Files
firestorm/RELEASE-NOTES-5.1.0b_RC1.html
T
1b931d5fb8 Correct dgVoodoo2 guidance: never ship it, XP pods must not have it
Two corrections from the project owner.

1. dgVoodoo2 must NEVER be added to the repo or the deploy script.

The pod fleet is mixed. XP pods use native DirectDraw and need nothing extra --
installing dgVoodoo2 on them BREAKS them. Only Windows 10/11 pods need it, and
only for the MFD modes. It is therefore an installed-per-machine, OS-dependent
prerequisite that the pod owner sets up, not a build artifact.

This reverses the recommendation added in the previous commit, which suggested
versioning the working dgVoodoo.conf and having deploy-mw4.ps1 place it. That
advice was wrong: it would have pushed a Win10-only dependency onto every XP
machine. dgVoodoo.conf and dgVoodooCpl.exe were removed in 0ceba9c7 deliberately
and must stay out.

- CLAUDE.md STEP 10: the "TODO: commit it" note is replaced with the reasoning,
  flagged so nobody re-adds the files later thinking it was an oversight.
- CLAUDE.md Next steps: that TODO is removed. The borderless-windowed item now
  notes it is the only route that removes the dgVoodoo2 prerequisite WITHOUT
  breaking the XP pods, since it needs no external DLL on either OS.
- Release notes gain an explicit warning callout: dgVoodoo2 is not part of the
  build and must not be installed on XP pods, with the advice to configure it per
  machine rather than inside the game folder that gets copied around. Without this
  an owner with a mixed fleet could reasonably have copied a working Win10 install
  onto an XP pod and broken it.

2. Version numbering is intentional, not a mismatch.

V5.1.0b<n> denotes beta build n; these are handed out as release candidates for
testing. The "b" is dropped and it becomes 5.1.0 when the release is final. So the
console string V5.1.0b1 alongside a release named V5.1.0b_RC1 is expected, and the
earlier suggestion to reconcile them is withdrawn.

Both release-notes formats regenerated; the XP warning renders as a warning
callout in the HTML. Both remain plain ASCII with CRLF.

Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 5 (Anthropic) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Co-authored-by: GitHub Copilot <copilot@github.com>
2026-07-25 19:47:26 -05:00

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<title>BattleTech: FireStorm V5.1.0b_RC1 - Release Notes</title>
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<h1>BattleTech: FireStorm &mdash; V5.1.0b_RC1</h1>
<div class="meta">Release notes for pod owners &nbsp;&middot;&nbsp; 25 July 2026</div>
<p>This build covers everything since the <code>-tbaud</code> RIO update. It is a large release: 58 changes
spanning multiplayer, cockpit hardware, displays, 'Mech content, the console lobby and the
match printer.</p>
<div class="note"><p><strong>The most important thing to know:</strong> if you change nothing in your configuration, this build
behaves like your current one. Every new feature listed here is either a fix that applies
automatically, or an option you have to switch on deliberately. Nothing new is enabled by default.</p></div>
<hr>
<h2>1. Read this first -- required on Windows 10 / 11</h2>
<h3>Run <code>set-appcompat.bat</code> after installing</h3>
<p>A new one-click tool ships in your install folder. <strong>Double-click <code>set-appcompat.bat</code></strong> once,
after copying the game to its final location.</p>
<p>FireStorm renders in 16-bit colour, and modern graphics cards no longer offer 16-bit display
modes. Windows can emulate them, but only if the game is registered for it -- and <strong>that
registration is tied to the exact folder the game sits in</strong>. Copying or moving an install
silently loses it.</p>
<p>Without it, the game fails to go fullscreen and reports:</p>
<div class="note"><p><em>"Another application is preventing use of full screen mode."</em></p></div>
<p>That message is misleading. It is not another application. It is this registration missing.
If you see it, run <code>set-appcompat.bat</code> and restart the game.</p>
<ul>
<li>Run it again any time you <strong>move, copy or reinstall</strong> the game to a different folder.</li>
<li>Right-click -&gt; <strong>Run as administrator</strong> to apply it for every Windows account on the pod.</li>
<li>It reports what it changed and takes effect on the next game launch. No reboot needed.</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<h2>2. Multiplayer</h2>
<h3>16 pilots plus a cameraship now launch correctly</h3>
<p>Previously, a full 16-pilot game with a cameraship connected would silently fail to launch ?
you pressed launch and nothing happened, with no error. Fixed. A cameraship no longer consumes
one of the 16 pilot slots.</p>
<p><strong>No configuration needed.</strong> This applies automatically.</p>
<h3>Load File -- set up a whole match from a file</h3>
<p>The console lobby can now load an entire match configuration -- game type, map, mission options
and all 16 player slots -- from a single file, instead of setting everything by hand.</p>
<p><strong>To enable it,</strong> edit <code>options.ini</code> in your game folder -- the same folder that contains
<code>MW4.exe</code>, for example <code>C:\MW4\options.ini</code> -- and add:</p>
<pre><code class="language-ini">[automaticmode]
automaticmode=1
automaticfile=matchsetup.ini
</code></pre>
<p><strong>Both keys are required:</strong></p>
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>Key</th>
<th>What it does</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><code>automaticmode</code></td>
<td><code>1</code> shows the <strong>Load File</strong> button in the console lobby. Any other value, or the key missing entirely, hides the button and the lobby behaves exactly as before.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>automaticfile</code></td>
<td>The match configuration file the button loads. If this key is missing, or points at a file that does not exist, the button appears but does nothing when pressed.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><code>automaticfile</code> can be either a plain file name, which is read from the game folder next to
<code>MW4.exe</code> (so <code>automaticfile=matchsetup.ini</code> reads <code>C:\MW4\matchsetup.ini</code>), or a full path if
you prefer to keep your match files somewhere else
(<code>automaticfile=C:\PodConfigs\friday-night.ini</code>).</p>
<ul>
<li>Full file format reference: <strong><code>BTFrstrm/autoconfig-file-spec.html</code></strong></li>
<li>Two ready-made examples -- copy one into your game folder and point <code>automaticfile</code> at it:
<strong><code>BTFrstrm/test-ffa-coliseum.ini</code></strong> and <strong><code>BTFrstrm/test-team-koth-centralpark.ini</code></strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="note"><p><strong>Read <code>BTFrstrm/autoconfig-file-spec.html</code> before writing your own match files.</strong> Open it in
any web browser. It documents every section and key, the accepted values for each, what happens
when a key or section is left out, and complete worked examples for both free-for-all and team
matches. It is the authoritative reference for the file format -- this page only covers turning
the feature on.</p></div>
<p>The <strong>Default</strong> button restores standard settings, so you can always get back to a clean lobby.</p>
<h3>Longer match times</h3>
<p>The multiplayer time limit list has been expanded from 9 options to 18:
<strong>1 through 15 minutes, plus 20, 25 and 30.</strong> The dropdown scrolls to fit them.</p>
<hr>
<h2>3. Cockpit and RIO hardware</h2>
<h3>Throttle zero fix</h3>
<p>The throttle now reports a true zero position and clamps negative values correctly. Previously
the zero point could be skipped.</p>
<p><strong>Applies automatically.</strong></p>
<h3><code>-tbaud</code> -- support for high-speed replica RIO boards</h3>
<p>If you are running a <strong>replica RIO cockpit board with a faster UART</strong>, you can now set the COM1
speed without changing anything else about how the board talks to the game:</p>
<pre><code>MW4.exe -tbaud 115200
</code></pre>
<p>Accepts 9600 to 921600. <strong>Leave it off</strong> and the game uses the original speed, exactly as before ?
existing original RIO boards need no change and should not use this switch.</p>
<p>This is only the speed. The wire protocol is untouched. (The separate <code>-trio 1</code> switch changes
the whole protocol and is <em>not</em> what you want for a replica board.)</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Displays and MFDs</h2>
<h3>Split MFD mode -- two separate 640x480 MFD monitors</h3>
<p>New display mode <strong><code>-tmfds 4</code></strong>, for pods using <strong>two separate 640x480 monitors</strong> for the MFDs
instead of one wide spanned display.</p>
<pre><code>MW4.exe -tmfds 4
</code></pre>
<p>Four displays total: main, radar, left MFD, right MFD. The original spanned modes (<code>-tmfds 1</code>
and <code>3</code>) are unchanged and remain the default for existing pods.</p>
<h3>Split MFD stutter -- fixed</h3>
<p>Early split-MFD builds had a constant rhythmic stutter across the whole game. Fixed. The two MFD
panels no longer force the graphics card to stall every frame cycle.</p>
<h3>Required dgVoodoo2 setting for ALL MFD modes on Windows 10/11</h3>
<p><strong>On Windows 10 and 11, dgVoodoo2 is required for every MFD mode -- including the original
spanned display (<code>-tmfds 1</code> and <code>-tmfds 3</code>), not only the new split mode (<code>-tmfds 4</code>).</strong></p>
<p>If your pod drives any MFD or radar panel at all, this applies to you. It is not specific to
the new split-MFD feature: the underlying Windows limitation affects every mode that lights up
a second display. On Windows XP none of this was needed.</p>
<div class="warn"><p><strong>dgVoodoo2 is not part of the build, and must NOT be installed on Windows XP pods.</strong>
XP uses the graphics support built into Windows and needs nothing extra -- adding dgVoodoo2
there will break it. It is a per-machine prerequisite that you install yourself, on
<strong>Windows 10 and 11 pods only</strong>. If your fleet is mixed, set it up per machine, not as part
of the game folder you copy around.</p></div>
<p>In the dgVoodoo2 control panel, on the <strong>General</strong> tab, set:</p>
<div class="note"><p><strong>Scaling mode: <code>Stretched, Keep Aspect Ratio</code></strong></p></div>
<p>This is not optional and not cosmetic.</p>
<ul>
<li>With <strong><code>Stretched</code></strong> (plain), the MFD monitors <strong>silently stay on the Windows desktop</strong> while
the main and radar screens go black. There is no error message of any kind. It simply does not work.</li>
<li>With <strong><code>Stretched, Keep Aspect Ratio</code></strong>, all panels come up correctly.</li>
</ul>
<p>The same setting also gives the correct picture geometry on 16:9 monitors. FireStorm renders in
4:3, so on a widescreen display it is either stretched out of shape or shown correctly with black
bars down the sides. Keep-aspect gives you the correct shape -- circles stay round and the
targeting reticle is accurate.</p>
<div class="note"><p><strong>Why dgVoodoo2 is still required:</strong> we tested running the multi-monitor MFD modes on Windows 10
with no dgVoodoo2 at all, using every available configuration. Modern Windows only permits one
display at a time to take exclusive fullscreen control, so the extra MFD panels are refused.
Windows XP allowed it; Windows 10 does not. dgVoodoo2 works around this. There is no setting
or switch that avoids it.</p></div>
<h3><code>-tmon</code> -- fix monitors coming up in the wrong order</h3>
<p>If your panels appear on the wrong physical monitors, you can assign them explicitly, in the
order <strong>main, radar, MFD 1, MFD 2</strong>:</p>
<pre><code>MW4.exe -tmfds 4 -tmon 1,2,3,4
</code></pre>
<p>Use <code>0</code> in any position to leave that one on automatic -- <code>-tmon 2,1,0,0</code> swaps only main and radar.
<strong>Leave the switch off entirely and everything is detected automatically</strong>, which is correct on
most pods.</p>
<hr>
<h2>5. 'Mechs and content</h2>
<h3>Six rookie 'Mechs instead of four</h3>
<p>The console lobby's default rookie 'Mech rotation now includes the <strong>Archer</strong> and <strong>Warhammer</strong>
alongside the original four. Right-click randomising picks from all six.</p>
<h3>Corrected loadouts</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>Battlemaster (Inner Sphere)</strong> -- now carries its proper stock loadout: PPC, 6 medium lasers,
2 machine guns, and an SRM-6. It previously had only a single medium pulse laser.</li>
<li><strong>Battlemaster 2C (Clan)</strong> -- ER PPC, 6 ER medium lasers, 2 Clan Gauss rifles, Clan Streak SRM-6.</li>
<li><strong>Behemoth / Behemoth II</strong> -- Gauss rifles moved into the main weapon group so they fire with
the rest of the primary weapons.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Restored missing artwork</h3>
<p>Several 'Mechs were missing their MFD and cockpit display images, which showed as blank panels
in game. Restored: <strong>Assassin II, Behemoth, Behemoth II, Black Hawk, Longbow, Solitaire, Victor</strong>,
plus two missing lobby decals.</p>
<h3>Mechlab label correction</h3>
<p>The mechlab turn rate now reads <strong>"Turn Rate (Top Speed Rad/Sec)"</strong>, which is what the number
actually means. It previously claimed degrees per second, which was wrong.</p>
<hr>
<h2>6. Arcade / console mode</h2>
<h3>Configurable Rookie Mission</h3>
<p>The quick-launch Rookie Mission was previously fixed in place. All of its settings can now be
changed from the same <code>options.ini</code> in your game folder, next to <code>MW4.exe</code>.</p>
<p>This is the mission the console loads when it opens, and the one restored when <strong>Default</strong> is
clicked in the lobby.</p>
<p><strong>Every entry is optional.</strong> Omit the section entirely and you get exactly the previous built-in
behaviour. The block below is ready to paste into <code>options.ini</code> as-is: every setting line is
commented out with <code>//</code>, so pasting it changes nothing until you uncomment the lines you want.</p>
<pre><code class="language-ini">[RookieMission]
// Default mission loaded when the console opens and when &quot;Default&quot; is clicked.
// All entries are optional - omit any to keep the hardcoded built-in default.
//
// MissionName - exact display name as it appears in the map dropdown
// default: ScarabStronghold - Attrition
// GameType - 0-based index into the game-type dropdown (2 = Attrition)
// default: 2
// TimeLimit - time limit in minutes; -1 means use the server's default time
// default: -1 (uses g_nTimeList_Value, currently 7 min)
// Visibility - 0=Clear 1=Light Fog 2=Medium Fog 3=Heavy Fog
// Weather - 0=Off 1=Rain
// TimeOfDay - 0=Day 1=Night
// Radar - 0=Novice 1=Off 2=Bars 3=Unlimited
// HeatOn - 0=Off 1=On
// FriendlyFire - 0=Off 100=Full (percentage)
// SplashDamage - 0=Off 1=On
// UnlimitedAmmo - 0=Off 1=On
// WeaponJam - 0=Off 1=On
// AdvanceMode - 0=Off 1=On
// ArmorMode - 0=Off 1=On
//
// Example: uncomment and edit lines below to customize
//MissionName=ScarabStronghold - Attrition
//GameType=2
//TimeLimit=-1
//Visibility=0
//Weather=0
//TimeOfDay=0
//Radar=0
//HeatOn=0
//FriendlyFire=0
//SplashDamage=0
//UnlimitedAmmo=1
//WeaponJam=0
//AdvanceMode=0
//ArmorMode=0
</code></pre>
<p>Two worth knowing:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong><code>MissionName</code></strong> must match the mission's display name <strong>exactly</strong> as it appears in the map
dropdown, including spacing and the <code>-</code> before the game type.</li>
<li><strong><code>TimeLimit=-1</code></strong> means "use whatever time limit the server is currently set to" rather than
forcing a fixed value.</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<h2>7. Match printer (mw4print) -- version 2.0</h2>
<h3>Custom banner text</h3>
<p>The line printed at the bottom of each score sheet is no longer fixed to <code>WWW.MECHJOCK.COM</code>.
Set your own via <strong>File -&gt; Banner Setting...</strong>. It is saved to <code>banner.txt</code> next to the printer,
so you can also edit it directly.</p>
<h3>Database export (included, not yet field-tested)</h3>
<p>mw4print 2.0 can export match results -- scores, kills, player-versus-player results -- to an
external <strong>MySQL</strong> database after each print job, for league tables or long-term stats.</p>
<p>Configure via <strong>File -&gt; Database Settings (Ctrl+D)</strong>, or the <code>[MySQLExport]</code> section of
<code>mw4print.ini</code>. The table layout is documented in <code>db_schema.sql</code>.</p>
<div class="note"><p>?? <strong>This feature has not yet been tested against a live database server.</strong> It is off unless you
configure it, and printing works normally without it. If you try it, please report back.</p></div>
<hr>
<h2>8. Quality of life</h2>
<h3><code>mw4.exe -help</code></h3>
<p>Running <code>MW4.exe -help</code> now opens a <strong>complete reference for every command line switch</strong> -- around
76 of them, grouped by category with descriptions. It opens in Notepad and the game does not start.</p>
<h3>English error dialogs</h3>
<p>The crash and error dialog buttons previously appeared as <code>???</code> boxes on some systems, because
the shipped language file was a Korean build. They now read <strong>More Details / Continue / Exit</strong>.</p>
<h3>Performance measuring -- <code>-fps</code></h3>
<p>For diagnosing stutter or verifying a pod is running smoothly:</p>
<pre><code>MW4.exe -fps
</code></pre>
<p>Writes <code>gos-fps.txt</code> next to the game with a per-second breakdown -- average frame rate, the
slowest frames, and a count of stutters -- plus a summary at the end. <strong>Off unless you ask for it</strong>,
and it costs nothing when unused.</p>
<h3>Display troubleshooting log</h3>
<p>When display problems occur, the game now writes <strong><code>gos-displays.txt</code></strong> next to the exe listing
every monitor it found, which role each was assigned, and the exact reason any panel failed to
start. Previously such failures were completely silent. Include this file with any display fault report.</p>
<hr>
<h2>9. New command line switches at a glance</h2>
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>Switch</th>
<th>Purpose</th>
<th>If you leave it off</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><code>-tmfds 4</code></td>
<td>Two separate 640x480 MFD monitors</td>
<td>Existing MFD mode unchanged</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>-tmon a,b,c,d</code></td>
<td>Force monitor order: main, radar, MFD1, MFD2</td>
<td>Automatic detection</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>-tbaud &lt;rate&gt;</code></td>
<td>COM1 speed for replica RIO boards</td>
<td>Original board speed</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>-fps</code></td>
<td>Write a performance log</td>
<td>No log, no overhead</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>-help</code></td>
<td>Show the full switch reference and exit</td>
<td>Game starts normally</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><code>-tcoop &lt;0-5&gt;</code></td>
<td>Display troubleshooting only -- <strong>do not change</strong></td>
<td>Standard behaviour (0)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr>
<h2>10. Known issues and limitations</h2>
<ul>
<li><strong>Every MFD mode requires dgVoodoo2 on Windows 10/11</strong> -- the spanned modes (<code>-tmfds 1</code>
and <code>-tmfds 3</code>) just as much as the split mode (<code>-tmfds 4</code>) -- with scaling set to
<code>Stretched, Keep Aspect Ratio</code>. This is a Windows limitation, not a bug we can fix.</li>
<li><strong>The MySQL export in mw4print has not been tested against a live server.</strong></li>
<li><strong>The game renders in 4:3 only.</strong> There is no widescreen mode. On 16:9 monitors, use
keep-aspect scaling for correct geometry with black bars at the sides.</li>
<li><strong>The AppCompat registration is tied to the install folder.</strong> Move the game, re-run
<code>set-appcompat.bat</code>.</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<h2>11. Upgrade checklist</h2>
<ol>
<li>Back up your current install.</li>
<li>Copy in the new build.</li>
<li><strong>Double-click <code>set-appcompat.bat</code></strong> (as administrator if the pod has multiple accounts).</li>
<li><strong>On Windows 10/11, confirm dgVoodoo2 is installed and its scaling mode is
<code>Stretched, Keep Aspect Ratio</code>.</strong> This is required for <strong>every</strong> MFD mode -- spanned
(<code>-tmfds 1</code> / <code>-tmfds 3</code>) as well as split (<code>-tmfds 4</code>). Windows XP pods do not need it.</li>
<li>Launch and confirm the console lobby reads the new version.</li>
<li>Play one mission end to end before putting the pod back into service.</li>
<li>Optional: add <code>[automaticmode]</code> and <code>[RookieMission]</code> to <code>options.ini</code> if you want the new
Load File button or custom rookie missions.</li>
</ol>
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