Quote from BurnOut69 :

I cant see how this could fix the lag.

The lag doesn't happen if the cars all go of their own accord. It only seems to happen when the start lights go out.

Try this: Start a race with 6+ people. Tell everyone NOT to go on the green light, but to wait for a chat message instead. When you send the chat message and everyone goes, there's no lag. It apparently has something to do with everyone being "allowed" to go at once.

It already has the background static and the start and end radio noises. What else would there be?

Quote from Rtsbasic :

Some sort of hotkey to disable it for autocross would be nice as well..espically with the popularity of cops & robbers at the min.

Would probably be easier to just autodetect and disable if track == autocross.

Quote from S0ul :

Damn,im playing this game for about 1 year.....i never notice,Thank you!

The tires last quite a long time. Unless you're running endurance events or are a REALLY good drifter it's unlikely that you've ever worn out a set of tires before the end of a race.

Quote from S0ul :

hey becky!Is it possible to play a pit radio sound at a certain amount of tyre consumption(i wonder if thats the right word),that would be soo handy because i never know how well my tyres are....
S0ul

Realistically, your crew chief doesn't know how your tires are either (unless the telemetry says they're losing pressure, in which case they pit crew would know you had a puncture). You should know approximately how many laps your tires will last from experience, then use the "you're on lap X" to determine when you should pit. In all honesty, unless you're locking up the brakes and cooking the tires, they should outlast your fuel pretty easily.

If anyone wants to update their sounds to mp3's to save some space, or if anyone wants to save a bunch of download time in the first place, here are the downloads. Hopefully Becky won't mind me posting these since I was able to convince a friend to host them. I haven't had the chance to try them in-game yet, but they're straight conversions. Assuming the program can handle the mp3 codec, they should work fine.

Edit: Removed the mp3 links since the program was having problems playing them back, for some reason.

Steve - If you don't like those particular sounds you can just rename them (assuming Becky has fixed the program to have it not worry about missing sounds). If that doesn't yet work, you can just replace the ones you don't like with ones you do like. Just keep the file names the same.

Last edited by Cue-Ball, Fri, 4 Aug 2006 19:03.

Quote from K.David :

Does that mean everyone starts whenever they want and if they drive off before the lights go green they get a penalty? I think it would be nice like that... a bit of extra adrenaline to make the start just right, no?

That's the idea. It's been requested many times and we know it's possible. Kegetys even made a mod that allowed it to work (though it was never released). I don't know if this is a priority for Scawen, but I sure hope it is. It should fix the start lag in addition to being a great feature in it's own right.

However; this feature would probably have to be done after the clutch model is fixed (my own personal #1 request).

Quote from hannu :

im not sure if this has been notised already but is the start lag increased since test patches? or is it just me. And if it is caused by test patches then could it be fixed in future. i find it irritating when you have no time to react if the guy infront of you desides not to move when lights go green.

Hopefully we'll get non-locked starts soon. Once that happens there should be no start lag.

I've compiled a list of all the sound files and the messages they relate to. Note that it doesn't list exactly what the sound file says. It just gives an idea of what the sound file is trying to get across. I figured it would be a waste of time writing out each sound file verbatim since they will end up being changed for each language. The file is in microsoft Excel (.xls) format.

Becky - I'll volunteer to change the .wavs to .mp3s. I actually started conversion last night. I can easily do that during my spare time at work today (I hope). So, if you want to save some time and effort I can handle this portion. I'll need any updated sounds from you though.

Edit: MP3 sound files are done and have been sent to Becky for inclusion in the next release.

Last edited by Cue-Ball, Thu, 3 Aug 2006 17:35.

Quote from Tweaker :

Forgot to mention...

This is the most boring summer for LFS :Kick_Can_

Are you KIDDING ME!? We've gotten more test patches and new features in the past month than ever before! Hell, we've gotten more new stuff in the latest test patches than we did in patch U when we got the F1 and Aston layouts!

Quote from Rtsbasic :

This mod is great, i didn't know it was possible to do this with LFS, been using it all evening and it sounds like what i'd expect, much more immersive than normal. My only complaint is with the car sounds turned up to 20x so its balanced i get a lot of distortion, so can't wait for the next version so I can turn the volume down and use my normal 12x volume ingame.

One thing you can do...if you have two sets of speakers you should be able to assign Becky's mod to one set and turn them down, leaving LFS on the other set running at full volume. My friend does something similar with Ventrilo. He lets LFS run through the speakers, then forces Ventrilo to run through his headset.

Of course, it would be easier to wait for the next release, but it's an option and it might be more immersive to have the pit crew voices coming through the headset while the car voices come through regular speakers.

Quote from Becky Rose :

...I'll then start work on the relay because when that is in everything that you guys need to use the mod is basically in place and everything else is just lacey underwear.

Pics?

Edited my quote to make it a little more...ahem...clear.

Last edited by Cue-Ball, Wed, 2 Aug 2006 21:33.

Quote from Jakg :

has already been done when it first came in U18, a mod with better pics was done, but i prefer the U19 images to the mod, although i am considering making my own

I haven't had a chance to try the newest test patch yet, so I don't have a comparison. I'll have to check that out. Though, having all color pictures and a yellow outline around the selected track should still be possible.

Unless U19 uses all color pictures...?

That's actually a great idea, XCNuse. I think maybe I'll see how it looks with all the tracks being in color, but the selected track having a yellow outline.

I don't think you have much to worry about on the mp3 front. This is a non-profit program which is only interesting to a very small subset of people. If you're REALLY worried about it, release the program as one download and the sound packs as separate downloads. Then individual users can make their own sound packs and "spread the blame" so to speak.

Quote from DEVIL 007 :

1)Why the example use WAW.It took ages to load it.MP3 example would be much better.

This was already addressed earlier in the thread. You can convert the wavs to mp3 yourself or record your own sounds in mp3 format.

Quote :

Its not that I did not understand what was in the example but for less english experienced people it will be probably impossible to understand.Did you record your own voice?The sound quality could be improved as well.

I somehow don't think that voice belongs to someone named "Becky".

You can always record your own voice samples for use in the program. If they're decent, you can release them for the public as well. I plan to do the same in US English. Maybe I'll even have to put together a "Days of Thunder" sound pack.

Quote from Becky Rose :

It's on my to do list .

I see. Thanks for the clarification. Dunno how I missed that it is forthcoming, not already included.

Quote :

It's not "lose" as in the word lose, it's actually shorthand for "Losing Over Omega Sound Emit", which is to say, the sound that is played when you lose over the threshold stated.

Ah, yes. Why hadn't I thought of that?

Quote from Becky Rose :

However, in Scawen style I am willing to add triggers I think are a good idea and are plausable.

I'd like to request a "halfway done" lap notification if possible.

I haven't had the chance to try it since I'm at work, but if you start a 20 lap race do you get the "20 laps left" notification as soon as the race starts? What happens if you've got 10 laps left, and you're down to X% on fuel, and you just set a best lap, and there's a driver closing, etc. How do you handle that stuff? Is there some sort of priority given to the sounds? Is there ever a case where you would not hear one sound because another is overwriting it? I can see this being a possible issue, especially if you have a "halfway done" sound file and a "10 laps left" sound file both triggering at the same time.

Also, your first post mentions crowd noise, but I don't see any sound files for it. It also says surround sound is required, but LFS doesn't support surround sound. Is crowd noise included right now or on the to-do list? Can you give details about what triggers the crowd and how it's implemented? Just curious.

Edit: One small "bug" to report. You have several behindLooseX.wav files in the pit/male/relative directory. These should really be behindLoseX.wav (one "o"). Just a typo, but easier to fix in the earlier stages, i'd surmise.

Last edited by Cue-Ball, Wed, 2 Aug 2006 17:24.

Thank you Becky!!!

I asked for help creating a program to do this exact thing not very long ago (see thread here: http://www.lfsforum.net/showthread.php?t=9169). I can't wait to get home and give this a shot. I assume once you're done with the UI that we'll be able to enable/disable each warning individually, correct? Are you planning to make any sort of "roll your own" event trigger? For instance, will we be able to play a sound file when we reach lap X (for instance, I'd like to hear "You're halfway done. Keep pushing" or something like that on lap 25 of a 50 lap race)? Will we be able to have a "This is the final lap!" trigger? Stuff like that.

One bit of constructive criticism if you don't mind: you appear to be using all .wav files. If you change these to .mp3, .ogg, etc you can save yourself a TON of disk space and make the downloads of additional voice packs much, much smaller.

And just to make sure i'm not the "sound engineer" you were talking about, once you're satisfied with the tool and have a v1.0 I may be able to make an "American" voice pack. Perhaps you could make a list of the sound file names, a description, and what triggers them? This could be helpful if people want to make voice packs in the future.

Edit: Looks like you've already got messages for last lap, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 40 laps remaining. So nevermind that request.

Last edited by Cue-Ball, Wed, 2 Aug 2006 17:00.

Quote from al heeley :

Isn't LFS really all about on-line racing? When I'm heading down the home straight at blackwood towards the hairpin with cars either side of me, all the scenery is a bit of a blur. 512, 1024, 2048 doesn't matter one jot in the experience, just dents the frame rate. For those of you who prefer to park up at the side once you've spun into the sand trap, and watch the race whilst chewing on the remains of an old pork pie you found left in the glove box, then maybe a mega-res my-gpu-is-bigger-than-yours 650 gigabyte expansion pack might be of interest. I really can't see much point. Sorry.

This comment comes as quite a surprise coming from one of the most renown LFS skinners out there. Aren't all those cars flying by too fast to bother looking at the skin? Why bother even skinning the sides when you only see the front/back while racing?

While it's true that the scenery is going by quite fast, the simple fact is that all of the textures in the game are woefully low resolution, especially if you're playing on a fairly large screen or at a high resolution. When I can see the jaggies in the braking markers at 140mph, that's a problem. LFS would have just as much great gameplay even if there were no textures at all. But the quality of the textures helps add to the immersion and gives the game a crisper look. If you've never tried some of the textures in this subforum you should really give it a shot. It's truly amazing how much high res signs or track/grass textures change the look of the game. It's like putting on a set of eye glasses and suddenly seeing things much more clearly than before.

Give it a shot, Al. You might find yourself pleasantly surprised.

Quote from Becky Rose :

I think it should take a lesson from Filsca and show league results, that would show the game is very much active and could be automated .

Now THAT is a good idea! And if the script that was used was compatible with FILSCA it would kill two birds with one stone.

Patch U came out in April, so the last update was in April. The current test patch is up to v.19 so you can rest assured that a non-test compatible patch will be out soon. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see the LFS main page updated before the end of the month. Then, a few months later perhaps, we'll get an incompatible patch with who knows what goodies.

You should be thankful for what we get. The devs listen to us. Scawen gives us patches pretty much continually. He listens to our requests and implements our suggestions. We got new Aston configs with the last patch. We got an official F1 car, something that no other current PC sim has. Heck, I made an off the cuff suggestion about UTC time and the very next day there was a new test patch with it! Take a look at the nKPro forum on RSC and see how it COULD be. Those guys have a sim that barely even works. They've had no patches and not even a post from the developer in over three months! Lucky for us the LFS devs value their users and it's easy to see they strive to make the best sim out there (which it is, by far, if you ask me). I wish they didn't live so far away or I'd buy them all a pint.

The new track selection screen is AWESOME! I really like that you see a picture of the track AND the layout at the same time. Plus it has the long names instead of abbreviations. And it saves a ton of time since it doesn't load until you pick the track you want. No more reloading of unnecessary info.

I only hope the next "big" patch has a few more tracks to add to the list. <cough>mountainroad<cough>

Quote from WRX_Racer :

Kind of a related question:
What kind of bandwidth is required to run a LFS server? Minimum bandwidth plus bandwidth per car?

Just wondering if someone with a cable modem that only has 16KByte/S upload speed has enough bandwidth to host a race.

I think you've got your numbers wrong somewhere. No cable modem service in existance should be giving 16KBps upstream. I use Comcast cable and get 256Mbps upstream. That's enough to host 9 people with a packet smoothness of 4, or 6 people with a packet smoothness of 6.

Quote from SamH :

Why is it the slower, more typical drivers that have to leave? Why not the primadonnas?

I wouldn't say it's the slower drivers who have to leave unless they are in the minority. If you've got 10 guys who are running near WR laps and one guy who's spinning every third corner, running 20 seconds off the pace, I think it's reasonable to ask him to leave if you're trying to have a serious, competitive race.

Quote :

If you're running your own server, it's your baby, your rules. I'm not sure I agree with your idea of what constitutes "good reason", at this point, so I'd be avoiding it.

90% of the time when I host we're running simple pick-up races and would have no problem with newbies, slowpokes, etc joining. I'm no alien myself, so I have no problem with people running off the pace, learning the track, asking for tips, etc. However; If I've convinced several people to join me running 30 laps at Westhill and someone joins who is obviously far off the pace, blocking people, spinning off in the corners, etc. I would have no problem asking that person to find another server. If they didn't leave after being asked nicely, i'd boot them. I have nothing against slow drivers (and I am one, depending on the track/car combo), but if they're being a hazard on the track for a serious race, they need to leave.

Quote :

I think marking your pro-only server as pro-only can only be a good thing. I can't see why anyone would take issue with that suggestion.

Because it's asking people to cater to the lowest common denominator. If it's so easy to make a "pro only" server it should be equally easy to make a "newbie only" server.

I don't think anyone (myself included) has anything against slower drivers or people who don't know the track. Everyone was there at one time or another. The problem only occurs when you've got a sizable group who are trying to have a serious race and another person/group who are slow enough to disrupt it.