User-Configurable Options (Savage) - Revision history

Rob at 22:42, 11 February 2009

2009-02-11T22:42:41Z

@@ Line 204: / Line 204: @@
    </source>
 </pre>
 ===Things from Original Rulebook===

Rob at 22:23, 11 February 2009

2009-02-11T22:23:12Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:23, 11 February 2009
Line 305:		Line 305:
	height = autotop		height = autotop
	</pre>		</pre>

			===Sequencing the Sources===

			Our list of sources has become rather long. Since the list is sorted alphabetically, that puts the "Original Rulebook" source at the top of the list, but that group of options is the least likely to be used. Our list of time periods has a similar problem, in that the sequence is not chronological, which is confusing. We should dictate the order in which the various sources are shown. Fortunately, the Kit provides the ability to do this.

			Each source has an optional "sortorder" attribute. If this attribute is specified, all of the sources within a given grouping (i.e. sharing the same parent) are first sorted on the assigned order, from lowest to highest. If the order value is the same, the sources are sorted alphabetically. Any source with no assigned order goes after all sources that do have an order.

			We're only going to worry about the sources that need sequencing, since most of them can be left to their default behavior. For the various time period sources, we can simply assign the values one through four, as appropriate. However, for the parent sources, we should number them with values that leave gaps. That way, we can easily insert new groupings between existing groupings if we want. We'll use the values listed below.

			*Time Period: 20
			*Output Options: 50
			*Original Rulebook: 100

			Once we assign the appropriate "sortorder" attributes to the various sources, we can reload and see the list in a much more intuitive order.

Rob: /* Original Rulebook Options */

2009-02-11T22:04:18Z

Original Rulebook Options

@@ Line 205: / Line 205: @@
 </pre>
-*races
+===Things from Original Rulebook===
 ===Character Sheet Output===

Rob at 21:29, 11 February 2009

2009-02-11T21:29:10Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:29, 11 February 2009
Line 31:		Line 31:
	<pre>		<pre>
	<source		<source
	id="~~Settings~~"		id="CampType"
	name="Campaign Settings"		name="Campaign Settings"
	selectable="no"		selectable="no"
Line 44:		Line 44:
	id="Flawed"		id="Flawed"
	name="Flawed Heroes"		name="Flawed Heroes"
	parent="~~Settings~~"		parent="CampType"
	description="Heroes may select one additional Minor Hindrance, earning one extra Hindrance point">		description="Heroes may select one additional Minor Hindrance, earning one extra Hindrance point">
	</source>		</source>
Line 51:		Line 51:
	id="Tragic"		id="Tragic"
	name="Tragic Heroes"		name="Tragic Heroes"
	parent="~~Settings~~"		parent="CampType"
	description="Heroes may select one additional Major Hindrance, earning two extra Hindrance points">		description="Heroes may select one additional Major Hindrance, earning two extra Hindrance points">
	</source>		</source>
Line 106:		Line 106:
	The original rulebook also a few other campaign setting changes that apply in a heroic or cinematic setting. Two of these adjustments impact character creation and should be incorporated into our data files. The first is for a "Heroic" setting, wherein characters can ignore Rank requirements for edges taken during character creation. The second is an "Epic Heroism" setting, in which all Rank requirements can be ignored.		The original rulebook also a few other campaign setting changes that apply in a heroic or cinematic setting. Two of these adjustments impact character creation and should be incorporated into our data files. The first is for a "Heroic" setting, wherein characters can ignore Rank requirements for edges taken during character creation. The second is an "Epic Heroism" setting, in which all Rank requirements can be ignored.

	The first step in implementing these options is to set them up as sources. We'll do this just like we did in the previous example, adding one source for each of the two settings. Both sources must reference the "~~Settings~~" source we defined previously, resulting in the two new sources shown below.		The first step in implementing these options is to set them up as sources. We'll do this just like we did in the previous example, adding one source for each of the two settings. Both sources must reference the "CampType" source we defined previously, resulting in the two new sources shown below.

	<pre>		<pre>
Line 112:		Line 112:
	id="Heroism"		id="Heroism"
	name="Heroism"		name="Heroism"
	parent="~~Settings~~"		parent="CampType"
	description="Heroes ignore the Rank requirements for Edges during character creation">		description="Heroes ignore the Rank requirements for Edges during character creation">
	</source>		</source>
Line 119:		Line 119:
	id="EpicHero"		id="EpicHero"
	name="Epic Heroism"		name="Epic Heroism"
	parent="~~Settings~~"		parent="CampType"
	description="Heroes ignore Rank requirements for Edges at all times">		description="Heroes ignore Rank requirements for Edges at all times">
	</source>		</source>
Line 178:		Line 178:
	]]></validate>		]]></validate>
	</pre>		</pre>

			===Original Rulebook Options===

			The previous two sections outlined options that were described in the original rulebook for the game. As such, if a user sees them in the list and doesn't know about the original rulebook, he'll wonder where these options come from. So it's best if we add a new source that identifies itself as containing options from the original rulebook. We can then change the sources above to be children of this new source. The new source should look something like the one shown below.

			<pre>
			<source
			id="Original"
			name="Original Rulebook Options"
			selectable="no"
			reportable="no"
			description="Assorted options that were outlined in the original core rulebook">
			</source>
			</pre>

			Once the new source is added, we can modify the "CampType" source to specify our new source as its parent, as shown below.

			<pre>
			<source
			id="CampType"
			name="Campaign Settings"
			parent="Original"
			selectable="no"
			description="Options associated with the style of campaign setting being played">
			</source>
			</pre>

			*races

	===Character Sheet Output===		===Character Sheet Output===

Rob: /* Character Sheet Output */

2009-01-30T08:41:34Z

Character Sheet Output

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:41, 30 January 2009
Line 183:		Line 183:
	One of our original objectives with the character sheet was to fit everything on a single page. All of the core character information achieves this now, unless the character is quite complex. The problem is that we've added the ally and vehicle output only to the second page of the character sheet, which forces the printing of a second page if either are present. It's quite possible that a user will want to print allies as entirely separate characters and will only use vehicles as a means of transportation, in which case a single-page character sheet is desired and neither will be wanted on the second page.		One of our original objectives with the character sheet was to fit everything on a single page. All of the core character information achieves this now, unless the character is quite complex. The problem is that we've added the ally and vehicle output only to the second page of the character sheet, which forces the printing of a second page if either are present. It's quite possible that a user will want to print allies as entirely separate characters and will only use vehicles as a means of transportation, in which case a single-page character sheet is desired and neither will be wanted on the second page.

	We accommodate this very easily through the use of a couple of new user-configurable options. We'll keep the printing of allies and vehicles separate, just in case a user wants to include one but not the other. So we'll need to define two new sources. There is already an "Output Options" source grouping with one source beneath it. All we need to do is add our new sources and designate the appropriate parent. Since we users to see the extra output instead of assuming it doesn't exist, we also want to set the default state of both sources to selected. This yields the two new sources below.		We accommodate this very easily through the use of a couple of new user-configurable options. We'll keep the printing of allies and vehicles separate, just in case a user wants to include one but not the other. So we'll need to define two new sources. There is already an "Output Options" source grouping with one source beneath it. All we need to do is add our new sources and designate the appropriate parent. Since we want users to see the extra output instead of assuming it doesn't exist, we also want to set the default state of both sources to selected. This yields the two new sources below.

	<pre>		<pre>
Line 201:		Line 201:
	description="If the hero has any vehicles, separate summaries for each vehicle will be included on secondary pages of the character sheet">		description="If the hero has any vehicles, separate summaries for each vehicle will be included on secondary pages of the character sheet">
	</source>		</source>
			</pre>

			If we select these options for a new character, we'll notice something that needs to be tweaked. On the "Configure Hero" form, a summary of the selected options is shown. Each of our new options runs off the right edge of the available space. We can either shorten the overall name or we can make use of the "abbrev" attribute. This attribute allows us to specify a shorter name for a source that will be shown in places like the summary list. We can add the following two lines to the source definitions, which will give us much better results.

			<pre>
			abbrev="Show Ally Summaries"

			abbrev="Show Vehicle Summaries"
	</pre>		</pre>

Rob: /* Character Sheet Output */

2009-01-29T08:18:43Z

Character Sheet Output

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:18, 29 January 2009
Line 180:		Line 180:

	===Character Sheet Output===		===Character Sheet Output===

			One of our original objectives with the character sheet was to fit everything on a single page. All of the core character information achieves this now, unless the character is quite complex. The problem is that we've added the ally and vehicle output only to the second page of the character sheet, which forces the printing of a second page if either are present. It's quite possible that a user will want to print allies as entirely separate characters and will only use vehicles as a means of transportation, in which case a single-page character sheet is desired and neither will be wanted on the second page.

			We accommodate this very easily through the use of a couple of new user-configurable options. We'll keep the printing of allies and vehicles separate, just in case a user wants to include one but not the other. So we'll need to define two new sources. There is already an "Output Options" source grouping with one source beneath it. All we need to do is add our new sources and designate the appropriate parent. Since we users to see the extra output instead of assuming it doesn't exist, we also want to set the default state of both sources to selected. This yields the two new sources below.

			<pre>
			<source
			id="ShowAlly"
			name="Include Ally Summaries on Sheet"
			parent="Output"
			default="yes"
			description="If the hero has any allies, separate summaries for each ally will be included on secondary pages of the character sheet">
			</source>

			<source
			id="ShowVeh"
			name="Include Vehicles Summaries on Sheet"
			parent="Output"
			default="yes"
			description="If the hero has any vehicles, separate summaries for each vehicle will be included on secondary pages of the character sheet">
			</source>
			</pre>

			With the sources defined, we can now put them to use within the second page of the character sheet. Open the file "sheet_standard2.dat" and locate the layout. We need to add special handling for both the "oAlly" and "oVehicle" table portals. If the source tag is defined, we'll "autoplace" the portals normally. However, if the source tag is not defined, we'll set the portal to be non-visible. That's all there is to it. This results in a revised Position script that looks like the one below.

			<pre>
			~position the various tables in the desired sequence
			perform portal[oPower].autoplace
			perform portal[oArmor].autoplace
			perform portal[oWeapon].autoplace
			perform portal[oGear].autoplace

			~only include allies if the user has enabled them
			if (hero.tagis[source.ShowAlly] = 0) then
			portal[oAlly].visible = 0
			else
			perform portal[oAlly].autoplace
			endif

			~only include vehicles if the user has enabled them
			if (hero.tagis[source.ShowVeh] = 0) then
			portal[oVehicle].visible = 0
			else
			perform portal[oVehicle].autoplace
			endif

			~the height of the layout is the bottommost extent of the elements within
			height = autotop
			</pre>

Rob: /* Heroic Campaign Settings */

2009-01-29T04:49:21Z

Heroic Campaign Settings

@@ Line 122: / Line 122: @@
    description="Heroes ignore Rank requirements for Edges at all times">
    </source>
 </pre>
 ===Character Sheet Output===

Rob: /* Heroic Campaign Settings */

2009-01-29T04:36:50Z

Heroic Campaign Settings

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:36, 29 January 2009
Line 103:		Line 103:

	===Heroic Campaign Settings===		===Heroic Campaign Settings===

			The original rulebook also a few other campaign setting changes that apply in a heroic or cinematic setting. Two of these adjustments impact character creation and should be incorporated into our data files. The first is for a "Heroic" setting, wherein characters can ignore Rank requirements for edges taken during character creation. The second is an "Epic Heroism" setting, in which all Rank requirements can be ignored.

			The first step in implementing these options is to set them up as sources. We'll do this just like we did in the previous example, adding one source for each of the two settings. Both sources must reference the "Settings" source we defined previously, resulting in the two new sources shown below.

			<pre>
			<source
			id="Heroism"
			name="Heroism"
			parent="Settings"
			description="Heroes ignore the Rank requirements for Edges during character creation">
			</source>

			<source
			id="EpicHero"
			name="Epic Heroism"
			parent="Settings"
			description="Heroes ignore Rank requirements for Edges at all times">
			</source>
			</pre>

	===Character Sheet Output===		===Character Sheet Output===

Rob: /* Dark Campaign Settings */

2009-01-29T00:12:45Z

Dark Campaign Settings

@@ Line 55: / Line 55: @@
    </source>
 </pre>
 ===Heroic Campaign Settings===
 ===Character Sheet Output===

Rob: /* How Sources Work */

2009-01-29T00:05:46Z

How Sources Work

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:05, 29 January 2009
Line 15:		Line 15:
	Sources that are intended for user-selection must be designated as such via the "selectable" attribute. Only sources that possess no children are allowed to be selectable. If you want to force the selection of a source, then you can make it non-selectable and mark is as automatically selected.		Sources that are intended for user-selection must be designated as such via the "selectable" attribute. Only sources that possess no children are allowed to be selectable. If you want to force the selection of a source, then you can make it non-selectable and mark is as automatically selected.

	That brings us to one last facet of sources that we'll cover here. Sources can be marked as selected by default via use of the "default" attribute. By default, sources are not selected until the user selects them. However, you can reverse that behavior so that the source is selected unless the user ~~de-selects~~ it. This is useful in situations where you believe most users will normally want to utilize an option. They can turn it off if they want, but the option is enabled if they don't specifically do so.		That brings us to one last configurable facet of sources that we'll cover here. Sources can be marked as selected by default via use of the "default" attribute. By default, sources are not selected until the user selects them. However, you can reverse that behavior so that the source is selected unless the user deselects it. This is useful in situations where you believe most users will normally want to utilize an option. They can turn it off if they want, but the option is enabled if they don't specifically do so.

			The question that remains is how sources can be utilized within the data files. Every source has a tag automatically defined by the Kit. These tags always belong to the group with the unique id "source" and possess a tag id matching the id of the source. Therefore, if you define the source "pickme", the tag id "source.pickme" will be automatically defined.

			Whenever the user enables the source, the tag is automatically assigned to the hero, and the tag is not assigned then the source is deselected. This makes it possible to easily check the hero for the various source tags to determine if an option has been selected or not. You can reference source tags anywhere within your data files, such as testing them within scripts. You can even use them within ContainerReq and/or Live tag expressions, allowing you to customize the interface or control whether things exist within the data files.

	===Dark Campaign Settings===		===Dark Campaign Settings===