I imagine there are some other players who share my frustration when someone drops out of a game and all further play becomes frozen. I know the automove function is supposed to take care of this, but that part of the program doesn't seem to be working consistently.

This being the case, I'm wondering if there is a better way to handle the situation that wouldn't involve a lot of additional programming. Here are my two suggestions:

1) after a given period of time (say 1-2 weeks), the missing player's ships "auto-surrender" and the game moves on with the remaining players.

2) after a given period of time, the missing player's ships are allowed to fire, or be fired upon, in their last position (perhaps simulating some mishap on the ship that has immobilized it). This would continue until until the game ends or the ships are eliminated. If possible, the programming could allow for the missing player to rejoin the game and move his own ships.

Any thoughts? I would particularly appreciate any input from someone who is involved on the programming side of this side as to whether the above suggestions are feasible.

Thanks!