Prefabs are one thing, and copy other's people work from their maps is another thing.

Prefabs are cool, quake community use them since the 90s. Copy from other's maps are not cool (except when the author gives permission in the readme file).

Have said that, there are some really old sites with a lot of prefabs out there. I found these with a quick search on google:

https://www.quaddicted.com/webarchive/prefab.planetquake.gamespy.com/quake/tech.shtml

http://quark.sourceforge.net/userprefabs.php#Q1

https://www.quakewiki.net/archives/qpp/prefabs.htm

(prefabs are divided by category, just choose on the menus and download them) 

"If I tell you explicitly in the readme not to do it you shouldn't - regardless of the logical arguments you can make in favor."

In this case a totally agree with you. Even if you come up with a original shape, let's say a different and unique style of bridge, and you allow others to copy it, I don't think other should copy it. I'm talking specifically about generic objects.

The walltorch entity is a good way of thinking it. Sometimes you just want a generic looking torch, sometimes you make your own brush and put a flame on it. I don't think that the existence of a torch entity limits the creativity. 

Some people's vision is too limited:

You're not going to do anything interesting pasting premade shit into your maps.

The levels in Super Mario 3D Land are mostly made out of premade assets. I'll let its public reception speak for itself.

Some people only sees Quake stuff through Quake lenses. They're completely unable to see how different approaches could be made to work in Quake. Lazy minded people only sees things from the most ridiculous angle, which is why they ridicule everything. 

Prefabs made to be copy and pasted are awesome. I played with them when that old site was still live.

Jam 9 featured some nice prefabs I used in my map actually! Some Knave windows and door arches. I felt free to use them as that was the intent of the jam organizer.

I think we all agree that Prefabs designed to be used are great resources. And I do agree with the wall torch analogy there.

So copy and paste bad. Prefabs good. Me want a banana. 

The only thing I'm against is having some kind of "repository" of prefabs for people to pick doors etc from. And people keep on suggesting it as some good idea, because it'll "save time".. Nobody wants to see the same doorway 10 times in 10 different levels. It's fucking lazy and the idea deserves to be ridiculed. 

A tileset editor kinda thing for Quake could be pretty cool imo. 

What we really need is http://oblige.sourceforge.net/
combined with prefabs from all of socks maps. 

Making crates, arches, windows and doors from scratch is what mapping is about. If you don't want to map then find another hobby.

Brave claim as to what mapping is about, from somebody who may very well have produced 0 maps ever. 

I use arch prefabs all the time because I have 0 patience for fucking with microscopic vertex alignment, my time is much better spent on texturing, lighting, and gameplay.

There are people who consider bsp an art form, and appropiately they produce art (i.e. skacky). I'm a complete fucking barbarian who carves almost everything and guess what, my DM4 map may not have looked anywhere as good or detailed as some others but it was still allegedly one of the best in the pack. 

Nobody wants to see the same doorway 10 times in 10 different levels.

Then maybe stop using the same doorway textures as every single AD map does. 

The only thing I'm against is having some kind of "repository" of prefabs

Sure, Mr. Brushwork Apartheid. Whatever you say. 

By definition, a prefab is something that is made once and then copied and pasted potentially multiple times.

Why would you need to rely on other mappers to make those? Is making your own crate and arch prefabs beyond you? If so, good luck drawing the rest of the fucking owl. 

Resist the prefabs at all costs, because it doesn't just end with a simple "repository". The mankrip is devising a path for his machine maps as we speak. Hopefuly this warning is not too late 

Prefabs repositories existed years ago as you may note elsewhere in this thread ... nothing bad happened.

and

Nobody wants to see the same doorway 10 times in 10 different levels.

Have you ever played a base map?

and

anonymous posts are

"fucking lazy and the idea deserves to be ridiculed."  

There is a tile based Quake solution here: https://github.com/joshuaskelly/tmx2map/tree/master/examples/basic

There are a lot of videos showing it in development here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/JDSkelly/videos 

Dumptruck again with the u-turn and betrayal. I was willing to die for you man.

On a serious note. Zzzzz 

keep it up TF. Putting effort in where it really matters. 

Nuance is lost on some people I guess. 

Nuff said. Focus on making your map dream come true. 

Go Map! 

I don't see what the problem is. Some people don't have much patience for minute texturing/brushwork and would rather concentrate on creating nice spaces. A few of the jams came with jams (I made a few for jam2, for example, which some people used). I always make a prefab database before starting a map because they allow me to quickly iterate spaces and see how they flow.

Besides, a prefab repo with specific objects (such as end portals like in the E3 maps) can come in handy in unifying design codes. 

Butter fingers 

Is there anyone interested in making prefabs?

I've seen some different attempts at a tile based Quake map editor, but no one can pull it off because the details tend to dive deep into the murky depths of Quake specifications for several different file formats.

I wrote out a process that can take a prefab .map file, convert it to tile overhead images, determine how many tiles it needs based on tile size (i.e. 64 x 64 quake units, 128 x 128, ..).

It would require some effort to assemble the full process to a complete graphical user interface process, but it might be worth it.

And then there is the issue how to connect a teleporter to a teleporter destination, and how exactly to light such maps so the environment looks nice.

(Also: Hard to tell if maps made in such a way would be any good?) 

There is a tile based Quake solution here: https://github.com/joshuaskelly/tmx2map/tree/master/examples/basic

There are a lot of videos showing it in development here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/JDSkelly/videos