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Evil_Echo

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Posts posted by Evil_Echo

  5. Posted

    I have a system that exceeds the official optimal hardware configuration. Patched and recent versions of video drivers ( Nvidia ). Game video settings are at default levels +/- one step.

    1. When you create a free-floating cloud and back away to some distance, the cloud disappears. But moving back within range does not restore the cloud.

    2. If you have too many (?) particle generators running A2 will begin removing existing cloud effects on a first-in, first-out basis. I was able to reliably create this phenomena with the new version of the ACE nuke. It created the mushroom cloud fine, destroyed about 12 vehicles in the test region ( setting them on fire ). But when sectional damage system was enabled and some nearby buildings collapsed, the mushroom cloud and rising column were zapped. Turning off the sectional damage allowed the mushroom cloud to behave as expected.

    This is not an ACE issue, I'm the author of the graphic effects involved. It just seems like the game is hitting some limit in rendering at some unexectedly low level.

  8. Posted

    I've been working on some improvements for the damage system in the ACE nukes and found some shortcomings in the algorithms I'd initially used. Out of fairness I want to give you all some notification of changes.

    1. Damage radius for nukes is no longer "hard". It was always graduated based on distance, but had a cutoff that was too obvious and artificial. The result was the damage radius was less than it should be. As end-users, you should note that the weapons will now have the potential to reach out further than they used to and should plan accordingly.

    2. Currently ACE nukes did not interact with trees or fences, due to those items being difficult to detect via normal means ( technical reason - those items are not members of any configuration class ). I have been able to find a way around that and new code will be out soon. But as might guess, knocking down a forest takes a little time. So I'm going to make this part of the nuclear damage system an option, so you can choose between more realism or less lag.

    These changes will probably be coming out on the Monday or Wednesday release depending on how the development cycle goes. Details and documentation will come out then as well.

  9. Posted

    My previous quip about video was a semi-lighthearted attempt to point out that, while a number of people here talk about how tough they are in real life, none have ever proven that claim with video of themselves actually moving under heavy load and not suffering from it.

    We already know about reports of eccentricities in the stamina system and are dealing with the valid instances as fast as we can.

    However...

    This thread and indeed the entire BI forum is not meant to be a trouble report system for ACE nor will it ever be. We have our own web site, ticket sytem, and wiki dedicated to ACE issues just for that. As many of you have mentioned, the rate of posting here is large, you folks can barely keep up with questions and answers here - ACE certainly cannot be expected to track problems via this thread either.

    Then comes up topics like stamina. There is legimate talk and then there is the other kind. Outrageous claims and trash talk are rarely welcome anywhere, certainly not by ACE or many others here. When someone comes in here and just starts to bash away it not only wastes time, it discredits the user base. If that happens too much, the natural tendency is to pull back, ignore, etc.

    The same thing happens when "demands" keep being made. Add this, change this, you must do this, and so on. Ideas are welcome, but we have limits in manpower, time and most importantly - what belongs in ACE in the first place.

    How does this tie in with stamina? ACE tries to model realism where it matters. It's a fact that soldiers get tired, so ACE has sys_stamina. It's not perfect because the game engine does not let us do everything that happens in real life, like slowing down walking/running speeds. So we do what we can with what we have. Additionally, getting fatigued has been concidered a core feature ever since ACE came out for Armed Assault ( the original ). Thresholds may need more adjustment, but that is all.

    In this context, there are good ways to discuss a problem and lousy ways.

    Good ways.

    • Checking the ACE wiki, FAQ, ticket system before posting here or submitting a ticket.
    • Report a problem using the ACE ticket system. Include a mission that highlights the problem, detailed description of how to reproduce the event, version numbers, and if relevant - the .RPT file that contains debugging infomation.
    • Citing credible sources of information. Jane's, Global Security.org, FAS, and so on.

    Lousy ways.

    • Using abusive language or attitude.
    • Posting outside the primary ACE thread.
    • Bumping.
    • Asking questions that are answered in the ACE FAQ or already in this thread.
    • Demanding changes to core features that are contrary to ACE goals and policies.
    • Raising a topic that has been rehashed to death.

    If ACE users work better with us, it leads to the ACE team being able to work with them in a better way too. We all end up happier and more gets done. So it's in your best interest to improve the manner of how issues are discussed here.

  11. Posted · Edited by Evil_Echo

    I've been out of the service for 12 years and I'd still be able to run further than ACE stamina allows you. lol

    Obviously someone never saw the "I can run further than ACE" challenge from the previous thread.

    Post a vid of yourself in helmet, intercepter body armor, boots, ruck and let's say 44kg of gear in that ruck. Stand on the scales to prove the weight is legit, then run 1,000 meters at speed similar to A2 rates. Immediately afterwards recite the first 20 lines of your national constitution. Include a close-up of a nationally recognized ID card too.

  14. Posted

    by Evil_Echo

    "Scripting of ACE nukes is not supported."

    OMG...

    I want only a nuke addon or script that runs single or MP.... :(

    Scripting outside of using ACE supplied routines is not supported.

    Check the ticket Sickboy mentioned. There is new code coming out just to support mission makers for the very thing you want to do.

    Documentation already out on the BI wiki as well.

  15. Posted

    Well thank you for the time, it sounded like you were saying I was some kind of stupid when I posted the ticket. I appreciate the fantastic free mod but it makes it difficult when you update ACE and a mission you have been working on for a week just fails to work now. My friends and I don't follow what you guys do and the changelog just said "Updated nuke animations" Or the like, so when a nuke just makes a little "poof" of smoke we assume its broken.

    If you can give me the nuke effect with a trigger that setdamages 1 in a certain radius that will do just as well.

    Thank you for your time

    Your ticket was updated. I released a new API for mission makers to use for simulation of ground bursts and even included a rewrite of the the affected script in your mission. The new API should roll out with the ACE release on Monday.

  17. Posted

    Appreciate the good words Alex72. There are times we all need a thank you to reassure us that all the work is actually worthwhile. And thank you back to you all for being a good user base and being as patient as you are while we try to work miracles.

    I'm sure Minizzzile did not mean to sound as negative as he did, just frustration coming through. His problem with the B-61 is likely easy to correct once the proper information flows back and forth.

  18. Posted · Edited by Evil_Echo

    Okay, I made a post about the "broken" nuke and this is what I got.

    Blah blah blah right? He manages to go through all this seemingly accusing me of hacking the nuke or something? and then just says a bunch of useless (to the situation of course) information...

    But what I can get from it is that he is saying there is something I have to do to get the nukes to work? Does anyone know what that might be? I'm guessing it has to deal with the "Permissive Action Links"?

    Thank you for your time.

    I explained that the nuclear weapons are not broken and why. Every part of that explaination was relevant to your problem.

    I also updated the ticket your posting on DH with further information including an offer to help you if you uploaded your mission so I could understand what you are trying to do.

    There was no "ambush" here. People kept asking about classnames for the B-61 and talking about bypassing EASA to add them to aircraft without hardpoints. I tried politely to say that such things would not work right and would work even less well in the future. Just adding the bomb launcher for the B-61 is inadequate and bypasses much of the coding needed for the complex effects in ACE's nuclear weapons.

    With new graphics effects in place ( stuff the users asked for, BTW ) and the project to add further enhancements to weapons authority is moving along the result is that if you don't follow the exact sequence of operations you end up dropping a bomb casing that won't go bang.

    Legally scripting the loading of ACE nukes is quite doable, as is generating a ground burst for mission special effects. So can be extending the system to new weapons. But the rules have to be followed. They weren't published because they were in flux, that can begin to change now if people ask nicely.

  19. Posted

    I know the question of how to turn the radio chatter back on has been beat to death in this thread and I'm sorry ahead of time, but I have a problem. I've researched on this forum and went to the ACE2 FAQ's and I'm still stuck. I know to get them back on you have to add "//" in front of the #define ACE_NOVOICE string. My problem is that my computer will not let me save after I edit it with notepad. I keep getting and error message that says file name or destination invalid (or something similar). This is my first mod and I may be missing something simple, but does anyone know how to get past this? Thanks.

    http://ace.wikkii.com/wiki/Frequently_Asked_Questions_about_ACE2#I_can.27t_change_the_userconfig_files

  20. Posted

    Hello, It seems that in the most recent patch of ACE the nuke has been broken?

    All three of the nukes just make a "Poof" of smoke and then are gone. No damage or anything. Does anyone know what is causing this issue?

    I tried delievering the nuke 3 different ways.

    1) Via script. Nuke still just made a little "Poof" of black smoke and that was it.

    2) Via AI dropping the bomb. Same thing happens.

    3) Dropping the bomb myself. Same "Poof" of smoke and thats it.

    Is this a problem with just me?

    From the changelist...

    •New graphics for nuclear weapons. Permissive Action Links functional. [Evil_Echo]

    From wikipedia....

    A Permissive Action Link (PAL) is a security device for nuclear weapons. Its purpose is to prevent unauthorized arming or detonation of the nuclear weapon.

    The United States Department of Defense definition is:

    “A device included in or attached to a nuclear weapon system to preclude arming and/or launching until the insertion of a prescribed discrete code or combination. It may include equipment and cabling external to the weapon or weapon system to activate components within the weapon or weapon system.â€

    The earliest PALs were little more than locks introduced into the control and firing systems of a nuclear weapon, that would inhibit either the detonation, or the removal of safety features of the weapon. More recent innovations have included encrypted firing parameters, which must be decrypted to properly detonate the warhead, plus anti-tamper systems which intentionally mis-detonate the weapon, destroying it without giving rise to a useful nuclear explosion. It is presumed that modern PAL designs don't include self-destruction mechanisms.

    I have posted on BIF REPEATEDLY.

    1. Don't bypass the EASA system. It's there so eventually mission makers can impliment weapons authority control.
    2. Don't try hacking the nukes, the results would be "unfortunate".

    Right now, IF you use the EASA system the PAL codes verify automatically. Eventually there will be an option for the mission maker to allow a battlefield commander to control who gets access to a nuke via EASA and what value to set for the current PAL code. Then the commander can issue that code to only those authorized to use. All realistic and also helping gamers prevent nuclear team-kills.

  22. Posted

    Then don't use the ACE nuke, simple enough.

    As a favor to avoid annoying your delicate asthetics I removed the link from my first post, which was to answer a question about flash.

    Meanwhile I eagerly awake your clearly superior effects to be posted for all to enjoy. Hop to it man, we're all waiting!!!

  23. Posted · Edited by Evil_Echo

    The comment about vortex rings would have been far better received if you'd said that up front and still would be if you'd avoided the assumptions about research.

    In fact I do know the mushroom cloud is supposed to be a vortex ring. Ever try to do that in A2 with setParticleCircle and friends? If so then how about posting some code to share, because I've certainly asked about documentation on particle effects before and gotten stunning amounts of silence on the subject. I'll even give you credit in my code, because I'm not stuck-up about admitting I still have things to learn about the A2 graphics engine.

    Gigan varients animate their mushroom by individual drop calls. Which is the main reason those versions lag like hell. Now what do you think the users of the ACE mod would say if suddenly all the clients on a 60 player server suddenly dropped to single-digit FPS for tens of seconds while an admittedly pretty effect chugged away? The ACE motto of "Where Realism Matters" got applied very quickly - sacrificed that tidbit of animation in favor of a cloud that a majority of players would still be happy with so that I don't kill the game just to make eye-candy. The EW campaign uses the same graphics techniques that I do and likely for the same reason.

    Ditto for plasma effects. Gigan just added a dull red glow in the center and that's way off. You have blue-hot plasma in a fireball and then incandecent dust as it cools. A2 lacks anything really close to that look in the available graphic effects, so I used what fit best. Tell me how to make a better particle array image file ( again - remarkably poorly documented. Checked BI forums, the wiki, OFPEC, etc. ) and by God I'd use it and add your name once again to the credits. In the meantime you have what you have with shifting color temperatures at least.

    By all means, use the other offerings if that is what you prefer. Gigan and friends do look very good, albeit at a cost.

    On the other hand, if your preference is better performance in multiplayer, yields in a more suitable range for battlefield use, delivery methods other than obscenely over-accurate point-n-click (look up the CEP and minimum range for SCUD missiles - IRL you'd be lucky to hit an airfield with a SS-1d), wind-based fallout patterns that arrive at correct intervals, detonation warning markers for maps, integration of NBC protection into vehicles and still more to come - maybe ACE's version is your cup of tea.

  24. Posted

    That looks horrid. There's a lot of really badly researched mushroom cloud mods out there. About the only one I've ever seen that looks remotely good was Gigan's.

    As per the quip about research. You have NO IDEA what you are talking about. You've never seen the internals of my code, it's not even released yet, much less my design notes. And you certainly don't know my background in weapons work.

    I made the ACE nuke with the following goals.

    1. Accurate damage effects modeling.

    2. Realistic event timelines.

    3. Low lag.

    Dimensions, plasma, shockwaves, damage are all properly modeled using 1/3 power laws and coefficients matched to unclassified data in the public domain. Note well, eye-candy based on some movie or television show's version of realistic is not on the list. If you actually looked at one of the few videos of low-yield weapons in the public domain you'd find my numbers are in good agreement with reality.

    I have no quibble with Gigan, Takko or anyone else who have created a usable nuclear weapon for ArmA or ArmA2. If someone thinks my varient is ugly, that's artistic opinion - I did the best I could within the limits of the A2 game engine. But lay off the amateurish troll postings claiming I did not do my homework.

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