The OS is unimportant, XP or 98 or what ever is perfectly fine. You don't need a server type OS to run a server, that just lets you run more server functions that have nothing to do with the Emu. And Visual Basic .net is not what you want since the server is not written in in Visual Basic. You need Visual Studio which includes a C++ compiler, but there is a free version and tutorials on how to get it and use it. So really the only server cost is the Hardware and a basic OS, the DB uses My SQL which is free. Then you need a good internet conenction which can be as much as you want to spend. That should be the only monthly fee after the initial setup.
When he says you would ahve a lot of work to do to make an EQ clone he means that the DBs are not completely the same as EQ, but they will probably be there soon. The real work comes in quests, very few EQ clone quests are implemented because most people hate them and want to make new ones and the data is not available to copy them accurately. Also a lot of the features of EQ are not implemented yet, most are in but quite a few haven't been written. So if you want a complete clone it'll take a ton of work btu if you want a reasonable clone it won't be that hard.
A pay server is completely illegal and absolutely not allowed to use these forums or login servers. The instant you require people to pay you are taking revenue from Sony and will be sued big time. Donations are perfectly fine and good servers generally get enough to pay for their costs quite easily from donations. But they have to be around for a while and show how good they are first. You could also do things like magic item auctions and stuff for cash, I don't think thats illegal but I would have to check to make sure.
|