 |
by Chris Barylick
August 12th, 2005
They caught up with me south of Auberdine, a rescue/escort quest blown by a scripted attack after I'd found the non-player character I was looking for. Like professionals, they flanked us, healing their melee attackers when necessary and kept the pressure on. And, like rank amateurs, we died quickly, my Night Elf's bear form doing little to absorb the damage being dished out.
I began to find other games to play for the next few weeks.
Welcome to World of Warcraft, one of the most stunning, addictive and potentially discouraging games available provided things don't go your way. Like anything, there are moments of frustration and up until three weeks ago, I had completely hit a wall with my character. Log on and die or at least advance so minimally I wondered if it was worth my time in the first place.
With each new update, I began to wonder if the elements of the game that made leveling up or successfully completing a quest had been removed, as that might be the only thing that would improve the situation.
On a long enough time line, things do work out for the best. In my situation, the right girl and her perspective were able to completely change what could be considered a stagnant situation where World of Warcraft was concerned. Also vying for the title of Geekiest Human Being on the planet via a master's in computer science, affinity with the Hackers on Planet Earth conventions, heartfelt interest in running OS X on a PC laptop via VMWare and currently running a small server farm out of her basement, Laura knew the game inside and out. Currently running a level 56 character and having played since November, she began to take me under her wing and show me the potential of the game.
Chief among her ideas surrounding the game and her affinity for it was the concept that mods and workarounds should be at least experimented with, even if you're wary of the notion. Simply put, mods are small programs designed by avid World of Warcraft players that act as shortcuts, workarounds or a way of customizing the game's interface. These programs, often available for free and having been tested by their user base (which feeds bug reports back to the developers), serve a variety of purposes and allow for a finer customization of the game experience.
Oh, and interface mods are completely "legal," as far as Blizzard is concerned. The company has even gone so far as to make the interface APIs available for the mod community work with.
Leading the pack at the moment is CTMod, a mod pack that acts as a bundled collection of small fixes and extensions for the game. Despite its comparatively small download size (less than 200K), even after a week of play, I feel as if I've barely skimmed the surface of what this program can do.
Direct coordinates for objects can be easily found via the game map, notes can be written regarding locations, items, friends and tool bars can be customized as well as placed anywhere on the screen. Need to fire a quick note to a friend but don't have time to return to town, find a mail box, write the note and send it? Just pull up a menu, write the letter from the CTMod interface, send it along and get back to your quest. Other options such as auto-looting and full-looting (where a player is programmed to take every possible item from a fallen opponent) take away some of the chores of the game and party-based features help keep a group together and focused on their task.
To install CTMod, simply head to the download page, select the Core package, click "Download Selected" and let the file arrive. Unfortunately, the developers have encoded the file in a zip format Mac OS X's native decompression engine doesn't handle cleanly, which will cause the attempt to fail. Download Aladdin's StuffIt Expander utility via MacUpdate, install it, then be sure to drag CTMod's saved zip file to the StuffIt Expander icon to cleanly open the archive.
From here, drag the folders in the CT_Core Folder into your World of Warcraft/Interface/AddOns folder. Close the folders, start the game and you'll be able to cleanly access CTMod's options by clicking the "CT" icon located by your mini map.
Just play with what's there and see what you make of it. CTMod functions as a grab bag of small mods, some more useful than others to your individual needs that can be enabled or disabled at any time. See what's there, what you like and ask around on the World of Warcraft forums if you have any questions.
 A Night Elf druid under World of Warcraft's standard interface |
 CTMod's control panel after installation and launch |
|---|
Frequently updated, responsive to both the needs of its user base as well as Blizzard's frequent changes and completely functional on both the Macintosh and Windows platforms without any changes to the installation process, CTMod deserves its place among the more popular World of Warcraft mods. True, it may not radically advance your character or make the game experience everything you wanted at all times, but with an extended set of tools, the game and the veritable universe within become that much more controllable.
 World of Warcraft with CTMod installed and altering some of the game's interface." |
|---|
Stay tuned to the Slacker's Guide for more Mac, gaming and mod news and if there's anything cool you've seen or found, please let me know. Finally, if you wish to ping me online, I can be found as PoingFerret on the Gilneas server. True, I may be only level 22 at the moment and lack the cool extras that my SO has significantly garnered for herself, but at this juncture it's more about enjoying the experience of creating the character. And if she lends me any of the jaw-dropping 90 gold pieces I need to obtain a mount if and when I reach level 40, she'll never lack for roses again.
Chris Barylick covers games for The Mac Observer, and has written for Inside Mac Games, MacGamer, UPI, the Washington Post, and other publications.
Send polite comments to , or post your comments below.
Most Recent Columns From The Slacker's Guide
- Tetris Brought Up to Speed: Quinn - September 15th
- Something Cool For the Nerds: GLTron - September 11th
- Open Source Meets Soul Train: StepMania - September 1st
The Slacker's Guide Archives
Observer Comments
Mon Aug 15, 2005 10:51 am Subject: Worth giving a try!
QuoteAnonymous wrote:
I couldn't find an addons folder in that location. I created one and placed the unzipped folder there but the mod didn't work. Any help?
The instructions kind of confuzled me, too.
You actually have to take the individual mod folders out of the unzipped folder, and place them in the AddOns (spelled and capitalized just like that) folder. Then, start the game, and you should see the little (ct) emblem attached to your minimap.
Good luck!
Mon Aug 22, 2005 9:18 pm Subject: Re: where is the addons folder
QuoteAnonymous wrote:QuoteAnonymous wrote:
I couldn't find an addons folder in that location. I created one and placed the unzipped folder there but the mod didn't work. Any help?
The instructions kind of confuzled me, too.
Good luck!
BTW, that was me. I could have sworn I logged in.
I am completely confusled as to how to install this mod... and any other mod at that. I followed your instructions and made sure all the Capatalisation etc. was right. Then I logged into the game and nothing happened. i have visited several other sites looking for help but none of their instructions worked either. Erm... help? :S
QuoteMOSiX Man wrote:QuoteAnonymous wrote:QuoteAnonymous wrote:
I couldn't find an addons folder in that location. I created one and placed the unzipped folder there but the mod didn't work. Any help?
The instructions kind of confuzled me, too.
Good luck!
BTW, that was me. I could have sworn I logged in.
By "individual mod folders" do you mean that I have to extract each folder 1 by 1 out of the zip file?
QuoteAnonymous wrote:QuoteMOSiX Man wrote:QuoteAnonymous wrote:QuoteAnonymous wrote:
I couldn't find an addons folder in that location. I created one and placed the unzipped folder there but the mod didn't work. Any help?
The instructions kind of confuzled me, too.
Good luck!
BTW, that was me. I could have sworn I logged in.
By "individual mod folders" do you mean that I have to extract each folder 1 by 1 out of the zip file?
No. Just unzip the main folder, then take the individual folders from it, and place them in the appropriate location.
As a Mac user i've been super frustrated lately with the lack of UI for WoW. I've seen and heard about all the addons that are available but have yet to find anything that i can use. I'm gonna try this CTmod as soon as i get home, but what i really want to find is an Auction house mod. I've heard of Mods that allow you to scan the database of AH and it records min/max costs of items and helps you purchase things unpriced and resell them at higher prices...i've been doing this on my own for the last few months and have been able to make plenty of cash to fit my needs. but i gues it's one of those things that if it can be done easier, then why not do it. If anyone has an tips or can direct me to where i need to go i'd be forever greatful. Please feel free to email me at phoenix1847@aol.com with the info or leave it here.
Wormtail
nubsauce is having trouble in darkshore lol!
darkshore (that's where auberdine is located) is the 2nd zone night elfs get to, low level monsters, very easy to solo here, especially with a druid!
it sounds like he went down and pulled an entire camp of murlocs at once. really the game isn't that complex, and this guy is going for his masters in computer science? sounds a bit contrived to me...
I have been using CT_Mods for a while now on my Mac. problem is that the mods I need most are the Raid Assist and other raid mods. I can install the core package but for the life of me can not get the Raid Assist mods to install. Please help me. The thought of using a PC...YUCK!!
Thanks a lot =-)
theres a spectacular group of mods out there called Deuce (coded for the recent 2.0 patch) that works outstandingly well. it is CTMod, times about 5,000, and then add a couple hundred for good measure. i was wondering if you could tell me where to get Stuffit nd MacUpdate etc etc because i want to install WoW on my Mac but i dont want to lose this amazing collection. any thoughts? please email them to me at deutschmeister88@gmail.com
thanks guys, and great post!
~Olawles (60 Undead Mage - Eldre'Thalas)
I'm a PC guy so not sure of Mac directory structure so in PC lingo c:\World of Warcraft\Interface\Addons.
If you have no mods, you will have to create the Addons folder the first time.
CTmod is cool, but Mac player are at an extreme disadvantage in the mod department. There are at least 100's of Thousands of mods and combinations for the PC, making the interface absolutely anything you like. Class specific mods to bring your game to a whole new level. So if you are getting creamed and can't figure out how that Warlock can get all those spells off - It's most likely a PC user with Decursive and Lockbox. Hopefully the Mac users will convert or create some better mods to keep you competitive.
Sun May 27, 2007 4:52 pm Subject:
On the Mac, it's /Applications/World of Warcraft/Interface/Addons. And if I'm not mistaken, it's already there.
Why are Mac plays at an extreme disadvantage? All addons that I know of, including Decursive, are written in Lua, so they're machine-independent. I have dozens of mods on my Macs, and they work perfectly well (until Blizzard update the game, and the writers have to update them to work again!)
I don't personally have Decursive running, but I have several other Ace2 mods, and they work fine.
LaurieF...I wish I had your expertise in this...very dang few of the AddOns I want will work on my Mac. After downloading, unzipping, etc, they don't even show up on my AddOn list when I log on. The one I particularly want is SpartanUI, just because it gives the screen a MUCH cleaner look, nothing in the way of playing the game. Unfortunately, I can't get it (or many others) to even be recognized by the system. I honestly don't know if it's the Mac causing the problem, or if it's on the Blizzard end. I tend to think it's more of a Mac problem, cause a few others are working great. I have nothing to use to congifure my action bars, tho, and that is killing me!
Sat Jun 09, 2007 1:32 am Subject:
I hadn't tried SpartanUI before, but I tracked it down, downloaded it and expanded it. I then moved *all* the contents of the folder (lots and lots of Titan stuff, which is what SpartanUI is dependent on) into my Addons folder. With quite a bit of configuration, I got all the Titan stuff to work, but it was conflicting too much with my Cosmos addons. I think it's these conflicts that are causing you trouble, rather than the addons being on a Mac. It certainly needs a bit of tracking down, at least.
I think if you were to park all your addons into another directory, copy the SpartanUI directory contents into addons and try again, you might, just might, have some better luck.
I downloaded the program- and I have Stuffit. When I tried to unzip it- it would prompt me to pick a folder to pick where to unzipped- i tried one already on my desktop and making one, but on all tries, an error occured and I would be told ' a folder has already been specified'
I am confused
Zeuqzalev from Velen- eating rice pudding 
Fri Aug 24, 2007 9:48 am Subject: Don't Use This...And your Site doesn't work with Firefox...
Created acct, tried logging in, kept getting the submit the words as they are typed thing at the bottom, and it would just go to the next page and say I hadn't entered the correct guest code? I tried several times...you have a problem with Firefox...not unusual though, more and more I'm seeing FF not work and it's usually an issue similar to this. Safari works. On to the complaint....
============================================
I tried using the mail part of this in world of warcraft. I clicked on Open all and I got a confirmation box, and nothing opened. Then I selected the check box next to each of the emails in my list. Only 3 were there. I clicked Open Selected. AND ALL THE EMAILS VANISHED, DELETED, GONE, NOT THERE ANY MORE.
NOTHING to like about an app that DELETES YOUR MAIL WITH NO WARNING. DO NOT USE THIS.
You cannot click on any contact link at the CTMod site, it does NOTHING. You cannot CONTACT the authors because it does NOTHING clicking the link. There was NO read me included with the files. That alone should put up BIG Red Flags to any user!
ONCE AGAIN DO NOT USE THIS BUGGY PROGRAM UNLESS YOU WANT TO LOSE EMAIL UNEXPECTEDLY!!
Mods are great - they can really lend a big hand in the game. As a matter of fact, they're so great you risk getting hooked and find yourself with over fifty mods installed. It's fine to have a bunch of mods, but you've got to remember that the more mods you have the greater the chance of one mod conflicting with another mod; not necessarily a bug in any of the mods but a problem resulting from two mods trying to perform the same task. For example - Lightheaded and minimilist. Lightheaded is a mod that brings WowHead.com quest information right into your questing panels, providing excellent intel on locations, mobs and even other quests that you can do at the same time. And that's all it does - just the one thing.
Minimalist is a multi-use mod that tries to minimalize repetitive tasks. For example, selling grey items to vendors. Minimalist will "sell" them as soon as you open up the vendor dialogue, saving you the hassle of click-sell, click-sell, click-sell repeat. If that vendor can repair your armor, Minimalist will get your armor repaired as well. All this from just one click of your mouse to open the vendor dialogue. Additionally, minimalist tries to help with your quests with an option to display quest levels in the quest dialog. A simple thing, but for me I found that the one setting in Minimalist broke Lightheaded. No bug in Minimalist, no bug in Lightheaded - both mods worked fine in and of themselves.
For all you old mac users, think back to system 8 and 9. Remember having to manage extensions, and when you had a billion extensions how hard it was to track down which extension caused a problem? It's just like that. Keep your mods few, focused and updated
Use one of the pieces of software that will automate updating your mods for your - whether it's curse.com's tool or one of the tools available at wowace.com.
Anyway, I'm off to play WOW. That is, once I figure out why my cooldown bars aren't showing up. I wonder if it's because I've got three different cooldown timers installed? /practicingwhatIpreach
=D
Ardentbeam, Blackhand server US
Hi,
I'm on leopard (just incase that matters), and have Cosmos still installed on my WoW. Unlike most people, I still like Cosmos, but I've been having trouble installing add ons such as auctioneer, lightheaded.. Not sure if Cosmos is the culprit or not. Any thoughts on how to make them all work together?
Mon Nov 19, 2007 12:21 am Subject:
You have to be careful with non-Cosmos add-ons, and Auctioneer is certainly one that I rely on. If you're using the Cosmos Patcher (and I assume that you are), either leave the "Keep Interface Directory Clean" box unchecked, or in the "Manage AddOns" selections, select "Protect All non-Cosmos".
That will stop them being deleted (or moved into the Disabled folder) every time you run the patcher.
well said, mods are good. But for the more subtle tactics, am going to stick to comprehensive guides. This is my favorite http://www.killerguides.com/guides/wow/guide/world-of-warcraft, there are free ones out there too.
Comments are currently closed. Please email the author instead.
Recent Headlines - Updated November 21st
- Fri, 7:07 PM
- Games - Soccer Sim Championship Manager 2010 Released for Mac
- 6:47 PM
- Games - EA Publishes Original Monopoly for iPhone
- 6:15 PM
- News - Original Apple I on Ebay for $50K, w/Letter from Steve Jobs
- 6:11 PM
- Games - New iPhone Games: Secret of the Lost Cavern Ep 1, New DJ Nights, More
- 5:47 PM
- Games - Star Trek D-A-C Game Headed to the Mac Next Month
- 4:57 PM
- Product News - TidBITS Releases “Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard”
- 4:26 PM
- John Martellaro's Blog - Particle Debris (week ending 11/20) Stationery Pads Go Poof
- 2:59 PM
- Free on iTunes - Musée du Louvre, Art Lite, SketchBook Mobile X and More.
- 1:50 PM
- Deal Brothers - Acer P215H bmid 21.5” Widescreen LCD Monitor: $139.99
- 11:24 AM
- TMO Appearances - Jeff Gamet Shares More Holiday Gift Ideas on MacJury
- 10:43 AM
- Product News - Cocktail 4.5 for Leopard Adds QuickLook Cache Clearing
- 10:06 AM
- News - Hack Enables Mac OS X 10.6.2 on Netbooks
The Mac Observer Reader Specials
- TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com
OWC: We Make DIY Upgrading Easy! Maximize your Apple MacBook / MacBook Pro. Up to 8.0GB Memory, up to 1.0TB HD & More. Easy Guide + Free, Detailed Installation Videos. Click here
If you're using a Mac, then you've gotta check out Full Tilt Poker for Mac. This Full Tilt Poker bonus code does the unthinkable, it actually rewards!For the latest Apple products use Ciao, a price comparison website, to find laptops like MacBook Air. Then find the best prices on MP3 players and use our comparison tool to evaluate mobile phones like the Apple iPhone.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.
