I highly recommend watching a few tutorials:
mhmd's replay tutorial

mhmd's vice city no ace tutorial parts 1 and 2

I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure F1 is the recent replay button, while you should be using F2 and F3's saved replays (as explained in the replay tutorial). Should work on the steam version.

Widescreen is unneccesary.

GL speedrunning

I also have a newbie question so I will just post it here. In the future I might speedrun this game and I'm wondering which version to use. I'm not interested in using the Japanese version, I'm not serious about getting WRs or anything. I own the disc version so that's what I'm planning on using unless the steam version has any significant advantages to it.

The Japanese version has the Cherry Poppers glitch, while the American version lets you perform the SSU exploit thing (not sure what it is). I'm not sure whether the disc version is different than the Steam version however.

The problem that you probably have with JP is the cop car start. You can just do the Molotov start, though:
1) After "An Old Friend", record a replay of the Molotov rampage (you have to start it for that).
2) Suicide to fail that rampage.
3) Hold the Paramedic sub-mission button, play the replay, let go off it.
To be fair, the Ambulance can be locked, sometimes.

The second problem is failing Cherry Poppers instapasses. I am certain, though, that those are easier to do consistently than HtC x5 that you do in "international".

Anti explains how to do the instapass in a way you cannot fail (afaik - prove me wrong^^)
http://www.speedrun.com/gtavc/thread/wqf6o
It is a bit confusing, I have to admit, I should do my own video with a script to read from and showing button presses.

I do not see a relevant difference between the Steam and disc version but I don't know too much about it.

E: You might just be uninterested in JP, period. That's fine. If the problem is just that some strats suck too much, I highly recommend that you ask people if there are slow but less annoying alternatives. ^^

I'm guessing he doesn't want to use JP because GInput doesn't support it so he can't use a controller there. ffzSmilin

What about the Australian version? Does it support it?

Doesn't AUS crash on literally everything there is?

Just Dildo Dodo and the points where the Japanese "press Circle instead of X" becomes relevant, afaik.

Dildo Dodo
Ammu-Nation
Hardware stores
Race selection

Edit: I want to stress the "afaik".

You have to buy grenades, sniper and armor duing shakedown, so the australian version will crash no matter what.

We are talking about seconds vs minutes lost. ^^

"If you can't use GInput or whatever just use something which maps keyboard inputs to controller buttons." Joy2Key is a program that does that but there is a chance it might now work

hoXyyy, If you use a non-retarded controller you don't need GInput

I'm not planning on using a controller anyway. Just already own the game and don't want to buy it again.