CD Player's Site
Hints, Tips, Strategy and FAQs for playing Populous III online

A: I'm assuming that you're here because you want information, not eye-candy. Look at the Populous site for all that stuff. I code directly into HTML and put everything on one page because I want it to load fast, and for you to be able to find things with a simple search using your browser. I'm limited by the speed of the server, but it would be hard to simplify it further! It's on a plain background, so you can actually read the text without terminal eyestrain. Also, this layout is reasonably printer friendly. (If it tries to print the background colour, you can turn it off to save ink. In Microsoft Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet Options > Advanced, then scroll down to 'Printing' and make sure that the check box 'Print background colors and images' is not checked. In Netscape Navigator, click on File > Page Setup, then check that 'Print backgrounds' is not checked.)

A: Yup - guilty as charged. When I started playing online I found the learning curve really steep, even though I'd finished off all the single-player games without much trouble. It took a lot of false starts just to get registered, my machine kept crashing and, when I finally did get to play, I just kept losing, game after game. After a few weeks, I'd managed to sort out most of the glitches and, wonder of wonders, I actually won a game (or I would have, if he hadn't quit on me). It occurred to me then that, for every patient determined individual (or sad, pale wretch who ought to get out more, according to taste) there would probably be dozens of others who gave up and went off to do something more productive. That meant that there would be a limited supply of new players, and hence of people whom I might be able to beat. I decided therefore that, as I progressed along the learning curve, I would document what I learned to try and make it easier for anyone who wanted to follow.

Of course, because I'm writing this as I go, it means that there will be many things which I will get wrong (especially in the strategy section) but it will at least give the newbie a place to start and, as I get further along the curve, I will revise and update it.

If you think I've written something which is total garbage, you're probably right. But don't whinge about it - drop me an email and tell me how it should be. If I agree with you (I'm not proud!) I'll incorporate your suggestions under your name, and then everyone can get the benefit.

A: Three reasons for choosing it:

1. CD = 'seedy' = 'scruffy and disreputable', which sums me up pretty well.
2. 'seedy' because I work with seeds in my day job.
3. 'CD' is quicker to type than, say, ==<-@garbage@->== (although it is less visual, it has to be said).