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PMed that image to you.

Regarding the GUI that wouldn't properly display alpha-channels, I played around a bit and fixed it.  But I don't understand why what I was doing before worked in 2.7 but not 3.0.

Since this GUI was on screen the entire game except for small periods, I was just setting the background graphic to slot 0, which is just a single transparent pixel, instead of changing the visibility.  This was also useful before because, to animate the GUI, I was using repeatedly_execute_always to increment or decrement the background graphic, and giving it 0 when I wanted it to be invisible. 

So, I took all the places where it would set the background graphic for the GUI to 0 (including in the game_start script) and changed it to setting the visibility to false.  Now everything works correctly.

Does assigning the background graphic of a GUI to a single transparent pixel somehow stop the GUI from later displaying alpha transparency?  Because it didn't in 2.72, but seems to do so now...

Not to bump, but I've got a separate issue.  When importing some sprites from animated gifs, I found something very strange happening.



Progz believes that having the last palette location (255) set as transparent causes the issue.  The same animated gif imports fine into 2.7.

I've just taken my main WiP into 3.0 for the first time (Ivy's new game was my test subject ) and everything seems to be working fine except for one instance where I'm using a sprite (actually a series of sprites in an improvised animation by incrementing the gui background graphic in the repeatedly execute script) with alpha channel (imported from a .png) as the background image on a gui.  The transparency doesn't work correctly, and instead, I just see a big white blob where there should be semi-transparency.  Running the same game (I hadn't modified the code at all) compiled through 2.7 shows the gui with proper transparency.

I tried reimporting the sprites and the problem was still there.  So, I tried displaying the sprites on a different gui and they worked perfectly.  But on the original gui, they still don't show correctly for some reason.  The gui's transparency is never messed with, so I can't understand what would cause this.  Especially since it worked fine in 2.7.

I also tested it in 3.0.1 just in case, and it was the same as 3.0.  Also, I'm only testing this in Direct Draw 5 because my computer apparently doesn't support Direct 3D at these resolutions for some reason.

Is there a reason that the transparency for these sprites would suddenly stop working on certain GUIs, but not on others?

Apologies for the delay.  Forgot about this.  Here's the .dmp file generated when I try to run this game (which works perfect under 3.0)  http://www.webfilehost.com/?mode=viewupload&id=1295465

Another apology for the crappy filehost.  My ftp is being blocked from work.  Bleh.

Wow, big congratulations are in order, Dave.  I'm sure not having to focus on the business/marketing side of things will be a big relief!  Anxiously awaiting your innovative new game!

Ah, I didn't see that 48 hour rule!  You're right, Stu, I should probably wait.  I'll try his Yahoo messenger and MSN messenger addresses in the mean time.  Sorry Tuomas!

Actually.  I don't want to point fingers, but it was your bit that made the biggest contradiction, Em    If I'm not mistaken, you misread a previous person's bit and then tried to fix something that wasn't broken (it was just awkward).

Anyway, if you ignore the last 50 words of FSi's this all still makes sense... kind of...  And maybe someone can find a way to make that bit make sense...  kind of...   

Fawfulhasfury hasn't gotten back to me with his email address in 24 hours, so I'm just going to skip him and send it on to Tuomas in the interest of keeping this rolling.  Sorry, fawful!  Maybe you can squeeze back in somehow!

Just to clarify, I wasn't bitching, last post.  I tried to edit in some emoticons to make it look less so.  That's all part of the fun of this activity!

I PMed Fawfulhasfury to get his email address this morning, but haven't heard back yet.  So, in case someone was wondering, the story is currently halfway between person 5 and 6.

Technically, there's an almost infinite number of 'noons' (every nanosecond it's noon for some small portion of land somewhere on the face of the earth)

That's not true at all!  For that to be true, there would have to be 86,400,000,000,000 time zones.

Anywho.  Four people in, and already a huge contradiction in the story...  Oh well.  I guess I'll just pick one version to go with and you can just ignore whatever doesn't make sense...  This is going to be an... interesting... read!  I imagine it's going to be real fun for the people near the end

Thanks for the award, commitee... but I'm still waiting for the award in the mail. 

Don't hold your breath, Akatosh.  I'm still waiting for my Innovation award from last year!

I brought in a game that started in 2.7, got updated to 3.0 RC3, 3.0 RC4, and now into 3.0.1b2, (Been working on it for a while!) and as soon as I try running it (Through F5 or F7 and then starting it manually) it shows the first screen, plays a few notes of music and then

---------------------------
Illegal exception
---------------------------
An exception 0xC0000005 occurred in ACWIN.EXE at EIP = 0x004FAABE ; program pointer is +6, ACI version 3.01.1005, gtags (360,72)

AGS cannot continue, this exception was fatal. Please note down the numbers above, remember what you were doing at the time and notify CJ on the Tech forum.



Most versions of Windows allow you to press Ctrl+C now to copy this entire message to the clipboard for easy reporting.

An error file CrashInfo.dmp has been created. You may be asked to upload this file when reporting this problem on the AGS Forums. (code 0)
---------------------------
OK   
---------------------------

Let me know if you want the .dmp file.

Haha, well done SSH.  And big congratulations to everyone!

Ok, I got you Darth.  Boo scientology.  Kumbaya.  Etc.

I still have to say, I don't think that the crusades example applies because I don't think that the religion today needs to be protested for the wars it sponsored 1000 years ago.  Scientology needs to be protested for the crimes that it is still sponsoring today.  The relevance of the two issues is incomparable in my mind.

And I don't think the 9-11 example applies, because I don't think that a religion needs to be protested for the actions of a radical group who misunderstand the religion's principles.  I do, however, think that Scientology should be protested for the crimes that are sponsored by the Church's leadership and even written into the organizations goals and operational parameters by it's founder.  The difference between small fringe group being bad and entire organization being bad is incomparable in my mind.

Again, I know we're on the same side, and I hope you don't take my constant hounding of your points as a personal attack!  I'm enjoying the conversation.  Thanks to my language level, I don't get a lot of in-depth debate over here in Japan!

Edit:  Oh!  And happy birthday!

So you disagree with their methods.  What should these people (the people who are staging protests outside Scientology buildings) be doing instead? 

I cannot understand why you're opposed to protests.  Your reasons thus far have been either about the futility of the protests, or the fact that there are worse evils in the world.

Regarding the ineffectiveness: Even if the protests don't bring down the whole organization, which I don't think anyone expects, as I stated earlier in the thread, even if they can stop one person from setting foot in that building and losing their life's savings to a cult it would be worth it, wouldn't it?  These things have to start somewhere.

Regarding greater evils: Just because there are more battles to be fought, doesn't mean someone shouldn't be fighting this one.  Also, your point about the Crusades may have been  relevant to this argument two thousand years ago, but we're talking about a modern religion, and one that is only a religion because they can save money on taxes that way.  And the point about 9-11 is just plain wrong.  The group of people launching terror attacks around the world does not represent Islam.  For each suicide bomber and terrorist there are a million peaceful and kind Muslims.  And the comparison of having to pay to be a scientologist to the collection plate in church is apples and oranges as well.  You can get a bible for free on any college campus, or cheap in any book store.  You can know everything they're about before even setting foot in a church or seeing a collection plate.  With scientology, you have to pay thousands of dollars to be audited many times over while you progress through their ranks.  They do extensive background checks on your finances once they've established your interests to see just how much they can milk from you.  They have even forged documents to help old ladies mortgage their houses in order to extract more money! Before you know what their religion is teaching, you could be out tens of thousands of dollars.  Now, I'm not saying that Christianity and Islam are free of guilt in the modern world.  No, if this conversation were about them I'd be talking about how harmful they are to the modern world in the name of their invisible deities.  But still, the fact that these religions have some real bad mojo doesn't mean that others should get away with their crimes.

As Meowster so excellently stated, there is a long laundry lists of reasons why Scientology needs to be stopped.  They are harming their members in ways that are inexcusable.  And despite scientology's best efforts, there is more than enough proof out there the demonstrate their danger.  The aim of these protests is to help more people become aware of these dangers.  You are a strong-headed person, Darth, and I don't fault you for that.  I admire your devotion to your opinions and beliefs.  I just hope that you'll take some time to see that something has to be done about this fake religion to save the people currently under their control and to save others from falling into it, even if that something starts as a little ripple in the pond.

You're right, Rui.  "Legitamate and beneficial-to-society religion"... Ha!   

No, what I meant in that poorly worded last post was that this is a loosely connected group of people that are trying to warn people about the dangers of joining a certain "religion."  They aren't doing this for their own personal benefit, but for the benefit of society.  Their information comes from multiple verifiable sources including court documents, personal testimony, and experience.  So to say that they are spreading "bullshit propaganda" is kind of a strong statement.  For what purpose would they be propagandizing?

Scientology is making hundreds of millions of dollars every year by running their scam masquerading as a religion.  They have much more motive to be spreading misinformation than the people protesting them.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972865,00.html?internalid=ACA <----Read the time magazine piece from 1991.  Reputable sources up and down.

I'm not saying other religions aren't bad, but if they're all bad, that doesn't mean we should ignore them.

Which makes more sense, a cult spreading misinformation to make tons of money, or a group of people spreading misinformation to stop a legitimate and beneficial-to-society religion from getting more members?

[I was trained to participate in a securities class action fraud scheme by Scientology staff members]

Yeah, Darth, and anyone else who thinks that Scientologists are a bit off, but not dangerous should read more about Scientology.  They destroy families and lives, steal money, enslave children, and kill their followers. 

Who cares that they believe in some nutty alien overlord and thetans?  They're doing things much worse than that.

These demonstrations may be pretty small overall, but if they stopped even one person from losing their life to this cult, then they were worth it.

http://xenu.net/ <--- A big collection of readings
http://www.lisamcpherson.org/ <----Woman killed by scientology
http://www.xenu-directory.net/critics/fishman1.html <---- My favorite story.  Absolutely insane.

from http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Fishman/fishman.html :

///////////////////////////

The statements related to financial crimes which were committed by me, Steven Fishman, after I was trained to participate in a securities class action fraud scheme by Scientology staff members at the Church of Scientology Mimi Org and the Church of Scientology Mission of Fort Lauderdale. I spent the money obtained from the fraud on auditing, training, and for purchasing the third largest library of L. Ron Hubbard books, tapes, cassettes and E-Meters in the world.

After my arrest by the FBI in July of 1988, Church officials, church officials ordered me to murder my psychologist, Dr. Geertz, because I had confided in my psychologist about the details of my crime.

I was thrown into "Treason" a low ethics condition, and was told by my Ethics Officer Frank Thompson that I could work my way up from "Treason" by protecting the Church from the FBI investigation. I followed the orders of my Ethics Officer which resulted in my being charged with Obstruction of Justice. At the same time, Church attorney Timothy Bowles worked closely with the United States District Attorney in Los Angeles in order to secure my conviction and eliminate any exposure to the Church.

In an effort to suppress the Church's involvement in the fraud, Church officials ordered me to commit suicide, which was avoided due to a successful exit-counseling intervention by former members Margery Wakefield, Eddie Da Rocha, Richard Padilla, and through swift and effective therapy by Dr. Geertz.

///////////////////////////////////

If you have time, watch the multiple-hour interview with Fishman on google video:
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=Scientology:+Steven+Fishman+Deposition

The point isn't for you to write a full story, it's for you to write a tiny bit of the story and for the next person to continue it.  Hell, you could stop mid-sentence if you want and see how the next person finishes it.  You have to rely on the first writers to establish the story (begining) the next bunch to flesh it out (middle) and the last bunch of writers to wrap it all up (end).  That's why it's a group activity and not just "Ok, write a mystery story and we'll all compare."

To look at it another way, we currently have 17 (?) entries.  At 200 words apiece, that's 3400 words which is a nice short story.  At 2000 words apiece, that's 34000 words which is in novella territory.  And with a big mix of people writing, making this story an inconsistent mess, no one's going to want to read that.  3400 should be a fun (funny?) read!

200 was declared the maximum and the maximum it shall be!

Oh, and Babar, I think Andail was suggesting that when you post again, that the posting order is your writing order.  I dont think you can declare your spot in line.  Having the writing order be the posting order in this thread just makes everything easier. 

It also makes it easier if we don't post in here discussing the activity while more people should be signing up. 

Dilbert.

Oh, and