Why does ISI need mirrors to distribute official game content?

[Bram Hengeveld]

Sorry to sound negative but I find it weird that official content needs to be distributed via community mirror links. Especially considering we've paid a fair amount of money for online support.

Why are official cars and tracks not included in the auto-updater so we can update our entire game with the click of one button?

Instead i need to crawl through a dozen of (extremely slow loading) ISI forum and website pages to find all the new content that is released.

I absolutely love the way this game is heading when it comes to driving, physics and features but I expected a more easy way to distribute and install the content as its not user friendly at all.

I thought this was all included in the lifetime subscription I purchased. Rent one proper streaming server for a couple of hundred euros a month and the problem is solved.

 

[Tom]

I'll get rich in no time. I just had the greatest idea. I'll upload all rF2 mods to my uploaded.net account and live off of the traffic revenue. Thanks Bram Hengeveld!

 

[Marco Bijl]

Lol If only life would be that simple...

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

Busy for five minutes and frustrated like hell again. Wanted to install a clean version.

First i go to the rfactor site and have to browse for four minutes to find the right page with all the content.

Select rFactor 2 Lite: click dropbox link.

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Nothing Here​

The file you're looking for has been deleted or moved.​

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

Tom Endres please do that as it would be a great help

 

[Tom]

Tom Endres please do that as it would be a great help

I actually mirrored some already (and forgot to post the links) before my account went inactive (forgot to extend it) for a few hours and they got deleted. I'll mirror them again tonight / tomorrow (might take a while).

Tom

 

[MarcG]

Busy for five minutes and frustrated like hell again. Wanted to install a clean version.

First i go to the rfactor site and have to browse for four minutes to find the right page with all the content.

Select rFactor 2 Lite: click dropbox

four minutes!?! sorry but yyou must be blind, go to official site, click Downloads on the left....voila....not even 4 seconds!!

 

[Marco Bijl]

four minutes!?! sorry but yyou must be blind, go to official site, click Downloads on the left....voila....not even 4 seconds!!

Lol In 4 seconds, the first logo isnt even loaded . Now I now Bram was being ironical, but its a fact that its quite hidden, and not so user friendly. For those involved since day 1, its pretty clear, but for new guys, its quite a search, over a dreadful slow forum.

 

[MarcG]

Lol In 4 seconds, the first logo isnt even loaded . Now I now Bram was being ironical, but its a fact that its quite hidden, and not so user friendly. For those involved since day 1, its pretty clear, but for new guys, its quite a search, over a dreadful slow forum.

he said site not forum and yes the website loads that quickly for me anyway, regardless it's very easy to find the downloads page aas its right there in front of you!!

 

[Stefan Mizzi]

I thought that the Dutch had fast internet

I do not have the problems reported above, but I do agree, for first users it's not user friendly and links are not straightforward to find...

ISI needs a new and nice web site, easy for users to check latest news, download stuff etc.

 

[Marco Bijl]

ISI Site (forum) is extremely slow. It takes a lot of time to load pages. which isnt to bad if you know where to go. But if you select the wrong link, you are easily a minute away from where you wanted to go .
If you google for ISI rfactor2, you are directed to the forum. If you google rfactor2, you are directed to the correct site for downloading. So, a mistake is easily made, and especially those who are NOT familiar with the sites from ISI, it can easy happen that you end up on the forum, and have to go through there.... For guys like yourself (Pulley), active on ISI forum as well, working with the game a long time now (and therefore downloaded from the download page a lot), I can understand that it's "easy". For those who are just looking to install the game (like Bram Hengeveld), it's looking for a needle in a haystack (as with just about anything you want to find on ISI forum).
When you know where to go (as with all in life), it's indeed a bit more easy.

In relation to the game, I have to admit that there have been better ideas for this. On the other side, take the mod manager out of the equation, and comparing it to rf1, Race07, GSC and which ever I know.... All custom content (ok, I know, ISI also does this for the default content) needs to be downloaded, and installed. All other platforms have the same misery. rFactor2 actually made it a bit better in a way, because of the (out of the box) mod manager, and so the elimination of 3rd party software to manage the mods. If they would have incorporated the ISI content in the game, and made the lite version free of all content, it would be an improvement.

But then again, its human nature to bash on all changes first, and then look at it with a neutral view. There is a lot of negativity around rfactor2. A lot (IMO) is hugely exaggerated, and not realistic. Do not get me wrong here, there is a lot not OK, but I do not think it's fair to judge based on not meeting your own (personal) expectations.

Anyway, that's a separate discussion. The thread was about why they need mirrors to distribute their (official) content. Not about how frustrating it is to install the game. There are pro's and cons for the choices they made. Somehow, that doesn't sound strange compared to real life, as almost all choices have pros and cons.

And the fact remains that, regardles if you can find it easy or not, ISI needs/uses mirrors and torrents to distribute their content and updates. And for a company the size of ISI (the company, not the ISI part that makes rf2), this pathetic. Holding back in releasing updates via the AutoUpdater, to save bandwith. Thats something a starting company would do. I would not expect that to be done by a company like ISI.

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

he said site not forum and yes the website loads that quickly for me anyway, regardless it's very easy to find the downloads page aas its right there in front of you!!

Not for me. I find it a dog of a site (and forums). Extremely slow, hard to find things when you are not browsing it on daily basis.

For a service I pay 90 bucks for online support I don't even want to go to a dropbox link or a magnet file for a torrent to be honest. Not to mention indirect links to pages full with advertisements that cannot be avoided. Its not a system that is acceptable for me anymore in 2013.

Maybe I am fighting windmills here but this system is not good for new people that have never played rFactor before or are new to simracing entirely when even average rFactor users can't download, install or run their game without problems.

Actually, why not put all the core files on Steam instead. Seems to be the way forward for Kunos, SMS, Codemasters, Simbin and others. One click install and have your core game up to date at all time. And for the Steam haters keep the webbased stuff in place as a choice.

Got the lite version now via another link so download is nearly complete

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

As a matter of fact all dropbox links are dead for car files.

 

[Stefan Mizzi]

Got the lite version now via another link so download is nearly complete

What? You are trying rF2 for the first time? Hope you'll join us on some of the RD fun events

PS: ISI Forum speed is quite fast for me, strange. But I agree with your points

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

What? You are trying rF2 for the first time?

No not the first time, but I gave up with all the version updates you had to apply manually.

Now clean sweeped the rfactor 2 folder and start from scratch.

And yes I want to race some classic F3's as they are awesome

 

[MarcG]

yeah granted the whole mod system from ISI is bizarre and fundamentally flawed but the fact is it's simple to find and download files from the official site, that's where most people go for any type of game if they require official content...the official website, and I'm sorry but for a complete novice it's easy to find the download section and start downloading.

Forums are a bit of a mess, but I would'nt expect any change regarding that as ISI seem intent on doing everything behind closed doors and only communicating when needed, or when Tim has PMT and gets more involved with pointless posts than actually helping people ou, they really need a better communicator between fans & staff, Time should just stick to what he's best at and getting licensees.

Check out the Bug/Support forum, tons of questions and help needed but no direct ISI replies and it's been that way forever.

 

[Marco Bijl]

Not saying its hard Pulley, but for someone who wants the game for the first time, its easy to get lost . And if you do, it feels hard, and that what Bram was getting at if I am correct .

About the bug forum, I stopped going there since the things I reported in build 49, where still present 5 builds later, and no comment what so ever had been made. Same with suggestions. On the other hand, they do have taken some input from there, and implemented it. They just do not talk about it much.

They say its because they want their guys to spend their time on developing, which is off course a very valid point! But there is a lot of "grey" area between the current amount of attention, and a fully run forum/site/marketing/communication.

And that said, we are back at the original question. How can it be that a company like this, has such a poor distribution system. I think that's nicely in line with the lack of communication, and other attention to its customers.

 

[Marco Bijl]

About the lack of attention, interest and communication:

First line:
Do not use this forum for bug reports.

All the red circles are bug reports posted in this forum place. Nothing has been done to clean it up, or give some form of attention.

This is the standard of ISI site. (As said before, when using google, and search for ISI rfactor2, you come to the forum).
When you come to the forum, you are doomed and if you are lucky you can find what you want.
If you get to the official site, you should be ok.
I downloaded Palm beach 1.4x last week there. It took about 3 hours, while all other downloads where normal in speed. Started it over twice, but speed of that particular one did not change.
It seems its ok again now, but another strange thing I noticed when finding content.

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

On a very positive note. The latest build went flawlessly through the AutoUpdater

Only thing I need now is a small heads up in the rf2 start prog that there is an update available.

If they build that in: perfecto!!

 

[MarcG]

About the lack of attention, interest and communication:

First line:
Do not use this forum for bug reports.

All the red circles are bug reports posted in this forum place. Nothing has been done to clean it up, or give some form of attention.

This is the standard of ISI site. (As said before, when using google, and search for ISI rfactor2, you come to the forum).
When you come to the forum, you are doomed and if you are lucky you can find what you want.
If you get to the official site, you should be ok.
I downloaded Palm beach 1.4x last week there. It took about 3 hours, while all other downloads where normal in speed. Started it over twice, but speed of that particular one did not change.
It seems its ok again now, but another strange thing I noticed when finding content.

you need to post that to the main ISI forum and see if anyone bothers with a response, for a released game the customer service is quite shocking unfortunatley.