Map update mod

[LGN1]

Hi,

thanks to BtS-Mods.com and CapZap1970 the mod is now available for download from:

http://www.bts-mods.com/?page=sh3user=LGN1

It is now also available from (thanks to Neal Stevens):

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/down...o=file&id=1179



The main features are:

-> With 'Map updates on' the navigation map shows contacts only for higher zoom levels (starting from 125 KM). Single contacts and small contacts are shown with different symbols.
This feature is similar to the old 'Assisted plotting mod' and OLC's map update mod.

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/607/navmap1.jpg

-> On the attack map the contacts can be seen more detailed (from zoom level 2500m); thus providing a better situational awareness. Since one cannot draw on the attack map, detailed data cannot be obtained, i.e., the excitement of manual targeting is not lost. Since on the attack map the time compression is limited, the crew will get tired when one uses the attack map (e.g. for shadowing).

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/1794/attackmap.jpg

-> The player's boat is still visible at all zoom levels. An optional mod for colored sonar lines and colored convoys is included (single ships remain uncolored). This version contains also the necessary files for iambecomelife's MFM.

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/5529/navmap2.jpg


Cheers, LGN1


More detailed background info:

Hi,

since I have started playing SH3 I am (as many others, I guess) a little bit unhappy about how the game handles information given on the maps. Without map updates the player has to do everything alone, measuring, drawing,... and the workload for him is unrealistically high.
However, with map updates turned on it is also unrealistic because it is in this case possible to obtain highly accurate data for an attack in seconds, i.e., all the excitement of manual targeting is lost.

This issue has been discussed already many times here and several mods have been created to solve the problem (e.g., the assisted plotting mod). After many tries I have found a good compromise for me and thought that others might be interested, too. The basic ideas behind the mod are:

1.) The map should give the player enough general information so that he has a good idea what is going on around him, i.e., he should know the rough distances to the other ships.
This compensates for the missing feature to give crew members orders to warn you if some ships come closer than a certain distance,... This also allows the player to shadow a convoy/ship more easily with time compression (important for players who have not that much time to play). Again, this compensates for the missing feature of telling the crew/watch to keep a certain distance from the target.

2.) To compensate for the impossibility to ask the sonar man detailed questions (not only what is the next contact (actually the sonar man tells you the NEXT contact not the NEAREST), but a brief report about the general situation), the map should show rough sonar contacts to give you an idea about the situation.

3.) It should NOT be possible to determine the course and the speed of a contact in seconds or minutes without any input from you.

To achieve these goals, I play with map updates with the following changes (borrowed from many different mods, thanks to all involved!):

-on the navigation map sonar lines are shown which roughly indicate the distance of the contact.

-starting from a high zoom level (see the picture), the group symbol for a contact is shown. In contrast to playing without map updates the only gain is that one gets the rough course and speed information by clicking on the contact (e.g., SSW,slow). I don't regard this as unrealistic. For slow targets at least 30 min. are required to get a decent estimate for the course and speed from marking the position on the map. This also can be achieved in 30 min. without map updates by roughly marking the bearing and range on the map. So, the player does not really gain anything from this feature (I have found out that it is also possible to have different symbols for single ship contacts and small convois ).

-on the attack map the single ships are shown from a moderate high zoom level (see picture). Since the attack map does not allow you to draw anything or mark any positions, this gives you only a rough picture! This is the crucial feature how one can have some information on the map without revealing all the exact data immediately! So, the attack map can be used to get a rough idea about a convoy, where escorts are, at which distance roughly,... and for shadowing/overtaking a convoy. A nice feature is that on the attack map your time compression is limited, so if you use the attack map your crew gets tired

I think these changes make the game easier, but considerably more realistic. Especially for people who do not have that much time these changes are good because they allow one to use time compression in more situations without risking your boat. From my experience, these changes do not make manual targeting easier, but just help you with the situational awareness. If anyone is interested in the mod, I can upload the files or describe the required changes in detail.

Cheers, LGN1

[Lopo]

Hi,
I'm very interesting by your work. Would your mod be soon released?

Take care

[LGN1]

Thanks for your interest.

The mod is ready for release and I am looking for an upload location. I hope by the end of the week, you can download it somewhere.

Cheers, LGN1

[Borgneface]

Hi,LGN1,
I am also very very interested in your mod...Great initiative and Am really looking forward to get it...Thanks

[LGN1]

Hi,

Edit: Dead download link removed.

Any comments are highly welcomed! I would be happy if someone could host the mod also somewhere else.

Here is the readme:

Readme Map Contact Mod by LGN1, June 2009

This mod is intended to increase the situational awareness of the SH3 player by providing more information on the map. In general, its purpose is to compensate for the impossibility to communicate efficiently with the crew members and ask them specific questions or give them specific commands (e.g., assign crew members the task to warn you if a ship comes closer than a certain distance during a convoy attack, to keep a certain distance during shadowing, to report you the position of destroyers,...).

The problem with having map updates on in SH3 is that the given information is much too exact and allows to obtain the course and speed of a contact (and thus a firing solution) in seconds without any errors. Thus, it spoils the excitement of manual targeting completely.

To circumvent this problem, the mod shows contacts at the navigation map only as groups and for a high zoomed-out level. If the position of the group/contact is marked on the map, it needs around 30 min. (for slow contacts) to get a decent speed and course estimate (similar to the time required without map updates by guessing the distance roughly up to +-1000m). However, on the attack map single contacts are shown also more zoomed in (but not too much zoomed in). Since the attack map does not allow to draw anything on it, this information does not provide too detailed information, but gives a good overview of the situation.

Many ideas of this mod have been used earlier by many other mods and I would like to thank the people involved for their work!

In detail, the mod changes the following:

1.) It removes the pencil circle shown around contacts when they are marked or the cursor is moved over them. This is done to avoid that contacts can be made visible on the navigation map by moving the mouse cursor over them or marking them on the attack map. Contacts can nevertheless be marked to obtain rough information (Course:SSW,Speed:slow) at the zoomed-out level (modified file: selection.tga). For the same purpose, the files en_menu.txt, de_menu.txt, and fr_menu.txt have been changed (the line 2101 to reveal the type has been replaced by empty spaces). In addition, the dashed circle around a ship has been removed (dashLine.tga).

2.) To prevent getting too detailed range information from the sonar man the file ContLine.tga has been modified. It is important to know that the line always shows a lower bound to the distance, i.e., the best estimate is obtained by the zoom level which shows the longest line.

3.) The *_shp.tga files for all GWX ships and allied submarines have been replaced with an empty tga file (Icebergs still show up on the map). If other ships are added one can copy the empty *_shp.tga from a GWX ship and rename it accordingly.

4.) The files NSS_Uboat*_shp.tga have been modified to make the player's boat more visible at zoomed-out levels. (I am not totally happy with this. If someone has a good idea how to change this I would be happy to know.)

5.) The file Maps.cfg has been modified to show contacts only at certain zoom levels. In addition, harbors are now shown on the attack map and single ships and small convoys use different symbols. Single ships have an 'S' now in the square.


I have also added an optional mod (install after the first mod and overwrite the file) to make the sonar lines and the symbols for small, medium and large contacts with colors, but not single ships!. The idea is that the sonar man should be able to tell you what a warship and what a merchant is. In addition, I think that knowing the nationality of a reported convoy is not too unrealistic.

I have added the ships of the MFM Beta 4.1 of iambecomelife. Users of the MFM mod should install the 'Map Update Mod MFM-Beta-4.1' after the first mod and overwrite the files.

Any comments, suggestions,... are welcome. The mod is jsgme ready. Don't forget to turn map updates ON when using it.

LGN1

The mod is based on GWX, but it should be possible to use it with any other mod. However, this might require changing the *_shp.tga for the non-GWX ships.

[Lopo]

Thank you... downloading now.

[SquareSteelBar]

Originally Posted by LGN1

http://rapidshare.com/files/24156271...te_Mod.7z.html

DL doesn't work anymore...

[LGN1]

I will try to upload it somewhere else. Is there any place one can upload a file without registering?

Cheers, LGN1

I'll give this a go. Thank you for your efforts!

Cheers

[LGN1]

For the time being, I have uploaded the file again to rapidshare. I hope I can soon upload it to subsim (or someone else can upload it there).

Edit: Download link above

Cheers, LGN1.

[onelifecrisis]

Umm, isn't this a direct copy of my "Realistic Map Contact Updates" feature (from OLC Ubermod/'Gold')? Not that I mind you releasing it, but taking the credit is a bit rude.

[LGN1]

Hi OLC,

what do you mean? What is a copy of your mod? The main idea I would say is from the assisted plotting mod from years back. If you look at the date of the first post, you can see that I had the idea for different symbols for ships and small convoys already before you published it in your mod (I don't claim you copied it from here). Also, I am not aware that there are mods that show contacts on the attack map, but not the nav map.

As I write in the readme, many people have modded the map update feature and I thank them all for their work, but it is hard to tell who did what first.

So, please tell me what I did copy from your personal work? Sorry, for reacting a little bit emotional, but I find it rude to attack me in public by claiming I have 'stolen' your ideas.

LGN1

[onelifecrisis]

OK, I did some digging.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=106237

Right you are. My apologies.

[LGN1]

Hi OLC,

thanks for setting this straight. I think the original assisted plotting mod is even much older than from 2007 and, as you can see, many people have modified it already.

I think the crucial idea in the present version is that you have a more detailed overview at the attack map. I always wanted to have a better overview without getting too much info. I guess this is solved in the present mod.

Anyway, sorry if I overreacted a bit, but it is tough to be attacked by a 'mod god' if you are a 'mod noob' I had prefered it if you had first contacted me via pm before making such a statement in public.

Cheers, LGN1

[LGN1]

Permanent download link and some more info added to the first post. Thanks to BtS.com and CapZap1970 for hosting the files