pedr

There've been computer game versions of D&D for a long time - I seem to remember that I first read a Dragonlance novel because it was bundled with a Dragonlance computer game. There are two MMOs directly based on D&D products - Dungeons and Dragons Online takes place in Eberron with recent Forgotten Realms expansions, and Neverwinter takes place in the Realms city of that name. Neverwinter is closely connected with current story developments in the Forgotten Realms, with special events which link to recent novels or published adventures. But there's an increasing use of technology to support pen and paper roleplaying including the relatively simple use of form-fillable or interactive character sheets, unofficial and official character creation tools, and a crowded market for programs that create virtual tabletops so people in different places can play the same traditional game. These allow the GM to import images to act as maps and 'miniatures'/tokens, draw on gridded white-boards, hide parts of the map until the PCs can see them, track hit points, etc, as well as - in some cases - integrating voice and video chat so you could play B2 with friends who've moved away, or strangers you've met on a message board! The product that's getting a lot of use at the moment is at http://roll20.net The other thing that technology has done is to bring the cost of publishing down, so a lot of games are available as PDFs or ebooks, or as print-on-demand, so it's easier than ever to get a game or supplement you've written into the hands of people who might like to play it (and might pay for it!)

The new edition of D&D looks due to be released shortly, with a date of July 15th pretty much confirmed for a US release of the Starter Set. I expect there'll be various launch events, including ones at Patriot Games where I run things, if anyone on this thread is interested. I'll come back when there's something concrete to announce!

If it's still of interest, I know that a lot of Yu Gi Oh play happens and is organised at Patriot Games on Lady's Bridge by the Wicker.

Hi! There are a few Sheffield RPG groups. Some people play at Patriot Games (http://patriotgames.ltd.uk) which is on Lady's Bridge. I help to organise D&D games there on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and there are also games on other nights of the week, so it'd be worth calling or dropping in and chatting to them. I think there are Sheffield people involved with various Pathfinder games. Again the staff at Patriot will probably know who to contact. You might also want to think about Seven Hills, advertised in this group, as going to a small friendly convention is a good way to meet local people who play!

The main event in Derby is Con-Quest at the Assembly Rooms. The next one is May 4th 2013: http://www.con-quest.co.uk/ Do call into Patriot Games on Lady's Bridge and ask about games running there or look at the notice board they've got up! If you want to try out the next edition of D&D before it's even released, there'll be games running at Patriot on Wednesday nights from February 6th (starting around 6pm). Other RPGs tend to run on Mondays.

Not only is parking controlled, but when I looked into it a little it appears that owners/residents in the new flats will not be entitled to purchase on-street parking permits. I think there is one allocated parking space for each flat in the car-park which will form part of the development. It's a very leafy area; it's also right next to Hallam's Collegiate Campus (some flats will probably be able to look down onto the University grounds) so expect at least some late-night revelry noise. It's a reasonably long way up the hill from Ecclesall Road so it'll only be students walking up/down being noisy, but it's worth bearing in mind.

I haven't read the regulations, but unless you're accusing the posters here who have of misunderstanding or misrepresenting them, there's nothing that the new authority can do - well, apart from waive any fine in these circumstances. The way the law is set up, the only person who is liable for a fine is the registered keeper. It doesn't matter if that isn't the person who was driving, the law says they are liable. Contrary to earlier suggestions this is not a breach of anyone's human rights - the law clearly says that it is a civil obligation and there is a fair process to ascertain whether or not someone is liable to pay. The fact that you don't like who the law says is liable to pay is not a human rights issue (read the ECHR and try to find a provision which applies, if you don't agree). Similarly this has absolutely nothing to do with the EU so the ECJ could not get involved. Although people like to believe it, there are only very limited parts of English law which are affected by the EU, and only those bits can be discussed at the ECJ. This situation is only going to be changed by Parliament, so if you disagree with it, contact your local MP. No-one else has any power to do anything about it, and until and unless Parliament changes the law, it will be registered keepers who are pursued for decriminalised traffic offences, and no-one else. To the OP: your situation is unfortunate, and the result of a somewhat badly thought-through law. I do think it seems very unfair, but blame should be placed with Parliament, not the local council which administers the scheme, I'm afraid. Perhaps a letter to the garage would be a good first step, and least confrontational.

The regulations say that the registered keeper of a car which commits this kind of offence must pay a fine. Who is the registered keeper of a car with cloned plates? It is not the person who owns the car which legitimately has that registration number, it is the person who owns the car carrying the cloned plates. So the council cannot enforce the notice against the person it will send the letter to - as they are not the registered keeper of the car which infringed the regulations. They can only enforce the notice against the registered keeper of the actual car, and that person cannot be traced from the registration number. This is completely different to the OP's situation: there he is the registered keeper, and the law says he is liable. We can debate whether that's correct or not, but it is the law.

I once ran the line for a charity football match which Emlyn Hughes was playing in. That's my closest claim-to-fame, I think Oh, and my housemate last year was good friends with the winner of Beauty and the Geek, so he came round quite a bit. I lead an exciting life, don't I?!

It is a place which seems to attract completely divergent reviews! I've been twice and thought it was great both times. Staff seemed friendly, food was good, service prompt and atmosphere genial.

Hi historian, I'm considering starting to run the Paizo 'Rise of the Runelords' Adventure Path soon. I have one interested player and perhaps a newbie who'd join. I'm interested in having 4 or 5 players and playing roughly fortnightly, either on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Does that sound like it'd interest you (or interest anyone else!)? It'd be D&D 3.5 with a reasonable focus on core rules, but I'd be open to allowing various supplements. Drop me a PM if that sounds like it'd be good for you. In fact, drop me a PM anyway: I'm hoping to organise 4E things as soon as it comes out and as I've only just moved to Sheffield I've not met many people interested in D&D yet!

You can also get a mobile phone/PDA/modem with one tariff for both calls and internet use. I have a T-Mobile MDA Vario III which is a Windows Mobile PDA thingy (mobile internet, push email if you have access to an exchange server, reads Word files etc etc) and which also connects to my laptop and acts as a modem. Speed's quite good - I was using it a lot over Christmas as I was away from home and didn't notice it being too much slower than ordinary broadband speeds. The downside is that it's £42.50 or thereabouts for the tariff! Oh, and no VOIP or file-sharing, and a 'we'll be a little annoyed if you regularly use more than 3Gb a month' fair use policy.

ISTR, though I don't have a source, that while the legal strategy which the Gore team was pursuing would have led to a recount which Bush would still have won (had the SCOTUS sided with Gore), an actual 'count every vote again' recount would probably have led to a very slim victory for Gore. However no-one was advocating that kind of recount - mainly because the Gore team thought they had more chance of securing victory aiming for the partial recount they favoured, than if they asked for a full recount, and because time was of the essence and so asking for a full recount was going to find even less favour with SCOTUS who presumably wanted to keep the whole process on track. Of course nationwide, Gore got more votes than Bush, but that's immaterial under the current system.

I'm going! At least I hope I am - I have yet to figure out how best to get back to Sheffield by public transport in time for the 10am lecture I'm giving on the Monday! It should be fantastic, though ... Go Giants!! While I'm thinking about American Football, what're the student teams like? Have you ever seen them play?

I'd consult a solicitor - if you really want the job that badly! Basic contract law allows for fully binding contracts to be concluded verbally. If you accept the contract prior to the offer being withdrawn, both parties are bound. It may be that if proper procedures weren't followed other parties might have cause for complaint or a claim for compensation but that wouldn't necessarily affect the existence of a contract between you and the potential employer. On the other hand, your remedy would probably be damages for breach, not an order that the contract be performed - courts don't like to order the enforcement of employment contracts, as a rule - so the question would be, "how much money have you lost due to the breach", not, "does the company have to employ me?" But as I said, contact a solicitor.