A beta version of my Event Writer program is now available for any hardy souls who'd like to give it a try.
You can find a screenshot here:
 Link
You can find the instructions file here:
Link
This program has *not* been put through vigorous stress testing, so I do not recommend you install it without knowing what you are getting into. It will make several backups of the .event files in case something goes awry, but if you are not comfortable finding/renaming files on your hard drive, I highly recommend you stay away for the time being. In addition, as mentioned, this program is in a fairly untested state, so if this makes you nervous, stay away as well. I can confirm that GalCiv will load my modified event files, and fire off the events, so all seems well, but I only tested it on 4 machines that might not be representative of the general population (Win98, Win98SE, Win2000, WinXP, that's the extend of my testing facilities at work  ) Proceed at your own risk.
If you are interested in beta'ing this program, please contact me at:
 Email
and I will e-mail you a self extracting zip program with the install package. It is 1.7 megs, so if you are on dialup you'll have to be patient.
Future updates will be available via http download.
I moved the Events onto a separate form at the last minute, in anticipation of *maybe* adding more editing screens for techs, UP issues, SB modules and the like (no promises!), so in order to get to the events you have to select Edit>>Events.
The install package will add a program group, the default installation location is C:\GalCivWriter.
Please post here with any questions, comments, and feature requests.
Thanks!
       
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#1
by Citizen 4D - 4/14/2003 6:55:38 AM
...This isn't a request, comment or question. It's called 'encouragement' cause I think your onto a good idea.
Keep working on this project of yours, It looks like it's got brilliant potential. Reading the FAQ's on how-to MOD different things for GalCiv I was thinking, It's not too hard, however with utils like this, writing small and numerous MOD's will be quick and efficient work.
I hope it's possible to add things like UP Issues and Techs in the future, this will be an invaluable timesaving tool...
 
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RustyBlade: Both of my attempts to email you the install package were returned undeliverable. Do you have another email I should try?
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4D: Thanks for the kind words. The biggest roadblock to continued development is understanding what all the flags in the files mean and do. I've posted a request for information on the next file I'm going take a swing at, UPIssues.
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#5
by Citizen Malleus - 4/14/2003 2:42:29 PM
I am not sure if my emails are getting out anymore.  I just wanted to confirm that you were going to send me a beta of your event builder.
M
 
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Malleus: I sent you a copy at 10:16 AM this morning Pacific time. Have you received it yet? I can resend it if necessary.
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Yep I recieved it and it unzipped just fine. Will be testing it today if I get a chance.
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#8
by Senator CariElf - 4/14/2003 5:11:45 PM
Hey, that looks really nice.
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#9
by Citizen Malleus - 4/14/2003 10:14:39 PM
I got it and am working with it now. My email is very wonky lately.
M
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Ok, a mod FAQ has been mentioned.  Anyone got a URL? Or is it on the CD docs?
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No worries, what language are you writing it in?
I used VB6 so I could blast it out quickly. Essentially what I did was this:
1) Instantiate a TextStream object.
2) Point it at the file.
3) Start reading in lines. The key is that the original files don't allow line return characters within the text. So each line comes across clean using .ReadLine.
4) Look at the start of the line to determine what this line is (Title, Description, etc.)
5) Convert tabs to " ".
6) Split() off the " ".
7) Trim() the array.
8) Look for values that "". There should be just two, the Key (Title) and Value ("Whilst exploring yonder star...").
If you aren't using VB6, most of what I wrote is gibberish to you and not applicable, sorry!
Now, had I not used TextStream, you could still accomplish this by reading each byte into memory until you come to a line break, this data chunk should contain the Key/Value pair. Work your magic on it, then move onto the next line.
I can say that you don't have to write the file down exactly as it was. Since the GalCiv EXE can handle both tabs and spaces, just use whichever way works for you (IOW impose order upon the chaos that are the original event files). When my proggy spits them back out, it just uses spaces. As far as to how many spaces, once again GalCiv doesn't care- it just wants a space, so just pick an arbitrary number and roll with it.
Hope this helps.
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8) should say Look for values that don't equal "", sorry about that.
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Yes!, someone else who uses VB6. If you mod Ghost Recon, check out Kit Constructor or Character Chooser. Two mod programs I'm really proud of making. Looks like a sweet program.
  
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I put out a revision tonight. It adds a new "Copy As New" function that will make a copy of the currently viewed event, so you have a starting point to make edits to. This revision also cleans up the documentation and straightens out the Status bar.
If anyone would like to take the beta for a test drive, please e-mail me at:
Email
Standard disclaimers apply. There are 6 current beta testers (not counting myself)- I haven't heard of anyone's hard drive getting wiped so no news is good news  .
To keep the momentum going, here's a sneak peek at the next screen. It will allow you to add/edit/delete UP Issues.
Link
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#18
by Citizen Evrett - 4/16/2003 2:34:15 AM
The screenies make me drool sticky creative juices...cant wait till you get it nailed down for the gen public
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Bill, check your e-mail.
And thanks for the kind words
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