1.3.2 Bugs

[Sandtrooper]

• Frontier & Server.exe both provoke a "We're Sorry, this has to close" dialog box after closing.
• Server.exe takes a horrendous amount of memory (152 MB!)
• Orbiting pilot seems to be stupider than before, annoying as hell
• Bots on Dock still present. Evidence is below

[NiteHawk]

• Frontier & Server.exe both provoke a "We're Sorry, this has to close" dialog box after closing.
• Server.exe takes a horrendous amount of memory (152 MB!)
• Orbiting pilot seems to be stupider than before, annoying as hell
• Bots on Dock still present. Evidence is below

What do you mean orbiting pilots are stupider then before? (Haven't touched the orbiting code though.) So there most likely the same... Don't get you here.

When you close the server, the crash about 'were sorry' I cannot seem to get this at all. I do know there is a 'random crash' that happens sometimes when you exit the program it will give an error, are you talking about that? I cannot get it to error out every time, at all. Try deleting the sf.prf files, they might be slightly corrupted originally.

Are the bots trying to warp or move around while docked? Can you at least still dock?

Need more information about the memory issue your having as well. Is this with generic mods that were provided? Is it 'starting' like that? Edit: Actually, I see it now, looks like a memory leak, I'll check it out why. Probably something small/not freeing properly in the log.

[NiteHawk]

I found out where the memory leak belongs too, I'll try to fix that and release a patch since will hinder running a server for a long time.

Edit: Fixed that so far.

For orbiting, if your talking about there orbiting in general, it seems the same in 1.3.2 and 1.2 RC7, at least. So not sure what you mean.

For docking, do they ventually leave, or there perm stuck too? I'm sitting with 127 AI and they don't get stuck yet .. Meh wierd.

Edit again: If it was sitting at 150k mem trying to close it could of caused a crash due to the mem leak as well. Been testing, tried with a few and I cannot get a rapid error on closing the server/client each time (though I do know theres an issue with the STOP button after a couple clicks.)

[Sandtrooper]

What do you mean orbiting pilots are stupider then before? (Haven't touched the orbiting code though.) So there most likely the same... Don't get you here.

It seems to take "forever" to get into blockade mode, the autopilot does ridiculous things to avoid enemy weaponry (Here's where the "ORBIT DAMMIT" part comes in, pounding "O" alot), and sometimes the "Blockade Established" message doesn't appear, thus requiring a F9 so the client knows you're orbiting that planet.

Are the bots trying to warp or move around while docked? Can you at least still dock? For docking, do they eventually leave, or there perm stuck too? I'm sitting with 127 AI and they don't get stuck yet .. Meh wierd.

Permanently stuck, and the game thinks they're 1x1 pixels in size (and this usually makes them stuck to the tractor forever unless killed x5 or more times until the game logs a new bot in). One slot was still available. I was playing Stock Sol. I'm not sure if clearing the dock with explosives would of kicked them off.

When you close the server, the crash about 'were sorry' I cannot seem to get this at all. I do know there is a 'random crash' that happens sometimes when you exit the program it will give an error, are you talking about that? I cannot get it to error out every time, at all. Try deleting the sf.prf files, they might be slightly corrupted originally.

I'm gunna try a new SF.PRF file. "We're sorry" means "This program has caused an error. Send report to M$?" dialog box whenever a program craters or something. Both EXEs did this. If you've fixed it, thats great!

[NiteHawk]

About the blockaid thing, maybe just bad luck? The coding hasn't been changed at all though since I got the code. Made sure with a check. Guessing you got a giant server with lots of AI? How many AI you got going? From what I know the game has always hated a super high amount of AI too.And are you talking about as well when you get hit by bullets you become 'out of orbit' sometimes because the bullets push you? As for orbiting. Was on the standard dat files, seemed okay. Also seemed okay with 120 AI for orbiting, though on my end. Maybe someone else has a say on it.

Another thing: As for AI over 64, I think this is due because it doesn't know what AI to pick because in the beginners and regular robot data, theres only about 64 ships, thus why after 64 ships you'll start seeing random AI, like pirates. Perhaps someone can add up to 128 robots in the list, (Basicly the same, minus the starbases).. I think this solves a few AI issues, like AI repeadly warping in and out, from when I did that, there actually orbiting waiting for colonies now if there task is "COLONIZE". But before if there werent enough AI, I'm thinking the AI didn't know his 'task'. Perhaps this could cause a DOCK issue as well, is what I'm wondering.

[NiteHawk]

This seems funny but:

Try this one out. I made 128 robots total. Just added a Z to most of them.. For a test.

As well, whne we make them, we might want to assign mroe of them to attack/harrass/defend ranks rather then colonize, else theres alot of them sitting waiting for colonies, as  you see.

[Sandtrooper]

About the blockaid thing, maybe just bad luck?

I guess so.

How many AI you got going?

70 players, 40 of them bots (stock server setting).

[NiteHawk]

Ah only 40 bots and it was all getting stuck? That seems aweful wierd. The picture though displays a Pirate base and a few pirate ships.

Dunno, try playing with orbit and see how it is now. Maybe all that issues with memory leaks was causing an issue. to have a server at 150 megs ram had to be going for awhile.

I'll leave my server offline with 120 players and test too.

[NiteHawk]

I do know the AI need a rehaul totally in general, they were advanced in 'there times' but not really anymore :p

At least the generic unable to dock bug is solved. Just got to see AI now.

[NiteHawk]

Anyways what I need to figure out is this:

AI spawn on SB, which is fine.
AI should undock, instead AI is treats the SB it seems like a planet, and then ending up spawning at the home planet much like a new joining player would.

I know this was in since I got the source, though I don't think it was in 1.2, but eh, the source has its differences from it, for some reason.

Might try to recode the whole spawning completely... At least tamper with it. AI should UNDOCK, not spawn to a home planet after being docked on a SY, that might cause bugs.

[Sandtrooper]

Game bails out (CTD /w error dialog box) on a mod (most if not all?) if "robots    ###" exceeds 120. Something doesn't sound right...I had Sol Expanded working fine on 1.3.1x (it's max botcount was 150). Even with ALL planets set to enabled, it still CTD's while loading the scenario.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Hold the phone...

Okay guys.

Do this.

go to START RUN then browse to the frontier.exe and add -log at the end, a command parm. so like C:\frontierfolder\frontier.exe -log

Then run Sol System (normal one, not beginners) and just SIT and let it run without doing anything.

If/when it crashes, post the last ten or so lines from frontier.log. (Will be located in binwin folder)  I want to see something.


----


note> ColonyClass::SpawnToDock END
note> after spawning first available slot 30 on frame 2600, numColonies = 30 numColoniesCreated = 1 numColoniesDestroyed = 0
note> a Drengin Corvette Warrior (ship 115/115), commanded by Cadet Albert, docked a Drengin Minor (colony 30/200) with  14.400 M Drengins at port 7 on frame 2600
note> a Drengin Minor (colony 30/200) with  14.400 M Drengins was spawned by a Drengin Minor (colony 19/189) with 241.590 M Drengins, located on Ceres, on frame 2600
sent> (27 sent) a Drengin Corvette Warrior (ship 115/115), commanded by Cadet Albert, has picked up a Drengin Minor (colony 30/200) with  14.400 M Drengins from Drengin Minor (colony 19/189) with 241.590 M Drengins, located on Ceres, on frame 2600
received> (preprocess) spawn_colony msg (27 received) on frame 2601: 115 189 30 2 0 14400000
received> spawn_colony msg (27 received) on frame 2601: 115 189 30 2 0 14400000
discarded> spawn_colony msg (15 discarded) on frame 2601: 115 189 30 2 0 14400000
sent> a Arcean Corvette Ursa (ship 119/119), commanded by Cadet RedFang, is sending a GETPOWERUP msg for slot 1 and id 5003 on frame 2620
received> a Arcean Corvette Ursa (ship 119/119), commanded by Cadet RedFang, has upgraded to a shield:3 from a shield:2 in slot 1 on frame 2620

[NiteHawk]

Game bails out (CTD /w error dialog box) on a mod (most if not all?) if "robots    ###" exceeds 120. Something doesn't sound right...I had Sol Expanded working fine on 1.3.1x (it's max botcount was 150). Even with ALL planets set to enabled, it still CTD's while loading the scenario.

I think colonies count as Ships too for some reason in game if you have more bots. Maybe test on a very blank MOD past it? I managed 127 bots yesterday, didnt test any higher though yet.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Still doesn't explain why I suddenly started getting methodical crashes though.

But I noticed in my log file, the last ship being counted before it cuts off was marked 119/119.
Which is why the 120 mark has me curious.

Perhaps the variable or holding value used to identify the ships by number is the limiting fact.  I recall from my early days that certain code variables could only hold so much information.  SF's code IS old enough that this could be the case.  And from my experience playing games, CTDs have, especially in SF, been as a result of running into a request it can't find in memory.  Perhaps when it hits the value limit, it simply cannot store numbers over 120 or rather 128, drops it, and then gets lost, so it crashes.

[NiteHawk]

Still doesn't explain why I suddenly started getting methodical crashes though.

But I noticed in my log file, the last ship being counted before it cuts off was marked 119/119.
Which is why the 120 mark has me curious.

Perhaps the variable or holding value used to identify the ships by number is the limiting fact.  I recall from my early days that certain code variables could only hold so much information.  SF's code IS old enough that this could be the case.  And from my experience playing games, CTDs have, especially in SF, been as a result of running into a request it can't find in memory.  Perhaps when it hits the value limit, it simply cannot store numbers over 120 or rather 128, drops it, and then gets lost, so it crashes.

In general theres really no number that holds only 120. I haven't touched the max ship limit but there probably is an issue with max ships, just don't know what the calculations are or how it occurs, also have to check this out, might soon.