rec.autos.simulators

(1) In the demo, there is a replay of a Ferrari doing a lap at Watkins
Glen.  In this replay, he is sliding all over the road and it seems to
be an integral part of doing a lap.  Is this true of race conditions as
well, or is this only for a hot lap?

(2) My Voodoo 3 goes haywire over resolutions of 640x480.
Strange colors, lack of detail on certain items, sometimes even wire
grids can be seen.  Is this a problem with the demo?

(3) Are the cars always as difficult to stop in the actual game?  If
there was another car on the track, I wouldn't know where to pass.  It
seems unlikely I could do it under braking as in every other game I
play.

I'd love to see this physics engine in a modern F1 or CART game, it's
amazing.  Of course, I was playing TOCA2 all day Sunday before firing
up GPL.

-Andrew

Sent via Deja.com http://www.racesimcentral.net/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.

Well, you have to remember that those are Formula 1 of the 1960's, and the
last year before any aerodynamics help.  Back in those days it was mostly an
overpowered engine for those tyres, so those cars had oversteering, and you
have to master those cars that way.

Can't say, all perfect for me :)

This can be related to point (1).  Those cars back in 1967 had extremely
poor brakes for the speed and weight they had.   GPL is an extreme-advanced
racing simulator for the PC, you can't get anything better presently.
Praise it like we all do :)

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard/Nas-Frank>
-- NROS Nascar sanctioned Guide http://www.nros.com/
-- May the Downforce be with you...

"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realise
how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."

There's a "glide wrapper" available to fix this V3 texture bug. I think all
major GPL sites carry it.

Again a setup issue, the cars in the demo have full fuel load (fro exmple),
but even so a lot can be done to stabilise the car under braking. Outbraking
the AI or another human competitor remains tough however, your best bet is
out-accellerating them out of a corner.

You and me both! TOCA2 is a fun diversion, but just doesn't quite cut it
once you've raced GPL.

Let me warn you Andrew. GPL is hard, very hard. There's also no such thing
as a universal setup. Everyone has to learn about the various setup
parameters and adjust them to their liking, the track and the car. Any real
speed comes from the correct racing line anyway. Words fail to describe the
sensations and pleasure derived from really mastering and driving these
cars. There is, however, an apprenticeship to serve. It takes A LOT of
practise to get proficient. But don't let that scare you, there's nothing us
GPL hacks like more than talking shop with and avid learner. ;-))

Jan.
------

Apparently the car setup for the demo was rather bad.  That said
is does take a bit of car wrestling to hustle around Watkins Glen.

Yes and no.  Controlled sliding is an integral part of any form of
motorsport.  However, the form exhibited in the replays aren't
necessarily indicative of what you should expect.  The replays are
either of developers or beta testers (both rather poor drivers :-)
sorry Mike and Alison, it has to be said).

That said GPL can require a lot of seat time to get used to,
perhaps said developers and beta-testers have improved
since then.

Yes, it was previously fixed by a patch I wote, more recently it has
finally been fixed at the source of the problem in the GPL 1.1 patch.

The cars don't stop as effectively as cars in other simulations for a
variety of reasons:

- The braking capabilites of the cars far exceeded the grip offered
   by the tires.  Tire technology has improved quite a bit since that
   era.

- This is compounded by the lack of downforce pushing the
   pushing the cars down onto the track surface which increases
   grip.

- The physics model is more advanced then what you are used to
   seeing

For the price I don't think it can be beat.  To be fair though you need
to understand that GPL has stiff requirements both in terms of the
hardware needed to run it and the possible time and patience
needed to master it.  It also is in a bit of a state of flux at the
moment regarding oddities with the most recent patch.

 - George

I would believe that in the replays, the back end is all over the place,
because that's how you have to drive the GPL cars to go fast pretty much.  Low
tire grip and no downforce make it so that you have to slip and slide the car
around.

Dan Belcher
Team Racing Unlimited

        It's a mixed bag.  The AI are pretty much demon brakers.
OTOH, the braking zones are much longer compared to, say, GP2.

        bob