How do you use the stopwatch thing to calculate speed?

[nx02nx02]

I got the newest patch but still when I click on the stopwatch to calculate speed nothing happens?

[panthercules]

Originally Posted by nx02nx02

I got the newest patch but still when I click on the stopwatch to calculate speed nothing happens?

Still broken - wait for patch 1.3 - two weeks for sure

[Ducimus]

Assuming your using Imperial measurments and have map contact updates on:

-Plot out your targets track.

- Place a mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Click the stop watch, and let it run 3 mins. (you can up the TC to make this go by faster)

- At the 3 mins on the stop watch, place another mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Grab the ruler tool and draw a line from one mark to the next.

- Take the measured number at the 2nd mark, and mulitply it by 2. This is your targets course.




Example:

I place a mark.

*TICK TICK TICK* for 3 mins. (since im impatient i up the TC and watch the needle on the chrnomoter whirl around the 120clock position 3 times)

I then place another mark.

I draw my line from mark to mark and it comes out to be 0.4 NM.
0.4 *2 is 0.8. My target speed is 8 kts.

[greekfire]

I don't want to steal someone else's work but this was such a great post on the ubisoft forums from yngvef that I can't resist posting it here as well. I hope he doesn't mind. Here is the link....http://forums.ubi.com/eve/forums/a/t...5/m/1091073255

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Posted on Thu April 19 2007 08:05 by yngvef

I've noticed that LOTS of people both on this forum and on the subsim-forum are complaining about the chronometer isn't working to find out the speed of the target.

I agree that it would be a help if you don't have your own stopwatch, but what I think is weird is that people call the lack of an automatical speed finder "unrealistic"!..?

I don't think the chronometer was supposed to work like it did in SH3, or described in the manual which is basically just copied from the SH3-manual (shame on the manual-writer for this by the way). I think the chronometer is only supposed to be used as an in-game stopwatch and clock. The "speed determination-magic" that happened in SH3 was always the least realistic part of the TDC. Distance measurement with mast height is believable. AOB has always been manual, which is realistic. Speed should not be automatically solved by aiming your periscope at a target for 10 seconds.

When I first tried the game, I was too a bit frustrated because speed determination was suddenly "not working". I was used to the stopwatch-magic in SH3 and expected the same here. After playing a lot and thinking about it, I figured out several points about speed determination that's helped me.



1: Most convoys and taskforces are reported with speed. If you pay attention to radio messages, you don't have to measure speed at all.

2: When you identify a ship, it has a maximum speed listed... It will never go faster than this.

3: If you don't know the speed of a convoy, it will NEVER go faster than the maximum speed of the slowest ship in the convoy.

4: No ship can cross the pacific on "flank" speed. If you need a quick speed estimate: half speed of listed max-speed (as was explained in the excellent TDC-video on subsim).

5: You can "match speed" with your target by running side by side for a while to see how fast he's running (when your relative position is stable, you have the same speed as him)

6: If you run with map contact updates, you can set a mark on the ship on the map. Wait for a while (and take the time ofcourse) and set another mark. Measure the distance, some simple math and you have the target's speed. Also, if you click on the contact on the map it will say "slow", "medium", "fast" or "very fast" speed. Slow is roughly 7 knots, medium is roughly 10-12 knots, fast is above 15 knots and very fast is... very fast (and very difficult to hit as it's usually a destroyer charging you at 30-35 knots... or a plane)

7: If you don't run with map contact updates, you have lots of drawing tools to mark your target. When you have bearing and range, use the protractor to find the angle and the compass to find the range. Wait for a while (longer is better and more accurate) and do it again. Measure the distance between your two marks and you should have speed.

8: THIS IS HOW I DO IT NOW: Use a handheld stopwatch (one that doesn't reset when you stop it), and the paper-version of the recognition manual (not everyone has this, as it's from the collectors edition). I set the crosshair of my TBT or Periscope ahead of the boat and start the stopwatch exactly when the bow passes through my sights. You must NOT use target lock ("L" key), and your sub must be stationary or near stationary. I stop the watch exactly when the stern passes through. Next, I take the length of the ship (listed in the recog.manual) and divide by the number of seconds it took to pass through my sights. This gives me the target speed in meters/second, which can easily be multiplied by 2 to find speed in knots (actually 1.94, but 2 is close enough). Example: The Yamato (263 meters long) passes through my sights in 30 seconds. 263meters/30seconds = 8.8 m/s. Multiplied with 2 we get 17.6 knots... Good enough for Navy use. This technique works at almost any AOB and any distance as the time to run one boatlength is the only thing measured and is the same no matter where you see it from. But remember to stop your sub for this.

9: VERY IMPORTANT: get CLOSE to your target. I always try to get within half a nautical mile (about 900 meters) before engaging. First of all, this makes ship recognition much easier. Secondly, it takes the pressure off the target solution. If you miss by a knot two or have a somewhat faulty AOB or range, you will still hit your target at this distance. Engagements at several nautical miles are VERY difficult, and an easy way to spend all your torpedoes on a single tugboat.

Y

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btw....according to that same thread, you can measure length of ship without the hardcopy manual by using the black and white scale line under each boat in the in-game recognition manual. Every black and white segment is roughly 33 meters/90 feet to make a quick estimate of the ship length.

Hopefully you will actually start prefering the game play without the handicap factor that the chronometer was giving us in SH3 with the automatic speed calculations. Personally, I think this is so much more challenging/fun.

good luck.

greek

[WhiskeyBravo]

I agree with the above post

Part of the fun for me is doing everything 'for real'. Seeing a torpedo hit after working out a totally manual solution is the dogs danglies! Satisfaction guaranteed every time.

Auto solutions are for wimps, don't you know there's a war on.

WB.

[Rafter11]

OK, Great Idea, but I can't get the stopwatch up on the Map page unless I first to time compression very fast. Is there another way to get the stopwatch to appear on the Map?

Rafter11

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Assuming your using Imperial measurments and have map contact updates on:

-Plot out your targets track.

- Place a mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Click the stop watch, and let it run 3 mins. (you can up the TC to make this go by faster)

- At the 3 mins on the stop watch, place another mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Grab the ruler tool and draw a line from one mark to the next.

- Take the measured number at the 2nd mark, and mulitply it by 2. This is your targets course.




Example:

I place a mark.

*TICK TICK TICK* for 3 mins. (since im impatient i up the TC and watch the needle on the chrnomoter whirl around the 120clock position 3 times)

I then place another mark.

I draw my line from mark to mark and it comes out to be 0.4 NM.
0.4 *2 is 0.8. My target speed is 8 kts.

[greekfire]

Just an idea....I use a real stopwatch. Easier to multi-task in the game screen without hunting around for the chronometer and pressing little button on top.

[Ducimus]

Originally Posted by Rafter11

OK, Great Idea, but I can't get the stopwatch up on the Map page unless I first to time compression very fast. Is there another way to get the stopwatch to appear on the Map?

Rafter11

Theres a button that brings up the stopwatch on the commnd bar. I think its in the periscope section.

[7Enigma]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Theres a button that brings up the stopwatch on the commnd bar. I think its in the periscope section.

That would be the X key. Don't you people read your manuals!

[melin71]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Assuming your using Imperial measurments and have map contact updates on:

-Plot out your targets track.

- Place a mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Click the stop watch, and let it run 3 mins. (you can up the TC to make this go by faster)

- At the 3 mins on the stop watch, place another mark at the bow of the target on the map.

- Grab the ruler tool and draw a line from one mark to the next.

- Take the measured number at the 2nd mark, and mulitply it by 2. This is your targets course.




Example:

I place a mark.

*TICK TICK TICK* for 3 mins. (since im impatient i up the TC and watch the needle on the chrnomoter whirl around the 120clock position 3 times)

I then place another mark.

I draw my line from mark to mark and it comes out to be 0.4 NM.
0.4 *2 is 0.8. My target speed is 8 kts.

this is great...i have used a other metod...but sam two dots and 2 min.... distanst x 60 /2 to get the speed. but how do I do this in metrik system.