Updates

I guess thought this was ironic, Guild Wars new system that means 'There is no down time when a update is released. Yet when they do update it becomes unplayable till the update is finished. For a small update this is fine, but please uses some sense.
For the summer update take the servers off line and update. Otherwise those with slower internet connections will really suffer and likely cause pain for other players in groups.

Thats unless you are already updateing it, as the game was laggy as hell for me 15mins ago, and my system is on a 1mb adsl, 3ghz p4 with 1g ddr, ati xt800xt 256mb graphics. It sould never lagg.

ooohh... nasty.
i have no idea what any of those numbers mean but i presume you do.
i must admit that this update is likely to be rather large and there will be a lot of people running into wall for no reason in all major cities.
if they took the severs off-line there would probably be more complaints than about the lag.
pesonally the only times i ever really encounter bad lag are when Norton decides to have a random spot check for viruses.

GIVE ME YOUR COMPUTER!!!!! AND YOUR CONNECTION!!!!....then i'll solve your problems with lag.....

Lag happens, it's not always ANets or your computers fault. Remember, the internet is a series of linked computers, if computer D in a series of You-A-B-C-D-E-F-ANet is running slow, etc, you're gonna feel lag.

I hear ya on the Norton Virus scan. Every Saturday night at 7pm my Norton is set to scan. I ALWAYS forget about this and I haven't changed it yet. (Silly ME) I am right in the middle of healing the group and *BING* my screen disapears. I also ALWAYS run my Norton Internet Security while playing this game. It doesnt seem to slow down anything and always askes me if I want to allow the updates. I like to be asked. I know some people shut down all that stuff...but not me. I like feeling I have that little extra to protect me.

As for LAG mine is few and far between. When it happens to me it is usually happening to many others too. I'll just tell the group to stop. Let the LAG "Spell" pass then go on and finish what we were doing. When you have had most of your Adult computer life with Dial-Up and had to deal with that slowness...a Little LAG from this Game is not all that bad.

Been playing GW since release.

- turn off all virus checks
- turn off all spyware checks
- turn off crap listeners such as: Quicktime, Real Player, AIM sign-in, BigFix, etc...
- turn off un-needed services: SQL Server, etc...

I have zero spyware, adware, virus', hackware, hijackers, etc... on my machine, BUT everything runs smoother and I have more memory free for the game. Right now the machine gets rebooted after any gaming (which will turn everything back on for non-online gaming computer usage).


System:
AMD Athlon 64 (2.8)
1GB Ram
1600 MHz front-side bus
1.5 MB L2 cache
DSL 256k connection on a router sharing with 2 54Mb/s wireless gamers
[only bottleneck] - 64 MB ATI Video (9550)
Laptop system (15.4" - 1200x800)


PS> for the record - I do not use AIM, one of the biggest transporters of spyware (next to Kazaa-type software) there is. BUt if you do - turn off completely before logging into GW.

You more than likely WILL NOT download the entire update at once. GW works so that you only download the files when you need them. So in essence (unless they decide to do it another way) you will only download the specific files when you enter the two new areas. The same thing goes with the "new content." You only download things on a need-to-have basis. Granted I could be wrong seeing as I do not work for A.net, but I would assume it would be the same as any other update, just bigger.

I disagree with the first two. You should never shut down anti-virus and anti-spyware, that's what it is there for. You should be able to run anything fine with those type of services running. Just don't be doing any scans.

The third one should rarely happen as it is.

I've run AIM while playing Guild Wars, even had GW windowed to chat in AIM, hehe. AIM has the Wild Tangent spyware that can be easily removed.

No, when there is a major update there is often 50MB or more to download before you hit the log-in screen.
For broadband users, this may take a few minutes, but for Dialup users it can take an hour or two. It happened to me before, when I was still on dialup.

They update the server whilest you are playing thats what causes the lag, NOT when you update your version.
Yes you may DL parts individually when the version thats running on your home PC needs them.
So alas Omega Complex whilest you are correct about how the home user updates, you are wrong about the server when that updates, the part before it says restart GW as a new version is available, thats when the lag hits.

I'm not an expert on updates on GW servers :P...Thanks for the correction Avenger.

Yeah when Norton pops up and minimises GW I just want to shoot it.

I have a feeling only the required files will be downloaded when you start, then when you enter the new areas it will download the new content in that area.

Wow... umm, interesting advice update that pretty much says "turn everything off".

I run with MSN, Steam, AV, Outlook, usually Winamp for some music... and who knows how many other backgrounds services all ON. And the only lag I suffer is the occasional 'warp' where I end up somewhere 5 meters away from where I was.

This is on either one of my systems, the slower of the two being P4 2.4. Guess I just get lucky. The day I turn off all my protection services, or luxuries like music for that matter, will be the same day I spam to everyone in the world "Oh please hack me!!".

One logic point was up there, the internet is a series of devices connecting two points together. Issues anywhere along the path are more likely to cause lag than that of anything running locally on your system (unless of course its that low end).

Well I always shut off pre-loaded CRAP. Winamp,messenger,yahoo,etc. I dont see the need to have them pre-loaded in the first place. They do not take that long to load when you need them.

Any protection is alwasy on. However, norton is one of the biggest memory HOGS of them all. *sigh*

I don't think they should crash the servers just becuase of the 50-500 people with a 28k modem >.>

All the downloads I have ever gotten were finished in less than 10 seconds and I have Sprint DSL which is made for sending data, not receiving it O.o

I have never had a problem with lag, either server-side or client-side.

I run:

[PROC] AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core 4800+ (939pin, 2000MHz FSB, .09 micron)
[RAM] 4x 2048MB Dual Channel 533MHz ECC Registered PC4200 DD2 RAM (8GB Total)
[HD] 2x Western Digital Raptor 74GB Serial ATA-150 (10K RPM, 8MB Cache, 5.2ms seek)
[HD] 2x Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 400GB Serial ATA-150 (7.2K RPM, 8MB Cache, <7.9ms seek)
[VID] nVidia GeForce 7800 GTX OC (25MB DDR3, PCI-E, SLI, Dual DVI)
[SND] Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
[MONI] IBM ThinkVision L200p LCD (20.1")
[KEYPAD] X-Keys Desktop USB 20 Key Programmable Keypad
[INET] Cable Internet (8192KBs down/2048KBs up)

Never had a problem before.

With a setup like that, yep I couldn't imagine much of a problem with anything. Little overkill for well... any... game in existance. But if I ever won the lottery I'd do the same thing.

I'm not sure if something faster than T3 can still be classified as Cable...

I do play a lot of Guild Wars, but I recieve grants from the University (Old Dominion University) to keep my computer up to date for research purposes (computer programming) as well as 3D model design (3dsmax, lightwave, etc). So for me, it's not only free, but necessary to do my work in a timely manner. (The faster I do my work, the more GW I play.)

You can get much faster than a T3 over cable. Most cable ISPs cap your bandwidth. I know, I work for a telecommunications company [Since I'm posting from work, I'll keep my job position/company anonymous].

I run Guild Wars with winamp, photoshop, opera, steam, AIM and generally a vent and teamspeak client open as well as an FTP Server and a Port Tunneler at all times...I never experience any lag other than the 'warp' lag that Teklord described.

p.s. antivirus software is for noobs

Zehly: that system is a bit overkill even for an animator/modeller...but if you're not the one paying for it more power to ya

Well you can run just about anything if you have enough ram in order to do it.
I run with 1.5GB ram. It makes my system's overall speed faster.

As for your little joke about antivirus software....when you have a family using the home network...antivirus software is a wise choice. It has saved me many hours of pulling my hair out reformating my hard drives.

I can't afford to lose anymore hair. Nature is taking it's toll on me as it is.

I just have a AMD anthlon comparable to a Pentium 4 (Though it's not a peice of junk), a geforce 2 (Not supported) and a Pro Savage S3 graphics enhancer: I've very, very rarely had client side lag in 2 months.

Anet really did a great job in preparing the game for players who don't of the best engines on the market.

With the processor I could probably play the game on the highest setting with no lag (I know I did that in Star Wars Galaxies) but my graphics card would probably conk out.

roflmao!

Family doesn't touch my computer. They have their own computers on their network on their own connection.

I <3 my computer

The kind of update GW use is what I regard as just-in-time installs. I have a software at work that does the same thing. It only install necessary contents on-the-fly.

I believe the installs/updates you got when you log in are necessary for GW to run. Then when you get to each town or a new map you download the other needed pieces.

my computer is just a lot better than yours...and i never lag...dishout some cash:-P

that and the summer update will prolly be one of those new vesion available things, unless it is only maps

My system is:

P4, 3ghz
800 FSB cache
1g ram
ATI 9800 Pro 256mgb video
Cable connection

I have had ZERO lag since product launch.

From my experience, it sometimes doesn't matter if you have the best sytem put together. If your internet connection or ISP sucks, that is the problem.

As someone noted earlier, you don't connect directly from your home system to ANet, you pass through any number of intermediate sites inbetween. If one or more of those sites tend to lag, then you'll have lag through no fault of your ISP or ANet. I played a Mud (text based multiplayer online game) for years that was located in California that I had terrible lag problems with due to the fact that one of the relay sites between me and the Mud had nasty lag problems.

***************

When it comes to anti-virus software running all the time, if you are in control of your system (i.e. are the only one that uses it) then you only have to virus scan incoming files. Viruses don't spontaneously erupt on your system, they have to arrive there from incoming files.

Also, if you download files from reputable sources then you don't have to worry about viruses to begin with. I have no virus protection on my system, never have, and I've never had a virus infection in over 15 years of computer use. About once ever couple of months I go to housecall.antivirus.com and run their -free- online virus check (better than Norton's IMO), so far it's never found anything.

Depending on the settings you have for it, running anti-virus software in the background can really hurt your computer's performance. Some of these programs can spend tremendous amounts of CPU and harddrive capacity constantly checking RAM, the data passing through your internet connection, and your harddrive for viruses. In a weird way, your anti-virus program can become a defacto virus, harming your system performance.

Working for an anti-virus and anti-spyware company I can't agree with you.

There is a reason why most games state to shut them down when doing any installs or even playing more intensive games. Most scanners will use about 60% of your available resources when running. Most games like the same amount... that totals to 120%... system crash or complete slowdown while it resorts to the swap file in a sequence that won't be pretty.

If all you're doing is playing a game... turn it off, but make sure your IM's, file sharing programs and everything else is turned off too.

free.grisoft.com

free.grisoft.com

free.grisoft.com

I use Symantec Antivirus Corporate v10 64bit edition. It does on-access, real time scanning. It never slows down my PC. I've used it on less-gifted computers and it works well too, even on a 900MHz Athlon. If you use a Windows-Based operating system, turning off your antivirus is only acceptable if your computer is powered-off. Otherwise, you are ALWAYS succeptable to viruses/trojans/etc from places you never thought you could get them.

An alternative to disabling antivirus is to disable on-access scanning, and schedule regular full system scans (e.g., every night at 1am), or setup smart scans for every bootup.

As far as spyware goes, you shouldn't have a problem if you don't use Netscape or IE. You can disable your spyware scanning while you are playing GW, so long as you re-enable it when you surf the web.

If you have a software firewall (ZoneAlarm, etc.) then you have a completely separate problem. The only reasonable software firewall to use is the one provided by Microsoft in Windows XP/2000 operating systems. This is because it's integrated into the network drivers, so blocking incoming packets is a function already inside the same library.

Hardware firewalls are generally the best solution. A router, albeit not intended for firewall use, suffices in most cases. I personally have an 800MHz NetBSD box for my firewall. Dialup users don't have this luxary, however this a moot point, because they are prone to lag issues by the inherant nature of the connection.

Services under Windows XP/2000+ versions are generally not an issue. The SQL server, for example, while loaded into RAM, is dormant until it is needed. You can load all the basic services with windows (including the kernel) with under 250MB of ram (and not using any swap/virtual space). These only affect performance under the most extreme of circumstances.

Programs such as AIM and ICQ are not passive programs. Like GW, they are constantly communicating with the server, even if they aren't being used by you. I can understand closing these programs--I don't, but I have no reason to with my box .

Other software optimizations not mentioned here that could attribute to either Video or Network lag could be, but not limited to:
- Out of date video drivers,
- Out of date network drivers,
- Out of date DirectX,
- Improper MTU settings for your connection interface,
- 10BaseT networks can experience high latency with an extreme load (transferring files between computers on wireless connections),
- Having a wireless connection,
- Improper swap file settings,
- Inflated registry,
- etc, etc, etc.
- You're using a Windows Operating System, hindering your systems overall throughput potentional.

I hope this can help you, from the IT/MCSE perspective. PM me if questions.

When will people learn that Nortons sucks centaur balls? It's slow and it's bloatware. Get rid of it the next time you reformat (never uninstall it any other way) and you'll be glad you did.

Running Kaspersky now and I'm much happier with it.

(Sorry about the rant, I just dislike Nortons intensely)

The consumer (Norton) product sucks.

The corporate (Symantec) owns you.