Fsuipc and AI Traffic, just an idea

[caesar5]

Hi all,

i just installed EDDF and i got a frame rate with 100% AI of 8-9. With 0% AI i have 40 FPS. Would it be possible to link 2 computers, so that one could manage FS9 and the other one can only manage the AI traffic. I dont know if that is possible but that would be extremely more fun if you have a smooth sight out of the cockpit with all the other traffic around.

[Pete Dowson]

Would it be possible to link 2 computers, so that one could manage FS9 and the other one can only manage the AI traffic. I dont know if that is possible

The problem is not so much managing the traffic, though that is certainly a workload, but managing the visuals -- I assume you want both your aircraft and the AI traffic on the same screen at the same airport?

The actual processing job managing the AI traffic paths and so on is a relatively small load compared to visuals, as you could prove to yourself by getting just as many aircraft around you whilst cruising, but not near enough to see them all.

There are really only three ways of improving performance at crowded, busy, airports:

1. Always make sure that the AI traffic aircraft have the fastest possible visual models. I have read that some of the add-on packages are better than others at this.

2. Reduce the traffic density a bit anyway. Using MyTraffic at the new Aerosoft EDDF I find it still pretty overcrowded with aircraft with the slider set to 70%, but the frame rates are then acceptable. Not great, but certainly okay for landing, taxiing (queuing more like! ) and takeoff.

3. Upgrade your hardware. Both the processor and video card play a part in this. One will be more of a bottleneck than the other, though it isn't easy to tell which. You can help somewhat by terminating all other programs and non-essential processes. Run FS applications on a separate PC (e.g. via WideFS).

See what it is like with no panel for your aircraft, too. That eats quite a lot. There are systems which allow you to run FS with no panel and all the instrumentation on other PCs -- Project Magenta, of course, but also look at FreeFD. I have heard of others being developed too, but have no information.

Regards,

Pete

[caesar5]

well i am running pm on three separate computers, the hardware is not the problem, i only thought i can divert some of the workload from the main computer to another one with fsuipc. thanks anyway

[Pete Dowson]

well i am running pm on three separate computers, the hardware is not the problem

So you have no panel on the FS PC?

i only thought i can divert some of the workload from the main computer to another one with fsuipc.

FSUIPC cannot handle graphics at all. Sorry. Processing AI traffic movements isn't a big job, as I said, but it would make things worse if all that had to be done by a separate PC running FS then all the AI aircraft fed through to the FS PC with the visuals -- for every movement of every aircraft there would be Network traffic and the FS visuals PC STILL has to draw them, which is most of the work.

If this isn't what you were thinking of, please explain in more detail. There are ways of having two PCs on a Network both running FS -- you use WidevieW. I suppose the one with the visuals could process the AI traffic, and the other be your flying PC, with no AI traffic, using the AI traffic one for the outside view via WidevieW. I think someone has done this. It wouldn't work with any ATC program of course, but maybe it would do what you want. I still think the bottleneck will be on those visuals. It's all very well having a PC which theoretically can give you high frame rates for your user aircraft computations, but if the images can't be updated fast enough your visual frame rate is still low.

I'm afraid most of this stuff is outside my area of knowledge and experience, however. You might like to discuss it with folks on a WidevieW forum, if there is one.

Regards,

Pete