F15E_Recordings folder. Why we need it?

[YoYo]

Anyone have any idea what's going on with this F15E_Recordings directory: C:\Users\xxx\Saved Games\DCS.openbeta\ScreenShots\F15E_Recordings.

Why we need it? 

It will save some image from the MPDs which I don't want  because they are in png and clog up disc space. Check your destination.

Maybe bug or a forgotten beta test item that hasn't been removed before release of EA?

[YoYo]

For example, I have over 60 of these images out there, lol :

[Justin Case]

I read somewhere that there are plans for some sort of recording feature. When i scroll through the images it seems to be a sequence of radar sweeps. I have no idea how I started this recording but I think it's kinda cool!

[YoYo]

5 minutes ago, Justin Case said:

I read somewhere that there are plans for some sort of recording feature. When i scroll through the images it seems to be a sequence of radar sweeps. I have no idea how I started this recording but I think it's kinda cool!

For now, this folder has 20Mb for me, there is no tragedy, but I have already cleaned it twice. Maybe there should be an option to turn it off in Special Tab. Maybe the recording is actually activated by some push button on the MPD. Hard to tell me.

[Minsky]

Whenever you press RCD, it saves a screenshot of that display.

[bfr]

10 minutes ago, YoYo said:

For now, this folder has 20Mb for me, there is no tragedy, but I have already cleaned it twice. Maybe there should be an option to turn it off in Special Tab. Maybe the recording is actually activated by some push button on the MPD. Hard to tell me.

There is a RCD button on some of the MFD pages. Perhaps its that.

EDIT: yes, there is reference to it on page 174 of the manual

 

Edited July 11, 2023 by bfr

[YoYo]

Ill check and back with info.

Edited July 11, 2023 by YoYo

[YoYo]

51 minutes ago, bfr said:

There is a RCD button on some of the MFD pages. Perhaps its that.

EDIT: yes, there is reference to it on page 174 of the manual

 

 

Im not sure. I used it (before I cleaned this folder) , some countdown has started after pushed RCD but there are no new files saved from this, it's probably not that. Maybe this feature is not implemented in 100%?

[Justin Case]

For me it saves a few frames every second until I go RBM, then I only get one image per render which makes sense. When I press record again it just restarts and generates new files next to the previous “run”. 

[bfr]

58 minutes ago, YoYo said:

Im not sure. I used it (before I cleaned this folder) , some countdown has started after pushed RCD but there are no new files saved from this, it's probably not that. Maybe this feature is not implemented in 100%?

I just tried myself and it does seem to work, but there are oddities.

I set up a mission with me started hot on the ground. Made left MFD active (default A/A Radar) and hit RCD, it started writing a file every 10s. Hit RCD again a minute or so later, it stopped. Hit RCD on the right MFD (default HSI) and it started writing a file every 5s. Repeated with MPCD (default ADI), also every 5s. 

Starting RCD on one display starts recording of that screen, and then hitting RCD on any of them stops the one that was recording. You also don't appear to be able to record >1 display at once.

Not figured out what the significance of the counter that comes up for a bit after hitting RCD is yet though unless its literally how long it has been recording for.

You'll probably also note the filename denotes the screen captured (left MFD all start mfd_fcl, right MFD start mfd_fcr and the MPCD starts mfd_fcc).

EDIT: figured out the discrepancy I think with the A/A RDR writing a file every 10s and it must be per full completed radar sweep/full redraw of the display. If I change the radar settings to a very narrow search area it'll suddenly write 1 file pretty much every second.

EDIT2: More playing and I thought it'd pretty sweet to see if you could capture the TPOD and it seems you indeed can. Only downside if you're planning on getting some shots of hits is it seems to be stuck to a rigid 5s capture cycle so if you'll need luck to get a bomb hit on cam captured.

Hah, and at the 2nd time of asking I actually did get lucky and it screenshot at about the B of Bang.

Edited July 11, 2023 by bfr

[Minsky]

It's called 'non-programmed recording'. The real system is capable of recording of up to two displays simultaneously, in real time. What we have in DCS looks about the same, but behaves in a simplified manner.

Edited July 11, 2023 by Minsky

[Mistermann]

I remain hopeful that the ME will somehow have use for these.  Right now, I believe they are just images saved to the HD.  I'd really love to see some triggers get associated with the image subject (like the cargo ship above) so mission makers can trigger events based on a good image of said target.  IDK, the feature seems a bit neutered if there's no tie back to the mission somehow.  Maybe I'm missing the point?

[dorianR666]

6 hours ago, YoYo said:

Im not sure. I used it (before I cleaned this folder) , some countdown has started after pushed RCD but there are no new files saved from this, it's probably not that. Maybe this feature is not implemented in 100%?

it records whenever display has some "big change", for ag radar thats a new sweep or a new patchmap.

for displays that dont have "big change" events, like adi, it records every 5 seconds.

8 hours ago, YoYo said:

It will save some image from the MPDs which I don't want

dont enable the recording (rcd)

 

1 hour ago, Mistermann said:

Maybe I'm missing the point?

the point is that you have a screenshot of a display when you want it

 

this is a feature thats been in dcs for many years, such as in mi-8 which records gun camera into png when you press the trigger.

but people dont read manuals so they dont know their modules have such features.

Edited July 12, 2023 by dorianR666

[bfr]

3 hours ago, dorianR666 said:

but people dont read manuals so they dont know their modules have such features.

 

To be fair, it is far from well documented in the SE manual currently (one mention for 1 MFD page and no implementation details added).

[YoYo]

2 hours ago, bfr said:

To be fair, it is far from well documented in the SE manual currently (one mention for 1 MFD page and no implementation details added).

I'm on page 350 of manual and haven't seen much about it, other than the description of the key, not how it works and what for and that it creates a folder. But you know EA :).

12 hours ago, bfr said:

I just tried myself and it does seem to work, but there are oddities.

I set up a mission with me started hot on the ground. Made left MFD active (default A/A Radar) and hit RCD, it started writing a file every 10s. Hit RCD again a minute or so later, it stopped. Hit RCD on the right MFD (default HSI) and it started writing a file every 5s. Repeated with MPCD (default ADI), also every 5s. 

Starting RCD on one display starts recording of that screen, and then hitting RCD on any of them stops the one that was recording. You also don't appear to be able to record >1 display at once.

Not figured out what the significance of the counter that comes up for a bit after hitting RCD is yet though unless its literally how long it has been recording for.

You'll probably also note the filename denotes the screen captured (left MFD all start mfd_fcl, right MFD start mfd_fcr and the MPCD starts mfd_fcc).

EDIT: figured out the discrepancy I think with the A/A RDR writing a file every 10s and it must be per full completed radar sweep/full redraw of the display. If I change the radar settings to a very narrow search area it'll suddenly write 1 file pretty much every second.

EDIT2: More playing and I thought it'd pretty sweet to see if you could capture the TPOD and it seems you indeed can. Only downside if you're planning on getting some shots of hits is it seems to be stuck to a rigid 5s capture cycle so if you'll need luck to get a bomb hit on cam captured.

Hah, and at the 2nd time of asking I actually did get lucky and it screenshot at about the B of Bang.

 

Interesting, thanks!

[Father Cool]

8 hours ago, Mistermann said:

I remain hopeful that the ME will somehow have use for these.  Right now, I believe they are just images saved to the HD.  I'd really love to see some triggers get associated with the image subject (like the cargo ship above) so mission makers can trigger events based on a good image of said target.  IDK, the feature seems a bit neutered if there's no tie back to the mission somehow.  Maybe I'm missing the point?

This is great for group missions where one squadron maybe tasked with recce or similar which will then be fed into the brief for the next sortie as part of the group. I am pretty excited by this.

Edited July 12, 2023 by Father Cool

[draconus]

Yep, nice feature, I figured how it works mostly by myself. Anyone tested if it works when videotape recorder is off in the back?

[YoYo]

Btw. In manual we have only this about RCD PB:

„RCD (PB 12): allows recording of the display for future review.”

[draconus]

Manual is also EA/WIP.

[YoYo]

26 minutes ago, draconus said:

Manual is also EA/WIP.

I think all know it, right?

[ameriveaux]

I absolutely love this feature.

 

If your just war-game simming/ Warthunder DCS'ing at worst you can use this feature to record kill shots , as you can use for A/A via TPOD just to talk smack later and post the photos of so and so getting shot down.

 

If your a hardcore wanna be but never will be virtualFightPilot, then yes you can use this for RECCE, BDA and AAR and really nerd out on what was happenining in the flight at that time. I would think that you can use ACMI like TACVIEW in conjunction with these photos to really geek out. 

 

It takes away nothing to have, and adds <immensely> to ever level of gameplay.

Every aircraft that has a VID or Record feature needs it turned out asap.

EDIT update 

check out the heat signature on that truck, - the structure I was tracking was NTTR camp /base object with a stationary vehicle with a cool signature next to it. 

DCS might be a cockpit simulator but it does that pretty well.

[bfr]

1 hour ago, ameriveaux said:

If your just war-game simming/ Warthunder DCS'ing at worst you can use this feature to record kill shots , as you can use for A/A via TPOD just to talk smack later and post the photos of so and so getting shot down.

 

As an enhancement they could a lot worse than tweak it so it does trigger a capture just as a weapon you launched impacts. As I found out in my own little experiment, its blind luck whether the capture cycle coincides with your weapon's time of impact.  Its definitely a feature with potential though.

Edited July 13, 2023 by bfr

[draconus]

I hope it'll be changed later to a video recording with proper compression simulated.

[YoYo]

I have to say that since I don't press RCD PB (Rec) nothing has been recorded and the folder is empty :). 

Edited July 18, 2023 by YoYo

[YoYo]

8 hours ago, Malakhit said:

If you're so inclined, you can actually create fairly nice gifs from the recordings. Quite a fun addition to a debrief!

Good for Mavericks also! JUST WHEN?