The mod images should now be redirected too.

You'll still see the "Redirect : JP" or "Redirect : US" message but this will be removed in the next test patch.

Thanks, that sounds pretty serious.

Is there a simple step-by-step way I could reproduce this? Maybe starting from an LFS vehicle, or a test vehicle you could provide?

Based on your description, I added a new texture page, cutout, mapping and triangle, exited back to vehicle editor but didn't get a crash with the Textures tab open.

But if I can reproduce the crash then I can fix it, that's for sure.

Some people have always experienced very slow mod downloads. We are interested to find out why that is.

By the way, Test Patch D20 works with our web server to download mods from USA or Japan if you are in America/Asia/Oceania, which appears to work well for those who have tested it.

But geographical distance doesn't explain the extremely slow downloads that some people have experienced. If you do get that, we may get a clue from MTR (My Traceroute) results, if you could post them in this thread:

IP addresses and results thread: https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/103323

Thank you.

Quote from texxxas :

They were downloading slowly either when joining the server and while being in game. Sometimes it took a few minutes before I entered the server.

Hi texxxas, if your location is Poland then I don't think you'll get any benefit from the new D20 redirection system. If you always get slow downloads, we might get some a clue if you could try a MTR (My Traceroute) from your location.

Info in this thread in test patch section: https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/103323

Thanks.

Thanks for the MTR results (not that I know what do do with it).

Maybe the Rotterdam one could be useful if it gives a clue why ordinary downloads are slow for you.

I got the Rotterdam IP from 'ping lfs.net' : 188.122.74.149


It's a funny thing, the 'extremely slow downloads for some people' issue. Yesterday I used a VPN to do LFS downloads via a server in Japan. One reason: to test redirected downloads from Japan. But, on topic, I also ran 0.7D (no redirection) over the VPN to download mods from Rotterdam via Japan, and it's (of course) slower than usual but still quick, just a few seconds for a mod, nothing like these reported several minute downloads. It makes me think that geographical distance isn't the main reason, and it must be something to do with people's internet connections, due to their ISP or country connections.

Victor mentioned MTR (My Traceroute) above and has done to me before. Maybe we could get a clue, from people who experience super-slow in-game downloads, MTR results to these IP addresses:

188.122.74.149 - NL
103.194.164.52 - JP
162.244.55.54 - US

Last edited by Scawen, Fri 24 Mar 2023, 08:43.

Quote from Aleksandr_124rus :

I have a suggestion (If it's not hard to do) to make visible the tire surface temperature (with tire inner layer temperature) and pressure level with value as it was in earlier versions.

This is really not on topic and has nothing to do with the test patch.

I'm trying to finish the things in the test patch and get back to tyre physics. The test patch thread will not become a random suggestions thread.

Remember the forum section for suggestions: https://www.lfs.net/forum/8-Improvement-Suggestions

Last edited by Scawen, Thu 23 Mar 2023, 10:22.

Thanks for the test! Downloading the same mod at the same time of day with and without the HTTP redirect enabled is pretty scientific and gives fairly convincing results.

Yisc[NL] is correct.

I'll try to make it more clear. There is a known problem that mods are slow to download for some people. Victor and I have tried to fix this with a new worldwide mod download system and it can be tested by switching on this option in the test patch.

I would have expected more feedback for it. It's quite a big deal, but we need results to make it official. If it's good, we may extend it to skins.

On the first day, there were a few fails but this problem has been fixed already by Victor. It doesn't need a new patch because the bug was on the web server, not in LFS.

Victor made a system that stores the mods not only in Rotterdam, but also in Japan and USA. With the new option enabled in LFS, your mods can be automatically downloaded from those locations. It's a real change that we need tested, so we can judge it.

We'd like to know:
- if you are in North/South America, do you get the "Redirect : US" message and your mods download quickly?
- if you are in Asia/Australasia/Oceania, do you get the "Redirect : JP" message and your mods download quickly?

To test: Options... Misc - Allow HTTP redirect [EXPERIMENTAL]

Last edited by Scawen, Tue 21 Mar 2023, 08:36.

Quote from Scawen :

Maybe the speedo and tacho should be moved UP instead, when F9 or F10 is pressed?

You can see this in the attachment. Seems OK to me, raised by 5% of screen height when F9 or F10 are displayed.

Quote from Flotch :

Tested with a VPN, and it is working fine like described

Thanks for the test! I look forward to results of a "real" test - how it is for people who had slow downloads before.

Quote from Flotch :

I still have this minor fault in D19 ... in case it is easy to fix ...

I'm not really understanding what the problem is, as you can press H as usual to clear message history. Maybe that extra keypress is annoying?

Automatically switching off the history seems like a bad idea. Maybe there isn't any need for message history to be switched on at the start of generation. I don't really know why it is, maybe so "Press ESC to cancel" remains visible? Obviously this AI path generation isn't done beautifully, it really is a dev tool that was enabled in the public version.

Last edited by Scawen, Mon 20 Mar 2023, 12:06.

Editor Test Patch D14

CTRL+O: load main object in modeller
CTRL+O: load vehicle (was CTRL+L in D13)
ALT+M: Merge points (previously known as Fuse points)
New feature to merge points by distance (in ALT+M dialog)
FIX: Crash on reload textures in map mode / wireframe view

Quote from BeNoM :

I've had this forever, even before the patches. Downloading mods or skins takes ages and seems to be max out at 200KB/s (usually hovers around 50-150). I'll often get timeouts just loading the mod browser or joining servers. This is on a gigabit connection too.

Quote from Ibtasim6781 :

A bit late, but decided to try D10 today. Cars and skins download faster with the HTTP buffer option enabled.

Test Patch D19:

We now have 3 download locations for mods (NL/JP/US)
If you enable Options... Misc - Allow HTTP redirect [EXPERIMENTAL]
Locations in Asia and Oceania should download mods from Japan
Locations in North and South America should download from USA
In that case you should see a yellow redirect chat message
Please let us know if this helps!

https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102117

Thanks, I've reproduced and fixed this crash on reload textures in map mode with wireframe view.

I'll look at the suggestion threads and see if I can do anything else simple, for an update this afternoon.

EDIT: Fixed in Editor Test Patch D14: https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102626

Last edited by Scawen, Sun 19 Mar 2023, 19:26.

Test Patch D18

New display in F9 / F10 views shows estimated laps given fuel usage
Mods to delete in Cleanup mode of mods screen are shown bright red
FIX: Some cars' live settings were not adjustable without F11 view
FIX: /altf and /ctrlf now cannot be followed by another command
More updated translations - thank you translators!

https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102117

That is really good bug finding, thank you very much for doing that!

It seems that I missed something here. The /ctrlf and /altf commands can contain arbitrary text so they must be disallowed from line splitting.

I'll fix that now and release a test patch today.

Test Patch D17:

There is a new "Cleanup" mode in the mods screen. You can select to keep latest mods and test mods. There is not yet a feature to keep replay mods. I would like to add that but it's hard to do and I'd have to do it twice, in the public version and the development version. Better focus on more important things for now.

Car arrows are wider again more like the ones in 0.7D. They are also a tiny bit smaller. Let me know if they seem wrong on your screen.

https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102117

I'm not a great driver at all but, maybe one or two of my thoughts are useful.

1) In theory it is true that more rearward braking could help regeneration but it's dangerous to set bias too far to the rear as you may lock up the rear and spin. It's important to have good brakes and a little to spare in case you brake late.

2) I believe it can be a good idea to adjust the gear ratio to improve acceleration, if you do not run out of top speed - this may depend on the track.

3) In the latest test patch there is a display that can help understand this. An EV charge/discharge power bar in place of the clutch bar (visible if Options - View - Show pedals is enabled). I find that if you brake very hard at high speed, that can be wasteful as the recharging is maxed out (blue bar reaches the top). Further rear braking at that point is done by the discs (total energy loss) So to get the best recharge it may be better to brake a little earlier, not so hard (blue bar just below maximum). But as your speed reduces you can apply more brake without exceeding maximum charge rate.

It is a complex system so even as programmer of the game, my assumptions and observations may miss some relevant points. I think it is about compromises and you need to find a trade-off between fast laps and energy saving. For example there's no point getting better regeneration if it means you will be doing slow laps.

Test Patch D16:

Driver and fuel buttons in garage are now only shown if relevant
Result text for /pitins and /liveset is shown even if menu is visible
Updated translations - thanks to our volunteer translators

Command updates:

Multiple commands can now be added on a single line, which sometimes
can avoid the need for a script file, e.g. suppose you want to set a
button to change tyres in a pit stop, you could use a double command:
/pitins ftyre super /pitins rtyre super

NOTE: some commands cannot be followed by another command:
/say /echo /join /rcm /pass /msg

Maximum length of command and F key text increased to 95 characters

Wider text display in CTRL+ and ALT+ tabs in controls screen

https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102117

Hello Racers,

For the entertainment value, you might like to know I've entered Round 4 of this year's E-Challenge. I've been practicing a bit to hopefully not make a fool of myself, though I'm far from the level of the top guys. For me there has been a lot to learn and I've been inspired to do a few updates in a test patch to help with this event.

The event will be live streamed by Sim Broadcasts on Sunday at 18:00 UTC.
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/simbroadcasts
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SimBroadcasts

EDIT: Event timetable
18:00 UTC Qualifying 1 - 10 minutes allotted
18:15 UTC Qualifying Duels
19:00 UTC Race 1 - 33 laps
19:45 UTC Race 2 - 34 laps - Grid order by race 1 finish, top 10 reversed

It's an interesting and complex event, with an unusual qualifying format, two races, the need for energy saving and the possibility of rain! Rain is simulated by the rules requiring racers to change to road tyres which are challenging with such a powerful car on a tight and twisty circuit. Anyway that probably won't happen, according to the weather forecast. But energy saving is certainly an issue that can cause a few upsets near the end of the race. There's also a power-up strip which can be amusing. [EDIT: no power-up strip this round as the track is too tight for it]

For anyone interested in a late entry, you can find all the necessary information, guide, rules etc. in the E-Challenge 2023 forum section.

Last edited by Scawen, Sun 12 Mar 2023, 16:03.

Quote from neonmateo :

I didnt know where to post this and didnt wanna create another thread but would it be possible to have an option to delete all previous versions of all the mods (and only keep the current) from the LFS folder, since my LFS folder is over 25GB now and over 4500 subfolders in mods folder.

This feature is often requested and I made a start on it last week. The idea to make a list of mod folders then you have 3 options of mods to keep:

- latest versions of mods
- local test mods
- replay mods

The first two are easy. I'd like to include the replay option as I know I have old replays in which the mods have since been deleted. Only trouble is I need to make a replay search function to identify the mods, which is a more complicated.

Quote from Racon :

Is it a small enough job to add a player's license level to the NCN (or NCI) packet? And if not, could it go on a list?

I have added a License byte to the IS_NCI packet and that will be available when a new server version is available. I haven't actually tested it yet but it is coded.

Quote from Scawen :

This thread is only about the modeller, not the vehicle editor or mods system in general.

Hmm, I got confused between this editor test patch thread and the modeller suggestions thread. Anyway, as a test patch thread it is not for off topic suggestions, please. Hotkey discussions are relevant but may be better on the LFS Modeller Suggestions thread.

Quote from ivancsx :

havent open Blender for a long time because LFSE more addicting and challenging to make something

Nice reason to use LFS editor!

A couple of features from LFSLazy are available in Test Patch D10 and you should check out the PACT Driving Assistant if you haven't already.

I don't know about the overlap of features between LFSLazy and PACT Driving Assistant but I do know that PACT has a lot of features.

Quote from Ibtasim6781 :

A bit late, but decided to try D10 today. Cars and skins download faster with the HTTP buffer option enabled.

Thank you for the test from Argentina.

I wonder how sure are you about that? Is it measurable? It would be interesting if you could do a direct comparison, if you don't mind.

For example, a possible test you could run:
- download a mod with test option disabled, see how long it takes (preferably using a stopwatch)
- delete the mod from your mods\vehicles folder
- download the same mod again with the option enabled

That would be useful information, to avoid the results being affected by other internet fluctuations.

BeNoM reported no apparent difference before, from Australia:
https://www.lfs.net/forum/post/2035622#post2035622

No, that is not available.

If that option is actually wanted, now would be a very bad time to start coding it.

Please remember, people, this is a test patch thread. It is exclusively to talk about any issues that were found in the test patch. It is not a random suggestions or technical support thread.

Improvement Suggestions: https://www.lfs.net/forum/8-Improvement-Suggestions

Technical Assistance: https://www.lfs.net/forum/5-Technical-Assistance

Thank you for that report. I did test new "object" but not car - and I get the same as you. Will fix!

Quote from BeNoM :

I love this, any chance we can get it in the editor as well?

Maximum speed for each gear is now available in Editor Test Patch D8: https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/102626