Author Topic: [CPI] Community Project Iniative  (Read 890 times)

Legacy__Guile

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[CPI] Community Project Iniative
« on: February 02, 2014, 04:36:39 am »


               I'd like to start an iniative for a new verion of CEP (v2.5), which will NOT include new models or tilesets.... 

Rather, in this version it will be more geared toward high quality custom content scripting & edits to 2da & tlk files ...

With a starter module that comes working fully right up out of the gate, with 0 scripts in the module (rather in hak).

I'd also like to see some new feats added, maybe even fix some old worthless feats like circle kick & dirty fighting?

The reason I have proposed this initiative is, I'd like to see a high quality community project started with a definite community focus & effort towards providing all builders with higher quality scripted content....

I'm already working on integrating about 10 conversations into one script routine, which includes Color Chat / Item Name & Descripting Coloring / Editing, a CEP version of my Forge (with most CEP properties in it, including 20d20 dmg & 100 SR + most known feats), the Omega Pool Forge (Cast Spell properties), and much more (as I'm working on integrating tailors & dyekit into the custom conversation system)....

Anyway, if anyone might be interested in this project / iniative let me know, or just write some comments below...


Genisys / Guile  ':wizard:'
               
               

               


                     Modifié par _Guile, 02 février 2014 - 04:38 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Squatting Monk

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« Reply #1 on: February 02, 2014, 05:07:25 am »


               Might wanna take a look here and here.
               
               

               
            

Legacy_Pstemarie

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« Reply #2 on: February 02, 2014, 12:40:04 pm »


               CEP revival is underway at the first link Squatting Monk posted. I'm not sure what the point is of having two different versions of the CEP. Maybe make your project an add-on?

As far as scripts in a hak - that disables the ability of builders to modify them for their own needs. As I'm sure you're aware, most builders have their own systems that would need to be integrated with yours. Thus, you'll need to create some method that allows builders to hook their module events into your hak-based module event scripts.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par Pstemarie, 02 février 2014 - 12:40 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Shadooow

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[CPI] Community Project Iniative
« Reply #3 on: February 02, 2014, 05:19:28 pm »


               

_Guile wrote...

I'd like to start an iniative for a new verion of CEP (v2.5), which will NOT include new models or tilesets.... 

Rather, in this version it will be more geared toward high quality custom content scripting & edits to 2da & tlk files ...

With a starter module that comes working fully right up out of the gate, with 0 scripts in the module (rather in hak).

I'd also like to see some new feats added, maybe even fix some old worthless feats like circle kick & dirty fighting?

The reason I have proposed this initiative is, I'd like to see a high quality community project started with a definite community focus & effort towards providing all builders with higher quality scripted content....

I'm already working on integrating about 10 conversations into one script routine, which includes Color Chat / Item Name & Descripting Coloring / Editing, a CEP version of my Forge (with most CEP properties in it, including 20d20 dmg & 100 SR + most known feats), the Omega Pool Forge (Cast Spell properties), and much more (as I'm working on integrating tailors & dyekit into the custom conversation system)....

Anyway, if anyone might be interested in this project / iniative let me know, or just write some comments below...


Genisys / Guile  ':wizard:'


CEP 2 is not ideal. We all know it I think. However maintaining a second version of the same is even worse. If you want to do it some "community" project, design a goal and a scope, but something from everything? That wont have any success.

What NWN needs is a "Foundation" a project designed by henesua. However that is solely dependant on a third party tools and applications which were not yet created.

So you want to help the community? I suggest to either become a part of the ongoing community projects such as CEP2reborn, CPP, Q and even CCChallenge. At least initiate there and tell your ideas and opinions on these projects.

+ what said Pstemarie, scripts are the thing that many builders, myself included hates on the CEP2 for example.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par ShaDoOoW, 02 février 2014 - 05:20 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_leo_x

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« Reply #4 on: February 02, 2014, 06:34:31 pm »


               Since CEP is already covered really, I think the more interesting project would be going back to beginning -- maybe this is what "Foundation" is -- but I mean sit down and rethink _everything_ with nwn©x plugins (it's hard with win/lin servers I know, I consider all but the win client dead) and custom content being built up hand in hand.  E,g do item properties need to be filled with special integer constants representing other integers that could be represented directly?

That would mean dumping all the stuff from the OCs tho...
               
               

               


                     Modifié par pope_leo, 02 février 2014 - 06:35 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy__Guile

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« Reply #5 on: February 04, 2014, 03:25:06 am »


               OK, great responses guys.....

Let me clarify that, it's not really about the CEP per se, I'm pleased with cep 2.4, and I truly DO NOT want to have to re-script for a new version of the CEP (that part got on my nerves!)...

I'm thinking more along the lines of a Community Scripting Initiative, one which would include high quality content for all builders, of course the scripts could go in the cep_custom.hak once you are done editing them, if you want to free up your module of resources in the way....

Maybe we can make a Community Hak Pack, which would include all of the community scripting & editing to 2das, as a hak pack, of course it would need to go above CEP...  Basically I wanted to do some good work for the community, so I started working on integrating a bunch of common conversations into one scripting routine, it's been MONTHS of work....  I think it's well worth the time & is a quality piece of work that should end up being part of either the CEP or some other Hak Pak that will be standard for the community....

I'm interested in doing a starter module & hak pak for the community, one which will be purely quality, bug tested thoroughly through and through, just didn't know if there was anyone else who might be interested in such a project....
               
               

               
            

Legacy_The Amethyst Dragon

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« Reply #6 on: February 04, 2014, 08:30:42 am »


               The kind of scripting and conversations you're talking about would probably be of interest to others.

I would suggest that instead of packaging them up in a hak, put them in an erf so that the scripts and such can be easily edited by builders after they're added to a module.

As a builder, it would most likely turn me away from even checking out any of the work if it meant I couldn't make any modifications to the scripts without going through the extra work of copying the scripts to another hak file just so the changes would remain.
               
               

               
            

Legacy_henesua

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« Reply #7 on: February 04, 2014, 08:11:59 pm »


               Yeah, I am in agreement on the dislike of scripts in a HAK. I have no idea why you'd put scripts in a HAK instead of an ERF anyway.

A better way is to take the approach i did with my rest system as well as innocuous familiars. The last version of NESS also followed this pattern:

Create a core set of scripts which users are not supposed to edit, and add configurable scripts on top which users can modify to customize behavior. When you update the system you release updates to the core scripts, or provide snippets to add to the configurable scripts. But the user's modifications will remain untouched.

This works for a sub-system in a module.

Furthermore, a very nice effort was put forth by Squatting Monk to create a plugin architecture for a module. I created my rest system to work with this as a plugin. It would be best to follow this model, and create more plugins for it.

As it is, the vision stated above for "high quality" and so on doesn't excite me. It sounds all too vague and meaningless to grab my attention on a project of this scope. That sort of energy would be better placed on a well scoped project. Something like the specific sub-systems you are known for, Guile. It seems to me that you could do a great deal of good assembling your work in pieces to function as plugins to work with the framework that squatting monk put together.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par henesua, 04 février 2014 - 08:44 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_leo_x

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« Reply #8 on: February 04, 2014, 08:48:09 pm »


               Henesua, could you post a link to Squatting Monks plugin architecture model or a high level description?
               
               

               
            

Legacy_henesua

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« Reply #9 on: February 04, 2014, 09:38:03 pm »


               I couldn't dig up a link for that, pope_leo. Sorry. Squating Monk did the work last year for The Foundation project for which he and Rolo carried the torch while I disappeared into JavaScript dev land for six months.

He can describe better than I. The basic idea is that each event in a module can call a plugin with "execute script". So you more or less plug in a subsystem for an event by identifying a script or scripts to execute in that event. I believe you identify a script as a local string on the module.

Squatting Monk should be the one to speak to this. I hope he is interested in revisiting that project. I thought he was doing interesting work.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par henesua, 04 février 2014 - 09:40 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Shadooow

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« Reply #10 on: February 04, 2014, 09:47:11 pm »


               Pope, henesua basically talks about the event-based scripting which was presented by the PRC team (of not by someone else even before them). Its a great concept which however suffers a TMI/lag issues later when you have lots of script plugged in. This can be solved easily via delaying but thats rather workaround than anything. But on the other hand, there is no better solution imo, Sinfar also uses this althought they have it done via NWNX afaik, saving lots of instructions and CPU.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par ShaDoOoW, 04 février 2014 - 09:47 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Squatting Monk

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« Reply #11 on: February 05, 2014, 12:12:31 am »


               I've never publicly posted my framework, but you can download the current snapshot here. It's functional, though there are some features I wanna add and some things that need better implementation. I've got a start on the documentation here, though it doesn't yet cover some of the more powerful features that can really make it shine.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par Squatting Monk, 05 février 2014 - 12:17 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Tarot Redhand

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« Reply #12 on: February 05, 2014, 01:38:33 am »


               I think that some sort of best practice script library is well overdue. The thing is I also think that it needs to include such things as night/day lock/unlock scripts that preferably do not use triggers and if at all possible no heart beat script either. But that is just an example. I repeat that I am talking about a library though not some monolithic pre-compiled and stuck in a hak monstrosity. My vision is of a database that contains all the scripts (ie a single download gets the lot). There would be periodic patch files released for it containing any new scripts as well as further debugged ones.

Anyway enough of my mini rant.

TR
               
               

               
            

Legacy_leo_x

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« Reply #13 on: February 05, 2014, 09:09:33 am »


               Thanks!   It looks cool already.   This could really revolutionize community script releases.  I could see how shunting out the heavier lifting/backend to NWNX might be a good idea tho.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par pope_leo, 05 février 2014 - 09:12 .
                     
                  


            

Legacy_Pstemarie

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« Reply #14 on: February 05, 2014, 12:11:01 pm »


               This looks similar to the plugin architecture that was in the HCR2.0 by 0100010 from years ago - HERE. Hopefully, since it comes from a much higher profile author, people will actually use it. I know I'm all excited to see where Monk goes with it.
               
               

               


                     Modifié par Pstemarie, 05 février 2014 - 12:13 .