Beta testing

Wonder if SE will implement the Wireless Gamepad peripheral for the controller on PS3..that'd be nifty.
 
I'm still getting black box of death...

Rumor has it integrated graphics cards don't work with the beta... I don't see how that's possible.
 
Cua said:
I'm still getting black box of death...

Rumor has it integrated graphics cards don't work with the beta... I don't see how that's possible.
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Integrated graphics cards and modern day gaming do not get along so well unless you've got a rather expensive/new high-end laptop and even then I'm not sure how good it would pan out. The problem with integrated chips is that they share system resources with your computer rather than having their own dedicated resources. For instance if you're runnin' Vista or Windows 7 FFXIV ask 2GB of RAM from you. Just idling my PC uses 1.2-1.6 GB add that to FFXIV's allotment and the total is about 3.6, you'd think you're okay but your straining your system at this point. However, if your GPU is integrated you need to take off even more RAM depending on the power of the GPU. If you only have 4GB of RAM you enter a problem zone and a blue or black screen would not be unthinkable, personally I would expect it. Anything black or blue screen related is more time than not memory related, at least that has been the case for situations I have dealt with.

Integrated cards should work with any game that would recognize a GPU, period. They are the same thing by nature they just go about their work in a different manner. I would wager a large sum of cash that most people supporting the rumor you spoke of simply do not have the system it would take to pull off running the game with an integrated GPU. Simply a new laptop would not cut it, it would have to be rather recent and at least near the top tier of the current builds.

Take all of that for what you will though. I'm definitely not an expert by any means in the area.
 
Strid said:
Integrated graphics cards and modern day gaming do not get along so well unless you've got a rather expensive/new high-end laptop and even then I'm not sure how good it would pan out. The problem with integrated chips is that they share system resources with your computer rather than having their own dedicated resources. For instance if you're runnin' Vista or Windows 7 FFXIV ask 2GB of RAM from you. Just idling my PC uses 1.2-1.6 GB add that to FFXIV's allotment and the total is about 3.6, you'd think you're okay but your straining your system at this point. However, if your GPU is integrated you need to take off even more RAM depending on the power of the GPU. If you only have 4GB of RAM you enter a problem zone and a blue or black screen would not be unthinkable, personally I would expect it. Anything black or blue screen related is more time than not memory related, at least that has been the case for situations I have dealt with.

Integrated cards should work with any game that would recognize a GPU, period. They are the same thing by nature they just go about their work in a different manner. I would wager a large sum of cash that most people supporting the rumor you spoke of simply do not have the system it would take to pull off running the game with an integrated GPU. Simply a new laptop would not cut it, it would have to be rather recent and at least near the top tier of the current builds.

Take all of that for what you will though. I'm definitely not an expert by any means in the area.
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My graphics card is Intel(r) core(tm) ie CPU 2.13 GHz, it won't run. But that's not the reason of the so-called black box of death.

I have to buy a new pc, that's all there is to it.
 
Cua said:
My graphics card is Intel(r) core(tm) ie CPU 2.13 GHz, it won't run. But that's not the reason of the so-called black box of death.

I have to buy a new pc, that's all there is to it.
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The "black screen of death" has one common factor linked to most all, if not all, cases that involve it. Hardware strain or misuse of the system by the system (not directly a user error per-say, but the system not responding properly when threatened). It's thought that Windows actually causes this when it attempts to preform better to keep a stable environment. There are also causes that stem from outside of Windows from virtual device drivers that "hiccup" and cause the system to crash, to applications making incorrect calls to drivers. Pretty much the BSOD is one of many things Windows can do when it feels its environment threatened. It doesn't actually kill your computer it just puts it on lockdown as much as possible. There really is no clear cut answer to what exactly can cause it. If someone is running near to max memory capacity it could very well cause a number of these situations to crop up, I'd say.

The bold is most likely the case for people who experienced this over FFXIV.

I really don't think this would crop up for people with a decent shot at runnin' the game properly. However, I couldn't be bothered with reading over all the crap posted in the beta forums so I could be wrong. That's the problem with the BSOD, never can be sure if it's the OS, the app/software, or the user. I'd hate to call out people straining their own systems without knowin' so just take that as a guess with very little, if any, standing.
 
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Strid said:
The "black screen of death" has one common factor linked to most all, if not all, cases that involve it. Hardware strain or misuse of the system by the system (not directly a user error per-say, but the system not responding properly when threatened). It's thought that Windows actually causes this when it attempts to preform better to keep a stable environment. There are also causes that stem from outside of Windows from virtual device drivers that "hiccup" and cause the system to crash, to applications making incorrect calls to drivers. Pretty much the BSOD is one of many things Windows can do when it feels its environment threatened. It doesn't actually kill your computer it just puts it on lockdown as much as possible. There really is no clear cut answer to what exactly can cause it. If someone is running near to max memory capacity it could very well cause a number of these situations to crop up, I'd say.

The bold is most likely the case for people who experienced this over FFXIV.

I really don't think this would crop up for people with a decent shot at runnin' the game properly. However, I couldn't be bothered with reading over all the crap posted in the beta forums so I could be wrong. That's the problem with the BSOD, never can be sure if it's the OS, the app/software, or the user. I'd hate to call out people straining their own systems without knowin' so just take that as a guess with very little, if any, standing.
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You've probably hit the nail on the donkey. I'm not going update my pc since it's ancient (2003). I'll have to build a new one. No idea what that is going to run me, I hope my parents chip in.
 
Servers are down, go figure. Too many tried to hop on and then crash.
 
yeah the min specs call for a video card with 512mb of dedicated memory. I'd be surprised if even a brand new system with integrated graphics could run it.
 
Ok, going to make a shopping list for upgrading my rig, hopefully I can get this done quick so I can beta test soon. I'm going to try and make it slightly better than the beta test requirements to be more on the safe side if there are any changes in the system requirements upon release.
 
Beta for me runs like crap even though my specs are fine. I'm continually at R0 despite a fine connection to the point that it's not even worth logging in. I've spoken to other people about this and they say its server issues and most people are experiencing the same thing. I was only in for Tuesday though so I'm no aware if this is normal or not.
 
Gerry said:
Ok, going to make a shopping list for upgrading my rig, hopefully I can get this done quick so I can beta test soon. I'm going to try and make it slightly better than the beta test requirements to be more on the safe side if there are any changes in the system requirements upon release.
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Take your time and do it right. You know you're goin' to enjoy the game so no sense in worryin' over the beta if it causes you to rush somethin' you'll be usin' for years to come. Study the different parts and see which are the right ones for you. You don't want to rush into Intel chips and Nvidia GPUs just because they're on the box and you're lookin' to play a beta in which will seize to matter in a couple of months.

Oh, as far as I know once you're in the beta you're in it. For example, if you were in the alpha you are in this beta. Devs don't usually drop you once they invite you.
 
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It won't cost a lot to build a computer that can handle FFXIV, especially if you camp your local Fry's/Microcenter/Whatever computer store and be patient. Like Strid said, definitely don't just walk into a store and grab stuff to build a rig. And if you're patient, you can save a bunch too.
 
My hard drive has decided to pull a Beastie Boys and "Kick It". So no beta for me for a while. I only regret I didn't grab all my old artwork off before it happened.
 
Gerry said:
Ok, going to make a shopping list for upgrading my rig, hopefully I can get this done quick so I can beta test soon. I'm going to try and make it slightly better than the beta test requirements to be more on the safe side if there are any changes in the system requirements upon release.
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If you wait, you will probably save alot of money. If I do build a pc I am going to wait til september.
 
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Burne said:
If you always wait, you will probably save alot of money. If I do build a pc I am going to wait til september.
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What this guy and Bajaratt said. The prices on computer parts are very, very fickle. They may come out, be good parts that go for $200 and then next week go down to $150 without being on sale, it's ridiculous stuff. It's also prime time for another price drop on the current gen GPUs and memory usually gets cheaper by the day in the Summer time. Scrap what you can too. If your DVD-ROM drive still works, keep it, if you're HDD is full of good porn (Gerry, I saw that Gundam tentacle hentai you're hidin' in there btw), keep usin' it, you get the point by now.

Other than that, buying and building now would run you the risk of buying something later deemed unnecessary or incompatible. A lot can change in two months for a PC game from the reqs goin' down to certain tech just not wanting to work well with the game. My PC will run the game just fine (despite a 750pt. bench score) but it's starting to get close to those min. reqs in a lot of games. If I do decide to upgrade pre-FFXIV (which I most likely will) I'll do it a few days before and no sooner.
 
I'm going to be speaking to the guys who originally built my rig and to ask them about what components to use as when I get round to it, though I am going to write up a basic list and then ask where I can go further on what the rig will need or if there is any better (and affordable) parts. All my PC really needs though is a new CPU, Graphics Card and Windows 7, everything else is fine.
 
Gerry said:
I'm going to be speaking to the guys who originally built my rig and to ask them about what components to use as when I get round to it, though I am going to write up a basic list and then ask where I can go further on what the rig will need or if there is any better (and affordable) parts. All my PC really needs though is a new CPU, Graphics Card and Windows 7, everything else is fine.
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A new CPU will almost certainly mean a new motherboard(unless it's a small upgrade), and that will probably mean new RAM, and a new DVD-ROM/hard drive if your current stuff is IDE and depending on the motherboard. Then you're probably going to need a new power supply to be able to power everything correctly, especially since most of the higher end graphics cards require a separate power cable straight from the PSU as well as the power from the motherboard.

Ultimately, the it depends on how old your current setup is and how high you're trying to upgrade to.

When I built my computer I went for a screaming processor at the time, but not one of the wildly over priced CPU's with only 4-600MHz faster clock speed; got a shitload of very fast RAM, a beefy power supply with plenty of connections and all of my drives are SATA. This way, the only thing I should have a need to upgrade in the next few years should be the graphics card, but the rest of my setup will just age into what will be "necessary requirements" in the future, since I overbuilt my system. I would definitely recommend doing the same to anyone, if you're going to build it yourself, overbuild it as much as you reasonably can; so you can get the most life out of it with as little necessary upgrades as possible.

Edit: If you can be patient with your purchasing, start with stuff that isn't going to get replaced/obsolete'd. DVD-ROM, hard drives, power supplies, and cases you can buy and leave around in a closet for months without having to worry about "missing out" on something new. CPU/GPU/motherboard/RAM is where you're going to want to wait as long as possible to buy; because there's always new, and actually better, models coming out and those are where you're going to want to make sure it's the right stuff for specific games. I bought my PSU about 9 months before I finally built my current computer, because it was a clearance item at my store and I knew I'd be using it at some point.
 
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Bajaratt said:
A new CPU will almost certainly mean a new motherboard(unless it's a small upgrade), and that will probably mean new RAM, and a new DVD-ROM/hard drive if your current stuff is IDE and depending on the motherboard. Then you're probably going to need a new power supply to be able to power everything correctly, especially since most of the higher end graphics cards require a separate power cable straight from the PSU as well as the power from the motherboard.

Ultimately, the it depends on how old your current setup is and how high you're trying to upgrade to.

When I built my computer I went for a screaming processor at the time, but not one of the wildly over priced CPU's with only 4-600MHz faster clock speed; got a shitload of very fast RAM, a beefy power supply with plenty of connections and all of my drives are SATA. This way, the only thing I should have a need to upgrade in the next few years should be the graphics card, but the rest of my setup will just age into what will be "necessary requirements" in the future, since I overbuilt my system. I would definitely recommend doing the same to anyone, if you're going to build it yourself, overbuild it as much as you reasonably can; so you can get the most life out of it with as little necessary upgrades as possible.
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The rig is 2 years old and was originally built as a "Business PC" and nothing more, Despite my requests for it to be a gaming rig >_>
 
If your computer is 2 years old and has a PCI-Express slot (in addition to your AGP slot you're currently using) you might actually just be able to get away with upgrading the GPU, PSU, and callin' it a day. Then again, if those pricks stuck you with an AGP card they might have shafted you in the other departments too...

Throw up your dxdiag so we know what we're talkin' about here. Just in case you're not sure how to do that, go to the Windows button in the bottom left of your screen and click it. In the search bar type in "dxdiag" and then it should appear, just click it. Tell us the goods from that screen.
 
It's been awhile since I posted back on these threads hah. But I'm definitely looking forward to playing some FFXIV. A friend of mine who I played on Quetz with got into the Alpha but alas I've not been so lucky. Maybe they'll get me in on this next round of them. Either PC or PS3.
 
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