Hi,we have a somewhat old modem in the house,that only has a single port so it can only be connected at one computer at a time.
But the computers inside the house are two so me and my sister split the time we are using it,and I keep it for half the day,and my sister the other half.
So yesterday after I was browsing the web my sister comes to my room to take the modem because it was her turn,and she left me without internet.
Thought "Ok,let's do something with the Creation Kit to pass my time creatively". I have a shortcut to the Creation Kit in my Windows 7 bar so I just clicked it,but It didn't ran.

Instead I got a Steam message telling me that I had no internet connection,and this Steam window presented me 3 options:

1) RETRY
2)START STEAM IN OFFLINE MODE
3) QUIT

Option number one checks for internet connection,and after it does,it just tells me there isn't,and then brings me back again to that same window with the 3 options.
The third option just quits Steam and that's all.
I thought that choosing the second option would let me run the Creation Kit without having internet connection at the current time,but it didn't.
Instead after clicking "START STEAM IN OFFLINE MODE" I got an error message telling me:



"Could not connect to Steam Network.
This could be due to a problem with your internet connection,or with the Steam network.
Please visit www.steampowered.com for more info."


So basically Steam tells me to visit its website because I don't have an internet connection.
Does it even make sense ? Even if it does,the Creation Kit didn't started after that message.
Then I thought "whatever,at least since I can't make a new mod right now,at least let's try out those I downloaded and installed some minutes ago".
So then I double clicked the Skyrim shortcut,but guess what ?
I got the same response from Steam.

I was thinking that Steam's OFFLINE MODE would let me play the games I have on it while it isn't connected to the internet,but that' is not the case after all.
And I'd like to inform you at Bethesda that I really think that making Skyrim or the Creation Kit or whatever software needing constant internet connection to run is just frustrating,and of course there is no true reason behind it.
I was thinking very seriously to download a crack so I can play the game without needing Steam,not because I'm a pirate,but because guess what,I want to play the game I bought with my money whenever I want to.
Am I asking too much ? To be able to use a product I paid money for when I want to ?
I hope there would be an official solution for that,because I know you guys don't like unofficial solutions like cracks to be used for your games,even if it's not for piracy,but the limits you pose at your consumers are too extreme,almost paranoid.
I use EA's Origin to play some of my other games,and Origin unlike Steam lets you play single player modes of the games that use it, even without having internet connection after you have registered the game to it.Why can't Steam work the same way too ? Or at least Skyrim and the Creation Kit have an exception ?
I'm not making this post to bash Steam or you,the Skyrim developers,but to inform you (Bethesda developers/publishers) that making your software needing constant internet connection makes your honest costumers that buy your products to have frustrations,and that shouldn't happen.
And for what reason is it that I get through this ? Piracy ? Pirates have already made cracks so they are uneffected by that.

Please let sense come to you,and realize that making your products needing a constant internet connection doesn't prevent pirates from pirating your games,and the only thing it does is being frustrating for those like me that can't have their computer connected to the internet 24/7. I hope that you will address this matter so there will be an official solution to this.
I wouldn't like to use a crack to play the game I bought,but if you force me such unnessecary hassle and frustrations for just wanting to play the game I paid money for,I might do.

I play offline often, not tried the Creation Kit offline yet, it might sound bloody daft but I can only get offline to work if I tell it to go 'offline' when I'm still 'online'? That may for all I know be the only way you are supposed to do it, it does say something like "set to offline if you know you are going to be 'off' the internet" when you click to go 'offline'. Really it should work if your internet is down when you first try to play but it seems that you have to log in at Steam then go 'off'??? maybe with you and your sister try changing to offline before your sister pulls the plug on you? Damn stupid all together me thinks.

I think you have to be online in order to put Steam in the offline mode. Once you can do that, you should be fine.

Really ?
I wouldn't have guessed.
I will try it next time,but either way I think the way Steam works is kinda... unusual.
Thanks for the suggestion.

You can be offline and still start Steam.

It will automatically detect if you have an active connection or not when launching, and if not it will give you the option to start in offline mode.

Yes, in the case of Skyrim and the Creation Kit, both must be completely updated and to ensure that offline mode works properly, it is better to select "Restart in offline mode" while you are connected to the Internet. If you do this, the steam client will restart and perform a scan of some sort (to check to see if all your games are updated perhaps). Once this is completed, you should be able to launch the Steam client offline with no problem.

YEs but that is where the problem comes in --- If you do not have a connection it will give you the prompt but after you tell it to go into Offline mode it will error out and fail to start --- In order to go into offline mode you first have to be online and set it to go into offline mode -- If you wait until you do not have a connection you are out of luck and the game will not run until you can get back online and tell the game to go into offline mode ( Completely ridiculous but the way STEAM works !! )

Yep its crazy all right, need to go into offline mod? yes thats fine sir/madam just get yourself connected and we can do that for you????? Oh and would you like fries with that He He