Tragically it's getting close to a month since I've been out in space.
Before I get into details, thank you all for the interest in the past series of posts, and special thanks to Kirith Kodachi for the referral. I've never had such a response! Also thanks to the commenters bringing up good points. I appreciate your insights.
Not really much I can say about not getting into space. I'm now married to a nice girl I found in Metropolis (probably tarnishing my reputation on Khanid even further), and despite my market servant doing the bulk of actual business, I've been kept busy doing administrative work for my support networks.
I can't see myself getting free from the clutches of my work desk any time soon, but that doesn't mean I can't participate in the greater universe around me. Professional development doesn't necessarily take place behind the pilots yoke!
Here's some things I've been doing, and can provide a little 'strategy' for those of you with similarly limited space time. They usually take about 10mins of activity, so are great for short Quafe breaks.
Blogs
Reading (and writing!) blogs are a great way to develop your knowledge of New Eden. Forcing yourself to actively consider tactics and strategies will give you a better understanding of them. There's no substitute for real experience, but prior planning and preparation prevents pathetically poor performance. That's the 7 Ps my old drill instructor taught me (although his language was much more colourful).
It's also a way to keep you connected to the community. We may be alone in the pods, but isolation will quickly lead to you withdrawing from New Eden, and joining the Sleepers in their wormhole tombs. Keeping those lines of communications open will keep you rooted.
To get you started, take a look at the list of Wiser Pilots on the left. They have all helped me a great deal.
Ship fitting
Now is a good time to play around with fits. If you have access to a ship, it's very tempting just to throw on modules and charge ahead in the name of experimentation. To avoid costly errors, simply spend a few minutes playing around with fitting tools.
The benefit to this is greater understanding of the fits you run. You'll have much more appreciation for the limits of your vessels capabilities. Once in a blue moon you'll discover an effective fit that no one else has found!
But don't count on it. A good place to start is Battleclinic. Find the fits there, and start swapping modules, rigs or implants to see how it changes.
Spreadsheets
You could comment that this is a product of sitting in a managers chair for too long, but spreadsheeting is a hobby I picked up long before I had any networks to tend. And yes, I am a massive nerd.
Really this is a way to plan out trading, PI or other industrial pursuits, before you go and lose a lot of ISK. Certain merchant monarchs have a point that time spent on spreadsheets is better spent in the market stall, but chained to the desk as I am kept from the vibrancy of the trading floor.
It can be as simple as finally calculating the exact tax on your buy/sell orders, or working out projected profit from PI. It's rewarding, and again, deepens your understanding of New Eden... and is a skill you can transfer to other occupations, should space pilot prove too dull for you!
Theory crafting and project research
Basically the culmination of everything above.
Projects in particular can take a bit of research. A great example of a project blogger is Gevlon Goblin. Sometimes wrong, sometimes right, his projects are always revealing and illuminating. You can do the same.
Of all the steps above, only one absolutely requires you to be in space, and the steps prior to getting there make sure you get the most from your time in the pod.
Hopefully that will help anyone stuck in the office like myself.
Before I get into details, thank you all for the interest in the past series of posts, and special thanks to Kirith Kodachi for the referral. I've never had such a response! Also thanks to the commenters bringing up good points. I appreciate your insights.
Not really much I can say about not getting into space. I'm now married to a nice girl I found in Metropolis (probably tarnishing my reputation on Khanid even further), and despite my market servant doing the bulk of actual business, I've been kept busy doing administrative work for my support networks.
I can't see myself getting free from the clutches of my work desk any time soon, but that doesn't mean I can't participate in the greater universe around me. Professional development doesn't necessarily take place behind the pilots yoke!
Here's some things I've been doing, and can provide a little 'strategy' for those of you with similarly limited space time. They usually take about 10mins of activity, so are great for short Quafe breaks.
Blogs
Reading (and writing!) blogs are a great way to develop your knowledge of New Eden. Forcing yourself to actively consider tactics and strategies will give you a better understanding of them. There's no substitute for real experience, but prior planning and preparation prevents pathetically poor performance. That's the 7 Ps my old drill instructor taught me (although his language was much more colourful).
It's also a way to keep you connected to the community. We may be alone in the pods, but isolation will quickly lead to you withdrawing from New Eden, and joining the Sleepers in their wormhole tombs. Keeping those lines of communications open will keep you rooted.
To get you started, take a look at the list of Wiser Pilots on the left. They have all helped me a great deal.
Ship fitting
Now is a good time to play around with fits. If you have access to a ship, it's very tempting just to throw on modules and charge ahead in the name of experimentation. To avoid costly errors, simply spend a few minutes playing around with fitting tools.
The benefit to this is greater understanding of the fits you run. You'll have much more appreciation for the limits of your vessels capabilities. Once in a blue moon you'll discover an effective fit that no one else has found!
But don't count on it. A good place to start is Battleclinic. Find the fits there, and start swapping modules, rigs or implants to see how it changes.
Spreadsheets
You could comment that this is a product of sitting in a managers chair for too long, but spreadsheeting is a hobby I picked up long before I had any networks to tend. And yes, I am a massive nerd.
Really this is a way to plan out trading, PI or other industrial pursuits, before you go and lose a lot of ISK. Certain merchant monarchs have a point that time spent on spreadsheets is better spent in the market stall, but chained to the desk as I am kept from the vibrancy of the trading floor.
It can be as simple as finally calculating the exact tax on your buy/sell orders, or working out projected profit from PI. It's rewarding, and again, deepens your understanding of New Eden... and is a skill you can transfer to other occupations, should space pilot prove too dull for you!
Theory crafting and project research
Basically the culmination of everything above.
Projects in particular can take a bit of research. A great example of a project blogger is Gevlon Goblin. Sometimes wrong, sometimes right, his projects are always revealing and illuminating. You can do the same.
- Pick a project.
- Read about it.
- Plan for it before (maybe with a spreadsheet!)
- Test it in space
- Write about it.
Of all the steps above, only one absolutely requires you to be in space, and the steps prior to getting there make sure you get the most from your time in the pod.
Hopefully that will help anyone stuck in the office like myself.
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