Oolite Bulletins

Moderator: Split TAF and build configurations discussion from Screenshots thread.

Diziet Sma wrote:

Thanks.. it's gonna get exponentially harder to take shots like that when the devs kill off the TAF in the next release, so enjoy 'em while you can..

It's the  Diso OXP. It adds four extra planets, one of which also gets a Station, and lots of pretty nebulae.

Is that still going to happen? Boo!

Diziet Sma wrote:

when the devs kill off the TAF

For clarity here, there are three preset build configurations:
- "deployment" (maximum efficiency build for just playing the game)
- "testing" (adds a range of test-oriented features useful to OXP developers and others, such as TAF, the console, etc.)
- "debug" (compile-your-own, only really useful for devs and people trying to track down crashes)
The change is that 1.77/1.78 will (on current plans, anyway) be built in "deployment" configuration by default, rather than the "testing" configuration used in 1.76, and this will be the recommended installation.

However, there will be an alternative download of the "testing" build for anyone who uses those features. I expect a lot of the people on this forum will want the "testing" build for various reasons, but the majority of the people who play Oolite won't miss the extra stuff and might appreciate a better framerate.

Well that's good to know - I used TAF instead of the Torus drive - as I see the Torus drive as cheating - whereas as TAF (not set too high a factor) means that the AI gets chance to hunt me down - and I get to stay in the space lane and see all the pretty stuff I'd populated my Ooniverse with...

So, when I get back on to playing the game - it'll be the testing version for me!

That's very good news that the TAF will still be available for those who want it.. would it be possible, perhaps, to make it a switchable option, like Autosave and Docking Clearance Protocol, so we could have the best of both worlds.. a better framerate most of the time, and TAF available when wanted?

Forgive my ignorance but what is TAF ?

Diziet Sma wrote:

it's gonna get exponentially harder to take shots like that when the devs kill off the TAF in the next release, so enjoy 'em while you can..

I reckon you get the best action shots without using the TAF (and definitely without the hud).
I never use the TAF anyway (apart from testing in trunk) - but that's an old, stale discussion.

Shipbuilder wrote:

Forgive my ignorance but what is TAF ?

Time Acceleration Factor: pause the game and use the left and right arrows to speed up (or slow down) the game. it works (as far as I understand it) by skipping frames, so lots of things like combat, collisions, docking etc. might not work properly when you use it.

Thanks Disembodied - I've learnt something new today

Diziet Sma wrote:

That's very good news that the TAF will still be available for those who want it.. would it be possible, perhaps, to make it a switchable option, like Autosave and Docking Clearance Protocol, so we could have the best of both worlds.. a better framerate most of the time, and TAF available when wanted?

No. Excluding TAF in particular is a design decision. The game is not designed to be played that way, and the way TAF currently works is not designed to be a game feature. It’s a testing tool.

(On a broader note, “just add an option” is never a good design approach. Adding options is abdicating from design decisions, not making them.)

Also, it isn't "news" at all, because it has been the clearly stated plan all along.

Commander McLane wrote:

Also, it isn't "news" at all, because it has been the clearly stated plan all along.

In my absence I'd forgotten about it's removal - when DZ said he'd taken TAF shots - I was surprised it was still in - not remembering which version it was likely to be finally pulled (1.77 I guess?)

What of Energy Bombs - that was also a hotly debated topic when I last roamed the boards...

DaddyHoggy wrote:

Commander McLane wrote:

Also, it isn't "news" at all, because it has been the clearly stated plan all along.

In my absence I'd forgotten about it's removal - when DZ said he'd taken TAF shots - I was surprised it was still in - not remembering which version it was likely to be finally pulled (1.77 I guess?)

What of Energy Bombs - that was also a hotly debated topic when I last roamed the boards...

Already gone in the deployment trial build (that I'm using) - energy bomb has gone too, I think. <grins>

DaddyHoggy wrote:

What of Energy Bombs - that was also a hotly debated topic when I last roamed the boards...

Here is the last thread I remember we had about it: https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=11872
In a nutshell: E-bomb is out by default from 1.77 onwards, but it is possible to re-enable it with an elementary edit of the related section of equipment.plist. If your savegame contains it, then it is replaced with a Q-bomb, provided that there is a pylon available, otherwise its value is refunded to the player. I think there is an OXP that does the enabling already somewhere (and if there isn't it should be trivial to do).

Hi (and thanks) A_C.

I never carried an Energy Bomb (same reason for using TAF rather than using the Torus drive), so I won't miss it when it's gone.

DaddyHoggy wrote:

I never carried an Energy Bomb..., so I won't miss it when it's gone.

Same here. I've only used TAF once to try to scoop a cargo pod in Torus Drive, and that didn't even work.