LAN Party at a High School? 143
Coolnat2004 asks: "I'm a high school student and a member of our technology group. Our school needs extra money for our technology, and I thought that a LAN party would be an effective, and exciting, solution. How can we make a great LAN party with the supplies at hand and make a profit while doing it? We have a network, but not a large enough room with enough ports. We're most likely going to create a detached network for the party, but don't know how to set it up because we have limited supplies. I guess we could seek a sponsorship from a local company, but that is unlikely to happen. Any suggestions on network layout, power layout, and general party to-do's?"
Why do you need money? (Score:2, Insightful)
Groups are a lot more fun when money isn't a big issue. Yes, I know it's tough, but if you try to cut out things like "rewards for officers" or whatnot, clubs are easier to run.
Re:Why do you need money? (Score:2)
It was the only club
Re:Why do you need money? (Score:1)
Consider It Carefully (Score:5, Interesting)
Consider, too, that a LAN party can be a logistical nightmare; Google around and check out some of the horror stories out there about mid/large-scale LAN parties that have gone horribly awry due to a lack of planning. Consider that the onus of "getting it done right" will fall squarely on your shoulders, and that you'll need to be prepared to handle such things as n00bs with viruses, jerks with aimbots, kleptomaniacs with quick fingers, and chest-beaters who aren't afraid to let the bloodletting spill over into Real Life. Consider, too, that you'll need to coordinate with folks at your school in advance to decide on which games they're willing to let you all play. Finally, understand that you're not likely to have a single second to sit down and actually play if you're the organizer. You'll be busy days in advance and hours after the last person has gone home.
Seriously--you may want to look at candy bars and car washes if your goal is to raise money. LAN parties are neither easy nor lucrative for the small operator.
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:4, Insightful)
LAN parties have never been known a profit magnas, so I would suggest something different. Mabey some sort of sale/car wash. They tend to produce some modest buckeroos, and are considerably easier to make.
At my university, we have regular LAN parties, but we use classrooms that are wired with gigabit LANs and all the security we need from the university. Since each student gets a decently powered laptop, it's simple to run and the gamers just bring their computers with any prefiera they want.
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:4, Insightful)
Think about all the posts from dysfunctional-sounding people here -- do you want do have a learning experience at the expense of your friends' afternoon and three dollars apiece, or at the expense of some rabid nerd with no empathy or patience?
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:5, Interesting)
Cheerleaders.
Seriously, an easy way to raise $$$ is by selling t-shirts. Come up with a clever design, and you can easily get people to pay $10 apiece for something that costs less than half that to procure. When I was in high school a group I belonged to did that and we raised well over $2000 in just a couple weekends...
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
I know you're kidding, but
Problem #1) Cheerleaders won't want anything to do with it.
Problem #2) Most high school kids who would go to LAN parties are terrified of women (note I said most, not all)
Actually more to the point - how many high schoolers even own significant enough PC's to game with? I mean, that they own, not their parents. Most kids with jobs tend to pay for cars and such.
Throw a HALO party - TV's and Xboxe
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:1)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:1)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
But if you are just looking for a reason to trow a Lan Party, you better PLAN that Lan Party. If you fail to Plan, you Plan to fail.. This might help:
http://www.lanparty.com/theguide/ [lanparty.com]
Anyway, good luck
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:1)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:5, Insightful)
How will the school feel about people who aren't students (I assume you won't restrict it to students) using the faculties? What if something goes wrong, either inside or out? A fight? Stolen equipment? (happens a lot when it's not just a bunch of friends) People smoking pot outside? (and trying to smoke (hopefully just tobacco) inside?)
Or suppose that the principal decides to come down and make sure everybody has a legitimate copy of each game they're playing?
Seriously, this doesn't sound like something the school would ever permit if they fully understood what they were getting into. And if you get them to approve it without them knowing what they're getting into, you run the risk of big trouble if things go wrong -- and the odds of that are pretty high, unless it's a small informal thing with just your friends, which isn't likely to generate any money whatsoever.
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:3, Interesting)
There's no WAY you'll be allowed to play games like CS, Quake, Starcraft, World of Warcraft, etc. at school, especially as a school-related fundraiser.
Your best bet
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
I've found Mario Kart to be EXTREMELY popular with every type of gamer out there, guy or girl, big time gamer, jock, cheerleader, you name it.
Rather than set up a LAN party, try getting a few game consoles and controllers and copies of some games, and some TVs. Hold a tournament, charge an entry fee, give the winner a tshirt, or a share of the pot, or something like that, and keep the rest.
Dirt cheap, MUCH easier to set up than a LAN party, and has the pote
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:1)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
Some things you might want to consider, try having just a couple small lan parties at your house or somethin, just so you can get the feel of what needs to be setup. Try looking at these sites:
LAN Party Setup Info [computerhope.com]
Lanparty.com [lanparty.com]
Or just search google for "Hosting Lan Party" (without quotes, not sure if it matters).
Good luck to ya, a well-setup lan party can be a blast. The last one I went to, it was quite a few years a
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:1)
Re:Consider It Carefully (Score:2)
Nothing personal, but what the fuck kind of bachelor party is that, with computers and shit? I'm a huge geek/college student, but by God, when I get married, my friends had better have strippers and more booze than is drinkable in 24 hours.
I'm going to assume that instead of bachelor party, you meant an engagement celebration or something, and that your friend didn't spend his last single night playing
Detached network. (Score:3, Informative)
Sponsors are easy (Score:2, Interesting)
Several suggestions (Score:1)
As for games, I think they released the original Tribes, or Tribes 2 for free download. Tribes 1/2 is an old enough game so it will more than likely run smoothly only school computers, but the graphics are outdated. I remember setting Tribes 2 up in one of the school labs and playing it with half the class, It was some good
Re:Several suggestions (Score:1)
Local Business (Score:4, Insightful)
Ask the kids. (Score:3, Insightful)
One piece of technology. (Score:4, Funny)
Never underestimate the usefullness of a good ventilation system at a LAN party.
No, this is not a troll. I've been to many gaming conventions and LAN parties to notice that this is the difference between a professional and amateur hosting.
Re:One piece of technology. (Score:2, Funny)
Re:One piece of technology. (Score:1)
Yes.
Re:One piece of technology. (Score:2)
Why not sponsership? (Score:5, Interesting)
We got a few hundred dollars as well as actual materials donated in exchange for stickers on our car. I'm sure you could do something similar. Make it known via local radio stations and you'll get companies more than willing to sign up. Spin it as something safe and entertaining for area teens to do on a saturday night (or whatever) and you might even get some TV time out of it. It doesn't take much. Just a phone call or two to a TV station and radio station and newspaper. They love local interest student-run things. Makes for great fluff stories. It is easier to get attention for this kind of thing than you might expect.
First we need to break down your question(s) (Score:4, Insightful)
All public schools need extra money for technology. It's part of the requirement for being a public school I believe. That being said, a LAN party is going to raise about 2.98 for technology after you pay for expenses. No food, no drinks, no prizes...no people.
You are going to have to find one or more switches with enough ports. A 24 port unmanaged switch will cost $60+ bucks. You could get by with more switches with fewer ports, but then becomes a hassle with getting everything wired. You'll also need Cat5 cable ($40/1000 feet at Lowes) and RJ-45 connectors (prices vary depending on how many you buy). Also some crimpers...and some time to crimp a bunch of ends.
(Extended) Star topology 100baseT will be more then enough for what you are doing. For power, you will have to see how the room is wired. If the room is normally a computer room, you should be fine. If it's a class room, you could start tripping breakers depending on how many computers you have running.
You also are going to have to get permission from the school system, provide security, as well as likely get a teacher to act as a sponsor. Without this, and with no outside sponsorship, your idea won't go anywhere.
Re:First we need to break down your question(s) (Score:2)
Re:First we need to break down your question(s) (Score:2)
Re:First we need to break down your question(s) (Score:2)
No
Ask the voice of experience (Score:5, Informative)
One caveat, though: I don't know anyone who has profited from a LAN party. Usually, it's considered a stellar success if they break even. However, since yours is for an educational institution, you might be able to work the sponsorship angle extra hard and make a few bucks.
Licensing (Score:2)
Re:Licensing (Score:1)
Re:Licensing (Score:1)
Do X-box LAN Party (Score:4, Insightful)
you would need a teacher to "sponsor" you though.
some high school kids would rather play on xbox than on PC.
that's really cheap set-up for 8 players, considering what it would otherwise cost with PCs..
Re:Do X-box LAN Party (Score:1)
The biggest issue of bringing your own stuff that other people actively use is damage. Some people get angry and like to throw the controllers around, or make a mess with them. As mentioned, someone walking out of there with a game, or a controller is possible, so keeping tabs on everything would be needed.
Re:Do X-box LAN Party (Score:3, Insightful)
This way, the equipment is 'standardized' so fear of hacks/cheats is less than PC; as well as the kids don't have to haul in a $500+ computer [instead a console no more than $300].
Plus, instead of one huge room of a LAN, there can be multiple classrooms, where one segment or bracket [of 4-8 people @ a time] can be held, as the tourney progresses.
As you shou
Re:Do X-box LAN Party (Score:2)
Considering how difficult it is to get a bunch of TVs, it's probably way easier to go with a traditional LAN party. Somebody made the comment about high-school students not being able to go to LAN parties. That's rediculous, I've been hosting and going to LAN parties since mid highschool, from 4 people up to 400 people. Man
Make sure.... (Score:2, Informative)
I made this mistake hosting a lan w/ a friend. Bascally, he decided to keep the cash, I had nothing saying otherwise. The only payment I received was 8 copies of call of duty I could not sell(that came after the lan), and 2 eight port switches.
Re:Make sure.... (Score:1)
Don't forget software! (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Don't forget software! (Score:2)
I like ET but it doesn't seem like a good choice for smaller LAN parties(4-10). Am i wrong?
Re:Don't forget software! (Score:2)
Not yet, but you can try to find "Bobots". The AI players are fairly accurrate at the default setting, but don't really understand most of the player actions.
It does work for 6-10 players, as long as the players know what they are doing. (e.g. not like most pubbers on Internet play that seal off access to the fuel dump, thus losing the game to the engy/covert op combo.)
Re:Don't forget software! (Score:1)
crisis averted
*bows*
From prior experience (Score:2, Interesting)
LAN parties at schools are risky because they are government buildings and you're basically leaching off their supplies and resources. Take for granted what you are offered. The whole trick to getting our LAN party off the ground was that the person who organized it had a friendly relationship with the head of technology at the school. You state that you're in a technology group, so that's a start. I
Easy (Score:2, Interesting)
I'd suggest using the cafeteria. Plenty of electrical power, and you probably have tables in there already.
Go to Lowes/Home Depot, buy a box or two of CAT5 cable. Have some students make the ends. Get a couple of cheap switches. Small companies like mine throw them out all the time. In the last year I've thrown out 2 100MB hubs, 5 10MB hubs, and 2 100MB switches.
You're just running games so you're not going to saturate them.
We did this at a high school I previously worked at, and it went pretty well. We
Re:Easy (Score:1)
Re:Easy (Score:3, Funny)
What company do you work for? Where is it? Do you lock your dumpster (will I need bolt cutters)?
Thanks!
LAN party Issues (Score:1)
Dear Slashdot, (Score:5, Funny)
I am a 15 year old geek and I need a fundraiser. I thought that a LAN party would be an effective, and exciting, 'solution'.
Then I realized that we don't have the space, equipment, know-how, experience or startup funding. Please figure this out for me.
-Kid "the yellow dart" planner
P.S. Make it profitable! Even though most experienced LAN parties don't.
P.P.S. Oh, its due tomorrow too, so please hurry!
Re:Dear Slashdot, (Score:1)
Re:Dear Slashdot, (Score:2, Insightful)
It's not like he's asking us to give him a brief history of computing, with bibliography. He needs help from people with direct experience in an esoteric pastime, and I think he's come to the right place.
Christ, please, just once, give something the benefit of the doubt. Not everyone is out to take advantage of you.
Re:Dear Slashdot, (Score:1)
I meant that this is a very difficult thing to do, even when you already have a plan AND the necessary hardware AND a space in mind AND sponsors... and STILL expect turn a profit. Some other posters have pointed out that LAN parties are considered runaway sucesses if they break even. And thats at a hotel conference room (or similar venue), with sponsors, prizes, the right hardware and knowledgable, dedicated organizers and staff.
I
it's not that hard (Score:2, Informative)
i would sugest that you tell every one to bring there own computer. we geranly swipe a few from the school too in case someone has an old one or cant lugg it down to where the partys at.
you need to get a switch form somewhere if the you might even be able to bribe the netadmin of the school to let you barrow one (from my own exparnce doubtful but anything possable) or even do it wireless if every
Re:it's not that hard (Score:1, Funny)
School/School District IT Dept. (Score:2)
You definitely need to get buy-in from those guys, though, in addition to what others have said about getting a signed letter of permission from the principal. I know that when I worked for the local school district, nothing happened on the network without us knowing about it.
LANs don't make money (Score:2, Insightful)
Already been done. Somewhat succesful (Score:1)
Overall I'd say its pretty successful. One year they raised enough to buy cheap video cards for all the computers.
make sure you'll actually get the funds (Score:1)
map of the school in Doom3 (Score:2)
I taught in High School after Columbine, and folks were pretty tense about anything that resembled violence on the school property--after hours or not. If you have to rule out FPS, I can't imagine you'll get many folks interested--and if things haven't loosened up in the last few years, I think getting FPS approved would be tough. Worse, they'll say "okay", but then shut you down once you start playing and they can see what is meant by FPS.
So before you go much further, I would demo the games that you wa
PROFIT? BUAHAHAHAH (Score:2)
it's great for fun, but not really for raising funds. if you have a smallish party(that you would have) chances of breaking profit are pretty small, and chances of breaking enough profit that it would really matter are much smaller.
Lan Party Suggestions - it's a long list...sorry (Score:5, Informative)
It sounds like you're a little hazy on some of the technical details. If I were you, I'd check around and find a LAN party in your town and check it out. See how it works. The second thing I'd do is try getting this setup with just your computer club. Try and get some of the kinks worked out BEFORE you charge people for the service you are providing. If you put on a good event people will come back for the next one. If you put on a bad show (can't get the network up, food sucks or is too expensive, etc.) then no one will come to the next one. Make it a good one and you might be able to do this once every couple of months or so.
Door prizes might be fun. Check with some local businesses and see if they'll donate cash or items for door prizes. They don't have to be big or even computer-related. Fun stuff that kids like.
I think the money to be made at a LAN party is in the food. Sure, you can charge everyone who comes $5 to get in the door or whatever, but then have all the eats and drinks you can think of ready to be purchased. Get it from Costco, and have folks lined up to work the food booth (cute chicks would probably work best). Plan a pizza run and charge everyone a fair markup for running for the pizza. See if you can get the pizza for free/cheap.
On the physical setup, you'll need a computer or router to act as the DHCP server. Then just get a mess of switches/hubs and hook all that up. DO NOT worry about cabling from the switches to the player's computers...make the players bring a cable.
Tables and chairs should be no problem at a school. Just make sure you give everyone plenty of space to spread out.
You will also need some extension cords for power. Again, I'd require everyone to bring their own power strip.
In general players should be required to supply: Computer with network card installed, monitor, power cables, power strip, network cable (15-25 feet should be plenty) and the games.
You might also think about setting some minimum requirements. Require Win98/ME/2K/XP, machine speeds, etc. You don't want someone showing up with their parents old Pentium 166 and wondering why they can't play.
Create a game list so people know what to bring and to make sure their systems can handle it. You might also specify patches that should be applied and possibly have a server or some CD's burned with all the relevant patches.
There are a lot of free demos out there for games. I'd make sure at least one of these was on the list. That way, anyone can come and take part even if they don't own any of the games.
Have some folks on-hand to do tech support. They should be familiar with setting up TCP/IP networking on the various Windows systems and configuring the games you will play. Depending on the size of the group, you might also want them well-marked (special hats or shirts).
Security is an issue. I'd make everyone aware that they are responsible for their own data security. If they have their computer open to the world and someone else sniffs into it and copies whatever, then it's the COMPUTER OWNER's fault.
Anti-Virus - REQUIRE everyone to have anti-virus software installed on their computer BEFORE they are allowed to connect to the network. Seems like every time I go to a private LAN party, there is always one idiot who doesn't have it, and of course is INFESTED. If they don't have one of the commercial packages they can get one of the free ones.
Physical security - tell all of your participants to mark their hardware and keep track of it. There are a lot of stories about folks going to some of the big public LAN parties around here where they get up for 5 minutes and come back to find their uber-cool headphones and joystick missing.
Allow a couple of hours for setup. It takes longer than you think.
Plan that you'll have at least one person who will need dedicated help fo
Re:Lan Party Suggestions - it's a long list...sorr (Score:1)
i would say... (Score:1)
lan suggestions (Score:2, Informative)
Re:lan suggestions (Score:1)
There are programs that can read email addresses off of forums and such for spamming so it's better if you don't post it exactly as it's spelled.
Here's your problem. (Score:3, Informative)
What my school got away with is setting up a console game tournament. It is MUCH easier than setting up even an 8 player LAN, it's much easier to bring a GameCube and a box of games and controllers than to set up 4 PCs on a LAN. Charge a buck or two for tournament entry, have a couple freebies for the cheapskates, give a cut of the entry fees to the winner of a tournament, and watch the cash flow in. The anime club at my school (2000 students) did this a month ago and got around a hundred bucks, so don't expect to buy a new alienware box, but you could get a huge hub for the lan party you host later on.
Good luck to you, whatever games you manage to sneak into school.
Re:Here's your problem. (Score:1)
Profit = no (Score:1)
Re:Profit = no (Score:2)
Remember, this is at their school which means they probobly arent paying for the space and as a school fundraiser they may be able to get donations in the form of LAN hardware
I think the biggest problem soon becomes serving up the games if they arent used to it.
... a tall order ... (Score:3, Informative)
My first suggestion is to hold your own informal LAN party at home every week for a couple months to get a feel for the logistics. You'll get a feeling for the challenges very very quickly. If you're planning on playing for six hours and you end up spending three on machine setup, network config and game patching, your LAN party idea is doomed. You have to get people set up and ready to play in 15 minutes, so planning is important. You may be able to get five or six people to play regularly, and maybe someone else can get a different group of 5-6 players meeting this way. Share notes on what works and what doesn't, decide on the games you'd like to play and what patch level you want to be at.
You didn't say what your materials are, for one thing, and you didn't say how many people would be interested. These are BIG questions that you need to answer.
It sounds like you might have one network jack in each classroom, at least in a few rooms. Your school's network should already accommodate fast ethernet and should be able to hand out IP addresses via DHCP. Putting one 8-port switch in each room should be sufficient.
Decide what you're going to play! If you have to meet the approval of a teacher or chaperon sponsor, make sure they know what you're going to play. UT2K4 can be a great game for a larger LAN party, because it has a number of different game types. You can rotate from onslaught to CTF to assault, for example. If it's too gory or violent, then you'll have to pick from other options. As with questions others have raised about licensing, each person will have to buy their own copy of the game, unless you can get a game company to donate copies. Remember that everyone will have to have the proper patches applied, and if you plan on using add-on maps/skins, you'll have to make sure that these are also available. Burning five or six setup CDs withe the game patches and add-ons will make setting up each player's environment as easy as possible. Another thing to look at is if you're going to be running servers (such as UT2K4 or Call of Duty or Rise of Nations or whatever), bear in mind that it's often nice to have servers that are set up and named for the skill level of the players that will be playing on them. Having just one UT server with the bots cranked up to godlike abilities is not going to appeal to people that only frag every few months.
If people are going to bring their own machines, decide on what the minimum standards are for the hardware. If you pick a game that requires top-flight hardware, not everyone's parents will be interested in having to pony up 100-500 dollars for the necessary upgrades. You have to pick a game that fits the hardware constraints you have, and pick hardware constraints that will make the game you choose equally playable by everyone. One of the nice things about the XBOX suggestion posted by someone else is that the hardware is pretty standardized and the titles are probably familiar enough to most parents. If you're running servers, make sure they're well-oufitted with RAM and decent processing power to handle the load. A server meltdown can bring the whole show down very quickly.
Power is important. If you're playing with PCs, each person will need a minimum of three power outlets: 1 for monitor 1 for PC and 1 for something else (speakers, mebbe). How many power strips can you get together in one place? Remember that extension cords will become pretty valuable in getting power to each seating area
Decide in advance what people must bring to the event. Is everyone supposed to bring their own power cords/strips/monitor/PC/mouse/keyboard/joystick? One thing to remember is that people will be more likely to abuse hardware they do not own, so if you're using machines from
What would you play, though? (Score:2)
Re:What would you play, though? (Score:1)
America's Army [americasarmy.com] is sponsored by Uncle Sam, and is therefore patriotic and American and all that (apologies if the poster is not in the US).
Failing that, there's always Lords of Conquest [cox.net] or Master of Orion 2 [mobygames.com] if you want to kick it old school.
Re:What would you play, though? (Score:1)
My My bitter fat computer men (Score:1)
Re:My My bitter fat computer men (Score:2)
That's what most people here are trying to do. LAN parties aren't easy to plan, generally unprofitable, and it's unlikely that the school would allow one that doesn't suck. Telling the guy that is the best help he could get.
Re:My My bitter fat computer men (Score:2)
It should be noted that a LAN party is not necessarily the easiest thing to set up. Ours (6 people) comes together and is taken apart in less than five minutes each way. That's after years of practice and gathering all the necessary equipment. We recently brought in a new guy and just getting him outfitted to play with us took a full hour. Kn
Alternate route (Score:1)
Answers already in Slashdot (Score:1)
"Not at all, thank you to mentionning it" ((c) Mr Fawlty)
Power (Score:2)
Secondly, I echo the previous comment about good ventilation. Leaving a door open with a box fan in it should be enough. Even if it's 10 degrees out, your room will heat up rather quickly.
Third: Headphones. Beat people that do not have
GO WITH XBOX/GAMECUBE (Score:1)
Other fundraisers (Score:1)
Our largest fundraiser is Homecoming, specifically the dance. I know, not something you probably want to do (I don't like doing it anyway), but dances do have incredible profit margins.... Unless, of course, you have school who doesn't have much spirit, in which case dances are a total flop. We only have one major,
Nukemlan (Score:2)
Go with consoles (Score:2)
1) less equipment needed. One Xbox + one TV accomodates 4 players. Setup is a snap, so you won't spend hours trying to get everything up and running. The school should have TV's that you can use, so that shouldn't be an issue. Plus, you can probably snag a couple of projectors, which is really cool for console play.
2) Equipment is standardized. You're
Re:Go with consoles (Score:2)
however.. of people that would like to go to a lan party, and play over the weekend there, practically all are into pc gaming.
Re:Go with consoles (Score:2)
Using consoles will make it easier to boost attendance up.
Again, I love PC games. But there is a lot to be learned from the simplicity of console gaming.
Re:Go with consoles (Score:2)
if we were talking about an evening of play or something.. just as a way to get to know people or meet chicks, then consoles and some ddr would be in order.
Halo/DDR Party (Score:1)
It is much easier to set-up 10 Xboxes then 10 computers. It was a 2v2 tournament, double elimination, with a $25 or so gift card to EB/Best Buy for the top team.
watch out. (Score:2)
Been LAN, Done That (Score:1)
We were later able to buy switches (after the first LAN) that were more than adequate for a mid-range LAN-party. Th
Sad Story of a HS LAN Party (Score:1)
Once upon a time at a school district I once worked for, one of the technology classes wanted to hold a LAN party as an end-of-semester celebration. They wanted to host it in the high school building since the building was fully wired with switched 100 MB drops and had power and space.
Their teacher agreed to supervise this all-night party and parental agreement slips were signed by all the students parents. The I
Re:Sad Story of a HS LAN Party (Score:1)
Re:Sad Story of a HS LAN Party (Score:1)
Poor planning on the IT department; they should have been smarter than to allow access to the network. They could setup an alternate means of connecting the switches (seperate switches)
Our lan party (Happy story!) (Score:1)
Re:What we do (Score:1)