Epic GTA2 Map Editor (0.6.6602) Beta

[T.M.]

Any idea when we'll be able to modify a MIS file, save it and then it's updated in your map viewer without having to close and restart it? Right now (as you know) that if you save a MIS file (say in Vikes MIS compiler) it'll throw an error saying it can't save.

Woot, you found a nasty bug! Fixed now (i didnt close the file after reading ) So now you should be able to reload the mis file by F7 and edit in other programs at same time.

Would it be possible that when you mouse over certain objects (objects, generators, cars, players, characters etc) it shows the name of it given in the MIS file? Example would be mousing over a health pickup and it says "health01" or something? Maybe say what type it is as well such as GENERATOR or OBJ etc depending on what it is. I'd love to see this especially!

Hmm, could be done atm, gotta check. At this moment i have plans to rewrite the object rendering/parsing code completely to be more flexible (these changes will make it possible to see cranes, cars on trailers, etc).

On a similar note, would it be possible to click and "drag" objects around to a new location? Or an option to modify the X, Y and Z axis (which writes to the MIS file)? For co-ordinates of a cube the top left would be X: 0.0 Y: 0.0 and bottom right is X: 0.9 Y: 0.9 and dead centre is X: 0.5 Y: 0.5. Of course rotation would be part of it too.

Not before i have made the new script parser. But this is indeed in my TODO list, just wait

[Pyro]

Sounds good! I look forward to more updates

I'd REALLY love to see mousing over objects/cars/whatever and it shows their name though soon, but I hope it doesn't take too long for you to update your script parser

Edit: Just remembered... you know you have the "Camera Position" in the bottom? Could you add a "Mouse Position" too? Would be more useful than trying to fine tune the camera position. Also maybe an option to see grid lines for the cubes? That way we could really fine tune with the mouse to get co-ordinates while seeing where the edge of a tile/cube is

[T.M.]

Edit: Just remembered... you know you have the "Camera Position" in the bottom? Could you add a "Mouse Position" too? Would be more useful than trying to fine tune the camera position.

Yeah, i have had plans for that for a while now, its working, but for some weird reason it doesnt work on certain slope types. havent had time to see whats the problem yet.

Also maybe an option to see grid lines for the cubes? That way we could really fine tune with the mouse to get co-ordinates while seeing where the edge of a tile/cube is

You can toggle grids on by pressing "G" or going to menu. Note that it is slow as hell, basically doubles the rendering time. Or did you mean the cube would display even smaller grids in it?

[Pyro]

Didn't know it shows grid lines Although I still would like to see smaller grid lines (toggle on/off? Perhaps press G once to show 'big' grid lines (like it is now), a second press will reveal even finer grid lines (10x10 - take a look above about coordinates) and a third press to remove all) inside a 1 cube grid. This would tie in nicely with other things I've mentioned as well if possible

[T.M.]

I could make it show the smaller grids only for the block your cursor is pointing at the moment (or range of blocks), since its already really slow, and rendering 10-50 times more lines will be horribly more slower.

[Pyro]

I did not notice any drop in FPS with grid mode on, it was still at around 60/64 FPS.

Also, that is a good substitute you offer! I like it!

Edit - if you like, I'm on GH if you want to talk more

[Pyro]

Heya,

Is the object viewer from MIS file fixed in next release? The one where you can edit in the MIS and see it in the map viewer. Any other news to report?

Also, had a word with DAFE yesterday about zone types. When you mentioned that he had used the "unused" types according to your zone editor, he was explaining to me that he used the following zone types from the official DMA editor:

- Hospital Zone (not the same as restart)
- Police Zone (not the arrest restart)
- Fire Zone (unsure what this is)

Perhaps those are the ones that your editor is calling "unknown"? We were talking and DAFE thinks they are used to improve the "reaction" time of the emergency services (fire trucks appearing etc) although I think they are quite literally unused. They are not explained in the DMA editor help file under zone types (in fact only a few are). Perhaps a relic from GTA1?

Also, I noticed in ste.gmp that there are "arrow blocker" zones on the map (none in wil or bil) but saw that there was no option in the zone editor in the official editor. I'm pretty sure those zone types don't actually do what they say they do. Load up ste.gmp and you'll see them

[T.M.]

Is the object viewer from MIS file fixed in next release? The one where you can edit in the MIS and see it in the map viewer.

Yes, i fixed the .mis file reload problem.

Any other news to report?

I added map thumbnails at the startscreen, and some other stuff. Why i havent released yet is that i made up a nasty bug i havent figured out yet (probably crashes on some users). I will release it as "unstable" version here soon.

Perhaps those are the ones that your editor is calling "unknown"? We were talking and DAFE thinks they are used to improve the "reaction" time of the emergency services (fire trucks appearing etc) although I think they are quite literally unused. They are not explained in the DMA editor help file under zone types (in fact only a few are). Perhaps a relic from GTA1?

Yeah i also think its some kind of relic, since none of the original maps use those zones :/ i doubt they actually do anything. I have now removed all unused zone types from the list, perhaps i will add option to display them in the list if wanted so.

Also, I noticed in ste.gmp that there are "arrow blocker" zones on the map (none in wil or bil) but saw that there was no option in the zone editor in the official editor. I'm pretty sure those zone types don't actually do what they say they do. Load up ste.gmp and you'll see them

Oh? i thought they should disable the player arrow thing for missions etc, someone really should test GTA2 more! seems like there is lots of unsure stuff we have no idea about.

[T.M.]

I think i fixed the crash problems, not sure though, so i released "unstable" version along the "stable" (old) version.

Changelog:

------------------------------------
0.5.29 Beta (18.06.2010)
------------------------------------
- Added one file for all the settings: "settings.cfg", use this file to change the editor settings. You can delete lines from the file, then they are taken from default settings file: "settings_default.cfg". It is not recommended to modify "settings_default.cfg" file since it can work as a backup file if you mess up something. You can delete "settings.cfg" to take all settings from "settings_default.cfg" file. Setting file format goes: "settingname = value", white space is ignored, and text case (uppercase/lowercase) doesnt matter. You can use boolean true as: "1", "true", or "yes". boolean false as: "0", "false", or "no". Note that the titles ([TEXTURES] etc) doesnt affect reading the settings at all, you can type any text there, but if you use "=" mark in the text line, it will try to read it as a setting. Note: You can also use file "settings_test.cfg", it will be the last setting file you can use, therefore that file settings will replace the other files settings, this file does not exist by default, you have to create it yourself.

- Added recent maps thumbnails at the startscreen. Disable by setting "show_recent_maps" to zero in "settings.cfg".

- Fixed problem with "gta2path.txt" (missing at every new version), now it is stored in registry key instead, so you dont need to set it more that once now.

- Added possibility to see and copy cursor coordinates. Click on the map to copy the coordinates into clipboard. (display -> cursor coordinates). Note that it is still buggy, some slope types doesnt work at all. Also note that the selection box is not functional yet.

- Added support for all script objects sprites (OBJ_DATA), few were still missing.

- Fixed inability to open mis file with other programs if it was already loaded in this editor.

- Fixed inability to force shut off GTA2 from esc button while playing from editor if the chosen GTA2 executable wasnt "gta2.exe".

- Removed "unused" zone types from the zone editor menu. If you still want to use unused types, use setting "show_all_zone_types" set as "1" in "settings.cfg".

- Added option to limit the camera movement on the map area (16 blocks away from edges). (Options -> Camera settings -> Limit movement on the map area).

- Added option to make the minimaps clickable by LEFT mouse button. (Options -> Editor settings -> Keys -> Minimap click button).

- Fixed a rendering bug when looking at transparent tiles with other transparent tiles under them by using certain angles. Although, this fix makes rendering and map loading slightly slower.

- Fixed a rendering bug with Zone Editor's zone name text on railway station zone types, also removed the black edges from the zone fonts.

- Improved loading and rendering speed a little bit by not reading the topmost blocks at all.

- Added menu option to show/hide left menu (F1) (Display -> Window -> Minimap and Left menu).

- Added option to disable padded tiles generation by using setting "padded_tile_textures" set to zero in the "settings.cfg" file.

- Added all (8 bit) font characters support.

- Cleaned out a whole bunch of the program code, this means it may cause some crashes. if you crash, please report it.

- Fixed all memory leaks, should be more stable now (although, the above changes may make it more unstable).

- Added option to not render infinite water square under the map area, this will give extra FPS if the map is already fully covered. (options -> rendering settings -> water settings -> infinite water -> draw middle square).

- Removed annoying messageboxes when saving minimap/screenshot from the menu.

- Fixed window height getting smaller each time editor was opened when using windowed mode.

- Added file "loading.log" to log the map loading processing times, and more info in future.

[Pyro]

Hi thanks for the update!

A few comments...

The cursor co-ordinates is a nice improvement, thanks! But, I don't think it needs to be THAT exact. For example, your editor goes as far as two decimal places (e.g. 27.84) but I think one decimal place (e.g. 27.8) is more than sufficient.

The little yellow square inside the white box for cursor co-ordinates is useful but maybe it might be more useful if it "snaps" to different positions, like it does when moving from one cube to another? Snapping to a 10x10 grid inside the cube would be useful.

When you have cursor co-ordinates on and you enter zone editor, the little yellow square defaults to the middle of the cube. Do you think once you enter zone editor the cursor co-ordinates is disabled (then re-enabled once zone editor is closed)?

Also, with the cursor co-ordinates enabled, you can move your mouse and each cube is highlighted by a white outline? That is fine, but you can left-click and it selects or de-selects cubes. Any reason for this?

The CPU usage when cursor co-ordinates is pretty high! When minimised the program uses 0-3% CPU (as before), when not minimised and NOT using the cursor co-ordinates it is about 25-27% but when you are using it it goes up to 52-54%!

On the File > Open menu why does it come up with MMP files first? Surely it should be GMP?

When opening a map that doesn't have an MMP file, why does it default to the last MIS file used, or if it can't do that, why use the first alphabetical MIS file?

When loading a map with no associated MMP file and then you try and load a MIS file the editor crashes! I did load GMP first, then load STY then MIS and then it crashed completely, didn't even get a chance to load the map! As stated, this does not happen if you load an MMP file first.

Sorry if the above sounds negative but I don't mean it that way! Just trying to help improve it I'll keep playing with it and report back when I have more information.

[T.M.]

The cursor co-ordinates is a nice improvement, thanks! But, I don't think it needs to be THAT exact. For example, your editor goes as far as two decimal places (e.g. 27.84) but I think one decimal place (e.g. 27.8) is more than sufficient.

I guess i can add option for the resolution for decimals

The little yellow square inside the white box for cursor co-ordinates is useful but maybe it might be more useful if it "snaps" to different positions, like it does when moving from one cube to another? Snapping to a 10x10 grid inside the cube would be useful.

Well, snapping could work only if you get coordinate from lids, i'll see what i can do about this.

When you have cursor co-ordinates on and you enter zone editor, the little yellow square defaults to the middle of the cube. Do you think once you enter zone editor the cursor co-ordinates is disabled (then re-enabled once zone editor is closed)?

Yeah i actually noticed this myself but didnt bother fixing it, making it work perfectly in 2d mode is a bit complicated anyways (needs to get correct z-position too).

Also, with the cursor co-ordinates enabled, you can move your mouse and each cube is highlighted by a white outline? That is fine, but you can left-click and it selects or de-selects cubes. Any reason for this?

Yeah, you can left click and select amount of blocks, this is a test version of the block selector for the map editor, didnt bother removing it. I will make the cursor coordinate system better later.

The CPU usage when cursor co-ordinates is pretty high! When minimised the program uses 0-3% CPU (as before), when not minimised and NOT using the cursor co-ordinates it is about 25-27% but when you are using it it goes up to 52-54%!

Yeah, same with zone editor, both use the same methods that cause high GPU usage. I dont know when i will fix this.

On the File > Open menu why does it come up with MMP files first? Surely it should be GMP?

Because MMP files are easiest to load I guess i could make it show GMP first since "Quick open" already lists MMP files...

When opening a map that doesn't have an MMP file, why does it default to the last MIS file used, or if it can't do that, why use the first alphabetical MIS file?

The "Open" method only replaces current map files, so you dont need to select every file again, you can quickly change only mis file or style file etc without needing to select all files separately again.

When loading a map with no associated MMP file and then you try and load a MIS file the editor crashes! I did load GMP first, then load STY then MIS and then it crashed completely, didn't even get a chance to load the map! As stated, this does not happen if you load an MMP file first.

HMm, i cant reproduce this, did you load first GMP/STY, then rendered the map, and used "Open" again and added MIS file to it? Mind testing this with the previous version too? Also when it crashes, can you paste the last line here from "debug.txt" ?

Sorry if the above sounds negative but I don't mean it that way! Just trying to help improve it I'll keep playing with it and report back when I have more information.

No problem! I wish people played with it more, i've found few nasty bugs by accident which surprised me that nobody reported them

[Pyro]

To do the crash I did the following:

Open Map (GMP)
Add more files? Yes.
Add STY file.
Add more files? Yes.
Add MIS file.
Add more files? No.

The text appears for loading the stuff but then Windows error comes up and the map does not appear and the program crashes.

[T.M.]

I still want the last line from debug.txt ^^

Also, try to open bil.gmp/bil.sty/bil.mis and see if it crashes also. If it does not crash, then could you tell/send the files you tried to open?

[Pyro]

Ok, I've tried opening bil.gmp then bil.sty and finally bil.mis and still crashes. The last line from debug.txt is:

0.039063 = 9719-9723

I hope that means more to you than it does to me

[BenMillard]

I got the 0.5.29 from opening message, still tells me GTA2 path is not set. Which registry keys is it looking for? GTA2 versions use at least 3 different ones, plus GH uses at least one. So there are 4+ places which nearly everyone doing GTA stuff already has.

[T.M.]

I got the 0.5.29 from opening message, still tells me GTA2 path is not set. Which registry keys is it looking for? GTA2 versions use at least 3 different ones, plus GH uses at least one. So there are 4+ places which nearly everyone doing GTA stuff already has.

I use my own key, it locates the .exe file, not the \data\ folder. Open the editor, choose the path, then close it, unzip somewhere else, open again, and it shouldnt whine about that anymore

[BenMillard]

Please check for the keys which already exist. Much more convenient and much less confusing.

[T.M.]

Yeah, feel free to list all the regkeys, since i dont know more than GH regkey. and GH doesnt even save the .exe at all, so any regkey without the .exe is useless for me.

[BenMillard]

Currently in my registry, in order of "most likely to be present and correct" for any GTA2 player likely to use your viewer/editor:

1. Game Hunter, just append "gta2.exe" to it:
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\GTA2 Game Hunter\GTA2folder = C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\GTA2\
2. GTA2 v11.3, can't find a registry key for the path when looking in this branch:
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\DMA Design Ltd\GTA2
3. GTA2 v9.6f, also can't find a registry key for the path when looking in this branch:
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\DMA Design Ltd\GTA2
4. Delfi/JernejL for MisPad:
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\dnk development\gta2exe = C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\GTA2\gta2.exe

This is weird...maybe it was only the original 9.6 which added a key for the GTA2 install path? Maybe they are just somewhere else.

Either way, the keys for Game Hunter (or failing that, MisPad) should be there for nearly everyone who uses your editor.

You could also look for these common locations and store the first which contains gta2.exe:

• 9.6:
  C:\GTA2
• Custom:
  C:\Games\GTA2
• Custom:
  C:\Program Files\GTA2
• 9.6F:
  C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\GTA2

It should only prompt to manually setting the path if everything else fails, imho. And instead of an "OK only" message box, it should be an "Input Box" where user can type or copy/paste the path they want to use. (Which is validated and if it exists, is saved.)

[T.M.]

I cant just put "gta2.exe" there because there are exes like "9.6f.exe" etc (noticed this when i tried to test a map and then shut it off by esc button, tadaa didnt work since it was trying to close hardcoded "gta2.exe" instead).

All this gta2.exe searching will be a huge bunch of code to write, just because its "too hard" to find the exe yourself... it already opens the GH GTA2 path and all you need to do is select the exe and then you know for sure its using correct exe. And it would have to confirm the exe with a message popup anyways, so.. i dont really see which way would be faster for users, 0.2s difference maybe?

I dont like guessing what exe it will use. (probably will get lots of error reports like "map testing doesnt work!" because the editor chose wrong exe from 50 different possibilities).

Also, what if the editor finds multiple exes? i would have to randomly choose one of them.