Quote from pik_d :

Why not meet in the middle and make both Free and Full limited to 3, or better yet, make them both 4. It's not like small teams (who have "donated" 30 euros) wont want to test stuff after they've gotten the Full version.

There are people who "donated" 49 € just recently, I think they need to have something more for the money than they could have had for 29 €. If there's a limit of 4 servers in FULL (or no limit), I'd need to further reduce FULL functionality comparing to PROS. This is really an attempt to make a version that misses just very few of the PROS features and is suitable for small teams or individuals, which need just one or two servers.

Quote from Joris :

Wouldn't the "jumper point" provoke T1 carnage?

So far I did not see any real attempts to gain the one poor (optional) point at the first lap finish by purposeful crashing. It is, I think, really just good luck and a bit of cleverness that makes you a lucky jumper, passing the most of other drivers... Sort of a stunt action.

Quote from pik_d :

If I am reading this right, the free version can be connected to 4 servers while the full version can only be connected to 2? Why does that number go down when you pay money?

Yes, you're reading that correctly and I'm not happy about this arrangement, but it is the only one I could currently come up with. That's why I also wrote "and it may even go down to 2 in future releases, due to the newly available FULL version" above.

But the main thing is, how many servers you actually need? In FREE version the limit is 4 so that people can test as much as they need. If someone wants to run serious servers, he will probably never need more than two, mostly one is enough. So this limitation of the FULL version, especially for smaller teams or enthusiasts, is not in fact too hard.

The additional tools admins/drivers get when going from FREE to FULL are much more important than this artificial # of servers limitation. But none of the current arrangements are absolutely fixed. If better ideas appear, updates are always possible. Such as giving 4 servers to FULL as well...

Quote from Ultimate[RUS] :

Well, i also saw fast drivers on keyboard. But i not in demo. I need to set this limit to join race, couse 99.9% racers on KB in demo are usually dangerous crashers. If you make this options in future, it will be great addition.

Right, I see your point. Still, simply prohibiting using keyboard is not correct, in my view. However if accompanied by an optional lap time requirement, it could work. People with reasonable lap time (say below 105% of WR, configurable) would be allowed to join. Sounds OK to me...

Quote from nl2dav :

... was possible for players to vote for specific map/track which is in rotation at game end. I think that would be a major hit in online LFS gaming experience.

Right, nice idea, which I heard some time ago already, but now the time has come to write it at least into the TODO list.

Quote from Ultimate[RUS] :

I want set filter against drivers on keyboard? How can i do it?

Airio does not support limiting allowed drivers based on the input device (keyboard, mouse, wheel). It would be a matter of 5 minutes to add this, however I have always refused to do so.

I know some admins want to disallow all mouse or all kb drivers, but in my view that is a bad approach. I've seen insanely fast mouse drivers and very very good keyboard drivers. And of course there are many bad wheel drivers. What is the point of limiting input devices then? It would just make lots of people angry (most probably saying this InSim application [me] is simply stupid), while solving nothing.

If you need to limit access to race, use lap time, both server and LFSW. That is a much better indication of driving abilities and Airio has nice time-lock filter, that can be even dynamically turned on/off according to day time and number of connected people.

Thanks for the ideas! Unfortunately there are several problems with the things you'd like.

First, LFS does not directly support the kind of communication between server and clients I'd need. There is an option to send partially hidden data to server (using /i text). But you'll see the sent info when listing through message history. And there's no direct way to send hidden messages from server (Airio) to clients (Aonio). I've already requested in InSim update suggestions something along these lines, but seeing devs priorities and generally the speed at which updates are available I'm afraid we'll have to wait for a long time.

Second, Aonio is a client-side tool, completely separate from Airio. You may use it on any server or even when hotlapping. And I'd like to keep it that way. Of course there can be certain cooperation with Airio, especially once some truly hidden insim messages are supported, but I think it will always be only of marginal importance.

Third, allowing client-side tools to use server commands causes certain vulnerabilities. The communication along the lines: "Can I kick?" "Yes, you can." "OK, so I kick this one." could be potentially misused. Well, of course there are ways to prevent hacking, but kicks/bans are really server matters and making them through clients seems weird to me. FULL Airio contains admin/limad ban/kick/act buttons e.g. in the !pl list.

Quote from VoiD :

Does this mean I´m allowed to run two PROS-AIRIO´s at the same time, same or different server etc...?

Basically, the Airio licence belongs to a team (or an individual, that may be part of a team). Earlier, there were situations when the team wanted to run servers in such a configuration that using just one Airio was not possible. Typical example: Two ranking servers needed, each one with separate points. This was not possible earlier, but in Airio 2.3.6 this is possible in several ways.

Anyway, I think allowing one team to use one Airio licence twice is a reasonable compromise. Such a limitation is not hard-coded, it is purely a matter of mutual respect. Best is of course to use it just once, but if there is a serious reason why this is not possible, two instances are acceptable.

But it should always be one team, one group of people, one forum etc. Giving your licence to a friend that has a completely different project in mind is not good. Also moving between teams with the effect that the licence file needs to be updated is something I need yet to consider. Maybe licence file update for a small fee (say 5€)?

Airio 2.3.6 is released. It corrects some minor earlier discovered troubles and optimizes various mechanisms. Also it allows more dynamic points handling and adds various completely new things. You'll find all details on the changelog page, but here are a few of the interesting things:

FREE version:

• Number of connected servers is again limited to 4, and it may even go down to 2 in future releases, due to the newly available FULL version (see below).
  
• You can have several versions of SRV file for each server, called by !rld with additional parameters.
  
• It is possible to turn off total and/or champ points using simple SRV items.
  
• Limited zones (invalidating laps) can now also apply penalties to be sure no gains are possible using shortcutting.
  
• You can specify if additional points (e.g. for good laps) go into series points.
  

FULL version:

• This is a newly available compile. It has almost all of the previous FULL version features, but it limits connectable servers to 2 with one instance allowed. The advantage is substantially reduced donation necessary, making it ideal for smaller teams or enthusiast individuals. The one-time donation to support further Airio development is 29€, for which people get this version and all its future updates.
  
• There is optional lucky jumper point for highest advance between race start and split 1.
  
• Servers can use alternate points, allowing to separate them virtually into two categories.
  
• Playing and driving points can be used as the base for ranks.
  
• Newly average lap time is calculated from several continuous laps (e.g. 3 or 4). It is stored in stats and displayed on demand.
  
• Licences can be based on average lap times, which solves the one-lucky-lap problem.
  
• Major addition is LFS Experience Index calculation. LFSEI is based purely on LFS World data, it takes into account tracks/cars/laps recorded, races finished, distance covered, and also lap times (both online and uploaded) and using the data it calculates one value expressing driver's LFS experience.
  
• LFSEI can be used to skip rank/licence requirements e.g. on multiclass servers, so that LFS veterans do not have to start with slow cars over and over again on each new Airio server with ranking defined.
  

PROS version:

• This is the former FULL version, all features included, unlimited number of connected servers, two instances allowed. One time Airio development support donation for this compile is 49€ and it covers all future updates incl. an attempt to implement reasonable requirements and new festures.
  
• Above the FULL version this one contains special custom banning system, private/server messages, custom/scheduled commands, and server logging. Things such as ranking/licensing are also part of the FULL version.
  
• If server logging and custom banning system are active, it is also possible to apply simple banning by IP address and disallow connection from the banned IP for set number of minutes.
  

That's it concerning this announcement. Soon I'll update the download page to include more info about all three available compiles (FREE, FULL, PROS) and features comparison. Also I'd like to discuss the LFSEI (experience index) with anyone interested, especially concerning the descriptions used and maybe also calculation algorithms if you feel something is wrong. Meanwhile, check the currently known temporary indexes here, click on username to see details. Enjoy!

Aonio 1.2.3 supports simple Relax PB.txt file (copied into Aonio directory) import by pressing i in the console. All Relax data are converted to Aonio format, previously gathered and colliding Aonio data are disregarded/overwritten. That means you should import Relax PB data only once and very soon, not after several weeks of racing or hotlapping with Aonio.

Note also that Aonio currently supports only one comparison base, the PB/TB times stored in its stats. It does not use LFSW PB/WR data and does not report good splits/sectors/laps, because I'm reluctant to mimick Airio advanced functionality. So think twice about moving from Relax to Aonio.

:hypnotize

Thanks for the ideas and suggestions! Aonio 1.2.2 (see my signature) adds the required things:

1) Radar display is moved, so that it covers 30 meters to the sides, only 20 meters to the front and full 60 meters to the back.

2) Using FuelWarningLaps you can set low fuel warning level. Default value is 2, setting it to 0 deactivates the warning. Otherwise when there remains fuel only for 2 laps the FuelWarningSound is played and repeated once each remaining lap. Also the fuel display will blink in a fashion, alternating between yellow (standard) and red.

3) Using ClientIPAddress it is possible to connect Aonio to a remote client. But the address needs to be publicly visible and available.

4) SendFuelToAirio may be used to send your current fuel level to Airio on the server, where it is displayed in !pl. This could be used for fuel checks in special lowest consumption races.

5) Using CustomCars you may define custom cars in a similar way Airio does it. This is important if you're often racing e.g. in GT2 cars, because FXR and FX2 have substantially different lap consumption and lap times. Using custom car definitions these two types of cars will be stored separately in Aonio stats.

I did some basic testing and it seems to me the additions work OK. But as always there can be situations when something fails, reports are welcome.

Quote from nl2dav :

So I have multiple servers running but they use the same database files. Is that possible?

In fact all servers connected to one Airio always use the same statistics files and from this perspective all the servers are equal. I plan to add an option to store points on certain servers to some other place in stats, but it is not available yet and when it is it will be useful only in special situations...

Last edited by EQ Worry, Sun, 31 Jan 2010 22:09.

Oops! Correct! Thanks!

Quote from RocksGt :

May I have to use parameter ServerStats (Address of a script to process live data sent every minute) or ScriptInstance (Address of a (PHP) script to be run periodically) with ScriptPeriod equal to ExportStatsTime?

ScriptInstance is the best option, because it runs just once for the Airio instance, just as there is only one set of STA files. The ideal could be the script downloads the necessary files right from Airio directory (without zipping/unzipping) and processes them at the same time.

Quote from franky500 :

Sounds like a cool feature, Obviously its going to have a fair few kinks that need working out (perhaps...) but it certainly sounds like it "could" be good... although i can see how easily it can turn into a war also.

I see in other threads some people crying for the return of good old times of pure racing, without any insim addons, restrictions and limitations. Of course everyone wants good and fun races first - ranks, licences and indexes are secondary concern at best. But the whole point of their existence is to make just such races possible, especially with stronger cars. Running a multiclass server without some kind of ranking is, in my view, utterly impossible. Almost everyone would jump for the fastest cars then and the result is unbelievable mess. This is just to explain the "ranking nonsense".

But some people raised valid concerns critisizing the current principle: "It was the CTRA first, where I had to get licences, it worked OK. Then last year it was LR and now IHR? Why should I start all over again when a new ranking server appears?" The point of the experience index is to create a shortcut allowing the true LFS veterans to skip the initial phases.

Building reasonable experience index (EI or LFSEI) should not be a matter of few weeks of racing. It must be months and that's how the current index works. It grows slowly and the higher the slower. In this sense I call it a regressive index. It requires serious number of laps completed, best spread evenly across many track/car combinations. It takes into account race podiums and races finished, it also considers lap times, both made online and uploaded as hotlaps.

The nice thing is that all your past is expressed using a single number. You may race on any server (connected to master LFS server), with Airio or without. Only when you connect to Airio FULL, your current LFSW data are processed and the EI calculated, possibly used in skipping rank/licence requirements. If you wish to compare the index with someone else, you may do so, but anyone is free to ignore the value.

Appended is the picture of LFSEI details of five people as grabbed from EI page. Compare the values, see if it makes sense. Interesting is comparison between void and caine (1st and 5th table). They both have approx. the same number of laps completed, but caine only in FBM@BL1 and for this reason his overall LFS experience is relatively low. I think that is correct.

Worth noting is that the index calculation is centralized: Individual FULL Airios download and compile the LFSW data, but send the input parameteres to airio.eu site for calculation and get in return the EI value plus textual description. This ensures all Airio FULL servers always use the same numbers. It is also easy to adjust the calculations a bit if some discrepancy is discovered. The update will affect all people very soon.

The hotlap index is a sort of sum of online best lap times and uploaded hotlaps, with preference given a bit to the 1st. So it is generally describing how fast you are, but it is not a major component. But faster people and people more active in hotlapping should gain a bit more by this. And it is not in %, it is just some number. Overall the total index is from 0 to around 1000, but it is not limited in fact, just very hard to improve then.

Last edited by EQ Worry, Sat, 30 Jan 2010 16:57.

I'm very close to releasing Airio 2.3.6. I have one major thing to finish and maybe add one or two smaller ones. The major thing is global LFS Experience Index I was working on these past days.

Some people complained that even though they're LFS veterans they must go through slower cars on certain multiclass servers (well, currently only one, in fact, but that does not matter). There was some ideas about using global points to prove your experience once and have it accepted when other ranking servers appear, but it has in fact too many cathes.

So in the end I chose a different solution, the obvious one - using the very extensive online statistics available from LFS World. Online and hotlap data are downloaded, compiled, evaluated and processed. In the end there is a single number which tries to express general LFS Experience and which can be used to bypass rank/licence requirements, if admins choose so.

I'll not go into details here, but if you're interested check out the LFS Experience Index page. To get your own index for some comparisons go e.g. to [AA] Formula BL1R empty demo server and wait a short while. Then try typing !ex or refreshing the experience page, maybe also clicking on your username to get more details.

I realize this thing will be hated by some and adored by others. Its point is to make life easier for veteran drivers on ranking Airio-powered servers, and maybe also bring a bit more competition into LFS for those with competitive mind. The index also encourages variability, so using more types of cars on more tracks is substantially better than doing more and more laps in the same combo.

To make it a bit more controversial the index value will be converted into textual description as well, with optional display on connect to server (running Airio FULL) or on update. I have already created some descriptions, but soon I'll be opening this for discussion, to see what category and/or class names would be acceptable for LFS community in general. Certainly, that will not be easy...

Quote from RocksGt :

Any clue about the problem with the .zip file? We're really looking forward for it, as the .sta are not being uploaded. And when you have ready for release the new version, please let me know. I stay tuned

I did some changes there, yes. For now try a simple solution: Delete the ZIP file in Airio root folder, I believe the errors will disappear and uploads will work. If you still get the error, log lines describing the problem would be most welcome.

Hm, try F5? I see there this:

Quote from andRo. :

Oops, I'm sorry. I had accidentally placed the integers other way around, meaning that I placed 4 at the time to restart and 5 at the players on track, and when I was testing, it didn't work, because there was not enough drivers.

Ha! It is always pleasure to see some broken functionality is in fact slightly wrong configuration. But I do realize it is currently hard to discover such errors - a simple overview of current server setup would be very helpful in knowing if certain filters run and under what settings. But adding such framework, maybe even allowing graphical config changes, is planned for some later stages of development.

Quote from OldBloke :

Firstly, thank you for taking the time to not only give us Airio but for the ongoing help and support you provide. It's very much appreciated.

Thx a lot for the nice words!

Quote from OldBloke :

The information here states that there are 10 fields in the airio.sta.un.txt file yet my file contains 12 fields ... Is there some reason for this?

The link you mention actually contains the items 11 and 12 explained. While I'm not capable to update other pars of docs, this explanation is complete and correct. Basically, the two additional items are used only in tab-separated stats and contain nickname in Unicode and username in raw form.

Items 1 and 2 actually have it the other way, that is raw nickname and lowercase username. Having nickname in Unicode is handy for displaying on Web pages - you just need to convert special chars such as /, \ or * (but I plan to convert even these, I just need to consider the consequences) and color codes.

Hm... Well, despite the fact the item is called RestartCons and it mentions people connected, in fact it takes into account only people on track. That means auto-restart will happen only when there are 4 or more people on track, whatever number is spectating. (I'm going to correct the item description now. :schwitz

Quote from andRo. :

... The race has ended, and people have been spectated, but you make it so that, when 4 drivers join the track, the airio restarts the race automatically in some time, for example 5sec or so.
But as long as the 4 drivers are not on the track, but less than that, airio doesn't restart automatically. ...

I think what z-ro mentions is something slightly different that what you require. It is about automatic restart in case people do not restart themselves, say in 2-3 minutes after previous race finish.

I think I understand what you mean but how would such a thing be used? Currenty I see no point in quick race restart when e.g. four people join. Also it would mean other problems. For example not all from previous race finish are spectated at once, and even if spectated they could join again, so they must be spectated repeatedly.

Anything (almost) is possible, but what would be the point of this thing? Airio is supposed to be racing system, as universal as possible, but...

Quote from z-ro 8 :

yes, it does work for qualy, as i used it for an oval event i did. you make your outlap, one hotlap, and after that hotlap, you get spectated.

Ouch, I hate to say that, but I'm afraid it really is not the intended behavior in qualification. Still, it has its positive sides.

Quote from andRo. :

... if it is possible to do with airio, that after the end of the qualification or race, the airio spectates the drivers automatically?

It is possible to spectate people individually as they are finishing race, by the item in SRV file z-ro mentions... I do not think this works after qualification, because the reported data are strange (for me, that is) and I'm not able to reliably recognize people whose qualification ended. But maybe I was not looking closer yet into this matter.

Quote from Ultimate[RUS] :

I meen score results, not times table.

I see. I'll put the results & race summary info tables into my TODO list, abut it is almost sure it will not be part of the upcoming version 2.3.6.

Quote from maniek133 :

How can I conect forum script with stats files on dedicated server without sharing my passwords? Is it posible to send stats file to another server autoamticly every X minutes?

I'm not sure what is the "forum script". Is it the one made my MCxxxx (can't remember the numbers )? I believe this script is using FTP data to download the files. If such scripts runs on your Web server, there's no one to share passwords with.

It is probable I'll implement regular zipping and uploading STA files somewhere very soon, because I need this functionality for FULL version. But almost surely it will be available only in the FULL version and not configurable.

Quote from shane2k7 :

when i load ario up on my server i get a message saying 15-mtc-only for multiplayer host how can i fix this please help

The usual cause is you are not connecting Airio to server, but to your LFS client. Make sure you open the InSim port (as specified in Airio.con.txt file) on the LFS dedicated server, using its console, and not in the local client. That means you need to type e.g. /insim=29999 on the server and not in game.

What is wrong then in results displayed by LFS itself?

Quote from morpha :

I don't want to double post, so it's your turn in InSim Bug Report / Update Request

Hahaha, see first post in that thread, request #6.