FGU Open Beta & NDA

[SublimeBW]

Hey gang,

quick question. With FGU switching to Open Beta do we know if NDA was lifted for Streaming? I ask as we are looking to put together a few streams of games due to Gary Con being canceled and wanted to know which version (FGC or FGU) to prep my game on. Ideally, I would prefer to use FGU as it is the new shiny toy and I have the ultimate license over the Standard for FGC but figured it was best to confirm.

Thanks for any info you can offer!

[LordGosumba]

Please note: This will be Live Streamed during Gary Con VTT; Saturday evening, 6pm CDT.

[JohnD]

You're much better off using FGC at this point. It's solid and it's stable - both things you want over something still in beta.

[Copernicus219]

I doubt you'll be able to stream. Performance is still very slow.

[SublimeBW]

You're much better off using FGC at this point. It's solid and it's stable - both things you want over something still in beta.


I doubt you'll be able to stream. Performance is still very slow.

I haven't actually hosted a game with FGU yet but putts with it plenty without issues so was hoping we were rather stable. Thanks for the feedback. Guess it is back to FGC for the stream.

[LordEntrails]

NDA is still in place. SmiteWorks has asked those that would wish to stream to reach them at [email protected] and that they will consider granting permission on a case by case basis. And that those who are known long-time users of FG are more likely to be granted permission.

Personally, I would stick with FGC unless you are playing with a bunch of folks who are familiar with FG and FGU. Running any game on any platform at a con with many users who have never used a VTT before is challenging. That's from personal experience.

[Copernicus219]

I haven't actually hosted a game with FGU yet but putts with it plenty without issues so was hoping we were rather stable. Thanks for the feedback. Guess it is back to FGC for the stream.

You are always welcome to try. You just might want to try hosting a session first to see if you think it's even feasible to do so. So far everything is fairly laggy for me. Yours may not be depending on your campaign and PC.

EDIT nm, I guess NDA is still there.

[Trenloe]

If you stream from FGC you don't need to request permission from SmiteWorks.

If you want to stream using the beta test FGU, warts and all, you need to request permission from SmiteWorks.

[pollux]

Is the beta agreement REALLY in place?


Are open beta purchasers agreeing to the beta agreement during their purchase?
Are open beta demo users agreeing to the beta agreement at some point? I just downloaded the FGU demo for windows without agreeing to anything, though admittedly I didn't try to perform the install. My recollection when I first installed the beta was that the agreement was on the download page, not a click-through during installation. Has that changed?
If open beta users aren't agreeing to the beta terms, then the only people who are constrained are also the only people who are informed about the status of FGU. And even if the beta agreement is shown to new users somewhere, are they reading it? There are a flood of "normal" users wanting in now. These are "click yes and get on with my life" kind of folks, not yet long-term Smiteworks fans who are reading carefully and trying to support the process. Given the confusing aspects of the beta agreement listed below, can we really expect anyone to know what they're allowed to do with any clarity?


Is anyone even compliant with the beta agreement anymore? All the confidentiality stuff hasn't made any sense since the alpha, when the forums were made public. Now with the open beta, the last vestiges of a private playtest community are gone. Any member of the public can become a playtester by downloading the demo or buying/subbing, what does any of the below mean in that context?


PLEASE READ THIS CONFIDENTIAL PLAYTEST AGREEMENT... <- The agreement is not confidential anymore, it's posted on the public forum.
... you may download, install, play, and otherwise access a nonpublic and confidential version of this Smiteworks digital game... <- The game is now public and non-confidential.
This feedback may be through email communications or by posting to the Playtest only section of the forums on FantasyGrounds.com. Feedback should not be provided in any public forums in any manner which discloses material exclusively available to Playtest users. <- The playtest forum itself is public and discloses feedback to people who aren't Playtest users.
CONFIDENTIALITY. This Playtest, the Game, material posted to forums, and any documentation related thereto are confidential and proprietary to Smiteworks ("Confidential Information"). You will maintain Confidential Information in the strictest of confidence and will not disclose it to any third party. <- None of this is applicable anymore.


I feel like things are opening up whether we want them to or not. Reddit is alive with "should I buy" conversations that are inevitably branching out into feature and bug-status conversations. There's no keeping that bottled up here in the forum, and we don't REALLY want to. We want people getting good advice from the beta community who has answers, and we want them getting that good advice wherever they are... not just here.

On the streaming front, it's only a matter of time before someone is streaming their first time running FGU because they don't know they're not supposed to and is stumbling over every known issue along the way. I can't imagine a world where any of us can stop that. The best thing we can do is make sure that the streamers in the beta program are out there putting FGU's best foot forward first and getting the biggest view counts first.

[LordNanoc]

Other question but in the same realm: how do people who haven't backed get a client to participate in the open beta?
I backed Ultimate and a friend who couldn't afford it was really antsy to see it. I always showed him towards the things published on youtube, but now he heard of open beta and wants to try it out with me hosting a session.
Is that possible yet?

[Zacchaeus]

Other question but in the same realm: how do people who haven't backed get a client to participate in the open beta?
I backed Ultimate and a friend who couldn't afford it was really antsy to see it. I always showed him towards the things published on youtube, but now he heard of open beta and wants to try it out with me hosting a session.
Is that possible yet?

It has been possible for some considerable time since the Unity demo has been available from the store for a while now.

[LordNanoc]

Ah, thx, that went past me ��

[pollux]

Is the beta agreement REALLY in place?

...

Is anyone even compliant with the beta agreement anymore?

Looks like there's a new EULA that supercedes the playtest agreement and now allows public discussion with an EA disclaimer: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?50373-FGU-Early-Access-Overview-and-Download

Thread with some more related discussion: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?54451-Confidentiality-playtest-agreement