Is there a quick way to update all SS2 mods and fan missions in the SS2 folder?

[681001e7207a7JDoran]

Every so often, of course, an existing fan mission or fan made mod is updated and loaded to this site. And we (well me...) don't always notice this, and so don't download and install the newer version of the mod/mission that we already have installed. So I was wondering is there a sort of check-and-update (or just a check-and-inform-the-user) program or something that we can run to see what programs need updating? Sort of like SS2Tool, but that checks for installed mods and missions, whereas SS2Tool of course checks and installs updated for the game itself.

A program that can check online, and see what mods and missions there are, and what is missing or outdated in the user's System Shock 2 folder would be brilliant, and is surely possible, given the relatively low number of mods and missions for SS2.

If not, then fair enough.

[681001e720979voodoo47]

no.

[681001e720ab5JDoran]

You mean I've finally found something that this forum and it's regulars DON'T do for this game? 

Surely I should win a prize for that (nothing fancy, just a Ferrari, or my own island somewhere)?

Thanks for the answer, mate.

[681001e720bf2voodoo47]

this has already been mentioned/proposed, but it's not happening anytime soon, or possibly even at all.

[681001e720fbfJDoran]

this has already been mentioned/proposed, but it's not happening anytime soon, or possibly even at all.

No problem. It's no hardship to occasionally check the three SS2 boards on this forum to see what's new or updated. Especially since this forum is so well organised and the release posts tend to be very clear about what a mod does and how to install and use it.

[681001e72120bKolya]

This is not possible with the way things currently work: Right now mod authors start a thread and post a link or an attachment. But it's still just a forum. There is no versioning of these attachments and no logic that connects them to a specific mod. Because there's no technical concept of a  "mod".

It would require a database which holds for every mod an id, name, current version, current forum thread url and download url. You would need a frontend where mod authors can register a new mod and update it. You'd probably want to prevent people entering bullshit data somehow, maybe by hooking into the forum permission system or by writing your own user management. At that point you might as well make updates automatic, provide the newbie guide as an installable mod-list. And so on.

None of that is impossible but I won't be the one to write it. Maybe someone comes along who does have the time and energy, or everyone moves to some service like like nexusmods some day.
Or we'll chug along as we do. Because there aren't that many mods and the forum approach has a nice social aspect, which mod users kinda have to get into and then may get hooked and discuss or start writing their own mods. This human side was always more important to me than a perfect mod distribution system.

[681001e721cc9voodoo47]

to sum it up, you want SS2 mods, you'll be dealing with a bunch of grumpy old men on a forum, because that's how we roll.

that is the deal, Eddie.

[681001e7223fesarge945]

It would probably require mods to be version controlled to a degree, which is how many package managers work on systems like Linux.

I doubt many mods authors would be willing to change their workflow to any significant degree.

But if something like git was involved, it would be relatively easy for a mod manager to implement a git client, pull the latest versions of repos, then zip if needed. This would obviously mean that everything would have to change with the way people do things though.

Don't expect mod versioning anytime soon. It would require setting up infrastructure, and would require mod authors to get on board.

It would be amazing being able to automatically handle dependencies, though.

[681001e722e66JDoran]

It would probably require mods to be version controlled to a degree, which is how many package managers work on systems like Linux.

I doubt many mods authors would be willing to change their workflow to any significant degree.

No, I doubt many people would want to add to the complexity, especially since everything works fine at the moment. I've not used Linux, BTW, but I have heard that you can just automate downloading and installing of things. That must be great when you're reinstalling an OS onto a PC.

to sum it up, you want SS2 mods, you'll be dealing with a bunch of grumpy old men on a forum, because that's how we roll.

This is a great forum, really. Everyone is friendly and helpful, and despite being nominally a gaming forum, the obnoxious fanboy content
is as close to zero as you can hope for in the real world. I really like the two System Shocks, but not nearly enough to regularly visit a SS forum, I come here mainly because the conversation is intelligent, polite and productive. The only thing it really lacks is more members, but maybe a large influx of members would also bring troublesome people (of the sort who ruin the otherwise great Gamefaqs' forums).

that is the deal, Eddie.

What is that a quote from, please?

This is not possible with the way things currently work: Right now mod authors start a thread and post a link or an attachment. But it's still just a forum. There is no versioning of these attachments and no logic that connects them to a specific mod. Because there's no technical concept of a  "mod".

It would require a database which holds for every mod an id, name, current version, current forum thread url and download url. You would need a frontend where mod authors can register a new mod and update it. You'd probably want to prevent people entering bullshit data somehow, maybe by hooking into the forum permission system or by writing your own user management. At that point you might as well make updates automatic, provide the newbie guide as an installable mod-list. And so on.

None of that is impossible but I won't be the one to write it. Maybe someone comes along who does have the time and energy, or everyone moves to some service like like nexusmods some day.

Or we'll chug along as we do. Because there aren't that many mods and the forum approach has a nice social aspect, which mod users kinda have to get into and then may get hooked and discuss or start writing their own mods. This human side was always more important to me than a perfect mod distribution system.

I agree, this place does have a good feel to it, and it's no trouble installing any of the mods. It's not like we have to manually edit files, then sort through several layers of game folders to copy/change lots of different files, then makes sure to reinstall every single mod every time one of the mods has been updated. The fan-made menu loaders for SS2 mods makes everything a non-chore, really.

[681001e7238e6voodoo47]

What is that a quote from, please?

https://youtu.be/_5qap07omt4?t=78

[681001e72444dJDoran]

Oh, Venom. I've not seen that yet, though I have seen most of the Marvel films. My meagre social life is no match for Covid!

[681001e72465bvoodoo47]

it answers the age old question - is Venom going around biting off people's heads and throwing cheesy comments enough for a movie to be fun?

yes. yes it is.

[681001e7250c2sarge945]

No, I doubt many people would want to add to the complexity, especially since everything works fine at the moment. I've not used Linux, BTW, but I have heard that you can just automate downloading and installing of things. That must be great when you're reinstalling an OS onto a PC.

Offtopic, but it's worth taking some time off to write a batch script to automate downloading and installing chocolatey, and a bunch of applications on a new Windows install.

Here's the script I use to install chocolatey, then a bunch of applications. It needs to be run in an admin prompt. This is actually out of date and I have not used many of these applications for a long time (or replaced most of them), and I have basically moved to Linux exclusively anyway.

PLEASE VET THIS, you shouldn't trust random code you find on the internet! The first line is the exact line from the chocolatey install page.

Code: [Select]

::install chocolatey
@powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command "iex ((new-object net.webclient).DownloadString('https://chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))" && SET PATH=%PATH%;%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\chocolatey\bin

::install chocolatey applications
cinst -y googlechrome geforce-experience steam discord battle.net dropbox teamspeak keepass keepass-keepasshttp googledrive thunderbird vcredist2005 linkshellextension greenshot 7zip.install libreoffice vlc transmission-qt gvim atom audacity putty conemu freedownloadmanager clover gpmdp gimp ccleaner everything

echo PC will restart when pressing ENTER...
pause

::restart
shutdown -r -t 5
I still prefer the Linux way of doing things because I can sync my entire dotfiles repo and be ready to go with all my settings basically instantly, but this is miles better than what most people go through when doing a new install of Windows. I use cinst to install most software after the inital setup, too, because it's easier to type into a command line than it is to google, download a file, run an installer, uncheck to install the ask toolbar, and click through a bunch of pages.