Hardlink's Game Server Information

The Internet Hardlink Co runs a FREE GameServer for anyone on the Internet To use. You do NOT need an account with us to use our server, but if you are interested in getting an account with us, please check out our WebSite, contact us or call (781) 961-4800.

The name of the server is KaliSpace.Hardlink.com. We run server software developed by Kali Inc..

Below is a copy of their FAQ that users can read to get an idea of what the software is and how it works. The Kali WebSite has a more extensive section for users and we recomend that users check it out.

If you have any questions about our GameServer, please contact us.


 

Other Support Sections available at Kali.net: 
  Kali95 FAQ --The answers to your Kali95 questions 
DOS FAQ --Get your DOS questions answered 
Support Files --Make sure your system is up to date! 
E-mail Support --Find out how to get the e-mail support. 

If you wish to print the Getting Started FAQ for future reference, 
follow this link for printable version of this document. 

 

  • Quik Navigation
  •   Follow the links to jump straight to specific question 
    1. What is Kali?
    2. Why do I need Kali?
    3. How is Kali different from other online services?
    4. How do I sign up?
    5. What do I get? 
    6. What do I need to use Kali?
    7. Where do I begin?
    8. How do I chat?
    9. How do I play games?
    10. How does Kali work?
    11. What are ladders, leagues, and tournaments and does Kali support any of these? How do I sign up?
    12. Where do I go for more help?
    1. What is Kali?
      A Kali is an Internet gaming service. You can use Kali to play over 100 different games over a standard Internet connection with users from all over the world. Kali is the oldest, largest, and still the best gaming service on Earth! 
    Q 2. Why do I need Kali? 
      A Many games, especially older games and almost all DOS games, do not have built-in Internet support. Kali adds Internet support to these games, and also provides hundreds of features to make your gaming experience as fun as possible. Although many recent games have support for Internet play, you still need a service like Kali to help you find other players and discuss gaming topics with other gaming enthusiasts. 
    Q 3. How is Kali different from other online services?
      A At Kali we're proud of the business and design philosophies that make our service better than any other. Kali was developed by gamers for gamers. It was not developed as a money-making venture like the other services. As a result everything you find in Kali was intended to make the service work better for you. Here are a few examples:  
  • one-time sign-up fee of $20. This covers free upgrades, free support, and unlimited use of our service. You never pay anything ever again!
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  • stand-alone client software. Kali does not require special browsers, plug-ins, or other Web-based products. We provide our own software that should work on more PCs than any other service. Our software will run on Windows 95, NT, Macintosh, DOS, and even OS/2 PCs.
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  • support for almost any IPX game. Kali provide a generic IPX emulator that enables us to provide support for most existing games and new games without requiring special game versions or enablers.
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    Q 4. How do I sign up? 
      A Anyone can try Kali by simply downloading the software from here: http://www.kali.net/software/. You can start playing games right away; however, until you are a registered member you can only play up to 15 minutes each time you connect to Kali. To get full access to our service simply use any of the methods posted at http://www.kali.net/register/ (the online order form can be used by anyone including international customers). If you want to register a friend you can use the same ordering options, but use your friend's email address on the order form. It's only $20, but each player must have his/her own registration. No sharing is allowed. 
    Q 5. What do I get? 
      A As a registered member of the Kali service you receive lifetime use of our service. The software we provide should be usable indefinitely. We provide free upgrades, free support, and the best gameplay available on the Internet. Each registered user receives 3 special registration codes. These codes unlock the client software to allow unlimited use. You can use these codes wherever you go (no need to re-register if you move, get a new Internet account, or get a new PC). 
    Q 6. What do I need to use Kali? 
       

    a) You will need Internet access. You are responsible for obtaining and paying for your own Internet connection. There are hundreds of ISPs (Internet Service Providers) that offer the type of connection that is needed to use Kali. In fact, almost all modern public services will work with only a few exceptions (the classic Prodigy still won't work, but the new Prodigy will). You may see a significant difference in performance among various ISPs so be careful when choosing or switching providers. AOL is among the slowest we've tested and we've found that some of the smaller local Internet providers provide the fastest connection.  

    b) You'll need a PC. For the Windows 95/NT client software, a 486-66 with 8 megs of RAM and a 100 megs harddrive is needed for Kali, but keep in mind that each game will have its own minimum requirements and most games today will require at least a P5-90 with 16 megs of RAM and 300 megs of harddrive storage. Macintosh users will need to be running Open Transport 1.1.2.  

    c) You'll need games! Kali only provides the connection between users. We do not provide the games. However, there are quite a few demo games available for users that don't own any of their own games. See http://www.kali.net/games/demos.html for a list. 

    Q 7. Where do I begin? 
      A Get the software!!! Kali won't work until you download the client software for your PC, install it, and configure it. See http://www.kali.net/software for details on the proper software to download.  

    Detailed download directions:  

  • When you click on the hot-link for the file you want to download your Web browser will pop-up a box asking you what you want to do with this file. Select the option to "Save to a disk" and select a folder on your PC to save the file. DO NOT SAVE THIS FILE TO YOUR DESKTOP IN WINDOWS 95 OR NT. You cannot run the installer from the desktop. Just select some other folder on your PC and click the button to Save.
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    Install the software!  

  • Find the file you downloaded from above using the desktop explorer and double-click on the file to start the installer (Mac users will get a prompt to extract the files...read the information in the readme that appears after the files are extracted for more details). Answer the questions and click Next until it's completed. DO NOT INSTALL KALI95 ON THE WINDOWS 95 OR NT DESKTOP. Just allow Kali to select the install directory or select another folder on your PC when it asks where to install the files.
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    Run the software!  

  • For Win95/NT users, select the Start menu, select Programs, select Kali and then click on "Kali95". Mac users need to reboot and select Kali from the list of control panels.
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    Configure the software!  

  • When you first start Kali, it will ask for a lot of personal information including nickname. You do not need to put your *real* name if you want to remain somewhat anonymous. This data will appear to any other user requesting more information on you. 

  •  
    Q 8. How do I chat? 
      A Somewhere between 50-70% of all users on Kali are chatting at any given time. This is a big part of gaming for most people. Players use the chat system to discuss pending games, past games, strategies, and just about any other topic imaginable. Most chatting is done using the Kali Chat system (kchat). To use kchat simply run Kali, select a server from the list and click the button to connect (Mac users will need to then run kchat). You will immediately be added to a default chat room (channel) on the server you connected to. Select the server by checking the list to see which servers have more users or select a server that is named with a topic you might be interested in (Duke Nukem players might join the Duke Nukem server). Type "/help" while in chat mode to get a list of commands that are available. 
    Q 9. How do I play games? 
      A There are now two different ways to play most games on Kali95. The new way involves using the Launch button and associated game list to host or launch a game lobby for a specific game. The traditional way involves connecting to a Kali server and using the game icons at the bottom of the screen.  

    The New Game Lobby  

    Kali95 1.1 introduced a new game lobby system. This system makes it much easier to find other players for specific games and allows users to control who can join a game. For games like Duke Nukem and Doom it also allows users to setup all of the game options before launching, thus eliminating most of the problems getting those games started.  

    You can manually configure games for the new Lobby interface by selecting "Edit Launch Game Info" from the Games menu or right-clicking the Launch button at the bottom of the screen. You can also select the option to "Scan for Games" from the Games menu to have Kali automatically find and configure all of your games (highly recommended). You must have the game configured before you can either host or join one of these games.  

    To use this system, you do not have to be on a server, but you may be on a server if you want. You do not have to be on the same server as the other players since everyone sees the same list of games. To host a game (only a registered user can host a game), click the Launch button on the left side of the game icon toolbar. Select the type of game from the "Game:" field and possibly set any of the other options. Click OK and then wait for players to join. Once everyone joins, click the small Launch button (looks like a space ship) on the toolbar and the game will start.  

    To join one of these games, just look through the list of games that appears below the list of servers when Kali starts. Select the game you want to join and double-click on it. Once you join, press the "Ready to Start" box so the host can start the game.  
    Whether hosting or joining, once the game starts select the options in the game to host or join an IPX game. Some games like Duke Nukem and Doom will launch the game directly (no need to select the IPX game options).  

    The Traditional Kali Game  

    This method is the only method available to older Kali95 users, DOS, OS/2, and Mac users. Basically all players connect to the same Kali server first. You can chat before starting games with everyone else running chat on that server. Once connected to the same server as the other players, you simply launch the game from an icon on the bottom of the screen. If no icon is setup yet, either manually configure one of the buttons or select the Scan for Games option in the Games menu. Once the game is started, select the options in the game to either host or join an IPX game. Just follow the game's own directions as if you were playing on a local area network. Almost any DOS or Win95 IPX game can be played this way including games that are not on the supported list by simply manually adding a button on this toolbar to start the game.  

    Servers: One of the difficulties with playing the traditional way is finding the right server. If you join a server that is empty or doesn't have people playing your game, you won't have any luck getting a game started. There is a list of servers that appear when Kali95 first starts. You will see about 12 servers that begin with "->" like "-> Descent <-". These are servers operated by Kali, Inc. that specialize in certain games or types of games. These are always a good choice. There are also servers that specialize in certain geographical areas. Just browse the list.  

    Process: When on a server and in the chat mode, type "/games" to see the list of "processes" that each user on that server is running. Some will appear as games. By typing "/process all" you will see a list of every process (game) running on Kali and the number of people running each. Typing "/process descent" will show all of the servers that have people running Descent. These commands might make it easier to find out where most of the people playing your game are hanging out.  

    Summary  

    The traditional method of playing games is more flexible in that you can setup and run any game with any Kali user (no matter what version of Kali they use). The newer lobby system has more features and will normally produce a smoother, more reliable game. Most games can be played either way, but don't get them mixed up. A game launched the traditional way will not appear in the list of game lobbies. Only games launched using the Launch button will appear.  

    The traditional method is still the most popular way to play Warcraft2, Descent, Descent2, Command & Conquer, Red Alert, and Mech Warrior. The new system is typically used for Diablo, Duke Nukem, Doom, Quake, and most of the less popular games (because it makes it easier to find other players and games).  
     

    Q 10. How does Kali work? 
      A Kali makes itself look like a normal IPX (LAN) network driver. Your LAN games operate normally, but instead of looking for opponents on a LAN, it looks for opponents across the Internet. For most games this trick works great. The only problems occur when the game expects the connection to be faster or needs to send more data than a typical modem connection can provide. The result is that you might be limited in the number of players that can be in the same game. Some games are affected more than others so you cannot expect the same performance for all of your games. 
    11. What are ladders, leagues, and tournaments and does Kali support any of these? How do I sign up? 
      A A ladder is an ongoing ranking system for players of specific games. Each player reports game scores to the site that runs the ladder and as each game is reported, the rankings are adjusted.  

    A league is a group of players with some common interest, much like a club. They have meetings, sometimes have competitions with other leagues and sometimes do nothing more than exchange ideas or custom map files for their favorite games.  

    A tournament is usually a one-time event in which players sign up to play a specific game to see who is the best.  

    See http://www.kali.net/kulture for more information on ladders and leagues among Kali users. Kali doesn't operate any of these leagues or ladders, but we support their efforts as much as possible. Contact each specific site for more information on rules and procedures.  
     

    12. Where do I go for more help? 
      A We provide an extensive support service at Kali. You can start by reading the files that came with your software (readme files). You can then check the website at http://www.kali.net/support for the latest information on common problems. If you need further help, the online support page provides a list of email addresses for specific problems. You can also email support@kali.net to get a list of these same email addresses (this will be an automated response). At this time, Kali does not offer any phone support, but our support staff can usually respond to your questions via email the same day you post them (if posted before 4pm EST). We work very hard to provide fast, accurate, and easy to understand answers as often as possible. And the support is free! 
      Back to Support Section  
     


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    1191 North Main Street, Suite 208
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