Originally Posted By: *Striker*
They added some new functionality and fixed some bugs.

Did you even read that before clicking the submit button?

How can campaign creators use "some new functionality" if it's not yet available pre-patch? Or is there a Mission Editor copy that is more advanced than what is available to the public and the public version needs to be "patched" for the campaign to work?


Originally Posted By: *Striker*
They've also been fixing a lot of the triggering and scripting problems that 3rd party and scripters have been complaining about for awhile because it was messing up some parts of the campaigns.

Again, dubious. If you were creating a campaign for you to sell online, will you use triggers and scripts that are KNOWN to have issues? Will you bet the success of your work based on the hope that ED will fix the broken triggers/scripts straight AFTER you release your work?

And then there's the other side of this issue as well --- how much testing does ED actually have to do to "pass" these DLCs? Regardless of the answer, it's a mis-allocation of resources in every way you look at it.


Originally Posted By: *Striker*
I'm not defending ED

Then don't. The reason continued discussion exists is because their "reasons" do not hold water at all. 1.5 is continuing development due to the free map? Really? How much revenue are they getting from the free version of DCS World? Does it justify the extra cost of maintaining another dev branch? 2.5 is already announced, we know work is going into it and everything else will be obsolete once 2.5 gets released.... so why work on other stuff that's not 2.5? Just wasting resources and time!


Originally Posted By: David_OC
2.0 is a lot faster and smoother now, ED must be tinkering with the engine optimization.

Really? You think ED's just now tinkering with the engine? What have they been doing the last 5 years then?


Originally Posted By: David_OC
1.5 is a buffer for ED so we are able to still fly around in the Caucuses map, that's why the decision would have been made to upgrade the map so DCSW is eventually all under the one install.

"They're working on 1.5 so taht we can all fly in 2.5"?? Does that statement even make sense?
"so we are still able to fly around in the Caucasus map"... and is the old map broken? Is it un-flyable? No? So why waste resources on an item that has an expiry date just around the corner?


Originally Posted By: David_OC
What I'm hoping is while the map is getting converted for edge / 2.5, ED perhaps is taking the time and focusing on weapons, AI, weather and ATC.

Unsubstantiated statement.


Originally Posted By: David_OC
Looking at this conversation, I don't understand why you think ED should or would do it this way?

Because you can only see what you want to see.


Originally Posted By: David_OC
ED has many skilled people in many different areas that have to be managed to keep them busy and productive moving forward. These guys dont work for free like the other sim you know that. The problem is ED is working on cutting edge tech, so not all the codes can or would be able to work on 2.5 / Edge. My guess would be only a select few? At this critical time anyway.

Firstly, "cutting edge tech." LOL. See leaf's thread on command line parameters for servers to see how "cutting edge" they really are. Gosh golly!

Second, until you can tell us how many are coders and how many are skinners and how many are modellers, all you're doing is speculating. If we're going to speculate, I would say ED has too much "dead weight" and not enough of the core worker types they need. Not everyone has to be employed all the time. People can be employed only until a project is complete. For a small company serving a niche market to be running so un-optimized, it's no wonder they're so desperate for money.


Originally Posted By: David_OC
Should ED layoff all the 3D designers and texture artist? Or have them working on old and new maps perhaps.

Should ED layoff the coders not working on 2.5? Or keep them working on the F18, AI, Weapons, AI for ww2, AI for ground vehicles, clouds etc or updating scripting minor problems for campaigns. I'm sure there would be floater coders that jumps between groups in this high tech environment.

ED should lay off whoever is doing their planning, roadmap, and timelines. If the next guy who gets the job has a clue, he'll take stock of what 3D models need to be done, contract that out to 3D modellers only until the work is done (and set a deadline for it as well!), have texture artists come in later in the cycle, all the while having coders hard at work at the important bits. Once the majority of the 3D modelling is done, most of the team's contract ends and ED just retains a smaller group for fine-tuning and adjustments. Same for texture guys.

What, you think if it took 100 engineers to work on the F-15 or F-16, that those 100 engineers were all employed for the service life of the aircraft? Nope. They either moved on to other projects with other companies or were "laid off" once their contracted work was done.


Originally Posted By: David_OC
The forum mods / testers team check over the campaigns for ED and report only if something needs looking at. No time wasted testing campaigns for the coding teams. Like BIGNEWY for example.

Well, since it's "early access" or "open beta," everyone who buys it is a tester. Unfortunately, that means bugs are released first and fixed later, rather than being found and fixed before release.


Originally Posted By: Durham
The last thing, in my humble opinion, that DCS needs is another map or another module, which is what is coming down the pipe.

Instead, they need to make a more compelling environment, where ground forces can integrate with artillery, attack and support helicopters, CAS aircraft up to the cool guys fighting the air superiority battle above them in their fast jets.

Yep, DCS needs to up the immersion factor for the entire THEATRE, not just eye candy or switchology. What use is 10-20 high-fidelity aircraft if there's no active environment for them to fly in? Sure, you can make missions, but did you come here to make missions or fly planes? Sure, you can download missions, and I think that's what ED wants you to do. I think these should be part of the package though. Sure, you can fast-gen a mission automagically, but it's not very immersive as you know if you fly out far enough, you'll fly out of the "bubble" you were designed to work in, and that'll kill the immersion.


- Ice