Advanced Mann-Conomy: How to idle with multiple accounts - Games

[QUOTE=FF|Skyrider;32815825]But this also means all the steam directory has to be updated (if any updates are being released) while if you keep 1 steam directory, only 1 sandboxie (or your main steam) has to be updated. I never, ever had any issues with just keeping 1 steam directory, except for the fact that TF2 files had to be revalidated, but that has nothing to do with using just 1 steam map. I don't see how exactly this reduces space as each steam directory is about, I don't know.. 20, 30mb? I'm saving 650MB by keeping 1 steam directory.[/QUOTE] The space saving is compared to the older way of keeping separate directories without sharing the steamapps with mklink, which amounted to around 10 GB (or however big the TF2 gcf files are). But yeah, it might work properly; I don't know how much Steam relies on writing/reading files outside exiting/launching. But what I'd do is give the sandbox read-only access to the Steam directory and give full access to steamapps, so it can write in the account folder. I don't know why I didn't think of it in the first place...

[quote]The space saving is compared to the older way of keeping separate directories without sharing the steamapps with mklink, which amounted to around 10 GB (or however big the TF2 gcf files are).[/quote] How exactly? I always use 1 steam directory and all of my idle accounts are also using 1 steam directory and 1 steamapps directory without mklink. Thus are of my idle accounts are using the same GCF files. So truly.. The use of mklink to save space is bull in my opinion. Like I said above, you are creating more space by using multiple steam directories. [quote]But yeah, it might work properly; I don't know how much Steam relies on writing/reading files outside exiting/launching. But what I'd do is give the sandbox read-only access to the Steam directory and give full access to steamapps, so it can write in the account folder. I don't know why I didn't think of it in the first place...[/quote] I've only given sandboxie (to all my idle accounts) full access to my steamapps directory. Both direct and full access (under resource access). Never ran in to any kind of problems.

I've managed to get things right this time. I had to delete the entire TF2 GCF files and reinstall. Also, I've tried starting all my 20 accs at once, but somewhere at the 15th acc, the dedicated servers says it "can't allocate port" to the clients. So, fudge, I can only box 15 accs at once, not a major loss. === Now excuse me, I'm off to get shit-faced, being my Bday and all. Happy 30 to me. Where's mah damn whisky?!

excuse me but is there a start up option to automatically connect to a server (a dedicated server on my other computer) also do I put in the LAN ip or the uhhh other ip?

[QUOTE=FF|Skyrider;32824772]How exactly? I always use 1 steam directory and all of my idle accounts are also using 1 steam directory and 1 steamapps directory without mklink. Thus are of my idle accounts are using the same GCF files. So truly.. The use of mklink to save space is bull in my opinion. Like I said above, you are creating more space by using multiple steam directories.[/QUOTE] Are you unable to read? Like I said in the very post you quoted, I compared it to the old way. I'm well aware that using just one directory saves slightly more space than having multiple directories, but it can IN THEORY cause problems. As I said in your second quote, I'm not sure how much Steam relies on writing/reading files, which would be the cause of any possible problems.

Running more than one Steam using the same steam folder always gives a blob-related error. Each Steam folder without the steamapps consumes around 130 mb, so it's no big deal and it avoids a lot of bugs.

I'm having a bit of a problem, I set up a few accounts however after about a week of using them whenever I try to run any of them it gets halfway through opening Steam (at the stage where it says "connecting Steam account: blah") comes up with an error saying "Platform Error: bad module 'bin/friendsui', not loading", followed by crashing. Any ideas?

[QUOTE=holydevel;32886777]I'm having a bit of a problem, I set up a few accounts however after about a week of using them whenever I try to run any of them it gets halfway through opening Steam (at the stage where it says "connecting Steam account: blah") comes up with an error saying "Platform Error: bad module 'bin/friendsui', not loading", followed by crashing. Any ideas?[/QUOTE] Try deleting everything your Steam folder apart from Steam.exe and the folder /steamapps/

Again the "validated files" stuck at 100%. It seems Valve release ninja patches that breaks TF2 sometimes, it updated 1.4mb. Fixed the problem by closing steam, deleting the clientregistry.blob and the (account/team fortress 2) folder, and restarting steam.

No point of idling right now game crashes to often

[QUOTE=AlfieGroove;32888563]Try deleting everything your Steam folder apart from Steam.exe and the folder /steamapps/[/QUOTE] Now it alternates between just crashing with no error message at the same spot or giving an error in Sandboxie saying I've run out of memory (I haven't though).

Hey folks, I used this guide and now have 14 alt accounts idling, it's good income. A question though - I asked Valve myself on their stance on idling and was simply given the safe, vague answer of "We do not condone idling". Can paste the conversation if needed but that's literally all I got. Does anyone have recent posts/emails/etc from Valve showing that this is not bannable? I know that the process of running multiple TF2s is fine, but moreso the idling side of it. Since the idlecaust long ago, the crafting/trading system came in along with the store, making the items easier to get, plentiful and really "not worth idling for", aswell as the implementation of the drop cap. But even though they've been quiet about it, companies take action in waves, not on a person to person basis for this kind of thing. With all of the goods being traded to my main account, I'd really like to see some info on Valve's stance on idling here.

They don't condone the use of 3rd party applications to give the player advantages over others. I think that's what they said.

Here's the conversation: Me: Hello, I recently considered running multiple versions of Team Fortress 2 in textmode to have alternate accounts log in the game simultaneously and gain items via the drop system. This process involves me simply running multiple versions of steam/TF2 with no video or anything. No programs interfere with how TF2 runs or automates any actions other than what I'd simply do by logging an account in, joining a map by myself, and then leaving the computer alone for hours. My question here is twofold: Is it alright to run TF2 in text mode to log in multiple of my accounts at the same time? and What is Valve's stance on idling currently? I know that idling was punished badly long ago when they gave everyone the halo hat, however in the time since then the drop system is now capped, limiting idling's usefullness, and all in-game items are also purchasable from the store, meaning what people idle for are no longer rare or "worth idling for". If you could fill me in on both of those steps, I'd appriciate it. Thanks for any assistance. -------- Them: Hello [name], Thank you for contacting Steam Support. The information on the Steam Storefront and TF2 Blog is the only available information at this time. Please refer to the Steam News section for the latest news and updates on upcoming Steam titles and content. ------ Me: Thanks for the reply. There's no information regarding Valve's stance on either of these things on either the TF2 blog or the store. Can you please take a second whack at my question, or refer me to the email of someone on the Team Fortress 2 team that would be in the know about this kind of thing? I understand that not all of Valve's CS team will be players of TF2 and know what I'm talking about, but I need someone to answer my question for me. --------- Them: Hello [name], We do not condone idling. We will be unable to further assist you with this issue.

It works, thanks!

How much trouble would I get into if I: [B]-Made a bunch of Steam accounts -Put $5 bucks to make them TF2 Premium. -Buy 2 keys ($2.49 x2) each account. -Resell the keys back to SourceOP for $2 bucks each. -Idle on the accounts like no tomorrow.[/B] Because if I do this, I'd technically only waste a buck per account; but I can see how Valve could pretty much VAC ban all of those accounts. (including my own)

[QUOTE=DDSNv2;32935497]How much trouble would I get into if I: [B]-Made a bunch of Steam accounts -Put $5 bucks to make them TF2 Premium. -Buy 2 keys ($2.49 x2) each account. -Resell the keys back to SourceOP for $2 bucks each. -Idle on the accounts like no tomorrow.[/B] Because if I do this, I'd technically only waste a buck per account; but I can see how Valve could pretty much VAC ban all of those accounts. (including my own)[/QUOTE] I don't see why they would VAC ban you.

[QUOTE=DHB;32935512]I don't see why they would VAC ban you.[/QUOTE] [img]http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o72/Waluigi2/manconony.jpg[/img]

Problem is that while running multiple copies of tf2 wouldn't be bannable, we are aware that valve still dont like idling right?

[QUOTE=Cyclone Duke;32936832]Problem is that while running multiple copies of tf2 wouldn't be bannable, we are aware that valve still dont like idling right?[/QUOTE] Yes they don't like idlers but theoretically they can only notice if you are idling by having Steam pick up on 3rd-party software altering item drops. I don't know if data saying you are playing in -textmode and repeating an idle-like cycle gets transmitted to them but it doesn't seem like it for now. All in all, when you idle with multiple alts at once it still looks like they are being played on seperate machines. [editline]25th October 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=DDSNv2;32935497]How much trouble would I get into if I: [B]-Made a bunch of Steam accounts -Put $5 bucks to make them TF2 Premium. -Buy 2 keys ($2.49 x2) each account. -Resell the keys back to SourceOP for $2 bucks each. -Idle on the accounts like no tomorrow.[/B] Because if I do this, I'd technically only waste a buck per account; but I can see how Valve could pretty much VAC ban all of those accounts. (including my own)[/QUOTE] If you want to feel safer, make an alt once per week instead of all at once. Otherwise I haven't heard of anybody being banned for this method nor do I think punishment would be as severe as the first purge.

This guy has 253 accounts overall and I don't think Valve have done anything about him... [url]http://steamcommunity.com/groups/noochland/members[/url]

Odd, I can't add funds to my second steam wallet. Anyone know why, perhaps?

[QUOTE=ShazzyFreak0;32951755]Odd, I can't add funds to my second steam wallet. Anyone know why, perhaps?[/QUOTE] Did you just make a new account? Sometimes it only works if you try after a few days of account creation, for some odd reason. [editline]25th October 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=AlfieGroove;32939265]This guy has 253 accounts overall and I don't think Valve have done anything about him... [url]http://steamcommunity.com/groups/noochland/members[/url][/QUOTE] Suddenly making a living off selling refined metal sounds plausible. Metal prospecting to the max.

[QUOTE=AlfieGroove;32939265]This guy has 253 accounts overall and I don't think Valve have done anything about him... [url]http://steamcommunity.com/groups/noochland/members[/url][/QUOTE] Holy mother of god... ...this gives me even more incentive on making more alts. :v:

My 1st post here! Yay! Ok, I have a few questions about Gurkenpirat's instructions; Building the Farm 1. Make a copy of Steam without the steamapps folder for each account [I]Question: Given the default install path of [B]C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\[/B] am I to assume that I should make a new Steam setup elsewhere as in this example?[/I] D:\Steam\ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 1\ \ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 2\ \ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 3\ [I]and so on with all accounts and NONE of these folders are to include the steamapps folder?[/I] (where I put ACCOUNT NAME that's whatever your Steam account name happens to be) 1.a. Decide your main steamapps folder.... [I]Question: Like this? [B]D:\Steam\MAIN ACCOUNT NAME [/B]\[/I] 1.b. If you want, you can move the steamapps folder somewhere else and rename it (mine is D:\Games\Steam for example). [I]Question: So there is to be only 1 steamapps folder for all the accounts and it's recommended/suggested to move the main one from the default directory of [B]C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\[/B] to somewhere else?[/I] I think if I were to have these questions answered I might be better off to make this excellent idea work. Thank you VERY much for your help here :)

[QUOTE=zackattack187;32958061]My 1st post here! Yay! Ok, I have a few questions about Gurkenpirat's instructions; Building the Farm 1. Make a copy of Steam without the steamapps folder for each account [I]Question: Given the default install path of [B]C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\[/B] am I to assume that I should make a new Steam setup elsewhere as in this example?[/I] D:\Steam\ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 1\ \ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 2\ \ACCOUNT NAME NUMBER 3\ [I]and so on with all accounts and NONE of these folders are to include the steamapps folder?[/I] (where I put ACCOUNT NAME that's whatever your Steam account name happens to be) 1.a. Decide your main steamapps folder.... [I]Question: Like this? [B]D:\Steam\MAIN ACCOUNT NAME [/B]\[/I] 1.b. If you want, you can move the steamapps folder somewhere else and rename it (mine is D:\Games\Steam for example). [I]Question: So there is to be only 1 steamapps folder for all the accounts and it's recommended/suggested to move the main one from the default directory of [B]C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\[/B] to somewhere else?[/I] I think if I were to have these questions answered I might be better off to make this excellent idea work. Thank you VERY much for your help here :)[/QUOTE] First, your main Steam installation. I'll assume you have it under Program Files. 1. You could create a folder to keep your Steam copies for idling, with your main Steam still being under Program Files. And none of the copies should have steamapps. For example: Main Steam installation: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\ Idling #1: D:\Idle\Name1 Idling #2: D:\Idle\Name2 and so on. 1.a. Your main steamapps folder would be the one with most games, ie. the one you have under Program Files. 1.b. Yes, all accounts will share the single steamapps folder. Moving the folder isn't needed, but I did it to keep the games on another partition. If you choose to, just move the steamapps folder from your main Steam installation to somewhere else.

[QUOTE=AlfieGroove;32939265]This guy has 253 accounts overall and I don't think Valve have done anything about him... [url]http://steamcommunity.com/groups/noochland/members[/url][/QUOTE] hmm yes yes weekly income [B][I][U]5,000 WEAPONS[/U][/I][/B]

Crafting and selling metal takes way too much time. You could earn more if you just get a real job.

@raBBish... HUGE thank you for your clarification. Now I need to ask a few more questions if you (or anyone else) do not mind please. 1.c.Remove all the other steamapps folders. [I]Question: I've decided to keep the default install directory intact for my main account that I use to play.... C:\program files (x86)\steam\ALL THE FOLDERS AND FILES INCLUDING STEAMAPPS. As such, does this apply to me?[/I] 1.d.Open cmd.exe as an administrator. [I]Not really a question... more of a here's-where-it-is-located for those of you who do not know (in Windows 7 64bit and maybe other versions of Windows as well)..... [B]C:\windows\cmd.exe[/B] to execute it, right click it and run as administrator. [/I] Again, I [I]really[/I] appreciate your help :) Thank you!

[QUOTE=jechtman;32952285]Did you just make a new account? Sometimes it only works if you try after a few days of account creation, for some odd reason. [editline]25th October 2011[/editline] Suddenly making a living off selling refined metal sounds plausible. Metal prospecting to the max.[/QUOTE] Worked today. Woo, professor speks! I want to play and idle at the same time. What's the workaround to sandboxie's copy limit?