Forum Postings 2000 February

as collected and (very little) formatted by addie walti


Threads

The start of a thread is on top right below the title

Freezing cameras
Tutorials (PH-AW-MPK)
0xda-"Silly scenery command" not so silly
CC-Line distortion
Annoying problem (underlay bitmap)

world extent and scenery
Pitwalls display in TE 1.9.0
Need help with underlay bitmap

Vinage ads & gfx

Pit scenery veiwing switches

changing default colors
Drawing pits before track (0xdb)
wall texture display
Pit scenery (drawing, drawing sequence)
TE News (pit scenery)

Flyover Object Positioning and Height
pit scenery part 2
track border lines (0xb1(177) 0xb2(178)
Gp2 engine speeds
saved hotlap crashes

Oh Sh!t (lost ribbon)
track editing????? (beginning it)
time adjustment help needed
jams files (changing horizon)
CC-cmd 112 (changing cmd80 to cmd112)

end of file


Index

Freezing cameras

Posted by Mal Ross from 195.238.164.184:

Hi Paul,

"... especially around curves, and for freezing cameras."

What exactly do you mean by 'freezing cameras'?

Mal.

Posted by Paul Josephson from 12.75.148.228:

Mal,

To freeze cameras:

1. Click on Show Cameras and zoom in several times until you can clearly see the distinction between the blue and magenta lines.
2. Select the camera where you want the freeze to occur.
3. Change the Next Camera (SM) arg for the camera so that the magenta line is close (almost parallel) to the blue line. If the magenta line is perpendicular to the track or at an oblique angle to the blue line, the camera will move before transferring to the next camera.

Note that freezing only lasts for a few seconds and depends on camera distance from the track, track curvature, distance between cameras, etc., but this approach should prevent the camera turning. I haven't yet worked with zoom args -- these may lengthen the freeze time.

This approach may not work in all cases, but I used it somewhat successfully where the camera was located low and right next to the track looking back down a straight. Hope this helps.

Paul


Rotation of Objects

Posted by Paul Hoad from 194.201.70.97:

All,

I'm keen to fix a bug that has been in the track editor for some time which is the correct rotation of the object

please take a look at the following picture taken from
imola round the back just past the chicane

http://members.xoom.com/paulhoad/rotationbug.gif

I've never understood why these object have a different rotation....

so how do I draw them...

well I always draw the object based on a starting rotation equals to the current angle of
the track segment (notice that segment not section, see yeaterdays post where track segment is TrackSection + offsetInfoSection)

now I rotate the object!

The stand at the front
has the angle -16384
(internal this stand points -ve y direction, (X=red,Y=green,Z=blue)

http://members.xoom.com/paulhoad/stand1.gif

The stand at the back
has the angle 32768
(internal this stand points +ve x direction,

http://members.xoom.com/paulhoad/stand2.gif

If angle are wored out as angleVal*45/8192 (which is reduced version of 360/65535
for the record!)

then this suggest that stand one needs to be rotated by
-90 degrees

and stand 2 by 180 degrees

so this it appears that any
stand pointing in the +ve X direction needs to be rotated by 180 degrees! does this seem
correct based on the other objects

and from this can we detemine that +ve X in the object
points away from the track....

if so and we consider -ve angles to be anticlockwise this would rotate stand 1 as I have to face the wrong way!

.... why does it do this what happens!

If you see that my algorithim is flawed or you know the correct algorithim would you care to share it so I can make this more correct!

Paul

Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

paul

i’m afraid i could not really follow your descriptions in a minute, so i made my own quick test with a simple object (advert). i had the very same “internal object” in two different “object definitions”, the latter had identical arguments except DFC 1000 and DFC -1000, and i placed them at a track. i compared what i saw with what can be seen in the TE when “view 3D object”. so i came to the conclusion the angle as given in the “object definitions” means the angle between the tracksegment direction (as you named it) and the reversed green-arrow (-ve y?) in the “3D-object view” of the object. increasing the angle rotates the object clockwise. i dont see any reason why the rules shouldnt be the same for all objects !?

maybe this is the same as you described ? if yes, i’m happy to confirm

addie



Index

Tutorials (PH-AW-MPK)

Posted by Ingo Serf from 62.52.206.82:

Hi all ...

I've got the following Tutorials and Help-Files. My Question is, do I need anything else to start Track-Editing (except my brain and hundred hours of time) ?? Could you also tell me if there are newer versions of one (or more) of these Tutorials, or if there are any which aren't needed (replaced by others) anymore ?? Or is an important Script missing ?? Would be great !!

JAM Tutorial - 0.1
Car Shape Primer - 2.0
The Guide to Track-Editing - 2.5 B
The Guide to Pit Lane-Editing - 3.0
How To Make An Accurate Track - 1.0
Camera Editing Tutorial - 2.0
Wie mache ich meine eigenen Strecken - 1.0 (Possible Solution for "Manfred" because it is in german)
Internal Object Structure - 1.0
How to Edit Cameras - 1.0
Track Editing Tutorial - 1.0
Track Editing - Command Library - 2.7
Track Editing Tutorial - 1.7.1
CC-Line Project Files
JAM File Structure Primer - 1.0
Reference Card - 2.0
Colour Control in GP2 - 2.0
Internal Objects Primer - 1.0
Object Tutorial - 1.1
How to Identify Objects - 1.0
Track-Editor Help-File - 2.3
Scenery Editing Tutorial - 1.9
0xc9 (201) Set Colors In GP2-Palette - 1.1
Object Tutorial - 0.8
Binary numbers - 1.0
Object-Editor Help-File - 1.0
Brief introduction to cc-line (ideal line) editing - 1.1
Kerb Commands Explained - 1.0
Track Heights in track sections - 1.0
Track markings on track sections - 1.0

Thanks and bye - Ingo


Posted by Mal Ross from 195.238.164.184:

On the JAM side of things, it depends which editor you're going to be using. If you're using the latest Jam Editor, there's a better structure primer at http://www.grandprix2.com/opensrc/jameditor/ although even this is now out of date. There's also a Help file, by James Knopp, that can be downloaded from that address. I'll see what else I can rustle up for you if you're interested.

Mal.

Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

patience
a lot of patience

on my web-page http://www.asit.ch/~addie/index.html you also find a collection of forum postings of the last 1 and a half years.

my best advice is to start "little step by little step”. do frequently check your changings in the game until you get the feeling for it.

make backups of your track by renaming the trackfiles.

and last but not least, trust your own mind. the trackeditor-programs and all of us trackediting people are doing our best, but its 3rd party knowledge only anyway, unconfirmed, guesses, could be wrong. always keep that in mind.

i hope its useful info and helps saving your time
addie




Index

0xda-"Silly scenery command" not so silly

Posted by Dan C. from 142.58.124.37:

Hi all,

I've found that 0xda is usually paired with 0xba.
I've been trying to improve the scenery around the banking in the monza banking track. What I didn't know before was that the command 0xba can "curve" the scenery smoothly in the inside corner, which is what I wanted all along. Oh well, live and learn.
Placing one command at the entrance "curves" the ribbon for the whole banking.

So, this command switches this "curving" on and not off. So, I figured there must be a way to turn it off since there are many ribbons that have defined structure after this effect in MPS tracks. This is where I found that Microprose used the 0xda command to switch this effect off so you can again sculpt the ribbons affected. So when we find 0xba we will usually find a 0xda to turn it off. Notice 0xda will match the Loc Type B code defined in the 0xba command. I guess they work in pairs.

So, I guess there is a reason for everything. (Let me know if this was already known, but I don't think so or it wouldn't still be called silly)

Dan C.


Posted by
µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

The research of this command is done ages ago, when I hadn't realised that texture commands need to be placed entirely on a ribbon, else it doesn't function. I had mistakingly assumed this effect to be part of the 0xDA command. Hence the name.

So the description is quite wrong, and I'm happy that you want to correct this error in history.

Lesson to be learned: don't think it is correct, just because it's in a tutorial.


Posted by Paul Hoad from 194.201.70.97:

Dan,

if between you and Addie you can come up with a suitable descriptions and new command names I'll be happy to put these into the next release of the editor

Paul


Posted by Bob Culver from 159.37.7.254:

1 for right fences, -1 for left fences has been successful for me.



Index

CC-Line distortion

Posted by Malcolm Mitchell from 195.147.246.157:

Well, we all know it exists, but I'm having a very large
problem with it: the line has visually in the TE left the
screen, and now it's impossible to edit it,
because a). you can't see what it looks like at all,
and b). you can only add 0x70 sections.

I've coped before with the line going completely off the
screen, but only for a small bit, this would be off the
screen for over half the lap!

I know it's not really fixable, but Paul, would it
be possible to make it (like the 0x70 command) to add it
from selecting a section in the CC-Line tree, rather than
having to click on the CC-Line section? I hope you
understand.

Cheers,
Malcolm Mitchell

P.S. Paul, I've sent the track to you via e-mail.

Posted by Nic Prins from 203.37.234.8:

Did this come about because you used a negative number for the tighter/wider value? I usually try to avoid this by reducing the length of the last cc-line sector before the corner by one and then adding to it in the tighter/wider box instead of using negative values. Otherwise, if you have used negative values, every time you open the track, go to the offending cc-line sectors and replace the 65xxx value with the negative value that you originally used and everything should look normal again.


Posted by Malcolm Mitchell from 195.147.246.146:

No, it was a positive value in the tighter/wider box.

Anyway, I managed to complete the CC-Line, completely blind
to what it looks like (I know the TE displays it wrongly,
but it does help, cause it gives you a bit more of an
idea what it looks like).

When I tried to import it (exported first into an *.csv
file) into the same track with revised scenery,
objects, etc. the line screwed after the 0x70
command for some reason.

It would be nice to be able to add normal CC-Line sections
from the track tree instead of having to click on the
section in the TE though, saves time and makes it
easier.

Cheers,
Malcolm Mitchell




Index

Annoying problem (underlay bitmap)

Posted by Malcolm Mitchell from 195.147.246.146:

All,

Everytime I open a track with the TE, this message always
comes up (from then on in everything works as it
should): "filename.bmp could not be opened (OS error
information = 3)".

It's happened ever since I deleted some jams and bitmaps
that I was working on from a folder (at the time I deleted
them, they hadn't been used for a couple of months).

The TE seems to be dependable on this bitmap (it's the same
filename that comes up each time).

This isn't a recent problem, it's been happening for
months, but I've never bothered to mention it until
now.

Paul, anyone know what's causing this, and if it can
be fixed somehow?

Cheers,
Malcolm Mitcehll

Posted by Paul HOad from 195.92.194.80:

Try removing the underlay bitmap?

Paul


Index

world extent and scenery

Posted by Jason Hope from 209.104.76.93:

does it matter if scenery is out of the track world? I just want to know since there is something really important i have to add to the scenery that is quite a distance from the track. My track is already at the end of the world.

Posted by µartijn from 212.64.17.220:

I don't think so. Just put it there, have a look :-)

Perhaps you can adjust the startposition X/Y to have it fit nicely in the world.


Index

Pitwalls display in TE 1.9.0

Posted by Bob P from 24.67.94.91:

I have had the latest TE display pitwalls strangely. They don't seem anchored to the track (but the commands are there). I thought it could be my track, so I opened an original, and the same appears.

Look at http://members.home.net/rhpearson/pitwalls1.jpg
and http://members.home.net/rhpearson/pitwalls2.jpg

Any ideas why this happens?

The only time I have seen this before is when I had removed the track commands for pitwalls to join the track, but I expected to see things this way at that point.

Bob P


Posted by
William Dale Jr from 203.29.142.131:

I've had that happen too, I clicked around for awhile, and after clicking something else the problem went away, but I don't know what caused it or what I clicked.


Index

Need help with underlay bitmap

Posted by Danny Roscoe from 195.92.194.76:

I've read all the documentatuion avaliable and still can see the underlay bitmap. Can somebody please explain to me very simply how to do it.

Thanks.


Posted by Paul Hoad from 195.92.194.72:

Click the show underlay button

looks like two tracks one red one black ontop of each other

Paul


Index

Vinage ads & gfx

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.18.105:

Hi All

anyone into the classics
This this a great spot .
Put your credit card away .

& just browse save the sample gfx , Cut & paste as required later .

http://www.vintagead.com/

Enjoy Les


Index

Pit scenery veiwing switches

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.18.208:

Hi All & Addie

I recently received a copy of the Westwood dat , from Jason . with the addition of 1 201 cmd ( oxc9) for the sky.
From what I can tell this was the only change .
Now when I run this version. Sure enough the sky is changed . But it seems somehow the pitlane scenery , veiws much differently now .
It seems very consistant , these veiws are changed in all cams & veiws .
Addie do you want the 2 dat files & a couple sceenshots to illistrate , I don't have any idea on the cause , but need to know what's going on .
So i can either eliminate or utillize and control this effect

THanx
Les

Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

please have a look at cmd 0xc9 in the command-library (and in the colors tutorial of snqqpy.dog for the details). this cmd is NOT for changing specific objects like sky or anything ! (looks like some fairy tales never die !)

its simply for changing the gp2 palette, which is GLOBAL through the game! if you change the blue of the sky, EVERYTHING with the same blue is changed ALSO, even your cockpit if you happend to paint it in the same blue (any bells ringing ?) !

if you want to change the sky, you could make your own bitmap with colors from the gp2-palette, import it into the sky-jam with the new jameditor of mal ross. then apply “set driving conditions” to “perfectly clear” and be sure to have UNchecked the option “allow driving conditions to create textures with no local palettes” (find this option in menu “view / options” before applying “driving conditions”. (sky-jam without local palettes gives strange skys :)

place the sky-jam in your custom jams directory to not disturb the other tracks. this way you can have it all without affecting anything else !

i hope its useful information
addie


Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

"SO your telling that 1 cmd Globally changing the palette , changes the drawing order of ribbions & moves their placement ."

yes !
known since mid 1998


Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

"SO your telling that 1 cmd Globally changing the palette , changes the drawing order of ribbions & moves their placement ."

sorry, did not read the whole sentence to its end.

the latter part is IMHO not possible. sure is, 0xc9 changes the GLOBAL palette !
and i know exactly who i'm talking to !

0xc9 changes the global gp2 palette and if something different gets changed also then its because of a different reason !


Index

changing default colors

Posted by Josh Beaulieu from 152.163.213.189:

Hi. I'm working on my first GP2 track, I must say that it is addicting! A couple questions:
1) how do you change the default color/texture for the fence (eg. from white to black)
2) how do you successfully change the default kerb colors (eg- blue/yellow)? I tried changing them but everything went completely ballistic when I loaded the track.
3) Can I change where the two timing segments are located?

Thanks in advnace for any help.

Josh


Posted by addie from 194.191.82.13:

hello josh

welcome to the addicts :)

1) what do you mean with “default” ? if you mean “untextured”, then you can do it with the jameditor of mal ross. just open the jam with the texture you want to change, then “open” the texture in the “tree”, then you will see. there are two “untextured” colors, the difference is not (yet) known to me. i guess changing both to the same value will do the job. anybody ?
you have to enter gp2-palette-indices (see e.g. in the help menu of pauls TE).

2) i assume you also mean the “untextured” colors here ?! thats a bad story. as far as i know its not possible with pauls TE without bbq-ing the track. maybe with the editor of vaino iso-hannula ?! else you could send me the track and i could try to do it with the hexeditor ...

3) yes and no. in original gp2 its not possible. but if you intend to run the track with gp2lap of frank ahnert and rene smit (great tool btw!) then you can shift the splitts in pauls TE. i mean you can shift them in the TE anyway, but they only work if you run the track with gp2lap afterwards. and you have to enable splitt-shifting in the gp2lap.cfg file also.

i hope its useful information
addie


Posted by Olivier S. from 195.238.29.4:

Changing untextured kerbs colours works in Paul's TE, but it seems you must follow a "rule": the colours must always go by pairs (ex: white, red, red, white), and I think the colours must be different (impossible to set full white kerbs like in Imola).
I tried to change them in F1GP tracks, and in these the first colour index was for the "inside part" of the kerb, and the second for the outside part.

Maybe someone knows something more than me?

Filou


Index

Drawing pits before track (0xdb)

Posted by Bob Culver from 192.246.108.33:

Has anyone explored this command further? The last tutorial (I think most current) is somewhat sketchy on this (Only used at Spa, A1 value of 34 in T/S 0).

For Clermont, the track winds its way back to the S/F line behind the pit building. GP2 default draws the scenery on the far side of the S/F straight before the pit building. So what I see when driving is the very top of the pit building peeking over the trees on the far side of the track. So if I could draw the pit building first, it would show up properly.

A similar condition exists in Jerez, but this command is not used. It could be because Jerez only has low scenery on the right side of the S/F straight and the command is not needed.


Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

You can also try setting the detail-level setting of the pitbuilding to "always on", that influences drawing order somewhat. Sorry if it already is (I don't have the track (hint) :-)

You also could play around with placing the 0xB0 in either the pitlane or the main road.


Index

wall texture display

Posted by Josh Beaulieu from 152.163.213.76:

Ok, I figured out how to change wall and kerb colors, but heres a new question:
On some corners where Ive put in tire walls, the texture doesnt display properly - it stretches and goes haywire. How do I fix this?

Josh


Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

You'll have to adjust the "number of repeat" value in the 0xBC command.
Also, see the object tutorial.


Posted by Josh Beaulieu from 152.163.213.58:

No, I mean that the texture looks fine if youre not moving, but it tends to get warped and bleed, if you could say it like that, as you go through the corner. It is quite distracting, and of course it takes away from the pixel editing job...


Posted by Bob P from 24.67.94.91:

Change the repeat value for the jam. Higher for the outside of the corner; lower for the inside. If it's upside down set the rotation to be 180 different from what it is (so if it's at 90 set it for 270).

I hope I got that straight.

Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

Have you rechecked the rotational value? Should be either "3" or "35". It sometimes slips back to 0 or 32.

Posted by Josh from 205.188.198.49:

Is this the same as the Rotational field in the texture box (where you can choose 0,90,180,270, etc.)? If so, what corresponds to 3 or 35?

Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

Ummmmm, it depends on which version of the TE you're using, IIRC some errors were made here in version 1.8.?. You can always view the correct and actual number in the properties box.

Posted by Josh from 205.188.192.159:

Im using the most recent TE. Im sorry for my lack of knowledge about this -- the only place where I can find anything to do with the rotational value of the wall graphic is in the Texture Chooser box, where you can choose between 0,90,180,270,and mirrored numbers in the Rotational field... Let me know if Im way off base here! :-)

Josh




Index

Pit scenery (drawing, drawing sequence)

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.18.128:

Hi All

I was taking a look at the original Mp tracks , To my surprise very rarely do the pit scenery etc. show up ??.

There is quite abit a bit of difference with which cams are used to view. Mco for example onboard shows nothing , but everything shows very well when viewed with the trackside cams ,

So 1st you have to decide which views are being used or most important ,
Not too much investigation with the 0xdb cmd , But as it seems we’re at the same place in our respective tracks ,

While working with the 0xd8 ( 216 ) cmd , I’ve found that it acts different in slot 10 rather than slot 12 . I thought at first ,had to do with a length variance , But I’ve tried reducing the value with this cmd in slot 10 & made no change ,

Also I’am just finding that maybe the labeling ,or my understanding of the 2 cmds , 0xd4 &0xd6 might be reversed . I’am getting much better results with using the 0xd6 before the pit entry and the 0xd4 after the pit exit . and with no 0xdb or 0xd8 . But still having trouble at the S\F line switch .

Bob you may want to try placing the Pit building in the track section instead , try working it from the opposite way , Have it viewing from the track right , then work on the pitlane view of the 1 track object .

So noting we're into a part of editing that is not used that much in the Mp tracks . i think we’ll have to have to go over most of these cmds again , I think much like the fence connects and now with the understanding from some of the other new cmds.

The Far view , Fix texture panel , define custom fence height , etc, that these cmds & loc codes & arg values , must be in some type of order & overlapping distances etc , Maybe applicable to this second grouping of pit cmds .

I’am still trying to figure out whether or not the pit scenery should be in front of\on top of the track scenery , or vice a versa . I imagine that all pit scenery elements are contained within the track scenery left\right side banks & ribbons . ?

CU Les

Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

A few notes on pitlane-scenery are written in the scenery tutorial, which I'll repeat for stats here.

Notes: pitlane scenery is ONLY visible when you are in the actual pitlane (past the pitwall-begin cmd) , while the normal scenery will also be visible in the pitlane (but behind pitlane-scenery).

I can't think of any more useful info to place here?

1.7 Pitlane Scenery
=================
As you may have noticed in browsing through some tracks, all tracks have Pitlane-scenery commands. However, they are in most tracks disabled and thus not visible in the game. Ofcourse there is a exception to this rule, it being Monaco. The pitbuilding there is constructed from a ribbon, with a garage-texture applied to it. As you probably have NOT noticed, these pit-ribbons are INvisible when you are driving on the main road. Therefore, the usefulness of this pitscenery is reduced to some very special cases. I can think of, for instance, a way to make those pitwall-tents where Ron Dennis and Jean  Todt watch the race. You know, the kind of tents that Jos Verstappen likes to smash [France 1994]. You may think of other uses yourself, if you can...
If you want to know, the pitlane-scenery is enabled by placing a 0xD9 command with a2=63, at the first pit-scenery command.

You could however also use the main scenery-ribbons to make a pitbuilding that is visible from the pitlane as well as from the main straight. Therefore, you must enable the ribbons near the start/finish-area, and make the ribbons start at the edge of the pitlane-road. You can (for instance) make pitboxes that seem to be carved out of a high rock. An example of the use of pitlane scenery can be found on the "StuwLake" track.


TE News (pit scenery)

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.18.59:

hi All

I've found stable pit scenery.in between the check boxes !
Even traversed the s\fline casum .

But it still acts different in some slots .
Here we go .

Slots 9,11,12,13,14,
Handle cmds 0xd7 (215; exit ) & 0xd8 ( 216; Enterence) much differnetly than all others ,

but even within these slots.
1,2,3,5,10,15,16 handle these cmds a little diferently ( slightly different places ) than do slots 4,6,7,

And slot 8 , is unique unto it's self ???

I put the same dat file in all 16 slots & checked 3 different gliches , to make the list above ,

the #of laps with trackman 1.51 is 99 , I didn't change the length values from gp2 default ?

There seems to be 3-4 veiwing switches for each a set for

pit in _s\f line , and s\f line - past pit exit,

This is just the basic obsticle , give me a few days to refine , Pitlane track scenery marriage . Have to investigate why the track side cams show the pits in Mco.
I think the cams take some of the viewing & scenery cmds from the section in whitch the cams are placed ??

BTW switching the order of the view all from pit enterence & exit , are labled right ,

Mixing them did not change much , didn't crash the track , But did cause some bugs in the from pitlane viewing heading into the pits

More in a few days
Les


Index

Flyover Object Positioning and Height

Posted by Paul Josephson from 12.75.149.217:

For anyone interested in changing some of the flyover object characteristics, here’s what I’ve discovered. Most textures for flyover objects have a height of 32 and width of 256. A track I’m working on requires a taller one, H=80 and W=256. (I created the texture from a photo.) Using the standard flyover Internal Object Definition resulted in my texture being flattened. Testing the Point Data values for the flyover Definition, I discovered the following:

X Scale Index values for [0] and [8] change the central positioning of the flyover. Increasing the values from 132 to 32768, for example, shifts the flyover to the far left. (I didn’t test more values, so I don’t know the limits, although —32768 has the same effect.)

Y Scale Index values 0 for [0] and [8] move the right side of the support structure forward; Y values 0 for [3] and [6] move the right side of the support structure backwards. Valid values are 0 to 8 for [0] and [8] or [3] and [6]. You must make the same changes to both sets ([0] and [8] or [3] and [6]); otherwise, the support structure will appear stretched. Changing Y values is useful if you need to angle the flyover around a curve.

Z Scale Index values change the height of the horizontal part of the flyover. Increasing the values for [2] and [3] from 1056 to 2000 made my texture taller, which was exactly what I wanted. (I didn’t test more values, so I don’t know the limits.)

I hope this isn’t old news.


Index

pit scenery part 2

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.18.49:

Hi All

Well a few days past , and not too much luck with pit lane scenery . Still no idea on how\why the pitlane & scenery views different in some slots . when these cmds are used .

I tried a couple hours with MP Mco , but could not effect any change . I can accept , predict and tolerate the drawing &viewing glitches with the far outside banks & ribbons . But not the problems I’am having with the inside of the pits and where they lay trackside .

In most slots (slot 10 group) once you are into the area between the 2 check boxes , the inside and the left hand banks , now no ribbons . will get pulled & viewed onto the track surface on the front straight .

This is one of the 6 switches I was mentioning , this glitch remains till after you have past the check boxes for the end of the pits . This even seems to cut the cars in half , or cars on the far right side . Can hide under this over hang of the pitlane .

At the same time and in the same place (same switch ) also turns on the far right hand pit ribbons to full view .
Now for the switches first approaching the pit in , 1st switch 212(0xd4) view all into cmd , 2nds switch 211 (0xd3) View into enter , Then a transition area at or around the pit in "ramp" and where the 1st check boxes are , Then the 3rd switch when the 216 (0xd8) cmd kicks in this continues till the s\f line where it switches to rear view cmds .

Now on the pit exit side it goes , switch 1 the s\f line ,then the 2nd switch where the 215 (0xd7) . This is what gets you from the s\f line to the 2nd check boxes , then another transition area at or around the pit out "ramp" and where the last check boxes are . now past the pits into the 214 (0xd6) cmd , then followed by the 213 (0xd5) cmd are placed ,

In the cmd library there is a description of the 216 cmd and this direction :
"As a1 you enter the distance of the effect. Beware the distance has to be smaller than the remaining section of the track until the s/f line else the pit lane scenery wont show up at all." "The length of pit lane showing up is given by a2 of 0xd3"

Both of these statements are correct , But in addition when these cmds are used in their pairing ,
0xd7 & 0xd3 , Both the a1 in the 0xd7 and the a2 of 0xd3 , can not be greater than the remaining length of the track .

Of course this depends on where these 2 cmds are placed , so you could have a value of 255 in the 0cd3 cmd ( if you have room ) and since the 0xd7 is placed later in the track , you cloud have a value of 85 with the 0xd7 cmd. But you may have a valid value for the 0xd7 cmd , it may not seem to work because the 0xd3 value is over the s\f ,

An vice versa , you may have a valid value with the 0xd3 cmd and makes no effect (No pit scenery) because the value in the 0xd7 is too high , If the 0xd3 is used without the 0xd7 it seems you can go over the s\f with this cmd alone , but not with the 0xd7 cmd with it .

Also it’s been written , that the 0xd7/6 cmd should be used with straight pitlanes , seems to make sense but I’d add flat !!! or maybe a dip . But not a hill , rise or brow . The area between the check boxes or the section between the 0xd7 & 0xd6 cmds , the pitlane is seen thru the track’s altitude curvature ,

It’s almost like the pitlane is now an object that is set to the wrong detail level , when viewed form the front straight , I have 1 pit object on the other side of the straight , the stand for the starter flag man, when the 2 cmds 0xd7\6 are used and in slots where the pits bleed onto the s\f , this object views much like one that is set to 148 detail level , effects mostly the bottom of the object , it also shows thru & under the track surface just like the inside edge of the pitlane .

I’ll post some R&D screen shots with some text labeling this wkend .

Hope this is helpful
Les

Posted by babbel from 194.178.9.132:

hiya

les maybe you should have a look at the various data blocks , if I remember correctly some slots had different values in the first 10 various data blocks

hope it helps


track border lines (0xb1(177) 0xb2(178)

Posted by Fat Rat from 207.194.25.89:

Hi All

Another unk " done gone "
Cmd 177 (0xb1) is matching mate to 178 (0xb2)
Cmd 177 turns on the track border lines . Cmd 178 is not totally " global "

Altough these cmds will effect both the pit & track at the same time ,but the location or placement thoughout the track length is open ,

This is how I found it , wanted no lines used the 178 cmd , & placed in TS 12 .
Checked the game , found from s\f line till TS 12 there were lines , we not switched off til TS 12 ,
So I moved the cmd to TS 0 , Ok now I have no lines anywhere , except for the pit ramps and the yellow lines are badly corrupted or unstable .

So then I started looking for the code for the pit ramp lines ,
So I tried a value of 6 turns only the left line off , tried 4 , nil , both lines remain , tried 5 , right line switched off tried 7 both lines switched off .

I imagine you could keep on gong & find simular patterns.
So thinking that this 178 cmd is not global , must be a switch on cmd, it wasn't 179 , but 177 was the cmd .

Turns on the border lines & uses the same type of values ,
I think the values for 178 might be crossed up , late last night I was resetting the track markings & got all crossed up , I could of not been able to remembr left & right by then , but I did get crossed up .

Now to deal with the crappy pitlane ramp markings , I just got rid of them ,
I reduced the amount of visable pitlane values to nil , and no more markings .
So with no fences or walls between the pitlane & front straight and now no pit ramps ( at all )

Makes it hard to spot the pit in , so I needed to do some special track markings & lay some traffic cones out to make a path way to the pits ,

Looks good
CU Les



Index

Gp2 engine speeds

Posted by Josh from 152.163.213.73:

Hi, does anyone know why the GP2 engine runs faster than real-time on some tracks? Even with all textures on, there is up to 8 seconds per lap difference. I tried changing some physics in the Edit/CC setup field but that didnt change it. Does anyone know what would fix this.


Posted by Olivier S. from 194.78.236.4:

Hi

This thing is well known by people interested in track slot differences (and maybe the solution is also known by some people... Belini ?). It is not really the speed of the engine, but more of a "time multiplier".

I'll try to explain this simply: when the MPS team developed the game, they made some mistakes in the tracks, and some of those tracks that are in the game are not the 1994 real ones. Why ? Because MPS didn't include the last-minute panic safety changes to these tracks (maybe because they find the old tracks better). Some examples: the chicanes at Barcelona, Montreal and Spa (but changes like Silversone or Estoril were put in the game), that slowed the lap times.
Then, MPS had a problem: how to match the misaccurate tracks with the 1994 lap times? There was also another problem: at the start of the season, the cars were very fast, but then, from Montreal, they became slower, with the safety rules to lower grip. And once again, how to match the performances of the post-Montreal cars with the ones of the start of the season?

Instaed of changing the layouts of the tracks to match the real ones more closely (like they said they did in GP3), MPS choosed (maybe because of lack of time) to create the "track timing factor": a sort of multiplier that transforms the real time you take to lap the circuit into a different time, more close to the 94 one. This is easily saw when you switch a track from its original slot to another.

And the differences are sometimes big: for example, the gap between Montreal in slot 6 (original) and slot 3 (which I found to be the one that have the most "real-time" timing), is around 9 seconds!

So the solution to find the real lap time is to use a stop watch (not so accurate), or put the track in slot 3.

I have find some numbers about these timings, but they are not very accurate. I have thought of recalculating them with a stop watch.

Maybe some people already knew this, but if it could help you...

Filou


Posted by Josh from 205.188.200.43:

Yes, but when real-time is 1:09 and GP2 says 1:19 for a lap at the Nurburgring, to me thats an annoying problem!


Posted by
Olivier S. from 194.78.242.103:

I didn't said that the physics and performances of the cars in GP2 evolve through the season, and this is why it was difficult to reproduce a season like the 94 one: because a totally new rule was introduced in the season. I meant that the gap between the performances of the cars before Montreal and the performances of these cars after the introduction of the new rules was really big.

Then, you're right there are other things that influence the lap time, but the 94 tracks in the game were really misaccurate! I meant that, for example, in GP2 the Spa track has no chicane at Eau Rouge, and this chicane was slowing down the cars a lot in real! That'w why there are big differences at some tracks.

Filou

Posted by JoH from 193.121.245.33:

That's about it I guess.

My own interpretation is a little bit different. I don't think you have to go as far as saying that the track layouts weren't accurate enough.

There are so much more differences between tracks besides the layout, and other factors that influence laptimes. Take atmospheric conditions, the type of tarmac, direction of the wind, evolution of the cars through the season...

The performance settings of the cars in G2 don't "evolve" through a season. The physics probably don't change either. So the programmed specifications for the first race/track did not automatically produce correct times on later tracks.

The time-factor, as you said, was the fastest and easiest way around these things. And BTW, it's not really noticable during racing, is it? It has never bothered me that GP2 said 2:00.000 while I only had been driving 1:58.5 over a lap :-)

JoH


Posted by Olivier S. from 194.78.242.103:

Then, there are two solutions:

1. The car set is misaccurate, you must adjust the whole performances basing on all the tracks
2. The track is misaccurate

Filou

Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

Depends. Old Nurburgring, or new one? :-)
Slide the track in another slot. Easy as that.


Index

saved hotlap crashes

Posted by µartijn from 212.64.16.46:

Help me out, I forgot: how do I fix it when GP2 crashes back to windows, when I want to play a saved hotlap?

I remmeber people noticing this, but forgot the solution

Posted by David Richards from 202.12.71.5:

While you're at it, I'd like a definitive answer as to why the cars crash in hotlaps submitted me, yet the same track is used in the same slot?

Carset? PC config? GP2.exe?


Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

I know that one... if you have more HP, or anything else is changed (a little kerbstone for instance), the car crashes. It also seem to crash sometimes on account of "roundoff-error" (ie. randomly).

Now my problem... :-)


Index

Oh Sh!t (lost ribbon)

Posted by jason hope from 207.253.108.42:

here we go again! I adjusted the scenery in my track an dwhen i entered the game, a ribbon that i NEVER touched was missing form where it was supposed to me. I double and triple checked to see if I turned it off, but no, i did not. Any clues, Martjin, Bob, Addie?

Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

Perhaps you turned it off? :-) (check with the scenery view in the newest TE)

Perhaps you put an illegal texture on it? Perhaps you entered a whole lot earlier a number of 0xAFs/C1s/C0s that unbalanced this number with the 0xb8 cmds?

that's all I can think of right now.


Posted by Jason Hope from 207.253.109.80:

Kool. the problem was that i did not have the commands in the proper order. For instance, i had a command to begin in unit 10 of the track sector before a command that starts in unit 5 of that track sector.

it was my fault. I put them in the wrong order.

Martjin, how can i stop scenery from bleeding through the fences in some sectors.

Jason Hope


Posted by µart - i - j - n from 195.96.98.188:

Scenery bleeding through fences are usually caused by the fact that the scenery really IS before the fences. This can be hard to spot in the TE though, especially when "bridged scenery" commands influence the scenery. I guess the easiest way to fix it is to move back the scenery a bit.

Another cause may be that the scenery that is bleeding through, is actually scenery from a different part of the track than where you're currently working on. This is especially easy to overlook when you're building scenery near tight corners. You can check in the TE whether some scenery ribbons from around the hairpin come through to before the hairpin. Make sure you have TE-1.9.0, or use Iso-Hanulla's TE, as the display wasn't correct until recently.

If you're unsure which scenery you're actually looking at, you can temporarily put some strange texture on it, that makes it easier to spot.

As a last resort, you can send the track to me for a free-of-charge unguaranteed unfounded random opinion.

Posted by jason hope from 209.104.76.93:

sorry for the name thing martijn. Thanks for the advise, I came accros a problem like this once before and i changed the angle of the swivel arm. This solved that problem. I this this has to do with distance from the track though. I'll do some trials and if it does not work, i'll send you the track ASAP.

Thanx,
Jason Hope


Index

track editing????? (beginning it)

Posted by Peter from 194.151.106.230:

I just don't get it
I don't seem to be able to
create my own track,or to change tracks
where can I down a helpgide?????????/


Posted by David Wortley from 212.159.65.140:

go to www.grandprix2.com/trackedit and get all the tutorials have a good read through all of them and then have a go, It's not that simple and it can be very frustrating at times,
good luck,

David Wortley


Posted by jason hope from 209.104.76.93:

it's taking me a while to fully understand scenery, and i never really understood how to make a proper cc-line. The one thing I can tell you, is to take your time and do not be afraid to ask anything at this forum. We are all open to helping people and, sometimes need some critism ourselves mor motivational reasons (there we go again Freud!)

Jason Hope


Index

time adjustment help needed

Posted by jason hope from 209.104.76.93:

WOW! three posts in a row. CAn someone tell me how to change the pace of the cars, well i mean my car.I know about the cc-cars. I'm about 9 seconds slower than the official qualifying time for last year (montreal) i find this is a crucial part of the track making process. How can have reality if we run 1:28's in Montreal?!?!?!?!

Jason


Posted by µartijn from 195.96.98.222:

Use another slot. If you slide it into slot 3 or 5, it will probably be faster than now. Ofcourse I don't know what you're using now.


Posted by jason hope from 209.104.76.93:

i'm using slot 6 and 7. 6 is the original slot and seven is where the race was held last year. I'll try it in three, but i doubt people will use it there.

Thanks for the help. By the way, where is everybody? this place seems deserted now.

Jason


Posted by Olivier S. from 194.78.242.91:

Don't bother if the slot you're running the track in gives a weird timing: if you're sure the layout of your track is accurate, then it is a matter of slot timing.

As I said, the slot 3 gives lap times that are the most near real-time, while slot 6 gives times that are 8-9 seconds slower (with original Montreal track) then real time.

Then, of course there can be a pit entry/exit problem when using Montreal at another slot... shit thing...

Filou



Index

jams files (changing horizon)

Posted by Nick from 209.167.207.6:

I have a track that use the horizon jams file of another track.How can I change this and make the track use it's own horizon?

Posted by James Knopp from 195.92.198.71:

Just edit the jam horizon that you have got the track assigned to, and that's it. Simple! Use JamEditor. (http://www.grandprix2.com/opensrc/jameditor/) Export the bitmap and then paint it using your favourite programme (PSP6.0 Adobe Photoshop etc)

Regards

James Knopp

Posted by Nick from 142.169.149.116:

That's not what I want to do.The track use the file Indy_f1 for the jams files but for the horizon jams files,it use the folder mzajam and if I change the horizon of the Monza track,the horizon change for the Indy track too.I want to use Trackeditor to change this but I don't how.

Posted by Olivier S. from 195.238.6.148:

Make a copy of the hor???.jam from the mzajams folder, and place it in the indy_f1 directory. Then you can edit it, and then go in th "Jam Files" section of the tree in the track editor, find the hor???.jam entry, and set its directory to indy_f1\

Filou


Index

CC-cmd 112 (changing cmd80 to cmd112)

Posted by Jaare Salo from 131.130.232.120:

Hi guys.
After all that time of learning i should know this:
How do i change a CC-sector from cmd80 to cmd112 ?
Because in Te cmd80 sectors are really hard to handle.

Jaare

Posted by Ian Hill from 131.111.8.68:

You can't change it as such, but you can remove such a section by selecting it, right-clicking and choosing Remove/ Remove CC-Section.

HTH

Ian






Index

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