Natural-selection...
ubermensch
Join Date: 2002-12-31 Member: 11692Banned
Join Date: 2002-12-31 Member: 11692Banned
<div class="IPBDescription">and upcoming performance issues</div> been fooling around a lot in steam lately, was really looking forward to it ( as some of my previous posts may have indicated ), but aside from the much debated issues ( massive bugs, inconvenience etc) there lies another, performance.
i could explain, but a picture speaks 1000 words, so here are some examples of the performance decreases i've seen since updating to steam, note the FPS in the lower right hand corner
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/01ns_bast_marine.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/02steam_bast_marine.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/03ns_commanding_bast.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/04steam_commanding_bast.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/05ns_hera_dataOverlook.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/06steam_hera_dataOverlook.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/07ns_hera_dataOverlook 2.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/08steam_hera_dataOverlook 2.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/09ns_hera_outside.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/10steam_hera_outside.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/11ns_hera_holo.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/12steam_hera_holo.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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i've always managed to maintain 100-70 fps with normal HL, but steam is absolutely destroying my performance, in the midst of battle (even in small servers with only 12 or so layers) fps drops to 30 - 20, sometimes lower and becomes unplayable...
how is it for anyone else out there? if this is the case for everyone, i have a feeling we're FAR from the end of the steam-bashathons
i could explain, but a picture speaks 1000 words, so here are some examples of the performance decreases i've seen since updating to steam, note the FPS in the lower right hand corner
------------------
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/01ns_bast_marine.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/02steam_bast_marine.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/03ns_commanding_bast.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/04steam_commanding_bast.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/05ns_hera_dataOverlook.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/06steam_hera_dataOverlook.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/07ns_hera_dataOverlook 2.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/08steam_hera_dataOverlook 2.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/09ns_hera_outside.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/10steam_hera_outside.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/11ns_hera_holo.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://members.cox.net/rei_ftp/12steam_hera_holo.JPG' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
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i've always managed to maintain 100-70 fps with normal HL, but steam is absolutely destroying my performance, in the midst of battle (even in small servers with only 12 or so layers) fps drops to 30 - 20, sometimes lower and becomes unplayable...
how is it for anyone else out there? if this is the case for everyone, i have a feeling we're FAR from the end of the steam-bashathons
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
yeah, my steam is at fps_max 100.. that's the problem....
also, do you notice the difference? 40 fps drop? i know it lags, but the perfroance hit Steam imposes is immense, almost making it unplayable..
I don't think thats the problem. As as far as I know, STEAM should not replace your config.txt file. Besides, max_fps just caps your fps, that does not explain it going below 10 fps, all it does it keeps it from going above what ever you set it at.
And there is a difference between lag and fps.
I hear some programs out there has some sort of anti-piracy device that sucks up system power. That could be the case.
I don't think thats the problem. As as far as I know, STEAM should not replace your config.txt file. Besides, max_fps just caps your fps, that does not explain it going below 10 fps, all it does it keeps it from going above what ever you set it at.
And there is a difference between lag and fps.
I hear some programs out there has some sort of anti-piracy device that sucks up system power. That could be the case. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
it certainly isnt.. i don't have anything running extra, just plain steam under the same settings that i use in hl (fps_max 100 on both, 1280x960 32bpp)
i'm not just asking everyone here for help and suggestions, i'm wondering, is anyone else experiencing this? if you havent tried steam i sure hope you dont encounre the same problems i am when you are forced to convert from won to steam
these are just side by side examples.. when i'm in battle it can go down to 40-30, even 20s and teens..
i can hear it now, "wth 50fps what are you complaining about i'm lucky to get 40"
i can only imagine what steam is going to do to thier systems.... hopefully this is just me
thats a good suggestion, i have a GF4 ti4600, so that could have been the case,
but i just tried it and same problem, this time i went to a 17 player server, and in the mainre base at eclipse the fps were at 30 max, when i went out in battle amongst lerk gas and stuff it went to 20s and below, its almost unplayable..
i asked what fps others were getting, everyone said 30-20 except for one guy, who had an ATI 9800... reminds me of the HL2 benchmarks...
steam employees have invsted much stock in ati me thinks.........
Flay's gonna have a balance issue with those huge numbers blocking 1/3 of the screen....reminds me of the old muzzle flash <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo-->
I can't wait to see how poorly HL2 will run on a 6 month old comp with steam...
Somehow the awesome programers turn a game that ANYONE should be able to run on almost any computer made in the last 5 years, into a uber program.
How they managed this by just adding a launcher and auto updater, I have no idea.
For those who have yet to 'experience' steam, here is a quick break down:
His resolution didn't change, the HUGE LETTERS are just what you get with steam. It changes the font and the size.
GEE GEE VALVE
now if anyone here thinks its humanly possible to read that, then pm me and il prove you wrong, how do i get the chat font the right size again <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo-->
i wish the same could be said for the god dammed performance.... this isn't just some high-perofrmance brat complaining that he's not getting 100 fps.... this is me getting 15 fps during mild battle... unacceptable. i have a feeling this is going to ____ over a lot of the commnity
now if anyone here thinks its humanly possible to read that, then pm me and il prove you wrong, how do i get the chat font the right size again <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I run at 1600x1200 and I had font problems too, the following lines in your TrackerScheme.res file at ( \Program Files\Steam\skins\<YOUR SKIN>\Resource ) control the in-game font sizes:
here is my settings:
starting line: 255
<!--c1--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>CODE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='CODE'><!--ec1-->
"EngineFont"
{
"1"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "12"
"weight" "0"
"yres" "480 599"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"2"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "13"
"weight" "0"
"yres" "600 767"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"3"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "13"
"weight" "0"
"yres" "768 1023"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"4"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "13"
"weight" "0"
"yres" "1024 1199"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"5"
{
"name" "Lucida Console"
"tall" "14"
"weight" "0"
"yres" "1200 6000"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"6"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "12"
"weight" "600"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
"7"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "11"
"weight" "800"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
}
"CreditsFont"
{
"1"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "14"
"weight" "600"
"antialias" "1"
}
"2"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "14"
"weight" "600"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
}
"Legacy_CreditsFont" // Added to accomodate 3rd party server plugins, etc. This version should not scale.
{
"1"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "20"
"weight" "700"
"antialias" "1"
"yres" "1 10000"
}
"2"
{
"name" "Arial"
"tall" "20"
"weight" "600"
"dropshadow" "1"
}
}
}
<!--c2--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--ec2-->
ending line: 349
If the font sizes are too small, just increase the "tall" variable until they are to your liking and you can also change the font to any font you have on your system if you type it in right.
I'm pretty sure it is cool if it worked, but damn <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo-->
I'm pretty sure it is cool if it worked, but damn <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
the idea is great and i love it, i mean when you hit ESC, you are brought to what is like an entire opreating system all in itself, you can msg friends, play chess and checkers, find servers, find what games your friends are in and msg them while they're in the game,
not to mention the auto updates, the superior email authentication system (safeguarding you from losing your cd key), any many other things...
but WTH did they do to the game? i hope this performance hit doesnt effect anyone.... btw silicon, what video card / cpu do you have? so far the only people who get more than 40 fps on average are people with uber ATI cards...
Do you really need all those bells and whistles? Course not. Sure they're nice, but its content is what counts.
In Steam, you get all these neat features and such, but does anybody really care? I just wanna hook up to my fav server and play some NS.
Anyways, its possibly all those background programs kann_nix mentioned that slowed down your game.
glad it's not just me
But that's just because of my pact with the devil. *looks at post count*
Now, before everyone goes parading around the Anti-Steam banner, Steam has very little to do with a lot of the issues at hand. Most of it has to do with the new HL update; Steam is simply a replacement for Won and WonIDs. Infact, the only issue that Steam seems to be contributing to is some of the higher pings in the game every now and again, but the quality of the populated servers under Steam right now is highly questionable. When Steam is working, it works great. Overall, I've had faster connection speeds, and the load time to servers is actually faster, and for server admins, I've heard that starting servers up is faster, and a bit easier. Infact, the best ping times in HL I've ever received have come in the last few nights I've played under steam.
The biggest problem I've encountered with the new HL update is the drop in performance, and the higher pings. But I attribute that to the ex_maxerrordistance command that seems to flood on and on in the console. I fixed it with simply making that command an alias (alias ex_maxerrordistance "") and the performance drops seemed to go away. I read up on the forums later, finding that several other people came up with the exact same method of dealing with the problem. I've seen people lagging in the servers with average pings of 250-300 and after taking care of the ex_maxerrordistance crap, they're ping stabalized at under 100.
Also, after setting the variable "developer" to 1, I max out at around 315fps... though, of course, I had these readings while talking to some friends in the most boring ready rooms of all time, ns_veil.
Finally, I can only guess that the creator of this topic hasn't fixed the ex_maxerrordistance bug. I'd strongly urge him to take care of that. I do hope that is indeed the problem.
By the way... when is NS going to be updated so the menus don't suck in the new version? I'm not only talking about the 'hot menu' in game, but the out-of-game menu... the starting menu... I know Mr. Freeman is a sexy man, but I'd really rather see some NS-related graphic.
<b>--Excuse all of the spelling mistakes, typos, and grammatical errors. I'm too lazy to run this through the spell-checker... that, and I'm worthless.</b>
For me, the problem I have with Steam is huge hits to my ping, at least when playing CS. I have no idea how to play NS with Steam, since it doesn't recognize NS's presence on my PC. ATI 9800, 2.6 GB Pentium4, half gig of ram, 100M DSL is probably the slowest part about my system, and yet, because of the magic of Steam, I go from what should be pings of <20 to >480. I honestly hate this application and related paraphernalia from the bottom of my heart. It would be great if it worked, but it is so ridiculously shoddy that it makes things almost unplayable. If I could play these mods without activating Steam, I'd just do that. So far it has seemed to work with NS...
And like wow, there's a solution to try right above my post.
Now if I could just get some voodoo working to get the Steam servers running again...
1. The performance drops are not due to Steam. Rather, they are either due to a mis-configuration caused by installing it (as in my case), or the Half-Life 1.1.2.0 patch. Which is not Steam, though it was delivered over it.
2. If this turns into a thread *about* Steam, it will either end up in O-T, or locked.
i'm lost, thats exactly what i'm wondering about..
like talesin just mentioned, it is possible that its some kind of misconfiguration... that's what im hoping for ( anyone know anything about this who would like to expand? ) , cause i'd rather not have to shell out 400$ to keep HL running at the same efficency that it had before 1.1.2.0 patch
The developers of this Steam program have a lot to answer for, most notably the amount of people who are completely **** off they had to download a program which only makes it harder for them and their systems. Hopefully Half Life 2 gets its proper release date next week, and we won't have to put up with this trash any more.