Targeting low performance PCs

#1 what type of configuration?
i think,there is only one hardware that makes problem with torque 3d.
grafics card.

i had run t3d in
2.1 ghz celeron+512 mb ram.
with a 64 mb dedicated Intel gma adapter.

#2 What i meant is how can i develop a game that would run on a computer with low graphics memory (i.e. embedded in the motherboard) using Torque3D ?

PS: the machine i use for development have sufficient graphics memory.

#3 - Keep your drawcalls as low as possible.
- Use shaders wisely (or stay away from them, depends on how low you're going).
- Smaller texture sizes.
- Less geometry detail (you'll want to lean on your textures to represent details, like WoW does with its artwork).
- Aggressive LOD'ing of your models.
- Creative blocking in your scenes, so that if you don't have the player looking at too much geometry at any given time, which can cause lag.
- There's more if you do some searching on this site for performance and such.

#4 Thanks Ted.

Another question, I'm checking the Torque3D demo right now and the 'Edit Source' button is disabled. Is it available only for the full version?

Also, the FPS Tutorial is in C#. Is it possible to develop in C++? and is it possible to develop for Linux, at least the server?

#5 Correct, source is only available for the full version.

Don't be mislead by the .cs file extension. Those are Torque Script files, the extension was already in use before C# existed. Torque Script is very c-like in nature. The source itself is all C++.

Some community members have worked with Torque in Linux, although it is not officially supported.

#6 So, i can program in C++ using T3D?
I need this so i can integrate other libraries that i need for my program.

#7 Yes, the source is C++ and you will have access to all of it when you buy the license.

Torque Script is the language used to control the program flow.

Originally TGE (previous version) would actually run under Linux server and client. Now I understand that the client can not run under Linux, but the server can be. I read just recently that someone compiled it under Linux and ran it. I don't know how well or if they had to make changes or not. I also have gone through the code and have seen a lot of the code has #ifdef Linux type stuff in it still. So my guess is the server will run under Linux as the previous incarnation TGE could.

Also search the forums and you should find the status quo on this subject pretty easily. I believe the main reason the client will not run under Linux is the dependency on DirectX for input and graphics. I know there is another project to remove this dependency and port the graphics back to OpenGL. So there may come a time when it will run completely on Linux again. Of course that is not officially supported.

So, to answer your questions:
1. Yes on programming in C++, and you will have all the code.
2. I am 99% sure the server can be made to run under Linux. It may take some work, or it might just compile right out of the box.

#8 I'm going to second Frank's statement that someone got a dedicated server running on Linux, but like Frank I can't remember who. The post was within the last year or so though.

When we get back up and running on Mac OS X it should get us an OpenGL renderer that might be easier to port back to Linux than trying to wade through the DirectX -> OpenGL path, but there's no word on when that'll happen.

TGE still has an OpenGL renderer, but it's pretty old and might be useable under Linux if you brought it up to speed. Unfortunately we don't distribute it anymore due to licensing issues.

#9 @Richard,
That is some awesomeness right there with MacOSX! I would love to be able to run T3D under Linux again. I am really satisfied with Windows 7, but I really am more at home in a *nix environment. Consequently I have Cygwin on my machine, but it is not the same.

When MacOSX is ready I may have to build a PC build and run it on there. Being able to run Torque under MacOSX would be cool for development.

Thanks for the heads up. I am glad that is in the works!

#10 Also as an inside tip, steer well off from Advanced Lightning. Use lightmaps baked into the texture as much as possible.

I would recommend pureLight if you got the cash, it's really great.