Over Flanders Fields

[rabu]

Originally Posted by Stealth Hunter

..snip

I didn't see anything about the vertex boxes under the Custom Settings option, just the resolution you wanted to play on and how many antialiasing units you wanted to use (I chose 8)...snip.

SH: A couple of things, first, from your screen shot of the planes on the ground there is no texture showing.. something is wrong.
It looks like you haven't actually go into the settings, just the resolution and AA. The area you were in, set the resolution to your monitors and the AA to 8, then set your graphics card to what ever AA you want to try.. start with 2 and work up. ie: With my Nvidia 8800gts 320MB with 22"LCD, config file is set to 1680x1050x32 bit color 8xAA and my card is set to 8xQ

What you didn't mention was getting into the settings. In the config window you were in, click the file menu --> custom settings (click OK at the warning) and adjust the slidders, then click on the window menu, and choose the next screen to make adjustments in, and so on with each of the setting groups under the window menu. Using the readme file guide settings.

One other point, there is a problem using sli set ups of cards.. if you go on the Combat Ace OFF forum they can help you, I don't know enough about it, I just remember some others had problems and it's fixable.

Would like to get you up and running right so you can enjoy OFF.

[Stealth Hunter]

Originally Posted by Cameljockey

What kind of fps are you getting with that rig on high settings?

CJ

Fairly good, between 40-60 fps. Takeoffs can be iffy, probably because of the dust particles they kick up (and with effects up to 5, it can get slow to around 15 fps but no lower).

[Cameljockey]

You do know that you can cap your framerates to cut out the fluctuation and stutter from one extreme fps to the other.
Go to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\ CFSWWI Over Flanders Fields\ Default. You'll see a file called CFS3.xml.

Open it with notepad or some other .xml editor and look for this line.
<Graphics OldAircraftRender="No" MaxFPS="0" />
Change the "0" to whatever cap you would like for example, change the "0" to "30" and your fps shouldn't exceed that. It helps because the extremes between 40fps and 15fps can cause stutter.
Try it. If it helps fine. If it don't, change it back!

CJ

[rabu]

Stealth Hunter, and others: This was posted on the OFF forum by WinstonDoRight, he has a dual set up and these are his settings:

Overrides settings:
Disable Intro Movie
High Resolution Z Buffer (deselect Dual Pass Render)
Terrain Detail Texture
Disable Validate Device
Disable Write-Only Vertex Buffers
Disable Write-Only Index Buffers

Texture Info:
Composite Terrain Texture Usage ....... Render Target
Composite Terrain Texture Pool ........ Managed

Composite Aircraft Texture Usage ....... Render Target
Composite Aircraft Texture Pool ........ Managed

Vertex Buffer Pool ....... D3DPool_Default
Index Buffer Pool ........ D3DPool_Default
Full Screen Swap Effect .. D3DSwapEffect_Discard


Nvidia control panel settings:
Anisotropic Filtering 8x
Antialiasing On
Antialiasing Mode Override
Antialiasing Setting 8xQ
Antialiasing Transparency Multisampling
Conformant Texture Clamp Use Hardware
Error Reporting Off
Extention Limits Off
Force Mipmaps Bilinear
Max Pre-rendered Frames 6
Multi-display/Mutilple Display Performance Mode
Texture Filtering-Anisotropic Sample Opitmizaion Off
Texture Filtering-NEG LOD bias Clamp
SLI performance mode Force split-frame rendering
Texture Filtering Quality Quality
Triple buffering On
Texture Filtering Trilinear Optimization On
Texture Filtering Ansiotropic mip filter opt... OFF
Threaded Optimization Auto
Vertical Sync Force On

I'm using an intel E8600 (not overclocked) with my 2 GTX 260's and I get an average of 60fps (45-50 in really bad weather)

[rabu]

Stealth Hunter: I was looking at your screen shots again and it's very strange, you have no ground texture and the scenery almost looks like the stock CFS3 scenery.. something very odd about it.

[Cameljockey]

If you want my opinion Rabu, it looks a lot like Phase 2 or BH&H on low settings. You reckon SH is running a con?

CJ

[rabu]

Originally Posted by Cameljockey

If you want my opinion Rabu, it looks a lot like Phase 2 or BH&H on low settings. You reckon SH is running a con?

CJ

No, I just think that his settings are messed up. I asked for some better advice from "the top" and they told me that most likely, "He is running terrain on 5's and overloaded his memory....so CFS3 has scaled back."

What I don't understand is why StelhHunter has not answered my posts.. either he has me on ignore or he missed my posts?

Just trying to help, I would appreciate an answer, and I'm sure others would too.

[Cameljockey]

It could be a shortage of processor speed and graphics memory. He said he was running an AMD 2.4Ghz dual core processor and two 8600 GTS 256Mb, and says he's running BH&H at 5,4,4,5,1 and getting 40-60fps. He's scraping the bottom of the barrel in the graphics department, IMHO.

CJ

[Catfish]

Hello,
the PC does not loo too bad, i ran Phase 2 with a much bader one, but what's strange is it still looked better than those screenshots ?

I do not think it is the graphic card(s), beause when this gives up you see white landcapes, dots for trees and rather square blocks than clouds.
But the simple terrain at the "drome with those sawtooth shadows looks strange. StealthHunter if you come across again please tell me whether there's some improvement ?

Thanks and greetings,
Catfish

P.S. Some new missions for P3 made by Pilotsden can be downloaded at Combatace.com, and there was a short "review" by 3dmotors here:
http://www.motorstv.com/videos?v=Xp_2MOOodw8&t=55

[Stealth Hunter]

Originally Posted by Cameljockey

You do know that you can cap your framerates to cut out the fluctuation and stutter from one extreme fps to the other.
Go to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\ CFSWWI Over Flanders Fields\ Default. You'll see a file called CFS3.xml.

Open it with notepad or some other .xml editor and look for this line.
<Graphics OldAircraftRender="No" MaxFPS="0" />
Change the "0" to whatever cap you would like for example, change the "0" to "30" and your fps shouldn't exceed that. It helps because the extremes between 40fps and 15fps can cause stutter.
Try it. If it helps fine. If it don't, change it back!

CJ

I've been using this technique for quite a while now, but thanks anyway.

Originally Posted by rabu

Stealth Hunter: I was looking at your screen shots again and it's very strange, you have no ground texture and the scenery almost looks like the stock CFS3 scenery.. something very odd about it.

Well it hasn't affected gameplay at all for me. Do you think it's an install problem?

Originally Posted by rabu

What I don't understand is why StelhHunter has not answered my posts.. either he has me on ignore or he missed my posts?

I actually forgot about the discussion, lol. I came by to check it today when I got an email about subscribed threads.

Originally Posted by Cameljockey

It could be a shortage of processor speed and graphics memory. He said he was running an AMD 2.4Ghz dual core processor and two 8600 GTS 256Mb, and says he's running BH&H at 5,4,4,5,1 and getting 40-60fps. He's scraping the bottom of the barrel in the graphics department, IMHO.

CJ

I turned the scenery down to a 3. And either way if it is a problem or not, it runs fine. I'm not going to be keeping it anyway.

[Cameljockey]

Suit yourself!

[rabu]

Originally Posted by Stealth Hunter

I've been using this technique for quite a while now, but thanks anyway.



Well it hasn't affected gameplay at all for me. Do you think it's an install problem?



I actually forgot about the discussion, lol. I came by to check it today when I got an email about subscribed threads.



I turned the scenery down to a 3. And either way if it is a problem or not, it runs fine. I'm not going to be keeping it anyway.

Did you try the settings I listed above and the process to set them?
You might just have some bad settings.
I do with you luck on it.

[Stealth Hunter]

Originally Posted by rabu

Did you try the settings I listed above and the process to set them?

You mean the file-editing thing? Yeah. That was one of the first things I did. It's OK though.

[rabu]

Originally Posted by Stealth Hunter

You mean the file-editing thing? Yeah. That was one of the first things I did. It's OK though.

The config.exe in the OFF Work Shops button, right? ... you set those all up re the settings I quoted above?
I just want to be sure that there aren't some setting mix ups that are causing your problems.

[rabu]

I just learned about Nvidia CSAA settings this morning.. it's an improved AA over the older MSAA improvement. It allows higher AA settings while reducing loading on the computer, so you can set 16x AA and it will act like it's only loading as much as 8x.
In order to use it in OFF you need to set your Nvidia Global setting to 16x "Enhance Application" setting.. it's pretty amazing the difference.. I'm actually getting better fps then I did with 8x "Application Controlled" setting.

For some reason, setting the program over ride only for the improvement did not over ride the lower Global setting of 8x I had before.

Here's a thread on it at CA (right click here and open in new window or tab)