“As for me, I am tormented with an everlasting itch for things remote. I love to sail forbidden seas…” – Herman Melville, Moby Dick: or, the Whale

11.01.yc117 B-WQDP < GU-JZ1 Constellation < Wicked Creek Region

The Mission

Systems explored map

For those followers who are new, or may not be aware of my mission, it is my desire to explore all of New Eden one system at a time and record my journey with images and writings via this blog. I began my journey in yc111 (2009) and as you can see by the graph, it wasn’t until this last year did I truly tackle the mission. The two years I went missing, yc114 & yc115, I spent grieving for my father whom had passed away from this life. From his passing I truly began to understand what one aspect of being immortal meant… seeing mortal loved ones and friends around you slowly disappear from your life. I spent those years grounded planet side on Saisio, my home system, wondering if my wanderings should continue.

The support, love, and encouragement of my family and friends during that dark time finally lifted my heart and I was able to let go of my grief allowing me to return to my explorations. It is, after all, what my father would have wanted. So with a vengeance, I outdid all my previous system explorations, completing Phase I: Empire space and starting Phase II: Nullsec space this last year ending with 2,959 total systems explored since the start of my mission.

The Past – What didn’t work

Backups

NI-J0B II

One of the first things I had done during my break was to backup my writings and images I had chronicled to that point, thinking if I should return, I would then be able to restore this blog and carry on. As it turned out, the writings portion of my backup was corrupted and I didn’t realize it until I went to restore. This is why you’ll not find any post prior to my return in yc116. Fortunately, the images I had taken up to that point where good and I was able to restore them to my gallery. I’ve corrected this issue should it ever come up again, having more than one verified backup on hand in different locations. I can’t stress enough that if there’s something in digital form that you wish to keep, be sure to not only back it up, but verify it’s good.

Image Processing

QXE-1N I

One of the reasons my exploration was going at such a slow pace before was due to the labor intensive work with the images I had taken. To get them ready for the gallery, due to space limitations and other factors, I would adjust their format and size before uploading them. Upon my return, the first thing I did was to streamline and automate the process of capturing the image and reformatting before upload. This one simple change has saved me countless hours and I’m able to explore more systems with the time saved.

Regions of New Eden

I had started a new series called “Regions of New Eden”, but after doing the first one, I realized it was going to be more time intensive than I had anticipated. That, plus the fact I received no feedback, I’ve decided to not continue it as I’d rather spend that time on the other series I had started that is working well, which leads to…

The Present – What works well

New Eden Explorers

Y19P-1 VI, Circadian Seeker

The series “New Eden Explorers” that I had begun last year has been well received and I will continue with it this year. I currently have at least two more interviews lined up and will more than likely conclude the series something during the first half of yc117. I’ve really enjoyed learning about my fellow explorers and as you’ve learned as well, there are many different ways to go about exploring New Eden. I hope as a reader and follower of my blog, you’ve enjoyed the series, learned something from it, and that it’s encouraged you to explore even more than you have before. I’d love to hear from you if it has and if you know of an explorer I’ve missed that either blogs, videos, or chronicles their journey in some manner publicly, then please let me know. I’d be happy to include them in the series if they’d like.

The Future – Exploration

At my current pace, if I’m able to keep it going, I should complete Phase II: Nullsec by the end of this year, yc117 (2015). At that time, we’ll see if I continue on with W-Space. That would be another 2,498 systems not including the newly discovered Thera system plus an additional 100 shattered wormholes. If I do continue, I’ll be looking for a different way to document and record my visit to each system. I believe my time to scan down wormholes will take away time I would usually visit each planet in system, so at this time, I’m not sure just how I’ll go about my journey, but I still have some time to think about it. If you’re a wormhole explorer and have some ideas, please let me know.

F76-8Q III, RHE7-W Gate