Suggestion: Worldpearl (Congestion/Productivity Relief)

[LDW]

Simply put, we should have a second type of Linkpearl called a Worldpearl that you could buy from the same NPC. You could equip and unequip it as normal. While equipped it could be used as a channel across all zones for events or sales or whatever. People would no longer have to idle (in Port Jeuno) in order to participate in an event that they would otherwise have missed out on if they were grinding something they could be doing instead. People could make their homepoints in home nations or wherever else again since Jeuno hardly offers anything home nations cannot, other than a focus spot for bazaars. This pearl might be slightly more spammy than current Jeuno shout/yell already is, but the benefits for congestion and player productivity would obviously outweigh the cons that could be resolved by taking your pearl off when you aren't interested.

This has probably been suggested before somehow but I seriously cannot understand why this wouldn't be a no brainer.

[Kristal]

This has probably been suggested before somehow but I seriously cannot understand why this wouldn't be a no brainer.

The Sound of a Thousand Voices Screaming in Unison

Simply put, FFXI infrastructure doesn't lend itself to such communications.
There is a good alternative though, http://www.ffxiah.com/shouts

[Godofgods]

The Sound of a Thousand Voices Screaming in Unison
True, but at the same time; theirs nothing stopping Jeuno from being the same thing relay.

its not a terrible idea, but if it would have to be equipped like a normal shell then you wouldn't be able to communicate with your own shell when thats on.

[Tile]

There is a good alternative though, http://www.ffxiah.com/shouts

I've started to have this open up on the side while playing around. Only problem I face on Carby is that 80% of the shouts are in japanese during morning/afternoon. I won't go as far as calling them racist for turning me down, it just Auto-Translate function isn't good enough anymore for end-game events. So I can only get into a handfull of JP shouts. But on the other hand I do Invite an JPs or French that want in on what im hosting.

Not sure other servers have this problem though.

[wildsprite]

Simply put, we should have a second type of Linkpearl called a Worldpearl that you could buy from the same NPC. You could equip and unequip it as normal. While equipped it could be used as a channel across all zones for events or sales or whatever. People would no longer have to idle (in Port Jeuno) in order to participate in an event that they would otherwise have missed out on if they were grinding something they could be doing instead. People could make their homepoints in home nations or wherever else again since Jeuno hardly offers anything home nations cannot, other than a focus spot for bazaars. This pearl might be slightly more spammy than current Jeuno shout/yell already is, but the benefits for congestion and player productivity would obviously outweigh the cons that could be resolved by taking your pearl off when you aren't interested.

This has probably been suggested before somehow but I seriously cannot understand why this wouldn't be a no brainer.

would this be something you would have to equip in place of your regular LS? because if no then I'm all for it, if yes then I don't particularly like the idea, perhaps a new selection under linkshell for it called Worldpearl and the Worldpearl is a key item you equip when you want it on but when you log in it is default off

[Llana_Virren]

(W)ould this be something you would have to equip in place of your regular LS? because if no then I'm all for it, if yes then I don't particularly like the idea, perhaps a new selection under linkshell for it called Worldpearl and the Worldpearl is a key item you equip when you want it on but when you log in it is default off

The issue with this is server load. Equipping or unequipping this "Worldpearl" would not change the work the server is doing to manage the chat channel.

However!

Dev team, could you consider fixing the never-used search function of "Type"?

As of now, players are able to toggle flags for "EXP, Quests, Missions" etc so that other players can see what they are looking for when doing a /search command.

I suggest enhancing this feature so that players can make smoother, more real-time updates to this flag and the flag details. This way, if a player is looking for a group to fight a certain NM, any player in the game can periodically do a /search_Mission, /search_Quest, /search_NM, or /search_Item to find players who are looking for quests, missions, NMs, or selling/buying items...

This would allow players anywhere in the world to Search what the latest "events/hunts/battles/etc" are and to contact the appropriate point-of-contact via /t without extending the /yell command to a global scale.

[LDW]

If resources and server load make this impossible then I can understand completely. That is unfortunate indeed.

As to a few other comments, the intention is not to replace the linkpearl. It would have been a second pearl that you wear and an entirely different channel. /wp or something instead of /l for linkshell.

[FrankReynolds]

The Sound of a Thousand Voices Screaming in Unison

Simply put, FFXI infrastructure doesn't lend itself to such communications.
There is a good alternative though, http://www.ffxiah.com/shouts

Wouldn't it be nice if FFXI just ported that app to an in game window?

[Camiie]

The issue with this is server load.

I guess it's good we don't have more players then. Sounds like the servers are a few lines of text away from a meltdown.

[FrankReynolds]

Somehow I picture the FFXI servers sitting on milk crates in some guys basement connected via and old-school dial up modem... the kind where you had to set the receiver on the modem.

[Camiie]

Somehow I picture the FFXI servers sitting on milk crates in some guys basement connected via and old-school dial up modem... the kind where you had to set the receiver on the modem.

It sure seems like it. Someone help me out here. Do other MMOs produced by large companies have such a delicate server structure that things like real-time Campaign updates or what's essentially a world chat channel are such severe potential risks to server health?

[Llana_Virren]

I guess it's good we don't have more players then. Sounds like the servers are a few lines of text away from a meltdown.

Sarcasm aside, you cannot underestimate the support required for this kind of chat enhancement. For those who have used a chat room before, you'll note that you cannot talk to someone in a different chat room than your own. Zones are, for this purpose, different chatrooms. The /yell command now allows you to put generic chat messages across multiple chatrooms at once (think of it as a baby version of the all-zone server messages.

Allowing a world-wide chat would not be the same as "creating 1 big chat room" but rather linking the existing chatrooms (zones) into a consolidated channel. This is where the server load comes in.

Now, you could (in theory) create a "WorldPearl," but the issue becomes "how do you impliment it". If it is pearl like a linkshell, then it's a permanent "Inventory Space -1" item, which would go against the cries for more inventory space. If it was a key item or incorporated into the Config menu, then how do you enable/disable it? Equipping/activating the WorldPearl would contradict /ls communication, or it would require a new command: /s, /p, /sh, /l, ... /w? Not to be confused with /ws <.<

In theory it is a good idea, however in practice it requires more resources for development and implementation which could be used improving other, -needed- areas.

Lastly, and this seems the most overlooked, is what priority would this have on regular chat? If /world messages take priority over /s, then whenever you have it equipped, everyone using /world would be flooded with unimportant messages stuck currently to /l and /s, /sh channels. This won't be a new channel reserved for bazaar calls or LFP groups... everyone will use it because everyone else is using it, which in turn creates flooding. This, ultimately, makes it just another way to get flooded in messages (moreso than if you're standing in Jeuno).

If the already existing /search function via the menu system worked better, we could add bazaar categories and enhance the synthing/EXP/quest search tags to more accurately find people. Right now, individual players don't use this tagging process because it is more tedious than necessary, which in turn means the players searching for these items/players don't bother with the search filter either... that's where the improvements should be focused.

[FrankReynolds]

Okay, so all arguments about whether its difficult to implement or not... Couldn't they just set up some sort of deal with r some other popular chat application company to offload the whole chat experience? I'm willing to bet that there are thousands of companies that would gladly take on 300K+ users who are guaranteed to sit for hours on end every day staring at their in app ads.

[Llana_Virren]

Okay, so all arguments about whether its difficult to implement or not... Couldn't they just set up some sort of deal with r some other popular chat application company to offload the whole chat experience? I'm willing to bet that there are thousands of companies that would gladly take on 300K+ users who are guaranteed to sit for hours on end every day staring at their in app ads.

Could they? Yes. There are a few issues with that, though:
1. Player commitment. Would it be worth downloading another app just to get a full FFXI experience? How do you persuade your player base to use this feature?

2. Cost. How would this agreement between companies look financially? Woudl players have to pay for this expanded service? Would the cost be included in the current cost to play (or add another Crysta-per-month charge)? If you do not raise cost to player, this service would come as a "loss" to the capital raised by the game. With no forseeable increase in new players joining the game (meaning no increase in capital), this would be a financial no-no, for anyone who's taken Business coursess.

3. Security and QOS. What safeguards would need to be implimented to ensure the security of the connection (and therefore the timeliness of communications? Would allowing a 3PP (Third Party Program) communicate directly to the in-game network create risk to network integrity? How would this affect console users?

Will players have to endure 3PP ads as part of this service? Would the chat be able to interface with the in-game interface (this would force us to question the server load again). What if firewalls/regions block the site in question? What if this service is not made available to all players?

These questions are not directed to you, but rather to just give you a glimpse of the many things that would be going on in the background behind this kind of decision.