maybe those people are just biding their time

The people who don't make their turns have probably left Diplomacy or are on some sort of trip. Setting a threshold will have no effect on people who have left Diplomacy, and probably have negative effects on innocent people who just when on vacation for a few weeks.

A points system is planned so that players who leave aren't able to join good games, hopefully that'll take care of the problem fairly well

how about an I'm Away setting for players to switch on when they are away for real reasons. This would sort the AWOL from the AFK.

Great idea Trajan.

I think a player would have to set a length of time, otherwise he could effectively put himself away yet still never return. If the length of time is over-run by an extra week or so it becomes AWOL.

I don't understand why you two find it any less annoying when someone leaves a game temporarily. Sure, the AFK button would ensure that the other players didn't have to wait 24 hours. But the game would still be spoiled, because the other players would be able to pick off the AFK player's supply centers.

I'm not arguing that playing online Diplomacy is more important than taking real-life vacations, but if you know you'll be on vacation in the next month, it's simply rude to start a game that you'll abandon. "Innocent people who just went on vacation" cause as much aggravation as people who quit phpdiplomacy and should be treated no differently.

Only when you're reduced to non-adjacent supply centers, or when the game has already been locked up for one player, is it harmless to drop out.

Well if you start or join a game one week before you go on vacation you are definitely not an innocent vacationer. However, it's not like you can just start planning for an vacation a few weeks ahead of schedule by backing out of games. Your current games may well continue until your vacation and then you'll be in civ disorder anyway and it's not your fault.

Indeed, no person should have to build their vacation around a game of Diplomacy. At the end of the day you can always start a new game of Diplomacy at any time. Can you go on holiday at anytime?

The main comment I see in the shadows here is that it's not fair to the other players...this is surely not such a competitive community that players expect other players to put aside everything for it?

My advice is join more than one game at the same time, so if one falls off you have the other to keep going. Or play against people that you know.

My final thought would be to put in a calendar for players to say when they are away etc. but I feel it is a little extreme. Anyway just some ideas.

If something comes up that you didn't expect then there's nothing you can do, it's just a game of course, but it is annoying for other players if you drop a game half way, it tilts the whole balance of the game, especially if you don't tend to join lots of games but focus on a couple.
Hopefully in the future the reliable players will be separated in points from the unreliable ones

I think that as long as you can get someone to cover for you that works okay. By the way does anyone want to take aoe3rules' place in this game: http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=1222
He's England and he's in a good position, it'll be a good game, let me know and I'll sub you into the game

i wouldnt mind another game

I join so many games and rarely go out of town away from a computer but If I had to plan my life around diplomacy, that would be pathetic. Im going to NY on a vacation that I didnt know about until 3 weeks ago. i havent joined new games but theres nothing i can do if i dont get access to a PC. Perhaps a computer AI system could be created to place the most logical defensive and basic offensive moves to take over a player when hes away. Im going to try my best to log on over the next few days but im not guaranteeing anything. Im sorry for any inconvienences.

an AI system would naturally cover this problem, but coding it would be difficult I imagine. I have no knowledge of how to script/code so I wouldn't know.

An AI system would need funding and a lot of time. But if it covers every single person in civ disorder, it will seriously slow us down.

Time we have. In 5 years there is no reason this site cant be perfect. Servers can be bought, code can be written. Clearly anything Im suggesting is idealalistic, but can be realized in time.

In the meantime there is nothing we can do about small problems. Life will always be more important. The idea that people only have to place moves once every 24 hours is why anyone even plays. So what if someone leaves for vacation; another game can be played and life goes on. I dont believe that many people join games just to not play and be rude to the other 6 people playing. Its not that big of a deal. Adapt, change strategy, and meet this problem as a challenge.

I never hold anything anyone does in this game personally. So until a perfect AI system is created to simulate real players thus defeating the purpose of online play we must accept that life is more important than php diplomacy (PHP is a close second)