JEO 38/46
6. At what speeds does it run?
The official specifications name five different speeds: 19200, 16800,
14400, 12000, 9600. However, UV most often connects at 16800, 19200,
or 9600 (in that order). Primary difference among the three is quality
of voice.
7. Does it work well? How reliable is it? How often does it lose its
connection?
It does work. And it works moderately well. Only at its very worst
performance do you even notice anything like "lag" on the internet,
or, in other words, slowdowns in gameplay. Usually, it does extremely
well.
However, its reliability seems to be heavily dependent upon the
quality of the phone lines of your city. There are reports of extended
long play, over long distance, even. My experience has been mixed.
Interestingly, connecting at a higher rate (19200) is not necessarily
better than at a lower one. For instance, the most stable experience
can be had at 16800, and, at least in Rochester, Minnesota, this is
the most common connect speed. We had no problems at this speed.
At 19200, the connection seems particularly unstable, sometimes even
hanging up on the spur of the moment. The voice is clearest here, of
course, but the gameplay will frequently slow to a crawl, sometimes
recovering, sometimes not.  I suspect that the modem is having some
kind of difficulty if a line suddenly goes bad. Similar problems seem
to occur when connections are on the low end, too.
Looking at the documentation, it seems that the software can request a
speed.  Perhaps this could allow for more consistent connections when
the highest speeds are either not needed or not stable.
8. How does the voice sound?
The voice is always understandable, even at the lowest speeds. Of
course, the quality goes down as the data connect rate goes down. This
is especially noticeable at 9600, where voice sounds especially tinny.
Sample rates are always less than 8000/second (see Technical Specs),
for those of you who have played with sound cards...
Of course, there are some problems. It may just be our (admittedly
kinda cheap) microphone headsets, but there seems to be some kind of
echo effect feedback. If only one microphone is hooked up, there seems
to be no problem.  But if you have two, and you talk too loudly, you
will get a loud scream in your ear. This usually subsides within a
second or so. Two ways to work around this: keep the headphone off
your ear, or talk quietly!
Of course, when you beat somebody up (like you tend to do in UV) it is
hard not to gloat loudly.
9. Can you play without headphones and a microphone?
Absolutely. But believe me, you will be missing out on a lot.  There
is nothing like the gurgles and cries of a dying friend. Of course,
you save yourself from some of the loud mishaps that happen from time
to time (see Sound).
Please note here that if only one person has a microphone plugged in,
that person is liable to say some pretty crazy things... I guess they
just get lonely... after all, the only way they know if anyone is
listening is when they see someone lop off their head on the game!
... They make it a wilderness and call it 'peace'. -Tacitus
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