Changes

We've changed the name of my blog to try to avoid some confusion as to the source of this endeavor. The new name is Jimmy Polston's 2010 Web Edition of the Farmtown Virtual Farmin' Almanac. The only "tater" I know of is the Rotten Tater Beast from my comic strip titled, "The Taterville Horror"; any similarities between my works to any persons/works real or imagined are purely coincidental. ~Jimmy

Farm Town March 2010 Update; Tree Chart

Jim's Farm Town Field Teleportin' Range Diagram

Better Farmin’: Field Mastery Part 1

Better Farmin’: Field Mastery Part 1

This post –as always– assumes that the reader is familiar with the basics of the game. If not, please refer to the Farm Town User Guide. The basics:

1. Check in Preferences and make sure “Wait for plow” is not selected. Have your preferences also set for low graphics display quality. Turn off trees*, flowers and buildings before starting.
2. Clear your browser cache daily. If you farm a lot, more often is recommended.
3. Clear your browser cookies and Flash cookies before a farming session.
4. Windows XP users need at least 1-2GB RAM for large farm jobs. Vista users need 3-4GB RAM. Windows 7, Mac and Linux users should check the Slashkey Forum for recommended hardware requirements.

(4) Windows XP users need at least 1-2GB RAM for large farm jobs. Vista users need 3-4GB RAM. Windows 7, Mac and Linux users should check the Slashkey Forum for recommended hardware requirements.

Field Mastery is a virtual farmer skill that builds on that knowledge. Adapting to updated iterations of the Farm Town game can help put him or her at the top of Neighbors’ On-Call for Hire list. Just like in the real world, if we kick serious butt in the field[s], we get more work offers. If we don’t, the phone doesn’t ring with job offers (In our case, the Chat Window doesn’t pop up to ask us if we’re busy nearly as often.) The employer needs to get fields planted and moved on to other important farmin’ tasks. The aware and considerate hired-hand farmer recognizes that, and also knows that if he or she wants good help on their own farm jobs, then they need to be good help—or else take their chances at the Market. (More info for subscribers is included in Field Mastery Revealed.)

The Short Take:

1. Work smart. Plan your moves in sight of the overall job.
2. Do Not work fields vertically. If you do so because your hand is tired, get a better wrist pad, relax and adjust your mouse technique.
3. Full Screen Mode is the best way to fly. Let your neighbor employer know, “Diving in Full Screen Mode.”
4. Work contiguous rows 2-wide (or in even numbers when the employer is planting behind you with a Seeder machine. He or she will love you for it.
5. Save your game often so the server will process your work quicker. Especially do so at the end of:

• Each separate section,
• At the end of the job so the employer can finish quickly too.

1. Practice working rows 2, 3, 4-wide, and so on.
2. I like to save tighter small sections for last. That way, the people working behind me will have plenty to do while I fuss with the fiddly bits and happily wrapping up the job.
3. Send a Thank You note to the employer before you leave. Also, find something that you genuinely like about their farm and compliment them on it in your note.
4. Show courtesy and have a sense of good humor. (Some folks might think it’s silly when I “bow” at the end of a job. But they also remember me for it. In time, they either bow or curtsy back, and that gives good feelings all around.)
5. Observe what’s happening at all times. Take advantage of the game updates, maximize efficiency with what is instead of fighting changes, and really kick butt with natural brain speed.
6. Check out my Teleportin' Range Diagram. This range is currently what is in use as of the latest tweaks of the farming system as of the December 22, 2009 re-iteration of Farm Town's fieldwork mechanics, and encompasses the the basics of Field Mastery.

Field Mastery PLUS is included for my blog Subscribers. This service is free-of-charge and scam-free. (We aim to have our advertisements relevant to what we think fall within our vision of what’s useful and entertaining for our target audience, and will refine our advertisements as time goes on. ) We do not sell or share subscriber information. The reason that I only share the more intense bits with subscribers is to prevent the information from being abused by casual players.

In closing the non-subscriber portion, quick farmin’ is really not all that difficult. And it’s not rocket science but it takes a proactive attitude and a bit a maturity. Yes, that is a jab directed at more juvenile farm games. Moving on… some folks still have yet to figure out how the latest updated version of the game works—much less learn how to take advantage of it to maximize efficiency and kick serious butt in the fields.

Sure, social skills are also very important and deserving of an entry all their own. But bein’ neighborly does not get the crops into Storage quickly, nor do they get the fields plowed quickly and getting the job done well is the nature of this post. I feel that if more people concentrated on getting the job done, then there would be less mass-hirings from the Market. Frankly, many virtual farmers don’t have time to wait while someone plows one looooong row, then walks back up to the top of the next row to start working again.

Have a good day and farm fearless.

For Subscribers, the good stuff awaits you here. Also included are tips on one of the more controversial aspects of social-game farming and how to excel at it.

All the best, spyware-free and Farming Fearless!

Jimmy Polston