Hello there.
I'm Larks and I make Chronos, which is coded in C# .net. Originally, Chronos started out as some very basic software called "LiteTimers" that I made for my EQ2 guild to help with timing mob AE events and things like that.
Every time I needed to create a new global timer for my guild, I had to edit a text file manually, upload it to my FTP server and then LiteTimers used a simple HTTP download (triggered by chat log text I could enter in game) to share global timers. It didn't use a single array, loop, error catch or much of anything else, but it worked.
Over time, I decided that was pretty fucking annoying and I needed to get my shit together and learn C# to some reasonable degree. For the past 4 or 5 months, between working my full time job, playing EverQuest 2, Rift and watching the entire series of Chuck, I've taught myself some more C# and been working on what has amounted to Chronos.
Even if I planned on making software just for myself, I've always made it in such a way that anyone could use it. I create full UI's, make it as intuitive as I can and even include things like tooltips. Because of this attitude, even though I originally made Chronos for myself and my guild, it can be used by anyone.
As far as I'm concerned, I still suck at C# programming, but I really enjoy it (much more than Delphi) so I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. So hopefully, some day, Chronos will eventually be reliable software that benefits many guilds in many games at minimal cost.
Speaking of cost, just in case you're wondering, I would like to make some money from Chronos. At the end of the day, that means I don't have to work as much overtime, which in turn gives me more time to implement new features, make it secure and generally improve it. So my plan is; that while Chronos is still in alpha and possibly the beta stage, I will release it for free with the option of donating. After that point, I may charge a small fee only for the server version, although I'll release it with no copy protection or DRM of any sort, because I hate that shit. If, for some miraculous reason, Chronos makes me enough money to live on, I'll consider developing it full time into a fully functional timer, guild and loot management software. I doubt there would ever be enough demand for that, but I can dream right?
As you can probably tell, I like my tech stuff. My other hobbies include creating artwork, playing MMO's and riding a 2009 Yamaha YBR 125cc motorcycle faster than what is probably good for that tiny, tiny engine.
I work a full time job as a support agent for a major telecommunications company in the UK (yes, that means in a call centre). Most of my colleagues think "raiding" sounds too much like "raping", but they're cool anyway.
Feel free to contact me on this blog or at chronosdevelopment@gmail.com with suggestions and comments for the software, as I'm always looking for new things to add that people want.
Thanks.
