rec.autos.simulators

There's got to be some problems here.  I've recently
done a full install of GPL.1.0.0.0, and with all options
turned off and only 5 other cars, I'm getting 13 fps.
With everything on, it's roughly 4 fps.

Minimum requirements -- My system:
Pentium 166 -- Pentium 233
32 meg RAM -- 128 meg RAM
2MB video card -- 4MB Matrox Millenium II video card (MGA chip)
2X CD-ROM drive -- 24X CD-ROM drive
Mouse -- Mouse

In fact, I just upgraded from a Trident 9680 1MB video
card to the 4MB Matrox, and there was no difference.
Even tried uninstalling and reinstalling GPL with no
effect.

The only screen resolution options GPL gives me are
640x480, 512x384, and 320x240.  And the option to
display the track "line" is always grayed out.  And, yes,
I close all other programs before running GPL.

To compare, I've run Official F1 Racing ('98 season)
constantly for the last couple of years, and get great
frame rates.

Any solutions?

Many thanks.

Ed.

--
Biz

"Don't touch that please, your primitive intellect wouldn't understand
alloys and compositions and,......things with molecular structures,....and
the....." - Ash

Go here -> http://www.racesimcentral.net/
apply the GPL version 1.2 patch, then apply the D3D patch (this will help
with fps, make things look nicer, let you use much higher resolutions, and
let you turn the dark-*** racing line thingy on).

Your computer is very old, and you would do well to invest money in a faster
cpu and graphics card.

Cheers

Jim S

<snip>

Yep. Of which the main one is that you've taken the specs on the box
at face value. My current system is as follows - Celeron 500, 128
megs RAM, Voodoo 3 - and I have to make compromises with that. On my
previous machine (P200MMX, 64 megs RAM, Voodoo 1) I was really
restricted to hotlapping.

Let's get RAM out of the way first, as your 128 megs will be fine.
GPL isn't particularly RAM-hungry, and even 32 meg machines should be
OK (though the more you have, the longer your replay files can be).

The CPU is a problem. I'm assuming that "P233" means an original
Pentium, rather than a PII-233. You need a fair bit more speed, I'm
afraid - a Celeron at minimum and more if you can afford it.

The graphics problem is a common one. GPL is an old game, and doesn't
support Direct3D as standard. It only has native support for ye olde
Rendition cards and (of slightly more use) 3Dfx cards. With anything
else, the game will only use software rendering, which is close to
unplayable, as you've discovered.

In fact, as Biz points out, there is a way of making GPL run with
Direct3D, but you'll need the patches he mentions (which seems to
work pretty well for most people). You should get the v1.2 patch even
if you don't get the Direct3D patch, as it has a bundle of
improvements, including Force Feedback support; and you'll also need
it to play online (though you won't be able to do this successfully
without a faster system).

If money is tight (in which case you've bought the wrong game - GPL
costs everyone a fortune in upgrades!) you might try getting hold of
a second-hand Voodoo card - it'll make a very noticeable difference
on its own, and will be a lot cheaper than a new CPU and motherboard.

Lastly - in GPL, smoothness is everything; you shuld always be
prepared to sacrifice grpahics for frame-rate. To play online you'll
need to be able to keep the frame-rate (press ALT+F to see it) at
36fps most of the time. Good luck!

--
"We are not very far from fascism. In fact, Mugabe has endorsed
fascism in his rule" - Takura Zhangazha, Zimbabwean political
scientist.

The GPL Scrapyard returns (slowly): http://www.hillclimbfan.f2s.com

Take no on-board-video - buy a modern graphic card
no on-board-sound - buy a creative labs live player (or how she is named
today)
(the on-board-chips are cheaper, but take you much performance)

Most users of GPL are happy with Athlon systems.
(As I am ;-)))

You will need performance, because the GPL-community is creating many addons
in high quality, that don't run on older systems. And you will never think
negative of the money, you spend for a modern computer again!

There are over 100 addon tracks and the very realistic cars
and...and...and..
 Have fun
Rolf

Thanks for all your help and advice so far.  I've successfully
installed  the 1.2 patch, but with no improvement in frame rate.
The D3D patch didn't work.  I installed it and created a core.ini
file, although I'm not exactly sure what it should contain.  The
accelerator menu showed the new option 'Direct3d7', but when
I selected it and re-started GPL, it wouldn't re-start.  I guess this
means my Matrox Millenium II video card isn't D3D compliant.
Or is Direct3D something I need separately from everything else,
like DirectX?

So I'm still on square 1 (more like P20).

Buying an old 3Dfx or Rendition card seems to be my next step,
right?

Again, many thanks.

Ed.

It may be possible to run GPL on a P233 and (barely) get decent fps with all
graphics turned off, but not with that card. Find a 2nd hand Voodoo II
add-on videocard to run with the Matrox - 3Dfx is supported by GPL. Better
yet, get a new system.

Bye,
Leo

Yea, I'm pretty sure your M2 doesn't have enough memory or rendering
power to do you any good.  Look for a used 12Meg Voodoo2 (keep your M2's
excellent 2D image quality) or Voodoo3 (slightly softer desktop image)
on Ebay.  When/if you get a faster CPU the V3's extra rendering power
will be handy.

A K6-3 is probably the best chip for your system, _if_ the MB supports
it.  With your older, slower memory, a K6-3 will run better than a
substantially faster K6-2.

-Greg

============

Anti-Spam measures have been taken!
Remove duplicate letters to reply.

--
                      _____                  .      .                 <|
Carl Warnell          '  o/  FORE!    .                  .             |

                        /|  .                                 .     ...o

Hi, again.

I can't get the D3D patch to work with my 4MB Matrox Millenium II, although
what I've read says it should.  I click on GPL icon, screen goes black for a
few seconds, then back to desktop.  I tried modifying several lines in the
core.ini file with no luck.  Could anyone with a similar system (old) send me
their core.ini file to try?  At least I'll get an idea of what one should contain.

I've considered possble problems with the M2 itself, but no other programs
seem to be affected.

All the best,

Ed.

P.S.  I believe your Matrox MGA-G200 and my MGA-M2 even use the same
driver.

--
Peter H

GPL sucks...you in

Yes, I have DirectX 7.0.  I ran the DirectX diagnostic, and its Direct3D Test ran
flawlessly, both in software rendering and hardware-acceleration rendering.  I'm
now trying the DirectX diagnostic Troubleshooting section.

I've tried various monitor/display settings-- AOC Spectrum 4V, Plug-and-Play
monitor, 1024x768-True Color (32 bit), 640x480-16 color, etc.  No luck.

Possible clue? - When trying GPL using the Direct3D option, just before the screen
turns black, a block appears in the Task bar at the bottom of the screen that says
"Papyrus Window" (even though my core.ini file says fullScreen = 1).  Then,
as usual, it goes to black and then back to the desktop.

Still at 13 fps,
Ed.

- Eric

- Eric

That explains it, then.  So, if I add-on, say, a 3Dfx-chip card with my M2, I could
un-install the Direct3D patch-- no longer requiring DX7-- and select GPL's
3Dfx option, right?

Again, many thanks for everyone's help and advice.

Ed.