New version of ODD

[Raindem]

Opart Design & Debug (ODD) version 4.0 is now available at over at TDG.

http://www.tdg.nu/download/oddIntro.htm

From the previous version I fixed the date and numerical formatting bugs and improved the printed reports. Several new modules were added/modified:

- Event editor was completely redone and now works with XML, meaning you can create all of your events outside of TOAW and import them into the program.

- Full-featured Force editor. Create OOBs from scratch, or import and existing OOB for modification. Gets uploaded back into TOAW via XML files.

- Force editor includes a limited text-based deployment editor.

- Added an Equipment editor. This one is no better than the BioEditor. I included it so that designers can save equipment changes along with other project file data (i.e. events, OOB, deployment, etc).

- Map Tool and Objective Plotter have not been changed. That'll be for a future version.

Feedback is welcome.

Curt

[Bill II]

Opart Design & Debug (ODD) version 4.0 is now available at over at TDG.

Curt

Just wanted to thank you for your great utility. I used your map scaler extensively in a scenario I'm currently working on.

[L`zard]

Curt;

nevermind, I rtfm and found the answer, lol!

[Silvanski]

will try that eqp editor Curt, seems interesting

[Merf]

Thanks for all the work you've put into this. I have used the map scaler in the past and have found it to be a great utility. I have one question though. When I try to access your help file, Windows gives me an error message: "This is not a Windows help file." I click the OK button on the dialog box and then i get: "A newer version of Help is needed to read this help file." I'm running Windows XP SP2. Any ideas?

[Raindem]

That's a new one. My machine is XP and the help file runs fine. Is this happening when you click the Help button from within the program, or are you double-clicking the ODD.hlp file directly?

[Silvanski]

I might provide buttons in a future edition to move or copy equipment if there is enough of a demand.

Well, here's already a request for that...:smoke:
It can be handy to make several copies of a specific item in order to create several by nationality i.e Rifle Squad Britain, Rifle Squad USA etc etc

It can speed up working with the ODD eqp editor

[Merf]

That's a new one. My machine is XP and the help file runs fine. Is this happening when you click the Help button from within the program, or are you double-clicking the ODD.hlp file directly?

Actually I've tried accessing the help file both from within your program and by clicking on the filename from Windows Explorer. The error-message results are the same. It's sort of confounding-- I have not had problems with any other program's help files, and I'm sure my Windows XP is up to date...

[Raindem]

Hmm, I always use the same help compiler and have never had this issue. I downloaded another copy from Microsoft and it's the same version that I'm using. I don't have the commercial version of Adobe to create fies, but I can give you the text only version of the help file in a Word document if you want.

[Merf]

...but I can give you the text only version of the help file in a Word document if you want.

Thanks for the offer, but that's OK. I copied your help file to a memory stick then accessed it from another computer running XP and it worked just fine. So there's a problem with the help engine on my computer that I'll have to look into. Hmm...

It seems XP was set to use the 16 bit Winhelp instead of the 32 bit Winhelp32 on my computer. I was able to set the 32 bit version as default in Explorer and now it's working fine. FYI

[Snefens]

Weird, my posts I made yesterday seems to have vanished.

Anyway.
First was about how I had to change my date separator from a "-" to a "/" for ODD to allow me to read a scenario dump txt-file. Otherwise it gave me a "9/4/1940 is not a valid date". Looking in the scenario summary it still gives out the incorrect date as September 4th 1940, not April 9th, 1940.

More serious is it that once the dump is read/loaded the event and force lists are still blank.

[arclight]

Noticed that too... Thought I was in some sort of timewarp from reading them at work, then *poof* when I got home...

[Raindem]

You realize, of course, that event and force data are not read from the scenario dump. They are read from the event and force XML files.

[arclight]

You realize, of course, that event and force data are not read from the scenario dump. They are read from the event and force XML files.

Okay, I'm quite the nubbie to this design thing, so, any *procedural* (i.e. step-by-step) on how to use OOD would be greatly appricated...

[Snefens]

You realize, of course, that event and force data are not read from the scenario dump. They are read from the event and force XML files.

In my post that was deleted I wrote about it more thoroughly, but no, I'm a newbie to ODD, so I only assumed that the "Read dump" would import the entire scenario data into ODD while the other would import parts of it.
What's the read dump then for? Just for the scenario data (date, wheather etc?)

[Raindem]

OK, no problem. Here's an ODD quickstart.

1. To read Environment/Calendar information into ODD, first go into TOAW and create the scenario dump file ("File | Dump Scenario As"). Then go into ODD and click the "Scenario Dump" button and load the file you just created. Note that the scenario dump file is a text file and does indeed contain Event and OOB data, but that is not where ODD reads it from. Also note that the scenario dump is read only... you cannot make changes and import it back into TOAW like you can the other files.

2. To read events, go into the TOAW editor and hit F6 and give the file a name. Then go into ODD and click the Event "XML button" and load the file you just created.

3. To read an OOB, go into the TOAW editor and hit F4 while your force editor is showing ("Edit | Forces"). Give the file a name. Go into ODD and click "OOB XML" and load the file you just created.

4. To import equipment, you need to create an equipment file with the Bioeditor or use the one that came with ODD. I can't remember if TOAW still ships with one. TOAW does not create equipment files. Go into ODD and click the "Equipment XML" button and load the file. Equipment is optional. You only need to load it if you're making changes from the default database. And of course equipment files do not get imported back into TOAW, they get dropped in the scenario graphics folder.

The above steps are easier if you first go into TOAW and export all three files, then go into ODD and import them. The whole process takes about 1 minute. When you are done in ODD you export your work into an XML using ODD's "Export" button. These files are then back into TOAW (F7 for events and F5 for OOB). For more info take a look at the Help file, I think just about everything is covered in there.

[Bob Cross]

OK, no problem. Here's an ODD quickstart.

1. To read Environment/Calendar information into ODD, first go into TOAW and create the scenario dump file ("File | Dump Scenario As"). Then go into ODD and click the "Scenario Dump" button and load the file you just created. Note that the scenario dump file is a text file and does indeed contain Event and OOB data, but that is not where ODD reads it from. Also note that the scenario dump is read only... you cannot make changes and import it back into TOAW like you can the other files.

2. To read events, go into the TOAW editor and hit F6 and give the file a name. Then go into ODD and click the Event "XML button" and load the file you just created.

3. To read an OOB, go into the TOAW editor and hit F4 while your force editor is showing ("Edit | Forces"). Give the file a name. Go into ODD and click "OOB XML" and load the file you just created.

4. To import equipment, you need to create an equipment file with the Bioeditor or use the one that came with ODD. I can't remember if TOAW still ships with one. TOAW does not create equipment files. Go into ODD and click the "Equipment XML" button and load the file. Equipment is optional. You only need to load it if you're making changes from the default database. And of course equipment files do not get imported back into TOAW, they get dropped in the scenario graphics folder.

The above steps are easier if you first go into TOAW and export all three files, then go into ODD and import them. The whole process takes about 1 minute. When you are done in ODD you export your work into an XML using ODD's "Export" button. These files are then back into TOAW (F7 for events and F5 for OOB). For more info take a look at the Help file, I think just about everything is covered in there.

Curt, let us know if there are scenarios out there that have been modified/created via the F4/F5, F6/F7 things, extensively tested and found to work properly. Personally, I still remain leary of them because of their past (ACOW) history. That's despite having run tests on their current states and found them to appear to work properly. But if a body of work ever accumulates to counter that I may eventually be reassured.

[Raindem]

Bob, I've done quite a bit of testing with the import/export features of TOAW. The text version of the event export was a disaster. The XML version is much better behaved. There are still a few quirks that I have programically addressed in ODD, but overall it works as advertised.

I'm currently using ODD to complete a major upgrade on Campaign for South Vietnam, my 700-event 3000-unit monster. This can serve as a test of the F4/F5 F6/F7 system as well as ODD's own capabilities.

I'm optimistic, but have a backup of CSV on deck just in case. Will keep you posted.

[Bob Cross]

Bob, I've done quite a bit of testing with the import/export features of TOAW. The text version of the event export was a disaster. The XML version is much better behaved. There are still a few quirks that I have programically addressed in ODD, but overall it works as advertised.

I'm currently using ODD to complete a major upgrade on Campaign for South Vietnam, my 700-event 3000-unit monster. This can serve as a test of the F4/F5 F6/F7 system as well as ODD's own capabilities.

I'm optimistic, but have a backup of CSV on deck just in case. Will keep you posted.

Thanks Curt. That will be an exellent test. And if there is anyone else out there giving it a try, please post a report for us when you're done too.