Macintosh OS X port interest?

[jamincollins]

Greetings,

 

0ctane and I are finishing programming the client, he's doing most of the work I'm just doing a few small things and testing it. I have decided to make a dashboard widget to go with the client as well, however as of now I really don't have any ideas to put in it. Any OS X users that will be using the client please post ideas...

I don't have 10.4.x, but could it do a player/bot count and or indicate if any of specified list of people are online?

[TheDoctor]

0ctane and I are finishing programming the client, he's doing most of the work I'm just doing a few small things and testing it. I have decided to make a dashboard widget to go with the client as well, however as of now I really don't have any ideas to put in it. Any OS X users that will be using the client please post ideas...

Well, more specifically, TheDoctor is testing out the software. He is the first guinea pig. Although, since I do not have 10.4, that widget thing is all his doing.

Yea 0ctane is really the programmer I don't really know that much about osx programming

[TheDoctor]

Greetings,

 

0ctane and I are finishing programming the client, he's doing most of the work I'm just doing a few small things and testing it. I have decided to make a dashboard widget to go with the client as well, however as of now I really don't have any ideas to put in it. Any OS X users that will be using the client please post ideas...

I don't have 10.4.x, but could it do a player/bot count and or indicate if any of specified list of people are online?

OK as of now I have online buddies, players online, any other ideas are apreciated

[0ctane]

Success! And not that partial crap I was throwing around before. Keyboard input works, (3-button) mouse input works, the cursor changes when hovering over stuff, and there is an apple menu (unpopulated). Sah-wheeet. I would like to post an image, but the network died at work as I was testing out the client. :angry2:

To do:

1) make the application double-clickable (small issue, I goofed something)

2) move all the resources to an appropriate location (very small issue)

3) document code changes (if I can remember everything I did)

4) create a Readme (at some point)

5) beta-testers I guess would be good (start PMing me )

6) make an installer (um, really no clue on that one, I'll probably just compress it)

7) find a host

8) universal binary (like anyone has a intel mac yet)

 

Hopefully, someone at EL-Central (hint hint, nudge nudge) will be able to host this beta version since I do not have any webspace...although I think my guild might be able to. hmm....

 

I am going to be very busy for the next few days, so do not expect instant replies. But I will need G4 OS 10.3 & 10.4 and G5 OS 10.3 & 10.4 testers (maybe even G3). I am G5 10.3. I think TheDoctor is G4 10.4. Look for screenshots soon.

[0ctane]

So, in this image, I have just killed a deer (making sure combat works). There are some issues with shadows, but that is not a game stopper right now. The menu shows my portname (el_osx). The insert in the image shows the icon in the dock. Hmmm...I though I had a better one based on the *.png file..need to check that, but again not a game stopper.

 

[Entropy]

Impressive

If you get it to work to the point where is playable (which you are very close, right) we will host it, don't worry.

[0ctane]

Impressive

If you get it to work to the point where is playable (which you are very close, right) we will host it, don't worry.

Actually, it is quite playable right now. I have been running around the test server...very quiet.

I have some single mouse button stuff done. alt/option-click allows you to spin your view (acts like middle mouse button). apple/command-click changes your action (view/walk/attack). In addition, my 3-(wheel)-button logitech mouse works just great.

To do:

3) document code changes (if I can remember everything I did)

4) create a Readme (at some point)

5) beta-testers (only TheDoctor and jamincollins have offered)

8) universal binary (like anyone has a intel mac yet)

9) get F1-12 keys, ctrl-*, tab, and backspace/delete working (I can live without it for now).

10) some sort of wheel mouse option for 1-button mice to zoom, probably a key combo

11) fix a shadows bug (minor inconvenience)

 

So far I have been testing on eternal-lands.solexine.fr:2001. Is this correct, and can I/we go live on the 2000 port?

Edited January 6, 2006 by 0ctane

[crusadingknight]

3) document code changes (if I can remember everything I did)

Couldn't you just make a diff, then work from there?

[Learner]

Integrating the changes into the normal CVS would be good so we dont cause a code fork.

[Drakos7]

So 0ct: you ready to make a bunch of diff files?

[macpete]

Hello all.

Guess what?

I can show you an image of the game working. It is not working entirely correctly, but I can get past the login and into EL. The interface, scenery, and character names show up, but no actual characters/actors. Keyboard input does not work, and the mouse is incorrectly mapped (IIRC, there is a mouse inversion flag somewhere...events.c).

 

So, the progress improves. I doubt I will have it done by Jan 1, 2006, but progress is progress. Excited?

 

 

Great job, octane!

 

Keep us up to date!

 

PS

I've updated the IMG thread

Edited January 7, 2006 by macpete

[0ctane]

Couldn't you just make a diff, then work from there?

Well, yes I was planning on that. Now let's see...%man diff

Integrating the changes into the normal CVS would be good so we dont cause a code fork.

Sorta goes along with crusadingknight's comment. I will make all of this available to the public. I need to put in a number of #ifdef OSX statements around changes still. I am not going to keep code modifications a secret (unlike the last Mac client AFAIK, then again that port never really worked correctly). I will probably even supply a Mac How-To document so that people can compile it themselves (including a Makefile.osx), if this is okay with the devs. So...

 

Thx macpete, but you spelled my name wrong. NO PORT FOR YOU!

 

Oh, and I did have sound working. Need to find another rainstorm to verify that it is still good. No music though.

Edited January 7, 2006 by 0ctane

[crusadingknight]

Couldn't you just make a diff, then work from there?

Well, yes I was planning on that. Now let's see...%man diff

Integrating the changes into the normal CVS would be good so we dont cause a code fork.

Sorta goes along with crusadingknight's comment. I will make all of this available to the public. I need to put in a number of #ifdef OSX statements around changes still. I am not going to keep code modifications a secret (unlike the last Mac client AFAIK, then again that port never really worked correctly). I will probably even supply a Mac How-To document so that people can compile it themselves (including a Makefile.osx), if this is okay with the devs. So...

Don't worry about inserting #ifdefs - those can be added when applying the diffs using 'patch -D OSX'.

Edited January 7, 2006 by crusadingknight

[ttlanhil]

Well, yes I was planning on that. Now let's see...%man diff

your cvs client should be able to make diffs (and may have an option to make it directly into a patch)

check the flags available, but ones like -u for unified diff seem preffered

cvs -u diff *c *h

 

if you haven't been cvs up-ing while working on this, it'd probably be best if you updated to latest CVS before making the patch, so that it will cleanly apply

 

Don't worry about inserting #ifdefs - those can be added when applying the diffs using 'patch -D OSX'.

unless some of the changes are good for non OSX people as well, like bugfixes, optimisations, etc, which is possible...

[macpete]

 

 

Thx macpete, but you spelled my name wrong. NO PORT FOR YOU!

 

 

 

 

Ehm, sorry ... I was in a hurry (hey, even the forum moderator of the IMG BBS has scolded me 'cause I've posted the screenshots of EL without using the thumbnails ... you must be patient with me ).

 

I'm attending a couple of dozens of BBSs these days 'cause I'm writing a wide report for an Italian magazine (an article that will describe the phenomenon of the massive multiplayer games from a Mac user point of view) and I'm very happy to see that the Mac port of this popular MMORPG is coming Back to Life.

 

Good luck.

[jamincollins]

Some feedback on the port so far.

 

It is working. I am able to run it decently (15-30 FPs in most places) on my 14" iBook 1.33Ghz. As 0ctane has indicated there are still some graphical issues. From my limited testing thus far the most noticeable of these appear to be how the client handles the lamposts on IP.

 

General Observations

• The port assumes that the client will be installed in /Applications rather than ~/Applications or any other folder.
  
• When I enabled the ATI Bug option (the iBook has an ATI 9200) it prevented all mouse movement until it was disabled.
  
• The iBook keyboard does not have a Backspace key but rather a singular "delete" key in the upper right where the Backspace would normally be. This does not appear to delete text in the general chat interface.
  

Button assignments

Currently for single button mice you have the following:

Option/Alt-click & drag = change camera angle

how is this going to interact with hotkeying spells?

[0ctane]

Actually, I addressed many of these issues in the README_osx.txt which was included with the binary. Sigh, does anyone read these files?

 

Lampposts in PL are strange too. (Although, my locally installed/compiled cal3d seems to not have this problem IIRC). I did not compile with the ATI_9200_FIX flag, so, yes, that is something I need to do. This may fix some issues that I am having too [nope]. Also, you cannot change the perspective from the default value of 40 without some really interesting problems appearing.

 

I mentioned the bug with backspace/delete.

 

I specifically said that the program needs to be put into /Applications. This is because I coded in the location of all the EL data from /. I will be able to make this local in the future, so the application should be moveable. In addition, you can probably move the executable *.app as long as you update .elc/el.ini to point at the new data directory location. The data directory is in el_osx.app/Contents/Resources/data.

 

I might not understand you correctly, but if you want hotkeys on spells, you might want to look at getting a 3-button mouse. I do not do this. The only key combination I use on my PC is ctrl-1/2/3/4/5 to quickly eat food I have in my inventory. Right now, the "control" key is not recognised (along with other keys menioned in the README), so this is a problem for me too. Also, does the "Apple/Command-click = change current action" work for you?

 

I am also noticing a pointer malloc error occasionally...need to track down this problem since it requires a force-quit.

Edited January 10, 2006 by 0ctane

[jamincollins]

Actually, I addressed many of these issues in the README_osx.txt which was included with the binary. Sigh, does anyone read these files?

I read the notes on the website, and will confess that I did not read the README_osx.txt in the image file. However, looking at it now it appears to be a copy of the text on the website. I don't see how it addresses the items I've noted. It does say to install into /Applications, but does not indicate that this is a must. Many other applications indicate the same thing and they can be installed into any folder. So, I felt it was worth noting that this was not the case.

 

I mentioned the bug with backspace/delete.

The known issues indicates the backspace key is non-functional, not the delete key.

 

I might not understand you correctly, but if you want hotkeys on spells, you might want to look at getting a 3-button mouse. I do not do this. The only key combination I use on my PC is ctrl-1/2/3/4/5 to quickly eat food I have in my inventory. Right now, the "control" key is not recognised (along with other keys menioned in the README), so this is a problem for me too. Also, does the "Apple/Command-click = change current action" work for you?

In addition to the Inventory quickbar (CTRL+1/2/3/4/5/6) there is a spell quickbar (ALT+1/2/3/4/5/6) which is located just to the left of the inventory quickbar and before the world display. Once you've cast a spell the first time, left clicking on it will add it to the top of the spell quick bar and then it can be cast again using ALT+# where # is the spells position.

 

Yes, the Apple/Command-click does appear to work.

 

There also appears to be a problem with trying to move the buddy list in the game. I simply can't move it at all. And with some additional text being displayed during NPC chats. While talking to Judith I say some text from Vesine about Latis. Now, while talking to Vesine I see some additional text from what I assume are some of her other discussion paths.

 

Just tried to initiate a trade in VotD near Molgor and didn't have the trade icons when hovering over my recipient, only when over myself.

 

I'll do some further testing with this tomorrow.

[0ctane]

In addition to the Inventory quickbar (CTRL+1/2/3/4/5/6) there is a spell quickbar (ALT+1/2/3/4/5/6) which is located just to the left of the inventory quickbar and before the world display. Once you've cast a spell the first time, left clicking on it will add it to the top of the spell quick bar and then it can be cast again using ALT+# where # is the spells position.

Huh, learn something new each day. Just checked it. On my mac at least, alt/option+number does activate quickspell. Well, this is going to create a problem then. I was hoping to move away from the apple/command key since this is typically a system button (apple-q to quit and what not...which I do not have working yet). Darn 1-button mouse(1BM)! Okay, I can switch alt/option back to being used for spells (and keep some consistancy through EL versions), but then what key combination do I use to assist the 1BM people? I suppose I can make the left crtl,alt,command work as expected, and the right ones act as mouse modifiers (and apologize to lefties). What do people think about this? Then again, this is only ian issue if you are trying to quick-spell while changing the camera angle.

 

There also appears to be a problem with trying to move the buddy list in the game. I simply can't move it at all. And with some additional text being displayed during NPC chats. While talking to Judith I say some text from Vesine about Latis. Now, while talking to Vesine I see some additional text from what I assume are some of her other discussion paths.

I do not have a problem moving the buddy list, so this will take some digging to work out. I noticed this NPC chat thing too (and it was very common in the old port by Corrun). This will take a bit of digging too.

 

Just tried to initiate a trade in VotD near Molgor and didn't have the trade icons when hovering over my recipient, only when over myself.

Well, I have seen this behavior in the regular Windoz/Linux client. If I go to storage, sometimes I hover over the NPC and I do not get the talk balloon. If I move to a different location, the talk balloon will appear. Sometimes I see the same thing with trades. If this happens again, try moving to a new spot and trade again. It could be a osx issue too....

 

For any resolutions over 1024x768 I get "Stop playing with the configuration file and select valid modes!" Hmmm..... These should be valid modes on my swanky mac....

[jamincollins]

Huh, learn something new each day. Just checked it. On my mac at least, alt/option+number does activate quickspell. Well, this is going to create a problem then. I was hoping to move away from the apple/command key since this is typically a system button (apple-q to quit and what not...which I do not have working yet). Darn 1-button mouse(1BM)! Okay, I can switch alt/option back to being used for spells (and keep some consistancy through EL versions), but then what key combination do I use to assist the 1BM people? I suppose I can make the left crtl,alt,command work as expected, and the right ones act as mouse modifiers (and apologize to lefties). What do people think about this? Then again, this is only ian issue if you are trying to quick-spell while changing the camera angle.

Well if it works for both, just not at the same time, then there isn't really a problem. Besides the iBook keyboard doesn't have left and right versions of the CTRL and ALT keys, just the left.

 

Well, I have seen this behavior in the regular Windoz/Linux client. If I go to storage, sometimes I hover over the NPC and I do not get the talk balloon. If I move to a different location, the talk balloon will appear. Sometimes I see the same thing with trades. If this happens again, try moving to a new spot and trade again. It could be a osx issue too....

Tried four or five different locations before logging the Mac off and logging in on my Linux box to complete the trade.

 

I really do appreciate all the time you've put into this. Just being able to play on the iBook at all is wonderful.

[Drakos7]

that storage problem seems to be with ATI graphics cards under linux (and mac too it seems), and is not mac specific. there is another thread about it somewhere around here.

[Drakos7]

This is the thread about unclickable NPCs

fixedhttp://www.eternal-lands.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=2131

Edited January 13, 2006 by Drakos7

[pennifuin]

Shift maybe?

 

 

why not ctrl? thats pretty much right click function anyway...

[0ctane]

why not ctrl? thats pretty much right click function anyway...

Well, that is about equivalent to alt/option. Plus, I do not have "control" working yet. <_<

I am expanding the test out to a few more people, even though some of the bugs are still present. We have it confirmed running on G4 with 10.4.3 and G5 with 10.3.9.

 

If I can convince the wife and if I can spare the cash, I might be picking up a MacBook Pro. Then I could do work on the port from home, but that is a big if.

 

[edit] Update...

Figured out the ctrl, insert,home,pgup/dn,tab problem. Still working on the backspace key issue.

Edited January 15, 2006 by 0ctane

[jamincollins]

Update...

Figured out the ctrl, insert,home,pgup/dn,tab problem. Still working on the backspace key issue.

It's interesting that it works and is recognized during the login screen... but good to hear on the others.