Spraakcommunicatie
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Doel
Normally, when communicating with your neighbours during Line Operations, you are limited to text communication only. It is more realistic to simply press a button and call someone the way you would with a telephone. With the Nimajin Voice Communication Plugin, you can do just that, allowing you to speak directly with your neighbours without having to press buttons to convey your instructions. This frees up your hands for more dispatching work, and helps you to route traffic faster and more efficiently.
Vereisten
The following items are required:
- Requires an up-to-date sim that can participate in Line Operations.
- Broadband Internet connection of minimum 64Kbps (upload and download)
- Functioning speakers and microphone.
It is highly recommended that if you do not already have one, that you obtain a headset with a microphone. Without one (and instead using speakers), the risk of annoying feedback loops are much higher.
Installatie
The installation of the Voice Communication Plugin is designed to be simple. Even if you already have multiple sims installed, you only need to install the plugin once. It's recommended, though not required, that you install to the default installation directory, which is already chosen for you when you run the installer.
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Configuratie
Each sim maintains separate program settings for the plugin. The configuration steps below apply to every sim you already have installed (if you want to be able to use the plugin properly).
Before joining other dispatchers over the Internet, some settings need to be adjusted. To view and change these settings, access the Settings window of one of the simulations. If the plugin is installed correctly, a new settings page will appear at the bottom, below the "Language" entry: Select Voice to view the Voice Communications Plugin settings.
Microfoon
Choose which microphone you wish to use when talking to other dispatchers - it's possible to have more than one installed.
Speakers
Choose which speakers (or headphones) you wish to use when listening to other dispatchers.
Kwaliteit
The plugin supports two levels audio quality, Normal, and High. The High level quality can reproduce sounds more clearly, but uses more bandwidth than the Normal level.
Normal typically requires 64Kbps up/down, while High requires twice that: 128Kbps up/down.
Poort
The Voice Communications Plugin requires 3 (three) non-overlapping, open UDP ports for each simulation. They are in a sequential block from N to N+2. In the example below, the simulation uses ports 55397, 55398 and 55399. Only the first port number needs to be entered - the next two port numbers are calculated automatically.
You will probably need to modify your port-forwarding settings on your router - see Multiplayer Ports and Forwarding for more detailed instructions.
Warning If you have, for example, 4 simulations and you wish to use the plugin with each of them, you must configure a total of 4 x 3 = 12 ports, three for each of the four sims. These ports must not interfere with other ports you may be using for Line Operations.
Suggestion The Simulation Network In Detail page has some excellent plans for configuring large numbers of sims for network play. If you plan to configure more than one or two sims for use with Line Operations and Voice Communication, this is the page for you.
Once you have set up port forwarding, press each of the Test Port buttons to see if you have forwarded the ports properly.
Gebruik
When the Voice Communication Plugin is installed, there are few visible differences when running a simulation.
Statusbalk Icoon
One major difference is the addition of a "phone" icon in the status bar.
| Icoon | Betekenis | Beschrijving |
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Default | The default state - no one is calling you nor are you calling anyone else. |
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Connecting (or Disconnecting) | A call is in the process of being connected - your partner has not yet answered your call, or someone is calling you (but you have not yet answered). May also appear briefly when ending a call. |
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Connected | Call has been successfully connected - you should be able to hear your partner, and he/she should be able to hear you. |
Gesprekken Tot Stand Brengen
Buurposten Bellen
When you're ready to call a neighbour, simply press the button for the neighbour you wish to call, followed by the Call button. The process is exactly the same as calling an in-sim AI neighbour. To review, visit the page on the communications panel.
Treindienstleiders via de Telefoon Bellen
In addition to calling immediate neighbours, you may also call dispatchers using the Telefon button. Both you and the person you're calling need to have the plugin installed and working in order to connect a voice call. If the person you are calling does not have the plugin installed correctly, communication will revert to the traditional buttons and textboxes, so you can still communicate, though not with voice. To review, visit the telephone page.
Spreken
Wanneer de "Ruf" (Bellen) knop ingedrukt wordt, zal het icoon veranderen in . Zodra de opgeroepen persoon opneemt, verandert het icoon in en zou zijn of haar stem te horen moeten zijn, en kunt u beginnen met spreken.
Gesprekken Beantwoorden
Wanneer iemand u belt zal het icoon veranderen in . Nadat u de communicatie knop van de bellende buur-treindienstleider indrukt, antwoord u als eerste met "Hier treindienstleide ______" om aan uw collega te bevestigen dat hij de juiste persoon aan de lijn heeft. Tevens zal dan het icoon zichtbaar moeten zijn, om aan te geven dat de verbinding tot stand gekomen is.
Gesprekken Beëindigen
Druk op de "Ende" knop van het communicatie paneel. Ieder persoon kan ten allen tijde een gesprek beëindigen (hetzelfde als bij een telefoon).
Updates
De uitgever van de plugin kan updates uitgeven. In dat geval zal een melding verschijnen in het hoofd Start scherm, met daarbij een uitleg wat er beschikbaar is. Tevens is er dan een knop Download Update beschikbaar waarmee het update proces gestart kan worden.
De nieuwe, bijgewerkte plugin is gedownload en succesvol geïnstalleerd. Tijdens dit proces zal een dialoog venster tonen wat er gaande is. Nadat het bijwerken succesvol voltooid is, zal het gehele programma herstart worden .
Waarschuwing Dit proces kan, afhankelijk van de internet verbinding en de aard van de update, enige tijd duren. Heb alstublieft geduld.
Technische Informatie
VoIP
De plugin gebruikt het Voice over Internet Protocol, meer specifiek, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) zoals vastgelegd in RFC 3261.
Netwerk Verkeer
Al het netwerk verkeer is direct. Er worden geen tussenliggende servers gebruikt. Dit betekent dat alle berichten en media direct van uw router naar de router van de andere speler gaat. Speelt u met meerderen op een LAN, dan gaat het verkeer direct van uw computer naar de andere, zonder tussenkomst van het Internet.
Netwerk Bandbreedte Gebruik
You may need to consider your available bandwidth when choosing an audio transfer mode.
Network bandwidth is the capacity of your equipment and wiring to carry data. It is measured in bits per second. LANs provide bandwidth of 10 or 100 Mbps, WiFi is 3Mbps. Some equipment have different capacities in different directions. For example, a DSL connection might provide about 5 Mbps download bandwidth and 500 Kbps up. That means a person can send less data than he/she can receive in the same amount of time.
For Voice Communications, network traffic goes both ways. There is a continuous stream of data being sent from your computer to the other player, and the other player is sending a continuous stream of audio data to you. Both computers send the same amount of audio data at the same rate. There is no data sent while not talking.
The Voice Communications software uses a codec algorithm to compress the audio data before sending it so that it uses less network bandwidth. The codecs used are G.711, and in Normal mode, this is the same as used by the landline telephone network (ISDN). G.711 compresses the data to half of its original size. G.711 delivers by far the best audio quality of any 8 or 16 KHz sampling rate codec. You do not lose dynamic range or frequency fidelity. What you lose is half of the intermediate steps between silence and full loudness.
Normal quality audio mode samples audio 8,000 times per second to carry frequencies up to 4,000 Hz. High quality mode samples 16,000 times per second to carry frequencies up to 8,000 Hz. Skype, for example, samples at the same rate as High quality mode but compresses the audio with less fidelity.
A Normal mode stream requires bandwidth of 64 Kbps. A High quality mode stream requires 128 Kbps.
If you are connecting to another player on your LAN, you will have no problems using High quality mode.
If you are connected to the Internet by dialup, Voice Communications will not work. Phone modems cannot transfer enough audio data.
It's only when you connect to someone outside on the Internet that you may want to reduce to Normal mode. If your equipment or service won't support 128 Kbps upload, your partner will notice distorted or missing audio.
With asymmetrical DSL, the limiting factor is the lower upload rate. While set to High quality mode, the 128 Kbps required could be using half of your upload bandwidth.
You can check your Internet service capacity by finding a web site that offers a speed test, such as SpeedTest or BandwidthPlace.
Bandwidth will also depend on the distance of your connection. There may be slow equipment somewhere between you and your partner.