TOOL: Dialog editor v3.1e

[ca0mgr]

no objections, thanks very much.

new version:
www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor3.zip (3.0f)

************************
* Added a snazzy icon.
* Added instructions in the preview script file for integrating with AGS.
* Added commandline parameters.

Matt

[auhsor]

Looking better. Another thing,  when you quit, it doesnt ask you if you want to save.

[Duzz]

This is incredibly useful, and is very easy to get into as well, I've made a couple of dialogs in half the time it'd normally have taken me.

A suggestion: With the option-off and option-on, it often takes me a few tries to get the right option number when I've got quite a few in the dialog.  Do you think it could be possible to have it so that after typing 'option-off ' you can click the option you'd like to turn off, and it will insert the number. (And the same thing for 'option-on')

Or if that's too hard to implement, you could display the number of the option next to the name in the chart to make it easier.

cheers,
Duzz

[ca0mgr]

As per, it's at the same link:
www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor3.zip

* Right click on choices (see readme)
* Wider choices include ID number
* Mouse over shows whole text
* Asks before quits
* ID number is always visible to the left of the choice text.

Matt

[ca0mgr]

If anyone's interested I also wrote this to help remember numbers in AGS. I have trouble remembering certain numbers associated with inventory, topics, scenes, etc, so this helps me.

It's designed to sit on the right hand side when editing in AGS,

It also features a handy, but rudamentary room viewer so you can see mouse coordinates quickly without having to load a room up.

[edit: It's all in one package now, sorry for the increase in file size. you can get both programs from: www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor3.zip ]

Matt

[Scorpiorus]

Really nice work with the dialog editor

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

I told you I'dd add it to my site, right? I'd rather wait until you get a definite, final version. So let us know when it's ready, or if that package is the last (until, of course, you get some new ideas ) "installment".

[ThunderStorm]

Wohoo - my name's in the credits?!

One more thing: I might have skipped a version, since they are released that frequently, but last time I checked, right-clicking on an option inserts on "option-off" command into the script, which can easily mess things up if you click on it accidently. I'd prefer having a context menu that lets me choose between 'option-off' and 'option-on'.

This thing is getting better and better. Keep it up!

[Hollister Man]

Maybe I missed something. It can't import DLG files, and the native DG files can't be exporetd to AGS?  Is the only point to be organized?  Perhaps if nothing else, CJ could work out an import option for your file format?

Not that he doesn't have anything bettr to do, but I hate being organized if it doesn't save me time as well.

[Ben]

I second a  way to import the dialogs. That would make the whole process even more streamlined and user-friendly. Can you use AGS's DLG format instead of your own?

[Scorpiorus]

The latest beta includes a documented  exported dialog file format.

http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?board=2;action=display;threadid=12051

[EDIT]
ops, the DOC dir does not come along with betas...

[Hollister Man]

I SWEAR I read that post five minutes ago, but I guess I missed that line. *sheepish grin*

I *will* prolly use this after all!  (Now if Rick will help with the custom scripting interface. )

[Pumaman]

Heh oops, here's the file format doc snippet. It's enough info for you to read the dialog files with, but writing them back out currently requires them to be compiled to bytecode first - I'll see what I can do about that.

Code: ags

The AGS Editor Exported Dialog file format (.DLG) for v2.61 onwards is as follows:
offset  size    description
+00h  10 BYTEs  string "AGSDialg2\0" -- identifies this as a dialog file
+0Ah     DWORD  file version -- must be 2. If it's not 2, this file spec does not apply
+0Eh     DWORD  number of dialog script messages
+12h     DWORD  number of dialog topics
+16h   n BYTEs  for each dialog topic, this struct is written:
  struct DialogTopic {
    char          optionNames[30][150];
    DWORD         optionFlags[30];    // 1 = "Show",  4 = NOT "Say"
    DWORD         hasCompiledScript;
    WORD          entryPoints[30];
    WORD          startupEntryPoint;
    WORD          codeSize;
    DWORD         numOptions;
    DWORD         topicFlags;
  };
Then for each dialog topic,
  n BYTEs   If "hasCompiledScript" is non-zero then "codeSize" bytes
            of compiled bytecode follows
    DWORD   size of dialog script
  n BYTEs   dialog script source code
Then for each dialog script message (see offset 0Eh for count)
  n BYTEs   null-terminated string, with dialog script messages

[DragonRose]

Oooo... this looks really cool. My game's really dialog heavy, so I'm definetly grabbing this as soon as I get back to residence!

[ca0mgr]

I've got the import working to some degree (it loads all the available choices in the first topic). Since the editor is currently stuck with one topic to play with, I'm thinking about adding multiple topics.

At the moment, to import dialogues created with the editor, I view the script file (F6) and follow the instructions there. But this becomes tiresome quickly if you have more than five choices to manually enter.

Perhaps a simple text format is needed for the import and export of dialogs fom AGS. This way people can write other editors, and dialogs can be copy and pasted on the forums. All that needs to be exported from any editor into AGS, I think, is the topics (number, script) and their choices (name & flags). The script can be compiled in AGS later, when imported.


redruM, the newest edition of the editor will always be at its current address: www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor3.zip. Feel free to link to it there. One of these days I'll get around to doing up my website, but at the moment, I'm being extremely lazy.

ThunderStorm, if you right click on a choice, it turns itself off and its immediate children on. If you accidentally right click on a choice, you can always delete the script it just generated. But I'll look into a right click popup menu for options pertaining to choices.

Matt

[Pumaman]

Perhaps a simple text format is needed for the import and export of dialogs fom AGS. This way people can write other editors, and dialogs can be copy and pasted on the forums. All that needs to be exported from any editor into AGS, I think, is the topics (number, script) and their choices (name & flags). The script can be compiled in AGS later, when imported.

Well, I'm planning on adding COM Automation support to the editor soon, so once that's done it should provide a much more friendly interface for utilities such as yours to modify the game structures.

[ca0mgr]

Ah, is there anywhere I can read up on COM Automation?

[Pumaman]

It's also known as ActiveX and OLE Automation, and is basically a common interface through which an application can expose functionality.

Whether it would be useful to you depends on what language your utility is written in?

[ca0mgr]

Sounds great. I look forward to using it. By the way, multi-topic version 3.1 is up at the usualy location: www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor3.zip

Matt

[ca0mgr]

For anyone who is still interested, the editor is multi topic (or dialog) and allows you to use "goto-dialog x" in the script. This is visible in the tester/preview. There is also a built-in update mechanism.

You can see and download it here:
www.3030deathwar.co.uk/editor.htm