[Jinxt]

Yea, I'm new as you can tell by my post count, but thats why I'm here, I wanna get started on the Free Space community. Why so late you ask? Because I had never really heard of a space Sim until I bought X3, after playing that a little while, I loved it, I wanted more, So I Googled top space Sim games, and this one was far better looking than all the other, only its older. But then I saw that there were user mods, that excited me, so I could play an old game in fashion. But I have no Idea where to start... Other than buy the game of course, yea I'm that excited, I'm posting before owning the game.

Anyways, anyone got any tips on what mods to get first, I'm not really looking for a total conversion, more or less just a graphical update for starting.

Thanks,
Jinxt

[Herra Tohtori]

Greetings, sentient, and welcome to Hard Light Productions!


Turey's online installer is probably the most painless way to start, especially if you're starting from nothing. You will also need to have OpenAL installed to get the sound working correctly, but read the instructions and you should be home free.


The installer gives you rather clear instructions on what you need... If you want, you can simply Select All and it'll download FreeSpace2, a recent FS2_Open executable, a Launcher to configure FS2_Open, graphical upgrades for FS2, FSPort and a lot of high quality mods to keep you entertained for a while even after playing through the original campaigns.

If you really want just FS2 with upgraded content (MediaVP's), de-select other entries, it'll fasten the download process to some extent... Mind you, though, FreeSpace Port (or FSPort, you'll get used to acronyms pretty quickly if you hang around here at all...) is a total conversion to play the original Descent/Conflict:FreeSpace The Great War campaign with retail FS2 or FS2_Open, and even though you said you aren't interested in getting TC's for now, you would be well adviced to get that and play through the original FreeSpace campaign before starting on FS2, because quite francly while FS2 had newer graphics and stuff, the wide consensus is that the original FreeSpace had a better campaign and feel of the game, and FSPort manages to imitate that quite admirably, so it is at least worth a shot.


So basically my advice is to install the game via FSOInstaller, then fool around a bit to get the game configured correctly, enable FSPort and play through it; then play through FS2, then start on the mods, and when you run out of them either start creating content or familiarize yourself with the true total conversions that don't require original FS2 game at all (like The Babylon Project, Beyond the Red Line and Wing Commander Saga...) and be assimilated into the community in the process.

[Akalabeth Angel]

    To get the graphical updates you need Freespace Open and the MediaVPs. VPs are the data files that FS2 uses for everything. So FSOpen is a new executable file which enables new things in the game, and the Media VPs are new VPs which updated graphics and other effects. Though you might find it worthwhile to play the game first without some of the updated graphics. Some of the MediaVPs have caused problems, such as the asteroids. Making nearly any mission in the asteroid field virtually playable. Though I believe that's in the process of being rectified.

    I'm sure someone like Lobo will be along to fill you in a bit more about it.

[Jeff Vader]

    I'm sure someone like Lobo will be along to fill you in a bit more about it.

I'm just a tad bit intoxicated at the moment (again) so bear with me.

Use Turey's FSO Installer. It is, by far, the easiest option for getting FS2, FSO and anything (notable) related stuff. I suggest that when using it, you'd download at least FS2 (which is required), the FSO executables and the Launcher (the brand new, spanking game engine), the MediaVPs (that make the game purdy), and also FSPort (which allows you to play the FS1 campaign with the FS2/FSO engine, for storyline's sake).

Install OpenAL (link in my signature).

The rest are notable and praised usermade campaigns and mods. Download them if you're interested.

If (and when) you encounter problems, be a jolly bloke and search the forums. Most of the issues are either common or otherwise solved. If you are sure you're encountering something that no one has encountered before, do ask.

Edit: Or basically what my countryman Herra Tohtori said. 'scuse me, I probably need to go 'n puke any minute now.

[Androgeos Exeunt]

Are you drunk? Or did you sit a roller coaster?

[Jinxt]

Ok guys, I have encountered a Teency Tincy issue. (I think...) I didn't realize at first that the game would require so much to download off the internet. Usually this wouldn't matter, but I primarily want to play this game on my home computer, which only has dial-up access. However, I have a laptop that I can just take to many hot spots and download it in no time while sipping on some Java. So do you think that I could use the FreeSpace Installer to download it onto my laptop, and then just copy the folder over to my Desktop at home, and then run the installer on the desktop so that it can configure everything for it? I noticed that whenever I finished a file and started over it would skip that file, so it should work right?

Anyways, lemme know if I can be helped.
(Would be really nice if I could just get everything on a nice little disc, but with the idea of it being open source and constantly updated that might not work too well.)

[Androgeos Exeunt]

I'm not being helpful to Turey, am I? Anyway, here's how I do it on both my PC and Mac.

I never use the Installer, preferring instead to do it the old-fashioned way. What I do is to download the Launcher and FS2_Open, then download the mediavps and put everything accordingly in the FS2 folder. The mediavps I put into a subfolder titled "mediavps", while I leave the Launcher and FS2_Open in the root directly.

When you install FS2_Open this way, you can transfer files all over the place with no worries...like from your laptop to your PC, for instance. Just transfer the files from your laptop to your FS2 folder in your PC, and you're good to go.

[Akalabeth Angel]

(I think...) I didn't realize at first that the game would (Would be really nice if I could just get everything on a nice little disc, but with the idea of it being open source and constantly updated that might not work too well.)

         Little off topic, but TBP (The Babylon Project, a total conversion to Babylon 5) is being put onto a disk. Sometime. They've been threatening to burn the first disk for a few months now but they keep pushing it back for more content. But I think it'll be done relatively soon.


         

[eliex]

Having FSO looking life-like is the best part of Freespace.

Check out this thread, it has virtually collected all the tips to get FSO to look good and its easy to follow.

http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,53294.0.html
Enjoy Freespace. 

[karajorma]

So do you think that I could use the FreeSpace Installer to download it onto my laptop, and then just copy the folder over to my Desktop at home, and then run the installer on the desktop so that it can configure everything for it?

It's not even that hard.

http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,56110.0.html

[Jeff Vader]

I never use the Installer, preferring instead to do it the old-fashioned way. What I do is to download the Launcher and FS2_Open, then download the mediavps and put everything accordingly in the FS2 folder. The mediavps I put into a subfolder titled "mediavps", while I leave the Launcher and FS2_Open in the root directly.

When you install FS2_Open this way, you can transfer files all over the place with no worries...like from your laptop to your PC, for instance. Just transfer the files from your laptop to your FS2 folder in your PC, and you're good to go.

You can do that after using the Installer as well. Since the "Installer" actually just downloads. The Launcher creates the registry entries. If you want to move FreeSpace to another computer, be a sport and just move it yourself without redownloading everything unnecessarily.

Are you drunk? Or did you sit a roller coaster?

I did have two pints and a Salmari. But after a nice six-hour sleep I'm all ****ing sunshine now.

[Jinxt]

OK guys, that is some good news that I can just copy it over and it will work perfectly, that way I can just burn a DVD. Anyways, I'm working on downloading it to my laptop at college right now. Hopefully I will be blasting some aliens tonight... That is what we blast in this game right?

[Herra Tohtori]

Among other things, yes.

[Jinxt]

Very good, veerrryyy goooduh... I love alien blasting.

(Another question, If I have selected all the stuff to download, approximately how large is the total file size?)

[Herra Tohtori]

My test installation using the Launcher sizes 3.58 GB, but I'm not sure if the files are downloaded compressed or non-compressed...

[Jinxt]

Hmm, well I sure hope its compressed, I may have to wait even longer. I'm only here another hour, so ill probably only get half of it done today, oh well, maybe I can hook up at my uncles and ruin his WoW experience. Hehe...

[Mongoose]

Aliens, humans, rocks, your wingmen, your training instructor, cargo, empty space...it's all fair game.

[Jeff Vader]

..., nebular gas clouds,...