Messages

I don't know if it's just my computer or what but the PDFs on the resource page take forever to load and then I still can't read them.   Do these documents have source?  If so I would be willing to convert them to DocBook/XML and from the XML generate HTML, PDF, and CHM.

All the links on the resource page seem to be connected to files.  And thanks for adding the dates to the file names.    

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Also (you're probably aware) the template is out of date and doesn't work with the latest AGS.   I would attempt to update it for everyone but I am away from my computer; borrowing my brother-in-law's laptop at the moment.     

Perhaps http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=27158.0 this is what you seek?

An  experienced scripter would take longer to import and fiddle around with the graphics than to write the code.   

AGS scripting is fairly easy to learn so I would encourage you to give it a try.   You need to have a sand box game where you can try out different things and learn what you are doing.   

Just give it a try and ask question when you get hung up.

You could just as easily use multiple GUI's for you menus. 

you could could use global variables for your statistics.  If you are going to have multiple character then you may want to consider creating a custom data type using the struct keyword. 

Code: ags

// *** Script Header ***
// Define a custom data type in the script header
struct digistat {
     DateTime   Clock;
     int              TimeLapse;
     int              Hunger;
     int              Strength;
     int              Other;
}; 

// Make variable available to all room scripts
import digistat Digimon;

// *** Global Script ***
// Define a global variable using the custom data type 
digistat Digimon;
export  Digimon;

// *** Any Room or Global Script ***
// Change stats
Digimon.Hunger = 2;
Digimon.Strength = Digimon.Strength -1;
if (Digimon.Strength<0) Digimon.Strength = 0;

There are a couple of plugins that provide network access via TCP/IP.
http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?action=search2

Hope you find this helpful.

You would have to do something like the following.  The comments are self-explanatory.  Consult the manual for more detail, give it a try, and let us know how it works out. 

Code: ags

int NpcX[2];
int NpcY[2];
int NpcPos;

function RepExec() {
     // Wait for Npc to stop moving 
     if (!cNpc.Moving) {
          // Set the index for the next position
          if (NpcPos==0) NpcPos = 1;
          else NpcPos = 0;

          // Move NPC to the next position 
          cNpc.Move(NpcX[NpcPos], NpcY[NpcPos], eNoBlock);
     }
     // NPC is moving so check for collision
     else {
          if (cNpc.IsCollidingWithChar(player) {
              // Characters are colliding so do something 
          }
     }
}

This can easily be done with a listbox GUI control.   The manual has a good example/explanation of how to use a listbox.   

Easy problem;  You have to change main character's initial position so that he starts out on the walkable area.  Open the room editor where you set the walkable area.  Position the mouse to where you would like him to start and make a note of the coordinates (they should be displayed somewhere on the screen as two numbers separated by a comma).   There used to be a way to cut and paste these coordinates but don't remember at the moment, right click or something perhaps?

Now go the character editor and select the main character. Enter the desired coordinates into the field labled starting position, initial position, or something similar.   Now test the game and your character shouyld be able to walk with no problems..   

I've just downloaded a number of resource files from the website (Btw, some of the links are broken).   Now I have a collection of zip and mid files but am not sure which ones are newer or older.  I noticed there seems to be a pattern to most of the file names already.  What would you think about establishing a formal naming convention for such files so that the file name would contain a descriptive title, type of resource, and version/release date?   

For example this file:
     res-char-cha.zip

could have it relase date embedded in the name like this:
     res-char-cha-071100.zip

or like this:
     ResAllCharacters-071100-cha.zip

or some other format.

RickJ - Coding the dialogue would be a big help. Could also need someone to help me write it too. Interested?

I would be happy to code a dialog system for this.  I don't know enough about the RON storyboard to write it though.  I would be willing to help with the writing if you or some one else can furnish the details.

Presumably the animated door is an AGS room object.  If so then all you need to do is set the object's baseline properly.   A base line is a horizontal reference line.   In the base of the character is below (lower on the screen) the base line it will be drawn in fromt of the door, otherwise it will be drawn behind.

Cool.  Do you need any help coding the dialog stuff?  I could perhaps with some of that.

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Just thinking small with this idea at the moment, but the idea of an interactive tour is good. I'm seeing it in terms of containing more or less basic information, which will then in turn send people to something like the wiki.
[/quote]
Hehe, I was worried that perhaps you were thinking of something way more involved and I suggested the tour thing as a means of simplification.   So in fact I ended up suggesting something more in volve than was planed.    Go figure?? 

Anyway, thinking further about a tour, perhaps it could be coded generically and be driven by one or more text files?   Then as things are added only the text file need be updated; except of course if characters or backgrounds are added then those elements would need to be imported.   

Now for the Wiki; Will there be a search or index function as in the AGS help file?  If the a compendium was in the form of a CHM file then maybe an editor plugin could be written that would allow the AGS editor to open this file from the AGS help menu.  Wouldn't that be cool?

Maybe this thing should be in the form of an interactive tour.   For example, Davy could be the main player tour guide.   Click on Scids and he says "Thats Scids an infamous establishment of adult beverages, town gossip, etc...  Come on in and I'll introduce you to Scid and some of the regulars".   

I think this format works as an overview, a brochure, and/or a sales pitch that would introduce a new comer to RON and generate interest.  However, I don't think it would be very useful to someone who is developing a RON game.  A developer would need and want a hyper-linked compendium.   I guess that's what is intended for the wiki. 

I hope that the a disproportionate amount of effort is not expended on one of the above at the expense of the  other.   It's just my two cents worth.   

It's not the importing of the sprites that's annoying ... it's putting them in the view.

That's what SpacePaw intends to do,  create a paint program that allows you to create sprites, animation loops and frames, and area masks and save them in a format that is easily importable into a game engine in general and AGS in particular (via an AGS design time plugin).

= 4 big smiles and  = 2 big smiles ==>  42 big smiles

XD = ??

===

I thing your poll question could have been worded a little better.  IMHO some of the people who answered "annoyed but acceptable" were expression their love of AGS and perhaps didn't fully grasp what you are proposing to do with your project.

It's an ambitious project and I can't wait to see your first proto-type.

Go with sole proprietorship until you get above $50k-$100k/year.   

Well, to be honest I want to go further than that. ....

     

I want to use AGS but will this mean I can't use it if the programmer starts in MVB?

Microsoft Visual Basic and C++ are programming languages not programs.   Perhaps Your friend meant to say Microsoft Visual Studio?   In any case it makes no sense to start in either of these languages if you want to use AGS. 

IMHO, starting with C++ or MVB would be a complete waste of time.   First of all game infrastructure and development tools would need to be created.  Essentially you would end up making your own game engine which is a massive task. 

As Ghost suggests,  the AGS scripting language is a subset of C++.  Anyone comfortable with C++ programming should have no trouble with AGS scripting.  The difference is that with AGS all the really difficult things are al ready handled.  For example in AGS to make a character named Bob walk to a new x,y location the AGS scriot code would look something like cBob.Walk(150, 200);  AGS would compute the optimal path around objects, non-walkable areas, and other characters, select the proper animation loop,  animate and move the character sprite to the new location.   Ask you friend how this would be done in C++ and how you would define the animation lkoops and frames would be defined in C++.

There are a lot of talented AGS  scripters who can't draw worth a crap.   I'm sure you could find someone to help on your project. 

You can add extra functionality to AGS by writing modules, which requires a C++ compiler (as well as C++ knowledge), though.

I think Ghost mis-spoke here.   Modules are written in AGS script code, don't require any external compiler, and are directly used by the AGS editor the same as any other script.    Plug-ins are written in C++, C#, Delphi/Pascal and do require a MS compiler to generate DLL files.   

Yes there would still be a limit, but the question is how the sound channels are rationed. I think we seem to be going round in circles with this discussion now so I don't want to keep going over the same ground, but basically the options are:

Sorry abouyt going around and around, I was just had a a little lack of understanding of the current proposal.  Option #1 appeals to me the most and is, IMHO, most consistent with the OO paradigm.   

If all the sound channels were busy and a new sound was played then how would the priority scheme work?  Would the new sound not be played or queued until a channel was available or would the new sound be played on a channel playing a lower priority sound?   If there were more than one channel playing sounds of the same priority which one would be canceled, the oldest one perhaps?

With this option how would one get a list of the currently playing sounds? 

I'm confused. Are you saying with 'if (blah<100)' you can check a char against its ASCII decimal? Or merely its numeric value?

He'sa comparing it to the ASCII decimal.  IMHO it's much easier to just use a single quoted char instead like I used in my example.