Publishing own custom lelelz?

[Tomalla]

Hi ... I have little problem here ... Could anyone explain me, how does it work ??

I have done some CLs, and I've tested them, made screenshot of perfect score etc. Now I'm going there: gooroosgruntz.proboards26.com/index.cgi#GCustom, click world the CL is made in, and I want to create own topic. NOPE I can't - there's no "New Topic" button ...

Please, tell me, how is it possible to publish own CLs on this forum ? If there is topic, which explains that, sorry I don't keep forum clean

[GooRoo]

Start here and follow the directionz to create a new thread in the BETA (announcementz) Board, where you describe your Custom Level, and offer it up for someone to test for you. (It is not wiise to depend on your own testing, because you designed the puzzlez, and have a firm idea in your head of how to solve them ... and there may be other (unintended) solutionz (or problemz!) that spoil the entire Custom level.) When it has been tested, e-mail me with the WWD file (and preferably a screen grab of a "PERFECT!" solution ... and sometimez a walkthrough would be helpful ) as attachment(z).

If you copy the contentz of the code box
the stuff inside something like this
into your clipboard, you may use that to paste into a new thread. And anyone can create a new thread in the BETA Board ... only staff can create anything in the graphicz are Boardz.

[Tomalla]

Understood! Now all is clear for me. I'll start new topic there in ... about a week, maybe more. Oh, and the last things to explain:
* download link is from forum server. I could upload this CL on other server, than You may upload it ( or save it from your e-mail ) on forum server and change link. Could be?

* I don't know how to classify my level ( I mean difficult ). My opinion could be really subjective, and ... do I need some others, which could do it for me, or help me with it?

*Is walkthrough really important?

*regards, Tomalla *

[GooRoo]

tomalla said:

Understood! Now all is clear for me. I'll start new topic there in ... about a week, maybe more. Oh, and the last things to explain:
* download link is from forum server. I could upload this CL on other server, than You may upload it ( or save it from your e-mail ) on forum server and change link. Could be?

While it is easy for me to use a link from someone's own web host and a link in this Forum to get a new Custom Level ... it is also easy for anyone else to download it before it has actually been tested and verified for distribution. And it is little effort to replace a link to another web host with the link to this Forum's host ... so the only reason to use e-mail to send it to me (or to your own BETA tester) is so that it is not available before it has been proven ready to send out. For that matter, there is a Board set up that is for a Designer and BETA tester to send puzzlez and questionz & answerz about a Custom Level "in progress". To use that, one of the staff memberz can give you a password to allow you to enter the Board. Everyone else (except for staff, of course) will not be able to read what you talk about concerning the design and solution to the CL. You could post a message in that Board containing a link to your own web host for the CL "in progress". I could download it from there, when it is ready to be sent out.

* I don't know how to classify my level ( I mean difficult ). My opinion could be really subjective, and ... do I need some others, which could do it for me, or help me with it?

Your BETA tester could make a suggestion about what the difficulty level should be. The original post could be modified by the original poster or any staff member when (if?) the difficulty rating is determined to be incorrect.

*Is walkthrough really important?

*regards, Tomalla *

A walk-through never seemz to be important to the Designer, but many solverz really appreciate having it available, when they run into problemz! My personal preference is to create a walk-through using HTML, so that the reader may decide whether a certain peice of information is required ... and not have an answer boldly presented to them, before they feel they need it. A link to a picture (or detailed explanation of the solution of a mini-puzzle) may be used to provide an idea of what to do, without shoving it into the reader's face. Something like: "Having a problem with the crumble bridge at this point?" will tell the reader that clicking on the high-lighted and underlined word(z) will provide a lot more information. (But that information will not be provided until the reader really wantz it. )

[Tomalla]

Ok. So, go trough this once again:
1. Finish designing CL.
2. First BetaTest by me + screenshot of perfect score.
3. Create new topic in gooroosgruntz.proboards26.com/index.cgi?board=GCB and set status to Beta Testing, and set download link to non-this-forum server.
4. Search for guys, who would test it once again, to search some bugs etc.
5. Upload improved CL on webhost, change status to Beta Tested.
6. Send PM to You, notifying that CL is tested. Than, CL is uploading from non-this-forum server to forum server, changing download link and topic is finally moved into graphicz sets forum.
7. Eventually, CL is sent to Gruntz Fanz.

Do I understand it right?

[GooRoo]

You understand it perfectly, I think. Except your own testing is called ALPHA testing ... where you make sure that everything workz the way you intended it to work. When someone else testz it for you, that is called BETA testing ... and the tester is usually looking for thingz that do not work, or work in wayz other than the way the designer intended it to be done. For example, in Guenter's "The Gunfighter", there is a flaw that allowz the solver to enter (and leave) an area from a place they shouldn't be able to pass. (An incorrect Tile that could be used as an entrance to a plateau.) Those are the type of thingz I look for when I am testing someone's puzzle. If I find something like that, I tell the designer, so that the CL can be changed to eliminate the problem. (Since I do not know the way the designer intended the mini-puzzle to be solved, I start out looking for solutionz that are not likely ... and sometimez those solutionz work! And a well-planned puzzle is spoiled by a much easier solution than the one intended.) In chess puzzlez, anything that allowz the puzzle to be solved in fewer movez, or a move by the 'defender' that preventz the solution is called "a cook" ... so I call an unintended solution to a Gruntz mini-puzzle "a cook" when I report back to the designer.