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[Zinc]

5x5 but switch it up. 5x3,4x6,ect to get what I need.

I like to run moderately big forts. Around 100 dwarves and keep a good fps so the same fort is still enjoyable for longer.

[XSI]

I guess it could be that vista just sucks compared to windows 7 then, I never actually use maps with a lot of z levels, so it could just be that too, or that dwarves never have to stand in the same spot as a different dwarf(Which gives a small performace loss I believe)

I'm looking for that system bit in the control panel right now, but can't find it for some reason, i7 and Nvidia does sound very familiar though.

I also really hate non-symmetrical embarks, and that was before I knew there was a bug with them, does anyone else just hate the..un-symmetrical-ness of them?

[Kidiri]

As small as possible with the required features. These currently are: magma pipe, bottomless pit, underground lake, HFS, brook and flux. All of this is on a 6 by 5 map. But what I always look for is magma, a brook and flux.

[Cal]

I go with either 5x5 or 6x6, whichever has both running water and magma (seems to be a lot of peoples answer) I prefer underground rivers because the only thing I keep above ground is a decent sized tunnel with my trade depot in it and stairs downward. Also, I like to have the psuedo-chasm you get with the 'end' of an underground river for draining purposes. I should try out a smaller map sometime if I can get water and a pipe on it.

[madrain]

I only play on my laptop and my laptop isn't a very good one, so I never go above 4x4 for the features I want.  I keep my fps and population capped so I never notice any slowdown, and I've yet to experience a real catsplosion, so I've never seen firsthand the fps problems most people complain about.

I will play 2x2 if I get all the features I want, and even would a 1x1 if I could get the program to actually work.  I look for interesting sites to embark at, and don't care if I have all the ingredients for a "good" fortress.  Part of the fun, for me, is making do with what I have; magical embark sites with everything wonderful ("dwarf heaven") just doesn't do much for me.  I do tend to have ideas for forts, like creating a coastal aboveground city, or finding areas for unicorn or mermaid breeding, or building into a waterfall.  This will usually be more important than anything when considering embark size, because if I need glass then I want sand AND magma, if I need cliffs I need mountains but will also want rivers, etc.

[Amalgam]

I usually use 4x4 which nets me about 50 fps with 40-50 dwarves. My hardware is grossly outdated, the processor is all the way back from 2001 I think. So tell me: what's the secret to building a good DF machine? I've heard DF doesn't make use of multiple cores but it seems like everyone with the new multi-core processors is getting killer fps while I can barely manage a hamlet. I'm going to be getting some new hardware soon and it's always been my dream to manage a 200+ dwarf fort... Any tips?

[Nadaka]

I usually use 4x4 which nets me about 50 fps with 40-50 dwarves. My hardware is grossly outdated, the processor is all the way back from 2001 I think. So tell me: what's the secret to building a good DF machine? I've heard DF doesn't make use of multiple cores but it seems like everyone with the new multi-core processors is getting killer fps while I can barely manage a hamlet. I'm going to be getting some new hardware soon and it's always been my dream to manage a 200+ dwarf fort... Any tips?

the i7 has a much bigger pipeline than any previous processor. For each clock tick, it does more work, even for a single core. Likewise the Phenom II chips are pretty good as well, though to match the i7 in performance you need about a 50% higher clock rate. The phenom II 965 is almost as powerful as the i7 920, but a little cheaper. Both processors are near an ideal price/power point.

Hardware accelerated video card will help, you don't need much, just enough to push the openGL interface. The most powerful integrated graphics solution is based the Radeon HD 33XX. It is "sufficient" if all you want to do is play dwarf fortress and a handful of older games. If you want a modern gaming rig as well, there are good graphics cards in the $100 to $200 range, I like the Radeon 57XX myself, as it matches or beats the performance of everything at or below its price point and is also more energy efficient.

[Amalgam]

I usually use 4x4 which nets me about 50 fps with 40-50 dwarves. My hardware is grossly outdated, the processor is all the way back from 2001 I think. So tell me: what's the secret to building a good DF machine? I've heard DF doesn't make use of multiple cores but it seems like everyone with the new multi-core processors is getting killer fps while I can barely manage a hamlet. I'm going to be getting some new hardware soon and it's always been my dream to manage a 200+ dwarf fort... Any tips?

the i7 has a much bigger pipeline than any previous processor. For each clock tick, it does more work, even for a single core. Likewise the Phenom II chips are pretty good as well, though to match the i7 in performance you need about a 50% higher clock rate. The phenom II 965 is almost as powerful as the i7 920, but a little cheaper. Both processors are near an ideal price/power point.

Hardware accelerated video card will help, you don't need much, just enough to push the openGL interface. The most powerful integrated graphics solution is based the Radeon HD 33XX. It is "sufficient" if all you want to do is play dwarf fortress and a handful of older games. If you want a modern gaming rig as well, there are good graphics cards in the $100 to $200 range, I like the Radeon 57XX myself, as it matches or beats the performance of everything at or below its price point and is also more energy efficient.

Heh, thanks. I'll probably save up for that i7... Sounds like a beast of a processor. And my MB is probably going to fry soon so I'm killing two birds with one stone. ^.^

[KaelGotDwarves]

I've been helping people on building computer threads on the DF forums. If you have access to a Microcenter around in the western US, you can get i7 920 for $200 every once in awhile. It overclocks much better than the new i7s, to the speed of the $1000 i7 extreme edition.

You can't beat that performance at that price, even though I much rather prefer AMD as a company. (I have an ati card)