Next big thing

[dogscoff]

Suggested non-critical features (Gimmicks) for update client:
- stored settings for each download, ie always update / never update this mod/ race.
- Ability to display a few images from the race styles (So you can see what you're updating.)
- Ability to update from local file locations (networks etc)
- support for "backup" URLs in the local txt file (in case the first one in the list is out of date/ unavailable.)
- Predefined list of popular SE4 URLs/ servers which may have updates for "unknown" downloads. (Shrapnel, USy, Kuat etc)
- Ability to locate ordinary readme files and display them to the user (so the user can try to find a URL in it)
- Ability to accept a URL directly from the user and reverse-engineer a local txt file
- If no local txt file is found, ability to locate and search through ordinary readme files for probable URLs.
- If no local txt file is found, ability to locate and search through modinfo files for probable URLs.
- Ability to search probable URLs for probable downloads.

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SE4 Code:
L GdY $ Fr- C- Sd T!+ Sf-- Tcp-- A% M>M+ MpD! RV Pw Fq+ Nd- Rp+ G-
/SE4 Code
Go to my meagre SEIV pages to generate your own code.

[Rollo]

dogscoff,
really like your idea .

This is not a big thing, but I just had this idea, when posting on another thread: It would be really handy, if you could run automatic turns without human players for a certain numbers of turns. Say run for 100 turns and make a seperate save every 10 turns. This would make AI testing a lot less time consuming .

Rollo

[Matryx]

Yes it was me that made the mod launcher.
As for the component editor along the same lines that's been put on hold as I've been on holiday to visit my girlfriend and other important business.
Anyway... everything programming wise is also on hold for the next couple of weeks because I'm moving to a new flat

Dogscoff : I like the idea. All I need to do now is to work out how to implement it.
it is certainly plausible... and definately doable...
and maybe while I'm at it I'll make a ModInfo editor so people don't make little mistakes that ruin everything.
now.. the second post you made has more complicated stuff.. but that all sounds doable as well (eventually).

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The Unofficial Space Empires 4 Mod Utility V2.0
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Download as a .ZIP <HERE>
Download as a .RAR <HERE>
Download as a .ACE <HERE>
Check a Screenshot of it<HERE>

Check an Alpha Shot of my Mod Editor (Unreleased) <HERE>

[Baron Munchausen]

Having to tediously modify AI files by hand is really... tedious. How about an AI file "compiler" that will take rules/settings and then re-write the AI files to suit those rules? This would save a lot of manual editing. For example, if I want to change the research behavior of an AI now, I have to edit the AI_Research file for that race, cut-and-paste things around, create any new entries I think it needs and delete anything that I don't think is necessary anymore. It can take 20 minutes to adjust the file for one conceptual change. What if I could type in the techfields that the AI should research and assign both a 'priority level' and a 'step size' (number of levels to research at a time) to each tech? Then click a button and the program would write out a text file with all the techs in order. It might take some imagination to design something like that to work like you would expect it to. Maybe more rules are needed then I have thought of in the example. But that's the direction that SE utilities need to go. Automation of the chores of managing the huge amount of text.

[This message has been edited by Baron Munchausen (edited 18 September 2001).]