<font:Palatino Linotype:24>RTB in Retrospect<font:Palatino Linotype:18>
I happened to be in Badspots Block Party, enjoying one of the large builds he frequently hosts, when Ephialtes approached me and asked me if I would like to write the forward to the RTB manual. Of course I told him it would be my pleasure. There were a few jokes about the source code of RTB being passed down by Gregorian monks during, mass produced on the Gutenberg press and more than likely a few jokes about dead (and a few living) presidents, but I was at a loss as to what really should go into it. Then it kind of came to me, why not just write about what led up to the new version of RTB? No one else remembers it, so no one will be able to correct you, and whatever you say will end up going down in the books as fact...

Then again, writing about something you hardly remember is really difficult.

So, armed with FireFTP and a machete, I began to dig through RTBs past. Sifting through 139MB of now defunct RTB instillations, backups of news pages on the RTB FTP, and a few forum posts, I was able to track its history, which you can view on the next page. The release dates were obtained by looking through the installations and finding the file with the latest last modified date. Except where the release date is directly posted on the blog (which they werent until 1.02), these are the only clues we really have as to their release dates. In most cases, this was banlist.cs, although at one point atv.dts provided a few clues.

After all this research, is there anything really showing why or when they started this movement towards a community oriented manager having more in common with Steam than a mod? The later versions of the community included a Download section that foreshadowed the development of the RTB Mod Manager. There was also a special Mappers Club you could join, that gave you access to a private forum. Here we really can see RTB shifting from a mod adding game play to a full blown community and content management system.

The new RTB really provides a lot of solutions that have been plaguing developers over the years. How do I make sure everyone has the latest version of my mod? How can I make installation as easy as possible? How do I get as large a user base as possible? What if people make content packs, how can I really be sure I receive proper credit?

RTB automatically updates mods when the developer uploads a new version. The news feed also displays any mod updates. Players are no longer responsible for installing the product, all they need to do is click the download button and start playing. RTB already has a large fan base. When a mod is uploaded to the mod exchange, an announcement is posted directly to the news feed, instantly exposing your mod to hundreds of players. Finally, RTB has a new presets feature. Rather than taking mods without permission and releasing them in theme packs, the RTB team creates presets, or sets of mods. These arent actually packages of mods in the traditional sense, they contain no actual content. Rather, they are suggestions of mods that go well together, more like bundles of links. The player has the option to download them all, while the developer maintains full control of the mod. The developer is still credited for every download made through presets, and there are no issues with outdated mods- the preset automatically updates with the latest version of the mod.

Despite all these new features, are there things I still miss about the old RTB? Yes, but something I discovered while writing this article was that it wasnt so much the content and the feel of the old RTB, it was the fond memories of all the fun I had on it. The commercial version of Blockland was not the end of the fun and this release of RTB will not be the death of RTB. I think, instead, its the beginning of a very bright future, where players and developers can connect and share better than ever. I have no regrets, Im very enthusiastic about the direction the mod team chose, and I cant wait for what theyve got coming in the next version.

Cheers, and good building,
Wedge