SRL Archive - RuneScape News and General

http://services.runescape.com/m=news/display-mode-changes-coming-next-week

With next week's update, it'll no longer be possible to select the Software display mode in your RuneScape graphics settings. We're removing support for this mode in preparation for future updates to the RuneScape UI and to the game's content, with which our existing Software mode will be incompatible. While there'll still be a limited safe mode as a backup, the default display modes for RuneScape will be DirectX and OpenGL.

Why are you making this change?

We have some truly amazing changes planned for RuneScape this year: massive improvements to the game's interface, and epic-scale content releases. These updates will be making full use of the abilities of modern graphics cards that cannot be supported by our existing Software mode. A recent example of the direction we are working towards is the Bestiary which was released a few weeks ago.

In recent tests, we've found that almost all hardware configurations benefit from choosing DirectX or OpenGL over the existing Software mode. There will, of course, always be a native Java safe mode to fall back on in the event of any problems.

We're confident that this is a change for the better, and it'll pave the way for some truly spectacular updates in the future!

How will this affect me?

Most of you use DirectX or OpenGL already, and won't be affected at all. However, if you do have Software mode selected when the update goes live, you'll automatically be moved to DirectX, if you're a Windows user, or OpenGL if you're on OSX or Linux.

The very vast majority of you making the switch should actually experience better performance in these display modes than you did in Software mode, and the switch should be seamless. It's worth making the switch early, though, so you can tweak the display settings in the new mode ahead of time and get the game running just as you like it.

If you'd like some help shifting over to DirectX mode, take a look at Mod Wizzy's handy video guide below. Note that this also applies if you're switching to OpenGL mode:

When that's done, selecting the 'min', 'med' or 'high' options in the display settings will give you preset graphical settings to suit a range of hardware. If you'd like some help further tweaking your settings, though, Mod Rambo's guide has some useful tips.

If you have an old, low-spec computer with an onboard graphics card, and neither DirectX or OpenGL work for you, RuneScape will fall back to 'safe' mode. This means that computers with the absolute minimum hardware requirements should still be able to run the game. However, there should be very few situations in which this is necessary.

Meh… Why??

I thought they got rid of Software mode already (or was that Safe Mode)?
I'm sure 's' will still work.

From: Neodymium
I thought they got rid of Software mode already (or was that Safe Mode)?
I'm sure 's' will still work.

If Safe mode is going like they say.
Every simba script is broken :p

From: Sjoekeloe
If Safe mode is going like they say.
Every simba script is broken :p

GLHook is about to get a lot of progress.

Edit: "If you have an old, low-spec computer with an onboard graphics card, and neither DirectX or OpenGL work for you, RuneScape will fall back to 'safe' mode."
So it seems the mode is still going to be there, at least in some situations.

If Software and(or?) Safe mode are both removed then it's going to be a bit of a pain to get all scripts and SRL working with whatever versions they have left (DX and OGL only now?).
And then we'll have to do it all over again when HTML5 version comes out, woohoo.

Changed your thread title so it'll get some more attention which it deserves.
Also this belongs in the RS Has Been Updated section moreso than here I'd say.

Thanks

It shouldn't be to hard to make it fall back on safe mode

There will, of course, always be a native Java safe mode to fall back on in the event of any problems.

From: bob_saget
It shouldn't be to hard to make it fall back on safe mode

As I see it, this 'native safe mode' will not look like the interface SRL deals with - rather, it will just be a safe mode for the DirectX and OpenGL interfaces. But that's my understanding. As long as we still have a 'fixed screen size + low graphics' (ie. same interface), we shouldn't be too badly affected.

But if it turns out the whole SRL is in turmoil, I will actively help to revive it. And again, when HTML5 comes into effect I guess. Should we push all these changes to SRL-6?

They are just getting rid of software mode, safe mode isnt even a real graphic setting, its just the default lowest and worst settings you can run runescape on.

Yeah the fixed screen low graphic will still be available I believe.