Just a few words about cheating in Half-Life. More than once, I have been accused of cheating, usually when I dominate one or more rounds, often against less-experienced players. I want to make it clear where I stand.
I don't cheat. Never have, never will.
So how do you win convincingly in this game? It's a combination of:
I have spent countless hours and days in all four of these areas, optimizing each one for maximum results. I have a seriously kick-ass system, cable modem, highly optimized Half-Life and PC configuration (more about my gaming environment here), and I spend many hours a week playing. I also play the same servers almost exclusively, so I get to know the maps and servers very well.
I believe that cheating by regulars is disrespectful to other regulars. I play this game mainly because of the friends I've made while playing. I want these people to respect me for my skill, nothing less. Using cheats doesn't buy me anything in this game.
On the subject of cheats, you should know that cheating is fairly rare in Half-Life -- the server code is pretty well-designed. However, there are ways around it. www.punkbusters.com has a high-level overview of what some of them are. They're quite involved, so they require someone to invest a significant amount of time to get familiar with all of the things necessary, time that would be much better spent simply cleaning up your PC's configuration to give you better legal results.
I have learned a lot about how to optimize this environment, and I've assembled these tips into a web page: Half-Life Performance Tips. If you spend a little time following these tips, you'd probably do a little better, and not get so frustrated when you get your ass royally kicked by a regular to the game.
In short, I don't have to cheat. I can win often without it. (And, by the way, before I upgraded my PC hardware, I spent the better part of a year, never winning a single round.) It's not really a matter of winning, rather of playing for the right reasons.
And, if you're still not convinced by my little manifesto, then too bad for both of us, I guess. Those who know me will attach some value to this writing.
Fate, n : an inevitable and often adverse outcome, condition, or end : DISASTER; especially DEATH