Best way to handle a mailbox?

[MusicallyInspired]

Should I treat it as a door and use the door class? Or just do it normally?

[Doan Sephim]

Probably the best way I can think to do it, is set up a control color near it and whenever you walk on the control color have the mailbox door open automatically, and then, whenever you are not on the control color, have the mailbox door close.

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(method (doit)
  (super:doit)
    (if(== (send gEgo: onControl()) ctlSILVER)
      (if(boxDoorClosed)
        (mailbox:setCycle(End)) // opening animation
        = boxDoorClosed 0
      )
    )(else
      (if(not(boxDoorClosed))
        (mailbox:setCycle(Beg)) // reverse opening animation
        = boxDoorClosed 1
      )
    )
  )
)
Having it be automatic might be a nice addition. I used something similar to this in the New Year's Mystery when the bathroom mirror closed automatically when you walked away from it.

EDIT: I just thought of something better. Instead of using a control color, you could just use a distance:

(if(<=(send gEgo:distanceTo(mailbox))20)

[MusicallyInspired]

No, I don't want it to be automatic. I'm just wondering how to code it that's all. I can't figure out how to make something animate only once, is my problem. It also won't send to my theMailbox instance from within the said statement 'if' which I don't get.

[Doan Sephim]

For something to animate once, you just have to use something like

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(mailbox:setCycle(End))"End" tells it to cycle only to the last cel in the loop.

To code it you need to put it in the handleEvent method:

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(if(Said('open/door,mailbox'))
   (if(<=(send gEgo:distanceTo(mailbox))25)
      Print("OK")
      (mailbox:setCycle(End))
   )(else
       PrintNotCloseEnough()
   )
)
That (or something similar) should work.

[troflip]

It also won't send to my theMailbox instance from within the said statement 'if' which I don't get.

Are you using

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(send theMailBox:setCycle(End))
?

That won't work... for instances you need to drop the send:

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(theMailbox:setCycle(End))

But assign the instance to a variable:

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(= myProp theMailbox)

and suddenly you have to use send if you reference it through the variable:

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(send myProp:setCycle(End))

Crazy.... my c-syntax will eliminate this kind of stuff.  you would just do

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theMailbox.setCycle(End);
or

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var myProp = theMailbox;
myProp.setCycle(End);


[MusicallyInspired]

Ok. Got the mailbox opening and closing nicely. I'm having a bit of problems with the look saids. I was "look mailbox" and "look in (or inside) mailbox" to give two different messages.

I'm using a:

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(if(Said('look>'))
        (if(Said('/fence'))
            Print("You see a wooden fence surrounding the cottage.")
        )
kind of look statement code. Here are the two mailbox saids I'm using at the moment. I've tried changing the order but it doesn't help. It keeps giving me the message for "look mailbox" either way and ignores "look in/inside mailbox".

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(if(Said('/mailbox'))
            Print("The mailbox has the words 'Grandma's House' on it.")
        )

and

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        (if(Said('/inside / mailbox'))
        (if (== (send gEgo: onControl()) ctlSILVER)
        (if (mailboxClosed)
        Print("The mailbox is closed. You cannot look in it.")
)(else
Print("You see a basket of goodies in the mailbox.")
)
)(else
Print("You're not close enough.")
)
)

I've also tried things like "/ (in , inside) mailbox" and "/ inside < mailbox". Nothing works. Any ideas?

[troflip]

I think what you want is:

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Said('look<in/mailbox')
However,

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Said('look/mailbox')will match both "look mailbox" and "look in mailbox".

Therefore this

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Said('look<in/mailbox')needs to come before

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Said('look/mailbox')

I usually flatten all my Said statements for clarity... so it would look like this:

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(if (Said('look<in/mailbox'))
Print("You see a letter.")
)
(if (Said('look/mailbox')) // This won't match "look in mailbox" anymore, since it was already matched above
Print("What a nice mailbox.  I wonder what's inside")
)

With your way, it would be like this I guess:

Code: [Select]

(if (Said('look>'))
(if (Said('<in/mailbox'))
Print("You see a letter.")
)
(if (Said('/mailbox')) // This won't match "look in mailbox" anymore, since it was already matched above
Print("What a nice mailbox.  I wonder what's inside")
)
)



btw, 'in' is already a synonym of 'inside', so you only need to use one or the other.

[MusicallyInspired]

Perfect, thank you.

Now I'm having trouble with inventory items. I have a basket object. When I pick it up I can't look at it. When I press tab it says Test Object in my inventory. I've already changed the Test Object instance in the Main script to the attributes of this basket and also replaced {Test Object} in the inventory list near the end of Main's "Template of Game" instance. Why is it still saying Test Object and why can't I look at it with the parser?

EDIT: I just finished looking through every single script in the game and I cannot find the words "Test Object" anywhere. Where is the game getting it from??

[troflip]

And you recompiled everything and there were no errors?

[MusicallyInspired]

Ah right. I keep forgetting about compile all. Thanks.