AGS Linux / BSD Future

EvilTypeGuy · Sat 17/07/2004 20:59:26

Mods, please sticky this indefinitely, thanks!

I just recently finished my second grueling semester at University. I have decided to take less credit hours and as a result actually have the time I need to begin work on AGS for Linux / BSD again.

Over the past months I have gotten several emails from various users of the Linux version of AGS (thanks, you know who you are!) and it has dramatically changed how I want to distribute and develop the Linux / BSD version.

The current version already has my case-insensitive file open routine that allows users to drop AGS games into a directory where the binary is and most of the time have it just work. (This means for example that it doesn't care if MUSIC.vox is called MuSiC.vox or music.vox or anything else, the same goes for other files) and several other fixes and improvements for the ported version.

But, I want to make things even simpler for users and begin to build a framework to make it easier for multiple versions of the runtime engine to exist and only require the user to have one copy of each runtime executable version installed.

The following is a preview of coming attractions and or goals I have for the next 6 months (/me crosses fingers):

* A new graphical installer for the AGS runtime engine port using autopackage (see http://www.autopackage.org/)

* A "template" for AGS game authors to use to make it easy for them to package and distribute their games for Linux / BSD users

* A new Linux/BSD ags "launcher" to make it easy for users to install, run, and configure AGS games

* Various internal cleanups

My goal after all of the above is completed is to begin to look at porting the Editor (with Chris's permission of course) and see how feasible it is.

Now for the happy fun technical stuff / ideas behind the launcher:

So far my idea for the launcher is something similar to Steam (although it won't run in the "notification area" (the Linux / BSD equivalent of the windows system tray). Basically, the user will run the launcher and from there can setup a default configuration to be used for AGS games (screen resolution, etc.), can launch an ags game that is currently installed or configure a specific game with it's own settings (screen resolution, etc.) if they want it to be different than the default.

I will work as hard as I can towards achieving the above goals and I will post updates about my progress along with screenshots (when applicable) as I work on this.

I'm trying to work full time and go to school, thanks for your patience and understanding with the Linux / BSD ags port and know that I haven't forgotten about AGS at all, I've just been friggin' busy.

Dusk · Sat 17/07/2004 22:28:15

Quote from: EvilTypeGuy on Sat 17/07/2004 20:59:26
I just recently finished my second grueling semester at University. I have decided to take less credit hours and as a result actually have the time I need to begin work on AGS for Linux / BSD again.

Just a quick post to write that I really appreciate your work and I think that having AGS games playable under Linux is an inportant goal.
I'm trying to avoid using plugins to preserve compatibilty of my team's game cause I want it playable under Linux too.
So thankyou, and bye

a quite-absent-from-the-forum-I-m-busy-at-the-university Dusk

edmundito · Mon 19/07/2004 00:37:06

I think it would also be important to make it easier for people to double-click on the ags runtime and the setup runtime without only running it from the terminal. I don't if the runtime works fine, but the setup has to be run from the terminal or otherwise it seems to get confused about the acsetup.cfg file.

EvilTypeGuy · Mon 19/07/2004 06:36:48

Quote from: netmonkey on Mon 19/07/2004 00:37:06
I think it would also be important to make it easier for people to double-click on the ags runtime and the setup runtime without only running it from the terminal. I don't if the runtime works fine, but the setup has to be run from the terminal or otherwise it seems to get confused about the acsetup.cfg file.

That's why I want to write the launcher, that and because most people can't use ags-setup anymore since the libraries it uses are very old.

Hinders · Mon 26/07/2004 22:17:34

wow, sounds cool

keep up the good work!
i hope i will get my linux box up and running again :/
it was just 1 month old, and i fried it some days ago

woodz · Thu 07/10/2004 15:57:45

how far off is a AGSedit for linux? i've just started with linux and kinda been away from here for a while!

EvilTypeGuy · Thu 07/10/2004 19:41:09

Quote from: woodz on Thu 07/10/2004 15:57:45
how far off is a AGSedit for linux? i've just started with linux and kinda been away from here for a while!

Sometime next year *if* it can be ported.

woodz · Thu 07/10/2004 21:46:43

cool! look forward to it.. if it works out for you

Luis Carvalho · Tue 12/10/2004 14:23:39

Great news on a agsedit port. If you find it cannot be ported easily, one possibility would be to "port" a command line compiler.

I'm not sure but I think most of the source files have open formats, it's just the assembled result into resource files that is protected. If you create a compiler that transforms a collection of source files into the assembled resource files, I'm sure there would be several people proposing to help build the editor itself.

Just my 0.02 cents.

By the way, if you go that way, I can help with the editor.

AGS Linux / BSD Future

Luis Carvalho