Egads! Massive frame rate hit when searchlighted

[schlechter pfennig]

I usually get between 20 -40 fps out at sea, even with a lot of ships around me (like a convoy; port is another story entirely). After making a surface attack on a convoy in the middle of the night, a soon as the eels went off I was lit up like nobody's business. Considering I launched 400 meters from some gawdawful big merchant I didn't have a lot of time to get moving away.

No sooner did all those searchlights hit me then my frame rate dropped down to 2 - 4! Not exactly what you want happening as a Black Swan a mere 1,700 meters away also had you spotlighted!

Is such a frame rate hit normal when a lot of searchlights are on?

[h.sie]

seems to be a driver or software problem. have the same frame rate stuttering with xp 32 bit. so i made a second install with vista 64 bit - works perfect.

[schlechter pfennig]

seems to be a driver or software problem. have the same frame rate stuttering with xp 32 bit. so i made a second install with vista 64 bit - works perfect.

Drat! Well Vista 64 bit is out of the question for me at the moment. Thanks for the tip though!

[bigboywooly]

Heres a couple of previous threads with same thing

This one tells you how to remove some of the lights or all if you want

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=146928&highlight=searchlight

And this one is a searchlight mod from OLC

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=152035&highlight=Search+lights

So you can combo both if you want

[schlechter pfennig]

Heres a couple of previous threads with same thing

This one tells you how to remove some of the lights or all if you want

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=146928&highlight=searchlight

And this one is a searchlight mod from OLC

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=152035&highlight=Search+lights

So you can combo both if you want

Danke!

After having reviewed both, I think I'll go with the removal one. I don't mind the length and brightness, it's just the amount of 'em that seems to bugger up my frame rate.

I just wish to confirm something: did or did not the majority of merchants carry and use searchlights?

[bigboywooly]

Toughie that
Guess not all carried them so its realistic to remove most

[schlechter pfennig]

Toughie that
Guess not all carried them so its realistic to remove most

OK, inane question #2: if I remove most, but not all . . . which classes are the most realistic/historical to leave the searchlights?

[bigboywooly]

Not an inane question but not sure I know the answer
lol
Possibly just the larger units

Wheres Sailor Steve when you need him
Right up his alley this subject

[schlechter pfennig]

Not an inane question but not sure I know the answer
lol
Possibly just the larger units

Wheres Sailor Steve when you need him
Right up his alley this subject

I think I'm likely to just remove the searchlights from all the merchants, except maybe tugboats, trawlers, fishing boats, etc.

Quick question though: If I go to Go to data\Sea, open the individual merchant's Sea folder, then open the Eqp file in Notepad and replace the entries REF_small01\ REF_small or REF_big with NULL, will then activating mods like GWX 3 Wilhemshafen, St Naz,Schluese and xtra ships V5, or LifeBoats&Debris_v4, or Merchant Fleet Mod then overwrite/replace those values?

[bigboywooly]

I think I'm likely to just remove the searchlights from all the merchants, except maybe tugboats, trawlers, fishing boats, etc.

Quick question though: If I go to Go to data\Sea, open the individual merchant's Sea folder, then open the Eqp file in Notepad and replace the entries REF_small01\ REF_small or REF_big with NULL, will then activating mods like GWX 3 Wilhemshafen, St Naz,Schluese and xtra ships V5, or LifeBoats&Debris_v4, or Merchant Fleet Mod then overwrite/replace those values?

No it wont overwrite those changes but any new units in those DLs will need going thru as well
Best to do before enabling with JSGME so always done in your files

[h.sie]

I'm also interested in an answer how to make searchlights of convoys/merchants/tankers more realistic. Perhaps I'll look which ships in NYGM are equipped and which are not.

Sailor Steve ...........what do you think???

h.sie

[h.sie]

In NYGM there are a few unarmed ships (hospital ships, cargo, tanker) which do have searchlights: not for searching enemies, but to enlighten their flags to show their neutrality. does GWX also have such ships? if so, I think it would be a good idea not to delete their lights.

In the next days I'll start to make a "delete searchlights" mod for my personal use, but if there is interest, I'll share it with the community.

Unfortunately I need some help from people with historical knowledge, in order to decide which lights to delete and which not.

[bigboywooly]

Yeah GWX has them also
NLLS,NLSs.NLSQ,NLPL,NPTL,NLTF,NLTMs,NLTSf,NHSL from memory
and a couple of fishing boats too
But IIRC the searchlights are just that on those vessels
Searchlights
The lights showing the flags arent on the EQP AFAIK

[h.sie]

thanks, bbw. that means one could (should) remove all (or at least almost all) lights from the merchants and tankers .eqp files. should be an easy job.

[schlechter pfennig]

thanks, bbw. that means one could (should) remove all (or at least almost all) lights from the merchants and tankers .eqp files. should be an easy job.

Well, I was just starting to work on a mod to do this, but I seem to have been a wee bit too slow. :doh:

What I was thinking of doing was removing the searchlights from all merchants, except for ones like tugboats, trawlers, fishing boats, etc., that I thought could reasonably be expected to have lights simply due to the nature of their jobs.

Also, I'm using the "GWX 3 Wilhemshafen,St Naz,Schluese and xtra ships V5" mod. Will what you're working on remove the searchlights from whatever extra ships are included there?

[h.sie]

hi schlechter_pfennig,

you had the initial idea, so if you want, do the job.
i don't want to push to the front.

i thought the same, not to remove lights from tugboats, trawlers and so on. only merchants and tankers.

yes, would be based on BBW's GWX3-Wilhemlmshaven+Xtra ships V6.

h.sie

[h.sie]

what about warships (battleships, cruisers)? remove or leave searchlights?

[Sailor Steve]

Wheres Sailor Steve when you need him
Right up his alley this subject
Hiding of course!:O:

Sailor Steve ...........what do you think???
I think people are picking on me! Leave me alone!
:rotfl2:

Seriously, though...

I took a look through a whole bunch of pictures, but searchlights are hard to spot, so all I can do is give an opinion based on what I've read of procedures.

Warships carried large amounts of searchlights, but they were used to illuminate enemy warships in night battles. The problem there of course is that the ship using the lights is illuminated itself, so the tactic was questionable in the first place.

But it's irrelevant. No big warship or merchant is going to make itself visible to an enemy it can't attack. There is too big a chance that the sub will dive before it can be shot at, and now your own ship is lit up like a christmas tree and is a perfect target for him to shoot at.

Merchants should fire distress rockets, but only if they're hit, and the only warships using searchlights should be the escorts who can actually do something about a submarine.

[Anvart]

:rotfl2:
There are my lit ships (made at the desire of users and BBW too...).
And projectors, shining flags, have no function (controller) "Searchlight" !!!
It's simple imitation and practically does not reduce FPS...

[h.sie]

"Think by head and look by eyes m-rs modders."

this sentence could be interpreted as an affront, but it's not my style and standard to continue such discussions.

maybe it's a language problem.

Thank you Anvart for your answer. Read my posts again and eventually use an online-translator. You'll see, that I only wanted to remove these active searchlights, not those statical ones made by you.

h.sie

[Anvart]

OK. Corrected.
...
Read my posts again and eventually use an online-translator.[/SIZE]
...
h.sie


You have read this translator above... :D
... and do not hurry up to take offence...
I apologise, i not successfully have attached my answer to your reply.
It's general answer, not on your reply...
...
and about lit ships has been told tons of words in 2005 and 2006...

[h.sie]

Ok, "problem" solved. good to know it was an understanding problem.
I started playing and thinking about sh3 in late 2008, so I missed all those discussions about that topic.

Sailor Steves arguments sound logical to me and I'll make the mod according to his suggestions. But I am thankful for other constructive tips / informations regarding searchlights.

[Anvart]

Yes, Sailor Steves has own opinion... other users have other opinions...
There were many disputes on this question in early times...
I wished to remove completely all arms and searchlights (in dat-files) from lit ships, but users have not allowed to make it... :haha:
IIRC, i made it partially...