ANNOUNCEMENT January Update - Beta Announcement

[yianniv]

This approximation will help to identify the likeliness of the geological/biological site, but for a full confirmation, you will have to get closer to the planetary body and scan it using planetary probes. We would love to hear your feedback on it to determine whether or not it is better than the current process.

Edit: Updated clarification on geological/biological FSS comment.

In my opinion it's not the delay that's important, since just the delays presence proves there are sites. It's not knowing if what I'm waiting for is Biological or Geological, since I'm only interested in the biological ones.
Also, could you please disengage the display timer of the planet composition materials from the geo/bio sites? I mean that the planet composition is shown in groups of materials with a (some) seconds delay between them, and by the time it's about to show the rarest ones, the Bio/Geo info resolves and this makes the material list to reset to the first group of materials. So the higher grade materials have to wait 2-3 circles to show up. It's rather annoying...

 

[Trekari]

I'm disappointed (sadly not surprised) to see that Wing Mining, which has been completely broken for 6+ months, is still an issue, and is only at the "looking at it" stage.

 

[Raino]

I'm disappointed (sadly not surprised) to see that Wing Mining, which has been completely broken for 6+ months, is still an issue, and is only at the "looking at it" stage.

Join the Beta and report it

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Ideally the game won't generate confusion on this, again. Either POI exist, or they don't. This is a binary yes/ no for the candidate planet. The game's procedural code either adds this meta data to the planetaty body, or it doesn't. The journal already records this yes/ no flag as it is. The delay is in determination of the type and how many.

What they are, is a fuether clarification of the end result, and thus something that can be presented as meaningful data in the system map and associated system list in the ship HUD.

I'm a little less concerned of the type, I am more concerned the developer is attempting to resolve a process intensive issue, by using an indicative scale that presumably is procedurally less complex, rather than actually solving why it takes so long for the game to procedurally generate the POI type.

Arguably, if we no longer actually know if a POI is actually there at all, what it is, suddenly becomes a much lower order concern. A bit if a tasty burger exists or not, or whether it has pickles, and how many pickles there are. The reliable determination of the burger existing in the first place, is probably more useful. Once it exists, then the issue of the pickles can be dealt with.

Anyway, I shall depart again. Fixes good. Communication good. Ideally FSS poi lag can be solved without going back to playing "where's Wally?" all over again as that was, literally, one of the primary reasons for the discovery overhaul in the first place.

POI count and type and related meta such as composition sounds like an ideal use of the DSS. Wether they exist or not, shouldn't even be a question I have to interpret. The FSS should tell me.

While I prefer the new version then what we have, I think a better solution is as you have said. And either yes or no if geo/bio/tech POI exist which is translated to all the other Nav places, but the type and number is found out be going there and probing the planets.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

In before white knights start bashing around that 11 fixed bugs is the second coming. I don't think i care anymore.

ps. Yes removing the tallies of the fss makes alot of sense. You don't need to make it any more complicated. Instead, why not sneak in bug 12? Lucky us?

How constructive. As nobody has said this is the second coming and there have been loads of posters already, I would have to assume there are no white knights. But keep it up, you just make yourself look smaller everytime you write something like that.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Thank you. Let's just have the developer focus on solving the computational hit and leave the "how is thing formed?" to a feature request.

I am not sure why geo and bio POI are being handled as different entities as far as location and count is concened (they are all just coordinates on a planetary body, with procedural generation, so how many and where should not end up a differentiating factor; the type is, sure). But I stopped asking things that hurt my brain about this game a long time ago. Obviously there is a difference, presumably the planetary material make up affects this.

Ultimately how that's handled should still end up as a consistent presentation in the UI. One type takes a long time, the other doesn't.

I would guess that geo POI is directly related to planetary make up, composition, and other geological processes that happen in the background and will only appear in certain areas. I suspect Bio sites don't have this issue and is more to do with where the planet and system is situated, so it has far less working out to do. They are just placed randomly on a target planet. But I could be wrong.

 

[CMDR Karrde Sun]

How constructive. As nobody has said this is the second coming and there have been loads of posters already, I would have to assume there are no white knights. But keep it up, you just make yourself look smaller everytime you write something like that.

Im not trying to look big. If what i say is rubbish, its rubbish

 

[Sysmon]

Im not trying to look big. If what i say is rubbish, its rubbish

Or is it "Unlikely", "Likely" or "Very Likely" to be rubbish? How do we detect that?

S

 

[Rubbernuke]

I play in a private group that is big enough to produce issues due to player numbers and I don't like the idea of the beta only being in a mode I don't usually play, that said emphasizing/incentivising play in open would be a good thing just don't turn off the players who don't use open from taking part.

Don't confuse the game with beta. The people who "don't use open" should realise that or be told the testing is not for entertainment. Its not a statement about Open either; its just getting as many people as possible to push the networking code.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Im not trying to look big. If what i say is rubbish, its rubbish

I didn't say you were trying to look big. From what I gather you are trying to look small minded instead. Seems a strange thing to do.

 

[CMDR X]

Crew Babe voice fix!!!

\o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/

 

[Six6VI]

I think this is much better than the current system. In my opinion, the FSS should only give us " if the planet is ‘Unlikely’, ‘Likely’, or ‘Very Likely’ to have a geological/biological sites" anyway, being a long-distance scan, requiring us to use probes to give us a more definitive report on the planet. As it currently stands, the FSS feels a bit OP and the DSS feels a bit pointless. This change not only speeds up the FSS, but it also balances these two tools.

BIG THUMBS UP!!!

Well said Old Duck! Hopefully your contribution will get some traction.

 

[DNA-Decay]

B O O K M A R K S {QOL pass please}

 

[Six6VI]

Great news, @Stephen Benedetti ! In particular on the changed process to fix the FSS scan time issue. Great that you’re putting in place a solution, and looking forward to trying it in action!

Immediate feedback on it - please can the results of the FSS scans be added to the body info on the system map.

Some more general feedback to come.

It already is, kind of. Select planet / details panel / scroll to bottom...

Sometimes it doesn't complete though and gets stuck on scanning.

 

[Garud]

FSS: Long delay when scanning planets with geological sites

• As it currently stands, in order for the geological/biological sites to be placed on the surface, the entire stellar body must be fully generated (we then know the topography and can place sites where they will be accessible). This can take tens of seconds.
• As part of the January Update, we aim to address this with an alternative process. We have run tests on thousands of in-game planetary bodies and by using this data, we're able to extrapolate the likelihood of geological/biologic sites being present on similar stellar bodies. We then use this data and indicate if the planet is ‘Unlikely’, ‘Likely’, or ‘Very Likely’ to have a geological/biological sites.
• It is not 100% guaranteed that there will be a geological/biological site on the planetary body, but does give commanders a much faster indication of probability. This will enable commanders to quickly ascertain if the planet's worth a visit.
• As this is an alternative way to display information, we would love to hear your feedback on it to determine whether or not it is better than the current process.
• Please note: this will not affect Thargoid or Guardian sites, which will show up instantaneously.

Why not have both the options? I am personally not too keen on having a probability metric over geological sites and I think it's a whole new can of worms waiting to be opened. But this might be a good solution for some others. So, why not have both. Announce the likelihood first then take the 10s or so to give the confirmation. CMDRs can go with whatever they prefer and even prefer one over the other depending on the situation.

 

[Agony_Aunt]

Not yet, but there has been someone complaining about the lack of content for their LEP.

I had a LEP once, but the end fell off.

 

[Patrick_68000]

So.....we're about to get a beta which might have LESS bugs than the live game?

** mind blown **

It's an evil for a good.

 

[Rubbernuke]

It's an evil for a good.

Ozymandias approves this message.

 

[Badman76]

Core mining fragments glitch inside the asteroid

I'll be very happy when this is fixed

 

[Thatchinho]

It already is, kind of. Select planet / details panel / scroll to bottom...

Sometimes it doesn't complete though and gets stuck on scanning.

That’s always been only after DSS probing, not after FSS scanning.

Unless it changed in a recent patch, and I missed it? (Will be very pleased if so - have been asking for it to be from FSS scanning since the early days of the 3.3 Beta! )