n00b question about ping?

(FrankyVas) #1

Is a high (300…) or low (50) ping better?

thanks.

(BondyBoy007) #2

lol, lower the better

(JIM_BOB7813) #3

Ping stands for: Packet internet grouper.

Betya didn’t know that. :smiley:

(Hewster) #4

further information on the “ping” word, taken from
http://www.webs2go.com/PingMain.shtml#PingDefined

PING actually is a meaningless shorthand word that originated from submarine movies where the sonar sends out this beep kind of signal, and we see the circle on the screen getting bigger and hear the “ping” when it hits something and produces an echo. In networking, we send a packet of data to a node (computer) which unconditionally causes that node to return the packet from whence it came. So in the beginning, we nerds would describe this process by saying, “PING Xxx to see if it is alive.” (In fact, if you PING from a Sun UNIX workstation, you would get the response, “Xxx is alive,” if it received the packet.) as a definition didn’t arrive on the scene until almost the 90’s after the term “Gopher” and “Internet” came into use, and the windbags needed (wanted) to sound professional. Now you know the real story about PING…

I personally never knew the “Packet Internet Gopher” definition of PING until I read
JIM_BOB7813’s post … I always presumed it was devived from the submarines
“ping” of a sonar… as ever … we live’n’ learn :slight_smile:

Hewster

(Iamthefallen) #5

Since many people aren’t familiar with the term: High or low “Ping” is a sloppy way of saying short or long delay for the data you send and receive.
Ping has taken on the meaning of a measurment, such as “my Ping is 100”. Instead of “I pinged the server and the delay is 100 ms”. I may sound like a grammar nazi, but I just want to clarify what we’re talking about here.

Now, a lower ping (Meaning a shorter delay) is always better than a high ping (longer delay). The game server keeps track of everything that’s going on and if you have a long delay, say 250ms which is normal for modem players, everything you see on your screen actually took place 250ms earlier but it took a while to send the data to you. A low-pinger, like a DSL/Cable player normally has a 50ms ping, meaning what he sees took place only 50ms ago, so he has a MUCH more accurate image of what’s actually happening on the server.

And why does ping matter?

Because if you as a modem player see everything 250ms after the server actually does something, you will have to lead your shots in order for them to hit. Just like a real life hunter has to lead his shots to hit a deer because the bullet takes a while to get there, you have to lead your shots because the data takes a while to get to the server. A DSL player doesn’t have to lead much since his “bullets” are much faster, making it a whole lot easier to hit someone than it is for the modem player who has to try to predict where the enemy will be.

Hope that explains the basics… understanding ping can be hard, it gets somewhat complex, especially if you then add in the unlagged code…

(SittingDuck) #6

the lower your ping the better. Try to keep under 50 and you’ll have a smooth gameplay. But do not be fooled by the server browser when you see servers with 1 ping! This is generally a ping of over 1000, but it dosen’t display as 999 for some reason…

In any case, pings below 50 allow you to move quicker, less lag, and less choppy gameplay.

(Ragnar_40k) #7

For me servers with ping 1 are usually the fastest ones (with a “real” ping of 20-40).

(SittingDuck) #8

Every server I’ve tried with a ping of 1 in the ingame browser (Not ASE) is usually a server with a VERY high ping. Of course, I may just have bad luck when I choose one… :cool:

(Lango) #9

A sever with one ping usually is a really high one for me too and i play Cable!! :drink:

P.S. How is it in Berlin? Been a while since i was there last.

(Doc) #10

If I have understood correctly, this is not the case with anti-lag enabled servers. Anti-lag is designed so that hit testing is based on where the player saw the opponent at the time he shot, not where the players really were according to the server at that time, thus leading is unnecessary and actually introduces inaccurate shots.

Correct me if I’m wrong…

(Ubiquitous) #11

Every time I join a server with a ping of 1 in the game browser, it is always fast and almost lag free. Maybe you are just picking the dud servers…

(amazinglarry) #12

Hahahah, I’d love to get into servers with 50 ping… However the best servers I can find for myself average 70-100 :disgust: Still good enough for me… I’m just always jealous of people with 20…