Frequently Asked Questions
Here’;s a compilation of questions and their answers. The FAQ is now maintained by Dragon45 so direct comments on this page to him. 
Also, please note that since the FAQ is not updated on a daily basis, some of the information found here might not be up-to-date.
Wingflier is also working on an more up-to-date FAQ created after the first release of Spring.
1 - General information
1.1 - What is TA Spring?
1.2 - When will TA Spring be ready?
1.3 - Will TA Spring be free?
1.4 - I want to help, what can I do?
1.5 - I want to donate.
1.6 - I read all that and I still want to donate.
2 - Technical
2.1 - What APIs does TA Spring use?
2.2 - What language is TA Spring written in?
2.3 - Is TA Spring open source?
3 - Requirements
3.1 - What platforms will TA Spring run on?
3.2 - What sort of a system will I need to run TA Spring?
4 - Content
4.1 - Do TA Spring maps need a “ground”?
4.2 - You stated that TA Spring uses the TA unit format.
4.3 - How powerful will TA Spring’;s custom format be?
4.4 - Does TA Spring have a limited number of weapons?
4.5 - Does TA Spring have a limited number of unique units?
4.6 - Will units have a maximum of 3 unique weapons?
4.7 - I’;m curious as to the per-unit polygon limit.
4.8 - Will units be able to perform basic terraforming?
4.9 - Will tunnel building be possible?
4.10 - Will the ground’;s water retention be editable?
4.11 - Does TA Spring have a limit on the number of races?
4.12 - What are the sizes of the biggest and smallest units?
4.13 - What is going to be the maximum possible sea depth?
4.14 - Will TA Spring support campaigns?
4.15 - How big will the TA Spring files be?
4.16 - How will TA Spring render sound effects?
4.17 - Will TA Spring have ambient sound?
4.18 - Will there be an AI or a “skirmish” mode?
4.19 - Will a “possess” or a FPS option be present
1 - General information
1.1 - What is TA Spring?
TA Spring is a project to create the best RTS ever (no joke). There are three principle goals which we hope to achieve.
. . . . . .A) Reach a stage where TA Spring can flawlessly execute most of Total Annihilation’;s original gameplay, with its original units in their original format.
. . . . . .B) Add new features as we see fit, fix bugs, and release new versions when we feel it is appropriate to do so.
. . . . . .C) Support the mod community as we see fit.
1.2 - When will TA Spring be ready?
A concrete timetable for TA Spring’;s progress does not exist, and shall never exist. However we aim to get an early test release out quite soon (within a month or so) which will contain the essentials needed to play, but not much more.
1.3 - Will TA Spring be free?
That’;s the current plan.
1.4 - I want to help, what can I do?
Until we have finished our own map and unit formats, we are not looking for anything in particular.
1.5 - I want to donate.
People have made clear their desire to donate to the project, and so far, we have been fairly reluctant about accepting donations. Our main concern? While we certainly hope to have something playable released in the near future, there is no guarantee that it will ever happen. Unforseen events arise, and it would be most unfortunate if everyone who donated felt swindled because the project did not turn out as they had hoped, or was not released at all.
We do not plan to be more or less productive solely based upon the quantity and frequency of donations received. The TA Spring project is here only because we view this as an enjoyable hobby.
1.6 - I read all that and I still want to donate.
Very well then! You may feel free to use the Paypal account [email protected] that we have registered. It will be much appreciated.
2 - Technical
2.1 - What APIs does TA Spring use?
OpenGL for rendering.
DirectSound for sound.
Winsock for networking.
2.2 - What language is TA Spring written in?
C and C++.
2.3 - Is TA Spring open source?
Yes, it is. Go to the downloads section of the site to download the source code.
3 - Requirements
3.1 - What platforms will TA Spring run on?
At the moment, it only runs on Windows. If someone wants to port it to another platform, please contact us once we have an initial release ready. We will not, however, port it ourselves at any time (in the forseeable future). There is simply no compelling reason for us to do so. Additionally, we would like to focus on getting it working well on just one platform.
3.2 - What sort of a system will I need to run TA Spring?
You will most certainly need a 3D graphics card to run TA Spring, which will probably require at least a GeForce3 (note that a GeForce4 MX is not better than a GeForce3). Minimum CPU requirements are a little more complex. A more powerful CPU will have the capability to support larger maps and a greater maximum unit limit. A 1ghz CPU should be able to support an estimated 500 units. The needed memory will also vary with unit count and mapsize, but 512mb should be enough.
4 - Content
4.1 - Do TA Spring maps need a “ground”?
TA Spring maps do require a ground. We have had many requests to have space maps, however, a “true” (ala Homeworld) space setting is not likely. It would have to wait until a much later stage. This does not mean that TA’;s style of “space” maps won’;t be possible, (see the Final Frontier TC for examples of this).
4.2 - You stated that TA Spring uses the TA unit format.
TA Spring does use the Total Annihilation unit format. However, we do plan to make TA Spring compatible with a custom unit format of our own design.
4.3 - How powerful will TA Spring’;s custom format be?
Total Annihilation’;s unit format was extremely limited. Most of these limitations will either be expanded or non-existent in TA Spring’;s custom unit format. One of the most exciting improvements is the introduction of an entirely new method of scripting, with nearly complete control over every aspect of a unit’;s actions and behaviors.
4.4 - Does TA Spring have a limited number of weapons?
No. Unlike Total Annihilation, TA Spring’;s weapon IDs will be unlimited.
4.5 - Does TA Spring have a limited number of unique units?
No. Unit IDs, like weapon IDs, will be unlimited.
4.6 - Will units have a maximum of 3 unique weapons?
Total Annihilation had a limitation that permitted a maximum of 3 unique weapons per unit. This limit will exist in TA Spring only if a unit is made in the original Total Annihilation format. To bypass this limit, a unit would have to be created entirely within the limits of our own format.
4.7 - I’;m curious as to the per-unit polygon limit.
The engine itself does not have a polygon count limit. The limit is that of the processing power of today’;s computers. Since TA Spring requires a 3D card, the maximum polygon count per unit will be several times higher than Total Annihilation’;s. No real numbers yet though. We’;re gonna leave it up to the mod community to figure that one out.
4.8 - Will units be able to perform basic terraforming?
Total Annihilation units probably won’;t have any terrain editable functionality. Feature units may be endowed with such functionality, but it’;s more of a gameplay issue and has not been decided upon yet.
4.9 - Will tunnel building be possible?
Subterranean areas of any sort will be impossible.
4.10 - Will the ground’;s water retention be editable?
No. Water will always collect when a piece of land has a height below sea level.
4.11 - Does TA Spring have a limit on the number of races?
TA Spring has no limit on the total number of sides/races.
4.12 - What are the sizes of the biggest and smallest units?
Static units (buildings, defenses, etc.) have no size limitations in the engine. Technically, neither do mobile units, but units with a footprint larger than 4x4 “squares” (an arbitrary size standard created by Cavedog) might have problems pathfinding.
4.13 - What is going to be the maximum possible sea depth?
For all practical purposes, it will be unlimited. The depth values are stored as “float variables”, so it is doubtful that maps would ever be made which even come close to approaching the limit.
4.14 - Will TA Spring support campaigns?
No such support is planned at the moment but if someone want to program it, go ahead.
4.15 - How big will the TA Spring files be?
TA Spring will be as big as however much content is included with it. The “essential” files (engine files mostly) will only be several megabytes large. Content (such as maps and units) will add considerable size to the TA Spring download. However, it is not known at this point just how much “content” will be included with the first release.
4.16 - How will TA Spring render sound effects?
Sound is rendered 3D, meaning that the volume and direction (assuming a multi-speaker setup) vary with the location of the camera from the sound “emitter”. What this translates into gameplay terms means that the closer you are to a unit making a sound or motion, the louder the sound will be. Additionally, the sound will be heard differently depending on which way the camera is facing relative to units making sound.
4.17 - Will TA Spring have ambient sound?
There is no ambient sound, and we haven’;t planned on adding it so far.
4.18 - Will there be an AI or a “skirmish” mode?
We will create an interface that people can use to create there own skirmish AIs later.
4.19 - Will a “possess” or a FPS option be present
Yes, it is possible to fully control a unit from the first person view. It is more of a gimmick, but it still allows for a nice diversion once in a while.
