Matrix Games Forums

Hello all

We just started our 1st Play-by-Email game and ran into funnythings:

1) "Player 1 OOB corrupt", ok, there was a post about it in this forum, just a matter of different settings

2) I got the batch of files from my friend, he has completed his first turn, yet when I start the saved game, it still is 'his' turn ?

Yes, I did put the files in the /email directory but my question is how the heck do we get this thing to work properly. What files to send and what to keep ?

The manual says that only .dat .aux and .cmt files should be sent but when I looked at the timestamps on those files only .rec .aux and .dat had been changed when the game was saved.

Which file has the record of whose turn it is? Since they don't provide a proper interface for the PBEM games how about some detailed info on how the darned thing works.

If you're asked with yr opponent's password, this means three things:

1) your opponent has sent you back the wrong files
2) he has sent the right ones, but not saved properly: this happens oftenly when you shut down spwaw too early after having clicked on "save" and you can recognize the problem immediately by looking at the timestamp of the files.

All the 4 files have to be sent back and forth;
it is ok to have the .cmt one not changing its own timestamp: this file is created at the beginning of the pbem and containes the game setting,pref. and name only, which don't change for the whole duration of the game.

As for how the whole pbem thing works, in version 5.0 how the manual it has been added a very exaustive, detailed and useful step-by-step section on it.

oh, and for what to do with the wrong files sent to you, two possible solutions:

-yr opponent has the right files on his pc and send them back to you;

-if the files you got are the only ones he owes, he MUST play again his turn (and save properly, this time!)

Here's another possibility: make sure the Zip file doesn't have anything under the 'paths' column. Check your 'e-mail' folder and see if any other folders are inside of it. Ran into this a couple years ago.