I'm new to LFS - coming from other sims like GTR 2 and rFactor, I got to admit I'm impressed with the online code here - and the general standard of most of the guys driving.

Very often I log on just to watch, and have witnessed some exiting and spectacular racing.
But does the fact that I'm simply logged on to spectate, - place a load on the server - which in turn effects the service to others?

So my questions are -
How many drivers can the software support at the same time - assuming no spectators?

And if the server is full of drivers, how many spectators can there be allowed to watch at the same time

That depends on the server. Max in a race is 32 (but some tracks are less because of grid slots) Some servers will happily take over 40 people without problems.
I think the absolute maximum is about 45-50, but I'm not sure.

P.S Welcome!

Maximum of people on one server is 48, 32 of them can race...

Also note that the dedicated host takes up one slot.

Impressive - Though I've never had any severe problems with any game, my system seems to run better with LFS.
It may be because I don't have stuff like Motec running in the back, maybe less detailed circuits I dunno, but its all hunky dory atm.

I'll still drive other sims because because they are as good but in different ways, but I'm going to spend more time here also.

One or two things that I miss like no sound or tactile feedback when you run over kerbs, I think that it may be slightly overdone in some games, but I get nothing (at least so far) from LFS, no feel from my wheel and The lack of thumping sound will dissappoint anyone with a bass shaker.

But what we have atm is well worth the price of not having a CD, a good racing sim with plenty of choice in online racing - with so far a well behaved bunch of guys on well run servers.

Not bad for "work in progress".

It will be interesting to see how things develop.

(kerb feedback, hint hint please :shy

Quote from Polyracer :

(kerb feedback, hint hint please

In LFS FFB transfers forces that act on the steering column only, as it is in real life. Maybe in Race/Rfactor it is a nice effect, but its only an effect.

I'd love the sound to be bumped up when you whack a kerb, and some more feedback might be nice.

Welcome, and glad to hear you like LFS!

(Bring your GTR friends )

Quote from [RF]-art555 :

In LFS FFB transfers forces that act on the steering column only, as it is in real life.

To elaborate a bit; the vibrations you feel going over a curb in real life are mostly transferred through the wheels and chassis to your rear. The steering column doesn't have too much rotational force going through it, and it's only that which is simulated in LFS. That said there is definitely slight vibrations in the steering wheel when going over certain curbs in LFS, it's just not as huge an effect as in other games.

You're also right that LFS could use some sound feedback when going over curbs, but in LFS this is likely to happen as a generic tire impact sound rather than that "if on curb, play rumble" effect you see in other games. That's just how LFS works. Generic simulation trumps canned effects.

On some kerbs the G25 wheel force feedback feels good, on others - nothing at all. Maybe this is realistic and how the devs intended it but even on the bad kerbs where you feel plenty through the wheel and lots of visible vibration in the cockpit (I have my settings pretty high), I hear nothing from all of this violent vibration.

I think its one of those things they have yet to implement, like changable weather and working windscreen wipers .

Like the now disposable clutch, I only bought the sim a week or so before the new patch appeared, so I can't speak of how it was previously - but whilst it may not be fully accurate (who am I to say) in its application, the point is it makes you have a little mechanical simpathy to get to the end of the race, which is realistic.

I was'nt sure about the made up cars and tracks, but they are pretty good, and with all the different and sometimes stunning paint jobs I've seen, there are benefits too.

Its all going in the right direction if you ask me.

Welcome to LFS. I commend your attitude relating to the new clutch system - a lot of people could learn from you

Quote from Dajmin :

Welcome to LFS. I commend your attitude relating to the new clutch system - a lot of people could learn from you

Thank you all for your welcom(s)

Concerning the clutch -

Reading some of the posts, I sort of get the impression that it
imposes a more correct driving style on a few that don't realise they have been getting away with bad driving techniques in the past,
I also feel that there are a lot of younger drivers here who don't have experience of a failing clutch.
I do have this experience in a normal road car and it is very similar to what we now have ingame - but hey there's already two threads dealing with this......

One personal problem for me is that I like to do long races of at least an hour - preferebly two hours, not often maybe once a month so it gives me enough time to prepare and look forward to the event.

So far all I've seen is up to ten laps duration, good racing but makes a mockery of endurance capabilities of the game - like forced pitstop etc.
Maybe I've not looked hard enough yet, but I like to race where there is more strategy rather than out and out sprints all the time, this is a problem I had with GTR 2 (Endurance cars used as touring cars lol)

Yet my lifestile makes it hard for me to commit to joining a league - though I probly will do soon.
Can anyone recommend a league that prefers longer racing.

Also Is it possible to do online driver swaps with LFS?

Quote from Polyracer :

Also Is it possible to do online driver swaps with LFS?

Yep, you press 'n' when the driver you want to swap with is in the pits, then press the 't' next to their name to take over.

Yes online driver swaps are possible and If you haven't seen any endurance races its because they don't happen just like that and need to be organised. If your that serious I believe there is a 24hr race being organised.

Masters of Endurance do long races (shock!). I'm not sure where they're based though, and ping might make life a bit hard if the servers are the other side of the world.

They have a link in the Leagues & Events subforum, you don't need me to link it

Welcome fella, you sound just like the sort of level headed person LFS and the forum needs.

It's acutally quite refreshing to see

As for endurance, there are plenty of endurance leagues running, MoE, IGTC (4 hour races) etc etc.

My league is having an endurance event in 4 weeks, you are welcome to drive in that event if we have space.

Quote from Polyracer :

One or two things that I miss like no sound or tactile feedback when you run over kerbs, I think that it may be slightly overdone in some games, but I get nothing (at least so far) from LFS, no feel from my wheel and The lack of thumping sound will dissappoint anyone with a bass shaker.

If you had the ForceDynamics 301 hooked up to LFS then you would feel the curb's bumps, however:

Quote from wien :

To elaborate a bit; the vibrations you feel going over a curb in real life are mostly transferred through the wheels and chassis to your rear. The steering column doesn't have too much rotational force going through it, and it's only that which is simulated in LFS. That said there is definitely slight vibrations in the steering wheel when going over certain curbs in LFS, it's just not as huge an effect as in other games.

You're also right that LFS could use some sound feedback when going over curbs, but in LFS this is likely to happen as a generic tire impact sound rather than that "if on curb, play rumble" effect you see in other games. That's just how LFS works. Generic simulation trumps canned effects.

This is generally true, but a bit of sound would be cool. Maybe if the curbs were a bit more harsh would we hear the loud wash board like sound. Since all tracks (excluding Auto X and Drag strip) have a reverse direction the curbs can't be that harsh.

My feelings as well, My understanding is that you can use the kerbs to improve a line through corners, but generally there is a penalty in as much as the kerbs are constructed in a way that the more of them that you use, - the more the car is unsettled.

I'm not aware that some are simply flat painted areas that you don't feel at all.
I agree that some games overdo the effect with the wheel FF, and that as far as the kerbs go in LFS - those that you do get FF effects from, then those effects feels OK to me.

But I have this vibration from my wheel and my cockpit is reacting severly to the kerbs affects on the wheels and suspension - but yet all I hear is normal road rumble, which kinda contradicts and spoils the effect for me. It actually sticks out like a sore thumb as they say.

In RL when the cars run over the kerbs, they make a hell of a racket.

Quote from Polyracer :

My feelings as well, My understanding is that you can use the kerbs to improve a line through corners, but generally there is a penalty in as much as the kerbs are constructed in a way that the more of them that you use, - the more the car is unsettled.

I'm not aware that some are simply flat painted areas that you don't feel at all.
I agree that some games overdo the effect with the wheel FF, and that as far as the kerbs go in LFS - those that you do get FF effects from, then those effects feels OK to me.

But I have this vibration from my wheel and my cockpit is reacting severly to the kerbs affects on the wheels and suspension - but yet all I hear is normal road rumble, which kinda contradicts and spoils the effect for me. It actually sticks out like a sore thumb as they say.

In RL when the cars run over the kerbs, they make a hell of a racket.

I'd like that racket but for sound purposes only, just to add to the immersion.

As for your Vibration function on your wheel, I don't think LFS utilizes that. However I am not sure.

Most games just play a kerb sound that might scale with speed. It might add to the immersion but that's not the sim way to do it. I'd imagine LFS will add proper tyre and suspension noise, generated by the deflection and acceleration of said items. Then you get true kerb noise, dynamically generated and matching with the physics, and should also make driving in rallycross an aural delight.

Quote from legoflamb :

I'd like that racket but for sound purposes only, just to add to the immersion.

As for your Vibration function on your wheel, I don't think LFS utilizes that. However I am not sure.

Although I have not fitted one just yet - a bass shaker or other tactile speaker system - relies on the lower frequency sounds from your system to work properly,
so not only would you hear the rapid thumping as the tyres ran over the kerbs, you would also feel the kerbs from your seat as the tactile speaker reacts to the noise (as in most if not all other games), obviously this adds a great deal to the emersion into the game and seems to be missing in LFS atm.

By vibration from my wheel, I do of course mean the FF effects you do get from some of the kerbs, not the simple vibration buzz you get with some games or controllers - which are actually not true Force Feedback effects.

Quote from Bob Smith :

Most games just play a kerb sound that might scale with speed. It might add to the immersion but that's not the sim way to do it. I'd imagine LFS will add proper tyre and suspension noise, generated by the deflection and acceleration of said items. Then you get true kerb noise, dynamically generated and matching with the physics, and should also make driving in rallycross an aural delight.

I do agree that if LFS implements it in that way, then that would be great and very convincing, though I do feel that the sound that you get with most games is better than nothing at all, as for the most part - you are traveling so fast that the sound frequency is not so important so long as it is close enough to give the right effect - as say in GTR 2.

Quote from Polyracer :

Although I have not fitted one just yet - a bass shaker or other tactile speaker system - relies on the lower frequency sounds from your system to work properly,
so not only would you hear the rapid thumping as the tyres ran over the kerbs, you would also feel the kerbs from your seat as the tactile speaker reacts to the noise (as in most if not all other games), obviously this adds a great deal to the emersion into the game and seems to be missing in LFS atm.

By vibration from my wheel, I do of course mean the FF effects you do get from some of the kerbs, not the simple vibration buzz you get with some games or controllers - which are actually not true Force Feedback effects.

I do agree that if LFS implements it in that way, then that would be great and very convincing, though I do feel that the sound that you get with most games is better than nothing at all, as for the most part - you are traveling so fast that the sound frequency is not so important so long as it is close enough to give the right effect - as say in GTR 2.

Oh ok thanks for the explanation, so bob is right then, just need to have the game generate the tire and suspension noise.