Changing the scope zoom levels..

[CapnScurvy]

Nisgeis, is absolutely right about leaving backed-up or changed files with slightly different names left in the folders the game goes to look for them in. I've seen this too, the game picks up a file you left hanging in its "parent" folder and the game reads it over the intended file with the correct name?! Weird, but true.

This also goes along with good management of JSGME. When I work with changing a particular setting I try not to have anything else loaded in JSGME. Talk about a mess, if you activate one mod change through JSGME. Start the game to see what happens, realize you need to do something different, end game, but forget to remove the mod from JSGME before you tinker some more, then run the game again. The last tinkering you did won't show up in game because the file JSGME loaded is the first file you activated, not the second. To correct this error, get out of the game, and remove the mod you're working on from JSGME. I'll even close out the JSGME application (it's like crossing your fingers for luck), then open JSGME and reactivate the mod. This time it will have the latest tinker you did.

Where the "mess" really gets huge, is when you have more than one mod you're activating and you do the above Boo Boo. JSGME does a great job of keeping track of what was last loaded trough it. So you have mod 1 and 2 loaded in JSGME (in that order), and you decide to tweak something with mod 1. You do the "Boo Boo" and decide to pull mod 1 from JSGME without removing mod 2 first. Now, you have JSGME not being able to know whether to take a crap or go blind!! It had you're ducks all in a row until you decided to pull one mod out of sequence over the other.

All I can say about this problem, you had better remove all mods. Let JSGME give your stock files a look see by going through the "Tasks..." "Compare game files to snapshot" (you did take a "snapshot" after loading JSGME the first time didn't you?) and hoping there isn't anything out of place besides a couple of test missions you made, or a screen shot or two. If there are larger changes to the "snapshot" to specific files that you know shouldn't have any changes, you may need to look at a fresh install of the game.

JSGME keeps it's files it overwrites in a folder in MODS/!backup, you may see if there are any loose files in there after removing all mods.

[vanjast]

Well, finally got things A-OK... after 2 re-installs and same mods installation procedure. I reinstalled S3D-version 0.9.4 and traced(saved) the cameras.dat file through all patches and mods.

I don't think it was S3D, but maybe a corrupt Cameras file coz before the reinstall, I deleted this file to see if the game would run without it, on 'default' settings... and it did !!!! and these settings were the ones I was getting all the time, so somehow the game 'lost' the cameras file.

With the re-installations, I used the default folders provided by the game - I usually change this to my game folder and am not sure whether this also could have been a factor.

[vanjast]

Ja.. Capt.
I'm very piccy about my mods, in the soup and usually only run a few.
I'm sticking with the GFO 1.6 + RealEnv + RSDC plus other mods that do not interfere with these. I'm also adapting your scope skins, and zooms as they really give a nice feel to the game.

I stopped my nav mod sometime ago coz of this cameras problem, but didn't realise what the problem was or had the time to play with it. Now that I'm getting back into it I would like to Real Nav ... so here comes my sextant in the obs-scope.


Ye olde man and his boat

[Nisgeis]

If you deleted the file and it still worked, then you must have had a duplicate copy somewhere, as otherwise it wouldn't have worked at all. That would be why one of your changes were being taken into account! Glad you got it fixed, if by a bit of an extreme solution .

[vanjast]

Originally Posted by Nisgeis

If you deleted the file and it still worked, then you must have had a duplicate copy somewhere, as otherwise it wouldn't have worked at all. .

Dunno... all the copies had different letters added onto 'Cameras' filename => CamerasA, CamerasB... etc.

[Nisgeis]

In the game directory? They would all have been loaded up at run time and overwritten all your changes. The game doesn't care what you call the files, it just loads everything.

[vanjast]

So you're saying, in this case, it loads every *.dat file under the ..\data\.. folder, and works out what goes where, from each files internal ID parameters.

IOW.. I have to save the backup files 'out of' the game '\data\..' folder, otherwise the game sees multiple camera.dat IDs, then aborting to default settings, or just using the last IDs loaded ??

Ohhhhh! this is such 'cheapskate' development... yukkie yugh!!

[Nisgeis]

It's actually quite useful, as you don't need to modify existing files, so you can get mods with better compatibiltiy, as you can add new things without overwriting an existing file.

I can't remember if the game will load files without a 'standard' extension - I think if you call it cameras.old iit may still load it up. Not sure about though, I think its just /data/library that gets loaded up automatically, but if in doubt don't put any backup files in the game directory at all. Always mod through JSGME anyway as it's much less likely to go wrong and it keeps the files tidier and roll back is easier.

[vanjast]

The problem comes with identifying which is the correct file.. too many complications are intoduced. Explicit file usage is the only way to go...

[CapnScurvy]

Yeah!!

Hope it comes out like you want.

I know you can make several zoom levels for the Periscope cameras. They toggle from one to the other with the mouse wheel. I've just finished putting a zoom feature onto the radar screens, so you don't have to squint at the scopes to see the blips.

[Nisgeis]

Originally Posted by CapnScurvy

I've just finished putting a zoom feature onto the radar screens, so you don't have to squint at the scopes to see the blips.

Did you get round the problem of that interfring with the mouse wheel also being used to step through the bearing? I couldn't get round it, so I had to abandon it.

[CapnScurvy]

Originally Posted by Nisgeis

Did you get round the problem of that interfring with the mouse wheel also being used to step through the bearing? I couldn't get round it, so I had to abandon it.

No, you still move the bearing by continuing to roll the mouse wheel.

For those who don't know, putting the ability to zoom magnification onto the radar screens also moves the bearing in small, single degree steps when in the "focus" mode. This happens once the top magnification is achieved and you decide to continue to roll the mouse wheel.

I don't see much of a problem with it though. If you make the magnification great enough, (like having the PPI radar screen fill up the monitor screen like just before doing a "face plant" into a pizza) you won't be too tempted to keep trying to get closer (OK, I'm exaggerating a bit).

Besides, the extra ability to fine tune the bearing (granted it only moves one way depending on whether you are zooming in or out) may be useful.