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Muzamba · 06-02-2009, 05:19 AM

(Note to Moderators: Please leave this thread in the "OOTP 10 - General Discussions" section until this weekend, so it doesn't get lost in the shuffle of OOTPX release threads. Then feel free to move it to the "OOTP 10 - Mods" section. Thank you!)

FINALLY! Here it is, the culmination of nearly a month's worth of work on my end... and just in time for the release of OOTP 10.

For the first time, I think we actually have a comprehensive college baseball setup for OOTP!

Here's the link: CCB-Beta.zip Download File

This setup utilizes my "States-As-Nations" mod, which modifies the existing nations.txt and cities.txt files to convert U.S. states and Canadian provinces and territories into individual nations. I have also included a set of state outline "flags" to help make each U.S. state more easily identifiable.

Additionally, I have included my new "African-American Names" revisions of the ethnicities.txt, first_names.txt, and names.txt files. This replaces Azerbaijani names with African-American names in each of the aforementioned files, as well as the ethnicity percentages in the nations.txt file. The frequency of the AA surnames is based on statistics I obtained through the U.S. Census office. However, since first name frequencies were not available at the time, I simply copied the U.S. (Modern) nameset for first names. This file will be revised as soon as I can locate accurate statistics.

(Incidentally, each of the above mods are also now available as standalone versions.)

Now here are the details on the universe...

Leagues are available as either league (.lg) files or world templates (.wtp) files.

You may download each league separately or as a complete universe. However, please keep in mind that the complete universe is extremely large in size. If you have a slow computer (like I do) or limited disk space, you may want to add each league and/or template individually.

This setup includes 1,712 college teams in 15 collegiate leagues, including NCAA Div. I-II-III, NAIA, NCCAA, USCAA, NJCAA Div. I-II-III, CCCAA, NWAACC, LIA of Puerto Rico, and CIBA, OUA, and CCBC of Canada, plus "Canadian College Baseball", a fictional confederation of CIBA, OUA, and CCBC.

Each team includes the school name, team nickname, unique 4-letter abbreviation*, state/province/territory, and city. (NCAA DI teams also include logos, colors, and home ballparks.) Each league includes the league logo and commissioner's name.

*The 4-letter format helps distinguish college teams from teams in your other leagues. Also, each team has its own unique abbreviation, so they can all be used in the same universe without confusing which team is which.

Here's what it does NOT (yet) include:

- Logos, colors, or home ballparks (except for NCAA DI)
- Accurate ballpark configurations
- Ballcaps or jerseys
- Real players or pictures
- Real coaching staffs or front office personnel
- Financial information (market size, fan loyalty, etc.)

Please note that not all settings, rules, or options contained herein reflect real-world college baseball. In most cases where configurations are inaccurate, this was necessary to create realistic results or it was not feasible or possible to set them up accurately. (However, it is possible that something was overlooked or a mistake was made, so please feel free to let me know if you notice anything in the set that doesn't seem right.)

Also, remember that this is NOT A FEEDER LEAGUE. It is currently configured to act as an independent major league(s). Therefore, players will not go into the draft pool. (However, this will be addressed in a future release.)

Notes on Conference Alignments and Configuraions: The vast majority of league/conference configurations in this setup are accurate as of today. However, there are several instances of schools that are known to be either starting a baseball program, dropping their existing baseball program, in the process of moving up or down a division within a league, switching leagues, or switching conferences, in the near future. In these cases, I placed the teams according to where they should be within the next few years. (For example, both Vermont and Northern Iowa have announced they are discontinuing their baseball programs. At the same time, both UMKC and North Texas have announced that they are starting new baseball programs. Therefore, UMKC and North Texas are present in this setup, while Vermont and Northern Iowa are not.) Of course, it's possible that other as-of-yet unannounced changes could take place within the same timeframe, but this is my best approximation, given the information I have to go on at this time.

Also, because OOTP requires an even number of teams within a league, each league (with the exception of the LIA, CIBA, OUA, and CCBC) is divided into two sub-leagues, or regions. These "regions" do not exist in reality. In addition, a small number of conferences ("divisions" in the OOTP world) have been divided to create a balanced number of divisions in each sub-league. This is especially relevant in the NJCAA, where I have altered a number of conferences for a more balanced configuration.

Many schools within the NCCAA and USCAA have dual memberships in other leagues. For the most part, I've only included teams in these leagues that are sole members. However, I have included 5 schools in the NCCAA that are also members of the NCAA or NAIA. They are Baptist Bible, Philadelphia Biblical, Maranatha Baptist, Crown, and North Central of Minnesota. It should also be noted that the NCCAA is divided into Divisions I & II in real life, but as there are only 3 Division I schools that are sole members, I've combined them all into one single level.

it was also necessary to add a few schools that don't actually have baseball programs. They are as follows:

- Foothill (CCCAA) - The largest school in the northern region of the CCCAA without a baseball program
- Umpqua (NWAACC) - Used to have a very successful baseball program, but it was discontinued during the 90s
- George Brown (OUA) - Had a modest baseball program until it was scrapped a few years ago
- Shawnee State (NAIA) - Still listed as a member of NAIA baseball, but currently only has a club team

Finally, please remember that I'm releasing this as a BETA version. In other words, I fully expect there to be problems or other issues with it. That's why I need all of you who use this to give me your feedback. Let me know if you find any inaccuracies, if there are issues getting it to work in other universes, or if there are ways you think of that it can be improved. I absolutely welcome and value your input.

Here is the tentative--and rather ambitious--release schedule, bearing in mind that there is no timetable for when each will be completed:

Beta - current release
1.0 - will include any fixes necessary to make the product function properly
1.1 - will add home ballparks and basic financials (to reflect traditionally superior programs)
1.2 - will add head coaches and GMs (Athletic Directors)
1.3 - incorporates high schools into the universe (details pending)
1.5 - creates a feeder league version out of the current configuration
2.0+ - future versions, updating information/configuration on a yearly basis

Notes: I hope to add logos/colors and, eventually, caps and jerseys. However, I have limited graphics-editing ability. So progress on adding anything graphical depends entirely on how much assistance I can get from the OOTP community in this area.

I should also note that I do not currently have plans to add real college players into this universe. My feeling here is that the enormous amount of work that would be involved in creating these rosters would pay negligible dividends, as these players would cycle through the system too quickly to make it worth the effort. Of course, if anyone else would like to tackle this project, please feel free to do so. (It might be worthwhile to at least add a number of real top prospects into the mix of fictional players.)

Okay, that's all I can think of to tell you. Hopefully this will help keep some of you occupied while waiting these last few agonizing days until OOTPX is released.

Hope you enjoy! And remember, I ultimately want this to be THE definitive college baseball universe for OOTP, so please give me your feedback!

06-02-2009, 05:19 AM	#1
Muzamba Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: St. Louis, MO Posts: 2,325	COMPLETE COLLEGE BASEBALL (Beta) (Note to Moderators: Please leave this thread in the "OOTP 10 - General Discussions" section until this weekend, so it doesn't get lost in the shuffle of OOTPX release threads. Then feel free to move it to the "OOTP 10 - Mods" section. Thank you!) FINALLY! Here it is, the culmination of nearly a month's worth of work on my end... and just in time for the release of OOTP 10. For the first time, I think we actually have a comprehensive college baseball setup for OOTP! Here's the link: CCB-Beta.zip Download File This setup utilizes my "States-As-Nations" mod, which modifies the existing nations.txt and cities.txt files to convert U.S. states and Canadian provinces and territories into individual nations. I have also included a set of state outline "flags" to help make each U.S. state more easily identifiable. Additionally, I have included my new "African-American Names" revisions of the ethnicities.txt, first_names.txt, and names.txt files. This replaces Azerbaijani names with African-American names in each of the aforementioned files, as well as the ethnicity percentages in the nations.txt file. The frequency of the AA surnames is based on statistics I obtained through the U.S. Census office. However, since first name frequencies were not available at the time, I simply copied the U.S. (Modern) nameset for first names. This file will be revised as soon as I can locate accurate statistics. (Incidentally, each of the above mods are also now available as standalone versions.) Now here are the details on the universe... Leagues are available as either league (.lg) files or world templates (.wtp) files. You may download each league separately or as a complete universe. However, please keep in mind that the complete universe is extremely large in size. If you have a slow computer (like I do) or limited disk space, you may want to add each league and/or template individually. This setup includes 1,712 college teams in 15 collegiate leagues, including NCAA Div. I-II-III, NAIA, NCCAA, USCAA, NJCAA Div. I-II-III, CCCAA, NWAACC, LIA of Puerto Rico, and CIBA, OUA, and CCBC of Canada, plus "Canadian College Baseball", a fictional confederation of CIBA, OUA, and CCBC. Each team includes the school name, team nickname, unique 4-letter abbreviation, state/province/territory, and city. (NCAA DI teams also include logos, colors, and home ballparks.) Each league includes the league logo and commissioner's name. The 4-letter format helps distinguish college teams from teams in your other leagues. Also, each team has its own unique abbreviation, so they can all be used in the same universe without confusing which team is which. Here's what it does NOT (yet) include: - Logos, colors, or home ballparks (except for NCAA DI) - Accurate ballpark configurations - Ballcaps or jerseys - Real players or pictures - Real coaching staffs or front office personnel - Financial information (market size, fan loyalty, etc.) Please note that not all settings, rules, or options contained herein reflect real-world college baseball. In most cases where configurations are inaccurate, this was necessary to create realistic results or it was not feasible or possible to set them up accurately. (However, it is possible that something was overlooked or a mistake was made, so please feel free to let me know if you notice anything in the set that doesn't seem right.) Also, remember that this is NOT A FEEDER LEAGUE. It is currently configured to act as an independent major league(s). Therefore, players will not go into the draft pool. (However, this will be addressed in a future release.) Notes on Conference Alignments and Configuraions: The vast majority of league/conference configurations in this setup are accurate as of today. However, there are several instances of schools that are known to be either starting a baseball program, dropping their existing baseball program, in the process of moving up or down a division within a league, switching leagues, or switching conferences, in the near future. In these cases, I placed the teams according to where they should be within the next few years. (For example, both Vermont and Northern Iowa have announced they are discontinuing their baseball programs. At the same time, both UMKC and North Texas have announced that they are starting new baseball programs. Therefore, UMKC and North Texas are present in this setup, while Vermont and Northern Iowa are not.) Of course, it's possible that other as-of-yet unannounced changes could take place within the same timeframe, but this is my best approximation, given the information I have to go on at this time. Also, because OOTP requires an even number of teams within a league, each league (with the exception of the LIA, CIBA, OUA, and CCBC) is divided into two sub-leagues, or regions. These "regions" do not exist in reality. In addition, a small number of conferences ("divisions" in the OOTP world) have been divided to create a balanced number of divisions in each sub-league. This is especially relevant in the NJCAA, where I have altered a number of conferences for a more balanced configuration. Many schools within the NCCAA and USCAA have dual memberships in other leagues. For the most part, I've only included teams in these leagues that are sole members. However, I have included 5 schools in the NCCAA that are also members of the NCAA or NAIA. They are Baptist Bible, Philadelphia Biblical, Maranatha Baptist, Crown, and North Central of Minnesota. It should also be noted that the NCCAA is divided into Divisions I & II in real life, but as there are only 3 Division I schools that are sole members, I've combined them all into one single level. it was also necessary to add a few schools that don't actually have baseball programs. They are as follows: - Foothill (CCCAA) - The largest school in the northern region of the CCCAA without a baseball program - Umpqua (NWAACC) - Used to have a very successful baseball program, but it was discontinued during the 90s - George Brown (OUA) - Had a modest baseball program until it was scrapped a few years ago - Shawnee State (NAIA) - Still listed as a member of NAIA baseball, but currently only has a club team Finally, please remember that I'm releasing this as a BETA version. In other words, I fully expect there to be problems or other issues with it. That's why I need all of you who use this to give me your feedback. Let me know if you find any inaccuracies, if there are issues getting it to work in other universes, or if there are ways you think of that it can be improved. I absolutely welcome and value your input. Here is the tentative--and rather ambitious--release schedule, bearing in mind that there is no timetable for when each will be completed: Beta - current release 1.0 - will include any fixes necessary to make the product function properly 1.1 - will add home ballparks and basic financials (to reflect traditionally superior programs) 1.2 - will add head coaches and GMs (Athletic Directors) 1.3 - incorporates high schools into the universe (details pending) 1.5 - creates a feeder league version out of the current configuration 2.0+ - future versions, updating information/configuration on a yearly basis Notes: I hope to add logos/colors and, eventually, caps and jerseys. However, I have limited graphics-editing ability. So progress on adding anything graphical depends entirely on how much assistance I can get from the OOTP community in this area. I should also note that I do not currently have plans to add real college players into this universe. My feeling here is that the enormous amount of work that would be involved in creating these rosters would pay negligible dividends, as these players would cycle through the system too quickly to make it worth the effort. Of course, if anyone else would like to tackle this project, please feel free to do so. (It might be worthwhile to at least add a number of real top prospects into the mix of fictional players.) Okay, that's all I can think of to tell you. Hopefully this will help keep some of you occupied while waiting these last few agonizing days until OOTPX is released. Hope you enjoy! And remember, I ultimately want this to be THE definitive college baseball universe for OOTP, so please give me your feedback!