Now that we already have a lot of content in the S2 manual wiki, I'm thinking about a printed version of the (unofficial) S2 manual. Who would be interested to buy such a manual for a price of about 5 euro for 88 pages?

already ordered together with the boxed version if S2 full ever comes out

Personally, I'm not one of those "must have hardcopy" maniacs, so I'd probably go with the online version.

i just got the game tonight and was thinking i'd love to have a Detailed Manual with tracks listed and car details.

i'm interested if the full s2 comes out. Then you can put the manual in the box

I too would love to have a manual, allbeit, a pdf for me to printout myself seems enough.

But it'd have to cointain detailed setup descriptions (what does which slider do and how will it effect the car, concerning game physiks, and not RL physics [if they defer, that is])

All the car specs + a fictional history of both the brand and the cartype.
All the track specs + fictional background

a history of LFS. How was it born, in which way did the project develop (and more inteesting: which parts turned out to be completely different than intended).

Oh well, I just like well written manuals and am all for ones whic offer background info and fiction which is beyond the simple explanation of functions.

But as producing such a handbook is quite of an effort, I would neither be surprised nor dissapointed, if such a thing is never published

The content of the manual would be identical with the LFS Wiki, only some minor changes to fit in a book layout.

I 100% agree with your points ColeusRattus. A game manual should be more then just a description of the features, it should also contain background infos about racing in general as well as some "fiction" like the track and car descriptions. A very good example how to do a manual was Grand Prix 2. It's manual had 154 colored pages with detailed two-page track descriptions, a setup guide, a driving guide and a lot of background info about Formula One in general and the 1994 saison. In terms of packaging, manual and overall "atmosphere" I think GP2 was the best F1 game ever. This is what LFS is missing and I'd like to compensate this by making at least a good manual

If you want to contribute to the S2 manual, just go to the Wiki, click on "Edit" and start writing!

I'd be interested, but only if it went beyond "This slider does this", etc...
I wouldn't be bothered about fictional information but a listing of cars and tracks along with some information about how they drive/how to drive them (like Four Wheel Drift boxed with GPL) would be essential.

It would be nice to own, but I don't think I'd bother with it atm. Especially given that LFS is still mid development.

Quote from StewartFisher :

I'd be interested, but only if it went beyond "This slider does this", etc...
I wouldn't be bothered about fictional information but a listing of cars and tracks along with some information about how they drive/how to drive them (like Four Wheel Drift boxed with GPL) would be essential.

like flo said 88 pages.. so there should be plenty of room for content

yo bob...

think its great that some one has bothered to do a proper manual as these days too many games dont come with descent manuals and it leaves the newbies to fend for them selves......

some people will apreciate it


mad

Quote from Madman_CZ :

some people will apreciate it

Of course, I was only giving my personal response, which is what was asked for in the first post...

It's an excellent idea and I'm glad to have contributed to it. I'll be going over the setup guide tomorrow and tweak a few things here and there.

I really don't use paper manuals. I either learn myself 80% of the time or read a typical PDF or something similar.

So no, I wouldn't buy a printed manual, since it is something I would most likely never use. That's just me.

If the manual was very concise and complete, and didn't miss any details, then it'd be worth my money. There is a lot to cover in LFS, enough to have a pretty thick manual... so if you had a complete manual printed out, my guess is that it would cost you quite a fair bit to print and distribute

Quote from Tweaker :

I really don't use paper manuals. I either learn myself 80% of the time or read a typical PDF or something similar.

So no, I wouldn't buy a printed manual, since it is something I would most likely never use. That's just me.

To me, it feels kind of awkward to balance a laptop on my lap when I am sitting on the loo.. so I am all for a paperedition

Yeah to make a manual for LFS and for it to be really comprehensive, wow.
you're asking for a whole lot there. This game is years in the making and
while it's being made, it's being played. do you realize by the time the final version is out how much data will be compiled by users? how much set up theory there will be, pitting strategies...skinning tutorials.....online etiquette.....
walkthrus on setting up a server...etc.
That's a big book! Then what about languages?

Quote from Racer Y :

Then what about languages?

Perhaps we should ship an English-to-whatever dictionary with it as well then?

lol....... or maybe ask some people to translate it so that the lfs community will grow even bigger and reach people that may not know englich but want to play lfs :P

Quote from Madman_CZ :

people that may not know englich

I see you're still proud of your Czech nationality.

Well i dont need a manual for this game. I know how to drive a car

Quote from Tweaker :

I really don't use paper manuals. I either learn myself 80% of the time or read a typical PDF or something similar.

So no, I wouldn't buy a printed manual, since it is something I would most likely never use. That's just me.

That's exactly the same way I do prefer it, too. But LfS impressed me so much, since I detected it one week ago, so it isn't a question for me. It's a must have!

I hope there are some further informations in particular about figuring out the car set-up. It's a little bit difficult to handle with dampers, springs, tyre pressure etc. if you haven't a degree in physics or haven't played a good racing game which simulates such things in a proper way during the last past years. A brief description how to drive each track with some general set-up hints would be nice as well.

Does anyone knows the old classic Geoff Crammonds Grand Prix Crircuit, which was released about 15 years ago? The manual of the first part still stands in my shelves. It's one of the best of its genre.

By the way I already ordered the German manual together with the S2 licence on the 4players website.

Anyone thought about getting a manual published via http://www.lulu.com

Yes, that's how I've planned to do it, although I've thought more about www.bod.de

With the current 79 pages the price would be 5 euro. The book would get an ISBN number and would be available on Amazon and all other book stores. Are there similar book on demand services available in the UK?

not sure, but international shipping (on lulu.com) is free for orders over $25.

One question about the price: What would you prefer, a s/w edition for 5 euro or all pages in color for 10 euro?

a black/white edition with a few colored pages (those where color makes sense like the tire pictures) for 7 euro..

hope the maual i pre-ordered with S2 at 4players is colored though