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I have a couple of questions regarding checkpoints and the usage of textures in many models in packs, on store and freebee's etc.

1) Is there a way to limit the y axis of a checkpoint so it does not activate when you are like 5-6 floors above or below it, as it makes it all but useless in say high rise buildings or in cellars etc. It is a real pain when you die on the 5th floor and get re-spawned on the 1st where the checkpoint marker is, because it registered you passing over it 5 floors above

2) Why are so many textures used in many models here not of the normal ^2 / ^4 resolutions (i.e. 128x128, 512x512, 512x256, 1024x256 etc) I have always been used to never using resolutions like 137x1025 etc, as it can cause bad effects on many gfx cards. Yet I see it all the time in model packs, store models and many free ones here.

Also why exactly do so many here believe that you must use a whopping great 1024x1024 (or even 2048 x 2048) texture for even the smallest of entities?? Even worse many use only a small part of it to actually hold a texture, with like a wood texture taking up one quarter in the top left corner and the rest empty, or the top half used and the bottom half empty, or the UV is spread out all over with massive gaps of unused space. A 512x1024 texture takes up around half the VRam a 1024x1024 takes and a 512x512 takes around a quarter.

Even crazier, in some packs the exact same texture is renamed per wall (or whatever) it is used for. So you end up with around 5+/- textures all identical wasting space (same goes for meshes, a with a separate identical floor/wall mesh etc for each fpe in the pack).

Maybe it's just me, but I find this a cruel waste of VRam, as the entire image file is loaded into VRam, no matter how much of it you use (in my understanding) It also add's to the games file size, which can be at a premium if distributing electronically.

I can only speak for myself, but the reason some of my textures (most of them) are not that great is because I am an amateur still learning about UV Mapping and Textures.
I have a feeling that there are many others starting out here too!
Once I did learn about the importance of such things as condensing the texture layout and size, I was too busy making new stuff to go back and re-do the UV maps on the old stuff.
I guess the short answer is; you will find a big variation in such things because the artists participating have various levels of experience.

It sounds as if you have plenty of experience, so I look forward to seeing your work.

For extremly small stuff like pencils I use 256x256,for medium like medkit I use 512x512,and for stuff like weapons,characters and larger objects like a table or a building I use 1024x1024

It's ok, I'm not so much nagging anyone , just trying to get as much info as possible, as I'm new to FPSc and trying to get my head round the way it all works ^_^

He he he - I'm a total nub, as last engine I worked with was DirectX 7 (RealmCrafter)

More detailed weapons should get 2048x2048

Your joking right ??

Your gonna use up 4 x 1024x1024 texture space on a single diffuse map for a weapon you mainly only see one side off?

Even EAI uses 512x512 textures on his excellent weapons packs and I would call them about the best FPSc has to offer right now.

JFletcher's free elites off the store use 512x256 textures (and the hands use 256x256 of that) and they look pretty damn good also. Using massive resolution textures will not make sub par textures look any better (IMHO)

It seems to be a trend here that including massive textures on everything is the way to go.

This is all just my own opinion and nothing more.