Here are a two examples that fits the above explanation and player observations. Extreme example ("there were 35 streaks of 6"): Player 1: WZ 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2 Player 2: WZ 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 Player 3: WZ 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 Player 4: WZ 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Player 5: WZ 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 Slightly more balanced example: Player 1: WZ 1, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1 Player 2: WZ 2, 2, 3, 3, 2, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2 Player 3: WZ 3, 3, 4, 4, 3, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3 Player 4: WZ 4, 4, 5, 5, 4, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4 Player 5: WZ 5, 5, 1, 1, 5, 1, 1, 1, 5, 5 In both cases, for the total number of WZs played and the total population, there's a 1 in 5 chance of a specific WZ popping up. However in both cases the only random aspect is the 1 in 5 chance of being stuck in a pattern. HOWEVER the SWTOR random number generator might not be broken: "This means that a good random number generator will also produce sequences that look nonrandom to the human eye (e.g., a series of ten rolls of six on our die) and which also fail any statistical tests that we might expose it to." Meaning BioWare could have the very best random number generator, and it will look non-random. BioWare should contract a real Mathematician to certify the random number generator for it's customers. Or perhaps replace the RND function, just in case. /* "So, if it is impossible to definitively prove randomness, what can we do instead? The pragmatic approach is to take many sequences of random numbers from a given generator and subject them to a battery of statistical tests. As the sequences pass more of the tests, the confidence in the randomness of the numbers increases and so does the confidence in the generator. However, because we expect some sequences to appear nonrandom (like the ten rolls of six on our die), we should expect some of the sequences to fail at least some of the tests. However, if many sequences fail the tests, we should be suspicious. This is also the way you would intuitively test a die to see if it is loaded: Roll it many times, and if you see too many sequences of the same value coming up, you should be suspicious."

+1 However #4 has to do with the **#! pop up loot window blocking the view of combat in progress. And momentarily interrupting heals, attacks, etc. Annoying and sometimes someone dies. /* Then there's the apocryphal tale of Player[1] coming across another Player[2] fighting a horde. In a blink Player[1] destroys the horde. Player[2] cusses out Player[1], who is swiftly riding away. Says Player[1], 'There's an enemy raid force closing on your position. Right Behind Me.' Player[2] sees the approaching wall of red ...... /* "I am ready for whatever comes." Crazy Horse "Perhaps today is a good day to die." Worf

+1 Occam's Razor answer - That "dude" may be female. Take your pick of stats; 64% or 55%. 2006 - United States, 64% Female Women outnumber men in online games, survey finds "Of the 117 million active gamers in the U.S., 56 percent play games online. Sixty-four percent of those online gamers are female, according to results of the survey, released by Nielsen Entertainment" For something completely different: 2011 - United States Online Games By Gender 55% Female Computer/Video games in general; offline and online: 2011 ESA's Gamer Study: Average Player 37; 42 Percent Of Gamers Female "The average gamer is 37 years old, and has been playing games for 12 years." • 42 percent of gamers are women. • Adult women represent a greater portion of the game-playing population (37 percent) than boys age 17 or younger (13 percent). Does explain the informal ratio of mature comments to bratty ones in any type of game forum. And follow the money: "females actually spent more money on virtual goods in almost every category. They spent more buying items in MMO games like World of Warcraft ($86) than males ($77). Women spent more on PC games with online play than males ($80 versus $62). They also spent more on social networking games like Zynga’s FarmVille and CityVille ($54 versus $46). And they outspent males on casual games like Electronic Arts-owned PopCap’s Bejeweled 2 ($51 versus $36). Free-to-play games are generating revenues for publishers thanks to both sexes. Males spent an average of $62 on these games, while females spent $56." A serious answer to the thread question: Killing Like a Girl: Gendered Gaming and Girl Gamers’ Visibility /* "You really kill people for a living?" Abby Miller "Yeah." Elektra

Was here for the November Beta, and a current paid subscriber from "Day 1." For me it's "really worth it." The game needs 'work', BUT I see good progress in getting that 'work' fleshed out. Seen and played too many online games that essentially collapsed in their second year. Not seeing those warning signs in SWTOR. Will SWTOR fold or hold? Will know more in year three. //* Survivor of 20th Century Oubliette, Air Warrior, Neverwinter Nights, and Ultima Online. //* Player of a whole lot of 21st Century online games; dead and living.

Profit. Profit to fuel Electronic Arts AND keep SWTOR going. A competitor doing something similar, F2P & Market, in 2011 had this to say in January 2012: "40% increase in daily logins since going f2p. 300% increase in new players" "And 200% increase in Item sales. Plus we have added a lot of new subs." A year later, January 2013: "300% increase in players" "125% increase in item sales. Both games have benefited from a 350% increase in overall registrations." While one needs a salt mine to take in those vague numbers, on multiple games, if the profit wasn't there two years later, drastic changes would have occurred. Including game closure. I consider James Ohlen getting to the acceptance stage (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance), likely profitability due to F2P and Cartel Market, and the self removal of the EA CEO (who practiced cutting game development staff to balance the books) to be good news for SWTOR. /* "Ohlen said the BioWare team had expected players to take three to four months to go through the 180 hours of content they'd created. The metrics they were getting informed them the average player was going through the game at 40 hours a week, with some players spending 80-120 hours in the game in a week. Fans were starting to "churn up" the content, the team was unprepared for the rate at which people were playing, and by May 2012, the game fell to 1.3 million subscribers and the studio had to layoff staff to accommodate the downward trend of subscribers. According to Ohlen, morale at the studio hit a low point in July of 2012. The game's subscriber count continued to fall, while members of the gaming community predicted the imminent launch of Mists of "[kicking] us in the crotch." The Old Republic needed a change, and that change came in the form of a free-to-play business model. Ohlen said The Old Republic was not built to be free-to-play, so the development team had to find a way to integrate the model without compromising the core game. The team also couldn't completely abandon the subscription model because subscribers accounted for a significant portion of the game's revenue each month." 30 March 2013 /* "In my opinion, the days when companies can make content [generation] the number one strategy, in the kinds of games we make, are over, because we can't win the war. Star Wars [The Old Republic] proved that. Players bought it, loved it and they played the game. Then they left." 24 January 2013

+1 Best combat challenges were defending/holding off waves of enemies (yes it was bugged .. or maybe a cagey dev test?), or fighting through waves of enemies to take a node. Outcome of both matches wasn't certain until the very end.

Red Sonja/Conan style; love it! Well, except the weapon(s) and secondary would need standard stats. No weapon stats is pure melee. Otherwise the carnage would be good bloody fun* and glorious. * let's have additional ... /* " " Vash the Stampede

SWTOR is a great game, and a timeline for character transfers would be a nice additional touch. Which would be a good distraction, given the timing of this "State of the Game" announcement. Electronic Arts CEO to Resign The Wall Street Journal March 18, 2013 "More dramatic, however, has been the challenges it faced with its online game, "Star Wars: The Old Republic." The game, which cost hundreds of millions of dollars to make over the period of five years, was built to be a competitor to Activision Blizzard Inc.'s ATVI -1.12% popular "World of Warcraft" online subscription game. Activision has said that game, along with its "Call of Duty" war-simulation game series and its "Skylanders" toy game franchise, make up a significant portion of the company's revenue and profit. But "Star Wars" didn't capture gamers fast enough. EA executives had said it needed 500,000 subscribers to be profitable and one million to make it a "good investment." The game attracted 1.7 million active players in its first month, but saw subscriber numbers shrink as months went on. EA stopped reporting the number of subscribers the game had and changed it from requiring a subscription to offering it as a "free-to-play" title, charging customers for items such as vehicles, boots and armor within the game." John Riccitiello Steps Down As EA CEO - Why, And What Now? Forbes March 18, 2013 "Riccitiello’s time at EA, on a corporate level, involved significant acquisitions – notably Bioware and Pandemic Studios for $775 million" "major, ambitious purchases intended to position EA as a leader in previously underexploited areas – mobile and social gaming, but also the MMO market" "Along with BioWare’s role-playing games expertise, they were assigned the task of taking the money-spinning Star Wars IP and creating a successful MMORPG." "The Old Republic, created at huge cost, launched to considerable fanfare in late 2011, but could not sustain its subscription-only model and, although profitable, is now largely free-to-play" "a growing chorus of dissent was growing regarding EA’s relationship with its studios and business practices." "Consumerist’s “Worst Company of 2012″ award – were possibly taken more seriously on Web Street than Wall Street. However, it certainly defined a narrative for criticism of Riccitiello and his company: that EA, despite his assertion when returning as CEO that it would respect studio autonomy, was pushing BioWare to simplify its game style, to work to the level of sophistication of games consoles rather than PCs, to build in multiplayer (which would become unusable if and when EA shut down the servers) and cash shops and to focus on DLC as a way to spread the work of recouping development costs." "The hope that Riccitiello’s departure will usher in a golden age of studio independence and a return to the former glories of Maxis, BioWare et al may yet prove justified." Electronic Arts stock falls after departure of CEO Riccitiello The Los Angeles Times March 19, 2013 "Riccitiello "never got enough credit" for cutting 25% of its development base. Despite restructurings, reorganizations and studio closures, EA still is in search of the one thing that will lift its margins -- new hits, he observed. "That is what has given us low confidence," Wilson wrote. "Because it is hard to cut your way to better games."" Electronic Arts Chief Resigns The New York Times March 18, 2013 "The chief executive of Electronic Arts resigned on Monday, a victim of a troubled environment for the big video game companies as well as of internal missteps." 4 moves Electronic Arts must make now March 20, 2013 Fortune "2. Get your act together." "4. Spend less, innovate more." "Instead of stuffing its release schedule with releases and rushing development, focus on product. Yes it's a tired adage, but quality over quantity."

One of those little security 'thingies' is not to click on unknown links. [*]Don't click links you don't know inside emails. Go to the website you think you need to go to and type the url in the hard way. Takes longer, but helps protect you... It would have been helpful for a security person to explain the link first. Was Your Email Account Hacked? PwnedList Can Tell You Feb 2, 2012 http://www.pcworld.com/article/249148/was_your_email_account_hacked_pwnedlist_can_tell_you.html Don't click it. Always use Google cache to access articles. Again, this gives the impression of security on the cheap. Where security decisions are based on 'penny wise and pound foolish' cost/risk assessment. Although the good news is this extra security is likely to be implemented by BioWare/Electronic Arts. Something, I believe, American Express (and other companies) forced on users years back. My concern, again, are many notable security breaches have occurred through illegal use of high level accounts with high level system access. The 'on the cheap' security philosophy being one of the contributing factors. Again, we'll see if PBW is lulling hackers with misdirection ("don't throw me into the briar patch"), or BioWare is setting itself up to be another Sony. For the average user, changing ALL your passwords regularly is a good easy security measure. A good guideline as presented by Authorize.net, a VISA company: (Did you really click the link??? ) http://support.authorize.net/authkb/index?page=content&id=A233&actp=LIST To strengthen the security of your payment gateway account, you are required to change your password every 60-90 days. This requirement is also necessary for Authorize.Net to maintain compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), which requires periodic password changes, strong passwords (alpha-numeric combinations, minimum character length, etc.), programmatic memory of previous passwords to prevent reuse, password lockout after invalid attempts, and other password security measures. These standards are detailed in PCI DSS Requirement 8: “Assign a unique ID to each person with computer access.” Requirement 8.5.9 specifically states: 8.5.9 For a sample of system components, obtain and inspect system configuration settings to verify that user password parameters are set to require users to change passwords at least every 90 days. For service providers only, review internal processes and customer/user documentation to verify that customer passwords are required to change periodically and that customers are given guidance as to when, and under what circumstances, passwords must change. PCI DSS requires compliance with this standard for both service providers like Authorize.Net and all merchants who process credit card transactions. To learn more, please visit: https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/index.shtml. If you have difficulty remembering strong passwords without writing them down, you might try one of the following tips to create strong passwords that are easy to remember: String several words together to produce a passphrase, and make an acronym from it. You can create acronyms from the words in a song, a poem, or other sequence of words that you can easily remember. For example, “Stopping by woods on a snowy evening” becomes “sbwoase.” Then apply the other strong password requirements—capital letters, numbers, special characters—to create a strong password. By applying the other strong password measures you can make this acronym into a password, for example, “sBw0@se1922.” Deliberately misspell a word, and then add a number or substitute special characters to create a password. For example, if you respell “security” phonetically as “sekooritee,” you can then turn the word into the password “seky00r1T.” Note: Do not choose a common misspelling such as “mispelling”or the word “misspelling.” Combine a number of facts, such as dates and events, and add a number or substitute a special character. For example, you can turn the words “Pearl Harbor” and the date “December 7, 1941” into “pe@rL12741HArb0r.” Another example would be to take a holiday (such as Boxing Day) and its date (December 26) to make “12b0x1ng26d@Y.” Shift a word up or down one row, or left or right one character on the keyboard. For example, if you shift the word “security” by one character to the left, you obtain “awxyeurt.” Once you apply the other strong password requirements you would have a strong password such as “aW3yeur+.” Shift letters in a word a certain number of letters up or down the alphabet. For example, if you shift the Ts in the word “thirty-three” back four letters, you would get “phirpy-phree.” Applying additional strong password requirements would give you the password, “phiRpy#phrE5.” Important: Do not use any of the example passwords shown above. Since these examples have been published, they can be used fraudulently. These are only examples to show you possibilities for strong yet memorable passwords. And: Password Policy http://www.authorize.net/files/PasswordPolicy.pdf It is imperative that you implement adequate security to protect your payment gateway account from unauthorized activity. One key way to protect your account is to change your account password on a regular basis. The following Authorize.Net Password Security Policy will help you select strong new passwords. + Your password must be at least eight characters long. Longer passwords may be even stronger. + Your password must include a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers, AND non-alphanumeric symbols. + Your password may not be a standard dictionary word, even if it is spelled backwards. + Your password may not use common symbol substitutions for letters, such as $ for s. + Your password may not be the same as your user login ID. + Your password may not be blank. Please also consider the following guidelines for safeguarding your password and increasing the security of your payment gateway account. + Your password should not contain any information about you that can be easily discovered, such as a spouse or child’s name, a license plate or street address number. + Do not share your password with anyone. If you have reason to believe that your password may have become compromised, change it immediately. + Do not write your password down. Keep it in memory only. If you absolutely must write your password down, store it in a secure location accessible only to you. + Do not enable settings that allow your Web browser to “remember” your password. + If for any reason you need to share your password, do so only in person or over a live phone call with an authorized person. Never share your password via e-mail or voice mail. + Never display or transmit your password in any communication or online transmission (other than when logging into your account). + Never share your user login ID and password in the same communication. /* "the code is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules" Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Agree. Tab Target should work (sort of) like this -> "Vakar Ashok, our gun arrays are now fixed on your ship and will fire the instant you come into range. You will find their power quite impressive... for a few seconds." Susan Ivanova Not be a copy of bad code from other games -> "Tab Target works 5% of the time honestly. You have to straight up spam tab to try TRY and target the person beside you." Vanche 7/21/2011 "Because I'm seriously getting tired of having five enemies beating on my face and I tab once and target the guy 60 yards away who hasn't aggroed me. And then mash tab about ten times to get back." mybbqrules 12/11/2012 /* "The phrase “tab-targeting” has become something of a bogeyman within the gaming industry, being used recklessly in discussion as a proxy for a host of flaws with combat systems, hit detection, or even game balance. All tab-targeting conventionally implies is an interface through which the player can cycle through available targets in order of proximity." Atropos, December 7 2012

It is tempting to give Phillip Holmes the benefit of the doubt, in matters of computer security. He does have an adequate security background. Phillip Holmes (impressive public record) LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/in/phillipholmes But then he showed favor to 'doing security on the cheap.' Sony did that in 2011. And the repercussions continue. Well, we'll see if anything happens in the next few months. Casual computer users might find this article of interest. Kill the Password: Why a String of Characters Can’t Protect Us Anymore MAT HONAN, 11.15.12 http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/11/ff-mat-honan-password-hacker/ And keeping a low Internet profile helps. It takes a village to kill a password John Fontana, February 21, 2013 http://www.zdnet.com/it-takes-a-village-to-kill-a-password-7000011638/ "Or were passwords stolen from Twitter or any number of other* repositories hacked in the past 24 months or so (LinkedIn,Facebook, Apple, Zappos, Sony) the source of the passwords?" Indeed. /* "What's in YOUR wallet?"

In general: Jedi Shadow, full tank spec - With a long list of abilities, a shadow tank looks great on paper. But it's likely the hardest tank spec to play, because you have to use all those non-passive abilities. As the previous posters mentioned, running a shadow tank requires constant effort during a fight. Lose track of your non-passive defensive abilities, threat generation, plus a few other things, and you'll wipe the group. You could Try running this tank without keybinding, but you won't be very effective. You'll likely be very dead. But if you want a constant challenge when tanking, be a shadow tank. Sith Juggernaut, full tank spec - With all that heavy armor, better passive defense than a shadow tank (light armor). A healer won't be guzzling power to keep you alive. Average agro/threat control. A 'fun' easy to learn tank class to play. Keybinding is optional. Until you start raiding, people probably won't notice. Jedi Sentinel, full tank spec - The classic heavy armor, stand in one place tank. The Republic version of the Juggernaut. Easy to play. An effective, more forgiving, but boring tank. Keybinding is optional; slightly more free time than a juggernaut. You could snack during a non-raid battle. <click>pause<click>sip<click> .. Tested the 2.0 version, and this spec is a revitalized killer. No more snacking. That's the best advice here.

The ruling being indirectly referenced on this thread is Quill Corp. v. North Dakota. The very short version: "U.S. Small Business Administration Collecting Sales Tax Online" http://www.sba.gov/content/collecting-sales-tax-over-internet "If your business has a physical presence in a state, such as a store, office or warehouse, you must collect applicable state and local sales tax from your customers. If you do not have a presence in a particular state, you are not required to collect sales taxes. In legal terms, this physical presence is known as a "nexus." Each state defines nexus differently, but all agree that if you have a store or office of some sort, a nexus exists. If you are uncertain whether or not your business qualifies as a physical presence, contact your state's revenue agency. If you do not have a physical presence in a state, you are not required to collect sales taxes from customers in that state. This rule is based on a 1992 Supreme Court ruling in which the justices ruled that states cannot require mail-order businesses, and by extension, online retailers to collect sales tax unless they have a physical presence in the state." Quill Corp. v. North Dakota is the mantra of online businesses. "Where to Obtain Supreme Court Opinions" http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/obtainopinions.aspx For everyone else, read the entire U.S. Supreme Court opinion. Directly from the source, in downloadable PDF format. http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/boundvolumes/504bv.pdf If that's your thing. The very short version: "United States Reports Volume 504 Cases Adjudged In The Supreme Court At October Term, 1991 May 4 Through June 17, 1992" http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/boundvolumes/504bv.pdf (pages 298-333) "Quill Corp. V. North Dakota" "No. 91-194. Argued January 22, 1992 - Decided May 26, 1992" (Page 301-302) "This case, like National Bellas Hess, Inc. v. Department of Revenue of Ill., 386 U. S. 753 (1967), involves a State’s attempt to require an out-of-state mail-order house that has neither outlets nor sales representatives in the State to collect and pay a use tax on goods purchased for use within the State. In Bellas Hess we held that a similar Illinois statute violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and created an unconstitutional burden on interstate commerce. In particular, we ruled that a “seller whose only connection with customers in the State is by common carrier or the United States mail” lacked the requisite minimum contacts with the State. Id., at 758. In this case, the Supreme Court of North Dakota declined to follow Bellas Hess because “the tremendous social, economic, commercial, and legal innovations” of the past quarter-century have rendered its holding “obsole[te].” 470 N. W. 2d 203, 208 (1991). Having granted certiorari, 502 U. S. 808, we must either reverse the State Supreme Court or overrule Bellas Hess. While we agree with much of the state court’s reasoning, we take the former course." (Page 319) "The judgment of the Supreme Court of North Dakota is reversed" (Page 299) "The underlying issue here is one that Congress may be better qualified to resolve and one that it has the ultimate power to resolve" As to what Electronic Arts/BioWare is doing? Call them. Interestingly, different billings from Electronic Arts, BioWare, and through the Origin site have "Tax" and "Shipping and Handling". The calculated "Tax" is our State 'use tax' percentage. And blah blah for most States blah blah the ignored laws on the books blah blah compel the purchaser blah blah to remit the use tax blah blah to the resident State. * blah blah - Someone else can document the applicable tax laws for the various States and counties. Or blah blah And the fees credit card companies charge? Got a notice through the mail; that's another mess entirely. Payment Card Interchange Fee Settlement http://www.paymentcardsettlement.com To summarize, call the seller when you have any billing questions. Your credit card charge back policies blah blah compel you blah blah to do some leg work. /* "Let's not do that again." Isaac Clarke

Possible. It would be smart marketing, and no different than studios rescheduling their movie (made by different companies) releases. The Warner Bros Superman and Hobbit films were originally scheduled for December 2012 release. That didn't happen; Hobbit winter 2012, Superman summer 2013. Electronic Arts did mention Dead Space 3 in their recent Earnings Call. Probably 1.7 is just not ready though. It's not on the test server yet.

Thumbs up for tanking. It does get frustrating, and many times a Tank doing their job in PvP or PvE gets 'no respect'. But Tanks don't do it just for the thanks. Tank for the challenge. Tank, because you prefer group play. Tank, because (football analogy, see Dick Butkus) you prefer being a defensive line type of player. And many other reasons. But bottom line, we Tank because we love it. "Hey, buddy, just give me the big glowing rock, and there won't be any trouble." Benjamin Grimm *