Hey Guys,
This morning I organized a small Q&A with whoever would come on the chat client's chat channel and talk to me. Here is the log, with my statements bolded for clarity. Eventually, I will clean it up and make an FAQ somewhere. I plan to have more sessions like this often, including one later this afternoon.

[11:13:52] <AdminPip> alright lets get started
[11:14:00] <AdminPip> ill say the name of the person, you can ask a question
[11:14:08] <AdminPip> and we can discuss it for a bit
[11:14:12] <AdminPip> then we'll move on
[11:14:15] <AdminPip> Cyanide
[11:14:25] <Cyanide> Is there going to be any specific class beefs,for example Sniper / Seer, Or just new equipment / ships
[11:15:06] <AdminPip> Well, that's not C2 in particular, but since C2 will come with the new UZ and hopefully Alien Invasions, a lot of new gear will be introduced with that
[11:15:24] <AdminPip> Each class is being looked at in succession, and a lot of topics in admin forums have been made about seer and sniper
[11:15:31] <AdminPip> there is definitely going to be stuff for them in the future
[11:15:47] <AdminPip> also, we plan on having 1 new tech level with SS2
[11:16:03] <AdminPip> need any details on that?
[11:16:05] <Cyanide> Tech level being 21?
[11:16:07] <AdminPip> yes
[11:16:32] <Cyanide> Sounds good to me
[11:16:38] <AdminPip> alright, Yugioh?
[11:16:42] <yugioh> A while ago, I heard about a transfer/gear editing feature for slaves, letting you change what they have equipped, give them more supplies, ect, all while undocked. Is this still going to be there?
[11:17:18] <yugioh> Specifically, to change what items they have equipped quickly, so you could swap out OLs, have them only use vollies when they would be useful, ect.
[11:17:38] <AdminPip> Definitely, as long as we can balance it. Right now though, the plan is to have icons for each slave you have active, and clicking those icons will give you a bunch of options
[11:17:57] <AdminPip> also,we're thinking of having Slave Actions, which will do the same action on every slave, like enable a tweak or open a crate
[11:17:58] <AdminPip> etc
[11:18:26] <yugioh> Ah, great. That has been one of the biggest annoyances with slaves, having to load them with a ton of diffusers, knowing most will be wasted far before you get to the boss.
[11:18:45] <AdminPip> you will also be able to know how much fuel and diffusers etc, they have much easier then before
[11:19:04] <AdminPip> Teh Haxorz?
[11:19:10] <Teh Haxzorz> Will I be able to control my galaxies bases without needing to be docked in each of them?
[11:19:34] <Teh Haxzorz> For instance, will i be able to press X on them and an option to target a specific ai etc come up?
[11:19:47] <AdminPip> This is where the website comes in, we will have control options from the website itself for bases and possible trade slaves
[11:19:57] <AdminPip> oh, you mean for attacking?
[11:20:01] <Teh Haxzorz> Both
[11:20:14] <AdminPip> For attacking you'll be able to click on the base, right click on the target to attack it
[11:20:14] <Teh Haxzorz> Trading and attacking. Bases in general would be cool
[11:20:25] <AdminPip> just like you will be able to do for drones and slaves
[11:20:28] <AdminPip> RTS style controls
[11:20:32] <Teh Haxzorz> Okay, cool.
[11:20:43] <Cyanide> Pip, is the menu likely to show their items ( such as the left hand collumn on our current screen with gear) regarding yugiohs question
[11:21:16] <AdminPip> yes, but how isn't quite planned yet
[11:21:21] <AdminPip> also, just wait for your turn
[11:21:23] <AdminPip> you'll have more
[11:21:32] <AdminPip> m000, you got a question?
[11:21:44] <m000> autofire
[11:22:07] <AdminPip> i don't think that should be too hard, so it would be possible
[11:22:20] <m000> many ppl will be pissed if that wont work anymore :p
[11:22:21] <AdminPip> maybe hitting shift space or something
[11:22:33] <AdminPip> i'm saying something that is actually part of the game, not buggy
[11:24:30] <AdminPip> Mole
[11:24:58] <Mole> Will low stealth/cloaked ships still only become visible when close?
[11:25:17] <Mole> Sorry, lemme rephrase
[11:25:28] <Mole> Will they just appear out of nowhere still?
[11:25:44] <AdminPip> no, the visibility system is getting a rework
[11:25:48] <AdminPip> it will be more progressive
[11:26:09] <AdminPip> Alright, Searg1, whats your question?
[11:26:38] <searg1> Will there beable to have like 50 pc?
[11:26:54] <searg1> i mean rc
[11:27:08] <AdminPip> No, the gameplay will not change for the most part
[11:27:09] <searg1> *RC
[11:27:15] <searg1> oh ok
[11:27:27] <AdminPip> Is there anyone on that hasn't had a chance to ask a question yet?
[11:28:03] <AdminPip> alright
[11:28:09] <AdminPip> Cyanide, do you have a new question?
[11:28:12] <Cyanide> Yes
[11:28:17] <AdminPip> go for it
[11:28:40] <Cyanide> With regards to the graphics, how is it going to work when players sit ontop of eachother? Because i notice don the trailer about the ship floating over the centre of the sun
[11:29:34] <AdminPip> That's isnt something we have really worked out yet, right now though we're thinking of just letting ppl go through each other, like it does in WoW and most other MMOs
[11:29:42] <AdminPip> most other solutions come with some disadvantages
[11:29:59] <AdminPip> haven't really*
[11:30:09] <Cyanide> Ah okay, just want sure if players would stack
[11:30:30] <AdminPip> stacking would cause issues if you have 10-20 ppl doing it on purpose, or just waiting on a UZ warp
[11:30:42] <searg1> Pip i gtg ok
[11:30:44] <Cyanide> Yes, going through would be the easiest solution
[11:30:53] <AdminPip> Yugioh, a new question?
[11:30:57] <yugioh> Yeah
[11:31:58] <yugioh> Not exactly C2, but what is the status of all the cool organic stuff which was mentioned before? They were supposed to be the new high-end stuff, totally different than any previous style.
[11:32:24] <yugioh> They would start out weak, but you would train skills to increase their stats. It would take a ton of SP to make them strong, but they would eventually be the best.
[11:32:44] <yugioh> It was also supposed to be really tough to get them, iirc. Some huge mission chain, to learn how to use them.
[11:32:51] <AdminPip> Organic stuff comes up pretty often cause it could be very cool, and i think one thing was to integrate them into the new ALien Invasion stuff
[11:32:56] <yugioh> Will that be out with C2? After? Has it been scrapped completely?
[11:32:58] <yugioh> Will that be out with C2? After? Has it been scrapped completely?
[11:33:00] <yugioh> Oops
[11:33:19] <AdminPip> our plan was for disposable ships (the blow up when you die) but the cost isnt the ship, its acquiring the skills that make them good
[11:33:20] <yugioh> Oh, cool. I hadn't heard about it for a while, I thought it may have just been forgotten.
[11:33:40] <AdminPip> I don't have much more detail then that at the moment
[11:33:49] <AdminPip> it would require a lot of new programming, so it may not be till later in the year
[11:34:00] <AdminPip> Teh Haxorz?
[11:34:04] <Teh Haxzorz> Yes
[11:34:06] <Teh Haxzorz> In C2, will the graphics change for the different types of base kits? Such as Fortified, Laconia, Demented and Adamantium kits.
[11:34:38] <AdminPip> Right now we only have 1 graphic, but hopefully before it comes out we can get someone to make a few different ones. NOt sure what the plan is on that though.
[11:34:51] <Teh Haxzorz> Ok
[11:34:56] <AdminPip> m000?
[11:34:59] Death's Umbra has a question
[11:35:05] <AdminPip> alright, ill add you to the list
[11:35:34] <m000> i want in-game "notepad" for sum memos... data would be stored on server side. and possibly memos with timers... with alert. like... i add description and manhours/seconds/minutes... and it alerts me
[11:36:23] <AdminPip> That's a good idea, i've written it down, though its not a question
[11:36:27] <AdminPip> Mole?
[11:36:58] <yugioh> Gotta log, please remove me from the list.
[11:38:05] <AdminPip> Death's Umbra, your turn
[11:38:18] <Death's Umbra> You've mentioned Alien Invasions a few times, how are they going to work?
[11:39:04] <AdminPip> Details still need to be worked out, but the story will go something like near the start of the Uni, a portal will be open, and evil hostile forces will start coming out, slowly gaining in strength
[11:39:07] <AdminPip> over the age of the uni
[11:39:19] <AdminPip> until finally they are too strong for even the whole playerbase to hold back
[11:39:24] <AdminPip> and when they reach sol it would be a reset
[11:39:55] <Death's Umbra> We still going to have time to pack our bases and such? or is it going to be a matter of guessing when they hit sol and try to be ready?
[11:40:18] <AdminPip> My guess would be that when they reach sol it would be a 2 week deal like it is now
[11:40:30] <AdminPip> Again, details on this need to be worked out
[11:40:31] <Death's Umbra> nice, sounds fun! thanks!
[11:40:58] <AdminPip> Alright, that's it for today, i gtg to lunch
[11:41:07] <AdminPip> I will have another one soon (maybe this afternoon)
[11:41:18] <AdminPip> im going to make a post about it in dev notes
[11:41:26] <Teh Haxzorz> Thanks pip, cya
[11:41:37] <Cyanide> Thank you

For now, don't comment on the answers here, just come onto the chat client @ 2pm eastern and ask your questions there and I'll add onto that.

Thanks,
Pip

Chat log of the second Q&A session:

[14:09:16] <AdminPip> alright lets get started
[14:09:19] <AdminPip> Cyanide?
[14:09:36] <Cyanide> We know C2 is going to be 3D, However is there an option to play it in 2d still?
[14:10:08] <AdminPip> Not really no, but if you play it from 0 degree tilt, it looks pretty flat and almost like the current client, just with better lighting and effects
[14:10:47] <AdminPip> C1 will no longer work once the server is switched to c2 mode since a lot of messages are different
[14:10:55] <Cyanide> Okidoki
[14:11:17] <AdminPip> Teh Haxorz, your turn.
[14:11:32] <Teh Haxzorz> What are the minimum system requirements? How will the different quality levels change how it looks? Is it gonna be based purely on the quality of textures etc?
[14:12:03] <Rene> iam here too,Pip
[14:12:07] <Teh Haxzorz> Will a computer running C1 now be guaranteed to run C2?
[14:12:34] <AdminPip> Our current plan is this: Low, Medium, High, Very High as the basic settings
[14:13:00] <AdminPip> these will actually just be setting a number of settings to a default depening on the one you choose
[14:14:02] <AdminPip> Once you pick your overall setting, you can customize it by changing the individual settings
[14:14:07] <AdminPip> depending on what you want to look good
[14:14:31] <AdminPip> things like Anti Aliasing would be default on the higher end ones, but not on the lower end ones
[14:15:00] <AdminPip> Hopefully, Low will be able to run on pretty much any machine with a halfway decent video card
[14:15:20] <AdminPip> there can't be any guarantee of a machine running c1 being able to run c2, however, most machines should run c2 better
[14:15:26] <Teh Haxzorz> Okay
[14:15:48] <AdminPip> I don't have the exact list of settings that you will be able to pick from as we have not established them yet
[14:15:51] <AdminPip> Damen, your turn
[14:16:20] <Damen> Since there's different tilt views is there a first person? and also will there be a beta testing period for C2?
[14:17:37] <AdminPip> I don't think First person will be in at first since a lot of the models are not made to be seen that way, maybe eventually though
[14:18:10] <AdminPip> we plan on having a closed alpha in late july, open beta in august, release in late september or october
[14:19:19] <AdminPip> flo02
[14:19:28] <flo02> If you use cloak in C2, will your visibility bar drop down or stay the same like now? Are there depths and heights in a gal like 1 planet is lower/higher than the other? 360 View?
[14:20:14] <AdminPip> The bar should drop, as the visibility system is being reworked (partially answered in first Q&A)
[14:20:44] <AdminPip> All the planets will beon on one plane for now
[14:20:49] <AdminPip> what do you mean by 360 view?
[14:21:08] <flo02> like that you can turn your camera in all directions, from the left right etc
[14:21:30] <AdminPip> right now there isn't, but it wouldn't be hard to add, so we may do it before the end
[14:21:37] <AdminPip> Rene, your question?
[14:21:40] <Rene> whats the estimate time on C2,and will there be another C2 video#?
[14:21:53] <AdminPip> first question is answered above
[14:21:59] <AdminPip> and yes, there should be one soon
[14:23:52] <AdminPip> alright, lets move back to Cyanide
[14:24:26] <Cyanide> Will there be any changes to the graphics of e.g bullets hitting ships, gremlins etc?
[14:24:46] <AdminPip> Yes, explosions look a lot different now then they did in c1
[14:25:01] <AdminPip> gremlins and auras currently look about the same, not sure if there is a plan to change those before release
[14:25:13] <AdminPip> most of the graphics will look different though
[14:25:35] <AdminPip> Teh Haxorz?
[14:26:25] <Teh Haxzorz> Is there anything you can tell us about the bana UZ? I heard that it was to be released with Client 2, so will it be the place to train the new t21 skills?
[14:27:13] <AdminPip> I think it will be tied to t21, however, i dont know much more then that
[14:27:26] <Teh Haxzorz> Okay
[14:27:32] <AdminPip> All i know is its being worked on
[14:27:47] <AdminPip> Actually my info is wrong, seems it might be tied to t22 or 23
[14:27:58] <Teh Haxzorz> Oh, thats even better
[14:28:33] <AdminPip> Damen
[14:28:57] <Damen> Will there be an upgrade to server stability? because at the moment we have alot of problems and they will increase with C2
[14:29:25] <AdminPip> What kind of problems? It seems to me that the server is more stable then it ever has been.
[14:29:46] <AdminPip> However, Jey is working on Databasing the save completely, which will make saving much quicker and therefore rollbacks will be very small, if any
[14:30:13] <Damen> nice, the lag affect when u hit something with alot of damage
[14:30:38] <AdminPip> I haven't seen that before, maybe i dont do enough damage
[14:30:51] <AdminPip> The multithreading has made the server quite a bit faster, but we're always working on improving the speed
[14:31:03] <Damen> oh ok, thanks.
[14:31:06] <AdminPip> hopefully we'll be able to keep up with the demand of C2, else we will make a new server
[14:31:23] <AdminPip> Pony's turn again
[14:31:31] <Apocalypse Pony> When people reach the end of the game and lose all of the AI to level on like Bizman. Well i was wondering if we will have higher level AI to bring back old players and keep the ones we have happy.
[14:32:24] <AdminPip> Well, things like the Hive and such are added for that reason, and as our content devs get more familiar, we should be seeing more of those
[14:32:31] <AdminPip> also, the new UZ will contain higher level AI to kill
[14:32:45] <Apocalypse Pony> Ok, thanks. It sounds fun .
[14:32:56] <AdminPip> Hopefully that will clear room in the current UZ for the lvl 1000's
[14:35:12] <AdminPip> Cyanide, we're back to you
[14:35:41] <Cyanide> Yay. For these new items, are there likely to be a new "range" of BP's and things to work with in the new UZ?
[14:36:10] <AdminPip> I don't have any more info about the new UZ than what i've already said. I will try to get Cael to come on next chat.
[14:36:26] <AdminPip> Teh Haxorz?
[14:37:00] <Teh Haxzorz> Can we expect new commods to be added to the game? For building these new higher tech ships etc., as well as to sell to colonies?
[14:37:21] <Teh Haxzorz> With client 2 that is
[14:37:43] <AdminPip> The more we go into content, the less i know, so I don't know the answer to that.
[14:37:51] <Teh Haxzorz> Ah, okay then
[14:37:59] <AdminPip> You guys can ask anything about the new client or the new website, but the new content i don't know much about
[14:38:06] <AdminPip> Damen, do you have something else?
[14:40:39] <AdminPip> Pony, anything else?
[14:41:34] <Apocalypse Pony> Well some of the F2P just kinda don't quit the game or go P2P. C2 has cost you guys some $$$ i would think. Any plans to limit the F2P trial so they don't leach off a good game.
[14:42:23] <AdminPip> Our business model is going to stay the same for now, as it works pretty well.
[14:43:05] <AdminPip> Turbinia, your question
[14:43:25] <Turbinia> allright my question is about dual monitor and multiclienting support
[14:43:48] <AdminPip> the question being will it be supported?
[14:43:48] <Turbinia> will you be able to run more than one client on differnt screens, and at differnt resolutions
[14:44:14] <Turbinia> and will there be a windowed mode where you could drag to resolution
[14:44:20] <AdminPip> I know you'll be able to run multiple clients on different screens, however different resolutions would be an issue
[14:44:38] <AdminPip> at least, for storing of profiles, so maybe we'll have to think about that when we save the settings info
[14:44:52] <AdminPip> i dont think there will be a dragging resize, no
[14:45:10] <AdminPip> but there will be an actual windowed mode
[14:46:29] <AdminPip> haxorz?
[14:46:45] <Teh Haxzorz> Yes I have a question
[14:47:17] <Teh Haxzorz> This new website; is it going to be a while new website, in terms of functionality and graphically? Or is it just being updated with some new features such as the base control and trade etc.
[14:47:47] <Teh Haxzorz> whole*
[14:47:48] <AdminPip> It will be completely new, new system, new forums, new look. We will port over the history of the forums, however.
[14:48:06] <AdminPip> If you want to know more about the system we will use, look up Drupal.
[14:48:13] <Teh Haxzorz> Ok, cool.
[14:49:07] <AdminPip> Pony, back to you, anything else?
[14:50:17] <AdminPip> Turbinia?
[14:50:28] <Turbinia> k got one about the huds
[14:50:32] <AdminPip> alright
[14:50:53] <Turbinia> there was take about them being editable in a style sheet, how does that actually work? not in detail
[14:51:53] <AdminPip> Its more of an XML file then a style sheet. You can set positions and dimensions of the stuff. The UI system is still being worked on though so its hard to tell exactly what will go in
[14:52:02] <AdminPip> eventually, if not right away, it will be fully modable
[14:52:31] <Turbinia> allright done with questions
[14:52:37] <AdminPip> Zaka2
[14:53:16] <zaka2> Just wanted to know will you beable to delete characters with C2?
[14:53:34] <AdminPip> I dont think players will be able to delete characters, but maybe by filing a support ticket. This has nothing to do with C2 though, just server side support, which Jey has added recently.
[14:53:59] <AdminPip> Damen, what was your new question?
[14:54:16] <Damen> are u familiar with runescape?
[14:54:29] <AdminPip> not much, i think i may have played it once a long time ago
[14:54:32] <AdminPip> 5+ years
[14:54:40] <Damen> was wondering if the transition from C1 to C2 would be like the transition from Runescape classic ro runescape 2
[14:54:47] <AdminPip> no idea
[14:54:54] <Damen> hehe k logging now
[14:57:37] <Turbinia> will the new tech 21 ships be completely better than the t20 UZ ships, or will the compete with one another
[14:58:10] <AdminPip> i'm guessing the lower end t21 would be about the same as UZ, then maybe some better ones, but i really don't know much about content
[14:59:42] <AdminPip> alright, i guess this conclude the Q&A
[15:00:00] <AdminPip> i'll be having more over time until C2 comes out
[15:00:10] <Teh Haxzorz> Okay, thanks again
[15:00:10] <AdminPip> till next time!

-pip-

[14:30:13] <Damen> nice, the lag affect when u hit something with alot of damage
[14:30:38] <AdminPip> I haven't seen that before, maybe i dont do enough damage
[14:30:51] <AdminPip> The multithreading has made the server quite a bit faster, but we're always working on improving the speed



This Is Particles from when a weapon does alot of damage particles increase with the amount of damage done, a low end card, or a integrated gets effected by this alot...But since you (pip) use a decent computer you havent and never will see this. Also, you get this when someone goes stealthy and suddenly does an MD shot or thrust, It was alot worse then the MD did alot more Damage Per Shot.

When i had my old emachines, It was bad

the one time at work when I wasnt on webchat -,-

Imo, it was an unwanted, but epic effect. When a seer shot an enemy, it always caused a "wtf was that". As far as I know, some games actually stop for half a second after you land a critical hit to improve its epicness

lol watch this if you want to see some particle lag.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWE6cCMhw9A

the graphic settings should do a lot towards moderating bad experiences with graphical lag. but something everyone has to come to terms with at some point is that you cannot leave a computer as-is and expect to run high settings.

time goes by and technology passes you by, your computer will become outdated and it is by no fault of the people who code and build star sonata.

your computer just sucks... if SS2 comes out when its supposed to be i am willing to spend a little time with people and give suggestions of cheap video card possibilities to upgrade your desktop and restore functionality on a budget. once i have seen how grueling the graphics are and the processing requirements better that is.

The SS2 particle system is designed to scale well with lot's of particles. I've yet to stress test it thoroughly on a lower end system so at the moment it's all theory.

It says on there that wach can click on a base,drones, or slaves with the Right mouse Button and then you Right click on the target you want it to attack. Can you make it so you can select many items at ounce. Like click holding Ctrl and it you can then click on Your base, 3 drones, and then 2 slaves. Then right click on the enemy and they will all fire so we don't waste alot of time. I'm also wondering if you can control teamates bases/drones and not just your own. Mabey make officer+ control all of the team's objects and anybody below Officer can only control there own Drones/Slaves/Bases.

The 3rd thing with teh hax is as far as I read.

When someone attacks my gal (yes I quit btw, just throwing my 2 cents in) I could just TRL/ada SL thier shmks...

it wud be good if UZ ships turn to P21 and that P21 wil only be for level 1000+ because alot of people make alts that have a Rhino or Panther at level 500, so it wil be more balanced.
so you first gotta train some more before you can get a UZ ship for ya alt.

So, you want everyone who paid dozens of billions of credits for a ship alone, along with dozens more for augs, to be useless until they can train P21? And what about all the people who already HAVE the UZ ships on a char under level 1000?

Upgrade Kits for UZ ships only, to bump them up to tech 21?
would be useful, that they'd become tech 21 and got upgrades in their stats.
the kits would make sure you'd have p21 before you'd upgrade them

No.. dont make UZ t21
leave em as is
Add new t21
Like from the bana uber zone
Although please add another t20 capship as well..

not a new tech 20 capship but a tech 21 capship