Jerky Movement Problem in AL
by Ryan Mounts · in Torque 3D Professional · 10/20/2009 (4:52 pm) · 10 replies
I'm not sure what to call this issue... a bug or just an annoyance. I've been seeing this since the first Beta, but I just chalked it up to lack of optimization, hoping it'd disappear in the Release. What I'm seeing is slightly jerky movement in AL mode, whether walking around, orbiting the camera, or just looking at an animating object. More specifically, at a very regular interval (approximately 1 second) it is like the entire simulation halts for a millisecond and then jumps forward to where it should have been and continues smoothly. The issue is independent of the frame rate (I get about 29 fps in the Empty Room in AL). Throughout the Betas and especially with the Release I've seen an increase in frame rate, but the jerky movement consistently occurs at one second intervals. On a higher-end machine, you probably won't even notice what I'm talking about. But on my machine, it is not only annoying, but it is also somewhat nauseating after a while. I really don't know how to troubleshoot this problem, so I'm just curious if others are seeing the same thing and thoughts as to whether this is a software or a hardware issue.
Intel Core 2 @ 2.00 GHz
1 GB RAM
NVidia Quadro NVS 135M
Intel Core 2 @ 2.00 GHz
1 GB RAM
NVidia Quadro NVS 135M
#2
10/20/2009 (5:31 pm)
Brian, you are correct. In windowed mode at 640x480, I get 29 fps in the Empty Room with jerkiness. In fullscreen mode at 1280x800, I get 13 fps and the movement is smooth. Interesting... I don't really know the difference in how windowed mode is handled vs. fullscreen that would cause this problem. 
#3
10/20/2009 (5:34 pm)
I saw this also in windows mode, it was only the terrain stopping for like a microsecond each second. But this is not in full screen mode. I would not say mine is a high end machine but a core 2 duo E8300 with 2 GB and a GeForce GTX 260 - and also saw it on my GeForce 9600GT before. 
#4
10/20/2009 (7:40 pm)
Try using different values for $pref::Video::defaultFenceCount. It defaults to 0, I think, try setting it to 1, 2 or 3 and see if it makes a difference. 
#5
10/20/2009 (9:31 pm)
Have seen full screen fix some "jerkiness" in both vista/xp. Curious if the too much time is being given up when windowed mode in T3D.
#6
One thing I have noticed, however, is that the jerkiness only happens on one of my monitors. I have a dual monitor configuration, and I only see jerkiness on my primary monitor. On the secondary monitor it is smooth. Also of interest, but may or may not be related, on my primary monitor I was getting about 36 fps with a certain scene. On the secondary monitor I was getting about 26 fps. FYI, I have a laptop, so I cannot change which monitor is primary to see if the issue follows.
10/21/2009 (10:59 am)
Manoel, I tried some different defaultFencecount values, but the problem did not go away. It's difficult to say whether that parameter affected anything visually... the timing of the jerkiness might have changed slightly, but it was definitely still there.One thing I have noticed, however, is that the jerkiness only happens on one of my monitors. I have a dual monitor configuration, and I only see jerkiness on my primary monitor. On the secondary monitor it is smooth. Also of interest, but may or may not be related, on my primary monitor I was getting about 36 fps with a certain scene. On the secondary monitor I was getting about 26 fps. FYI, I have a laptop, so I cannot change which monitor is primary to see if the issue follows.
#7
10/21/2009 (11:10 am)
Ah, dual monitors and a Quadro? Try different multi-monitor modes in the NV control panel's 3D settings area. I've been generally disappointed by NVidia's multimonitor performance: no matter what I do, I get slower 3D performance on the 2nd monitor, or even in a single rotated monitor.
#8
So, looks like this is a hardware issue... something to do with how Nvidia handles the primary monitor. Don't know if this happens on all cards or is just isolated to certain cards.
10/23/2009 (10:27 am)
Manoel, it was definitely the dual monitor configuration that was causing the problem. I disconnected the second monitor and everything ran smoothly. Also from the Nvidia control panel, I switched which monitor was primary (didn't realize you could do that on a laptop :) and the jerky movement followed over to the other monitor.So, looks like this is a hardware issue... something to do with how Nvidia handles the primary monitor. Don't know if this happens on all cards or is just isolated to certain cards.
#9
But then, theres no editor in fullscreen (yet i hope).
10/23/2009 (11:28 am)
I can see it on 3 separate quadro cards, each one runs fine in fullscreen, jerky in windowed mode and not even moveable in a large scene. Dual view reduces the effect by disabling the second monitor, and fullscreen it runs smoothly. But then, theres no editor in fullscreen (yet i hope).
#10
10/23/2009 (11:57 am)
Not sure about this but this is my conclusion on why it runs better in fullscreen mode. In windowed mode you have to draw the desktop and icons also and i think that is adding to the drawing, hence making the fps drop. fullscreen all you have to draw is the game not the desktop and icons. 
Torque Owner Brian Mayberry
Dead on Que Productions
I've been working on a scene that grinds in widowed mode while editing, but soon as I go full screen for a run-through it's nice and smooth.