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Topic Summary

Posted by: ZylonBane
« on: 08. July 2021, 16:42:53 »

I just had a thought that it would be nice if the mod manager could somehow also manage bloom settings. Like, have it automatically recognize blablabla.bloom files and copy their values into cam_ext. Currently the only way to mess with bloom is to manually edit a config file, which is a bit much for most users. If bloom presets could be managed like any other mod, that would be pretty slick.

The algorithm wouldn't be too complicated:
- Only apply the highest-priority bloom file.
- On applying a bloom file, if a file named cam_ext.bak does not exist, make a copy of cam_ext.cfg with that name. Just insurance in case cam_ext.cfg somehow gets corrupted.
- Load cam_ext.cfg and split it into lines.
- Remove any previous BMM-applied bloom config:
   Search for a line that starts with "; BMM BLOOM START".
   Search for a line that starts with "; BMM BLOOM END".
   If both found, delete all lines between those two lines, inclusive.
   If only one found, the user has probably been manually mucking around. Best we can do is delete the line that we found.
- Disable any current bloom config:
   Search for any lines that start with with either "postprocess" or "bloom".
   If found, change the lines to be prefixed with a semicolon (i.e., comment them out).
- Add bloom config:
   Append to end "; BMM BLOOM START".
   Append "postprocess 1".
   For each line of the bloom mod file that starts with "bloom", append that line. Ignore lines that start with anything else. We could hard-code all the current bloom config commands, but just keying on "bloom" gives us future-proofing.
   Append "; BMM BLOOM END".
- Write out new cam_ext.cfg.

On disabling a bloom mod, just run the part that scans for and removes the BMM bloom block.
Posted by: Galeb_G4M
« on: 27. April 2021, 14:29:50 »

I've given it a try, and it's great! I've downloaded quite a couple mods recently, and since I'm spending more or less all of my days in front of the computer (talking the my family over Skype, working on an investment project in Budapest, playing SS2 or Project Wingman...), I tend to get quite tired and to get lost in folders, subfolders, settings ...
Posted by: baumer
« on: 23. April 2021, 11:38:55 »

Marvin
Thank you!
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 11. April 2021, 16:52:06 »

Continuing here: https://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=4790.0
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 11. April 2021, 15:49:35 »

@voodoo47 Added *.nut file support to most recent version.

Edit: Wait, no. Are .nut files always in a subfolder? Only checking main folder so far.
//FIXED!
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 11. April 2021, 15:21:09 »

@JML
* Concerning read denied warnings: Do you just get a warning in the console or are there actual problems with the functionality? I'm just using basic wxWidgets file system functionality, reduced to the limited NTFS feature set of Wine. No changes at all since the project started, so no idea what I could do to fix.
* Saved profiles not shown immediately: This is intended. However, the use button should have stayed disabled. Fixed
* Cut-off deletion sentence: Probably one of a couple of million different things that can go wrong with string manipulation between operating systems.
* Missing symbols: Wine issue with Unicode symbols and Windows BOM. I tried several ways to implement Unicode symbols, this is the only one that worked consistently on Windows. Shame about Wine.
* Cut-off popup: Does the terminal tell you anything interesting when that happens? The deletion dialog is the same as any other standard dialog. Does this always happen with a certain mod folder, maybe containing invalid characters?
* Drag and drop: Shame. The feature relies on certain refresh timings working correctly. Win only then. Thanks for the feedback!
* Wording: Where exactly does it still say "Exit and start game" anymore? I thought I changed that everywhere.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 06. April 2021, 12:13:23 »

I should be getting back to this just about... now soon.
Posted by: JML
« on: 04. April 2021, 16:31:57 »

I'm a bit late to the party, but I finally took some time to properly test this beauty. Here's what I found:

After starting the BMM 1.16.1 I get the following line in the terminal running Wine: "wine: Read access denied for device L"\\??\\Z:\\", FS volume label and serial are not available."

Does not close on "X" any more, has to be force quitted. Can't replicate that now, probably just bad luck the first time around.

Profiles are saved, but not automatically shown when going back to "Manage profiles..." but rather have to be reimported via "Load file...". This works, however after pressing "Use" I get that same "wine: Read access denied for device L"\\??\\Z:\\".

Automatically extracting .7z files works properly and even shows the elapsed time. The last digit of the seconds is cut at the midpoint but doesn't really matter.

"Increase priority" and "Decreade priority" have no arrows, but just rectangles (see screenies). Other than that they work as intended.

About page works with link and licence.

"Install mod archive(s)" and selecting a .7z file in the DMM folder brings a tiny popup (see screenie). After pressing Enter I can choose the .7z file again. Then comes a bigger popup (see screenie), telling me I am stoopid. Also cut off a tiny bit in the end. Also it's "Cancel" (or "Abbrechen" in your case) and not "Abort". You might want to add to the message, that the user could reopen the modmanager to extract these mods automatically (since it always does that just on the startup, not when you copy mods in there with it already running). Suggestion:
Code: [Select]
Do not select archives from the DMM (mods) folder.
They are installed automatically.
Simply restart the Mod Manager
or select an archive from a different folder.
"Install mod archive(s)..." works properly when selecting from a different folder (as is intended).

"Delete" and pressing Del/Entf on the keyboard both work as intended. Popup cut off though. Sometimes the popup is tiny, similar to the other tiny popup. Can only press enter (which closes since "Yes" is preselected),  also when it's tiny like that. Can't resize. Alt+N (No) or Alt+Y (Yes) work though.

"Lookup mod (WWW)" works as intended.

"Open ReadMe file" works as intended, very nice addition!

"Open mods folder" opens the mod folder in a Wine window (and not the installed file manager, Nemo in my case) and is ugly af. Don't care tho, since most people know how to navigate to the DMM folder anyway.

"Select game folder..." seems to work well and finds SS2.

Duplicate folder name warning works, you good, good man!

Drag'n'drop does not work.

Ctrl+S saving works.

Button is called "Launch game", not "Exit and start game" as the releasenotes in Github say. I vaguely remember there being a discussion to rename the button to something else or whatnot. I preferred the "Exit and start game" but it doesn't really matter. It does what it's supposed to do.

Wine build: 5.0

Anything else you'd like me to look into?
[InstallModArchives_popup.png expired]
[DMM_folder_popup.png expired]
[DeleteMod_popup.png expired]
Posted by: sarge945
« on: 24. February 2021, 01:13:19 »

Quote by Kolya:
we may need dark mood management to have these dorks mind manners. okay, don't mind me. damn my misanthropy.

When are you releasing Dork Mood Manager?
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 21. February 2021, 09:30:26 »

I'd just leave the name be. don't fix something that ain't broke.
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 21. February 2021, 00:42:29 »

we may need dark mood management to have these dorks mind manners. okay, don't mind me. damn my misanthropy.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 20. February 2021, 23:29:44 »

I'm always open for ideas. Dark Mod devs taking offense would be very amusing, though.
Posted by: Twist
« on: 20. February 2021, 23:07:54 »

You may hate me for pointing this out so late, but I don't think Dark Mod Manager is a good name for a new tool to be used by the Thief community.

They already have the well-established Dark Mod. It's been around for over a decade (it won PCGamer's Mod of the Year in 2012), it's still popular, and it's still actively updated.

https://www.thedarkmod.com/main/

Introducing something called Dark Mod Manager that has nothing to do with the established Dark Mod could be, quite obviously, confusing and problematic. It's also possible some of the developers of the Dark Mod may, somewhat understandably, take offense.

Sorry, I hadn't taken the time to read all the comments in this thread since before you gave it a name.
Posted by: Deu sex
« on: 28. January 2021, 17:09:22 »

even better ! thanks
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 27. January 2021, 21:50:55 »

You can now also export a mod list via profile manager. It's just a text file basically containing the single useful line from cam_mod.ini, so there's less risk of running into trouble overwriting other people's settings.
Posted by: Deu sex
« on: 27. January 2021, 00:21:10 »

thank you !
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 26. January 2021, 22:58:44 »

for sharing a modlist, ss2bmm.log, and the actual file that the game reads is cam_mod.ini, both are in your SS2 folder.
Posted by: Deu sex
« on: 26. January 2021, 22:38:25 »

That question was probably asked 10000 times, but what file is responsible for managing what mod is activated or not, and in what order ?
If I want for example to share my modlist.
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 20. January 2021, 10:21:18 »

one last request - we may need support for pure squirrel script mods in the future, so making the manager recognize them would be prudent, most likely.

basically, modname\sq_scripts\*.nut, see attachment for an example (in dmm ready archive format).
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 17. January 2021, 18:13:19 »

Won't be able to work on this for a few weeks, but tested the current build on Linux and it seems to work well, so don't expect any more code changes. I want to clean up the pipeline.
If @voodoo47 or anyone else wants to get a Thief fanpatch ready, just use the current build: https://github.com/pshjt/dmm/releases/download/v1.0.0-beta1/dmm.exe
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 13. January 2021, 00:14:47 »

{alt}
Posted by: ZylonBane
« on: 12. January 2021, 22:26:41 »

You know icons are displayed for programs when they aren't running, yes?
Posted by: sarge945
« on: 11. January 2021, 10:40:04 »

Quote by Marvin:
Sorry to be so blunt, but it's a terrible practice to keep separate builds (build script, artifacts) just for the sake of having a different icon when there is exactly zero benefit to it, and unless someone can convince me this is a much-needed feature, I won't do it. I'm certainly not keeping anyone else from doing it, either.

Sorry, I don't think I was clear.

I didn't mean the application in Explorer. That would definitely be something generic.

But in the actual manager itself, when it loads, if it knows what game it's managing, it could change it's own icon and the window title to "Thief Mod Manager" or "SS2 Mod Manager" respectively.

Although thinking about this in hindsight, that might actually be more confusing to some users, who might think there is 2 different applications.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 03. January 2021, 06:43:48 »

On the one hand, yes, that's a valid remark, on the other hand: We're talking about an unimportant, tiny single-developer tool for a highly detail-oriented audience. Everything is a bikeshed. :)
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 02. January 2021, 23:52:56 »

 :omg: But my bikeshed!
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 02. January 2021, 23:35:04 »

Sorry to be so blunt, but it's a terrible practice to keep separate builds (build script, artifacts) just for the sake of having a different icon when there is exactly zero benefit to it, and unless someone can convince me this is a much-needed feature, I won't do it. I'm certainly not keeping anyone else from doing it, either.
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 02. January 2021, 16:40:54 »

again, as new versions are released maybe once a year, there should be no problem with simply building two executables with a different icon.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 01. January 2021, 22:02:49 »

Not possible afaik. You can only have one main icon, and if you set multiple, windows explorer still picks the first one in an alphabetical list.
Setting it programmatically during execution would be possible but inane.
Posted by: sarge945
« on: 01. January 2021, 14:18:13 »

I really like the idea of having one mod manager for the Dark engine games.

Would it be possible/wise to have different icons based on whatever game it's being used for? I could imagine a systemshock-styled icon and a thief styled icon and it switching between them.
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 01. January 2021, 10:43:02 »

Yes, the comments would end up in the old thread. Sorry, if I've been unclear.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 01. January 2021, 01:02:06 »

Actually, I would leave the comments with the old thread. Too much clutter. Otherwise sounds fine.

I'll get back to you.
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 31. December 2020, 21:44:12 »

I assume DMM will replace BMM as the mod manager for SS2. In that case it would be best if all outside links currently pointing at BMM will end up pointing at DMM in future. This can be achieved by creating a copy of the first post, then splitting off all comments here and attaching them to the new thread, which leaves you with one post under the original (BMM) URL which you can rewrite for DMM. It's a bit of a hassle, but quite effective for SEO and user comfort. Give me a sign if you're interested. Of course you can alternatively just link to the new thread in the first post.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 31. December 2020, 18:12:48 »

When testing is finished, I would open a new thread to keep the post history clean and let all current links remain valid. At the moment, there is absolutely no functionality added wrt to SS2, so there is no need yet to include DMM.
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 31. December 2020, 16:39:58 »

Nicely done, I feel well informed.  :)
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 31. December 2020, 16:04:31 »

Docu site is up: https://pshjt.github.io/dmm/
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 30. December 2020, 09:45:30 »

Fixed a tooltip in SS2BMM and uploaded a new release, also uploaded the v1.15 release here for preservation (or catalogizing, depending on if you believe GitHub to go down).

GitHub does not allow to fork one's own repository, so I created a new one: https://github.com/pshjt/dmm
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 29. December 2020, 18:08:55 »

Release candidate. Linux (Wine) testing would be welcome since Thief 1/2 files are far less standardized in terms of case sensitivity.

- added ability to recognize both /cutscenes and /movies folders for cutscenes
- Fixed manager not recognizing game when swapping from Thief (2) back to SS2
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 29. December 2020, 17:46:41 »

DMM sounds just fine.
Posted by: Vegoraptor
« on: 29. December 2020, 16:44:42 »

Very well. Also, observe how I prefaced my suggestion.
We are still far from such wonderful brainchildren as INADEQUATE (Incredible Natural-Abundance DoublE-QUAntum Transfer Experiment) though.
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 29. December 2020, 16:25:29 »

In science, with biology and physics being the worst offenders, there's a very annoying habit of trying to shoehorn the most ridiculous acronyms into anything from protein names to microscopy techniques. It's gotten so bad that it is impossible to renember the actual name of some method because spelling out its 10-letter acronym makes you have an aneurysm.

Thankfully, the world of System Shock is still very healthy in this regard, and I intend to keep it that way. ;)
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 29. December 2020, 16:14:02 »

Try to lighten up a bit. You act like you're the only one with a brain here. Not every suggestion needs to be hit with maximum contempt.
Posted by: ZylonBane
« on: 29. December 2020, 15:49:08 »

Quote by Vegoraptor:
People love acronyms
"Gosh, I'd sure love to try some mods!"
"No problem, first download DEMO."
"Okay, I downloaded the demo. How does that help?"

Yeah, that would work our great.
Posted by: Vegoraptor
« on: 29. December 2020, 15:03:22 »

I like it, but calling the tool a guided expander would mean we either indulge in false advertising or put additional workload on Marvin the dev-team to make it so.
Admittedly, both options appear to be so hot right now.
Posted by: Kolya
« on: 29. December 2020, 14:46:36 »

Well if you put it like that... Dark Engine Mod Instance Universal Rollout Guided Expander
Posted by: Vegoraptor
« on: 29. December 2020, 14:14:32 »

People love acronyms
Posted by: ZylonBane
« on: 28. December 2020, 20:16:34 »

Explain what the point would be of changing the word "manager" to "organizer".
Posted by: Vegoraptor
« on: 28. December 2020, 17:44:35 »

My initial idea was something along the lines of a steam engine with some simple neon circuitry in the background, unifying the (sort of) steam- and cyberpunk-aspects of the games, as well as taking "Dark Engine" literally. Lacking any real talent in graphic design beyond mixing and modifying existing art, I didn't get too far, though.
Speaking of bad ideas, is it too late to throw the name "Dark Engine Mod Organizer" into the ring?
Posted by: Marvin
« on: 28. December 2020, 15:25:47 »

I'd like to keep everything in one place. I agree with ZB's idea. Making a "wrench & hammer" icon, maybe overlaid on the Mechanist's gear, seems doable.

Edit: Progress so far. Works somewhat even for small sizes but needs some detail and shine.
[preview.png expired]
[dmm_icon.svg expired]
Posted by: voodoo47
« on: 28. December 2020, 14:48:05 »

as we are not releasing a new version of the manager/tool every odd week, I don't think building two versions with different icons (SS2 and Thief) would pose a problem.
Posted by: ZylonBane
« on: 28. December 2020, 00:24:56 »

Words as an icon is like, icon design "Don't Do That" rule #1.

If there won't be separate builds, then I'd recommend some manner of custom symbol that combines the iconography of Thief and SS2. Not an easy task since their aesthetics are so different. Perhaps a Hammerite hammer across an SS2 wrench. Or the Thief 2 gear icon but redrawn in the SS2 style.
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