Introduction

Welcome to Bagel (pronounced bay-gull). Bagel is an acronym for the BAngalore Gaming LEague, which is set up to bring people interested in computer games together. At Bagel, we try to organize LAN parties, which are basically multiplayer gaming sessions, encourage discussion and reviews of existing and upcoming game titles, and simply have fun! (Yes I stole that picture from Manhattan Bagel until somebody can actually find me a bagel in Bangalore that I can photograph and put here instead.)

Bagel was started because many of the people I have met in Bangalore expressed considerable interest in computer games. I personally am extremely interested in networked or multiplayer games, and unfortunately there is not much of an opportunity for people in Bangalore to become involved in such games. Although Bagel is an unofficial, friendly group for now, it provides a place where we can get together for several hours or even an entire day and just play networked computer games. Everyone participating brings their own PC's along, loaded up with whatever games we have planned, and basically we just network up and off we go. We will primarily play LAN or internet-based multiplayer games, but are completely open to other types of games.

Participation in Bagel is FREE for the time being. However as we grow, the resources required to host a large group of computer players become too much for an individual or a small group of individuals to afford. When we grow to such a size, we expect to establish a small fee for attendance. This fee will likely be comparable to the price of a movie ticket or something similar.

Bagel hosts its events by invitation only. This is because we are only able to arrange a limited number of desks/chairs, and a limited number of routers and hubs, so if somebody showed up without an invitation, they would not be guaranteed space to place their computer or even a connection for their computer. If you or a friend of yours would like to attend, please email bagel@rasteroid.com to notify us prior to attending. Please do NOT just "show up" at the event, unless you want to bring your furniture, power supply and network hub and cabling with you.

Sessions

Please check the sessions to find out about our upcoming sessions and LAN parties.

Equipment

Each session or LAN party typically lasts an entire day. You are not required to attend the entire session, and may freely come and go depending on your schedule. Please be sure to bring the following with you:

1. Your PC with the following minimum configuration:
   • Equivalent of a 450 MHz Pentium-III processor or better
   • 64 MB RAM or better
   • Windows 98 or better
   • At least 2 GB free space on your hard drive (for downloading new levels, etc.)
   • NIC card or on-board NIC with RJ-45 port
   • TCP/IP (see below) and IPX protocols installed and configured for your NIC
2. All software pre-installed with the updates specified on the announcements page
3. A power strip with a surge protector
4. 3-meter or longer RJ-45 ethernet cable
5. (Optional) A portable, lightweight chair that is easy to carry.
6. Money for lunch, and possibly dinner, if you plan on staying that long.
7. Your raw, unbridled, teething passion for playing computer-games and outsmarting everyone else.

If you need a ride or transportation, please email us. If you have any friends that are interested in attending and haven't informed us about them, please email us. If you would like to attend but don't have a PC, please email us. As long as we have room for bystanders, you are welcome to come and watch... who knows you might get lucky and get a chance to play when one of the players needs to take a break. If you need to join the Bagel mailing list, please email us. Any other questions, please email us.

New Participants

If you are interested in joining Bagel, please first check the above equipment list to make sure that you can bring what is required to each LAN party. Additionally, please provide the following information so that we may organize games that are more suitable for you as well as all the other attendees:

1. Do you prefer Saturday or Sunday?
2. What computer games do you legally own? Bagel does NOT provide computer games. You need to buy these before coming to a LAN party.
3. What types of computer games are you most interested in? Genres or specific titles will do.
4. Which type of multiplayer gaming do you prefer? (Deathmatch, capture the flag, cooperative, or other?)
5. Do your games require additional peripherals like gamepads, joysticks, etc?
6. Will you need help transporting your PC (e.g. if you only have a motorcycle), or can you find a friend to help you transport it?

Additionally, we are always in search of volunteers who can assist us with equipment or other resources. We are looking for the following contributions:

1. Do you have an ethernet LAN router or hub that you can bring? 10 Base-T Ethernet is just fine, although 100 Base-T would be perfect. If not, do you have a USB hub that you could bring?
2. Do you own or know of any specific locations where we might be able to host the gaming events? We are looking for very cheap or free locations that have a stable power supply (or UPS/generator backup) and sufficient furniture.

Software Piracy

Finally, the important issue of software piracy. Bagel does not condone or support software piracy. All participants are expected to know how to act responsibly regarding software piracy. At the same time we understand the prohibitive costs for computer games in India. (??? If there is sufficient interest in a particular game, Bagel might be able to coordinate a bulk purchase of that game title, which would turn out to be somewhat cheaper for the players.???) We do not advocate how or where you acquire your computer games. We do not want people to be copying or duplicating games during our events. Prior to coming to an event, you will be told what sorts of games will be played, and it will be your responsibility to make sure you have those games loaded on your system before you arrive.

Links

1. LANParty.com
2. Having a LAN Party

Conclusion

LAN parties are about having fun. Like with any good group activity, some preparation needs to be done beforehand. Our events last a full-day from 10 AM to 8 PM or so, but if you only have a few hours to spare to come and play, that is fine. You do not need to be present for the entire event, although the longer you can stay, the more fun it is for everybody. We rely on some sort of delivery/takeout service to bring us food (at each participant's own expense).

Optionally, we might even set up a small prize or two for one or two of the major games that we play... Something like Quake champion or Age of Empires champion. The prize won't be anything considerable (perhaps until we find a corporate sponsor?) but I think it would make things fun just to have it :p

If you have any other suggestions or concerns, please email bagel@rasteroid.com