Revision -- How do you approach changes to your _________?

[deadlinux]

I'm hoping this fits under general. I have a discussion question:

I teach English composition at a state university (although some may question how ...) and when talking about macrorevision vs microrevision (filthy rhetorical terms), it hit me:

How do Minecrafters (specifically "Tekkies") approach revision?

In other words, in your playstyle, when you need to change/revise something, what are your experiences when you have to do:

• Macrorevision -- changes to purpose, structure, support, style, or even audience (like with something on a Tekkit server, for example?)
  
• Microrevision -- changes to details, window dressings, small additions, minor upgrades (i.e. regular chest -> crystal chest, etc.)
  

Since many of the mods included in the various packs can produce complicated and enormous builds, I think that this community may produce more interesting answers than a vanilla minecraft forum, but I could be wrong. Your experiences and stories are needed here!

[Made_You_Look]

This belongs in off-topic, but seems like an interesting question. Too bad it's reeeeeally vague what you're asking.

I'd love to try contribute if you rephrase the question a bit. Or someone translates and points out what a dummy I am. :)

[Jorcer]

Are you asking how we revise, or what we think/feel when we revise? As Made_You_Look said, the question seems a little bit vague.

[MrFly]

This belongs in off-topic, but seems like an interesting question. Too bad it's reeeeeally vague what you're asking.

I'd love to try contribute if you rephrase the question a bit. Or someone translates and points out what a dummy I am.

Baaaaaaaaaackseat modding!

[Made_You_Look]

Baaaaaaaaaackseat modding!

Which one of us is kellered? :P

[Jorcer]

Cut it out you two. This is an interesting topic and I would hate to have this derailed before the OP can come back and rephrase the question.

[MrFly]

Which one of us is kellered?

Me but not for what you just did. I was doing stupid shit with jorcer that got us both kellered.

[Jorcer]

Me but not for what you just did. I was doing stupid shit with jorcer that got us both kellered.

Seriously, drop it Fly, and for about the 10th time, I never go kellered for that.

[Hushful]

-snip-

Macrorevision for me usually happens when a building is too small or no longer laid out properly to suit the purpose it was originally intended for. The change is more of a practicality decision on design. This may range from simply moving a wall out a few blocks to completely disassembling the entire building and starting from scratch with the intent of usage playing a large part in the buildings' design.

Microrevision is more of the changes made due to aesthetic tastes such as changing what color wooden planks a building built from or what to plant in a flower pot or even making supports for structures even though the gravity physics don't actually apply to the structure.

I'm not overly sure that the wooden chest to crystal chest would qualify as a microrevision every time as it could show an immediate change necessary for whatever design that is in place or it could simply be that people want to see what is in the chest with out opening it. I hope this resembles an answer that you were looking for.

[deadlinux]

Yes, this actually does. I was hoping that some would jump in with their experience, rather than needing a rewording. Again, I'm applying the term "revision" in a loose way, so if a mod sees fit to move it to off-topic, please do so. However, I think most Tekkies (minecrafters using these mods, etc.) revise their designs regularly, but perhaps not thinking in these categories? ... Crap, that doesn't clear it up much ... Does it?

[deadlinux]

Also, I'm curious. When you redesign for a different purpose than what was originally intended, what steps do you take? (Versus a microrevision of swapping one type of wooden planks for another)

[Hushful]

Well, say if I change over a room or entire building from being used as an oil refinery to item storage, I would need to change the entire layout of the building to remove wiring and walls where there no longer needed and redo all of the piping, wiring, and access areas needed to make the sorting and storage system work properly. Or it maybe that I have to add an entire extra floor just for storage area. It really all depends on how thorough, compact, and /or aesthetic you want your creations to be.

[freakachu]

I'm not really sure what you are asking for here? my experience when I have to change a system or thing is that I remove what is unneeded, and place the things that are needed, where I need them.

usually I try to avoid doing this though, as I am a lazy person and would rather have a machine that looks like a hot mess but works, than a machine that looks super slick, works, and took about 3 more hours to make.

[Lothos]

usually i only revise when I desire an aesthetic look. That or i move very very far away and start anew or reset the map.

[EzioA]

I revise when I find a better version, like Duncan's Blaze Rod EMC generator compared to my mooshroom farm, etc.

[Kmartinator]

I think for me, if there's any revision at all, it's usually macrorevision. I have a tendency to hold off making a machine setup until I have everything materialwise to make it how I want it right away, and usually when I finish, aside from minor adjustments during the build, I never touch the machine again. The significant exception will be when I want to add a functionality to the machine that requires a redesign. For example, I get an automated scrapping system set up to feed into a mass fab. Now, later, I decide that the scrap is better spent making scrap boxes and getting a lot of random items. Such a shift means I'll have to add in sorting mechanisms, processing machines, and probably expand the scrap production, so I would likely end up tearing down the whole thing and redesigning from the ground up.

Maybe you could call small changes when the machine doesn't work right microrevisions, but I try to not have to have those :)

[SlapChop]

My micro-revisions are small things, I notice that a set of pillars are somewhat off kilter, and kill the aesthetic, so for me, my micros are left to when Im bored, and dont want to mine, or notice an issue, or the structure feels off, say I could move some circuitry (looks better), or a zombie spawns (kill said zombie, add torch), a prime example is my inability to not make tunnels and maintenance halls for the purpose of checking the lines, or the stored energy, or just for an uprgrade...

my macros usually involve creepers, or one experience, I had just completed a solar array powerplant, with many MFSU's, and it ended in three transformers putting service lines out, HV, MV and LV, but alas, my poor planning made it so that my wiring invaded the walkway, at that point, I gave up, and deleted the world... now I'm on servers