BFV Early items

[[AK]Hylander]

3 CDs
Comes with a server manager you can choose to install or not
Also has an auto update package you can choose to install or not
PunkBuster
I haven't listened to the Soundtrack I got for pre-ordering yet.

If anyone wants the readme file, let me know.

I'm going to test the server manager software now and I'll report back.

[[AK]Squidly]

Post the readme.

[[AK]Hylander]

Squid,

It's too long for one post.. so I'm going to break it up.


BTW, A few more notes.

Those with ATI cards.. READ THE READ ME! If you use AA and Anistropic Filtering, you need to disable and select application preference or you will get serious artifacts and clipping.

BTW - Graphics are stunning! The one thing I know from just 10 minutes of playing with 32 bots is that everything seems to run very smooth and the graphics are intense. Battling in the jungle is going to be obscene!! I won't say that this compares to the 'immersion' of COD, but it's pretty intense. The smoke dispersion from firing canons, etc is pretty incredible. The interface is quite different. The way you select which gear you use is different as is the way the map works. For instance, The map allows you to find out the direction to and distance in meters between you and your control points or fellow soldiers. You use the Q button for that.

When you die.. they are kind enough to put a cross above you with your helmet on it.

And you can add your own MP3s to the soundtrack if you desire.

[[AK]Hylander]

================================================== ================
Battlefield Vietnam(tm) v1.0
Read Me File
January 16, 2004
================================================== ================

Thank you for purchasing Battlefield Vietnam. This readme file
contains last minute information that did not make it into
the manual, as well as more detailed information on various
features already covered in the manual.

================================================== ================
System Requirements
================================================== ================

Minimum:
933 Mhz CPU
Directx 9.0b
3D accelerated GeForce3 64 MB or equivalent DirectX9 compatible videocard
256 Megabytes of RAM
2 GB free hard drive space
(additional space required for Windows swap-file and
DirectX 9.0b installation)
16x CD-ROM drive
Directx 9.0b Compatible Sound Card
MS compatible mouse
Keyboard

Recommended:
1.2 Ghz CPU
Directx 9.0b
3D accelerated GeForce3 64 MB or equivalent DirectX9 compatible videocard
512 Megabytes of RAM
2 GB free hard drive space
(additional space required for Windows swap-file and
DirectX 9.0b installation)
16x CD-ROM drive
Directx 9.0b Compatible Sound Card
MS compatible mouse
Keyboard

Recommended for optimum performance:
2.0 Ghz CPU
Directx 9.0b
Geforce 4 128 MB (Not MX) or equivalent DirectX9 compatible videocard
512 Megabytes of RAM
2 GB free hard drive space
(additional space required for Windows swap-file and
DirectX 9.0b installation)
16x CD-ROM drive
Directx 9.0b Compatible Sound Card
MS compatible mouse
Keyboard

Required Operating Systems:
Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows XP or Windows 2000

Not Supported:
Windows 95
Directx9.0a and previous versions.


Battlefield Vietnam only supports AGP cards (ie min spec: 64MB AGP 3D Video Card).
We do not support integrated 64 meg 3D Video Cards
================================================== ===============
Hard Drive Space
================================================== ================

2 GB free hard disk space plus space for saved games
(additional space required for DirectX 9.0b installation).

In addition to the installed game, Windows will require additional
free hard drive space for its operating system (virtual memory).

If you encounter the following message in an error dialog:

"Ran out of virtual memory"

Free up some more hard drive space.


WARNING!! - It is strongly recommended that you close all applications
before installing Battlefield Vietnam.


================================================== ================
Installing DirectX
================================================== ================

If you declined to install DirectX when initially installing
Battlefield Vietnam, the latest version of DirectX can be downloaded from:
www.microsoft.com\directx

Previous versions of DirectX are not fully supported.

================================================== ================
Using your own MP3 music
================================================== ================

In the start menu selections for Battlefield Vietnam, there is a
custom playlist folder. If you place MP3 audio files into this
folder, those files will be used in place of the default game
music for the vehicle radios.

Note that the MP3 files are used on your machine only. Everyone else
will hear the default music. This is even the case if they share
the same songs as you.

[[AK]Hylander]

================================================== ================
Improving Gameplay Performance
================================================== ================

VIDEO SETTINGS

- Systems with 256MB of RAM should always run the game with
video and sound settings set to "LOW".

- From the Main Menu choose the "Options" menu. Then, select
the "Video" menu, select "Texture Quality" and experiment with
the slider in order to find the best setting for your computer.
You can also try lowering the "Graphics Quality" in order to
optimize for your machine's level of performance.

- Also from the "Video" menu, uncheck the "SHADOWS" check box.
This will prevent the game from creating dynamic shadows for
soldiers and vehicles and can improve performance.

- Also from the "Video" menu, uncheck the "LIGHTMAPS" check box.
This will prevent the game from adding detailed shadows on the
buildings, which can improve your performance.

- Try reducing your video resolution to 640x480 in your "Video"
menu. The lower the resolution, the easier it is for your
computer to run the game.

- From the "Video" menu you can lower your color depth from
32 to 16 bit by picking your desired resolution with the color
depth of 16 (800x600x16).


GAMEPLAY SETTINGS

- Turning the NUMBER OF BOTS slider down will improve performance
in the single-player maps. Experiment with the setting which
best suits your computer.

IN GAME

- By always keeping your command interface hidden (toggle with F8)
you can improve your performance while playing. This change
will most be most noticeable on low end systems.


================================================== ================
DEDICATED SERVER
================================================== ================

We highly recommend Battlefield servers to be run on dedicated
server platforms. Currently, the best performance is on a machine
with the following specifications:

8-player
WinOS/933Mhz processor/256MB RAM/ADSL connection

16/32-player
WinOS/1.6Ghz processor/256MB RAM/T1 connection

64-player
WinOS/2Ghz processor/256MB RAM/T3 connection (You will need at
least 4Mbit of bandwidth)


As always, if you can increase any of the above hardware, you will
improve your overall gameplay experience.

------------------------------------------------------------------

The following functionality exists in the Dedicated Server

GENERAL:
- Server Name: set the name which will display in the in-game
browser window.
- Password: set a password to allow people to connect to your
server. NOTE: DO NOT USE ANY SPACES IN YOUR PASSWORD.
- Time Limit: Set the time limit for certain game-modes. In
CONQUEST ASSAULT if the timer reaches zero the defender will
win. In CONQUEST HEAD-ON if the timer reaches zero the side
with the most tickets will win.
- Max number of player: Set the maximum number of players you want
to allow on your server. NOTE: EXPERIMENT WITH LOWER SETTINGS
DEPENDING ON YOUR SERVER HARDWARE AND BANDWIDTH.
- Rounds per level: This determines how many rounds will be
played before the map ends.
- Welcome Message: Set important information here for people to
see as they join your server.
- Bandwidth Limit: Based on your bandwidth connection, set the
appropriate limit to the information to and from your server.
- Internet/Local: Select if you want to start an Internet or Local
Area server.
- Automatic Restart: In the event that the dedicated server shuts
down, this feature will allow it restart automatically.

MAPS:
- Game Mode: Select the game mode you wish to host: CONQUEST,
EVOLUTION, CUSTOM COMBAT or COOP. NOTE: FOR COOP YOU
MUST SET THE AI AND CPU INFORMATION FROM THE IN-GAME SERVER.
- Map List: Select the maps you want to have in your server
rotation.
NOTE: Depending on your hardware and bandwidth you may be need
to set the max players lower to limit lag. If you have a high-
end server with a bandwidth which allows 1MB or higher upload
you can experiment with setting the max number of players higher
than 32.

GAMEPLAY:
- Spawn Time: This sets the delay before the player can spawn.
- Start Delay: This sets the delay before players start each map.
- Ticket Ratio: This is used to change the number of tickets being used
to be anywhere from 10% of the default to 1000%. The game automatically
scales the tickets based on the maximum number of players.
100% equals 100 tickets for a team of 8 (16 player game).
It would equal 200 tickets for a team of 16 (32 player game), and so on.
- Team Ratio: This sets the difference in number of players per team
so that the teams are unbalnced.
- Friendly Fire on/off: Toggle whether Friendly Fire is on or off.
- Infantry: Set the percentage of damage a player would take if
shot by another teammate.
- Vehicles: Set the percentage of damage a player would take if
shot by another teammate who is in a vehicle.
- Infantry Splash: Set the percentage of damage a player would
take if a teammate exploded a bomb or grenade nearby.
- Vehicles Splash: Set the percentage of damage a player would
take if a teammate in a vehicle fired a shell or dropped a bomb
nearby.
- Projectile backfire: Set the percentage of mirror damage to a
player if he shoots another player on his team with any bullet
or shell.
- Explosion backfire: Set the percentage of mirror damage to
player if he explodes a grenade or bomb near another player
on his team.

ADVANCED:
- Target nametags: Set the distance at which enemy nametags
appear.
- Friendly nametags: Set the distance at which friendly nametags
appear.
- Free spectator camera: Toggle this to allow the spectator
camera.
- External views: Toggle this to allow external 3rd person camera
views in vehicles.
- Nose Camera: Toggle this to allow players to turn off the cock-
pit view while in airplanes.
- Autoswitch teams: Toggle this to have balanced numbers of
players per team according to current map.
- Punkbuster Enabled: This will provide punkbuster protection.

IP SETTINGS
NOTE: This functionality is to be used if you are running
Battlefield Vietnam on a dual-processor system. In order
to make this work do the following:
- Install the game as usual
- Make a copy of the installed directory
- Run one dedicated server from the original install
and another dedicated server from the copy.
- Detect Automatically: check this if you want the game to
check for the IP automatically.
- IP Address: manually set the IP address you want the game to
use.
- Port: manually set the port you want the game to use.

CUSTOM COMBAT:
- Teams/Kits: Use the drop down window to set the force for the blue team.
This may be the default for the map or any of the other available forces.
Note that you cannot have the same two forces facing off. The kits and
weapons that are checked are active for the team. To deactivate a class,
kit, or weapon slot check off the corresponding checkbox. Each team has
its own settings so be sure to check both sides before starting a server.
- Land: All available land vehicles are listed here. For each default
vehicle, there is a corresponding dropbox. By selecting another vehicle
in this box the selected vehicle will replace the default vehicle.
- Sea: All available sea vehicles are listed here. For each default
vehicle, there is a corresponding dropbox. By selecting another vehicle
in this box the selected vehicle will replace the default vehicle.
- Air: All available air vehicles are listed here. For each default
vehicle, there is a corresponding dropbox. By selecting another vehicle
in this box the selected vehicle will replace the default vehicle.

[[AK]Hylander]

================================================== ================
SERVER ADMIN COMMANDS
================================================== ================

GENERAL COMMANDS:

- Game.listplayers
Every player has an ID number, which is used for kicking/voting
off the player. This command lists those numbers.

- Game.listmaps
Every map on the server has an ID number, which is used for voting
to change maps. This command lists those numbers.

- Game.enablefreecamera *
This enables free look mode on clients who are waiting to spawn.
For *, 1 turns free look on, 0 turns it off. Note that this
command can only be run from the server, or by a user that has
remote server access.


ADMIN COMMANDS:

- Admin.kickplayer *
* is equal to the player id number. Note that this command can
only be run from the server, or by a user that has remote server
access.

- Admin.banplayer *
* is equal to the player id number. Note that this command can
only be run from the server, or by a user that has remote server
access.

- Admin.removeaddressfrombanlist *
* is equal to the IP of a banned player. Note that this command
can only be run from the server, or by a user that has remote
server access.

- Admin.changemap *
* is equal to the map name. Note that this command can only be
run from the server, or by a user that has remote server access.

- Admin.addaddresstobanlist *
* is equal to the IP address to the client that is to be banned.
Note that this command can only be run from the server, or by a
user that has remote server access.

- Admin.clearbanlist
This allows all users that were previously banned to once again
connect to the server. Note that this command can only be run
from the server, or by a user that has remote server access.

- Admin.externalviews *
This command enables/disables external camera views on clients
connected to the server. For *, 1 turns external views on, 0
turns it off. Note that this also disables the nose cam. Also,
note that this command can only be run from the server, or by a
user that has remote server access.

- Admin.listbannedaddresses
Lists the IP addresses that are banned from connecting to the
server. Note that this command can only be run from the server,
or by a user that has remote server access.

- Admin.allownosecam *
This command enables/disables the ability for clients to turn
off the airplane HUD. For *, 1 turns nose cam on, 0 turns it
off. Also note that if external views are turned off, nose cam
cannot be used. Note that this command can only be run from
the server, or by a user that has remote server access.



VOTING COMMANDS:

- Game.votemap *
This command will initiate/cast a vote to change maps on the
server. * is equal to the map id number.

- Game.votekickplayer *
This command will initiate/cast a vote to kick a player. Players
on both teams can participate in this vote. * is equal to the
player id number.

- Game.votekickteamplayer *
This command will initiate/cast a vote to kick a player. Voting
is restricted to the team of the player who initiated the vote.
* is equal to the player id number.

- Admin.votingtime *
This command sets the amount of time clients have to cast a vote
after it has been initiated. * is equal to the number of seconds
clients will have to vote. Note that this command can only be run
from the server, or by a user that has remote server access.


REMOTE CONSOLE ACCESS:

- The server needs to have this command executed every map. The
password can include numbers OR letters, but not a combination
of the two. NOTE: DO NOT INCLUDE ANY SPACES IN YOUR PASSWORD.

Admin.enableremoteadmin password

- The client that is to have remote admin access is to execute
this command. The password must be the same as the one set on
the server

Admin.enableremoteadmin password

- To execute a command from a client, one would type the
admin.execremotecommand, followed by the desired admin command
in quotation marks. For example, to kick someone with the player
id of 7 from a client machine, one would type the following
(after going through the first two steps of this section.)

admin.execremotecommand "admin.kickplayer 7"

Or, to change maps, one would use this command:

admin.execremotecommand "admin.changemap hue"


OTHER HELPFUL COMMANDS:

- Console.showfps *
This toggles the FPS display on and off. For *, 1 turns FPS on
and 0 turns it off.

- Console.showstats *
This toggles the debug stats display on and off. For *, 1 turns
the debug stats display on and 0 turns it off.

- Game.changeplayername *
This allows a user to quickly change his name. * is equal to the
player name.


================================================== ================
MISCELLANEOUS
================================================== ================

SINGLE-PLAYER GAME
- Battlefield Vietnam will set your default number of bots in
singleplayer for best performance based on your hardware
configuration. If you have a recommended system (1.2 Ghz/512MB
RAM/64 MB video card) this should fall around 24 depending
on the map. Systems which meet the minimum requirement will
be under that, and systems above the recommended system
requirements will be above that. You can always adjust that
number if you desire prior to playing a map.

CLEAR KEY-BINDING
- If you have mapped a key to a command in the Options section
you can clear it one of two ways: 1) You can map another key
to that command or 2) You can select that mapped key and press
the ESC to delete all keys bound to that command.

PLAYER LIST
- The in-game player list (TAB) will only show the first 20
players in each team on a map. If your score sets you as the
20+ player, your name will be displayed as the 20th player on
the list.

COMMAND INTERFACE SPAM
- When you use the command interface too many times in a row, which
could be considered as spamming, your interface will be disabled
for a short while.

YELLOW ICONS on MINIMAP
- When someone uses the command interface their icon will flash in
yellow on the minimap for a brief moment. This is to give you
quicker feedback on their location and thereby determine the importance of
that message for you.

WinXP ISSUES
- Fast-User Switching is not supported by Battlefield Vietnam.
- Limited User accounts are not supported by Battlefield Vietnam, you
must have administrator access to install or uninstall Battle-
field Vietnam. If you are playing under a Limited User account, you
must use the Run as Administrator option.

================================================== ================
Troubleshooting
================================================== ================

VIDEO CARD DRIVERS
- It is highly recommended to go to your video card manufacturer's
website and download updated drivers for your card.

ATI 9800 PRO
- Battlefield does not support some of the hardware features of the
ATI 9800. If you experience strange graphical anomalies with this card,
exit Battlefield Vietnam and bring up the display properties on your desktop.
Click on Settings -> Advanced -> 3D. In the 3D settings for
Direct3D make sure the "Use custom settings" box is not checked.
If it is, make sure the "Application Preference" checkboxes for
anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering are turned on.

SOUND CARD DRIVERS
- It is highly recommended to go to your sound card manufacturer's
website and download updated drivers for your card.

================================================== ================
Battlecraft Vietnam and Mod Development Tools
================================================== ================

Battlecraft Vietnam is compatible with Windows ME. The Mod Development
Toolkit 2.0 is not compatible with Windows ME.

[[AK]Hylander]

================================================== ================
Other Issues
================================================== ================

SOUND CARD
- Note that the game might not run if your system lacks a sound
card. Also, your soundcard must support DirectX 9.0b. This
differs depending on operating system.

GAME RESOLUTION
- Changing resolution might affect the quality of the fonts in the
menu. The game operates best with the default resolution of
800x600x32.

DESKTOP RESIZING
- Some systems may not resize the desktop upon exiting the game.
The user can manually go into desktop properties and reset this.

KEYBOARD CONTROLS
- Some PC keyboards cannot recognize certain combinations of 3 or
more simultaneously pressed keys. This is an inherent problem
unrelated to Battlefield Vietnam.

EJECTING CD-ROM
- Do not eject the CD-rom while installing the game. This has
resulted in blue screen crashes on some systems.

CHANGING RESOLUTION WHEN HOSTING A GAME:
- When hosting a non dedicated server you should avoid changing
your settings as some clients may get disconnected while the
changes are being set.

ALT-TAB
- Battlefield Vietnam does not support the Alt-Tab feature of Windows.

SPAWN HOLE TUNNELS
- The tunnel spawns have a delay at map start that will cause them to
not appear for several seconds. There is a known issue with the tunnel
spawns not appearing on some clients even after this time has elapsed.
This issue is cleared up at game restart. To solve the problem
immediately, the server must use the command admin.restartmap.

================================================== ================
NVIDIA
================================================== ================

These drivers are provided for your convenience as at the
time of release, the currently available drivers caused graphical
corruption. There may be newer drivers available from www.nvidia.com
than those provided on this disc. At all times we would encourage
you to use the latest drivers currently available for your graphics
card in order to maximise performance and minimise compatibility issues.
Electronic Arts offers no warranty or support for these drivers,
which are provided for your convenience only. For the full details
of the nVidia driver license agreement, please see www.nvidia.com.

================================================== ================
Useful Web Sites
================================================== ================

http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com
Keep your Windows installation up to date.

http://www.eagames.com/official/batt...am/us/home.jsp
The official Battlefield Vietnam website.

http://www.dice.se
Developer’s homepage.

================================================== ================
Third Party Legal Information
================================================== ================

Battlefield Vietnam uses Bink Video Technology.
Copyright © 1997-2003 by RAD Game Tools, Inc.

================================================== ================
DICE Copyright
================================================== ================

Copyright © 2004 Digital Illusions CE AB.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

[[AK]Palooka]

NO ALT-TAB!? What were they thinking?

[[AK]Hylander]

Palooka,

I could connect to your server with the server manager, but couldn't in game. I need to explore that more in a bit.

Flying seems much easier than it does in DC, whether you think that is good or bad I'll let you decide.

[[AK]Hylander]

I played for a couple of hours and I think it is a pretty fun game. The servers I played on left a little to be desired, but that's to be expected the first day out of the gates.

I had some fun booby trapping vehicles and watching people blow up though.

[[AK]Palooka]

I upgraded the BFV server. See if you can connect to it now.

By the way, what port does the BFV remote console program use by default?

[[AK]Palooka]

There are players on the server.

[[AK]The Beast]

I'm about to grab a bite of dinner and then install BFV, but my first thought is on the manual: where the heck is the rest of it? It's only 8 pages, no weapon or vehicle descriptions, and only the engineer kit gets its special functions detailed. I assume the rest will be lifted from BF1942, but if I hadn't played that game, I'd be lost.

[[AK]Rocks]

I'm bummed that I have the new BF in my hands and I'm stuck in a hotel in VA until Friday. And for the record I got UT2004 Too!!! see ya this weekend boys.

[[AK]StitchJones]

Allright ROCKS!!!! I'm not the only one who has UT2004. Now I have someone to play on Saturday while I'm at the LAN party. Cause I sure as hell am not going to play Counter-Strike!