Viewing tracks from Multiplayer sessions

1. Open File Explorer and go to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\

2. Create a "Backup Tracks" folder in C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\

3. Go to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\Multiplayer and select the track you wish to use. For tracks recorded in KOREA 1952 server they will generally look like this "Korean War - Корейская война-20180226-101634.trk"

4. Select and copy the track to the "Backup Tracks" folder - this is just insurance if the track gets corrupted later in the process.

5. Go back to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\Multiplayer and rename the selected file's extension from .trk to .miz (Note, a warning about the possibility of corruption the file comes up but this can be ignored - just click on YES).

6. Close down File Explorer and open DCS

7. Once DCS in running, open the MISSION EDITOR

8. Once the Mission Editor screen is open, click on OPEN MISSION

9. Go to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\Multiplayer and the click on the track file that you changed its extension to miz. It may take a few minutes to open in the Mission Editor as it has a lot of imbedded data.

10. Once the file is open - this will be obvious from all the symbols on the mission editor map screen - left click on CUSTOMIZE (at the top of the Mission Editor view) and then left click on MISSION OPTIONS in the drop down menu

11. Once the Mission Options list is displayed - it consists of three columns listed as ENFORCE, OPTION and VALUE - ensure a tick is displayed in the External Views (second item from the top) ENFORCE and VALUE boxes

12. Also ensure a tick is displayed in the ENFORCE box for F10 View Options and the VALUES circle for F10 View Options All is also filled in.

13. Then save the file (left click the SAVE icon on the left hand menu of the Mission Editor)

14. Exit the Mission Editor and exit DCS.

15 Open File Explorer and go to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\ Multiplayer and select the mission file and change its extension from miz back to trk. (Note, once again a warning about the possibility of corruption the file comes up but this can be ignored - just click on YES).

16. Close down File Explorer and open DCS

17. Once DCS is running click on REPLAY, go to C:\Users\(your name)\Saved Games\DCS\Tracks\Multiplayer and select the track file. (Note it is now time for lots of PATIENCE)

18. Once the map screen comes up press the PAUSE BREAK key and wait until the popup window with FLY on it appears.

19. Click FLY and wait. A few views will appear and then suddenly the view will be your in-cockpit view.

20. Pressing F2 will first show the external view of your aircraft and further pressing F2 will cycle through all aircraft on the server at the time the track was recorded.

A few keys for use when replaying a track:
LCTRL + Z will speed up the tack
LALT + Z will slow it down

Note: speeding up or slowing down by a factor greater that 4x can corrupt the track file

LCTRL + Y displays the info bar at the bottom of the screen. Hitting this a second time removes the info bar. This info bar is only displayable when in external view.

The mouse wheel can be used to zone in zone out and moving the mouse while in external view shifts the view around.

On a slightly different subject

I have downloaded the free version of TacView and it is an impressive piece of work, I definitely plan to purchase the standard version before the 21 day free trial period expires. It will take some time to get to grips with all it has to offer but the value in being able to review our sorties in minute detail will be great, notwithstanding that there will be times when our errors will be in plain sight for all to see

I recommend that all the squadron members take the time to look at it, just Google "Tacview" for the home/download page.

If you're new to Tacview and have seen a significant drop in your framerates, then you're not alone. Mine have dropped from 80-100 fps while flying down to the mid 40's and my ground speeds are now in the range of 22-25 fps. That's as bad as when I first installed Normandy with my old GPU setup and was the reason for plopping down $500 for a new GPU.

So, I'm trying something different tonight. Since we need to playback our multi-player tracks after converting them to .miz files and back to .trk files, I thought that I'd go into DCS Options, Special, and Tacview and disable the auto record function.

This way, once I convert a .trk file to a .miz file, enable the F10 and viewer options, and then converting it back to a .trk file prior to playing it back, I'll then manually click the enable box on Tacview to record that track during playback. This way I'm not wasting memory while flying in the server.

I'll let you know after tonight's sessions if I get my fps back.

Speed

I tried replaying my track today and it appears to start when the server reset. Do I have to sit through the entire day and wait for our flight to begin?

No,

You do need to press the pause/break key to start the replay. It will go through some jitters as it collects the replay data and will display a "play" display. Just click on that and it will replay.

If you followed Devil's instructions, you can see the action from any perspective. I watched in purely from my own in cockpit view, then replayed it all on Tacview so that I could analyze each engagement. Really cool stuff.

It looks like a corrupt track. When I start it up it, asks me to choose a side or spectate. From there I can choose an aircraft, just as if I were joining a multiplayer game. I tried some older tracks and they worked as expected. It's a shame because with all the praise heaped on me, I have to admit that I only ever saw 1 Mig while we were engaged Speed.

Well that's just too funny!!!

It just proves you've got that special instinct for where the enemy should be because in Tacview you were all around them and making them very nervous!!

As for your replay, I seem to recall that happened to me once before and I fixed it somehow, just don't remember how?

Try saving your mission track using explorer to change the extension to a .miz file, then start DCS and open the file with Mission Editor to see what you get? You should see all of SeaQuark's hard work in there and the blue/red tracks of all the various players. Enable the viewing options using Devil's instructions above, save the file and close it.

Use explorer again to change the .miz file back to .trk and then get out of explorer and back to DCS to try to access the file again through the play tracks function. You still might get the chose sides panel, but once you select Blue and hit the pause/break key it should fire up that track for viewing. It's well worth watching because you learn a ton about what you and the other guy did.

What I learned in watching Tacview is that we never got more than a one on one ratio when fighting these two Migs. As the first flight were breaking contact, the second was only just joining the fight. So lots for all of us to learn and once we get it right, using these track files as the basis for learning together, we'll kick some Mig butt.

SeaQuark paid us a compliment when he sent me an e-mail yesterday saying that the Mig drivers on Saturday night were blown away by all the Sabres that dropped out of the sky. I think the impression was that there were more of us than there actually was, but the way he said it was that we are starting to make a name for ourselves.