Week ban

[Khatovar]

I hope that's not the case, I was planning on using AutoIt w/ ISBoxer when i finally set up my DB. Though not in the same capacity, just to enable or disable auto attack so i don't have to keep spamming 1 for hours on end.

Let us know.

Automated is automated. I would advise against using anything to automatically do anything in SWTOR until we finally get some sort of answer on what is and is not allowed in the game. If it requires physical input to do, then use physical input, especially since you're posting this in a thread talking about someone being banned.



And yes, I did send one of my trademarked long-winded emails to them this morning asking for them to get off their asses and clarify what is and is not allowed as far as multiboxing/mouse/keyboard functions. Now we get to play the back and forth game as they send me to the support site a dozen times.

[Lax]

I hope that's not the case, I was planning on using AutoIt w/ ISBoxer when i finally set up my DB. Though not in the same capacity, just to enable or disable auto attack so i don't have to keep spamming 1 for hours on end.

Let us know.

I don't think there's any question at all that doing so is against the rules of SWTOR and most other MMORPGs. It's pretty explicitly stated...

From the Rules of Conduct for SWTOR, as linked by Darkmod, you may not:

- Use or distribute unauthorized "auto" software programs, "macro" software programs or other "cheat utility" software program or applications.
- Use any game hacking/altering/cheating software or tools.

AutoIt is clearly an "auto" or "macro" software program.

[zenga]

I don't understand people to be honest ... you know that multiboxing is already balancing on a very thin line. Using a software keyboard broadcaster is basically automating in the strict sense, they just don't ban the use of it. The more if you take dynamic keymaps, up/down state, repeater regions, ... into account, And then you plan to use a macro tool in conjunction with that?

*shakes head*

[Vecter]

Come on people use your heads please! ANY automation is NOT allowed, period. Don't do it, boast about it and then complain about it when you get banned. You just create more reasons for people to dislike boxers and more reasons to get boxing banned altogether.

Simple rule: Press a button, and do nothing else as your actions continue = AUTOMATION

No No No No!

[Darkmod]

Come on people use your heads please! ANY automation is NOT allowed, period. Don't do it, boast about it and then complain about it when you get banned. You just create more reasons for people to dislike boxers and more reasons to get boxing banned altogether.

Simple rule: Press a button, and do nothing else as your actions continue = AUTOMATION

No No No No!

I never used any Automation with SWTOR . As i said i had a custom Autoit GUI running in the background that i use for batch files and im guessing Autoit was the cause of my suspension. I should know more when customer service emails me back.


I'm not crying over spilled milk. Knowledge of prevention is not a bad thing for the community.

[DoubleBladed]

I don't think there's any question at all that doing so is against the rules of SWTOR and most other MMORPGs. It's pretty explicitly stated...

From the Rules of Conduct for SWTOR, as linked by Darkmod, you may not:

AutoIt is clearly an "auto" or "macro" software program.

well that sucks. i used it in city of heroes for years and it worked great.

i dont understand why they can say you cant use macros but at the same time they sell a $250 SWTOR official keyboard (made by razer) that's main selling & advertised feature is macros.

http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/...kie%288%29.jpg

[MiRai]

well that sucks. i used it in city of heroes for years and it worked great.

i dont understand why they can say you cant use macros but at the same time they sell a $250 SWTOR official keyboard (made by razer) that's main selling & advertised feature is macros.

http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/...kie%288%29.jpg

Because people would like to use that functionality for games that actually allow it. Would you like to switch between
multiple keyboards so that you could use features from one keyboard for one game and features from another keyboard
for another game? Seems kinda tedious...

[Khatovar]

well that sucks. i used it in city of heroes for years and it worked great.

i dont understand why they can say you cant use macros but at the same time they sell a $250 SWTOR official keyboard (made by razer) that's main selling & advertised feature is macros.

http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/...kie%288%29.jpg

Because Razer is not Bioware just like SteelSeries is not Blizzard. Like MiRai said, no one is going to spend that kind of money on a keyboard that's only useful for one game that you may only play a few weeks. Macro features are useful for not only other games, but non-gaming, too. I've never used my Naga's macro feature in a game, yet I use it every day for other things.

[Ishar]

Average single boxer can automate stupid stuff [like spamming 1, for instance] and probably get away with it ad infinity. although technically [ and this technicality might get you banned, make no mistake] these devices allow actions outside the TOS, reasonable use would be pretty hard to catch. [and most GM's would feel pretty silly enforcing it, I imagine, unless they had an axe to grind against the violator...]

The problem comes from the fact that as boxers, our visibility is obscenely high. Ergo, for better or worse, we are held to a higher standard of conduct. Not to sound negative, but because we can't get busted for boxing, we will be busted for any technical violation that they can hang on us, like it or not. [negative community feedback, if nothing else, places a microscope on our actions].

This is all pretty obvious, but, the main point is that the tool is just a tool. Hammer can be used to drive nails, or murder someone. The burden isn't on the manufacturer to make the hammer only viable as a tool and not as a murder weapon. This is impractical, at best. The context of the hammer makes it 'ok' or 'not-ok'. The 'one action per key-press' is a technical stance that blizzard took, and must be honored as such. The spirit of the law is 'no automation.' I can't imagine simple combinatorial macro's are punished very often [e.g. 2 actions per physical keypress, but no outright automation]. The legal definition allows them to punish them at discretion.

As was stated, it remains to be seen where the technical definition lies with Bioware.

As an aside, I imagine many, many players abuse the letter of the rules in various games with pauses/repeats/etc in macro software/hardware. They just aren't very visible, and aren't really violating the spirit of the rule [their character isn't really auto-reacting to anything, their just reducing their wrist strain], and ergo they aren't generally punished. That doesn't really apply to us, as boxers, though. [And it would be irresponsible to suggest someone tread that letter/spirit line. ]

[recoil101]

Average single boxer can automate stupid stuff [like spamming 1, for instance] and probably get away with it ad infinity. although technically [ and this technicality might get you banned, make no mistake] these devices allow actions outside the TOS, reasonable use would be pretty hard to catch. [and most GM's would feel pretty silly enforcing it, I imagine, unless they had an axe to grind against the violator...]

The problem comes from the fact that as boxers, our visibility is obscenely high. Ergo, for better or worse, we are held to a higher standard of conduct. Not to sound negative, but because we can't get busted for boxing, we will be busted for any technical violation that they can hang on us, like it or not. [negative community feedback, if nothing else, places a microscope on our actions].

This is all pretty obvious, but, the main point is that the tool is just a tool. Hammer can be used to drive nails, or murder someone. The burden isn't on the manufacturer to make the hammer only viable as a tool and not as a murder weapon. This is impractical, at best. The context of the hammer makes it 'ok' or 'not-ok'. The 'one action per key-press' is a technical stance that blizzard took, and must be honored as such. The spirit of the law is 'no automation.' I can't imagine simple combinatorial macro's are punished very often [e.g. 2 actions per physical keypress, but no outright automation]. The legal definition allows them to punish them at discretion.

As was stated, it remains to be seen where the technical definition lies with Bioware.

As an aside, I imagine many, many players abuse the letter of the rules in various games with pauses/repeats/etc in macro software/hardware. They just aren't very visible, and aren't really violating the spirit of the rule [their character isn't really auto-reacting to anything, their just reducing their wrist strain], and ergo they aren't generally punished. That doesn't really apply to us, as boxers, though. [And it would be irresponsible to suggest someone tread that letter/spirit line. ]

Excellent post. To add my two penneth to the final paragraph - Most MMO's use the TOS as 'a line in the sand'. If they ban everyone that steps over the line, even once, then they lose 50% of their player base. So they distinguish between people occasionally taking a step over and people who jump across and run around on the wrong side on purpose. In MMO terms this tends to be summed up by the question "Are you at the keyboard?". I often use small Logitech G15 macros for repetitive keystrokes eg in EQ2 I get off my mount harvest a gathering node, then get on my horse again. That's a world away from the old style combat macros in SWG where you'd press the button, go away for an hour then come back to a bag full of loot.

I totally agree with Ishar's point that as multiboxers we are under particular scrutiny and our actions will be monitored more aggressively by a suspicious player base. But I've always found that people get confused between multiboxers and afk bots. Afk bots are an abomination, they are the people who jump over the line of acceptability without a damn. However, I'm sure that many of you have experienced players eyeing up your multibox chars and then saying "Hmm, another ^%$£ing bot! Reported.". A short polite conversation later, and the same person is falling over themselves to apologise for misunderstanding and wishing you well. The key point being, we are at the keyboard, we're not afk.

Even when we are reported I've tended to find that GMs are more than happy once I respond to a tell and explain that I'm multiboxing. "Ah! That's fine dude, sorry to have bothered you but we have to follow up on reports. Good luck!" is usually the response.

Having said all that, as Ishar says, we are going to get into potential issues more than single boxers, and we always run the risk of getting an ignorant GM on our case or an automated ban. So that's why it's essential that we don't run obviously suspect third party apps, we don't run long term, complex macros, we don't do ANYTHING whilst AFK, and we're always polite and informative when confronted by suspicion and ignorance from other players.

Blimey, I don't half go on eh?