Platform Differences Cause Game To Work Differnt!

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Author Topic:   Platform Differences Cause Game To Work Differnt!

jhankla posted 05-18-99 05:43 PM ET
Here's a key to some of the problems in giving advice to others about SMAC!:
The game works differently on different computers. After a friend hit me with a vehicle with both drop pods and grav struts I turned off my machine and trooped over to his place to see how he did it. Mine won't, no way no how. Yet, his did, BUT ONLY IF HE PLAYED YANG! I loaded the game and played my turn on his system, I was not given that option!
I read about the "Airdrop Bug" and thought the writer was on drugs until I played with my wacom pixel pad and found that I could indeed jump from city to city in one turn. If I use my mouse I can't and even my pad won't do it if I'm not doing a solo game. I Play over the net and I can't!
This brings up the problem of giving people advice on your favorate tactic like
cloaked terraformers, I can't create them, but I've played someone who created on just to show me he could! Therefore, before you run out calling someone a lunitic or a liar, hold on, it might be they can do something you can't! There secret projects might work on their cities differently, they may be able to build equipment you can't, etc!
Conversly, you might be able to do things that their game won't let them! This even changes with a reload of the game as when I did I lost the airdrop bug with my pad... but gained it with my new intellimouse!
I'm sure Fraxis knows about this, it's a complicated game and that means they had to build it to do exactly what it does, work slightly differently on each platform because
all platforms are differently configured. What would work on system X would crash system Y!
Perhaps 4.0 will have us all working from a level playing field, because right now that field is in bad need of terriforming. If you can cloak that terriformer (Which I can't but my playing parner can) then he get's benny you don't. If you can add drop pods for a former (Which I can but he can't) then I get a benny he can't. SO it evens out somewhere in the middle. It's the RANDOMNESS of these events that adds the element of surprise to the game, but how do you tell this to other without someone saying with the authority of there experience saying "I COULDN'T DO THAT THEREFORE YOU ARE A LIAR!" Well they probably are not. Making advice risky at best unless you know the why behind it.

Darkstar posted 05-20-99 03:03 PM ET
Your nuts.
Your buddy and you aren't using the same version of the program. The Air Drop Bug has been steadily closed over the various enhancements.
I don't know WHEN, but I think that Drop Pods were 'added' as an ability to that a Former could have.
Cloaking has been going through various changes since version 1.
Compare game VERSIONS. You and your friends need to be using the same patched versions to have the same capabilities and limitations.
-Darkstar
trippin daily posted 05-20-99 03:46 PM ET
jhankla... oh, it is too easy. Way, WAY, to easy. This is more than begging for a modest flame. But I'm not going to do that. In software, they have these things called "versions." You got that so far? When a game is released it is generally version 1.0. When bugs are found in software (your game), they releases patches to fix them. Then the version number jumps up to 2.0. You with me still? So you got it now. He has a different version than you.
Trippin Daily
-think before you post-
jhankla posted 05-20-99 06:42 PM ET
Were both using the download upgrade to 3.0
as are all the people I game with.
I don't know about version differences and their effect on the game, I haven't gamed with one less than 3.0 or an unpatched version yet. I can understand it sounding doubious, but I'm just reporting what we found from real play and a few experiments.
trippin daily posted 05-20-99 08:45 PM ET
Did one of you play around with the alpha.txt? Also, when was the game started... if even one of you started the game as a different version, then it will carry the previous versions features over, even if you have patch 3 now. Start a completely new game and see how it works. Make sure you both definitely have the same alpha.txt and version.
Trippin Daily
-hope this helps-
Eris posted 05-24-99 10:01 AM ET
Actually, with both myself and a friend using the same downloaded Enhancement 3.0 pack without /any/ modifications to various .txt files, his display is distinctly different from mine for combat and city.
But that's not quite the same as different abilities in different games.
Does anyone know what might cause display differences? OS? Resolution? These are two obvious ones that come to mind for differences between our machines.
trippin daily posted 05-24-99 12:13 PM ET
resolution will change how the screens look Enis... I've tried it, it does have a pretty big effect on it.
Trippin Daily
Plato90s posted 05-24-99 03:38 PM ET
Having installed SMAC on several different computers, I'd have to say jhankla's experience is not mine. All versions behave the same.
Urban Ranger posted 05-25-99 01:47 AM ET
I have also installed SMAC on two different platforms. One is a PII-300 with 64M RAM and running NT. The other one is a Cyrix Pr-200 with 32M RAM and running Windows 95 OSR 2. The game behaves more or less the same.
As for the display, different monitors can have a serious effect on how it looks. I have no problems with the default red/green palatte since I invested into a good monitor.
arleth posted 05-25-99 08:39 AM ET
Urban Ranger: It says on the box or somewhere in the documentation that that NT is not supported.
Do you need to to some thing special to play under NT or do you just go on and install it ?
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Author	Topic: Platform Differences Cause Game To Work Differnt!
jhankla	posted 05-18-99 05:43 PM ET Here's a key to some of the problems in giving advice to others about SMAC!: The game works differently on different computers. After a friend hit me with a vehicle with both drop pods and grav struts I turned off my machine and trooped over to his place to see how he did it. Mine won't, no way no how. Yet, his did, BUT ONLY IF HE PLAYED YANG! I loaded the game and played my turn on his system, I was not given that option! I read about the "Airdrop Bug" and thought the writer was on drugs until I played with my wacom pixel pad and found that I could indeed jump from city to city in one turn. If I use my mouse I can't and even my pad won't do it if I'm not doing a solo game. I Play over the net and I can't! This brings up the problem of giving people advice on your favorate tactic like cloaked terraformers, I can't create them, but I've played someone who created on just to show me he could! Therefore, before you run out calling someone a lunitic or a liar, hold on, it might be they can do something you can't! There secret projects might work on their cities differently, they may be able to build equipment you can't, etc! Conversly, you might be able to do things that their game won't let them! This even changes with a reload of the game as when I did I lost the airdrop bug with my pad... but gained it with my new intellimouse! I'm sure Fraxis knows about this, it's a complicated game and that means they had to build it to do exactly what it does, work slightly differently on each platform because all platforms are differently configured. What would work on system X would crash system Y! Perhaps 4.0 will have us all working from a level playing field, because right now that field is in bad need of terriforming. If you can cloak that terriformer (Which I can't but my playing parner can) then he get's benny you don't. If you can add drop pods for a former (Which I can but he can't) then I get a benny he can't. SO it evens out somewhere in the middle. It's the RANDOMNESS of these events that adds the element of surprise to the game, but how do you tell this to other without someone saying with the authority of there experience saying "I COULDN'T DO THAT THEREFORE YOU ARE A LIAR!" Well they probably are not. Making advice risky at best unless you know the why behind it.
Darkstar	posted 05-20-99 03:03 PM ET Your nuts. Your buddy and you aren't using the same version of the program. The Air Drop Bug has been steadily closed over the various enhancements. I don't know WHEN, but I think that Drop Pods were 'added' as an ability to that a Former could have. Cloaking has been going through various changes since version 1. Compare game VERSIONS. You and your friends need to be using the same patched versions to have the same capabilities and limitations. -Darkstar
trippin daily	posted 05-20-99 03:46 PM ET jhankla... oh, it is too easy. Way, WAY, to easy. This is more than begging for a modest flame. But I'm not going to do that. In software, they have these things called "versions." You got that so far? When a game is released it is generally version 1.0. When bugs are found in software (your game), they releases patches to fix them. Then the version number jumps up to 2.0. You with me still? So you got it now. He has a different version than you. Trippin Daily -think before you post-
jhankla	posted 05-20-99 06:42 PM ET Were both using the download upgrade to 3.0 as are all the people I game with. I don't know about version differences and their effect on the game, I haven't gamed with one less than 3.0 or an unpatched version yet. I can understand it sounding doubious, but I'm just reporting what we found from real play and a few experiments.
trippin daily	posted 05-20-99 08:45 PM ET Did one of you play around with the alpha.txt? Also, when was the game started... if even one of you started the game as a different version, then it will carry the previous versions features over, even if you have patch 3 now. Start a completely new game and see how it works. Make sure you both definitely have the same alpha.txt and version. Trippin Daily -hope this helps-
Eris	posted 05-24-99 10:01 AM ET Actually, with both myself and a friend using the same downloaded Enhancement 3.0 pack without /any/ modifications to various .txt files, his display is distinctly different from mine for combat and city. But that's not quite the same as different abilities in different games. Does anyone know what might cause display differences? OS? Resolution? These are two obvious ones that come to mind for differences between our machines.
trippin daily	posted 05-24-99 12:13 PM ET resolution will change how the screens look Enis... I've tried it, it does have a pretty big effect on it. Trippin Daily
Plato90s	posted 05-24-99 03:38 PM ET Having installed SMAC on several different computers, I'd have to say jhankla's experience is not mine. All versions behave the same.
Urban Ranger	posted 05-25-99 01:47 AM ET I have also installed SMAC on two different platforms. One is a PII-300 with 64M RAM and running NT. The other one is a Cyrix Pr-200 with 32M RAM and running Windows 95 OSR 2. The game behaves more or less the same. As for the display, different monitors can have a serious effect on how it looks. I have no problems with the default red/green palatte since I invested into a good monitor.
arleth	posted 05-25-99 08:39 AM ET Urban Ranger: It says on the box or somewhere in the documentation that that NT is not supported. Do you need to to some thing special to play under NT or do you just go on and install it ?