Come on people...

[morpheus014]

http://forums.eqemu.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3037

This is exactly what I mean about the project not going to work if we dont start cooperating with each other!! The entire thead was devoted to well, nothing except flaming ariak for wanting to keep up world buidling. If Ariak thinks the project is dead, let him think that. If people want to leave let them go its their own damn decision to leave. What we all need to start concentrating on is moving the Emu project foreward, pointless debates only further the problems that the project is experiencing! Its not worth it to flame and degrade people because of their ideas or whatever just let them go! I just dont want to see all the progress that the emulator has made go down the drain!

[a_Guest03]

What are you talking about? One person flamed Ariak. Shawn didn't. I wished him well. And Darkyth, well... He doesn't like Ariak's attitude. Call his response a flame if you want, but he only got one flame. Out of a ton of loyal users, one flame isn't much. You get more flames for asking a stupid question. Shawn's listing of the conversation is just a direct quote from Hackersquest. If you look at his link, he even wished him well.

So sit back, and prepare the praise for the next release.

Morpheus, you've been doing some nice work for the emulator, just like Ariak did. Don't you go anywhere ;)

[morpheus014]

Im not planning on leaving =) its just that all this bickering among some of the great people of the Emu is just kind of destrubing to me that this could all go to ruin because of some bad decisions and arguments, Im sorry if I came on a little strong =P Just dont want to see anything happen to the Emu.

[DeletedUser]

I did not flame Ariak.

I flamed some idiot acting as if he was promoting HackersQuest on EQEMu's Forum.

I actually think highly of Ariak. He contributed alot of time and work to the emulator that I could only dream of. Sitting down clicking and typing in spawn by spawn.. if thats how he did it.


Edit:
Well I do know sitting down fixing visual/color/texture for 5,000 items is boring as hell ;)

[Ariak]

Thanks, all.

Anyways.. need to clear this up..

1.) EQEmu is not dead. It is further along than EthQuest will probaly ever be.

2.) EQEmu **is** in a period of dire-straits. Admit it or deny it, that is the truth.

3.) EthQuest went over a year w/o updates. It's (EQEmu) a FREE project! People come and go. It will be back at full force soon (TM).

I do not want to use EthQuest. I just asked if it was possible to convert 0.3.4 data to EthQuest format, since I have items from the EthQuest format :). I assumed it could be done in reverse.


I did not 'betray' anybody. I haven't even downloaded EthQuest, yet. LoL. I hated it before. I don't think that will change.

[Windcatcher]

In case some of you were wondering, I DO check the site...often :)

It makes me sad to see what's been going on. If people are bickering, especially the devs, maybe those of us who code need to take a deep breath and reevaluate what we're doing. This is supposed to be FUN.

A note about myself: I quit playing EQ a long time ago. Ages ago. I have absolutely no intention of ever playing it again, or any similar game, as they are too time-consuming. I made the admin tool for this project because I wanted to help out, not because I ever had any intention of actually playing on the emu. I don't want to devote the time to the game. I do think that an open-source, owned-by-no-one network game of EQ's caliber (or at least its genre) is a good thing.

As for myself, it's no secret that I haven't updated the admin tool in a while. Simply put, I've gotten burned out. I'm making an appeal for anyone to take the existing admin tool and try to get it working using only the structure-translation files. I put them there for a reason; so that I could hand the program off and have other people easily keep it synched up with the database. Please, if it's gotten out of sync, would someone try it? It's only three text files, and they're almost exactly the same as the corresponding .h files in the emu source. Changing those files should help keep it synched most of the time.

In the meantime I've been working on another project that's related to EQEmu. I've always felt that, with the rapid-fire patches that VI puts out that keep breaking the emu, that we need our own client and content. Maybe the breaking is intentional on their part or maybe it's not--it really doesn't matter IMHO, just the fact that we are having problems keeping up is. At any rate, I started a program called OpenZone some months ago. It was designed to be a tool for creating zone content for a possible client that someone might write in the future. I created the format from scratch, and it's basically a 3D program that lets you place scripted objects. This makes them easily configurable; the idea was that people could whip up content quickly. I don't know if this is the right approach, but it's what I tried. The idea is there is a project file that contains the object information, and when the zone is done you export it to a zone file that has meshes, textures, etc. The file is NOT--repeat NOT--compatible with the EQ client. It's a new beast for our own client.

The program is really embryonic and still has a couple of bugs, but if people want to start a push toward making our own client and content it's a start. If people are serious about it, I can spend a week or two to iron out the bugs and post it. Beware, it's written in Delphi 6.0, but there really is very little code and it's well organized. The scripting language is something I invented, and looks most like BASIC. Though I was thinking of making some advanced improvements to the scripting engine, it is finsihed and fully debugged in its current state (i.e., it's fully usable).

As for scripts, I only created a few so far, but they are EASY to create. I have scripts for square columns (as opposed to round ones), chairs, tables, rectangular dais, a staircase, and a box. Adding scripts involves merely creating the text file and a matching BMP file for the script palette. The program does the rest. You can change a placed scripted object by changing the parameter; when you select an object, its parameters are shown, and all you do is type in a new number or use a drop-down to change a texture.

Rendering isn't as fast as I would like, but if you turn textures off it speeds up a lot (yes, the tool automatically maps textures; just fill the textures folder with--freeware!!!--BMP files and you're all set). Right now using textures is hardcoded to on but adding a checkbox would take all of ten minutes.

I also started investigating the prospect of a client. I looked at CrystalSpace, but it seems really hard to work with. There's also an engine called OGRE, and this seems to be really good. I started porting it (yes, the entire engine) over to Delphi as I can't stand C++, but I'm not finished yet. If some people want to try to whip up a really simple client, I think that 3D engine would be really easy to work with (I've converted 95% of it; I've seen all the ins and outs, and it's really elegant).

I can't possibly handle all of this by myself; I can't even handle a small part of it. I work, I have other coding projects, and I'm writing a book (yes, a real book, it's 165 pages so far). And I also have a life outside my PC :) I put a lot into the admin tool and I'm really glad it's useful to people; that was the idea. I poured my heart and soul into OpenZone, but the totality of everything is just too much. When I first saw EQEmu I even ported the entire server code (1.3 at the time) to Delphi to learn more about it. I'll never do that again :) But if people want to get in and try a different tack, I can contribute what I have.

Windcatcher

[DeletedUser]

Theres few bugs.
I've seen those files,
I myself have tried to recreate the program.
Being me, well.. heh.
It wasn't successful.

I've been an active eqemu user and i've left for around a week or two at times.. i've used 3 or 4 different names sense the start of EQEMu. If their was an update i'd be on top of it... if I knew how to fix it. :rolleyes:

I've been hoping you'd come back and when I saw your name as the post I was surprised.. i'm glad that you still lurk. :D

Truth that people are crazy and they aren't making this fun for the devs. But to be truthful the devs aren't making it fun for alot of people. Ignoring their ideas. Or maybe they just ignore me :D

Maybe I can get my program to work someday..
Doubtfully.. :(

[Shawn319]

I apologize Ariak, when I saw that post on HQ forums it made me think "darnit, there goes another great EQemu Dev/helper"...

If people start leaving BECAUSE of the slowdown, it will get even worse until it IS dead. We need to stick together and work even harder, not run off to another emulator.

[DeletedUser]

HEHE
RUN OFF TO ANOTHER EMULATOR.

[Lurker_005]

I posted this to the EthernalQuest boards, but I feel it applies to here as well.


I personally don't care which Emu people like or use, I just wish they wouldn't attack each other. If you like an emu, then support it, not attack/hinder any other projects (that goes for both projects). The goal is to emulate the EQ servers and have fun.

Regarding Lyenu, I know several people are upset at each other. It seems to be dragging more and more people into it. The redirrection of eqemu.net isn't helping. Lyenu, I understand you said you did it to get back at Hogie, well your also making all the eqemu users and other devs ect pissed at you as well. I hope things can settle down enough for you to point eqemu.net back to where it was, and/or turn the domain over to someone else involved with EQEmu.



So back to the task at hand, Building a good EQ emulator! If you have a live account, run the packetcollector. Hell run the HQ collector even. (I'm working to convert the data for use here).

Help test the emulator, giving good detailed feedback. Make sure what your talking about can be repeated. Most database issues sould be talked about in the worldbuilders forum, don't bother the devs with it.

You don't have to know C++ to help with the emu. I have been using VBScript to create a few utility type tools. FQ Admin was written in Delphi (and can use some work by someone) Help with questions on the boards. Write/Improve help documents.

I know some have been doing this. This is meant as a suggestion ot anyone else :)