Re: [Flightgear-bugs] Issue 450 in flightgear-bugs: Multiplayer Settings dialog does not list servers

[<fli...@go...>]

Comment #16 on issue 450 by stu...@gm...: Multiplayer Settings dialog  
does not list servers
http://code.google.com/p/flightgear-bugs/issues/detail?id=450

A couple of comments:

The response time from flightgear.org to the various MP servers isn't of  
any use for determining the best MP server for a given client to connect to.

For example, consider
a) client in the UK
b) flightgear.org hosted in the USA
c) MP Server 1 in the USA, close to flightgear.org
d) MP Server 2 in the UK, close to the client.

Obviously, you want client a) to connect to server d). However, a scheme  
where b) is measuring the ping times to c) and d) will result in c) being  
preferred.


The only sensible way to do this is for the client to load an XML file of  
the servers from flightgear.org at start of day (or possibly weekly, with a  
manual refresh option), and then have a button on the Multiplayer Settings  
dialog for the client to ping each of them in turn.

The XML file could also be used by the various MP servers themselves to  
update their list of other MP server instances. At present, I think this is  
a manual process.

Finally, it's important not lose the ability to set an arbitrary MP server  
from the dialog, for those people running private MP servers.

-Stuart