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October 2000
| Thursday, October 26, 2000 |
Voodoo Extreme Up
Cage
@ 17:12
I saw over on 3D Spotlight that the new Voodoo Extreme server is up! Billy and the gang should be back soon to give us all the gaming goodness that we've been missing for far too long. Welcome back guys.
| Tuesday, October 17, 2000 |
MS CFS:2 Out
Cage
@ 9:48
Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 2 has hit retail, and I finally found a copy locally. I suspect it's doing pretty well, since I picked up the last copy they had at the local Software Etc.
It's time to break out the old Thrustmaster F-16 Hands On Throttle And Stick setup. I just can't fly without rudder pedals. I'll miss the Force Feedback effects from my MS Sidewinder Force Feedback stick. I sure wish MS$ would make a set of rudder pedals and a seperate throttle system to go along with their new MS FF 2 stick.
System Upgrade
Cage
@ 9:37
Once again it's time for me to upgrade my system. As anticipated the prices of the Athlon CPU's dropped like a rock in October. I expect that further drops will occur over the next few weeks and months as AMD releases new CPU's.
This time around I went for my first AMD CPU, a 1.1 GHz Athlon Thunderbird. It was significantly faster and cheaper then the latest that Intel has to offer. I mated it with the well received Abit KT7 motherboard and a Leadtek Winfast GeForce2 GTS video card.
P4 Pricing
Cage
@ 15:58
The Register has this to say about the new Intel Pentium 4 pricing and release date: "Intel's Pentium 4 is now scheduled for launch at the end of November in 1.4 and 1.5GHz guises.
The entry level P4 should debut at 1.4Ghz, priced at $652, while the premium part will ship at 1.5Ghz and $827." Well you knew that Intel wouldn't just site there and let AMD whack away at Intel's customer base. The P4 still needs some work to become a viable alternative, and at this point it appears it will require expensive RDRAM.
UT 4.32 Patch
Cage
@ 15:48
There is a new Unreal Tournament patch out. That brings UT up to version 4.32. You can grab it from any of the major UT sites as well as FilePlanet Here's what the patch does:
Version 432 is completely network compatible with all previous public releases of UT (versions 400, 402, 405b, 413, 420, 425, and 428).
Bug fixes
Version 432 is completely network compatible with all previous public releases of UT (versions 400, 402, 405b, 413, 420, 425, and 428).
- faster server browser initial pinging of servers. Added a new default property to [UBrowserServerPing], MaxSimBroadbandPing, which defines the max number of servers to simultaneously ping if your netspeed > 6000.
- team scoreboard holds more players (no more names dropping off the bottom for 32 player games).
- fixed grenade smoke in OpenGL - fixed some D3D compatibility issues
- faster server ping response for servers with mutators.
- admins lose cheats and die when they log out as admins.
- fixed bug causing player team choice to be overriden (also cause maxteamsize not to work when 2)
- fixed thrown weapons sinking into ground in net play
- fixed listen server crashing with too many serverpackages
- fixed server still sending data on disconnect
- fixed server not allowing custom skins because of skin cheat fix
- servers are now prioritized by version on the master server
- improved map decompression time.
- slight improvement to server CPU utilization.
- prevent message spamming in net play.
- centered admin messages - if logged in as an admin, start your message with a # to have it centered.
- voice autotaunts not printed in net games.
- fix for CTF AI.
- limit translocator firing rate (max 2/sec) to prevent translocator spamming bind cheats.
- suicides are counted as deaths.
- admin spectators can use # to center print messages.
- disallow setting of actor properties using the "set" command on clients. Prevents a whole class of cheats.
- faster menu loading with mods. modmakers to make a small change to the way they add items to the Mod menu. It looks like a worthwhile download. The file is 5.5 MB in size.
MSCFS:2 Preview 1
Cage
@ 7:29
Well Tucker, I think you mostly got this one right.
After spending a little time with Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulater 2 I have to say that I'm generally pleased with what I see. In the same vein as the original Red Baron Tucker Hatfield, the lead designer for MSCFS:2 has created a game that is quite approachable by those new to flight sims and by those who are seasoned vets.
MSCFS:2 is the one flight sim released in the last two years that had rekindled my love of flying. The beta version that I'm trying out is obviously not a finished product, but what is there is very enjoyable so far. I'll put up a more detailed preview with some screenshots in a few days when I get a chance.
| Thursday, October 5, 2000 |
MS CFS 2
Cage
@ 13:54
Well surprise surprise, but what did I find in my mail today but a beta CD for Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 2. Unfortunately I work the next few nights, but I'll try to give it a whirl as soon as possible.
Red Baron fans will be interested to know that Tucker Hatfield, the director for Red Baron 3D, is the Lead Designer for MSCFS:2.
RB3D Multiplayer Basics
Cage
@ 13:05
I decided to give Red Baron 3D another whirl, and in the process wrote up a RB3D Multiplayer Guide. It's very basic, and shows the steps I took to patch Red Baron 2 to Red Baron 3D in order to play on-line. It also contains a few tweaks to the basic settings and tips on how to get going. Those who are going through WW I flight sim withdrawal after the demise of SimGuild's Flying Circus should find it useful. Especially those fine chaps in the Flying Tigers Virtual Squadron. Enjoy!
AMD Crushing Intel
Cage
@ 3:23
I spotted this bit on BetaNews: "A 1.2GHz Athlon and an 800MHz Duron processor will be the newest additions to the AMD processor family beginning here shortly. The new processors are the next step in the company's goal to roll out 1.5GHz Athlons in January, and steps up the heat on rival Intel to keep up with the pace. New processors will be introduced every 5 to 6 weeks by AMD in order to make the January deadline for 1.5GHz." AMD will really start to put the screws on Intel if they also continue to undercut Intel's pricing while producing faster CPU's.
VE Back Monday?
Cage
@ 3:09
Hard OCP is reporting that Voodoo Extreme will: "be back online around Monday with a slightly new look and all the attitude you'd expect from VoodooExtreme." About dang time I'd say. I was wondering what was going on at VE.
Addendum: Gamers.com has an interview with Daniel Wool, director of public relations for Express.com about what is going on with GameFan and it's hosted sites including VoodooExtreme.
GeForce Ultra
Cage
@ 15:30
I saw over on 3DGPU that EBWorld has the Creative Labs Annihilator GeForce Ultra available for pre-order. EBWorld lists the ship date as October 9, 2000.
AMD CPU's & Prices
Cage
@ 5:47
I've seen mention at several sites news that AMD will be introducing a 1.2 GHz Athlon soon, along with the requisite price drops. Here's a yank from the Register. "A spokesperson for AMD Europe told The Register that both the 1.2GHz Athlon and an 800MHz Duron would be formally announced later this month..." October 15 or earlier has been mentioned as possible dates.
VE Down
Cage
@ 3:15
Voodoo Extreme and many other GameFan sites are down after GameFan pulled the plug on their hosted sites, according to a news story at GameWeek. GameFan, recently merged with Express.com, and said in an email to GameFan affiliates that: "We have found that this service can no longer be supported under our business model,and we will do whatever we can within reason to facilitate any transitional requirements." Currently there is a message at VE that only says: "Please excuse the interruption of this site, but our servers are currently experiencing some technical problems.
Our crack team of engineers is working on getting this site up and running, so be sure to check back soon!" The same exact message also appears at the GameFan home page.
CS Verdict
Cage
@ 7:07
After applying the patch to Microsoft's Crimson Skies I am still frustrated by performance and quality control issues. Doesn't anyone at Microsoft do QA on these things?
The game design is well done. The artwork is not bad. The feeling of speed is fantastic. Overall the game designers of CS are to be congratulated.
The programming, however, is simply horrible. Disk access stalls and pauses are routine throughout the game. Even the menu interface system is plagued by slowdowns. I feel like I'm playing in debug mode, without any speed optimizations.
I would have also appreciated at least the possibility of a stall. As it is, Crimson Skies can be quite fairly criticized as a space sim in flight sim clothing.
The targeting system is problematic at best. Enemy planes refuse to be targeted even when in plain view at times.
A month or two longer in development might have made the difference. Whoever let this thing ship in its current state deserves a swift kick in the pants.
Plextor CD Burner
Cage
@ 2:31
Planet Hardware reviewed the Plextor PlexWriter 12/10/32x CD-Writer and gave it an impressive "10." I've been looking around for a CD-Burner, and this one looks pretty sweet.
Pentium 4 Delay
Cage
@ 2:17
Not that the Pentium 4 was a leading contender for my next upgrade, but C|Net is reporting that Intel is having problems with the P4, and it will be delayed until November 20 or later.
Also this Firing Squad article from August 30, 2000 says that support for SDRAM until late next year. Couple that with the possibility that the P4 will not be as fast as a P3 at equivalent clock speeds and you can see how some are skeptical about how well the P4 will do. It certainly would cause some caution among those who want to be the first ones on the block with Intel's latest CPU.
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