Messages

196

AGI Development Tools / WinAGI Version 2.1.10

« on: March 06, 2021, 02:29:37 AM »

The console mode that I added in version 2.1.6 was a bit of a hack, and I just couldn't leave it that way. So here's an update that includes a separate executable, conWAGI.exe for running a windowless console mode. It's a much cleaner implementation and it supports importing games (creating WinAGI game files from an existing AGI game) and all three compile options. (The main app also includes a couple minor bug fixes.)

You can get the latest version from the AGI wiki. Here's a direct link to the install file:
http://agiwiki.sierrahelp.com/images/8/8b/WinAGI_2_1_10.zip

I am still working on a C# version of WinAGI. I got the all the basic AGI library functions moved over, and have a working app that can display all resources. There are no resource editors or tools added yet, and it's not real stable; there are a ton of bugs, and it's easy to crash right now.

If anyone is interested, I guess I could share a link to the git files. Just don't make fun of my poor C# coding skills...

197

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - don't write object names in decompilation

« on: March 06, 2021, 01:59:45 AM »

I found a couple bugs that I felt had to fixed, so I threw in this request at the same time. New version 2.1.10 is available here.

198

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 17, 2021, 12:58:24 PM »

One more bug I noticed, when using the /r or /d options, you don't get an error message if the game file doesn't load. Using the /c option does give you an error message when the game file doesn't load.

So you just have to be a bit more careful with the /r and /d options.

199

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 17, 2021, 12:11:23 PM »

Sorry - I didn't do a lot of testing, so there are a few 'glitches' you need to be aware of. I probably shouldn't have released this without doing extensive testing first. Oh well...

The second line is correct; you need to invoke WinAGI, then follow it with the switch '/d', and then your game file. It doesn't matter what directory you run it from, as long as the WinAGI executable is reachable (using the included directory information, or by using your DOS PATH environment variable).  If the path to the executable includes spaces, the entire executable command needs to be included in quotes, as in your example.

BUT the game file argument MUST be quote-free. (The function that opens a game expects no quotes, and I forgot to make sure the argument passed from the command line was 'de-quoted' - )

Also, you must include the full path to your game file (again, I didn't do a lot of testing, and didn't consider how it would work if a path was not included in the argument value).

So this should work for you:

Code: [Select]

"C:\Program Files (x86)\WinAGI GDS\WinAGI.exe" /d C:\Zvika\Games\AGI\PQ1.wag
Also keep in mind that if you configure WinAGI to use the Splash Screen at start up, you will get the GUI to load even if you use command lines; I didn't want to screw with the program initialization too much to get this to work, so I chose to process the command line AFTER reading the configuration file, which means you will get a splash screen if that setting is active. It's not a big deal though - the GUI automatically closes after the compile is done, or more simply, just disable the splash screen and you should be GUI free. (mostly... )

I also discovered that if you run a command prompt window that uses elevated privileges, WinAGI doesn't read the game configuration file correctly, so you get the splash screen even if you've disabled it. I have no idea what's going on there. Just be aware of it.

I tested these instructions again this morning on a clean install, and it worked for me. So hopefully, once you get the syntax correct, you should be able to successfully run the compiler in whichever mode you want (c/d/r). If it succeeds, then the program will just terminate, with no exit code, and no output at all. If the compile fails, you should get one message box popup that tells you that. But it won't give a lot of detail. You will need to run the GUI to get a detailed explanation of why it can't compile.

200

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 15, 2021, 10:25:50 PM »

Yeah, probably a good idea.

201

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 15, 2021, 01:52:38 PM »

It only gives you a message if it encounters an error. if you don't get any error message, then you know it compiled correctly.

This was the easiest way to implement the feature. Adding a logging feature would require more work than I currently have time for. I might take a look at it later, but I can't make any promises as to when.

202

AGI Development Tools / WinAGI Version 2.1.6

« on: February 14, 2021, 11:31:06 AM »

OK, here's an update that addresses a couple bugs found in 2.1.5 and also adds a couple requested features.

Link to install file

- Fixed bug in settings functions that would not save MsgByNumber value
- Added menu item and toolbar button to show character map dialog on logic and text editors
- Modified error messages when read-only files are encountered so it is more clear to user
- Added command line switches to compile games without running the user interface
- Modified the GameID property to allow lower case letters

203

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - lower case GameID

« on: February 13, 2021, 02:25:29 PM »

Ah, I see. I kind of like leaving it all upper case, but I suppose it doesn't really matter. I'll see if I can include this option in the next fix.

204

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - lower case GameID

« on: February 12, 2021, 10:44:41 PM »

Hmm, I guess I could. Every Sierra game I know of uses all upper case for GameID (even though the check in the set.game.id function is in fact case sensitive). It's just one of those long standing traditions I guess.

I assume the ScummVM check is also case-sensitive? Meaning, if you use 'PQ1', ScummVM will think it's the original Sierra version? Why not just use 'PQ1H' or something like that? The GameID property isn't actually linked to the AGI game - you can set it to anything you want despite what the game logics actually use for the set.game.id command.

In the meantime, let look into what it will take to implement lower case GameIDs.

Oh, and I did drop a comment on your pull request. Hope it helps.

205

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 12, 2021, 10:00:20 PM »

Probably can't make it completely GUI free, as I'd have a lot of things to unhook from the compile functions.

... suddenly I understand what's the big frikkin deal with recent, more "modern" UI development paradigms. I need a drink.

I don't know how to read this. All I was saying is that the main functions for opening and compiling games currently provide feedback in the form of progress windows, status bars, and message boxes. I'd have to deal with all of these to go sans-GUI. It's not difficult, but it will take some time that I'd rather spend on something else.

Is that an example of a "modern" UI development paradigm? Why is that bad?

206

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: feature request - batch mode

« on: February 12, 2021, 03:48:24 PM »

This is probably the best place to make feature requests! Separate threads works for me, unless the requests are closely related.

Regarding batch mode, I can easily add command line switch options ( '/c' for a full compile; '/r' for rebuild VOL, '/d' for compile dirty logics) along with a wag file name that will run the compiler when WinAGI starts. Probably can't make it completely GUI free, as I'd have a lot of things to unhook from the compile functions. But I could make the GUI disappear immediately after running.

Would that work for you? Are there any other switches/functions you think you might need?

207

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI 2.1.5 - fails to compile PQ1

« on: February 11, 2021, 02:24:57 PM »

Short answer - your files are marked read-only. If you remove that mark, everything works just fine.

Longer answer - not all my error messages are helpful; I should have provided more useful information to the user about why the files weren't writing. I've tweaked that section of code so it points you in the right direction if read-only files are encountered. Update will be available sometime this weekend.

I think a better long term solution will be to verify all files can be accessed when the game is loaded, and provide immediate feedback to the user at that time. I'll add that to my ToDo list for next version.

thx for finding this for me.

208

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI 2.1.5 - fails to compile PQ1

« on: February 11, 2021, 11:57:03 AM »

That's not good. It compiles fine for me though. But now I'm wondering if I have the right DOS version of the game. My game files are a bit of a mess, as I'm constantly tweaking things as I do testing.

The first error indicates one of the game resources needed by the compiler is not loading. But the only resources that the compiler needs loaded are the object file and words.tok file. Location 66662 in vol.0 is in the middle of View 188. The compiler does not need to load views, and View 188 isn't even referenced in Logic 6 anyway. That makes me think my version is not the same as what you have.

I have game version 2.0G, running on AGI interpreter version 2.917. Can you check your game and interpreter version? Also, if possible, can you zip up all your game files, including source directory, and make them available to me so I can try to duplicate the problem?

Once I find out what's going on, I'll get a fix out for you.

Again, sorry for the inconvenience.

209

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI: retain "Show message arguments by number" settings

« on: February 11, 2021, 11:07:09 AM »

Dang it. That's on me. When I was adding that setting, I changed the name that is used in the game's config file at one point. Since my dev file had both the old and new name in it, i thought it was working correctly. But what's happening is that it uses the old property name to read the setting, and the new property name to save the setting.

It's easy to fix though. In a text editor (WinAGI has a text editor built in!), open up your winagi.config file, which can be found in your install directory, usually in 'Program Files (x86)\WinAGI GDS'. If it's not there, try 'Users\{user}\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\WinAGI GDS'*** - Windows 10 sometimes moves program configuration files automatically.

Find the [Decompiler] section, and add this line:
 

Code: [Select]

  MsgsByNum = True
then save the file. If the line is already there, just change the value to 'True'. Ignore the line that says 'MsgsByNumber = True'. If you want to change the setting later, you'll have to manually edit the config file again.

I'll get a fix out that addresses this permanently by the end of the week.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

***The AppData folder is a hidden folder; if you don't see it, make sure you configure File Explorer to show hidden files and folders.

210

AGI Development Tools / Re: WinAGI Character map

« on: February 10, 2021, 05:01:37 PM »

Yeah, I kinda broke my own rule about providing multiple input methods - I tried to make sure there were keyboard/toolbar/menu options available for all program functions. But this feature was a late add on, and I didn't include the menu/toolbar options partly because i reasoned it was likely to be very infrequently used (and partly because I was lazy ). Sorry about that.

I guess the good news is that the Help file was actually helpful! 

If this is a deal-breaker for anyone, I can probably get a revision out that adds both a toolbar button and menu item. Otherwise, hopefully by the time you want to use it a year from now, there may be a C# version out that has all the features you need.