There was a Discussion about how PCs and Tablets (amongst other technology) slowed down a game. A lot of people here are looking for ways to speed up their games with apps and programs for computers and tables or just tables to put their character sheets on.
The above discussion showed how certain games slowed down a game with the access to computers. I have not personally seen this slowing down the game and have seen it Improving the game.
I am curious what this crowd in the technology forum thinks.
I was more referring to character sheets than books but I can see the load and search time with books. However I have invested in many different D&D rule books over the years, it is nice to have cheaper ones on PDF now.
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The biggest drawback I see with having gaming materials/resources in electronic format at the table, is that more often than not, those same devices have access to other "distractions"; be it the internet, gaming apps, texting, or anything else of the like...
If the players can be focused enough, or have enough self restraint to not access those things during a session, then I agree, technology can indeed be an asset at the table...
When people come to games these days, they bring their smart phones. They have easy access to texting and games and no one is the wiser if they mute their phones. If people are already coming to the table to text and play video games, they shouldn't be at the table. The tablets are not the issue if people can do the same thing with their phones.
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They have easy access to texting and games and no one is the wiser if they mute their phones
It is true that they make for easy access to such things, but an attentive GM will notice if a player seems distracted by something, even if that GM cannot see or hear what it is that has the player so distracted...
If people are already coming to the table to text and play video games, they shouldn't be at the table.
I agree with you here 100%, but a good number of GMs on these boards talk about how they've "banned" the use of cell phones and laptops at their game tables because of players screwing around on these devices during game play when their characters are not actively doing something "exciting".
So it would seem that there is at least some substance behind this issue...
The groups I am with don't ban electronics at the table. There will be times when one of the players will come up with an appropriate song or picture to what is going on at the time. So I guess we are more layed back than most. I used to game at a University Center and people were serious about there games. Even with Cell Phones and other electronics they were glued to the game not to some video game. Our group moved to a players house because of obvious reasons.
Anyway, I can see why computers and other electronics can get out of hand (so to speak), I just wanted to see if their use was more wide spread.
My guess is that It just takes some better software and players that see the tablet as a tool, not as a game/video machine (during RPG hours)
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I don't ban electronics at my table either, because my group pays attention to the game and uses things like their cell phones only when needed. I use a laptop when I run my games, because while I have the paper versions of the majority of the adventures I run (as I tend to run published adventures), I also like to use the PDF versions of those adventures so I can easily print out pictures and other player handouts...
As for character sheets, I use Hero Lab when I run my games and for the few times that I get to play in them. I use Hero Lab for 3.5 D&D, Pathfinder, and Call of Cthulhu. As for my group, they all use computers to assist them when making their characters, but for actual game play, all but one of my players will print them out and use a paper copy of their character sheet (the one player that does not usually print out his character likes to use a form-fillable PDF character sheet directly from his computer whenever possible)...
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Electronics aren't the problem - players are the problem.
A well-organized player will have the relevant numbers, etc., at hand whether this is done by means of a PC/tablet/phone, a printed character sheet, or something else. A poorly-organized player (or GM) will waste everybody's time flipping from page to page, calculating "to hit" bonuses, etc., every single time.
My personal preference is three tiers of information. I have a 3x5 index card for each of my PCs, detailing their current AC, HP total, the three most commonly-used combat abilities, Initiative, Perception, saving throws, etc. When I'm a GM I have similar cards printed out (four to a page) with a lot of the stat block numbers and tactics for the bad guys.
That's enough to handle 90% or more of the activity at the table, and all the information is readily at hand without having to flip pages. Backing that up I have a printed character sheet (or the full stat block from a scenario).
And, finally, I have the rulebooks (hard copy or PDF) for final reference. But I try really hard to avoid having to refer to those while other people are waiting.
[For Pathfinder Society I also have a crib sheet detailing where all any character's feats, equipment, etc., are described, and a printout of the relevant page from my watermarked PDF (or, if I don't have the PDF, a photocopy of the page from the book in question; at a convention I'll also be sure to have the hardcopy book available)]
I Think its a matter of interface and flexibility. A character sheet app is only going to be able to accomodate what it was programmed for. A piece of paper can accomodate whatever I write on it. So for instance, if the bard starts inspire courage, i can put a modified attack routine in the margins of my character sheet, then when it comes to my turn, i dont have to calculate it on the fly. Now a tablet might be able to accomodate some of that, but there are always going to be new things that would trip up a program that i dont have a problem with if i figure it out and write it myself.
Its also a matter of how much you can be looking at at once and how quickly you can switch. At least for the moment my impression is, if you know what you are looking for you can find it faster in a book then a in a table due to loading times and the time it takes to switch between apps. Where as i could easily have 2 or 3 sheets of paper and a book visible in front of me with a little table space. I can also shuffle through printed pages much faster.
These are the two primary reasons i think paper is still faster then tablets. The whole distraction thing is a separate issue. If we judge tablets just on their utility I think they are much improved but not quite there yet where they are ready to replace paper for reference and character sheets.
I don't buy the argument that technlogy slows the player down, user understanding slows the game down. If you understand the tech the game goes by in a breeze. I prefer tech at my games, its much easier to move characters via tablets and laptops than every player strecthinc over the table, counting squares, referring back to thier character sheet, .
At my table we have one person in charge of healng and damage for all pcs, the other person in charge for condition assignment and deployment. (all digitically).
I feel its a bit controlling to "ban" things at a game table. Downtime is downtime. I dont repeat story elements. So if players want to surf the web, they are grown adults, i am not going to control them. So long as they are active when their turn is up.
I use a paper character sheet, but use a tablet for my spells and dice rolling.