Aces High Bulletin Board
Special Events Forums => Friday Squad Operations => Topic started by: daddog on December 09, 2009, 05:27:22 PM
-
Just wanted to give everyone a heads up about the new radar and icon options we have for events. Speaking only for FSO we will be trying some of them out and I will likely try changing them in the 3rd frame of the current FSO. Not sure what I want to do yet, but will put them in the 3rd Frame objectives and announce them in this forum.
The icon ranges can be turned off all the way off to having them as far out as 11.5.
We can also adjust friendly and enemy icons separately. We also have the ability to turn off ‘in flight’ clipboard radar so only those in the tower can view radar dots or bar (if we have it turned on). The obvious plus with that is if you get shot down you can act as a ground intercept operator for your squad. :) What’s more we now have the ability to set enemy icons off below a certain altitude. For example if someone wanted to do an NOE attack we could set it so enemy icons were off below, say three thousand feet, but then on to what ever icon range we wanted above that altitude.
It will be exciting trying out these new options and I am really appreciative of HTC giving us what we asked for at the con this year. For now we will experiment with the different settings and always give the players a heads up. Not sure if we will settle on a FSO standard icon setting, but that is certainly what we will be considering as we try out our options in the coming weeks and months.
They say altitude is life, but with these new options NOE can definitely be stealth.
-
The radar option is definitely going to have interesting implications for an event such as this, where one side is all defense and the other is all offense. Especially when it comes to finding gaps in the radar coverage.
-
Would it be possible to have Enemy Aircraft ID off, Distance only?
I think that would be interesting.
-
Sure would Saxman. I am kinda thinking of turning on some kind of dot dar for frame three and allow those Axis pilots downed to help coordinate for their squadies. Shoot the Axis could even start with a volunteer radar operator. On the flip side thinking for the Allies of turning off icons for those below a certain alt so the Allies could do an NOE without an neon sign announcing their arrival. Anyway... just been mulling it over. Their is a 100 different ways we could do this. :cool:
Did not see anything for turning off enemy ID or distance Nef. Just on or off and adjusting the range we would see the icon.
-
Two other options that might be fun in the future:
As well as Nef's suggestion of turning off types in icons, how about making all icon's - both friendly and enemy - the same color.
Also - in the radio box, could we suppress the listing of who's in range?
Regards,
68Wooley
-
That I would love 68wooley but then again, I would hate. 1 main reason is noobs on my own team shooting me down because they can't tell a allied plane from a axis plane if their life depended on it.
-
I think turning the icons off for all would really be pushing it. Not something for FSO, but in something like the 2nd Frame of a Snapshot it would be a hoot to try. :D
-
If the icons were turned off, then would we get double points for blue on blue incidents?
-
Disabling icons is like poking one of your eyes out...
Do it on your own end, don't go around doing it for other folks that don't want to be legally blind.
-
I sure could have used this back in Operation Downfall! :)
-
Disabling icons is like poking one of your eyes out...
Do it on your own end, don't go around doing it for other folks that don't want to be legally blind.
Agreed, here. Until we're all flying around with monitors large enough and with high enough resolution so everything's in 1:1 scale icons should be left on.
-
Disabling enemy dots on the clipboard would be cool...if they were only visible in tower that would change the strategies and importance of communications...a lot like the S3 series in the other place.
And as far as turning off enemy icons...maybe shortening the distance would be an option...not totally off though...even though it wouldn't bother me, there are too many people using dinky laptop screens and they would have problems.
-
Leave it alone, no dots no dars , only flashing....... :old:
-
This sounds awesome espically NO icons! :rock :rock :banana: :banana:
-
No icons would be great!! Wonder how many good guys I would blow my E on
-
Friendly only icons would be interesting or eny icons at type and range under 2k.
-
Personally, on the maps we play on in FSO, I think Icons off would make for a long boring frame. Icons help to get the combat going, I don't see much advantage in hindering that.
-
On the contrary, for some of us it made a very short frame.
-
I love them Those Spixteen Pilots didnt know what to do with out their Icons LOL :banana:
-
Personally, on the maps we play on in FSO, I think Icons off would make for a long boring frame. Icons help to get the combat going, I don't see much advantage in hindering that.
LOL, Dave where do you come up with this stuff? I'm guessing the shortened icon range last night proved not to be a hinderance to combat...except that it made things very dicey if you weren't maintaining really good SA. It was such a non factor, some of us didn't even notice. :lol
-
I love them Those Spixteen Pilots didnt know what to do with out their Icons LOL :banana:
Long icon ranges do favor the turn-n-burn aircraft.
-
LOL, Dave where do you come up with this stuff? I'm guessing the shortened icon range last night proved not to be a hinderance to combat...except that it made things very dicey if you weren't maintaining really good SA. It was such a non factor, some of us didn't even notice. :lol
By the time we made first contact, icon range was definitely at 3k. So, maybe a lot of people "didn't notice" simply because things were normal by the time they actually came into contact with enemy aircraft.
-
Just like running and horsepower favor the "I-cant-turn-and-burn-so-ill-choose-a-plane-I-can-be-sneaky-and-let-the-plane-do-my-fighting-for-me-style"
-
No Icons for me will = no FSO, my eyes are not what they used to be and it is tuff enough now, but with icons off I would just drop out of the event,
-
No Icons for me will = no FSO, my eyes are not what they used to be and it is tuff enough now, but with icons off I would just drop out of the event,
I agree with the above on this one. Leave the settings as they have been please.
-
Just like running and horsepower favor the "I-cant-turn-and-burn-so-ill-choose-a-plane-I-can-be-sneaky-and-let-the-plane-do-my-fighting-for-me-style"
You can't make that complaint when you're in a XVI vs a 190A. :lol
-
Anaxagoras,
Its a general comment,directed at 10thmd on what I see in the arenas now. Very few people willing to fight it out. Its all about score, and worthless shat. The game has improved but generally the player base and the type of fighting has declined. Too many people are learning from the wrong people and putting way too much into the scoring and survivng, and very little into intense fighting.
I cant help what I was given to fly lastnight. I'd have preferred a P40.
May ruffle a few feathers but Iz callz it as Iz seez it.
Id prefer people follow the acts of players like Greebo and some others. Not many others.
-
Anaxagoras,
Its a general comment,directed at 10thmd on what I see in the arenas now. Very few people willing to fight it out. Its all about score, and worthless shat. The game has improved but generally the player base and the type of fighting has declined. Too many people are learning from the wrong people and putting way too much into the scoring and survivng, and very little into intense fighting.
I cant help what I was given to fly lastnight. I'd have preferred a P40.
May ruffle a few feathers but Iz callz it as Iz seez it.
Id prefer people follow the acts of players like Greebo and some others. Not many others.
I hear your point of view and I do sympathize. Sorry if it seemed like I was being an bellybutton or just trying to provoke. For my part, if I found myself in a 190A, I would use whatever unchivalrous tactics were available to kill and survive in FSO, because that's the only way I would have any success. ;)
-
Leave the FSO settings alone is my opinion. This is a "game" for enjoyment. We aren't battle reenactors. If the game becomes hard we lose folks. For some personnel we running at max capability now.
-
One of the best reasons to have the Icons on is this. How many players can actually ID an aircraft from the silhoutte?
Then the follow up reason is this. How many players are using larger inch screens to see larger graphic airplanes at the same range as opposed other players with smaller screens?
If a player spent the money on a 56 inch screen in front of them, then they would be able to see the silhoutte quicker at 2K then the player with the laptop at 2K. Not to mention players with triple screen capability. This reduces they're need to hit a key to change the view when glancing with their eyes left and right will be quicker.
From a tech point of view. Players with better graphic, video card, cpu, monitors, and internet connection speeds do have a slight advantage over players with basic computer systems. The latter group of players will have to play with lower frame rates in the teens and not accurate visual graphics. Just play the game on a laptop for 400 dollars with a Wi-fi connection to see.
Leave icons on and range on.
-
Next time you see an airliner flying by at 20,000 feet look at it. Can you tell what angle the wings are at? Where are the engines? What color is it? 2 engines? 3 engines? 4? Engines in the tail? High tail, low tail? How far out on the wings are they?
All of these details are clear and evident to anybody with basic vision most times, and they help you ID a plane.
In this game, at a miniscule FRACTION of the distance, you can't ID a plane because it's 2 black pixel dots on a screen.
Pretending "icons off" is realistic is just ignorant.
-
I have TrackIR and the 'FOV' setup on my Pro Throttle micro-stick such that I can center the view and zoom on icons at 20k and ID types. While it is possible I dont think it is practical.
-
I also have FOV mapped and use it regularly... Even at max zoom you're not approaching what the human eye sees.
-
I would not advocate turning off friendly icons... If anything increase the friendly icon range. Limiting or turning off enemy icons does change the dynamics and might be interesting. The tail end guy in your flight better be covering the six or you could get wiped out from behind. Plane camo scheme can make a difference for once. In this setup you know icon= friendly no icon = bandit and you can easily tell bombers from fighters for a long distance. Types of fighters can be IDed pretty reasonably within 4kish.
-
We will never (well, as long as I am in charge) turn of both friendly and enemy icons.
I had considered making enemy icons 1k and extending friendly to 5k, but opted for something a bit different this last frame with enemy off at a very low alt, (300 feet). Other Admin CM's may choose some different settings.
-
I turn the icons off just for a little added "fun"...what are you guys complaining about? Having the ranges shortened isn't that big of a deal.
This is a "game" for enjoyment. We aren't battle reenactors.
Really? So why the focus on realistic setups with the plane sets and objectives and mission assignments?
-
I turn the icons off just for a little added "fun"...what are you guys complaining about? Having the ranges shortened isn't that big of a deal.
Really? So why the focus on realistic setups with the plane sets and objectives and mission assignments?
Really well tell us what video card you have and what size monitor, and while we're at it how old are ya? I can tell ya at 66 years old and with a 20" monitor and GTX 260 it's hugh deal to me :joystick: :old:
-
GTS 250, upgraded to a 22 inch from an 18 inch monitor and I'm 48 with 20/150 uncorrected vision. Try lowering your resolution and don't forget to hit shift + f1 for max viewing range if you can't make out plane types from 3000 feet.
-
I have TrackIR and the 'FOV' setup on my Pro Throttle micro-stick such that I can center the view and zoom on icons at 20k and ID types. While it is possible I dont think it is practical.
Sorry but I believe your full of something brown and sticky, AH uses different levels of rendering LOD. At those longer ranges the rendered object LOD makes it difficult or impossible to tell what it is.
-
I turn the icons off just for a little added "fun"...what are you guys complaining about? Having the ranges shortened isn't that big of a deal.
Really? So why the focus on realistic setups with the plane sets and objectives and mission assignments?
Icons fill in a gap the game engine cannot currently do, that is to render the world in the fidelity that we get in real life. Vision is a complex beast.
-
Sorry but I believe your full of something brown and sticky, AH uses different levels of rendering LOD. At those longer ranges the rendered object LOD makes it difficult or impossible to tell what it is.
In AH LOD is dependent on your FOV. If you mess around with the zoom key you'll notice this. It's an interesting feature.
I can identify aircraft at very long distances too with ample zoom (I don't know about 20k, but outside of FSO icon range easily, and often times outside of MA icon range, depending on the circumstance).
-
In AH LOD is dependent on your FOV. If you mess around with the zoom key you'll notice this. It's an interesting feature.
I can identify aircraft at very long distances too with ample zoom (I don't know about 20k, but outside of FSO icon range easily, and often times outside of MA icon range, depending on the circumstance).
OK alt-S for a screenshot of what you see.
-
In AH LOD is dependent on your FOV. If you mess around with the zoom key you'll notice this. It's an interesting feature.
I can identify aircraft at very long distances too with ample zoom (I don't know about 20k, but outside of FSO icon range easily, and often times outside of MA icon range, depending on the circumstance).
done before as well.
-
Easiest way to see this is with the destroyer from the CV tower. It's noticeable on airplanes after a while too but it's a bit harder to see unless you're used to shifting through the zoom key.
It's a little (very) jittery because I couldn't keep my head still and didn't want to turn off my TIR and lose the destroyer as it was moving. (actually since my position relative to the destroyer stayed the same I guess I wouldn't have lost it turning off TIR but I'm an idiot)
You can see in the first frame that the guns are suspended in the air , not attached to the deck (easiest to see with the rear gun)
Second frame the 'towers' for the guns appear
Third frame the railings start to show and the small caliber ack guns
Fourth frame everything (I think) is full displayed (full zoom), including the flag on the bow
This was all done from the CV tower of course so I was in an absolutely stable position.
(http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t5/AK_Comrade/FOVLOD.gif)
-
And yet, in real life, you can see so much more... Individual rungs on ladders, individual wires, individual windows, portholes, hatches, and even weld lines on turrets and what have you:
(http://military.discovery.com/technology/vehicles/ships/images/fletcher-class-625x450.jpg)
(http://www.robertljohnson.net/images/4a.jpg)
And comparing the destroyer to an airplane is only a way of illustrating the change in LOD. It doesn't compare to planes at all.
IDing a con even at max zoom is difficult, especially considering the black and silver shadows that most seem to have (LOD bug that's been around since 2.06 or so!) that cloud the textures underneath it, giving only solid shapes with no color to deal with.
Somebody posted a screenshot once in one of the millions of "no icon" threads that all popped up around the same time, and asked them to ID the plane, the range, the orientation of it. It was in a dogfight, within guns range, and I don't think a single person got it right. It was under 800 yards, and was a 109. I tried to search for the thread, but couldn't get the keywords right for the search tool to work. Oh well.