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Nyerguds

1.06c development topic

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Pah. EVERYTHING is dead easy to you -_-

Well, i did spend a few years researching these engines... :P

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Uhuh. A hint would be nice though. I know how to play sounds, but I got no idea where to hook the code.

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Follow the xrefs from MessageListClass::Add_Message(), i would guess in C&C95 that its gonna be in the Main_Loop() or a HouseClass* routine, but the MessageListClass::Add_Message() is the function that draws the messages to the tactical screen.

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Found it... well, not really "it", it's used in dozens of places, all using the same "From %s:%s" format string. But not in the main loop. Not directly, anyway. The only one I could trace back directly to main_loop was the call used in the AI taunting function.

 

I'll have to filter out which need the beep and which don't... the same function is used for drawing the "to xxx:" for SENDING a message.

 

I should debug this in a real LAN game...

 

[edit]

 

Right, the main sound playing function seems to work, at least. For those interested, the sound I chose as New Message sound is one of the sound that's normally only used on the mission selection map:

http://nyerguds.arsaneus-design.com/junk/text2.wav

I hope that's all right for everyone :)

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I am not very picky, so that works for me! :3

Edited by godly-cheese

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ooh, I could use this system for voice briefings... I remember people replacing hidden themes with voice briefings and putting that as starting theme for a mission... this system can do that without replacing anything. The only condition is that the aud briefing has to be put inside an sc*.mix file :)

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I FINALLY fixed the fact the main menu jumps from "Start New Game" to "Internet Game" and then on to "Load Game" when you use the arrow keys to jump between the options. That might be a minor issue, but it has annoyed me ever since I first got C&C95.

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Right, another update: An Advanced Communications Center will now also count as Communications Center for prerequisites.

 

This means that if you are in a GDI mission and you have an Advanced Communications Center, and (understandably) sold your normal Communications Center, and then you capture a Nod airstrip, you will get access to the Stealth Tank and Flame Tank construction options without having to rebuild your normal Communications Center.

 

 

On a related note, the SAM Site will no longer double as prerequisite for the Helipad. Don't know why they ever put that in there, but it's freaking retarded.

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Okay... I think I just found the function responsible for the "100 units bug", as it's called in TS.

If you don't know what it is, well, simply put, if you add units to TS until the number of units in the game passes 100, then the AI will keep building the extra units like crazy, only stopping when it runs out of money.

Unfortunately, the same bug happens in C&C1 for any extra unit I add: the AI keeps building them like crazy unless I make them unbuildable.

So, yeah, I found out why it happens. Because the "should you build this unit?" information for it is actually reading beyond the array that's reserved for it, meaning it's interpreting totally different data for it.

This is also immediately the reason why the limit can't be removed, but only put higher. As I said, "the array that's reserved for it". That array can't be enlarged dynamically. It's a fixed block of bytes temporarily reserved by that function. There's no (easy) way to make the function reserve and divide that memory dynamically based on the number of units.

So I can probably fix it, but even then, infinite units adding will never be possible. I think I'll put it on 100 unit types, like TS has it. I doubt we'll ever get that many anyway.


I'm pretty sure that this function is the one responsible for making the AI make units.

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by rebuild the sidebar do you also mean to take advantage of the space that the resolution provides for the icons ?

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That sidebar stuff is just pichorra's little mod; it is totally unrelated to patch 1.06c. I don't intend to drastically change any aspect of the game. I just add bug fixes, and new features which are all 100% optional.

 

As for the sidebar length, believe me, if I knew how to expand that I'd have done it ages ago.

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seriously... you are nuts! And I love it ;)

 

Thanks for getting C & C to work on my 64 Bit System! I was searching for something like that for AGES!!!

I'm a student so I do not have alot of money... but as soon as I have some money to spend, I'm gone donate to support your work!

 

By the way....

Would you mind doing this 64 Bit and better graphic thing with red alert too :P

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Well, I've been thinking about making a good RA1 installer... there's already one on the C&C Communications Center site, but the bad thing about it is that unlike my C&C1 installer, that RA download doesn't have a movies pack to go with it. (if you haven't found mine, see the Digiex download mirror on the site. Though if you got CDs, you can just disable the game's nocd mode in conquer.ini and play with those)

By the way... C&C95, which is a 32-bit program, runs fine in 64 bit, even without any patches. The 64-bit problem is purely the CD installer, which is a 16-bit program. For some reason Microsoft decided that 64-bit Windows versions shouldn't be able to run those anymore.

 

As for upgrading RA, well, that's CCHyper's domain. In this same forum category you'll also find a forum for "Red Alert Patch 3.04". Though it turned out that RA is a lot harder to put in high res. C&C95 (the Windows remake of the original DOS C&C) was made after Red Alert, and its graphics engine already has some improvements later used for TS, like the resolution switching. Besides fixing some minor graphical issues, all I had to do to put C&C95 in high resolution was change the resolution values it uses to set the initial full-screen resolution. These are then used throughout the game to tell it how much play field area it has to draw.

RA doesn't have any of that; every part of the game just knows it has to draw things on a 640x400 screen area, and changing the main resolution doesn't affect that... you just get a big black screen with a 640x400 playing field in the upper left corner.

 

I'm not sure what the status on that is, currently. I know Hyper managed to make it at least expand to the bottom of the screen, but apparently expanding it to the right side of the screen gave problems with objects not being refreshed correctly. I believe he gave up on high res for RA1, but I'm not really sure.

Anyway, as I said, RA1 is generally his domain, not mine.

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Uhm, as far as I can read you are real Pro in doing what you are doing...

 

To be honest, I'm not ;)

That means: I can fix computers very well and I'm familiar with some software stuff and tricks etc. but I never really wanted to look through that programming and cracking and whatever stuff. That's why I like people like you :D

 

I know alot about history, even more about German history, because one day (hopefully) I'm going to be a teacher :P

Oh and Geography.

 

But RA1 without the movies? No way! :D ("was made after Red Alert, and its graphics engine already has some improvements" <--- Explains something, I didn't know that)

I just downloaded your Version of C&C 1 and installed the movie and sound patch, works fine with me ;)

Sometimes I'm having a graphic bug, but I just have to restart the game and then its fine.

 

So, keep up the good work mate!

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If you downloaded the full version from my site, the music addon is not needed. The full game download clearly says "all music included" :P

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but I never really wanted to look through that programming and cracking and whatever stuff. That's why I like people like you :D

Hm, "cracking" is usually defined as hacking to removing copy protection. Which was never really an issue in C&C; the no-cd system has been in the game ever since the first release. Back in its day, C&C just counted on its huge size as copy protection. All I did for the patch was make sure you can use that same no-CD system from the game's configuration file (conquer.ini) :)

 

The most common term for what we do is "hacking", but because being called a "hacker" has a rather negative connotation (not to mention the fact it can be confused with website/server hacking, which is completely unrelated), Hyper insists on calling the process we use "hooking", since we kinda "hook" our new code into the existing program flow. I don't really care for being called a "hooker" either, though :P

 

On my C.V., I've listed the skill exactly as what it is... Assembler programming in a compiled program :)

(The bytes in an exe file are just the commands the CPU has to execute. The "written version" of these pure CPU commands, before they're converted to bytes, is called Assembler)

 

lol, so far for Hackers 101 :P

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Reverse Engineering and Hooking. In a way, we are reverse hookers who engineer new styles of secret intercourse, but we dont charge...

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but we dont charge...

 

That's good :D

 

tried using the compatibility modes for Windows 98/ME, Windows 95

Have you tried the XP Service pack 2 mode?

 

It works on my Vista 64 Bit System... I'm not sure if it works with Windows 7, but the others might help you out ;)

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I lol'd so much from reading these last few posts. :P

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Hi Nyer,

 

first of all, let me say a big thanks and respect for what have you done this far with this undying classic, it is remarkable ! :thumbsup:

 

And, I have some suggestions for further enhancing the game, of course, if they are even possible to implement...so...

 

It is possible to:

 

1. When commando destroy building witch C-4, no soldiers will come out as was it, for example, in Tiberian Sun with Ghost Stalker .

 

2. Add unit queue production feature to sidebar.

 

3. Add rally points of production buildings: barracks, aistrip, etc.

 

Thank you very much in advance for any response and keep an eye on great work ! ;)

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2. Add unit queue production feature to sidebar.

 

I believe Nyerguds has already tried this if I recall. If not, correct me will ya Nyer?

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Queuing is actualy quite basic in Tiberian Sun, though im not sure if the C&C95 FactoryClass can handle it...

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