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Is there a dialog command that will run an animation in the middle of a dialog?  For example, in the middle of a dialog, I want EGO to hand another character a letter. and then continue the dialogue.  Do I have to stop the animation, run a quick animation like normal, and then start a different dialogue topic or something?

As usual, I hope this isn't a stupid question...

For whatever reason, i adopted a grey-skin tone for most of the game characters.  I'm not sure why.  I'm glad it looks freaky though, that's the idea.

Can someone translate this?  I think it's swedish:

"Leg läkare, spec i allmän psykiatri och allmänmedicin, psykoterapeut"

I'm guessing it says something like specializes in psychiatric medicine and psychotherapy?

thanks in advance,

Logan

I was browsing through wikipedia and stumbled upon a great write up of Monkey Island, and that led me to a thorough article on Adventure games, and then I even found an article on AGS.  Who wrote the article?  It must have been one of us.  It's flagged for some editing, and could probably use it...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adventure_Game_Studio

go AGS!

Happy New Years!

Things are progressing very well.  I spent most of my week and a half of vacation working on my game, though I had to change the date on my computer on Christmas in order to actually get AGS started (thanks CJ).

I created a new font that looks good, though does need a bit of tweaking.  I'm also 95% done with the new GUI, which isn't really new at all, just consists of different graphics over the original sierra version. It's funny how much a good font and gui can add to a game though. 

I got sucked into revising perfectly good background graphics again.  It's like some kind of sickness.  But I've moved on…for now. 

Nearly all of the game's dialogues are completed.  There's only a couple main topics to complete.  I was writing them all in the program, but I've found that adding to options becomes confusing so I've taken everything out and put it into that dialogue editor someone created a while back.  Although it's buggy as hell and often doesn't correctly save my documents, it saves a whole lot of time and headaches.  I'm going to try and finish every dialogue and then dump it into the game. 

I've also drawn all the inventory sprites.  I initially wanted to write messages for every interaction between inventory and hotspots, but that would be a bit insane considering the number of hotspots I have per room.  I'll have to find some kind of compromise.

What's left?  Well, I need to finish Emily's walking animations, I need to make some interaction animations, I need to draw maybe three more character sprites, and complete some kind of intro sequence.  I have one room that I definitely need to redraw into the current background style. There are also a lot of random things to finish, as is usually the case. 

I've been working on the game quite a little bit each day so things are coming along nicely.  Plus I've got a bunch of new DVDs to watch while working thanks to Saint Klaus.  I'll plug along and share another update in a couple weeks.

-Logan

oh, if you really wanted to screw her over, you could block internet explorer from accessing the internet, and then only use firefox for web browsing.  Just make sure your mom knows to use firefox, and don't tell your sister that firefox exists. 

Download Zonealarm at www.zonelabs.com/.  There's a free version.

You can change the settings to prevent internet access for certain programs.  So you can prevent Instant Messenger from ever accessing the internet, even if the program is still installed on your computer.  Though you should remember, that once you install zonealarm, start up instant messenger.  It will ask you if you want to allow Instant Messenger to access the internet, just click no, BUT ALSO REMEMBER to click "Remember this setting"...that way when she tries to access it, she won't get the popup, and hopefully won't figure out what's blocking it.

You may be able to set a password to zonealarm too.

As luck would have it, there's a very interesting article in today's Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com) entitled, "Evangelicals Use Courts to Fight Restrictions on Christmas Tidings" that talks specifically about the issues we've been discussing.  Notice how the debate is quite different in America.  I bet a lot of you would find it very interesting, though you have to register with the post to read it.  Here are some excerpts...

After years of legal assaults on municipal displays of Nativity scenes and Christmas observances in public schools, Christian groups are now mounting court challenges in the other direction. From Mustang, Okla., to Maplewood, N.J., they are filing or threatening lawsuits to win the inclusion of manger scenes in school plays, Christmas carols in school concerts and Christmas trees in public buildings...

Last year, a school administrator stopped Jonathan Morgan at the door to his classroom because the "goody bag" he had brought to a school party on the last day before Christmas vacation contained candy canes with a religious message attached...

This year, the 9-year-old and his evangelical Christian parents went straight to court. They were among four families who persuaded Judge Paul Brown, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, to issue a temporary restraining order on Thursday securing their children's right to hand out "religious viewpoint gifts" at school-sponsored holiday parties.

This kinda thing is nuts, stopping someone with a Candy Cane because it has something religious attached, but is it so different from viels?  :

Kelly Shackelford, the Liberty Legal lawyer who argued the case, said in a telephone interview that Supreme Court decisions since 1969 clearly have established that students do not give up free-speech rights when they walk through the school door. Expressions of religious faith that would be unconstitutional coming from a teacher in a classroom are acceptable among students as long as they do not "materially and substantially disrupt" school operations, he said.

This is where the laws in the US obviously differ from those in France, and why as I said before, people would go nuts if you stopped them from wearing religious clothing in school.  Actually, in the US they don't go nuts.  They just sue.

One last one...

"This area is predominantly white, and it's predominantly Christian. Frankly, it's pretty conservative Christian," he said. "We have to be careful, though, that those students who are Hindu or Islamic or Jewish don't have their rights trampled on."

This is what I've been talking about.  So the majority of the population has an opinion of something, their opinion or even their laws cannot trample upon the rights of the minority.  Just because you make a law, doesn't mean it's constitutional or morally valid.

The article goes on to relate a story of how a town took down a nativity scene because someone called up asking them to put up a Menorah too, and instead of just doing that, they took the whole thing down thinking that it would lead to a windfall of religious symbolism that would never end.  Eventually they just put the scene up with along with a Menorah and it was no big deal.

But like I said, if you're interested in this thread, check out the article.  I could cut and paste it, but I'm not sure what the rules are for that kinda thing.

Wow, they really took away citizenship rights from people born in Ireland?  There has to be more to it than that, but still...

um....ok....

There's a difference between reading people's minds, and being familiar with the political realities of a nation.  In a country where the debate isn't about wearing religious headwear, but whether or not teachers should lead students in prayer, I can pretty much guarantee that people would go nuts if they tried to forbid religious attire in school.

Maybe Muslims are the most vocal about he law because the law was created specifically with Muslims in mind.  I'm no expert, but every article I've read about the French law states that they were created in order to stem off what is viewed as growing Islamic fundamentalism in France.  I would think that if a law was created to specifically take away YOUR rights, you would be the most vocal about it.

Regarding Muslims being the only people who have a problem with the law, you're just wrong.  Since the beginning, some Sikh boys also refused to take off their turbans and under-turbans:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/world/newsid_3945000/3945851.stm

As for people of other faiths having a problem with it, I don't know.  Perhaps there isn't a sizeable hasidic Jewish population (who are strict in wearing skullcaps), or perhaps they stick to private schools.  I know that if they tried to do such a thing in the US, the Jewish population would be outraged, as there is a sizeable population of Jews living in the US.

First of all no one has bothered to define what is meant by multiculturism. 

Did you read the whole thread?  Check out the first post on page 2.  You seem to be confusing multiculturalism with cultural relativism.

Anarcho, in his very first post labeled anyone who disagrees with him a cave dweller.

Did you read what I said?  I was talking in reference to friends of mine, who would worry about 3rd world debt, discuss environmental issues ad nausea, and be able to expertly discuss foreign affairs, but when it came to immigrants living in their back yard, reverted to very close-minded and intolerant positions.  In reference to these people...whom I'm friends with... that I'm specifically talking about...I think their opinions are backwards.  I don't think anyone who disagrees with me is a stone dweller.  Read what I wrote before making bullshit accusations.

Except dissent!  Dissenters and the politically incorrect are not to be tolerated.  Their areguments are not to be listened to nor challenged in a logical manner.  Call them cave dwellers, bigots, idoits, etc.  Attack them personally so as to discredit their ideas.

What?!  I've said a number of times that there's nothing better than healthy debate, and that I'm trying to understand people's point of view.  When has anyone been personally attacked, other than in your previous post?

I think when you visit someone's home you should follow the rules and customs of that person's home.  The same goes when you visit someone's country.   If you don't like the way it is there then just don't go. 

Of course someone visiting a persons home should follow the rules and customs of the home, but what about respecting the rules and customs of the visitors?  What are we even talking about here?  Are we talking about viels?  Are the 5 to 6 MILLION Muslims living in France ALL visitors?  I just think that the French also have to respect their customs as well.

No, what I was saying is that Christmas has little to do with the word, but with the traditions we still observe, many of which have carried down "through the ages." 

Sorry Farl, PC is short for "Politically Correct" or "Political Correctness".  You know, saying African American instead of Negro.  African American would be the PC term.

Darth meant Menorah, a candelabra (sp?) that has a lot of significance in the Jewish faith.

I have never heard of people outlawing the word "Christmas," and Darth's mall example is pretty extreme and a great example of people taking PC waaaay too far.  (though I must say, I really don't like the word Christmas anyway, as it comes from Christ's Mass, which in itself resulted from Church Fathers in the 4th century fixing the still unknown date of Jesus's birth around the old Roman Saturnalia festival--it was just the Christian leadership trying to usurp a traditional pagan celebration of Solstice!).

But let me make another example of what I'm okay with.  I just got my semi-weekly email from the DC Metropolitan Labor Council.  Its subject says, "SPECIAL UNION HOLIDAY EDITION."  Now why didn't they put "SPECIAL UNION CHRISTMAS EDITION."  Hmmm, I dunno, maybe because there are a lot of Jews and Muslims who get the email too, and it wouldn't make sense to send them a "SPECIAL CHRISTMAS EMAIL".  But does this email subject heading offend me?  Is it oppressing me?  IS THIS EMAIL SUBJECT HEADING KILLING CHRISTMAS!?!

No.

I can still send Christmas cards to my family and friends, put up a tree in my house, and wear a stupid green and red Christmas sweater to work if I want to.  I think it's perfectly reasonable to find a balance here.

I've never heard of calling Christmas Winterval.  And I've never heard of making Christians call Christmas anything other than Christmas.  That wouldn't go over well in the US.  What I'm talking about is in the workplace, or in schools when there are people of different religons, refering to the "Christmas" season as the Holiday season.  Or just recognizing that people celebrate things other than Christmas.  You can't walk three feet around here with coming across something labeled "Christmas", so a little political correctness and tolerance doesn't automaticaly Kill the holiday.  I think it's more in spirit with the holiday, don't you think?

As for your Israel example...I would agree that it would be wonderful to share in the local celebrations and customs.  But having been in a similar situation, it's also just as nice to be able to share your own customs and celebrations with those that are different from you.

Farlander, even if you're only talking about schools, I still disagree with you.  Freedom of expression and Freedom of religion shouldn't end once you walk into a school.  So long as the teacher isn't talking religion, I don't see what the issue is.
Perhaps we'll have to agree to disagree.

Chris,

Don't get me started on Christmas!  I love the holiday, but I just don't like how the Christians co-opted it and tried to turn it into something about Jesus.

But seriously, this all happened in the US when I was a kid.  When I was younger, we would get "Christmas" off.  And we would make "Christmas" decorations in school, and it would be plastered all over.  Then when the whole PC thing came along, people just used the term Holiday.  It became the Holiday season, and we would put up Holiday decorations.  And you know what?  It was no big deal.  Sure, people might have grumbled a bit, but if I were a Jewish kid in school and everybody talked only about Christmas, I would feel pretty alienated.  What does it matter if you celebrate the holidays collectively instead of singularly celebrating Christmas.  You're not killing Christmas by recognizing the fact that people celebrate other holiday's too.  People can still choose to celebrate the holiday, and we still talk about Christmas in school, but we also talk about Chanukah (and some people mention Kwanza...). 

And for the record, nobody stops you from wearing a "Christmas" sweater because it says Christmas on it....

If you really think about it though, nearly every major religion has a celebration in the middle of the winter.  I find the origins of Christmas really interesting, mostly because I'm a bid dork, but that's a whole other topic of conversation.

And yeah... If I should have to go to a muslim country, a country whose people has a religion which has an open conflict between counties who have my religion, I would hide anything that could annoy them. And I would consider it educate, smart and sensible.

Ok, I would agree.  I think there was some translation issues here, as educated can have a lot of different meanings.  I too would think it sensible to fit in with the local population if they local population didn't like me.  But that doesn't make it right.  The idea is to have a free and open society where people can celebrate their own culture.  Obviously, that's a high idea, and doesn't always work that way.

But regarding the 95% and 5% argument:

Are you against freedom of expression?  Or do you support freedom of expression, just as long as people don't try to actually express themselves?  Since I'm only allowed to talk about my own country's laws, in the US, we're pretty much allowed to express ourselves freely so long as it doesn't endanger the public at large.  For example, I can wear a crazy shirt that says "KILL PUPPIES" and shave my head and tattoo my face.  That's fine.  But I can't shout "fire" in a public theater, because that could cause a stampede, and people could get hurt.  So regarding your downtrodden 95% of the population that has to look at muslim clothing: SUCK IT UP! 

Unless their clothing hides death rays from Planet X or is laden with SARS, it doesn't effect you physically.  Maybe it doesn't fit in with your idea of how people should dress or look, but so long as you live in a "free" society, you have to deal with it.  Unless you'd rather live in, say, some distopian dictatorship where everyone looks and acts and dresses the same.

Farlander, I've got to say, this conversation is pretty exhausting.  Interesting, but exhausting.  But I am trying to see where you're coming from, really I am.

These look great Darth!  I'm trying to think of some C&C besides praise, but I can't think of anything!  Keep it up, please.