I'm a programmer myself, and an enthousiast of racing games. Below is a list of things that could be improved or added, to make the whole even better. I'm using the XD display tool, and I'm driving both online and offline, using a keyboard.
Running version 1.1.0.0.
I may be missing some option, so that any of the below points may actually be not a problem. Please indicate.
Don't be fooled here, the list of improvements is long, but still GTR2 is THE BEST RACING GAME on the PC ever (but, beholding the Pilsbierbude expansion included). And I have played a lot of games ! Second best to this racegame are F1GP (the first one) and Carmageddon (also the first one there).
But, concerning GTR2, here we go :
1. More intermediate time checkpoints
Especially on long tracks (Le Mans) but also on less long tracks, I'm feeling that 2 intermediates is really little. Ideal would be every 20 or 30 seconds.
Not sure whether this is to be done in GTR2 itself or via the XD tool, I guess the first.
2. Car type, car leaugue display
Display of car brand, type and league is not really done a lot. Only in the Timing table of the garage tool, but that you cannot watch while racing. This could be changed in the XD tool, I think.
You could have a look at the league cars, to see if you are first of league, or not.
3. Race standings, but also time standings during qualify/trace
When you are in qualify, only the times are listed of the people that are actually logged into that race. This is annoying, since this makes the display being a filter of times which are being raced. I think that if you leave the track and come back again - with the same car (?) - the time should be kept. It's particularly annoying if doing a long quality session and you know a lot of people drove a lot of laps, and still there's only 2 times listed.
Similar problem when racing : whenever the race is completed, and you look at the standings, the positions disappear of the people that log out. If you finish at the end of the field - which I am very common to - you almost NEVER see the real final standings. I don't really understand what the point is of that feature.
4. Own best lap
It would be so nice that XD would display your own best lap time, both during qualify and during race. Currently it shows only you own improvements, but the more you race, the longer a record remains, and the less info you see.
5. Indicators
I know not all cars have indicators, but the ones that have, could make use of it. Particularly for overtaking, this would be very good.
6. Speed trap / top speed
XD would probably be able to list the top speed of a given lap, or laps, or race, whatever. That would be a nice extra information. Or, you could have a speed trap, at a fixed point on the track, maybe at an intermidiate timing point. That is probably a GTR2 change.
7. And a last one, a bit of a nice to have, but something that could be nice during qualify. When you are doing a hot lap, it could be nice to have an indicator that shows what would be the position in the time table, if the lap would end at the time you currently are, but being some distance from the finish yet.