Civ3 BIQ Compare 2016-10-05

[Quintillus]

Another unintentional feature in 0.12 - thanks to not crashing on input errors, it actually does work with files that have custom world maps, except for two places:

*Additional Scenario Properties
*Player Data

So long as you avoid trying to export those, it should work with all the other information. No guarantees - I'm sure there's some maps that will cause it to go haywire - but testing with the Rise of Rome scenario (uncompressed) is showing success on all the sections except those two.

0.13 should restore error-catching to file input, and hopefully add a couple other features while it's at it. I may leave 0.12 available until I have the World Map input due to this inadvertant "feature", though. 0.13 won't be going up tonight, though - taking a break from programming/Civ and doing something different for a change.

 

[Lee_Dailey]

0.13 won't be going up tonight, though - taking a break from programming/Civ and doing something different for a change.

howdy Quintillus,

OMG! "real life" ... you mean you've got one? is that allowed? [*grin*]

take care,
lee

 

[Quintillus]

Version 0.20 is now up (link on the Downloads Database will be updated momentarily). Changes:

*Added support for custom world maps
*Restores error catching in file input, and is now catches errors mid-file as well
*Removed null characters from output

Warning: File sizes can get a bit hefty if you export world maps. I got 3,807 KB the first time I tested it. Not that that's a lot these days, but that is pure text. You probably wouldn't want to, say, compare a 60x60 map to a completely different 180x180 map with no resemblance whatsoever to the first, or something of that sort. But if you do, be my guest...

Remaining limitations on BIQ files:

*Must be version 12.08
*Must not be compressed
*Must have custom rules enabled. Once you've got that, any combination of custom player data/custom maps (or lack thereof) is fine.
*Must not have teleportation, as I have not accounted for the space used by telepads.

Further improvements are still coming, of course. But with these changes, achieving nearly complete BIQ 12.08 compatibility and more user-friendly output, it seemed time to bump the minor version number up. Version 0.13 does exist, however, so there's no reason for those who fear skipping the number 13 to panic.

 

[Lee_Dailey]

Version 0.13 does exist, however, so there's no reason for those who fear skipping the number 13 to panic.

howdy Quintillus,

oo! more toys ... [*grin*]

fear of skipping [or NOT seeing] 13? that's a new one for me! [*grin*] i so enjoy seeing folks who have Triskaidekaphobia [fear of 13] and Paraskavedekatriaphobia [fear of friday the 13th]. yes i'm wicked.

take care,
lee

 

[timerover51]

Version 0.20 is now up (link on the Downloads Database will be updated momentarily). Changes:

*Added support for custom world maps
*Restores error catching in file input, and is now catches errors mid-file as well
*Removed null characters from output

Warning: File sizes can get a bit hefty if you export world maps. I got 3,807 KB the first time I tested it. Not that that's a lot these days, but that is pure text. You probably wouldn't want to, say, compare a 60x60 map to a completely different 180x180 map with no resemblance whatsoever to the first, or something of that sort. But if you do, be my guest...

Remaining limitations on BIQ files:

*Must be version 12.08
*Must not be compressed
*Must have custom rules enabled. Once you've got that, any combination of custom player data/custom maps (or lack thereof) is fine.
*Must not have teleportation, as I have not accounted for the space used by telepads.

Further improvements are still coming, of course. But with these changes, achieving nearly complete BIQ 12.08 compatibility and more user-friendly output, it seemed time to bump the minor version number up. Version 0.13 does exist, however, so there's no reason for those who fear skipping the number 13 to panic.

How does version 12.08 biq files compare to what the Mac version uses, or is there a difference? I tend to be cautious about downloads on my computers.

 

[Quintillus]

How does version 12.08 biq files compare to what the Mac version uses, or is there a difference? I tend to be cautious about downloads on my computers.

As far as I know the Mac Complete version has no problem with BIQ 12.08 files (it seems like most of the problems with mods on Mac involve the file structure and finding all the auxiliary files). It should handle BIQ 12.08 fine since it came out after the final Windows patch. But to be sure you ought to ask in the Mac forum - I don't have a Mac, let alone Mac Civ3, so my testing abilities are Mac are limited to testing on Unix/Linux environments and hoping things work as well on Mac.

howdy Quintillus,

oo! more toys ... [*grin*]

fear of skipping [or NOT seeing] 13? that's a new one for me! [*grin*] i so enjoy seeing folks who have Triskaidekaphobia [fear of 13] and Paraskavedekatriaphobia [fear of friday the 13th]. yes i'm wicked.

take care,
lee

Haha, I don't actually know of anyone who fears skipping the number 13, but I find the concept of skipping 13 a bit silly myself, so I didn't want to make it seem like I was intentionally skipping 13. I'd be closer to a triskaidekaphiliac than a triskaidekaphobiac.

No updates to post due to more real life (unusual, I know).

 

[Quintillus]

Changes:

*Added support for files without custom rules. Should now work with any uncompressed version 12.08 BIQ that doesn't have teleporting.
*Added support for opening multiple files without closing the program.
*Removed export to terminal option.
*Made "BIQ variables" and "File" (export) be selected by default after a successful file opening, since they are currently the only options and it seems silly to require the user to click on them.

Regarding the second asterisk, previously you might be able to get away with opening multiple files without closing the program, but there wasn't any built-in support for doing so. Now it's fully supported. You can go back to files you opened earlier in the session easily with a drop-down list. And it'll automatically enable/disable the export options for the file you select. Of course, while this support is nice now, the primary reason for it is the eventual ability to compare items within the editor - if you're going to be comparing files in a program, it'll help a lot if you can have more than one opened at once. The interface already partially reflects that long-term goal in this version, although the options for that functionality are disabled.

 

[Lee_Dailey]

howdy Quintillus,

being _exceedingly_ lazy, i wonder if i could talk you into putting a link to the util download page in your nick ... and turning your nick ON, of course. please?

yes, i really _am_ that lazy. [*sigh ...*]

nifty changes! i'm gonna go off and play ... [*grin*]

take care,
lee

 

[Quintillus]

Ever hear of something called "Bookmarks"? Or "Favorites" if you're using IE? Yeah, I know, they get crowded if you have too many of them, and it's easier to not organize them than to make them tidy and useful. Well, I've added it to my signature (I assume that's what you meant) and enabled it, so if that's the easy way for you to find it, it'll be there. The only place you probably won't find it is in my Civ3 story posts, as I traditionally disabled my signature there to make the post pure story.

The next changes will include teleportation support (already implemented, so if someone needs it now I can compile what I have into a 0.22) and the "English" version of the variables. As the English takes awhile to add in, it'll be awhile before that's ready.

edit: For some reason the sig didn't show up here. Maybe I posted it right before updating my sig. Anyways, here it is!

Update (5/26): Working on English options, but progress is slow as I now have a day job. It'll be here eventually, though.

 

[Lee_Dailey]

Ever hear of something called "Bookmarks"? Or "Favorites" if you're using IE? Yeah, I know, they get crowded if you have too many of them, and it's easier to not organize them than to make them tidy and useful. Well, I've added it to my signature (I assume that's what you meant) and enabled it, so if that's the easy way for you to find it, it'll be there. The only place you probably won't find it is in my Civ3 story posts, as I traditionally disabled my signature there to make the post pure story.

The next changes will include teleportation support (already implemented, so if someone needs it now I can compile what I have into a 0.22) and the "English" version of the variables. As the English takes awhile to add in, it'll be awhile before that's ready.

howdy Quintillus,

umm ... err ... sorry for the nag, dude! [*blush*] i really am too lazy for my own good. the only reason i even thot of it was cuz of the sheer convenience when following threads like the ones that steph has. his links in his sig are simply heaven for lazy slobs like me.

if it's unhandy for you - and it seems that your story threads make that a very real problem - then don't bother. as you pointed out, i can bookmark it. firefox, tags and tag search make that easy to do.

looking forward to the english var-names! [*grin*]

take care,
lee

 

[Quintillus]

Version 0.30 is out! Changes:

*Added English for Buildings
*Added English for Espionages
*Added English for Civilizations (Races)
*Added English for Units (PRTO's)
*Added English for Techs
*Fixed problem with PTWActionsMix in PRTO section; an apparently unused byte was causing issues with too big of numbers.
*Fixed similar problem with PTWWorkerActions in PRTO section

By "English", I mean that the values stored in binary (such as whether a unit can chop down a forest) are now displayed in standard readable English in the output file, such as "chopDownForest: true" rather than just as part of some big binary number that represents many traits (such as "63495"). This should help the readability considerably.

If you select English variables for categories that do not support English variables (many sections are already fully fleshed out in BIQ Variables, including all the other Custom Rules sections), it'll just use the BIQ Variables instead.

Features yet to be implemented:

*Teleportation. I thought I had this, but it failed testing, and I need to sleep early tonight. So I'll fix that this weekend.
*English for the Additional Scenario Properties section and those World Map sections that have English to be implemented.
*More specificity on where a file input error occured. This both makes it easier for the user to report bugs, and tells the user what section of the BIQ is first corrupted should their file be corrupt.
*Allowing for the partial importation of data when file input fails. So if you've got a corrupt BIQ in the Unit (PRTO) section, at least you'll be able to see part of it. If Save functionality is implemented, this could allow for partial recovery of data from corrupted BIQ's.

Download link will be updated momentarily... done!

 

[Lee_Dailey]

howdy Quintillus,

kool! since most of my changes are in buildings and units, this has become even more useful for me. thanks lots! [*grin*] i presume others are in the same situation and will find it equally handy.

take care,
lee

 

[timerover51]

Is there another program that you need for this, or am I missing something?

 

[Lee_Dailey]

Is there another program that you need for this, or am I missing something?

howdy timerover51,

go here ...
http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=320673

... and look at the "System Requirements" section. if you have some SPECIFIC problems with the util, give us some clues, please? [*grin*] i have no idea what help to give without more info ...

take care,
lee

 

[timerover51]

howdy timerover51,

go here ...
http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=320673

... and look at the "System Requirements" section. if you have some SPECIFIC problems with the util, give us some clues, please? [*grin*] i have no idea what help to give without more info ...

take care,
lee

I am suitably chastised for failing to give details. I first had troubles opening the .jar folder, and had to check online to see that I could use StuffIt to open it. Once I got past that, and also downloaded the most recent version, when I open the folder, I have a long list of files that end in .class, one txt file, and one folder labeled META-INT. I do not have anything that looks like an application in the folder.

When I try to open one of the .class files, I get an error message saying that the .jar file cannot be launched. I did check Apple's software update, and I do need to update my Java, and I am running MacOS 10.4.11. I will update Java later tonight, and try again.

 

[Quintillus]

howdy Quintillus,

kool! since most of my changes are in buildings and units, this has become even more useful for me. thanks lots! [*grin*] i presume others are in the same situation and will find it equally handy.

take care,
lee

Oh good. I figured the custom rules were probably the most-used sections. The other English sections might take a little bit longer, as I've decided to tackle the inconveniences of file IO (such as the potential to overwrite files accidently) for the next update, as well as to solve the carriage return problem on Windows (while not simultaneously creating a similar problem on other platforms).

Is there another program that you need for this, or am I missing something?

howdy timerover51,

go here ...
http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=320673

... and look at the "System Requirements" section. if you have some SPECIFIC problems with the util, give us some clues, please? [*grin*] i have no idea what help to give without more info ...

take care,
lee

Lee pointed you in the right direction - everything you should need is under System Requirements. Java is the only thing you'll need other than the program itself. You'll need version 1.5 of Java (sometimes called Java 5) or later. From what I've read, Apple's updates should update Java to keep it up-to-date, but it's possible Java is an update you'll have to manually enable; if so, I've also posted a link on the first post to the download to the most recent version for Leopard. If you know you've got Java 1.5 or later and it still isn't working, let me know and I'll make a point to test it on a university Mac next week.

 

[timerover51]

It looks like that updating my Java software may solve the problem, since the update says that it will update me to Java 6. Here is what the update does.

Java for Mac OS X 10.4, Release 6 delivers improved reliability and compatibility for Java 2 Platform Standard Edition 5.0 and Java 1.4 on Mac OS X 10.4.10 and later. This release updates J2SE 5.0 to version 1.5.0_13 and Java 1.4 to version 1.4.2_

 

[timerover51]

It appears that since I am running MacOS 10.4.11, I cannot upgrade to Java 1.5 which apparently runs under MacOS 10.5. Can you make the program run under Java 1.4, which is the highest level that I can go without a OS upgrade?

 

[Lee_Dailey]

howdy timerover51,

umm, err, i didn't mean to be so snippy about that. [*blush*] it was _intended_ to be a rather gentle teasing poke in the side. hopefully, that's how it came across to you.

as for your java version ... apple is somewhat notorious for it's lackadaisical timing & security & completeness on java updates. lookee ...
http://www.tuaw.com/2009/05/20/mac-os-x-java-security-hole-exposed/
"
So, five months, two point OS updates, one Java update in February and stil, Apple hasn't patched the exploit on their end
"

i can't find ANY hint that anyone can get any new[er] java to run on older mac os x versions. [*sigh ...*] sun even refers one back to apple.

hopefully Quintillus can find a way to help you without requiring major reworking of his util.

take care,
lee

 

[Lee_Dailey]

Oh good. I figured the custom rules were probably the most-used sections. The other English sections might take a little bit longer, as I've decided to tackle the inconveniences of file IO (such as the potential to overwrite files accidently) for the next update, as well as to solve the carriage return problem on Windows (while not simultaneously creating a similar problem on other platforms).

howdy Quintillus,

kool! i look forward to the next release ... [*grin*]

take care,
lee