Communication Craziness

How do We Sort Through All the Madness?

by: Tony "RadarX" Jones

<!-- if (!document.phpAds_used) document.phpAds_used = ','; phpAds_random = new String (Math.random()); phpAds_random = phpAds_random.substring(2,11); document.write ("<" + "script language='JavaScript' type='text/javascript' src='"); document.write ("http://ads.tentonhammer.com/adjs.php?n=" + phpAds_random); document.write ("&amp;what=zone:25"); document.write ("&amp;exclude=" + document.phpAds_used); if (document.referrer) document.write ("&amp;referer=" + escape(document.referrer)); document.write ("'><" + "/script>"); //-->

href='http://ads.tentonhammer.com/adclick.php?n=a7cd6924'
target='_blank'> src='http://ads.tentonhammer.com/adview.php?what=zone:25&n=a7cd6924'
border='0' alt=''>

Communication is one of the basic things we do in
life,
similar to eating, drinking, and sleeping. 
Without it, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy things like Coyote’s
stories.  I also wouldn’t be able to yell
at him for
talking about gnomes.   As we’ve
evolved
from simple drawings, to complex speech, to the internet boom we’re at
the
point where it’s easy to be bombarded with information.

As I sit here in the Blackscale Sepulcher with
some
guildmates,  I have five Instant Message
windows open, the EQ2 Forums, my TenTonHammer email, a horrid personal
ad
someone just linked me, and this article. 
Ok, it took me too long to flip back over and Kiara just died. style="">  I’m probably going to hear about it when she
reads this (edit: Wouldn’t you know it? She made me suffer). style="">   The
question I see begging to be answered is: 
How do we manage all this? 
Guildchat, group chat, tells, combat spam, channels…..if I stop
too long
to think about it, my head might asplode.  
I’ve found a few things that reduce my stress and allow for
easier
communication.

First, if you are in a guild or regular group, you
should
employ some type of voice chat like Teamspeak or Ventrilo. 
 While
we all know how enlightening and useful most group chat is (my groups
in
particular),  occasions do arise when it’s
easier for Tallika to scream “Radar! 
Move!” into TS versus typing it. 
Vital communication in a timely manner is something that can’t
be
stressed enough in some instances and raids.  

While there are positives to voice chat, there are
some
negatives that go with it.  Some would
argue it breaks immersion (I tend to disagree), but my biggest issue is
on busy
nights.  There are times when we have 15
people logged in and 5 of them are drunk.  
While hearing someone say “Dakota” in a funny way over and over
is
amusing, it sometimes hinders the necessary communication and we end up
right
back where we started.   It’s
a small sacrifice for the entertainment
we get, but it still seems like a Catch -22

Another piece of advice I can give, is to organize
your chat
windows.   Don’t have your combat spam
in
with your regular chat.  Put it in
another window, and get a parser if you’re trying to catch your healer
not paying
attention.  Organize your guildchat,
groupchat, and frequently used channels so you don’t become confused. style="">  We have someone, who, on a regular basis that
says “70 Swashbuckler LFG!” in one of our channels. 
It’s only funny because he’s on an entirely
different server. 

Also, switch off options and channels you don’t
utilize.  Do you REALLY need to know I
rolled a -1 on
the last loot drop?  Why are you joined
to the “Templar Channel” when you are playing a Guardian? 
Clean it up, and I promise you won’t miss that
tell from the hot chick, who thinks you are ignoring her. 

Finally, and most importantly, know your limits on
multi-tasking. Each of us is different, and the human brain can only be
subjected to so much information before it becomes an oozing mushy goo. style="">  It’s probably not the best idea to be
chatting with four different people while you are in an instance
requiring your
total attention.  It might be painful,
but your group will be thankful you wiped twice instead of the usual
eight times. 

Limit the non-EQ2 tasks you are doing as well. style="">  Yes, I know it’s a game, but should you
really be balancing your checkbook while a level 70 Epic X2 dragon is
removing
limbs from your group?  Cooking dinner,
taking out the dogs, laundry, etc… are all important real life things. style="">  Just stop what you are doing, and take care
of them.  Your group will usually
understand, you won’t set the kitchen on fire, and you’re brain won’t
melt.  Its win-win I promise. 
You have the world of Norrath at your
fingertips, but it’s not going anywhere so prioritize what’s going on
around
you.  Finally, and I can say this with
the guiltiest conscious, you should never be posting while you are in a
group.  Ever. It’s unfortunate, but I
compulsively
post repeatedly while in combat and well, I’m trying.  
*goes back to singing Chicago
from the 1980’s*  You’re
a hard habit to break!