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Author Topic: Spellbook Sorting  (Read 5247 times)

Gaul

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Spellbook Sorting
« on: September 22, 2013, 06:34:48 PM »
Idea: a function that can alphabetize your spellbook or let you click and drag them around in a menu per sorting the icons on your windows startup menu.

Jeebs

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #1 on: September 22, 2013, 06:49:47 PM »
I really doubt that this is possible. If you're a stickler for having your spellbook sorted and organized like me, just re-enter your spells before you rest.

Sinful_Wishes

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #2 on: September 22, 2013, 06:50:22 PM »
Sadly its a bioware thing. I hated this too.. to the point I knew about it before I played my first wizard and picked spells alphabetically and only learned scrolls alphabetically too.
Oswald: I vanted a bag of traps, but all I got vas genitals.
Ophelia: I got Osvald's bag of traps, now I'm forever encumberedt.

Jeebs

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #3 on: September 22, 2013, 06:58:08 PM »
Oh haha... I thought you meant the ones you select to be cast. I guess I misunderstood.

Norture

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #4 on: September 22, 2013, 07:04:27 PM »
Sadly its a bioware thing. I hated this too.. to the point I knew about it before I played my first wizard and picked spells alphabetically and only learned scrolls alphabetically too.

I aim for putting my favourite spells on top.

Bluebomber4evr

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #5 on: September 22, 2013, 07:35:10 PM »
Sadly its a bioware thing. I hated this too.. to the point I knew about it before I played my first wizard and picked spells alphabetically and only learned scrolls alphabetically too.
Yup, it's hard-coded and can't be changed. You'll just have to live with it the way it is.

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Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #6 on: September 22, 2013, 08:42:54 PM »
If your text boxes are group boxes, and your group boxes are flowery little nothing buttons...

you might be a nwn programmer.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #7 on: September 22, 2013, 08:45:55 PM »
If your hardcoded constant variables inevitably are floating point decimals with invisible precision:

you might be a nwn programmer.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #8 on: September 22, 2013, 08:47:06 PM »
If your parents bought you a fresh copy of visual studio and it's the best doorstop wedge you've ever had:

you might be a nwn programmer.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #9 on: September 22, 2013, 08:51:12 PM »
If your list boxes have nothing to do with lists, or boxes, or programming:

you might be a nwn programmer.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #10 on: September 22, 2013, 08:58:59 PM »
If your boss told you to organize code into hexidecimal, and you said "I'm not a high enough level wizard to cast that spell:"

you might be a nwn programmer.

Bluebomber4evr

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #11 on: September 22, 2013, 11:22:41 PM »
Keep the jokes to the tavern, please.

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Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #12 on: September 23, 2013, 01:45:51 AM »
Jokes? Facts.

You can just delete the thread if you want, making any kind of suggestion that isn't sealed up in a 2d box around here is guaranteed to get mowed down by "nwn engine limitations," so I don't know why I bother sharing ideas.  I could just keep them to myself and have owned a medium sized island with a private military, software company and hardware manufacturer by now if I had any sense at all.

There is nothing that "isn't possible" with enough work and a bright enough idea, trust me.  The sky is the limit, people tell themselves they can't fly, so they crawl on the ground and stare at the birds all their lives.

It is much more truthful and sincere to simply say "I don't care about that idea; it doesn't mean anything to me."

I've seen custom written software that introduces dozens of prestige classes, item feats galore for custom items galore and pretty much anything you can dig up and slap together from the vault, so harping about limitations is an exercise in wasted time insofar as nwn is concerned.  At the very worst, they are ideas that can be refined, planned and executed later in other formats with all the details worked out by people who'd rather dream than drill on dreams.

Don't take this as an insult, blue, but I really wish you'd open up a bit to ideas.  Instead of telling us everything that CANNOT be done with nwn, make a list of things we CAN do!
« Last Edit: September 23, 2013, 02:17:42 AM by Gaul »

Norture

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #13 on: September 23, 2013, 02:14:21 AM »
Jokes? Facts.

You can just delete the thread if you want, making any kind of suggestion that isn't sealed up in a 2d box around here is guaranteed to get mowed down by "nwn engine limitations," so I don't know why I bother sharing ideas.  I could just keep them to myself and have owned a medium sized island with a private military, software company and hardware manufacturer by now if I had any sense at all.

There is nothing that "isn't possible" with enough work and a bright enough idea, trust me.  The sky is the limit, people tell themselves they can't fly, so they crawl on the ground and stare at the birds all their lives.

It is much more truthful and sincere to simply say "I don't care about that idea; it doesn't mean anything to me."

I've seen custom written software that introduces dozens of prestige classes, item feats galore for custom items galore and pretty much anything you can dig up and slap together from the vault, so harping about limitations is an exercise in wasted time insofar as nwn is concerned.  At the very worst, they are ideas that can be refined, planned and executed later in other formats with all the details worked out by people who'd rather dream than drill on dreams.

hey cool apply for the dev team and make it happen.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #14 on: September 23, 2013, 02:18:59 AM »
Hey nope, don't care.  Too busy writing my own software for my own business later.  I've spent enough time working on this game for free for nothing but kicks in the teeth to learn that lesson a second time.

And if I did, you'd kick me in the teeth and complain about how perfect it wasn't.  So don't toss that angle at me like it means something. When you want something nice, you ask nicely for it.  When you want something beautiful, you give it time to grow and mature before you appreciate it.  I don't see any of that here, and I'm just waiting for the next snarky putdown to put me in my place "where I ought to be" instead of doing something productive, so go right ahead.

I can tell you that the big "keys" to all that would involve getting CEP (and I haven't messed with it for about 7 years), reworking crafting and variables within the main C++ function of the game, however.  The catch is that all these variables are spinning and checking on a clock, and the more you dump in, the more it has to check them and slow the game and complicate other things, especially if the programming isn't airtight.  As I mentioned before, I have never seen this module unwrapped in the toolkit, or compiled the code and debugged it, so I don't have the faintest clue outside of what is visible within the game exactly how much space is available for such things, or how much interest is there, nor do I know the developers well enough to judge their personalities and abilities to program these things on a schedule.  I like to work alone, on my own things.  It takes cash incentives to motivate me otherwise, and I'm not expecting any of that here.

I get the impression that the admins really want to limit player power and focus on the "specialness" of the classes that do exist, and they want to maintain the flavor of the setting in the scope of items, spells, classes, races and atmosphere, and that carves away a lot of "neat stuff" to make way for authenticity, so I understand where they are coming from on a lot of judgment calls.

The module and PW I worked on for a long time was much more "open" and engaging for CEP placeables, teleporting/dimensional anchor type spells and rotating ambience, so it was an entirely different animal than this.  At the end of it, we got tired of kicking each other in the teeth, the constant player revolutions for admin positions and general malice and hatred toward the devs, so we called it what it was and let the ship sink.
« Last Edit: September 23, 2013, 03:10:47 AM by Gaul »

Norture

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #15 on: September 23, 2013, 02:27:56 AM »
Hey nope, don't care.  Too busy writing my own software for my own business later.  I've spent enough time working on this game for free for nothing but kicks in the teeth to learn that lesson a second time.

And if I did, you'd kick me in the teeth and bitch about how perfect it wasn't.  So don't toss that angle at me like it means something.

Wow it's almost like you've nailed on the head why they won't be making this, and yet you're throwing attitude at them and acting like they owe you something regardless.

Gaul

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #16 on: September 23, 2013, 03:11:58 AM »
No, not really.  I'm just saying this is my last post on the forum.  See y'all in game, I'm tired of NWN forums.

Jeebs

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #17 on: September 23, 2013, 09:00:54 AM »
Umm... to quote a lame internet meme: Dafuq did I just read?

deadblood64

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #18 on: September 23, 2013, 04:03:11 PM »
frustration is what you just read sir.
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Sinful_Wishes

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #19 on: September 23, 2013, 04:19:33 PM »
Well, the frustration is sort of like the story about NASA and the space pen. Why bother spending resources/time/energy to fix something that really does very, very little other then cosmetics, when you can just use a pencil.
Oswald: I vanted a bag of traps, but all I got vas genitals.
Ophelia: I got Osvald's bag of traps, now I'm forever encumberedt.

ThePwush

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #20 on: September 23, 2013, 04:24:23 PM »
Well, the frustration is sort of like the story about NASA and the space pen. Why bother spending resources/time/energy to fix something that really does very, very little other then cosmetics, when you can just use a pencil.

...and save you about 10 million in expenses.... :lol:
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Nirvana620

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #21 on: September 23, 2013, 05:28:02 PM »
Because what's more fun than being a prentetious condescending douche? *sarcasm*

ThePwush

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #22 on: September 23, 2013, 05:49:55 PM »
Because what's more fun than being a prentetious condescending douche? *sarcasm*

Don't forget the knitted cap and hipster glasses. Douchebaggery requires them. Hehehehehe.
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Bluebomber4evr

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #23 on: September 23, 2013, 05:51:47 PM »
He didn't know as much as he thought he did, apparently. In order to overcome the hard-coded limits of the game, it would require someone to either have access to the game's source code, which we don't have and will likely never get a hold of; or we'd have to more or less hack the game, which would end up breaking compatibility (because everyone would need the hacked .exe) and as far as I know, no one's done it in the 11 years this game's been available, and none of us are willing or interested to try. Stuff like adding prestige classes or new feats are not hardcoded and thus can be made, so long as they don't try to alter the combat or spellcasting engines.

Virusman said he was working on a project that would overcome the game's hardcoded limits, but that was almost 3 years ago and there's been few to no announcements since then. Unless and until that project materializes (and works as intended), it's pointless to get worked up over the hardcoded limits of the game engine. There are just some things that can't be done without breaking the game.

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Bejeweled

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Re: Spellbook Sorting
« Reply #24 on: October 01, 2013, 01:52:00 PM »
Or you could just use NwNX. I'd be surprised if this server didn't use NwNX plugins already.

Ultimately, much of the functionality on a server is processed on the server machine and then communicated to player clients. Thus you don't need to modify the source code, nor do you need to modify the .exe; you can simply intercept and alter server memory -- which is what NwNX does.

I haven't developed on a Linux platform, but can confirm that it is possible to modify the spellbook on a Windows platform (without custom plugins), at least.
« Last Edit: October 01, 2013, 01:58:38 PM by Bejeweled »