Planet Descent

Community => Descent Gameplay => Topic started by: Thomas on April 27, 2010, 12:56:18 PM

Title: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Thomas on April 27, 2010, 12:56:18 PM
What would you think should be the upper size limit for a level that contains download links when hosted?

Or shall we better say time limit? Would you still download a level/mission with Vortex or in-game if it took 15 or 20 minutes to download, or even longer?
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on April 27, 2010, 01:33:01 PM
I think I would probably assume something went wrong and abort it and try again after less than a minute... since most multiplayer levels take only a few seconds.

I think if it took that long I would prefer to download it as a file so I could do something else while waiting for it.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Matthew on April 27, 2010, 03:14:14 PM
do something else while waiting for it.
You still can.

15 to 20 minutes? Probably not. Are we talking an obscenely large level here, or an obscenely slow connection?
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: SaladBadger on April 27, 2010, 03:18:22 PM
Provided there's an accruate measure on the file size, I could live with it

Such a download probably wouldn't be done in Vortex though. I just can't trust it enough.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Thomas on May 01, 2010, 02:45:37 PM
I think if it took that long I would prefer to download it as a file so I could do something else while waiting for it.

A zip file _is_ a file.  :)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Thomas on May 01, 2010, 02:46:55 PM
15 to 20 minutes? Probably not. Are we talking an obscenely large level here, or an obscenely slow connection?
A big file.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: SaladBadger on May 01, 2010, 07:59:47 PM
I think if it took that long I would prefer to download it as a file so I could do something else while waiting for it.

A zip file _is_ a file.  :)

I assume he means through his browser, as vortex basically does hide half of the process from the end user.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on May 02, 2010, 08:00:29 AM
yes, That is what I meant. But I suppose it doesn't matter, I was thinking in a certain way because I usually close my browser and everything else before I play Descent, but there is no reason to not download it in the background through Vortex. Most levels are a small enough a download I just wait for them.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Thomas on May 09, 2010, 03:18:01 PM
Provided there's an accruate measure on the file size, I could live with it

What would be the threshold for that?
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: SaladBadger on May 09, 2010, 03:21:38 PM
I'll be fine with 10, but I'll be honestly questioning why this mission is still big

I'd say I could go up to around 25-30 before questioning once again why it is still so big.

However, the idgames archive has a max limit of 50 mb for Doom WAD files, and I've downloaded bigger, so honestly going up to 50 could be bearable.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Thomas on May 09, 2010, 03:34:09 PM
I'll be fine with 10, but I'll be honestly questioning why this mission is still big

I'd say I could go up to around 25-30 before questioning once again why it is still so big.

Thanks. What do you mean by 'questioning'?

You open Vortex and the mission shows up in red. It contains a download link. Would you go for it or not?

However, the idgames archive has a max limit of 50 mb for Doom WAD files, and I've downloaded bigger, so honestly going up to 50 could be bearable.

I'm talking about a slightly bigger file. Let's say maybe 10 times that size.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on May 09, 2010, 04:55:28 PM
Well, just include the d/l link and if people won't wait for it... oh well, they won't won't be able to auto download, at least if you include the link some will go for it.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Matthew on May 09, 2010, 05:45:12 PM
A 500mb file? What the heck are you making that's a half a gig? That's like 50x the size of most D3 levels. I'm not even sure D3 would let you have a mission that big, and you'd certainly be pushing RAM limits on many people's computers. A lot of descent players don't have super-modern machines. And keep in mind a 500mb zipped file is going to be even bigger loaded into the game, plus whatever memory the game itself takes.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on May 10, 2010, 03:56:02 AM
It's ok, Matt... Thomas knows what he's doing...  ;)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: SaladBadger on May 10, 2010, 04:08:12 AM
I'm talking about a slightly bigger file. Let's say maybe 10 times that size.
Yeah I'm going to be wondering what makes that file so large. What does? :P
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Scyphi on May 10, 2010, 06:01:06 AM
Maybe it's a D2X-XL level. I'd imagine levels can get to be pretty dang big when you start using all the extra goodies D2X-XL will support.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on May 10, 2010, 07:25:29 AM
Be kinda pointless to download a D2 level in vortex.  ;)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: D2Disciple on May 10, 2010, 07:32:35 AM
D2X-XL levels usually don't get too large. It's the goodies themselves that take quite a bit of time to download, such as all the high-res textures and models. D2X-XL just applies those textures to a level if the level's textures have high-res counterparts. Then again, levels with lots of custom textures and objects could be quite large.  ;)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Kaiaatzl on May 10, 2010, 02:05:04 PM
I imagine a large D3 single player mission (maybe more than one or two levels) could get quite large too.... but if it's single player, I'd prefer not to download it from vortex.  If I dowload it directly from a website I don't have to re-download the whole thing if I somehow lose it.  I can just re-extract the zip file.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Scyphi on May 11, 2010, 11:46:38 AM
Quote from: WillyP
Be kinda pointless to download a D2 level in vortex.  ;)

Oh, yeah, I guess it kinda would be.  ::)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: D2Disciple on May 11, 2010, 02:50:14 PM
Quote
Scyphi: Maybe it's a D2X-XL level.

Quote
D2Junkie: D2X-XL levels usually don't get too large.

Quote
WillyP: Be kinda pointless to download a D2 level in vortex.

I totally wasn't following this conversation. Now I feel a little stupid for giving input on things that don't really matter.   :P
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Matthew on May 11, 2010, 07:44:36 PM
Single player levels are usually nowhere near that large either. d3.mn3 is only 200-something MB. And that's the ENTIRE 18 (?) levels of the campaign.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Scyphi on May 12, 2010, 06:37:38 AM
I believe it's only seventeen Matt, counting the secret levels.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Matthew on May 12, 2010, 12:30:48 PM
Either way my point is the same. A 500mb level file would be pure obscenity.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Kaiaatzl on May 12, 2010, 02:19:10 PM
:Speculation and possible joke Alert:

What if the mission was much bigger than D3 Retribution?  Say, 19 or 20 levels, bigger than the ones from D3 retribution, with more scripts and better lighting quality (that does add a lot to the file size).  And what if it had 35 full length songs and a smattering of shorter music as well?

:Pure Speculation and possible joke:
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Scyphi on May 13, 2010, 08:23:36 AM
That would be very cool. But if it was true, normally the Descent community would have heard of such a project by now. So either someone did a very good job keeping it secret, or it somehow fell through the cracks (which would mean it was one heck of a crack. :P).

Not opposed to the idea, of course, I just find it unlikely.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: -<WillyP>- on May 13, 2010, 12:44:16 PM
Then again, some people are good at keeping secrets.
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Matthew on May 13, 2010, 03:57:30 PM
Well it's not too hard, if you can remember not to talk about it and resist going "OMGOMGOMG LOOK WHAT I JUST DID IT'S AWESOME!"

Which I am not good at resisting ;)
Title: Re: Pain threshold for auto downloads
Post by: Scyphi on May 14, 2010, 05:23:56 AM
Nor am I, admittedly. :P