Message Board.

My Starcraft Message Board is finally here! Although it's not as good as those on the Battle.net homepage, it's still fairly decent.

Stuff.

I know, I haven't updated this page in a LONG time even though I promised weekly updates. Well, I can no longer promise that (and I'm too busy to even explain the whole deal.) Well anyways, I can still promise that I'll be updating more from now on than during those past months. For now, you can check out this if you have Linux.

No Updates for a While.

I played the Brood War Beta a little and it was really cool. I can't seem to go back to regular Starcraft now, so there may not be many updates to this page until the final release of Brood War comes out.

Brood War Beta.

My friend made the Brood War Beta and I have some screenshots of it. Here.

Guestbook Abuse.

I've just about had it with people abusing my guestbook. I'm now gonna start banning your ISP from my guestbook if you ruin it. (Since most people have a static IP address, I can only ban the ISP itself.) Sorry, but some innocent people will not be able to sign my guestbook. Currently, the following ISPs are banned from signing my guestbook : Netcom.net, Carolelittle.com, and Bctel.ca.

What's the Deal??

I haven't been updating much recently, but I'll promise that more updates are on the way. My e-mail address is now jjd14@newmail.net but my Hotmail account is still active. Please update your address books!!

Everlasting Connection Problem.

Things aren't looking good here except for that my ISP's switching to a more reliable Internet backbone provider on the 15th. But for now, it's impossible for me to play Starcraft; Good.net NOT MCI is doing so poor. (Good.net is my ISP's primary backbone provider; MCI is their alternate one.) Last time, I thought MCI was virtually down by doing traceroutes; my ISP reported that their connection with Good.net was down so they used the very little amount of bandwidth provided by MCI for their connection. But for right now, it's nearly impossible for me to get a ping time of less than 500ms to ANY server except for the tir.com domain.

Where are the Updates??

I've been having so much trouble connecting to ftp.tripod.com or www.tripod.com to update my page these days. It's not Tripod's fault; it's not even my ISP's fault (maybe). It's my ISP's Internet backbone provider, MCI's fault. If you want to blame, scream at, flame, etc. someone, that someone ain't me, Tripod, or my ISP. It's MCI.

You're probably wondering how I managed to upload this. Well, the problem occurs 99% of the time and the everything's fine for the remaining 1% of the time. But that ain't adequate.

Maps.

I added two more SCMs and they're both custom SCMs.

Hits.

I guess my hits have soared back to norm and Hitbox is doing OK now. I kinda overreacted to the problems Hitbox was having.

Updates?

I haven't touched this page in quite a while not because I'm busy with school but because I've lost my interest in this page when my daily hits dropped from 300 to 20 in a matter of a couple days. Right now, I'm not outraged at this tremendous drop in hits; I'm more outraged with Hitbox who provides my counter. It can't seem to display the number of hits I'm receiving. ARRRRRRRGGGHHHHH!!!! $#@#*^% hitbox!!!

I've suddenly been interested in custom SCMs that are played "Use Map Settings" on Battle.net. The theme of my next updates will shift from strategies to custom SCMs.

Updates.

Another map I made has been added although I haven't tried it out so far. I may want to better organize my Links section, but I don't think I will have the time soon. School is starting Augest 10th (I'm not kidding!!!) We start very early, and when we start, I won't have time to update or play Starcraft except maybe during the weekends.

Update.

I added a Starcraft Performance Guide. Not only will this help low-end PC users run Starcraft, but it will also give advice on preventing lag and unintentional disconnects.

W95CIH virus.

I removed the Battle.net optimizer cuz it was rumored to contain the W95CIH virus. If you downloaded that program or you're simply paranoid, then go here for a fix.

New SCM.

I added another SCM on my Starcraft Maps page.

Battle.net

Battle.net is very slow and hard to connect to recently. In addition, they've had many server splits where one of the Battle.net servers splits out of the network and people on that Battle.net server can only play with others on the server as opposed to playing anyone on Battle.net. Also, they've reset, changed, and deleted other players' accounts including some of mine. I think they deleted one, modified another, and completely reset yet another. I don't really care; it's been happening to just about anyone, so it's fair.

Netscape 4.5

Netscape Communicator 4.5 Beta is out!! I just got it and installed it over my copy of Netscape 4.05. I don't think i'll regret it, but if this Beta version sucks, then I guess I'll have to go with MSIE until the official Netscape 4.5 is out. (Arrrgh!!) I don't feel like downloading 4.05 all over again.

Stragegies.

I've updated the parts of my strategies page that deal with individual units. If I have time, I'll also start posting some of the strategies submited by readers like you.

Update.

I added a new story on the stories page : Story 3.

Everything Seems Slow.

I thought Tripod was slow but now, Battle.net is slow too!! Just try going on and playing a game. Boy, there are so many people with red (poor) latency. Everybody reports that many players are red, so Battle.net is really messed up now. I guess it's summer now and the administrators all deserve a 2+ month vacation away from their server. =)

Tripod.

Seems like Tripod has been temporarily shut down to fix a critical hardware problem. However, doing a "ping members.tripod.com" does not reveal "Request Timed Out" or "Host Unreachable". Their FTP (ftp.tripod.com) seems to be down so again, I had to use their Homepager to update.

Updates.

I've added a new strategy page that I may be updating for the next few days. I also updated my FAQ. I did not update my page very much for the past few days cuz I was just a little lazy. Plus, I should deserve a break cuz it's summer. =)

Tripod.

Tripod seems to be OK now although it's still a little slow. It's not that hard to connect to anymore. I can ditch some graphics on my page, but I don't really want to ditch the nifty background for the left table. =)

Starcraft and Win98.

If you've checked out the Starcraft Technical Support Forum, you're likely to see many messages about Starcraft not working in Window$ 98. If you've considered upgrading to Window$ 98, keep in mind that you might not be able to play Starcraft for a period of time after the upgrade. This period can be as short as a few hours or as long as a year. :) Unless Blizzard releases a Win98 patch for Starcraft or if Micro$oft releases a Service Pack for Window$ 98, it'll be your responsibility to figure out and get Starcraft working. Good thing I did not upgrade to Win98 before hearing all these horror stories of Starcraft not working, crashing, or performing erratically in Win98.

New Survey!!

I've just added a new survey to my page. Go here.

Tripod Crisis, Part Deux.

This members.tripod.com server has been really slow again!! I've been losing at least 40% of my hits just because of it. However, when I do a "ping members.tripod.com", everything's fine :

C:\WINDOWS>ping members.tripod.com

Pinging members.tripod.com [209.67.19.98] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 209.67.19.98: bytes=32 time=257ms TTL=15
Reply from 209.67.19.98: bytes=32 time=254ms TTL=16
Reply from 209.67.19.98: bytes=32 time=254ms TTL=16
Reply from 209.67.19.98: bytes=32 time=266ms TTL=16

I was expecting to get ping times of at least 600ms and some "Request Timed Out". I suspect that there could be some problem with Tripod's web server software. It could be restricting HTTP connections so the server won't be overloaded. Why would they offer web pages on that server if they're worried about it getting overloaded?

I can't help thinking that Tripod is a scam. It's very likely that this ain't true, but I think they offer the free webpages to only make money offa advertising. They do not care about the quality of the server, so they supress and restrict the CPU usage for HTTP access making that slow, giving the server a good response time overall.

Feel free to share your opinions about this Tripod Problem if you have a Tripod webpage. Don't tell me that I should leave Tripod; I feel really reluctant cuz I don't want to go through all of the hassles. Plus, Tripod is one of the rare Free Webspace providers that allow users to place sponsorers' banners on their pages.

IE Nightmare.

I tried viewing my page with IE 4. It really sucked!!! First, it took longer to load up than when I used Netscape. My hard drive started grinding like mad when loading the MIDI from the pop-up window. After the MIDI was fully downloaded, a separate ActiveX component was required to play the MIDI!!! More time was wasted in downloading a separate ActiveX component. When the MIDI finally started playing, the MIDI player display was messed up. Phew... I'm so glad I have Netscape 4 and I'm not using |\/|icr0$0ft \/\/ind0w$ 98 with Internet Explorer 4 integrated into the system as a replacement for Windows Explorer and the ONLY choice for default browser. I'd still use Netscape if I ever get Windows 98. Boy, it'll really suck to be addicted to Internet Explorer. =)

Back!!

I did not mention that I was on a short vacation to New York during this period of time. Sorry about the lack of updates/email-responses.

Starcraft Top 27.

It seems that the Starcraft Top 27 is gone and www.sc-world.com doesn't exist. I tried to telnet to rs.internic.com and did a "whois sc-world.com" and it said that the domain was on-hold. Maybe it's gonna come back soon, or it may eventually be gone forever.

Tripod.

I think Tripod is doing ok today now. They probably were fixing the server when it was really unstable.

Webcrawler.

Hmmmm... Webcrawler ain't workin' today?? Heck,its DNS entry cannot be found!! It might be my ISP or it could be that something's wrong with Webcrawler.

Tripod Crisis.

Thank you for your patience if you had difficulty connecting to this members.tripod.com server and loading up my page. I don't know what's up with Tripod recently. This is really hurting the hits to my page; normally I get 300 per day but now if I'm lucky, I can get 120. I'm really starting to lose my patience with Tripod, but then again, I don't want to tick them off with my complaints cuz they're serving my page for free. The FTP isn't working very well now, so I have to use the HTTP upload service from Tripod to update my page. However, the HTTP upload is also getting to be slow and unreliable too. My page takes so long to load up ; it ain't funny. If you have a Tripod page, then please e-mail me about it. I may collect these letters of complaint and send them to Tripod so they'll hussle up and fix the server.

Submit Stories and Strategies!!

Feel free to send me your Starcraft stories and strategies. I cannot guarentee that every single strategy or story will be posted unless they are quality stories and strategies that always work. Just click on the submit story/strategy link on the appropriate page to send it through e-mail.

Summer!!!!

Yipeeee!!!! Summer vacation is finally here!!!!

NO!!!!!!!!!!!

I'd like to thank you for taking the time and patience to access my site cuz it's hard to connect to recently. Arrrrrggggghhhh!!!! This members.tripod.com server is pathetically difficult to connect to!! It takes like 30 seconds to connect to. My daily hits have dropped at least by 50% and it is declining rapidly as the members.tripod.com server is falling unstable. However, when I ping members.tripod.com, the response time is fine. If you also have a Tripod webpage, then please e-mail me. I'll collect these letters of complaint and send them to Tripod.

Neat Strategy Guide.

Check out GameCenter's Starcraft strategy guide. Many of the strategies work regardless if you're a newbie or experienced.

Screenshots.

I added another screenshot. Well, it's more like a *short* story.

Updates.

The Battle.net FAQ has been replaced by a *FAQ*. It has everything from the Battle.net FAQ but also includes additional questions and answers I've been receiving in my email.

I haven't been updating much recently cuz I got the finals. School doesn't get out until June 19th for me though.

MTU.

If you use MTUSpeed or any program for Windows that adjusts the max-MTU value in your registory, then try to set this value again manually. These programs usually set it to 576, but I tried 520 and it works better than 576. This might sound very technical but it'll speed up your Internet connection and lower latency. By changing from 576 to 520, I found that my ping time decreased by around 20ms and my bandwidth increased by around 10%. Try it, and if it doesn't work, then switch back to 576. Remember to restart your computer every time you adjust the MTU value. If everyone on Battle.net did this, then there'll be less lag and more people with the "green" bars.

Updates.

Here, I've added a post I found on Blizzard's Starcraft forum about countering the Mutalisk rush with Protoss. I found it a couple weeks ago, so I shoulda posted it back then but I forgot about it. Anyways, it's on the Protoss vs Zerg section of my Strategies page.

Updates.

Some of my strategies are outdated or inaccurate. Hopefully, they're corrected now. I never really felt like going through them and carefully analyzing them and experimenting every single strategy, but thanks to everyone for bringing up some mistakes as well as new strategies. My starcraft experience does not always play an important role in the strategies, and this page is usually based on my friends' and visitors' ideas too!

Introduction.

Finally, I've added an introduction to my page!

Starcraft Top 27.

If you really like my site, then please vote for it in the Starcraft Top 27!!

Updates.

My strategies page has grown so large it's quite unorganized. Now, I rearranged it and added some tables for better organization.

Terrans.

I played the Terrans for a couple games now and I understand them better, so I updated my Terran units page in the strategies section. I hopefully will begin the Terran vs. blah blah blah section pretty soon. Currently, I have all the Race vs. Race strategies done.

Updates.

Another strategies page has been added : Essential Upgrades.

Strategies.

I've finally decided to get my lazy butt up and finish the Strategies section. I'm gonna add at least something every single day at least for this Memorial Day Weekend.

Battle.net Optimizer.

Here's a program that will help if you have trouble connecting to Battle.net.

New Story.

Sorry about the lack of recent updates cuz I was really busy. However, I have a great new story in the stories section now.

Disconnectors.

I'm really tired of people who disconnect on Battle.net. Therefore, I composed a list of individuals that disconnect on Battle.net. Feel free to pass this list around. It'll be updated periodically, so bookmark my page or at least, bookmark the list. There's a link to it on the left table. Currently, there's only 3 names on the list, but it'll be growing soon. ;)

Link to Me??

If you want to link to my page, please use the following HTML code :

<a href="https://members.tripod.com/~jjd14/starcraft.html">
<img src="https://members.tripod.com/~jjd14/starcraft.gif" border=0>
</a>
 

That'll include a button I recently created. It's shown at the bottom of the left table. If you link to me, please email me and I'll add a link back.

PATCH!!!

A beta patch has been released to combat the wood bug in AOE. This is NOT the official patch, but if you want to know more about it, please read about it on Shaf's AOE Page. (I don't feel like repeating.)

Updates.

I added a page on the Persians tribe.

Malice's Starcraft Page.

I just got Starcraft today. There isn't much on that page, but I'll soon be adding more. There's a good chance that I'll still continue to play AOE.

Spring Break!!

Yeah, Spring Break!!! No school for 10 days. :)

Updates.

New tribe page : Minoans.

Guestbook.

If you haven't seen it yet, please check out the latest entry in my guestbook -- record #25 (I think). It's so humorous although it's merely an individual's own opinions.

Starcraft.

Starcraft came out a few days ago and is now hitting the shelves. I might get Starcraft although as of now, it doesn't seem to interest me as much as AOE. If that's how it turns out, I might only play Starcraft until the latest patch for AOE comes out and fixes the Wood Bug.

Updates.

Alright! The pages on all three races are finished. Just go to the strategies and take a look!

www.OGR.com

Go to www.ogr.com and vote for Starcraft for being the best game. Thanks to Kraytdragon for reminding me of this.

Guestbook.

I had a rather disgraceful comment written in my guestbook by an anonymous individual. If I get any more of these types of comments, I'll report you to your ISP!!!

Updates.

I'm starting a section dealing with the races in Starcraft and their units. I have one page of it done and you can look at it on my Strategies page.

New Map.

I've made another custom map for Starcraft now. Go check it out!!

Updates.

There's a new page here : Battle.net FAQ. In addition, I have a page for Starcraft Maps. Currently, there is only one map there, but you may play in on Battle.net and pass it around.

Updates.

I made a new page on for Starcraft-friendly downloads.

Battle.net.

I finally made it to the ladder on Battle.net!! However, the people on the ladder are REALLY tough. You need 10 wins before you can join the ladder which may or may not be a lot for some people.