LAN helper

Aub · #1 September 26th, 2001, 05:34 AM

We are getting ready to play SE over LAN, and so I downloaded SJ's LAN helper.

I think it's a very cool little app. But after experimenting with it for a while it looked like it still did not provide fully automated game play and all the convenience one would expect form this type of multiplayer game.

So I went off and put together my own helper (with such tools as VB it does not take long

). You can find it on http://briefcase.yahoo.com/bc/andrei...?.dir=/Friends

There is a setup that installs all the necessary DLLs and fonts (but it is quite huge because of that

) No help file is provided but I guess it's very easy to figure out how to work this thing (just fill in all the fields and start it up!)

I've also included the sources -- in case someone would like to improve it

Comments, suggestions and bug reports are always welcome

Aub

Edit: typos

[This message has been edited by Aub (edited 26 September 2001).]

[This message has been edited by Aub (edited 26 September 2001).]

tesco samoa · #2 September 27th, 2001, 01:46 AM

can you place the files here or in the mod section.

I have right clicked and downloaded them.

But that way they will not get lost.

Thanks.

------------------
Inter arma silent leges

[This message has been edited by tesco samoa (edited 26 September 2001).]

Suicide Junkie · #3 September 27th, 2001, 10:55 PM

I'm a bit swamped with work right now, but I'll definitely check it out.

I am always willing to take suggestions for improvement on my stuff.

Aub · #4 September 28th, 2001, 02:54 AM

I've made a couple more small UI enhancements, and I am testing them right now. As soon as I am done I'll post the result in the Mod section.

SJ - I basically wanted it to be 100% automatic, so that's where all the improvements are (of course I was building on your idea!). It now handles hosting as well as playing, and it takes care of transferring the files between the players and the host. And since it knows the game name and watches time stamps of game files, you don't need to make any additional clicks. It just works.

I hope someone will find it useful.

Aub

Suicide Junkie · #5 September 28th, 2001, 04:46 AM

My LAN helper was designed for sequential turn games. You've just done the other half

What I really need to do is add a checkbox "don't ask before loading SE4", then it will be totally automatic.

PS: Do you know anything about the sequential turn bug? (loading a sequential game from the commandline leaves all ships with zero movement!)

Aub · #6 September 28th, 2001, 07:14 PM

Sequential turns? Oh, I see - it makes total sense now!

Frankly I just never considered seq. turns as an option for multiplayer. And not only because of this bug. For 2 guys spending the evening at SE, seq. turns might be OK. But if more people are playing (e.g. we plan to have 6 or 7 players!), it becomes so painfully slow. Plus, it's a problem if someone drops out, tactical combat is a problem, etc., etc.

Suicide Junkie · #7 September 29th, 2001, 12:50 AM

Yep. In fact, I custom built my LAN Helper for SEIK, and wasn't really concerned about simul play.
He just needed a program to identify new game files, and start SE4 automatically when they arrived.

SEIK: If you don't see any mention of a fix in the next patch, you may want to send a reminder.
Also, another idea for you:
Try setting your path.txt to your opponent's SE4 folder (mapped to a network drive). Then, your default savegame folder should be right where you want it to be.

Seik · #8 September 29th, 2001, 01:12 AM

SJ - I ve posted MM this bug (we talked about).

But until yet there is now answer - I hope they had read it and fix it asap.

I ve tried many ways to start SE4 squl.game but every time ships did nt have any movement points left.

Seik

Seik · #9 October 3rd, 2001, 03:05 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Aub:
Sequential turns? Oh, I see - it makes total sense now!

Frankly I just never considered seq. turns as an option for multiplayer. And not only because of this bug. For 2 guys spending the evening at SE, seq. turns might be OK. But if more people are playing (e.g. we plan to have 6 or 7 players!), it becomes so painfully slow. Plus, it's a problem if someone drops out, tactical combat is a problem, etc., etc.

Hi Aub,

I ve sent you an email - any idea about the problem?

Aub · #10 October 3rd, 2001, 09:42 AM

Seik,

I am sorry but your email was sorted out as junk by Hotmail. I had to go and find it in the junk email folder when I saw your posting

There must be something weird about it

To start a multiplayer game you need to save your game in a shared folder, different form your local savegame folder. The helper will copy your turn files into your local savegame folder and then back to the host (sahred folder) automatically. I am sorry the error message is somewhat confusing

, it simply cannot copy a file onto itself and thinks there is a problem accessing it.

So -- when creating a game, save it in a different folder. Give it a try, that should work -- I used it today to play

BTW I recently updated the app - it works on both Win2K and Win9x now. There was a nasty incompatibility bug

Hope this helps -- Aub