I feel like one aspect of mapping that doesn't get touched much is usability. To be even more specific, file size. So, I would like to discuss what sort of file size mappers should shoot for.
Players that don't regularly play on custom map servers usually will not have a custom map when joining. As a server admin, having them wait for a really long download is not a fun thing to do. So, for me, it really breaks down to download time. Players shouldn't have to wait more than the time it takes to have a quick bathroom break and grab a drink and a quick snack (which is what most people do while switching maps anyways). So, my rule of thumb is two minutes.
So, we have the length of time. But now we need to translate that to file size using bit rates. Depending on hosts and internet connections, this can vary greatly. For someone at a University or next to a data center on a backbone rocking T1, this can be even a gigabit per second. With one of these connections, you could share a 40 megabyte map in a few seconds. However, targeting the lowest denominator (basic DSL and/or basic Cable), and keeping in mind the limits of most fast download providers, I will say 100 kilobytes per second (800 kilobits per second, or roughly 1 megabit per second, which is what you will see the telecoms advertise).
So, 120 seconds (two minutes) times 100 kilobytes per second (our base connection speed) gives us 12000 kilobytes, which is 12 megabytes. This is a lot smaller than I have seen most map releases. What do people think about this?
Players that don't regularly play on custom map servers usually will not have a custom map when joining. As a server admin, having them wait for a really long download is not a fun thing to do. So, for me, it really breaks down to download time. Players shouldn't have to wait more than the time it takes to have a quick bathroom break and grab a drink and a quick snack (which is what most people do while switching maps anyways). So, my rule of thumb is two minutes.
So, we have the length of time. But now we need to translate that to file size using bit rates. Depending on hosts and internet connections, this can vary greatly. For someone at a University or next to a data center on a backbone rocking T1, this can be even a gigabit per second. With one of these connections, you could share a 40 megabyte map in a few seconds. However, targeting the lowest denominator (basic DSL and/or basic Cable), and keeping in mind the limits of most fast download providers, I will say 100 kilobytes per second (800 kilobits per second, or roughly 1 megabit per second, which is what you will see the telecoms advertise).
So, 120 seconds (two minutes) times 100 kilobytes per second (our base connection speed) gives us 12000 kilobytes, which is 12 megabytes. This is a lot smaller than I have seen most map releases. What do people think about this?
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