HUCE- It's 21 Dec 1970 even in the Falklands Battleset scenarios

[burroughs]

As per thread subject - all of the scenarios display 21st Dec 1970 as the current date when I check the weather report. Not a major issue, but a bit of a nuisance playing the Falklands War etc. back in the good ol' 1970. It seems that I am getting such situation in all of the scenarios I launch; of course I haven't checked each of them, but those that I did are invariably set in Dec 21st 1970 according to the game interface no matter what the history and the orders section say.

Is this installed DB related?

[Herman]

No, I do not believe it is DB-related. I get the same result as you, whenever I open a scenario. The date always seems to be 1970, when the Weather report is activated.

It is a minor game limitation. Just ignore it as best you can. The problem with these minor irritants is that someone will try to fix them and end up breaking something really important. Be forewarned. :/\\!!

[burroughs]

Thanks Herman

I see. Just reassure me then it is worthy indeed to go deep into that game after I have spent two years with CMANO. I am reaching the limits of time I can spend on wargaming and simulations and still avoid a severe burnout.

[Herman]

I cannot judge the game for you. I can say that it is pretty easy to learn and you can quickly decide if it is worth your time. The user interface is much friendlier than MNO, so you do not spend all your time fighting through it.

My biggest complaint with HUCE was the "Bitchin' Betty", that you could never turn off and it would not shut up! However, supposedly, that is now a user option (but I am not certain if it is officially in the game or just more untested Beta.)

In the distant past, HCE was always one of those games where you wanted to play 'just a few more minutes' and end up seeing the sunrise. :)

[burroughs]

That's still a bit of a an insight form the vet; I was to start slowly form something small, like operation "Corporate" 82, but I am quite bewildered to have to do everything manually ie. plotting ASW missions manually instead of assigning them to assets available like I am used to in CMANO. Any suggestions of other approaches for a happy start?

[Herman]

A video was recorded to take new players through the basic HCE commands. You can play the game while the video runs alongside.

[HCE] Walk-Through Tutorial
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6jf6QQTp-U

There is no Mission Editor in HCE, but that is just as well. Most folks prefer to control their own assets individually, instead of relying upon the inept AI; the same reason why many ignore AI control in MNO. Once an enemy is detected, you can order an Interception/Prosecution and the AI will try to complete the assigned task. This function is found under the Staff Options and is named, "Enable Air Intercepts."

The inability to pre-set ASW patrol areas (outside the Task Force patrol zones) has always been a noticeable game limitation. Many have lamented the lack of such an HCE function. The ability to assign ASW patrol areas (without the presence of a surface group) is limited to games like Harpoon3, Naval War Arctic Circle, and MNO.

Once you have completed the Tutorial from the WestPac Battleset, try a few small scenarios like the Dawn Patrol (Beginners Walk-through) scenarios from the GIUK Battleset. They are small and will allow you to get comfortable with the commands before adding challenges. Other scenarios like Gauntlet, Hide and Seek, and Convoy gradually build up the complexity and difficulty.

[burroughs]

Yes, I had found those additional sources of information & game data and I have had your YT channel on my radar for some time. It's only too bad I don't seem to be able to launch the Westpack Battleset training scenario you have mentioned - on trying to get that to work I am getting an error message and the game crashes to desktop. I bought the game last autumn at the MG site. There's a screenshot attached.

[Herman]

I must confess that I do not recall ever seeing that particular problem reported.

I use WinXP 32-bit and the scenario runs fine. Can you state your system specifications?

Is the WestPac Battleset the only one giving you problems?
Are you able to start any scenarios from any of the other Battlesets?

I see that your game is v2015.027 (same as mine.) This should be the latest official update available from the Matrix publishers. Have you performed any other updates to either the scenarios or database?

Did you install the game to the default path suggested by the Installer or did you use a different drive/folder?

Did you install the game under Administrator-level access?

You might wish to try and go into your HCE folder and find the "Winharp32.exe" file and then Run As Administrator. I profess no special knowledge or insight for the game or systems. I just try different things until something works.

If you use either Skype or Steam for online chat, we can arrange a time to meet and try to work through your problem together. Sometimes, it is just easier to do it in real time.

[burroughs]

Thanks again Herman, I'll go over all of the suggestions to see if I am going to have any luck with them and if I am not I'll come back with some more details for feedback.

[Aktungbby]

burroughs!:Kaleun_Salute:

[burroughs]

burroughs!:Kaleun_Salute:

Aye, aye, Sir.

I must confess that I do not recall ever seeing that particular problem reported.

I

If you use either Skype or Steam for online chat, we can arrange a time to meet and try to work through your problem together. Sometimes, it is just easier to do it in real time.

The issue was wrong database file related - once I installed the 1980 - 2015 basic one I was able to launch the introductory walk-through scenario with no problem so the case must have been I had messed with the database files before. I only found that out when I was trying to get the Stennis CVBG scenario in the Spratlys to work, all the files downloaded form HarpGamer. Thanks a lot for that , b the way. I have been continuing with my South Georgia operation in the meantime and I have just found out that you can easily set up an ASW mission to protect the task force form Argentine submarine( -s)without the necessity to plot the course manually with all of the reference points. Which means I am still seeing that potential in Harpoon despite my continuing of the maritime operations in CMANO.

Watching your YT tutorial I am assuming you have used a custom notepad file to rewind the instructions from the walk-through scenario description and orders? I did the same thing even though at first I had had the impression it was covered by the game interface. Which then means I am getting smarter as I go with all of the help and insights provided here & there and that is exactly the way it is supposed to be happening. Thanks again even though originally this thread was supposed to refer to another thing. BTW, in the Stennis scenario the date in the weather forecast section is in line with the scenario setting - 2016 - and not that nasty Dec 21st 1970. That must have been the bloodiest day in the Harpoon history with so many naval engagement occurring on that particular date. Reminds me of 'Operation>Flashpoint<" and May 30th day, the bloody Friday when most of the missions and fire fights used to take place especially in the custom scenarios made by the community in the previous decade. A long way from there now to wage the war on seas and oceans.

[Herman]

The issue was wrong database file related - once I installed the 1980 - 2015 basic one I was able to launch the introductory walk-through scenario with no problem so the case must have been I had messed with the database files before.
I am glad to hear that you managed to resolve this problem.

Watching your YT tutorial I am assuming you have used a custom notepad file to rewind the instructions from the walk-through scenario description and orders? I did the same thing even though at first I had had the impression it was covered by the game interface. Which then means I am getting smarter as I go with all of the help and insights provided here & there and that is exactly the way it is supposed to be happening.
Yes, I merely copied the orders into Notepad and then re-sized the game windows so that Notepad appeared at the bottom of the screen.

Thanks again even though originally this thread was supposed to refer to another thing. BTW, in the Stennis scenario the date in the weather forecast section is in line with the scenario setting - 2016 - and not that nasty Dec 21st 1970.
The ability to enter an actual date while creating a scenario was only some recently added chrome/fluff. It is purely superficial. For over twenty-five years, no one even mentioned it. :)

I think that most players select the "Show Game Time Remaining" option under the Game Options menu (Ctrl+K), as that is the only relevant information.

[burroughs]

Hey Herman

I actually felt this " a couple minutes more" sensation finally. I have completed some six or seven scenarios, starting off with Cold War era in the GIUK gap to be able to run consecutive operations in the same theater on the same side to get to know what works and what does not. I like the fact that those scenarios are operational mainly according to what I have been reading in Vego's books; I have even had a nine-day patrol in the Norwegian Sea without a single contact. Apparently "Harpoon" has also helped me to understand CMANO better regarding what and how to deploy that in a given situation. It's indeed way more compact , so to speak, in terms of the gameplay. Thanks again for all the help rendered.

[Herman]

Nice to hear that you enjoyed the experience.

The original scenarios may exhibit behaviour quite drastically different from their date of release due to the changes in acoustic signatures and sensor sensitivity in the game. That may explain the lack of contact in your 9-day patrol.

While the HCE user-interface may not be award-winning, it is much better than MNO, thereby allowing you to play larger scenarios, YMMV.

I'm always happy to help and will help all who ask.

[burroughs]

Alright, I think I have grown out of HUCE after I saw your comparison at the YT channel of yours and have been struggling to get through H3 UANW. At first it looked to me as the least intuitive and user friendly wargame/simulation I have ever put my hands on, but gradually I am developing my skills to go over the most adverse aspects of both the interface and the nuances of the gameplay. I have always suspected and now just think that any serious and decent simulation simply has to be demanding.

It surely does look impressive with the abundance of scenarios in the current Players' DB, the formation and mission editors etc. I have visited quite a few places on the net where the game is features and still have a couple of questions. may I ask them here or move to another thread or site? Harpoon for Dummies thread here perhaps? BTW, my sincere kudos to you and your long term and sustained support for the game community.

[Herman]

Alright, I think I have grown out of HUCE after I saw your comparison at the YT channel of yours and have been struggling to get through H3 UANW. At first it looked to me as the least intuitive and user friendly wargame/simulation I have ever put my hands on, but gradually I am developing my skills to go over the most adverse aspects of both the interface and the nuances of the gameplay. I have always suspected and now just think that any serious and decent simulation simply has to be demanding.

It surely does look impressive with the abundance of scenarios in the current Players' DB, the formation and mission editors etc. I have visited quite a few places on the net where the game is features and still have a couple of questions. may I ask them here or move to another thread or site? Harpoon for Dummies thread here perhaps? BTW, my sincere kudos to you and your long term and sustained support for the game community.

I started Harpoon via the same route as you. I played HCE until I finished every last scenario before moving on to H3, because I also felt that the interface was difficult to use. However, after learning the various hotkey commands and techniques to minimize any awkwardness, I found that the game flowed well enough. IMO, the crowning achievement of H3 is the multiple map capability, which allows me to customize the interface to show many different battles from different map locations at the same time.

I think that many games are demanding, but unnecessarily so due to poor original design. But, if you consider that the original Harpoon 2 forerunner released in 1994 (when Windows was fairly new and right mouse buttons did not exist for many), then you can see how far ahead they were planning. In general, your right hand controls the mouse for map adjustments while the left hand pretty much activates all the hotkeys. The real difference is that the hotkeys actually make things happen and send orders to the game. Most games with poor interfaces have hotkeys that only pull up displays and issue no orders whatsoever.

At this time, I am helping another individual enter the world of H3. He is well experienced in UI design and also sees the bold attempts made by H3 in terms of the user interface, in a time when the tools were so limited.

You can feel free to ask your questions at the site which you find most convenient. Harpoon for Dummies (https://www.youtube.com/user/HarPlonked) and HarPlonkHQ (http://www.harplonkhq.com/forum/index.php) exist to serve Players and will help all those who ask. We do not encourage players to leave their favorite sites like SubSim to seek help. We will come to you, if we can, and try to monitor most sites.

The only advantage of HarPlonkHQ is that you can attach files up to 15mB in size, for any questions you may have.

[burroughs]

I understand that the question I asked here may have put you in an awkward position, but obviously that wasn't my intention by any means. I also didn't want to show any sign of disloyalty towards the site here, I just thought it might be against the netiquette here to start a thread regarding HUCE and then just keep filling it with a content that refers to something else. Thanks for the answer again, I should resurface soon at most suitable place to carry on my investigation.

[Herman]

I understand that the question I asked here may have put you in an awkward position, but obviously that wasn't my intention by any means. I also didn't want to show any sign of disloyalty towards the site here, I just thought it might be against the netiquette here to start a thread regarding HUCE and then just keep filling it with a content that refers to something else.

There is nothing awkward at all, IMO. Some sites/people always ask you to 'come to their site' to discuss the game because they want to dictate who is allowed on their site. We have no such pretensions and follow the discussion wherever it may appear. Just be aware that not all Harpoon sites are freely open to the public.

We're here to serve you, as the player, and not the other way around.