Persistent Worlds Section Introduction
Welcome to this issue's MMO section - ostensibly entitled 'Tools of the Trade'. One issue alone is clearly insufficient to do justice to a topic of this depth and variety, so I hope that these articles form the basis of a regular series that will feature periodically in future issues.
First up is an article by George Dolbier, Senior Technology Architect at IBM who gives us an insight into the pitfalls and problems faced when selecting a strategy for your hardware and hosting.
Our second article is the first in what I hope will become an ongoing series on 'The Tools of the Trade' - an opportunity for developers of tools and middleware to let us know a little about what they offer and how they seek to improve the lot of the MMOG developer. This issue features an interview with Robert Spencer, Strategic Business Manager for BigWorld, an integrated MMOG development platform described by Microsoft Program Manager, Ravi Mehta, as being 'simply the most advanced and comprehensive solution that has ever been offered for massively multiplayer game development." If you have a company or tool that you would like to see featured in our 'Tools of the Trade' section, please send email to james@onlinegameservices.com.
James Hursthouse
Editor, Persistent Worlds Section
CEO, Online Game Services Inc.