go 4 match!

So the Head Start is getting closer and closer. For those who have no clue what to do before here are some tips for all of you:

AionTavern posted a nice top 10 list for your computer:

1.  Defragment your hard drive. 
2.  Run a complete Virus scan.
3.  Run a Spyware program.
4.  Download latest Nvidia, or ATI video drivers.
5.  Download the latest DirectX.
6.  Download the latest Sound drivers.
7.  Run CCleaner to clean up registry, and unwanted files.
8.  Run Tuneup Utilities to speed up performance of computer.
9.  Make a system restore point.
10.  Make a backup of your computer files.

I would also add:

Reduce gaming latency

Aion Speed Launch

Read some starter guides like:

Beginner guides

Cleric Macros

HD leveling guide Elyos 1-10

five-things-you-need-to-know-about-surviving-in-atreia

Changing channels

Or maybe just watch the latest Official Podcast:

Or the release trailer?

Download

The post from AionTavern makes me laugh

Here are the best excuses for calling in to work so you can play Aion on Launch day.  Be sure to click on the links for symptoms.
1. Diarrhea
2. Food Poisoning
3. Flu
4. Cold
5. Migraine
6.  Baby is sick
7.  Sinus Infection
8.  Hemorrhoids
9.  PMS
10. Funeral

I am personally more then happy that i will have quite a bit of free time around the release so i can play it and explore the (for me) totally new world.

To bad even i have to write exam next week so my time is still limited for the first few days of the launch. But i know plenty of guys who actually told there girlfriends to stay away from them or taking the holiday from work

I just found a small post over at Aionicthoughts he is talking about the “Leatrix Latency Fix” intentially made for World of Warcraft but also works for any other type of MMORPG.

Download

I checked the files and they look clean, because it is a VB Script you can even see the source code yourself. I trust the source and trust the code however i will not give any kind of guarantee that its safe

Here are the FAQ from the Programm:

What It Does
Leatrix Latency Fix will reduce your World of Warcraft latency significantly by increasing the frequency of TCP acknowledgments sent to the game server.
The average reduction in latency (based on feedback from comments) is 66%. Click the Change Log tab above to see a summary of player feedback.

System Requirements
Leatrix Latency Fix is supported on these operating systems only.

• Windows XP (SP2 or higher)
• Windows Vista (SP1 or higher)
• Windows 7

Other platforms are not supported.

How It Works
Wow uses the TCP protocol which requires that network segments sent to your computer be acknowledged in order to provide a reliable connection.
Windows bundles these acknowledgments together and sends them in pairs. While this is an efficient way of dealing with them generally, the inevitable delays caused by the bundling process increase latency considerably.
This is because when Windows queues up an acknowledgment in order to bundle it with the following one, the game server has to wait for the acknowledgment timer to expire before sending new data.
Leatrix Latency Fix removes the acknowledgment bundling process so that an acknowledgment is sent immediately for every segment that’s received. This produces a significant reduction in latency as there is no longer a delay before new data is sent to your computer.
In a normal networking environment, you would prioritise network efficiency over latency and use the Windows defaults, but in Wow the opposite is true and you want the lowest latency you can possibly get.

Typical Scenario
This is how Windows handles acknowledgments before Leatrix Latency Fix has been applied:

• Wow game server sends data to your computer.
• Your computer receives the data but doesn’t acknowledge it.
• Wow game server waits for the acknowledgment timeout to expire.
• Wow game server sends new data to your computer.
• Your computer receives the new data and acknowledges both the new data and the previously sent data.
• Wow game server receives both acknowledgments.
• Repeat to fade.

As you can see, the Wow game server is forced to wait for the acknowledgment timer to expire before sending new data.
Now, this is how it works with Leatrix Latency Fix applied:

• Wow game server sends data to your computer.
• Your computer receives new data and acknowledges it immediately.
• Wow game server receives the acknowledgment and sends new data immediately.
• Your computer receives new data and acknowledges it immediately.
• Repeat to fade.

With Leatrix Latency Fix applied, the delay is removed.

Frequently Asked Questions

I installed it and it doesn’t work. Does it not work on every machine?
As long as your operating system meets the minimum requirements shown above, Leatrix Latency Fix should always work. However, you may have applied a similar fix in the past, either through manual registry changes or from using alternative software. You may not be aware that you have done this. The chances are that if you applied Leatrix Latency Fix on a fresh install of Windows on your computer, it will work, and the reason why it’s not working is probably because you’ve already run some sort of optimisation fix or registry change in the past.

Isn’t this the infamous TCP ACK fix?
Yes, but it’s packaged in a neat little script which will make the required changes for you, so you don’t need to go messing about with the registry.

Doesn’t more acknowledgments mean more upload bandwidth used?
Leatrix Latency Fix doesn’t produce more acknowledgments. It produces more frequent acknowledgments.
Windows, by default, sends two acknowledgments for every two segments received. Leatrix Latency Fix sends one acknowledgment for every segment received. The number of acknowledgments sent in either case is the same, it’s only the frequency which is different. The only additional upload bandwidth used is for packet headers.

Didn’t Blizzard disable this already?
This is a common misconception but the answer is no. What Blizzard did was disable nagling, way back in patch 2.3.2.
Nagling bundles small packets together into larger ones for more efficient transmission. The effects are similar – bundling packets together always produces higher latency which is why it’s bad for online games. Blizzard disabled nagling because of this, however, the acknowledgment queueing system used by the TCP protocol remains.
For the technically minded, Blizzard made the TCPNoDelay function redundant, as Wow now includes it by default. They didn’t change TcpAckFrequency. Leatrix Latency Fix changes that.

The displayed latency is lower but in-game latency is the same isn’t it?
As previously stated, when the game server sends data to your computer, the faster that your computer acknowledges that data, the faster the next lot of data is sent.
Leatrix Latency Fix makes your computer acknowledge packets immediately, so subsequent data is sent to your computer in the shortest possible time. Anyone who thinks that this doesn’t produce a genuine reduction in latency has failed to understand this simple process.
The in-game latency stat is accurate. However, the amount of latency reduced and how much you notice the benefits depends on your connection and what your character is doing in the game world (since some activities will produce much more traffic than others).

Doesn’t Wow use UDP for game data?
No, Wow uses TCP port 3724 for game data. You can prove this to yourself by blocking all outgoing UDP traffic on your computer/router but keeping TCP port 3724 open, the game will still work. But if you block TCP port 3724 then it won’t work, it doesn’t matter whether UDP ports are open or not.

Will Leatrix Latency Fix damage my computer? Can I remove it?
There’s a removal script included in the download which will completely erase all traces that Leatrix Latency Fix was ever installed. This isn’t one of those scripts that changes all of your network settings and you have to reinstall Windows to get things back to normal. The installation script makes a simple change. The removal script reverses that change. You have nothing to lose.

Are there any down sides to running Leatrix Latency Fix?
Your PC will process acknowledgments faster so it will have to work a bit harder. This may produce a small drop in framerates.
Remember that Windows networks aren’t designed for online games. They’re designed for general desktop computing in large networks where traffic efficiency has the highest priority. In these environments, network latency isn’t important at all and bundling acknowledgments together makes sense.
However, Wow players are rather unique in that they’ll often use a single, TCP based application (the game client) for hours at a time and they’ll want to give that application priority over any other function of their PC. It’s for these players that Leatrix Latency Fix is designed for.
Leatrix Latency Fix should not be installed on computers where you want to put more emphasis on network efficiency. Fortunately, this doesn’t apply to most Wow players and having reduced latency is of considerably more importance.

Does Leatrix Latency Fix work with any other games?
Leatrix Latency Fix modifies the way in which Windows handles acknowledgments to TCP segments. As such, it will affect any application that you have installed which uses the TCP protocol to transfer data. Most games use UDP so won’t be affected but for the games that use TCP (such as World of Warcraft), you should see a significant reduction in latency.

Can I apply the fix without restarting my computer?
Leatrix Latency Fix will request that you restart your computer after installation. If you really don’t want to do this, you can choose not to and instead disable and re-enable your network card.

Can I check if Leatrix Latency Fix is installed without running it?
Simply run the script called “Leatrix Latency Fix Checker” which is included in the download.

Is this spyware, a trojan or any other nasty thing?
No. I think Wowinterface would have closed my account by now if Leatrix Latency Fix was malicious. The script code can be inspected by anyone to see how it works and exactly what it does.

Why make a script, why not just make a registry file?
Because the keys which are modified are unique to the computer you’re using, so it’s not possible to make a static registry file and expect it to work for everyone.
Do I need Administrator rights to run Leatrix Latency Fix?
Yes, since it modifies keys in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. If you run the script from an account without Administrator rights, you will be prompted for the credentials of a user account which has them.

I use Windows Vista or Windows 7 and User Account Control prevents me from running scripts. Can I get around it?
Leatrix Latency Fix includes bypass support for UAC. If you are stuck behind UAC, it will ask you for the credentials of an account which has Administrator rights so that it can run.
Alternatively, you can run Leatrix Latency Fix from an elevated command prompt, which you can access by right-clicking Command Prompt from the start menu while holding down shift and choosing Run As Administrator.

I ran Leatrix Latency Fix and it didn’t show a confirmation window. Did it work?
No. If Leatrix Latency Fix installs successfully, it will always show a confirmation window and ask you to restart your computer. If you don’t see the confirmation window, then it hasn’t installed successfully.
The most likely reason for a confirmation window not showing is that you’ve encountered the User Account Control window and haven’t provided the credentials of an account which has Admnistrator rights.

Anything else to add?
Stop worrying and wondering whether Leatrix Latency Fix is right for you. It makes a simple change to your computer, there’s a removal script in the download which removes that change.
Install it, try it for yourself over a period of a few days. If you aren’t happy, remove it. Make up your own mind. It won’t break anything. Most people report a noticeable improvement in button response times, as well as smoother mob movement patterns. You’ll probably be one of them. So relax and stop worrying, try it and see for yourself.