What is FittsWorld?

FittsWorld Internet Theme Park is a collection of unique webpages devoted to computer games and my other personal hobbies and interests.  The theme park concept was developed as a means to change content modules ("attractions") over time without altering the main site.  Please start your tour of the park from the sidebar marquees, or review the News & Events section below for items of interest.

Warning:  FittsWorld contains high-speed adventure attractions designed to
be viewed with a version 4+ browser at 800x600 resolution and 16-bit color.

FittsWorld News and Events
Last updated on January 24, 2001

FittsWorld 2000 Game of the Year Award - January 2001
If I had made a prediction about this award in January 2000, the overwhelming favorite would have been Diablo II.  Unfortunately, the game didn't live up to the hype or justify the interminable wait, and it comes in a disappointing third.  The game suffers from Blizzard's decision not to include a save feature (except upon exit), and a rather severe experience penalty for death at the higher difficulty levels.  These two design blunders make the game more work than fun, and detract from the kill/reward formula that made the original so addictive.

Second place goes to a game which is really an update of a 1999 product, SimCity 3000 Unlimited.  This is a great game, very polished, and more fun than a barrel of monkeys.  Those who have not played one of the SimCity series should buy this game immediately.  (Are you reading this, Byron? :-)

Our grand prize winner is Baldur's Gate II.  In stark contrast to Blizzard's sub-par effort, Bioware not only lived up to the hype, they exceeded expectations in producing a sequel that is truly better than the original (how rare is that!).  The game is huge, yet it shipped on schedule with only minor bugs.  Graphics and sound are state-of-the-art, but it still runs comfortably on mid-range systems.  Plus it is FUN to play!  This game is simply the best RPG ever produced, and IMO belongs in the top 10 of computer games period.

Baldur's Gate Page sets new visitor record - October 2000
It was only a matter of time before the release of BGII helped return FittsWorld's Baldur's Gate Page to its familiar position as our #1 visitor attraction.  The page set new records in the month of October for hits in a day (424 on 10/15), and for a month (over 8,000).  This burst in traffic helped FittsWorld go over 10,000 hits for the month, and reach the 100,000(!) mark in all-time visitors.

Orcin's Paladin Guide - September 2000
The world has been cleansed of evil, and Baron Orcin has turned his attention to helping others achieve the same end... what a noble thing to do.  Orcin's Paladin Guide is now online at Diablo II Cave, featuring tips on all the key skills and gear needed to whup the bad guys.  There are also some nice new screenshots on the site, including me running from a batch of real mean cows, and multiplayer action with an Amazon who reminds me of someone from my past.

Diablo II Cave turnstiles are spinning - July 2000
The Baldur's Gate page is no longer the top attraction at FittsWorld, as the crowds are now flocking to the Diablo II Cave.  Since the release of the game, traffic on the Diablo2 page has increased dramatically, and on July 5 it set a new record for a FittsWorld attraction with 354 unique hits!  Update:  Diablo II Cave has set a new monthly record in July with over 7,000 unique visitors!

FittsWorld adds a Favicon - May 2000
If you use Internet Explorer 5, you are probably already familiar with Favorites Icons.  They appear next to a new bookmark in place of the generic icon (if the site offers one).  We are determined not to be outdone in the area of technology, so FittsWorld now has its own "Favicon".  Add this page to your Favorites (with IE5 only) and the new icon will automatically appear next to all FittsWorld bookmarks.

FittsWorld Milestones
New attractions, major content additions, and significant events

New site design for Diablo II Cave - March 2000
The new layout for FittsWorld's Diablo II Cave is now complete and online.  The site design was changed for several reasons, but the primary purpose was to make use of my own graphics instead of linkware.  The frameset is also eliminated in the new design, making the site more compatible with search engine spiders.

Replicator gets a new home - March 2000
The Replicator page referenced in the Slushee Stand has recently relocated to FittsWorld.  The story was originally posted by John Larrison on his home page, but it was "rescued" and given a facelift since John no longer uses the same ISP.  Thanks, John, for allowing me to use the story and helping with the new content!

Baldur's Gate Page sets new record! - February 2000
FittsWorld's BG page set a new attendance record in February with 4,616 unique visitors (excluding reloads).  This sudden increase in traffic was due to receiving a high rank in the AltaVista search engine after a little creative "tweaking" of my META tags.  It is amazing that a game released over a year ago can still generate this level of interest.  The BG page passed the 25,000 visitor mark in early March.

New FittsWorld layout - February 11, 2000
This new columnar layout is designed to be more interactive, using images and links to point visitors to various attractions.  My design consultant (Sara) likes the "wild adventurous theme park" feel that is conveyed by the color scheme and the masthead image of Diablo and his friends.  The layout also expands from the center to accommodate large screen resolutions.  Try viewing the page in 1024x768, and switch between a window and maximized view to see this feature.  And, as always, all layout graphics and HTML code on this page were created by me.  I learned a lot about tables doing this one.

Original attractions updated - February 2000
After completing the new layout, I decided that the three original attractions needed some minor renovations to stay current.  The former Computer Games Page was renamed to Diary of a Gamer, but it retains the original layout and content.  The Baseball Simulation page now features additional content in the form of the team rosters from my personal league.  And finally, the Slushee Stand has a complete new look, and the Slushee delivery system has been upgraded too.  If you haven't been to these attractions recently, please pay them a return visit.

New artwork on display - December 1999
The online portfolio of Sara Fitts has recently been updated with some of her latest work.  Most of these pieces were prepared for her college applications.  The page has a nice new layout too, so please drop by The S. Fitts Gallery for a visit soon.

Computer page now online - September 1999
This page was added to replace the defunct MidiLand page.  The highlight of the page is the description of my new Gateway GP7-500 Pentium III system.  The content also includes links to my favorite computer information and webpage resource sites.  Please drop by FittsWorld's Computer Page for a look.

FittsWorld's newest attraction: Diablo II Cave - June 1999
This new site is devoted to one of my favorite computer games and its new sequel, DiabloII.  The contents of my original page are included, along with a new DiabloII preview section.  There are also profiles of my best characters, rules for the Paladin Variant by Orcin, stories about my best games and adventures, and even some humor.  So explore each cavern carefully, and please beware of Cave Vipers.

MidiLand officially closed - June 1999
I believe the closing statement that is posted on the MidiLand page speaks for itself.  I hope you will go there and read it.  But if you want to go straight to the educational part of the program, whatiscopyright.org is an excellent place to start.  Unfortunately, copyright law is a concept that is often misunderstood and frequently abused by internet webmasters.

Eric updates the Sports Den - May 1999
Eric's page has been completely remodeled, including new content.  The page now contains homemade baseball cards, based on my real collection.  Eric and I worked on the cards together, and we think they make very interesting reading.  So please visit Eric's Sports Den, and then let Eric know how you liked our baseball cards.

The S. Fitts Gallery joins the FittsWorld network - April 1999
FittsWorld welcomes The S. Fitts Gallery as our first hosted site.  This site is dedicated to the artwork of Sara Fitts.  Yes, she is related to the webmaster, but please don't hold that against her :-).  The S. Fitts Gallery started on Geocities, but moved to FittsWorld to escape those nasty popup ads.  Please visit the gallery to experience for yourself the work of this future multimedia star.

Baldur's Gate Page joins BG Webring - April 1999
FittsWorld is proud to announce that BioWare has added our new Baldur's Gate page to the Baldur's Gate Webring.  The page made its debut recently, and has added content rapidly.  The great banner logo for the page was made by future graphic artist, Sara Fitts.  (Update: The BG page has now gone over 40,000 hits, which is a lot more traffic than I ever expected.)

FittsWorld Facts and Figures
A bunch of other stuff at the bottom of the page

FittsWorld is located on the World Wide Web.  The park occupies 5 square mb of cyberspace, and operates completely unattended 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.  Best of all, FittsWorld offers FREE ADMISSION with Children Half Price!!  So please enjoy your visit, and don't forget your complimentary Slushee.  We also encourage all patrons to place a comment card in the mailbox before exiting.

A brief site history
FittsWorld opened June 1, 1997 to a small but happy crowd.  The park doubled in size in May 1998 when it moved from AT&T WorldNet to PDQ.net, but maintained the original layout until the spring of 1999.  Three of the original attractions remain open, and most of the major content additions are referenced in the "Milestones" section above.  The park entrance has also been renovated several times, but nostalgia buffs can still view the older layouts via the "Archives" links on this page.

FittsWorld safety rules
This site is designed to be viewed using a version 4+ browser at a minimum of 800x600 resolution and 16-bit color.  If you use 640x480 or 8-bit color, well... it probably doesn't look as good as it should.  Please notify the webmaster if you have any problems viewing or navigating this site.

FittsWorld primarily uses Tahoma and Verdana fonts.  These fonts were chosen because they are easy to read.  Tahoma is installed by Windows 98 or Office 97.  Verdana comes with MSIE4, or you can download it from Microsoft.  If the specified fonts are not installed on your system, the pages will default to Arial.

A statement on hit counts
The visitor tally shown on this page is a cumulative total of all page views on all FittsWorld attractions.  The total includes visitors from previous layouts that were not recorded on the sophisticated turnstiles in use at the park today.

Please link to FittsWorld using this official logo button.

Thanks for visiting FittsWorld!  Please come again soon.

Baldur's Gate is © BioWare Corp.  Diablo & DiabloII are © Blizzard Entertainment.  All original content and HTML code in FittsWorld is copyright © 1997-2000 Ken Fitts.  No materials from this site may be used or reproduced in any form without the written permission of the webmaster.