I don't know how to write a plugin, I gave it a quick look and it look like beyond my skills. Anyway, reading stuff around I was struck from a concept, that if could be translated in a plugin, could maybe help people learn proper driving technique. The concept is something like that: "figure there is a string that connect wheel shaft to throttle pedal, more lock you give less throttle pedal can travel". So I was thinking about a plugin that can do exactly that: reduce the maximum throttle output of the pedal in relation of wheel steering, maybe a visual cue (in green/red) to make driver aware of when he can start accelerate "freely". With just 2 or 3 variable values one could adapt it to almost any car. What do you think? It could make sense? It could really be useful as a training tool?
Please dont take it as an offend, but (IMHO) the best training tool is practice, practice, practice and at least...you may guess it allready...practice I have seen in the past a lot of people, wich where messing with setup values for hours, while they may have done a handful of laps with their current track/car combo. For me the best "training tool" was (and is) allways to do lets say 20-30 laps, to learn a little bit the track and the car. If my lap times stick and i cant improve the lap times with different driving technics/lines, i`m trying to ascertain, wich car behavior maybe hamper better lap times and then i have a look into the setup. And about your mentioned driving technics...when i get during turn exit allways oversteer, i should maybe use the throttle a bit more sensitive
Practice is by far the biggest thing. And dont change setup until your confortable with the track and car. You need consistent lap times before you can see and feel the changes in setup.
*Give a nice idea for new guys in simracing* *"Old" simracers appear to take it down because "muh I know better* Good lord... Would be very nice to see something like this in rF2 and considering for how long the game should be supported it makes total sense to have it
Practice makes perfect... only if it is good practice. I'm 4 years into RF2, and before it I was several years into RF1. If it would be true that practice makes perfect, I would not still take 4/5 seconds/lap from people that barely know how to setup Rf2 controller and make very little practice before a race (there are several in the championship I'm in). In racing, there are things that are counter intuitive, and rationally knowing them is not enough to be able to apply them correctly... otherwise I must assume that I'm somewhat impaired or handicapped and simply I can't move my hands/feet fast enough. It is evident that they have trained the good skills and for them is just a matter of warming up and they are good to go. I can make hundreds laps on the same track and not reach their pace... and probably I know more theory about fast driving than them.
Yep, when you actually identify what you need to work on and target it, you can make real gains with practice. Other guys who just turn up and do the same thing as usual, without thinking about it, don't go anywhere. A well made tool could help people identify what they're doing wrong, at the moment they're doing it, breaking the habits/instincts that aren't serving them well and helping them improve. Of course some would see it as a potential driving aid, too.
It can be indeed, but hopefully, in the near future RF2 server admin will have the chance to choose which plugin are allowed in practice, qualify and race on the user end.
Agree, this isn't the main target of the post. You are sayng to a little baby to do a marathon before starting to learn how stand up... If I am new to simracing I need a tool\driving school to learn basic rules, only after I learned them I can start practices sessions made of 20-30-100 laps to improve myself.
Also telling people to practice when they don't even know what they are doing is just dumb, this can reinforce bad driving behavior and make people's "simracing life" a lot harder as some things can be hard to change once you get used to it
Exactly, when someone think to racing, without experience, think that is about braking later than others, and flooring the gas before others, but in truth, this description is exactly of all the thing you don't have to do if you want to go fast.
IMO, practice is the best way to improve. Theory is OK but you need a lot of practice to make it useful. I have a very good remember of Gran Turismo challlenges. They focused on a certain technique and you could try as many times as you wanted without having to drive again until the track spot. Repetition is the way our brain improves.
Repetition improves consistency. Improvement implies change. Training is what helps, whether that be chasing ghost laps or having someone analyse your performance and provide constructive advice. I have been practising for years (cough, decades) and only in the last year do I feel I have improved. I joined a group of like-minded racers, and they helped enormously, especially in the 'counter-intuitive' stuff. I think the OP's proposition is an excellent one. I certainly don't believe anybody could use it as an aid when racing (unless they are really bad!). "Eyes on the road, young man!" I would also like a plug-in that tells me what percentage of grip my tyres still have left when cornering (not tyre wear indicators, but something saying "You pussy! Go faster!") Again, this would only really be of use when practising. (Sorry, training!)
I have been practicing for years too. Continuing to practice with poor technique may not be the best approach. Having a place or method to have ones technique assessed and compared with recommendations for modification wouldn't be a bad thing.
This has been a request starting as far back as RF1. So far always fell on deaf ears. Very good idea just no one listening.