How to Host Your Own Lan Party aka Sweat!

[TriniXaeno]

(Taken from GATT 1.0, feel free to suggest updates where applicable!)

A Lan Party, aka Sweat

What is it?

A bunch of gamers come together and play games over a Local Area Network (LAN).

 

What is so great about it?

To most gamers there are few things more enjoyable than sitting down and beating your buddies in the hottest multiplayer games and eating Royal Castle, Marios or KFC between breaks. 90% of games on the market today offer both a single player and multiplayer option. The multiplayer gaming experience truly takes gaming to another level. Matching wits against human opponents as opposed to the artificial intelligence (AI) coded into the game. For multiplayer to work your PCs need to be connected. This can be achieved in several ways:

    *

      Via the internet TCP/IP or IPX/SPX (using Kali)
    *

      Via modem to modem. (One person dials into the other players PC)
    *

      Via serial cable (A special serial cable is used to connect both PCs)
    *

      Via LAN TCP/IP or IPX/SPX

LAN party as you can guess, is all about multiplayer gaming over the last option, LAN.

 

OK, my friends and I are sold, what do we need to host a LAN party?

1. An Ethernet hub: Common sizes are 4port, 8 port and 16port. Also comes in two different speeds: 10mbps and 100mbps (fast Ethernet).

*Note: Each PC will need to connect to a port on the hub. So if you have 3 PCs @ your LAN party you will need 3 ports. 8 Pcs, 8 ports, etc... Faster is better. If money is not a problem buy the largest and fastest hub that you can get your hands on. Maybe even a switch (a specialized hub which offers far superior performance in congested Ethernet LANs) but I digress. 10mbs is more than sufficient for lag free gaming. Lag is what we call that slow down or sputter associated with insufficient available bandwidth to inform the other PCs in your multiplayer game as to what your PC is doing. Very common with internet gaming and very frustrating. The 100mbs will come in handy for other activities commonly associated with LAN parties. Copying data from each other's PCs. 10mb/s = 1.2MB/s throughput. 100mb/s = 12MB/s throughput. With a fast Ethernet hub you will be copying your pals 200MB home video in no time flat. A typical 16port 10/100 hub would cost around TT$400.00. An 8port 100mbs should set you back $200.00.

2. PCs equipped with network interface cards (NICs).

*Note: You want Ethernet Network cards which are the ones with the oversized phone line jack. Known technically as an RJ45 connector. NICs come in two speeds. Ethernet (10mb/s) and Fast Ethernet (100mb/s). NICs are relatively inexpensive so definitely go with the Fast Ethernet option as it will only set you back a couple TT dollars more. They can be found for around TT$35.00

3. Network cables

*Note: Network cables come in many flavors. You want Cat5 (Category 5) Ethernet cables. RJ45 connectors @ both ends. These also come in different flavors. Crossover and straight. You want straight. Crossover Ethernet cables are commonly used in uplink configurations for multiple hubs which lack a special uplink port and for connecting two computers directly without a hub. This last note may be of interest to many of you. With a single crossover Ethernet cable you can connect two computers via there NICs and enjoy a LAN connection between them. This is the most inexpensive way to network two computers at Ethernet or fast Ethernet speed. Length is also important. Get cables with sufficient length for your LAN party location. Judge the distance the furthest PC will be from the hub and get cables with lengths to suit.

4. Space

Much overlooked, but space is an important factor. Be mindful of the desktop area required for a keyboard, mouse and monitor and ensure there is enough elbow  room for your guests. Guys can get a little physical when the action heats up in a game. We have some classic pictures of a player ducking out of a rockets way in Quake 3 so take heed. The PCs themselves can be placed under the table on the floor. This is an aesthetic consideration, there will be those who prefer their PCs on top. If your friends are of this variety, you will have to provide a little more desktop space.

6. Games!!

There are tons of multiplayer games out there. So finding a couple good  games for you and your friends to "sweat" should not be a problem. Quake 3 and Starcraft are my poisons of choice. These are great multiplayer games. Arguably the best in their respective genres: FPS (First Person Shooter) and RTS (Real Time Strategy).

 

Great, we got all those things and we are ready to rock, anything else?

Yes. Connect them!. Power up the hub. Connect every ones PC to the hub via there NIC and an ethernet cable. Ensure the necessary protocols are installed on each PC. TCP/IP and IPX/SPX should be installed. TCP/IP requires some configuration. Use a  DHCP server for simplicity. This allows each machine TCP/IP configuration to be set to auto detect, and one machine will assign each machine an IP address and provide other pertinent network information. Tiny's WinRoute 4.1 provides DHCP functionality on Win9x and WinNT/2000 platforms and allows you to share your internet connection. Microsoft File and Printer sharing should be installed also if you wish to share folders across the network.

 

Done, anything else?

No, you are good to go. I will, however leave you with some tips.

    *

      Music. Have some PC with  big speakers pumping out mp3s to keep the LAN party alive and the adrenalin pumping.
    *

      Food. Have food and drinks  available or a phone line for placing orders to fast food outlets of choice.
    *

      Internet access. Provide your guests with net access. You can share your net connection across the LAN using a gateway server or proxy server software. NAT is the latest and greatest way to share the internet so try Tiny's WinRoute 4.1. Far superior to proxy server solutions and the crowd pleaser applications  like ICQ work perfectly over it without any special configuration.
    *

      Sweat reports. Email a summary of the day/nights events @ the LAN party to all incumbents.
    *

      Be wary of power requirements. One or two PCs will not put any strain on the breakers in a typical house but seven or eight PCs is a totally different story. Go brave, hook up the computers and if sparks begin to fly or you lose power in one half of the house, call the neighborhood electrician post haste. You may need to step up your breaker a watt or two.

 THAT'S IT. GOOD LUCK & HAVE FUN!

Look here for an excellent source of additional LAN Party info: www.lanparty.com/faq/

[TrinireturnofGamez]

 What i learned that one needs to host a lan party   from experience
Hardware : Be sure you have access to the right hardware : Cat5 network cable , a crimper , lots of ends  , a switch with enough ports for all your pcs ,  Pcs that can comfortable run  the games you want to play , chairs ,tables , monitors , fans , mice , keyboards, headphones, surge protectors.... ,

 Software : get the latest drivers for ati/nvida cards , latest patches for the games etc. , make sure the games run on every pc in the network  , and preferably have it copied to each one , 'leeching' the game causes some errors, eats up network bandwidth , and if the PC with the game goes done , all the leechers games crash .
 
  Food : Procure food before hand , make provision for vegetarians and allergies , make sure the food is fresh , if your on a budget you may choose to cook it yourself, or else you can have everyone put up for a box of chicken. Buy lots of caffienated drinks , stay away from alcaholic drinks , you don't want a carib beer lover regurgitating on someones 10 000 dollar rig .  Keep medicine on hand for common ailments eg. headaches , nasea  that can be caused be extended periods of sweating .

 Precautions : DO :
 give everybody a static ip on the network : more than once pcs on my network took the same IP dynamically  and caused conflicts .

 Have the root of all drives shared : men will come to the sweat with machines without the games and need to copy over the network, you may have men without DVD drives that want to watch a movie/install a game etc. 

Give people space : don't clutter the place with PCS/ Wires etc.  , after a man frags 100 people in quake and wins he may want to run around and wave his arms , you don't want him ripping out cables as he passes

Punish cheaters : you don't want some N00B who while loosing will go and shut down the network , discourage such behaviour with a session or two of lixx to prevent it from happening again  .

 Precautions : DO NOT
 Plug 5+ rigs into one wall socket : you may overload the fuse and set fire , run extension cords from other areas of the building to power the sweat , else you may blow the house up in the process

Allow people to hook up 7 speaker sound systems with 24 inch subs : nieghbours will pelt rocks at your house and cuss all night , also people won't be able to hear their own games .

Run to the doubles/pie man after 6 : guarenteed Sh!tt!ngs .

Depend on other people's PCS : men may bring Pentium 2s with 32mbs of RAM , or Dells without network ports , make sure you have enough pcs  for everyone, and maybe have spare network / video cards for borrow during the sweat .

will be updated as time passes .

[ProtoJoe]

BTW, as an added extra, for food. Cup Soup goes A LONG WAY! Trust me on that! And its relatively cheap....

[pleb]

CUP SOUP!!CUP SOUP!! WHATS WRONG WITH PIZZA OR KFC OR SUBWAY??

[TrinireturnofGamez]

 Pizza doesn't deliver  in d bush  , kfc is a one way street to heart attack ,  subway closes at 8 ,  what well men eat at 4 am but cup soup and cheespaste ? not to mention cup soup is cheaper  and alot more healthy .

[pleb]

   if we havin cup soup cud we at least hav chicken noodle cup soup??

[Beomagi]

precaution - dont share root drives man that's asking for trouble (though they are technically already shared \\blah\c$\). You CAN however just use a storage server with cd images.

stock up on toilet paper.
serously.

[pleb]

lol @ toilet paper
more like stock up on coffee cuz the party will be going on all night

[TriniXaeno]

rofl @ toilet paper

yeah, cup soup does do it.

thought I have my reservations over the ingredients and that styrofoam cup.

All that syntheticness just can't be good for human consumption.

Still have yet to find the perfect sweat food. Granola and Cereal were highly regarded for their non oily/sticky nature, staying power and all round wholesomeness.

Any other thoughts?

Nice thread, we already have a LAN Party 101 guide, so mergin these two.

[pleb]

what about power bars?

[ProtoJoe]

De only bad thing about granola and cereal bars was that it takes a fair amount to fill, or satisfy you. Back in the days of euro (gawd i sounding like a old man) IMO, that lilll kinda snack bar was perfect! The only quarrel was dat it does take kinda long to get service... And another thing....wtf they used to sell vitamins there? Seriously, cause that was very out of place...

[TriniXaeno]

yeah, we used to carry all kinda snacks there.

but I still find we were short on wholesome sweat food.

cup noodles was the real crowd pleaser. price/performance iwmc.

[Kaizen]

ey waht about some helpers who could bring some food like kfc buckets an thing
i always up to helpin but like 3 bucket a kfc
or some like that bring some home cooked chicken
all a that

[pleb]

chicken kinda expensive nowadays so that plan although enticing may be out of the question

[ProtoJoe]

Yea, and not only that, greesy finger food, and sweating at the same time....not a good combo....

[W1nTry]

Dread men not giving fast food credit. daz a surefiah way to even de odds dread. Buy some kfc and put it down next to de man with de most frags. Bet yuh he go drop!!!

[BountyHunter#1]

What i learned that one needs to host a lan party   from experience
Hardware : Be sure you have access to the right hardware : Cat5 network cable , a crimper , lots of ends  , a switch with enough ports for all your pcs ,  Pcs that can comfortable run  the games you want to play , chairs ,tables , monitors , fans , mice , keyboards, headphones, surge protectors.... ,

Depend on other people's PCS : men may bring Pentium 2s with 32mbs of RAM , or Dells without network ports , make sure you have enough pcs  for everyone, and maybe have spare network / video cards for borrow during the sweat .

will be updated as time passes .

From Exp lol. True Dat True dat!!
hole nite and men(pleb) trip over the only Cable we do rite!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
no thanx 2 boodoo!!!