AutoHAK downloader

[Legacy_Shadooow]

               Just a idea, that came up to me due to this new module creation challenge.

Would be great to have a tool that would automatically download hak packs that module uses, it could be merged into the 3rd party NWN launcher. I know there were ideas like this already, but I dare to expand this idea and propose way how to do this.

A player would be allowed to choose module that will be automatically opened with NWN (i think this is possible by norma means as thats what toolset F9 does). In the moment the player would launched the game, the tool would opened the module's module.ifo list and look into the hak pack list and checked each hak pack existence in hak folder.

If any hak would be missing an automatic downloading would started. That would be done as a fetching a xml filelist with name of the hak packs and locations for a download - possibly multiple to protect against any shutdowns. If the hak name would be in this list the downloading and unpacking would started. If not, tool would printed message that this hak cannot be downloaded automatically and player must find the source himself.

Another way would be to require the download locations from builder, but this way seems needlessly complicated as a module builder would have to provide this information in special file and multiple builders would have to do the same work that can do the CC author and I believe that any CC author would want to provide download locations for his CC to allow autodownloading with this.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_leo_x]

               well, i still would love to see something like this happen.  it is similar to the path I was taking, except that the resource file (xml or whatever) was generated from the IFO and then the module builder/PW owner would have to do some legwork.  i figure since client side the IFO is unlikely to ever be enough to determine where and what to download, might as well just use the resource file to sort things out there.

i really agree that making something that CC authors can determine where a thing is download (and how it's updated) would be a good thing.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par pope_leo, 25 janvier 2013 - 08:39 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Shadooow]

               I can probably develop this, however I know that some peoples are already working on similar projects such as never launcher - so they could inherit this idea into theirs solution
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_painofdungeoneternal]

               I am thinking i can ping the server itself for the names of the haks. ( still need to spend some time with wireshark and watch how the two communicate might just mess up the client )

Module authors I am thinking can use the fields added for NWN2 on the API skywing has set up, since NWN1 servers just leave those field blank. There is a PWCurl, and the PW admin can provide a url to a document listing their servers contents - I am thinking the exact same xml document used for NWN2 and it's auto downloader as a starting point. ( I actually did some of the first beta testing of that feature on my PW, and it's got a lot of technical things right, the real problems were in generating the file was a bit wonky, once it was right it is just easy. )

Next I am aiming at doing an inventory of vault/nexus content, searchable by sha1, md5, etc and filename.

I want to get all this into a central server accessible by an open API. This would include all known content, where its available, and if there are mirrors, where those are. I want people to be able to easily mirror content and the sha1 and md5 preventing issues ( vault is pretty slow compared to drop box ).

Further I want a separate list of PW's based on what is on the vault, on the nexus, or which is manually entered. This will be used to fill out anything missing from the api done by skywing ( and work with him to get these included as well ). But I want end users to be able to see the vault rating of all the PW's and be able to sort them by vault rating instead of user count for example. This would include manual entries by me, or my minions, or just end users, noting which content is needd on that PW.

I am thinking I cannot do everything, and this community really has no desire to all use the same program. I need to do a mac version, ergo I am going to have something or my OS is just neglected ( oh where did those OpenKnights go ), but I have no problem being just one program of many, all competing. The hard part is that data, which we need to keep non-partisan and a foundation on which cooler things can be built, and if you already have a launcher, and can add in a means to get a list of what is needed and verify it, well that helps the player and the PW.

( might even get virusman to add this to NWNCX, then PW admins would benefit a great deal because if they require players to have that app, well those exploited bics showing up from those russian players just could not happen )
               
               

               

                     Modifié par painofdungeoneternal, 02 février 2013 - 06:01 .