CFS3 ships with DirectX8.2, but installs it surreptitiously, so I'm told.

CFS3 introduces much better FSAA performance from the options menu within the sim - until now it was always preferable to use the control panel for your card to `force` FSAA outside of the sim itself.

So, thinks I, what if we combine the `DirectX8.2` with FS2002..? Ah, well DX8.2 doesn't exist...

Turns out Dx8.2 is actually only a bundle of improved DirectPlay files bolted onto Dx8.1b, and which are available here:
http://www.p3int.com/downloads_NWO.asp

It's only a 893kb self-installing .exe, and I have now been able to set 2x FSAA from within the sim, (after resetting the driver options to `Application Controlled`) with a frame rate improvement of around 20 per cent.

Yes, 20 per cent! Simply marvellous results for ten minutes work.

As usual, I should caution that I have only tried this with a current DirectX8.1b installation, running a GF 3 Ti200 on Detonator 40.72 drivers tweaked by RivaTuner. I would recommend that you at least have access to DirectX Buster and a copy of DX8.1b before you try messing with this so you can restore a regular copy of DX if required. Having said that, it was a 30 second installation and it directly replaces about 20 files within DirectX, so it's not rocket science.

Simon Evans

• RE: Improving FSAA performance in FS200...,Vulcan, 20:25z, 10-28-02
• RE: Improving FSAA performance in FS2002,Emile, 07:10z, 10-29-02
  • RE: Improving FSAA performance in FS2002,Snave, 12:11z, 11-10-02

Hi Steve,

Saw your post at the other place <g>, along with the other comments.

Not sure if it was you or someone else commented that the 'official' release of DX8.2 would be out soon considering the Beta times out 31/10/02.

As with most of these things some user report improvements, some no improvement, some worse frame rates, what do you do?????

Have you any experience of using one of the DX uninstallers?

I did d/l one some time back but have never had to use it and have read that some say they do not work.

I will wait for the official release but it would be nice to know that the uninstallers do work, just in case

-= VPC OffLine Reader 2.1 =-
Registered to: Dave Wild
-OLR.PL v1.80-

Hello,
A question from a newbie : what is FSAA and what controls it?
Thanks in advance
Regards
Emile
EBBR Brussels
Belgium

Sorry for my tardiness, been busy elsewhere.

FSAA is Full Scene Anti Aliasing and is a software method of reducing the jagged lines representing straight lines at an angle on screen - it's particularly troublesome in sims like FS2002 where the runways, taxiways and aircraft parts have prominent straight lines to them and the effect can be quite distracting.

FSAA - or just plain anti-aliasing as it's more commonly known as there is more than one type - produces multiple passes of the textures and effectively blurs the edges of straight lines to give a smoother effect. Done right it's marvellous, done wrong it ruins the fps and makes everything look vague and indistinct. All modern cards offer some form of AA, but in different levels and flavours.

However, an easy option, often overlooked by the technophiles is simply to turn UP the screen resolution - the jaggies are virtually unnoticeable on an average monitor at 1600x1200.

Depending on card and system (and game) you may need to experiment with the different combinations of AA and Resolution as frame rates and results can vary. With most GeForce cards go for the highest res and the lowest level of FSAA, with newer ATi Radeons the AA is better turned up and the resolution lower.

Hope this helps.

Simon Evans