Jane's(r) Combat Simulations

Jane's® Combat Simulations

USAF DEMO README

September, 1999

Climb the pyramid to be the top pilot of the most advanced air force in the world: the USAF. Fly and train over US soil in the F-16C Falcon and A-10 Warthog or an arsenal of six other planes. Then relive great historic air battles flying the rugged F-4E over Vietnam or the powerful F-15C in Operation Desert Storm. Finally, push the envelope flying the menacing F-117 Stealth Fighter and ultra-modern F-22 Raptor as you project the power of the United States in futuristic campaigns over Europe. If that's not enough, take your skills to the net flying against other aces on JanesCombat.Net.

Fly the hottest 8 jets in the U.S. Air Force
More than 62 historical and hypothetical missions including a semi-dynamic future campaign.
Advanced graphics featuring spectacular special effects, 3D cockpits for each aircraft, and screen resolution up to 1280 x 1024.
Mission recording and playback.
Detailed 'real-world' terrain using stereoscopic satellite data with true elevation and coloring.
Voice activation for wingman commands, aircraft operations, and pre-defined chat messages
JanesCombat.Net compatible - Multiplayer mode supports up to 16 players

USAF features a next-generation 3D terrain engine featuring high resolution, and high frame rate terrain rendering on low-end system specifications. It also contains advanced special effects including night flight, shadows, multiple explosion types and much more. All flyable aircraft in USAF have full 3D virtual cockpits.

Track every step you make, from the moment you get your wings until you retire as a 4 Star General, in detail never before seen in a flight simulation. Every kill, every loss, every medal won, every injury incurred, every hour in every aircraft in every battle is all logged automatically. Trace your career development, learn from your mistakes, and earn your place at the top of the mythical pyramid.

The USAF demo includes a sample single-player mission created especially for this demo that includes both air-to-air and air-to-ground action to give you a feel of what you can expect in the full version of the game. Feel free to adjust the game difficulty settings within the Preferences menu. You can start off easy until you are familiar with the game (and the mission), and then increase the difficulty for a real challenge.

[3] DISPLAY ISSUES
Chipset Support

USAF supports D3D only, it does not support Glide or OpenGL. A Glide or OpenGL based card will default to D3D.

Display Driver Setup

USAF will automatically try to detect the best 3D card for your machine. It will: first, try to initialize D3D; last, try to initialize Direct3D on a secondary 3D card.

Display Driver Support

Important! Check Your Video Card Drivers. If you are having trouble running USAF, please make sure you have the most recent drivers available for your video card(s). Consult your video hardware documentation for information about where to find the latest drivers -- usually they can be downloaded from the manufacturer's website.

A Brief Overview of the 3D Technology Applied in USAF

What is DirectX?

DirectX is an API (Application Program Interface) that allows games designed for Windows 95 to have access to your hardware through a standard interface. Without a standard interface, stable compatibility between games and your computer's hardware would be virtually impossible. With DirectX, game developers can write for this interface, and let your Windows 95/98 DirectX compatible drivers "talk" to your computer's hardware.

USAF requires DirectX 6 or later. If you are having trouble with DirectX, please refer to the customer support web link at the bottom of this file. There is a Help Guide for DirectX and Windows 95 and Windows 98. You may also refer to the following Microsoft link for more general information on DirectX.

http://www.microsoft.com/DirectX/default.asp

What is Direct3D?

Direct3D is a universal API from Microsoft providing a standard interface for programmers to access your 3D hardware without having to write for specific devices. Most 3D cards support Direct3D. The latest driver package for your card should contain Direct3D drivers for your video card.

[4] OPTIMIZING GAME PERFORMANCE ON YOUR SYSTEM

If you are having problems running USAF, first make sure that your video card drivers are current.

Adjust settings in the 3D and Sound Options Screens (located in the Preferences menu). Access the Preferences menu by single-clicking on the Preferences button located on the Main Menu. Here you can make changes that will potentially improve frame rate and graphic display, particularly if your system just meets the minimum requirements for playing. You can also make other changes to suit your needs.

To increase frame rate, or compensate for video card limitations or problems, try modifying these USAF settings:

Turn off the Cockpit (Use the F1 key in game to do this).

Set the Display Resolution to 800x600x16, in Preferences > Graphics > Display.

Disable External Loadout in Preferences > Graphics > Objects.

Disable Objects Mip-Map in Preferences > Graphics > Objects.

Disable Environment Illumination in Preferences > Graphics > Effects.

Disable Object Illumination in Preferences > Graphics > Effects.

Ensure that Trilinear, and Bilinear filtering are both disabled in Preferences > Graphics > Effects.

Terrain Texture Quality can be set using a slide bar located in Preferences > Graphics > Terrain.

Terrain Texture Complexity can be set using a slide bar located in Preferences > Graphics > Terrain.

[5] INPUT DEVICE SETUP

In order to get optimum Input Device performance with USAF, you must setup your peripherals with the Windows 95 or Windows 98 joystick calibration program. Below are the steps to follow in order to setup your peripherals:

- In Windows, click Start > Settings > Control Panel.

- When the CONTROL PANEL window appears, double-click on the Joystick icon. If you have installed a Microsoft or Gravis joystick, this Icon may appear as "Gaming devices" or "Gravis Joystick applet" or "Game Controllers".

- Now you should be in the Joystick Properties window. The first thing you need to do is to use the pull-down menu under Current Joystick to set it to "joystick 1".

- The next step is to use the pull-down menu under Joystick Selection to set it to the type of joystick you have. If you have rudder pedals, make sure that you put a check in the box next to rudders.

Note: if you do not see the name of your joystick or if you are unsure of the type of your joystick, contact your manufacturer for this information.

- The next step is to click the Calibration button. This will take you to the Joystick 1 Calibration window. At this point it is very important that you follow the instructions under the Calibration Information section (at the top of the window). MAKE SURE TO TEST YOUR JOYSTICK BEFORE YOU CLICK THE OK BUTTON.

- Click the OK button to finish up.

Note: If you experience any sort of "spinning" or if your plane seems uncontrollable and you have a joystick, try re-calibrating your joystick.

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THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED AS IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE WHICH ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT WILL ELECTRONIC ARTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM POSSESSION, USE, OR MALFUNCTION OF THIS ELECTRONIC ARTS SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

Some states do not allow limitations as to how long an implied warranty lasts and/or exclusions or limitations of incidental or consequential damages so the above limitations and/or exclusions of liability may not apply to you. This warranty gives you specific rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state.

ELECTRONIC ARTS RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS IN THIS FILE AND THE PRODUCT DESCRIBED IN THIS MANUAL AT ANY TIME AND WITHOUT NOTICE.

THIS MANUAL, FILE AND THE SOFTWARE HEREWITH IS COPYRIGHTED. ALL RIGHTS ARE RESERVED. NO PART OF THIS FILE OR THE SOFTWARE MAY BE COPIED, REPRODUCED, TRANSLATED, OR REDUCED TO ANY ELECTRONIC MEDIUM OR MACHINE-READABLE FORM WITHOUT THE PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT OF ELECTRONIC ARTS, P.O. BOX 9025, REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA 94063-9025, ATTN: CUSTOMER SUPPORT.

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