Archive for February, 2008

How to improve your FPS in CS

Tuesday, February 26th, 2008

OmniTweaker - Improve FPS in CSI came across a software that actually does Improve your FPS in CS (CounterStrike). It’s called “OmniTweaker” which is simply put a front-end for config tweaking. It gives you all the performance related options that games don’t put in their ‘Advanced Settings’ screen. Every tweak has an extensive explanation of what it does and to which value you should set it.OmniTweaker also fully optimizes all games it supports for online play, by calculating perfect rates based on your connection speed. I did all my netcode research with the network protocol analyser Ethereal.You can also load previously created configs so you can start tweaking where you left off, and OmniTweaker will also make backups automatically, so you don’t ever lose your configs!Changelog
v1.06 (16 jan 06)
* Fixed bug: rightclick cvarmenu Ultra FPS is working again
> Improved: Load game screen is now larger (less scrolling)
> Improved: Source engine based game profiles (r_lod multi improved)
+ Added: code to find Enemy Territory automatically
+ Added: information icon in the edit screen
v1.05 (14 jan 06)
* Fixed bug: Steam games now save configs as userconfig.cfg (autoexec.cfg was broken), please retweak your Steam games!
* Fixed bug: Update checker in OmniTweaker.exe doesn’t download a huge 404 page anymore, but the correct update.txt file
* Fixed bug: CS1.6/CZ profile displaying incorrect example of default save location
> Improved: lock read write config writing, no more ‘messed up’ configs
+ Information on default save locations
v1.04 (31 oct 05)
* Auto-Update: changed auto-updater to download from sorber.be
* Fixed bug: the infamous beep error
+ Added Game Profiles: DoD: Source and Natural Selection!
+ Installer: updated all new files
v1.03 (06 sep 05)
> Improved: wrong syntax handling in custom configs


v1.02 (26 aug 05)
* Fixed bug: OT wouldn’t start up without an internet connection
> Improved: OT game profile loading and responsiveness
+ Installer: added game profiles and icons
* Installer: updated uninstaller
Installer (14 aug 05)
+ Updated: OmniToolz v1.01
* Fixed bug: Removed unused reference to msinet.ocx (reduces filesize)
v1.01 (10 aug 05)
* Fixed bug: error if autoupdate is on and there is no internet connection
v1.00 (08 aug 05)
+ Initial release
Download OMNI TWEAKER here

Invoker Spells – Dota 6.50

Tuesday, February 26th, 2008

Dota 6.50 was out yesterday and the very famous hero Invoker has been added back. I’ve been searching for Invoker Spells but couldn’t find a good resource so I decided to throw in what is out there. Presenting Invoker Spells for Dota 6.50
Invoker

Kael The Invoker

Spells:

Quas
Quas

Gives 0.75 HP regen per level per instance. Can be learned at level: 1/3/5/7/9/11/13.

Wex
Wex

Given 2% AS and 1% MS per level per instance. Can be learned at level: 1/3/5/7/9/11/13.

Exort
Exort

3 damage per level per instance. Can be learned at level: 1/3/5/7/9/11/13.

Level 6 – Invoke [QQW] – [R]

invoke

Combines the properties of the elements currently being manipulated, creating a new spell at Invokers disposal. The invoked spell is determined by the combination of Quas, Wex and Exort.

Level 1 – 1 Invoke, 30 cd
Level 2 - 2 Invoke, 30 cd
Level 3 – 2 Invoke, 15 cd
Level 4 – 2 Invoke, 5 cd

Can be learned at level: 5/10/15/20.

Alright, we just covered Invokers basic Spells.. Keep in mind that Q represents Quas, W is Wex and E is Exort! This will help you in managing Invokers spells.
The Breakdown:

Cold Snap [QQQ] – [Y]
Cold Snap

Invoker draws the heat from an enemy, chilling them to their very core for up to 6 seconds based on Quas. Any damage taken in this state will briefly stun them for 0.4 seconds and deal 30 damage.
Triggers cooldown goes from 0.8 to 0.6 seconds based on Quas.

Alacrity [WWW] – [Z]
Alacrity

Invoker infuses an ally with an immense surge of energy, increasing their attack speed to a maximum of 160% based on Wex for 5 seconds.

Sun Strike [EEE] – [T]
Sun Strike

Sends a catastrophic ray of fierce energy from the sun at any targeted location after a 1.7 second delay, incinerating all enemies standing beneath it. Deals 75-450 damage based on Exort which is spread over all enemy units withing its 200 AoE.

Ghost Walk [QQW] – [V]
Ghost Walk

Invoker manipulates the ice and electrical energies around him, rendering his body invisible. The elemental imbalance created as a consequence slows nearby enemies by up to 40% based on Quas, and Invoker from 30 to 0% based on Wex.

Ice Wall [QQE] – [G]
ice Wall

Generates a wall of solid ice directly in front of Invoker for up to 10 seconds. The bitter cold emanating from it greatly slows nearby enemies based on Quas and deals to up to 30 damage each second based on Exort.

Tornado [WWQ] – [X]
Tornado

Unleashes a fast moving tornado that picks up enemy units in its path, suspending them helplessly in the air shortly before allowing them to plummet to their doom. Deals 375 damage based on Wex and Quas, with distance up to 3100 based on Wex. Holds enemies in the air for up to 2.2 seconds based on Quas.

EMP [WWE] – [C]
EMP

Invoker builds up a charge of electromagnetic energy at a targeted location which automatically detonates after 2-4 seconds based on Wex. The detonation covers a 700 area, dealing up to 300 damage based on Exort and draining up to 400 mana based on Wex.

Forge Spirit [EEQ] – [F]
Forge Spirit

Invoker forges a spirit embodying the strength of fire and fortitude of ice. Attack range, damage and life is based on Exort while mana, duration, and armor is based on Quas. The elementals scorching attack is capable of melting the armor on enemy heroes by 1 each hit to a maximum of 10 for 5 seconds. By maxing Quas and Exort, Invoker is capable of creating 2 spirits instead of 1.

Chaos Meteor [EEW] – [D]
Chaos Meteor

Invoker pulls a flaming meteor from space onto the targeted location. Upon landing, the meteor rolls forward dealing up to 260 damage per second based on Exort for up to 1550 range based on Wex. Deals minor residual damage to units that get hit.

Defeaning Blast [QWE] – [B]
Defeaning Blast

Invoker unleashes a mighty sonic wave in front of him, dealing up to 280 damage to any enemy unit it collides with based on Exort. The sheer impact from the blast is enough to knock those enemy units back for a maximum of 1.75 seconds based on Quas, in addition to preventing their attacks for a further 1-4 seconds based on Wex.

That’s about it with the Invoker Spells for Dota 6.50 :) – I hope you enjoyed it!

How to reduce lag in WoW

Monday, February 25th, 2008

A nice tutorial on how to fix and reduce lag in WoW (World of Warcraft)
The fix which only requires you to change 2 small things in the windows registry allows your ping in World of Warcraft to drop by 100-150, and it only takes about 5 minutes to apply.

Warning:
If you aren’t comfortable changing files in your registry you may just want to wait for blizzard to create a working fix.1 – TcpAckFrequency:NOTE; if you are running Windows Vista this setting may not have any effect – a hotfix is needed which i’m tracking down. This works fine under Windows XP

Type “regedit” in windows “run..” dialog to bring up registry menu

Then find:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic
es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\

There will be multiple NIC interfaces listed in there, find the one you use to connect to the internet, there will be several interfaces listed (they have long names like {7DBA6DCA-FFE8-4002-A28F-4D2B57AE8383}. Click each one, the right one will have lots of settings in it and you will see your machines IP address listed there somewhere. Right-click in the right hand pane and add a new DWORD value, name it TcpAckFrequency, then right click the entry and click Modify and assign a value of 1.

You can change it back to 2 (default) at a later stage if it affects your other TCP application performance. it tells windows how many TCP packets to wait before sending ACK. if the value is 1, windows will send ACK every time it receives a TCP package.

2 – TCPNoDelay:

Type “regedit” in windows “run..” dialog to bring up registry menu

Then find:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSMQ\Paramet
ers

Right-click in the right hand pane and add a new DWORD value, name it TCPNoDelay, then right click the entry and click Modify and assign a value of 1.

Click Ok and close the registry editor, then reboot your PC.”

Basically, this fix is deactivating the Nagle algorithm to improve your ping. If you don’t want to do it you can just wait for the 2.3.2 patch as it’s supposed to deactivate it too, but I don’t think you can test it on PTRs right now because the updated patch notes from the latest PTR Build (7705) are actually for the upcoming build (7710).