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I know there are a few PBEM Manager utilities out there. Are there any that have become the defacto standard? Do any have certain strengths/weaknesses? Are they free / nominal fee?

discuss...

PBEM Helper is my favorite. It was designed for Combat Mission, but runs with a number of wargames. The best feature of PBEM Helper is file management -- it sends a copy of the PBEM save off to a backup folder for safekeeping, keeping only the current turn in the save folder. It also automatically launches into the PBEM game from the PBEM Helper interface. The interface is simple and clean, tracking multiple games with ease.

I'll find a link later today.

heh, i just posted over in the CM Forums, because i knew there was a good one that the CM players liked to use. i just couldn't remember the name of it. it's been a couple years since i PBEM'd CM.

Sorry to go a bit OT here, but how large are the files that are being emailed? Korsun Pocket is great since they're around 20K; I heard that UV and WitP email files are over 500K! Since I'm on dial-up...

Sort of back on topic, KP has a Visual Basic script they wrote to be a front end, but I don't use it; I just have a shortcut to the saved game folders and move 'em in and out to back-up directories myself--it's not a big deal Since you get to name the games it's easy to find what you're looking for and manage them by yourself.

Not really answering your ? directly but; Korson/Tao uses a filing system for email games, saves sent and recieved email files..the game also auto tags files with a new file name appropriate to the side involved and turn in addition to auto generating a secure email, the next BIN evolution is to have a starter secure mode to avoid first turn doovers.. hope some of this will be found helpfull...

Right now save files seem to be about 75 - 90K.

ORIGINAL: MButtazoni

I know there are a few PBEM Manager utilities out there. Are there any that have become the defacto standard? Do any have certain strengths/weaknesses? Are they free / nominal fee?

discuss...

I tried using some PBEM managers - prompted by UV's very bad PBEM management system (sorry to say that Joel [:D]) but at the end not one managed to satisfy me.

They either act as middle-men between game and mail application (MS Outlook in my case) or they mail the turns themselves, acting as the mail application. If they act as the mailing application - I don't like that cause I love to organize my mails and communication in general in Outlook (that's what MS made the application for [:D])

In the end - no matter how awkward the PBEM management is done in the game itself, I found out I am better off managing the turns and posts in Outlook without help from third party PBEM helpers.

Latest changes in PBEM game management in WAW are excellent though, and very wellcome!

Oleg

As been mentioned, PBEM helper, works great with UV also, give it a try!

http://www.sci.fi/~fuerte/pbem.htm