[WMCoolmon]

I had a couple ideas today which I thought might be implementable without causing too much trouble.

1) Upgradable VP files. This is a takeoff on a package-description file format I came up with a while back. Basically, make it possible to add meta-information, like author/mod/submod to files. This wouldn't have a whole lot of immediate effect. But, it could be setup with the -mod paramater so that if a given VP had the wrong mod name, it wouldn't be loaded. This would make it even easier to install mods, literally drag-and-drop.

However, it would mean that every VP editor/viewer to date would be invalidated, including VPView. That would mean you'd have to use QuickVP or VPMage (I'm not sure if Kazan's new VP tool lets you view VP files) to, er, view VP files. I'm assuming those would be updated, it wouldn't be too hard to skip over the extra metadata, and old VPs would be read as they are now.

2) A mod.tbl - this is similar to the VP file idea,in a sense. This would allow you to specify the default campaign for a mod, as well as a list of campaigns associated with it. (This would probably be setup so that campaigns using that mod could add themself as a campaign). Then, when Freespace 2 was started up, it would automatically switch to the default campaign for that mod if the pilot's current campaign didn't match any of the campaigns listed as using that mod. (For multiple mods, the list of campaigns would be expanded to all specified campaigns for the various mods and the default campaign would be taken from the first mod specified)

[SabrWolf]

im all for it, if SCP announces support ill make the modifications to QuickVP aswell

[karajorma]

Originally posted by WMCoolmon
2) A mod.tbl - this is similar to the VP file idea,in a sense. This would allow you to specify the default campaign for a mod, as well as a list of campaigns associated with it. (This would probably be setup so that campaigns using that mod could add themself as a campaign). Then, when Freespace 2 was started up, it would automatically switch to the default campaign for that mod if the pilot's current campaign didn't match any of the campaigns listed as using that mod. (For multiple mods, the list of campaigns would be expanded to all specified campaigns for the various mods and the default campaign would be taken from the first mod specified)

What would happen in the case of campaigns like BL's STL which uses multiple mods?

[WMCoolmon]

(For multiple mods, the list of campaigns would be expanded to all specified campaigns for the various mods and the default campaign would be taken from the first mod specified)

[karajorma]

Nope. Still not making any more sense of it than the first time I read it.

Suppose a campaign used ships from Inferno, MindGames and FSPort. How would it work?

[SadisticSid]

I can't see the sense of it either. Instead of dragging and dropping mod directories you'd just be doing it with VP files? The  feature I can see an advantage to is the default campaign setting so people don't have to go into the campaigns screen to start off.

Personally I think the system we have ATM is fine - it works well and is simpler than many other game mod systems out there.

[WMCoolmon]

Originally posted by karajorma
Nope. Still not making any more sense of it than the first time I read it.

Suppose a campaign used ships from Inferno, MindGames and FSPort. How would it work?

That depends how they were used...
If the mod was designed so to run it you'd use multiple -mod parameters, the default campaign would be the default campaign of the mod specified first.

If they just copied the ship data for the ships used in their campaign into their release (And ONLY their mod was specified with the -mod parameter), then only the data for the mod.tbl with their mod would be used.

Edit:

Originally posted by SadisticSid
I can't see the sense of it either. Instead of dragging and dropping mod directories you'd just be doing it with VP files? The  feature I can see an advantage to is the default campaign setting so people don't have to go into the campaigns screen to start off.

Personally I think the system we have ATM is fine - it works well and is simpler than many other game mod systems out there.

Yes and yes. It'd mean all you'd have to do to use a mod would be to copy the VP files to your FS2 directory and select it from a list of valid mods in the launcher.

Assuimg you had no new-version VP files and no mod.tbl files, things would work exactly the same as they do now.

Edit 2: Basically how I'd handle meta-data:

Code: [Select]

int num_chnuks;

chunks[num_chunks]
{
char ID[4];
unsigned int len;
char data[len];
}

//And for example:
//mod-data
ID = "MOD\0";
len = 11;
{
int string_len = 7;
char mod_name = "Inferno";
}

Pretty much the same how POF file data is handled.

[SabrWolf]

erm.. instead of breaking support of old readers etc, or even the SCP .vp reader, why not fit this over the first 16bytes (VPHeader) ?.. should  keep it compatible since no reader should read anything beyond 16 bytes that isnt in the entry array.

[Goober5000]

Erm.  I really don't see a great need for either of these.  I think our current system is just fine.

[karajorma]

FRED would also need to be changed to take this into account or it would make it a pain in the arse every time you wanted to use it cause loads of mods would conflict with each other.

Also it's horribly messy. I like keeping mods in their own little boxes

[Kazan]

Originally posted by Goober5000
Erm.  I really don't see a great need for either of these.  I think our current system is just fine.