Unable To Join Servers

[DisarmedMite5]

Hello,

I have Unreal Tournament, GOTY edition, installed on one of my computers, an old Dell Dimension XPS T500 gaming computer. Here are some of the specs:

OS: Windows 98 SE
RAM: 640 MB RAM
Hard Disk: over 30 GB of storage
CPU: Intel Pentium III 500MHz (soon to be upgraded to 1GHz
Graphics Card: 3DFX Voodoo 3 3000 AGP

After launching UT, I wanted to join multiplayer servers. Clicking on the populated server tab, it gave me a list of all availble servers. I clicked one, and then it goes through the downloading procedure. Once it finishes downloading, all I get is a screen showing 'connecting', and it stays like that until I press the ESC key. What seems to be the problem here? BTW, UT has been updated to the latest 451 patch.

20161006_004930 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

20161006_004854_010 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

20161006_002746 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

20161006_002819 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

20161006_003132 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

[sektor2111]

It sounds like a Net problem in there. Your Net drivers seems to cap at whatever number of connections. While your PC is getting busy to ping servers will not connect others. Yes, using a PIII in my old times I had a challenge in going ON-Line. My fist free Internet in that time was on a Mobile CDMA phone connected as modem and majority of servers which I could see were at 300+ ms ping - game-play was pretty impossible for me. If you have a LAN connection probably you should look first for boosting number of connections somehow if I'm not mistaking.
Advice (in hoping to be helpful):
Look for a server where you want to play. Copy IP somewhere (TXT doc) then exit UT. Launch game again, Open Multiplayer menu and DO NOT LOOK for servers just pick <Open Location> section and input there <unreal://copiedaddress:port/> without browsing servers list and see if do works. Or... add that populated server at favorites (right-click) exit game, reload game, pick server from favorites. The trick is to not trigger multiple pings in the same time and just connect ONE server + a master and UpdateServer from Epic (automated at Net Menu). Else, I'm not sure if was a good choice to go at 451 update on that platform because UT's Net Drivers from 451 are more newer (and probably more messed up than those from 436).

PS:
Btw, I like your machine .

[ShaiHulud]

I don't think ACE (anti-cheat software) is compatible with pre-Windows 2000 versions (off-of-the-top-of-my-head). I don't know whether that's related, I'm sure some servers are running without ACE, but it'll probably be a recurring problem in the future if that's the case.

[Chamberly]

First thing, ACE (Anti-Cheat Engine) does not support Win 98 at all. So you will have to find server using older ACE version that supports that or doesn't use ACE at all.

Another thing, v451 patch is mostly only used for server fixes, not for client/you to play on.

[DisarmedMite5]

Which severs, USA or worldwide, can you recommend? Is there a way to find a list?

[Chamberly]

It can be any server. No download server have no custom content that also supposed to have no ACE I guess. I haven't been there. There really not much of a list unless you join various servers and try it.

Now when you can't join the server, that can be either their server (if you can connect to other server with no problem) or your end if you can't join any server (enable the game connection port through firewall)

[DisarmedMite5]

Okay, I was able to join one server so far.

20161006_201831 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

[sektor2111]

Title was a bit confusing - Unable to join servers - and NOT ALL of them are using ACE. Else, yes, now days UT'99 won't always run ON-LINE using an OS from that time... because of development. You should try some sort of NT compatible OS...
I did not tested Win98SE and XCGE server yet...

[EvilGrins]

20161006_201831 by Pedro Bracamonte, on Flickr

Now that's a screenshot!

[RocketJedi]

wow I cant remember the last time I saw any game on windows 98 good job haha.. must be super laggy

[EvilGrins]

Out of curiosity, how many did you try to join before posting this?

Some servers are members only, some you need a password for, and some are the ever so popular file conflict situation...

...you've got a file that's also on the server but they don't match for any number of reasons.

Typically when I go looking for new servers to play on, I make sure to have a book handy. Depending on bandwidth/connection issues, even after everything loads and nothing else is going wrong there may be a bit of a pause before it fully connects.

[sektor2111]

Typically when I go looking for new servers to play on, I make sure to have a book handy.

Duh, usually when I want to play a shooter I'm not reading books, because when I'm reading books I'm not playing Shooters... else
I have bound a key for something which was helpful at a moment for unknown reasons. A server was pumping me with files, at a moment after 2 files, download went slow, all right, I bound a key for execing a NetSpeed 300 kb/s and instant reconnect. Guess what happened... Files went faster again, if they were losing speed again, I pressed the same key, speed back again. You see... I don't have nearby books, I have a keyboard...

wow I cant remember the last time I saw any game on windows 98 good job haha.. must be super laggy

In some under-resourced servers where admin suddenly updates Maps I'll bet that even an I7 will have Red Flag, or maybe not ... because connection is lost at once with red flag... I was playing ON-Line at 450 MHz and the only lag came from a Mobile CDMA connection used in that time...

DisarmedMite5 - RESPECT, MAN ! - Take in account those contest 300 k maps. Some of them worth a try.

[EvilGrins]

I don't have nearby books, I have a keyboard...

Book is for when joining servers that've got like a guhzillion things you gotta upload before you can join.

Sometimes that can take awhile... reading helps pass the time.

[DisarmedMite5]

Just updating to 436 seems to be working, since I was able to join a couple of servers.

[Dr.Flay]

If it takes longer to download the map files, than the map is in play for, then you will not connect.
Find the website for the server and download the packs manually if it takes too long.

Not sure what you mean "updating to 436..." as GOTY is 436 final.
If you have updated from a lower version, you do not have the GOTY edition, or somehow downgraded it.

If you have no interest in using UEd, then the 451b update is safe for you to use.

If you intend to play modern UT99 mods and maps, you are going to need a faster PC.
If you only want to play the original maps, and maybe 1 or 2 mutators at a time, the old rig is fine.
My AMD3200 + 2GB RAM + ATI HD3600 512MB is not enough to play old UT with all new updates and huge textures, plus a handful of mutators.

Make sure you have installed the DirectX 9 runtime files, and you can use faster features of your newer GFX card.
Unless you actually have a DirectX 5-7 card, you need to move into this century with DX8 or 9 renderers.

The older cfos network driver may help, and is very useful for improving ping time
http://www.cfos.de/en/download/download.htm#speed_other

You can use this page to see you current network setup
http://www.speedguide.net/analyzer.php
And get their tweak tool
http://www.speedguide.net/downloads.php

Finally, and most importantly so you stop looking like a complete amateur
Your keyboard has a "Print Screen" button, just like everyone else
Press that button, then paste the screenshot into Paint or Irfanview or whatever you can save a jpeg with.