Sitting Duck

Hi Again - Could someone please tell me where I can pick up the CM Movie utility? Yah...I did a search. 5 minutes and still waiting for a result list to appear on my search term (CMMovie). I use to admin a forum using software very much like UBB. We eventually ditched it in favor of newsgroups because of the poor performance for searches...seems that when you get X number of posts that searching just kills it. No slight against BTS, just want to hold off the "Do a Search" Police.

Unfortunately the SBLive shares IRQ 9 with the USB controller (no USB mouse)...so many devices, so few IRQ's. I have found a clue that seems to resolve the problem: shut down my Outlook email client before beginning the game. Since shutting down Outlook prior to starting the game I have had no lockups. Thank you for your reply.

Hello - Started getting game freeze up during the orders phase. It only seems to happen when the sound is on. I have an SB!Live with the latest drivers.

For what it's worth, please add my vote for WindoPAIN... Wonder if it will count?

Hi Porajkl- That's a good plan...but, the technique has a caveat (or used to). The HIDE command is not an absolute command, but instead acts as a toggle. Meaning that if you select ALL units, and issue a HIDE command it will reverse he current HIDE orders of the selected units. This could have unintended consequences causing units that are already hidden to STOP HIDING... The HIDE command that you see on the right-click menu (HIDE or STOP HIDING) seems to be dependent on the HIDE status "active" unit in a group selection. I use the word "active" to refer to the unit whose stats are visible in the information window at the bottom of your screen. If the active unit is currently hidden, then the HIDE Command available from the right-click menu for all selected units will be STOP HIDING. Selecting the command will act as a toggle, causing the active unit to STOP HIDING and reversing the HIDE orders or the other selected units. Sorry if I've been confusing. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

The real problem is that the results can be misleading. The GUI says that you just issued a hide command, but what you really did was stop hiding. I've been burned more than once by this...especially on scenarios with lots of units or when the units are closely spaced.

Possible enhancement request for CM2. Currently, the Hide command can give misleading results when giving group orders, depending on the current hiding state of the units in the group. Steps to repeat: 1. Place Unit A in Hide 2. Place Unit B Stop Hide 3. Select Both Units A and B 4. Available right-click command is either Hide or Stop Hiding (it may or may not match what the oposite of the state of the current unit that the unit information screen is showing). 5. Issue the command Hide or Stop Hide. Result is toggle: Unit A will Stop Hide, Unit B will Hide. I think the command should act as an absolute command, not a toggle. The reason this is important (to me) is that I usually like to start my setup with all units hidden and then unhide selected units. The current implementation forces me to select each unit to know. There may be other commands that function this way too, but that's the one that I run into most often. I know, I know, I know...I'm lazy. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I'd like to suggest a possible enhancement for CM2. Would it be possible for the CM2 Scenario list screen to show the point totals? I tend to enjoy playing games with less than 1000 points on a side. It would be great if the CM2 Scenario list screen would calculate the numbers of points in the scenario (including reinforcements) to give me a better idea of the size of the game. Just an idea... Things like "15 Turns, Tiny" are helpful, but it'd be nice to see more detail about the points. Perhaps next to the unit insignia? Just an idea. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I remember reading somewhere on this board that there was some trick (bug?) to getting an on-board mortar to indirectly fire at a UNIT as opposed to indirect AREA FIRE. As I recall it was something where indirect fire on a UNIT would not work (despite positive target line), unless some specific mouse clicking was done. Is that correct? Is that as designed? ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I choose this name after playing my first game of CM...I was so throughly destroyed by the AI in the Fire & Manuever training scenario that this name seemed appropriate. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Hi Joe - I believe the estimate is pretty accurate. I manage a software development team that writes several applications used by a global technical support organization of more than 600 (mostly males). We often get requests to use color on some of the applications' forms to highlight certain records/values on lists. If we use color, we usually end up using it in conjunction with non-color queues to ensure we convey meaning to folks that can't see the colors... As an interesting counter-point - one of our more talented in-house graphics guys that occasionally does some images for us is red/green colorblind. He will sometimes produce an image that is a <u>little</u> "out there," but it doesn't happen often and he's really quite good at subtle color details. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I simply <u>love</u> the completely random settings! ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Hello All! Lots of games mentioned. I don't think I have played any of them, but I was wondering if anyone on the board ever played Descent? I always enjoyed playing that game in it's various versions...especially the head-to-head stuff. My problem was that it always made me feel ill after playing for more than about 20 minutes. I would get a big headache that just wouldn't quit. I'd be interested to hear a recommendation on which of the games mentioned that might I try out? I don't find that the comments made on this board are insulting. There are exceptions...on certain topics and perhaps by certain users. But, bear in mind that when opinions differ (and when don't they?), there is always some element of conflict. There is an art to writing/speaking in a way where an attack on an idea or opinion won't be construed as insulting or as a personal attack. Some are better than others. Some people are more sensitive, too. I would venture that there are circumstances in which it would be justified to be insulting and to attack both the opinion and the person who offers the opinion. I can think of a few posts on this board that deserved such treatment. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jeff Heidman: Interface Question: What is the best way to let the player know what a given unit has spotted or not? ... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I remember playing a computer war game once that would change the shading of the map to show LOS. Normal color for visible hexes and a translucent grey for non-visible hexes. If I recall correctly (could be wrong here), if no unit was selected, the map would be shaded with "absolute spotting" rules showing all hexes visible to all of your units. If you selected a unit, you could toggle the LOS for that unit and change the shading of the hexes. Forget the name of the game...but that shading system seemed pretty good as an interface. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )." [This message has been edited by Sitting Duck (edited 12-27-2000).]

I smell a padlock... What useful purpose is served telling someone to do a search when they've already indicated they didn't want to bother with it? If someone asks a question and you don't feel like answering...why not just skip the thread? ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I don't have the CM Mod Manager program (yet) but what if it would pop a dialog box when you ask for the changes that is a confirmation of the changes? Example: Are you sure you want to...(and then list what it is the program is going to do). Yes, No/Cancel These types of dialogs can get irritating, so maybe also include a "Don't show me this dialog box again" option. [This message has been edited by Sitting Duck (edited 12-26-2000).]

Hey ST - From the looks of things, you probably don't have to worry much about the elevator plummeting 45 floors. Sounds like good news but... It's my understanding that a number of people are killed because of accidents that occur trying to get out of a stuck elevator. Here are some random links you might want to take a look at... http://www.tennessean.com/sii/00/08/29/hammond29.shtml http://www.council.nyc.ny.us/newswire/elevator.htm http://news.oneclick.gr/news/36250.html Please be careful. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )." [This message has been edited by Sitting Duck (edited 12-22-2000).]

I would love to have an option to enforce "historical force selection" because I do not have knowledge to do this myself, nor the time to investigate it. Would it be a practical to have a "historical force selection" option in the QB situation? How would such an option work for both Computer and Human selection of forces? ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Thanks Schrullenhaft! I've already tried DirectX v8...I'll give the generic drivers a chance. I also read on another thread about reducing the desktop color pallet to 256 colors before starting the game. Not sure if this is the trick...I remember reading that CMBO was 16-bit color, so not sure what this will accomplish. Thanks for taking the time to respond!

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jeff Heidman: I think CM neeeds the following movement commands for infantry: Fast - Get from here to there, do not stop for any reason. Fire if a target presents itself, if you can fire while moving. Any fire from a unit moving Fast would be greatly reduced, and unit would be very susceptible to incoming fire. movement speed would be high. I see this as a dash, sacrificing firepower and protection for speed. Move - Go from here to there, but do not become too exposed in the process. Fire if a target presents itself. If fired upon, try to keep moving, but slow down in order to take better advatage of cover. Any fire from a unit using this command would be considerably reduced in effect. Movemenet speed would be moderate, cover would be poor. I see this as high crawling, while returning fire and trying to provide some amount of cover fire. Assault Move - Move very slowly, maximize cover, fire at your target while advancing. Movement speed would be very slow (little more than crawling), protection would be high, firepower would be high. I see this as a coordinated fire and movement drill using a mix of low and high crawling. Move to Contact Just like move, except stop when fired upon and return fire. Sneak - Try to avoid detection at all costs. Do not fire at enemies under most circumstances. Speed would be very slow, firepower would be fine if the unit fires, but it probably would not unless under threat of imminent destruction. Stop and return fire if detected. What would be nice about some of these is that you could then modify some of the values based upon the weapon. One of the advantages of submachine guns and assault rifles is that they can be fired while moving much easier than a regular rifle. So you could have the firepower modified based on the type of weapon. Jeff Heidman <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Excellent! ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

I have the same problem...any resolution? ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Hey Guys - I understand your confusion with the infantry SNEAK and MOVE commands. Here's a thread that contains a comment by Scott Clinton that might help: http://www.battlefront.com/discuss/Forum1/HTML/013508.html I don't think that infantry have the option to move to contact or HUNT, like vehicles. I wish there were... ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Hi TwoSheds - I'm with you brother! Have you heard of the "Developer's Triangle Dilema?" Fast / \ Cheap - Good A developer can have any two of these, but not all three of them. I think NASA recently discovered this triangle written in the sands of Mars. "Faster, Cheaper, Better" has a nice ring, but doesn't often play well in the real world. At least in my experience... Many commercial software developers have 2 competing Customer interests to balance: 1. What have you done for me lately? Many Customers are on a never-ending quest for new features and bug fixes. After getting a new release, they often quickly forget it in favor of newer features and more bug fixes unless the release is really bad. In which case the Customer has... 2. Black-eye Syndrome If a developer releases a bad product, then users will often remember the experience much longer...They may even move on to another vendor. In the case of the Mod Makers, I'm not sure they are affected by either of these considerations, but it sounded nice, so I included them. Upon reflection, there are some other little proverbs that might be more applicable in this case: 1. Never look a gift horse in the mouth 2. You get what you pay for 3. We will sell no whine before its time Here's a smiley, just in case anyone takes this too seriously. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )."

Vote has been cast. Do you think it will be counted? I hope the server doesn't sit in Florida. ------------------ Steve of BTS - "With a company our size, every sale does in fact count (unlike every vote in certain assbackwards states )." [This message has been edited by Sitting Duck (edited 12-14-2000).]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Colin: A Panzerschrek that was used during '43 obviously would not be used from June '44 onwards. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Might not be so obvious. I have all kinds of stuff used during 1999 that I still use this year. Like that 1999 Ford Explorer with the Firestone tires... ------------------ Quack!