted by: Delarn Mar 17 2010, 11:42 PM

V2 is in Silverlight (X64 compliant) will also work on Mac.
Token have been expanded.
The FOW will be better. Game creation will be a lot more pottent.
Will also include playlist.
A good dice roller.
A good text chat.

I'll ask the dev to send me a complete features list.

Posted by: Redjack Mar 18 2010, 04:05 AM

Appreciate the follow up, looking forward to more. My dislikes still exist, but it does look like progress. Thanks.

Posted by: Redjack Jul 17 2010, 05:53 PM

So, I've been continuing to follow this project. They are now on version 2 and have lifetime memberships for $25. I still have some concerns about the long term viability of the company, given a new one-time membership fee and having ongoing fixed costs related to the software model. That said, I am trying out the software and think this may work well to combine our Skype/OpenRPG based game into one piece of software with a lot more features.

Posted by: SkepticInc Jul 18 2010, 01:42 AM

Wouldn't it make better sense to make use of Google Earth and Google Maps? That way it would be easier to share custom tours and 3D SketchUp buildings. You don't have to worry about compatibility issues as much, and the API is public.

Posted by: Redjack Jul 20 2010, 08:07 PM

We use google maps quite a bit in our game as well. Doesn't work so well with interior/underground maps. Also, the point is this software integrates video, audio, dice cup and play map all in one.