rec.autos.simulators

Folks,

I have only recently purchased a CH Wheel, without pedals.

I like the wheel emensely, however, there is one problem.  The problem, I
believe, is related to F1RS and not the wheel.

Not having pedals to go with my wheel, I use the face wheel buttons-- which
act as joystick forward and backward (y-axis?)-
for acceleration and brake.

The big problem I'm having is that when I press the acceleration button my
rpms go immediately to the max.  Thus, in first gear, when pressing the
acceleration button, I go instantly to the highest rpms.  This is really a
problem and prevents me from doing some of the things you can do while in
first gear.  The same goes with all the other gears: I go immediately to
the max in rpms.  

The funny thing is (and I have adjusted the sensitivity, to no effect
whatsoever), is that after racing a while this all seems to change: when I
am in first or second gear, especially, and press the acceleration button,
the rpms move gradually up to the max, just as I would like them.

What's up with this?  Is there something that I can fiddle with, either in
my CH setup or in my driver setup, that could fix this problem?

Thanks-- damn: late for work.  :)

Alanb

Alan Bernardo wrote on 8 Apr 1998 11:00:29 GMT:

[...]

  Yep. And they're digital. On -- Off. Nothing intermediate. This is
the root of your problem.

  Where else would they go? A button only has two states, on and off,
how is it supposed to know you only want to have fewer revs? This is
the nature of the hardware, there isn't much the software can do about
it. Get pedals.

  (Yes, of course, there *could* be some compensation in SW, like a
driving aid that reduces the throttle somewhat in first gear at low
speeds. Hell, maybe there even is such an aid in F1RS, I'm too lazy
to check. But let's be honest: Like all other driving `aids,' that
is not a solution, it's a crutch at best. And like all other driving
`aids,' it would never work right.)

[...]

  That's not surprising at all. Just think about what the throttle does:
It doesn't *directly* set the revs. It adjusts fuel flow to the engine,
thereby influencing the acceleration of the engine, ie, the rate of change
in RPMs. Full throttle simply means maximum power. At lower gear ratios,
and especially in first gear, the resistance from the car's inertia is
small. Or almost non-existant, as soon as the wheels spin. In the higher
gears, the ratio is less favorable for the engine, and the wheels don't
spin, so transfer of this acceleration to the car itself is slower.
Therefore, your revs don't go up instantly, but more gradually. This whole
affair (and of course aerodynamic effects) is exactly what's responsible
for the car's acceleration being smaller in higher gears than in lower
ones.

  Yes. Get pedals, so you can adjust throttle and brakes in an analog,
continuous fashion.

HTH, even if it's not the kind of answer you were looking for. ;-)

--
Cheers, Tilman
                          -=--=*=--=-
The axiom `Honest men have nothing to fear from the police' is
currently under review by the Axioms Appeals Board.
                                Terry Pratchett, _Men at Arms_

For racing sims you should be using pedals for throttle and brake.
Pedals and steering wheels use potentiometers (pot) that gradually
 increase the current through them like a volume control knob on a radio.
This makes the brake or throttle increase as it is pressed further down.
They control an X or Y axis of the joystick system.
The buttons on the steering wheel are either "on" or "off" and will
give you either full throttle or none. They should be used for gearshifting.
F1rs has a sensitive throttle,but you should be able to control it o.k. with
pedals. The sensitivity setting only seems to delay the throttle.
Try using your joystick to see how the throttle is.
Good luck racing
D Sport Racer #74  :-)