Gilberto Gerini from Italy has some good words to say

From: Gilberto Gerini  
Date: Sat, 05 Dec. 1998

David,

I have reached Level 49 too. I’m satisfied and proud of myself,.thanks to you and your smart Web site. I did it and, more importantly, I enjoyed it.

Why I did it

The story related to my own personal best Jezzball score has probably nothing special but it is a simple one which I happily share with all the friends here.

During my last Christmas vacation in Esino Lario, a little village in the mountains - close to the Alps - up to the beautiful lake of Lecco - my friend Mauro and his son Dante, were playing an amusing game with a confusing hectic environment which I had never heard about before. It is not unusual at all for me to be unaware of PC games played by my friends, since I don’t play games on my PC at all (even if I have a lot of them). The only PC games which intrigued me in the past were Chess, Bridge and Backgammon. By definition not impacting at all with the lack of ability of my fingers on the keyboard or with the mouse (not to mention joysticks and the new generation equipment). It is not because I’m "old", I’m only 44 ! When I was 10, it was the same: I always had difficulties with  pinball machines.

So, my friends were playing without paying attention to me. Father and son were ranking scores between 100,000 and 200,000. I had been captured by the simple logic of the game and I started recommending tactics. You can imagine how they reacted. They hated me, and asked me to try and show them how good I was as a teacher. A disaster, of course.

Well, one day after that, I showed them the Hall of Fame on my PC. I had broken the 200,000 point threshold. I was a liar, but they did not detect it. (I already told you I’m not a PC player, however I do know very well how to patch files!).

This is how, last year, I have been considered the number one (in Esino Lario, 800 inhabitants).

When I came back to Milan, where I officially live - even if I spend a lot of my time traveling in and out of Italy - I decided that I had to learn how to play Jezzball, because I could expect my friends to beat me. And this was, after all that effort (!), intolerable.

I did not find your web site at that time, and I did not find anything on the Net  smart enough to quickly train me. However, since the game was tickling my curiosity, I tried to help myself.

It happened by chance that I was able to capture one ‘atom’ into a single square: Good and bad event at the same time. Good, because I eventually understood that there was something important that I was missing - bad, because I was unable to reproduce it.

After a few hours of attempts, I resigned (at that time I was not single yet, so it was not easy to get time on my PC at home. No way in the office either, since in Unisys I’m required to sell computers, not to play with them!).

Therefore, game forgotten. Then, last October, I had to rest a few days at home (after an uncomplicated operation because of my hernia, caused by my weekends spent trekking with Garibaldi - my marvelous horse). Mauro came to visit me, and invited me to Esino Lario at Christmas once again. He also mentioned that he had restarted practicing with Jezzball, so that this year he could beat me.

I had to prepare. I was ready to surf all the Net when ... I got you immediately, on the first shot.

The rest was fun. I now reached for the first and unique time Level 49 and I played Level 49 (Bis) one more time which is my actual record: 10,788,555.

Then I decided not to retire, but to rest in stand-by.

Jezzball is alive in the background of my always powered on PC.

Why did I suspend playing ?

I do believe I developed (better to say ‘gathered from the many available on your site’) a technique which allows me to replay Level 49 forever (assuming that my PC agrees), therefore I had to stop immediately - before not having a good excuse to do it.

Also I loved this game and I do not want to become bored.

What am I waiting for ?

New rules (by you) and/or a new Jezzball version (by Microsoft).

Here are a few of my thoughts:

1) You might start a category, called ‘Main Sequence’, where players, once they reach Level 49, stop their race and publish their score. The maximum, theoretical (and impossible) score is 15,209,971. However 15 Million is achievable. I do participate with my actual 10,389,584.

2) You might start a category, called ‘LEV49 baptism’, where players submit their first Level 49 score, swearing by their PC that the result is really reflecting their first lev49 achievement. I do participate with my actual 10,389,584.

You might define 49 sub-categories, one for each level of the game, where players can submit their best partial scores on:

3) ‘Minimum Time’ spent at a specific level (the maximum available time at LEV1 is 1,500 - growing up to 13,500 at LEV49). I do participate with my best result, at LEV21 with 5,133 time left over 6,500 (79% saved time).

4) ‘Maximum Bonus’ achieved at a specific level (ranking from a theoretical 18,625 at LEV1 up to 737,339 at LEV49). I do participate with my best results, at LEV49 with 663,413 (87% of theoretical Bonus), followed by LEV9 with 65,129 (also 87%).

5) You might leverage your artistic sense and your capability to detect where beauty is, and you start a new category called ‘Art expression’ where people participate with what they consider their better final configuration of atoms at the end of whatever level they like. You can judge and publish monthly the final results. Here is one of my examples.

6) Similar than the previous one, but the whole picture has to take into consideration the curious or interesting situation (whatever, also paused) that it is detected at that time. It can include comments, if not self-explanatory. I have few little things that might participate.

7) As a further option of the previous two, a background picture is also included - making all a definitive artistic form. I have some attempts, I can improve them.

We should all ask Bill Gates to let a few fanatics enjoy some more of this game, suggesting the following:

8) To make available an option, at the end of each level, which allows to save into file the encrypted environmental data so that afterwards it is possible to reload it and SEE, only SEE - not to PLAY, what the situation was (making also atoms able to ‘spin’ and to move in case they are not fully trapped).

9) To define a cost for the F3 option. Since it is possible to hang the game also switching windows, my suggestion is to make the F3 option cost ‘1 life’ per shot. This will avoid some confusion in evaluating performances.

Well, that’s all for now. I’m ready to astonish Mauro and Dante - I have one more beautiful web site (yours) to periodically check and I have found that other crazy people around the world, with a nice little interest in common, like to set up virtual communities to share ‘themselves’. Welcome.

Once again, compliments to you and thanks for your kind hospitality.

Ciao,

Gilberto Gerini

Milan, Italy

gigerini@tin.it

Also see my thoughts on personal Web Etiquette and You.

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