Dintiradan

I was trying Ubuntu (no particular reason other than the CompSci department had a few copies sitting around). I had installed a second hard drive as a slave beforehand. The first time I tried the 'normal' install, and it got hung up 'setting up the partitioner'. Not wanting to partition my drives, I tried again with the 'expert' install and skipped the partitioner, but it seem that that step also sets up the file system as well (neither GRUB nor LILO wanted to install). I'm not too concerned. It won't be necessary for me to dual-boot for a year or two yet, and by then I hope to change my computer anyway. -------------------- Factory Orders Dip - Headline

That would be the problem; the computer comes with version 6. I do have IE5, though. Murky buckets. EDIT: Fixed it. Youpi! -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will explain to my Legions of Terror that guns are ranged weapons and swords are not. Anyone who attempts to throw a sword at the hero or club him with a gun will be summarily executed.

After failing an attempt to dual-boot my computer, I did a full restore on it (Win98), and then reinstalled BoA. I got this error on the opening screen: Quote: Direct Sound Error: Failed to create sound buffer. Game will be quiet now. Most of the time, these problems can be fixed by installing a fresh copy of your sound drivers. Re-installing the sound drivers didn't help, neither did re-installing Blades. According to my DirectX diagnostic, Direct Sound works find. What version of DirectX is needed for BoA? (it's possible that beforehand I had updated the DirectX from the pre-installed version, I don't remember.) Otherwise, what else could be the cause? (I do know that the sound driver I have in now is the same one as beforehand.)

I refuse to believe any of these conspiracy theories until one of them features a vahnatai in a tutu (I'm still trying to figure out why that was the first thing to pop in my head after reading this article). Really, the most likely reason why beings with the power of shaping life exist in both Avernum/Exile and Geneforge is because JV likes the idea of beings with the power of shaping life. After reading the latest Terry Brooks installment, I think that not joining Avernum with Geneforge would be a very good idea. -------------------- See the l0veli lakes

By Alorael Quote: Alorael, who would like to know what kind of villain is best for a board game. I've got a pretty good evil laugh in Settlers... -------------------- This post brought to you by the joys of Unix.

You know, there's a reason why D&D 3.0 stopped allowing summoned creatures from being able to summon allies... -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: If I am using the hero's girlfriend as a hostage and am holding her at the point of imminent death when confronting the hero, I will focus on her and not him. He won't try anything with his true love held hostage. On the other hand, the fact that she has been weak, slow-witted, naive and generally useless up to this point has no bearing on her actions at the moment of dramatic climax.

By Kelandon: Quote: And hey! Solberg and X both have cobra staffs! I never noticed that before. I believe all Triad members get the standard issue snake staff. The real question: does Drakey have one? -------------------- All your snake staff are belong to the DL.

Don't worry, I didn't. Anyway, went over my code, changed everything so it used the buffer, and now it works. Why assigning a string to a declared variable gets a semicolon error is beyond me. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will not appoint a relative to my staff of advisors. Not only is nepotism the cause of most breakdowns in policy, but it also causes trouble with the EEOC.

Yes, I did declare it as a string. Guess I'm going to have to change my code. The only thing is that I'm getting errors from scripts I alpha tested before, script I could have sworn worked fine before. Oh well. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: If my mad scientist/wizard tells me he has almost perfected my Superweapon but it still needs more testing, I will wait for him to complete the tests. No one ever conquered the world using a beta version.

Umm... Code: string = "string"; There's an error for every instance of this, at least in Alint. EDIT: Beat to the post... by two seconds. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will never tell the hero "Yes I was the one who did it, but you'll never be able to prove it to that incompetent old fool." Chances are, that incompetant old fool is standing behind the curtain.

I've been getting a lot of errors from Alint in my scripts. All of them original when I assign a string to a variable. Is something else wrong, or do I have to use buffer calls instead of assigning strings to variables (I really want to make sure this is the problem before I go over all of my scripts)? -------------------- We interrupt this scheduled quote to bring you a rant. Again. WHAT? "WE HAVE DETECTED THE PRESENCE OF SPYWARE ON YOUR COMPUTER! PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR A FREE SCAN?!?!?!?!?!"

By Ash: Quote: And if they start it with any other party, they arrive in a walled room with nothing but an exit from the scenario. Ooh. That's evil. Actually, a few weeks ago I came up with an idea for a series of this type (read: I'm getting sick and tired of the scenario I'm working on). Have four small scenarios, each with a pre-fab singleton. Each singleton's personality is developed in their scenario. Then have a fifth scenario that comes with a utility that extracts all the character info from each save. Bingo! A four PC scenario, in which each PC has an individual history. The problem is that for me to be able to write such an utility, JV would have to release the format for the .SAV file. EDIT: Such an utility could probably extract SDF values as well. That way, in the fifth scenario, the pre-created dialog could reflect choices made in the earlier four. -------------------- I think that all right thinking people in this country are sick and tired of being told that ordinary decent people in this country are fed up with being sick and tired. I am most certainly not. And I'm sick and tired of being told that I am. - John Cleese (Monty Python)

Quote: Alorael, who also is pretty sure that Micah is already dead and replaced by Starrus. On the other hand, Jeff has insinuated that Solberg's role will be expanded. Pfft. I want more Cheeseball. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: Although it would provide amusement, I will not confess to the hero's rival that I was the one who committed the heinous act for which he blames the hero.

Bump. After reading the RegEx chapter over and over to find out why I couldn't capture the string under $1, I remembered that $ signifies the end of the pattern, not the beginning. Oops. Anyways, here's the two programs. The intent is to do some spell-checking in between. After extensive testing (cough), the programs appear to function perfectly. Seeing the immense amount of attention this idea has received, I might come back to these programs later and make it possible for use outside of command line usage. -------------------- Code: use warnings;use strict;=head1 'precheck' by Dintiradan - Version 0.1Last updated July 28, 2006Contact me with any suggestions or problems at dintiradan(at)yahoo(dot)comFeel free to use and modify this program for your scripts, provided:Original documentation is preserved (unless it no longer applies),documentation exists for new features (be nice to people who read your code), andcontact information is maintained (for all contributors to the program).=head1 OverviewUsage: perl precheck.pl <text file(s)>precheck.pl copies all the strings out of a script into an output file.=head1 RequiresAt least one text file as an argument in the command line.A binary build of Perl, since this program is being tested and no executable exists yet(I'd recommend ActivePerl).=head1 ModifiesThe input file is not modified.=head1 EffectsA text file is generated containing all the strings in the script.The file is placed in the same directory as the original script and has the prefix 'C-'.Any previous files with the filename and prefix 'C-' will be copied over.=cutdie "Usage: perl precheck.pl <text file(s)>\n" unless (@ARGV);while (@ARGV) { my $file = shift @ARGV; open(IN,$file) || die "Could not open '$file': $!"; open(OUT,">C-$file") || die "Could not create 'C-$file': $!"; while (<IN>) { while (/".*"/) { s/^[^"]*"([^"]*)"//; print OUT "$1\n"; } } close(IN) || die "Could not close '$file': $!"; close(OUT) || die "Could not close 'C-$file': $!";} Code: use warnings;use strict;=head1 'postchck' by Dintiradan - Version 0.1Last updated July 28, 2006Contact me with any suggestions or problems at dintiradan(at)yahoo(dot)comFeel free to use and modify this program for your scripts, provided:Original documentation is preserved (unless it no longer applies),documentation exists for new features (be nice to people who read your code), andcontact information is maintained (for all contributors to the program).=head1 OverviewUsage: perl postchck.pl <text file(s)>postchck.pl recopies all the strings from a 'C-' file back into the original script.=head1 RequiresAt least one text file as an argument in the command line.Both the script and 'C-' file must be present in the same directory as postchck.pl.A binary build of Perl, since this program is being tested and no executable exists yet(I'd recommend ActivePerl).=head1 ModifiesThe input script has its strings replaced with those found in the 'C-' file.The 'C-' file is not modified.=head1 EffectsEach line in the 'C-' file is inserted into each string in the script.=cutdie "Usage: perl postchck.pl <text file(s)>\n" unless (@ARGV);while (@ARGV) { my $file = shift @ARGV; open(SCRIPT,$file) || die "Could not open '$file' for reading: $!"; open(STRINGS,"C-$file") || die "Could not create 'C-$file': $!"; my @lines = (); while (<SCRIPT>) { my $line = ""; while (/".*"/) { my $str = <STRINGS>; chomp($str); s/^([^"]*)"[^"]*"//; $line .= $1 . '"' . $str . '"'; } $line .= $_; push @lines, $line; } close(SCRIPT) || die "Could not close '$file' for reading: $!"; close(STRINGS) || die "Could not close 'C-$file': $!"; open(SCRIPT,">$file") || die "Could not open '$file' for rewriting: $!"; foreach my $i (@lines) { print SCRIPT $i; } close(SCRIPT) || die "Could not close '$file' for rewriting: $!";}

'i', 'j', and 'k' are the conventional variables to use in summation notation and loops, in my experience. How exactly does BoA decide which rectangle the party is in? You could do the SDF idea, and have 'boundary' rectangles surrounding the first to turn the SDF back to zero, but that might lead to problems when the party occupies more than one rectangle. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: If I am recruiting to find someone to run my computer systems, and my choice is between the brilliant programmer who's head of the world's largest international technology conglomerate and an obnoxious 15-year-old dork who's trying to impress his dream girl, I'll take the brat and let the hero get stuck with the genius.

One thing I've thought of is giving the PCs the special ability "Command NPC". They could give commands like "Attack with Bow", "Heal/Bless PCs", "Defend PC #4", etc. to NPCs following the party. Then just have different versions of START_STATE to choose from depending on the value of a SDF set by the ability. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: If the rebels manage to trick me, I will make a note of what they did so that I do not keep falling for the same trick over and over again.

Placing random walls in BoA (and presumably A5) is easy enough. The problem with it arises in trying to make sure the maze has at least one true passage, enough false passages, and is fairly difficult. I might take a whack at it myself after I brush up on graph theory a bit... yeah, like THAT'S going to happen... This reminds me of one tower my DM made for my group. It was a teleportation maze, with glowing blue portals set inside each doorway. Of course, said DM neglected to mention the obviousness of said portals until I commented on how the tower seemed to ignore all rules of space and time. Grrr. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: As an equal-opportunity employer, I will have several hearing-impaired body-guards. That way if I wish to speak confidentially with someone, I'll just turn my back so the guards can't read my lips instead of sending all of them out of the room.

Couldn't Google astring either. Even if I could find it, I'd still like to know what I was doing wrong. This should be a relatively easy task. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will hire one hopelessly stupid and incompetent lieutenant, but make sure that he is full of misinformation when I send him to capture the hero.

I started working on a Perl program to remove strings from a BoA script (the idea is to do a spell check on the strings, then use a diffent program to merge the corrected strings back in again). It's been a few months since I've used Perl, and I was never formally taught how to write data to a file. So predictably, I've gotten errors I don't know how to solve. I've tried explicitly setting a variable to the result of <IN> instead of relying on $_, to no luck. After trying several different ways of coding it and inserting debug print statements, I get the feeling that the problem arises with: Code: print OUT "$1\n"; When I removed OUT (getting print to go to STDOUT), I got: Code: Use of uninitialized value in concatenation (.) or string Anyways, any help would be appreciated; Word doesn't catch all the errors when the strings are surrounded by code. -------------------- Code: while (@ARGV) { my $file = shift @ARGV; open(IN,$file) || die "Could not open '$file': $!"; open(OUT,">C-$file") || die "Could not create 'C-$file': $!"; while (<IN>) { while (/".*"/) { s/$[^"]*"([^"]*)"//; print OUT "$1\n"; } } close(IN) || die "Could not close '$file': $!"; close(OUT) || die "Could not close 'C-$file': $!";}

Did you know that today is Random Acts of Necromancy Day? -------------------- (The newest oldest topic.)

Include a whole new program file. As far as I can tell by looking at the files in the BoA folder, the sounds would either be in the executable or some generic data file. Either way, to change it would be reverse engineering, and doing so would reduce the chances of that scenario being hosted on SpidWeb drastically. Be a nice thing to add to the wish list, though. (Just curious: why would it have to be a PC user?) EDIT: Took a look at the complete title of the thread. You mean Mac users are already capable of including custom sounds? -------------------- Wow. A post count consisting of a non-zero digit followed by zeroes. I feel like I should commemorate this occurance by creating a completely useless, self-absorbed thread instead of answering someone's question.

By Stareye: Quote: That's always a dangerous thing to speculate. The more talked about scenarios are by their designers, in my experience, the less likely they are to be finished. Awesome. That means LoD1 has an excellent chance of being released, since I haven't talked about it for a long, long time. ... crap. Never mind. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will exchange the labels on my folder of top-secret plans and my folder of family recipes. Imagine the hero's surprise when he decodes the stolen plans and finds instructions for Grandma's Potato Salad.

There was a 'recent' thread concerning reputation; give me a second to put up the link. EDIT: Linked. -------------------- Ta da!

The Necromancer wouldn't work for role-playing purposes either. Think about it: would you, as a quest-giver (a.k.a. Bob), give a heroic quest to a creepy guy whose illegal and inherently evil compatriots continually drop pieces of their putrid remains on your waiting room carpet? I didn't think so. The only thing that would work worse than the Necromancer would be some sort of demon summoner. By Alorael: Quote: Alorael, who is a walking, talking gimmick and likes it that way. Warning: Gimmick conflict. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will provide funding and research to develop tactical and strategic weapons covering a full range of needs so my choices are not limited to "hand to hand combat with swords" and "blow up the planet".

One thing that A3 had (though not nearly enough) that I liked was the minor villains that came into power due to the Vahnatai's actions. I don't mean the random dungeons, like Vahkohs and the Rakshasi. I'm talking about the unforseeable side effects of the main plot arc, such as the Slime Bandits, or the Trog-Giant conflict. That way, you're able to have a side quest that keeps the focus on the main plot, instead of drawing focus away. Just think: instead of making Braziron a benevolent general, make him an idealist who carves out his own personal kingdom north of Gale. The PCs hear rumours about him long before they get that far north, and even get a quest to 'dispose' of him. When they get to him, they have to decide between killing the only efficient slayer of the golems or raising the ire of the Empire. -------------------- IF I EVER BECOME AN EVIL OVERLORD: I will classify my lieutenants in three categories: untrusted, trusted, and completely trusted. Promotion to the third category will be awarded posthumously.