Any chance a 3rd Ed. ASLRB will be published?

Fred Campbell

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We have put a lot of effort into an eASLRB, and we hope to put out a first-steps version before too long.

We do want to do a 3rd edition, and preliminary steps have been taken, but this will not be anytime right away.

ETA on both is unknown, but expect the eASLRB first.
“First-step version” is interesting. Is the plan to use a subscription model like that used for Office 365 so we get regular updates? That would makes sense from a business perspective.

Will the e-version use a different approach to charts? The charts in the print version are cumbersome.
 

clubby

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As part of my own eASLRB effort, I converted the Perry Sez Q+A that Klas is maintaining from HTML to JSON (i.e. from the web page he has on his web site, which is for humans to read, into another format that computer programs can read). I sent him a copy of that, with the idea that it would make maintaining both HTML and PDF versions much easier, but also, if there was enough interest, he could also distribute the JSON version to anyone who has their own eASLRB and wanted to incorporate the Q+A into it.
I did something similar to you except that my Q&A shows up as a clickable icon that opens into a lightbox. If there's more than one for that rule, the lightbox will have left and right arrows to toggle through them.

Capture.JPG

I have pictures and the example pictures resize to larger when you hover over them so you can more easily see them. Can't show that functionality with the snip tool, but they resize to approximately double the size they are here.

Capture.JPG
 
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Pacman Ghost

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I did something similar to you except that my Q&A shows up as a clickable icon that opens into a lightbox.
Looks good.

So, you want to help petition Klas to publish a JSON version of the Q+A, as well as HTML and PDF...? :) The idea was, if he maintains a JSON version, it's trivial to generate HTML pages from that (I already sent him a script to do that), and you can print that to a PDF, so that's easy as well.
 
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Philippe D.

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The thing is, while the rulebook is sold by MMP and no official e-RB exists, these efforts have to either be kept as personal projects (meaning the effort is repeated dozens of times), or distributed in a confidential manner. It's wasteful, really - plus, once you have a working version, there's the additional work of keeping the RB up to date with errata and, depending on your choice, Q&A.
 

klasmalmstrom

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So, you want to help petition Klas to publish a JSON version of the Q+A, as well as HTML and PDF...? :) The idea was, if he maintains a JSON version, it's trivial to generate HTML pages from that (I already sent him a script to do that), and you can print that to a PDF, so that's easy as well.
I could do it - but it is not at the top of my ASL "To Do" list at the moment. :)
 

hongkongwargamer

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The thing is, while the rulebook is sold by MMP and no official e-RB exists, these efforts have to either be kept as personal projects (meaning the effort is repeated dozens of times), or distributed in a confidential manner. It's wasteful, really - plus, once you have a working version, there's the additional work of keeping the RB up to date with errata and, depending on your choice, Q&A.
As these efforts are made out of one's free will to facilitate a hobby that one chooses to indulge in, how can it be termed "wasteful"? I see efforts to craft one's own eASLRB as no different from painting miniatures or clipping counters.
 

Pacman Ghost

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As these efforts are made out of one's free will to facilitate a hobby that one chooses to indulge in, how can it be termed "wasteful"? I see efforts to craft one's own eASLRB as no different from painting miniatures or clipping counters.
No, it's definitely wasteful. If you're painting miniatures or clipping counters, you're painting your miniatures, clipping your counters, and in the case of the painting, you probably enjoy doing it, as well.

OTOH, how many thousands of hours have been spent cumulatively by people around the world, scanning their ASLRB in, because they want an electronic version but an eASLRB is not available. Copyright issues aside, this is something that should only need to be done once, there's no value in everyone doing it themselves.

Similarly, clubby, myself, and almost certainly others, have spent days of work each converting the Q+A into a format that can be used by a computer program; again, something where there's no value in each person repeating the same work. That's why I suggested to Klas that he maintain the Q+A as JSON instead of HTML and PDF, so that anyone else who wants to write an ASLRB-related program can just grab it, instead of having to redo the same work themselves.

Crafting your own ASLRB, absolutely, but you don't have to reinvent the wheel every single time... :-/
 

Philippe D.

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OTOH, how many thousands of hours have been spent cumulatively by people around the world, scanning their ASLRB in, because they want an electronic version but an eASLRB is not available. Copyright issues aside, this is something that should only need to be done once, there's no value in everyone doing it themselves.

That's exactly what I had in mind. The work is being done many times, just because of copyright issues; if it were not for them, we'd have several download links here and on any ASL fansite, and that would certainly cut down in the number of people who decided to craft their own e-ASLRB. (I myself had this revolutionary idea in the early '90s, to create a HTML rulebook. Started typing, for loooong hours, including HTML tags - that was before I ever learned about style sheets. I think I got to the end of chapter A - but the files have long been lost)

If there were an official eASLRB, some people might create their own because the official version didn't have this or that specific feature that they wanted, but it would certainly be a marginal movement. Similarly, if there were no copyright issues, most likely this or that version would emerge as the one that feels the best, and community efforts would go towards maintaining it.

Also, I'm not one of the people involved, but I'm pretty sure one or the other eASLRB "creators" would agree to give MMP their files if it meant an official eASLRB became available.
 

von Marwitz

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Also, I'm not one of the people involved, but I'm pretty sure one or the other eASLRB "creators" would agree to give MMP their files if it meant an official eASLRB became available.
I am not involved either, but I think that offers to MMP to that effect have been made and that maybe even the MMP version of the eASLRB might be based upon one of these privately made eASLRBs.

von Marwitz
 

hongkongwargamer

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No, it's definitely wasteful. If you're painting miniatures or clipping counters, you're painting your miniatures, clipping your counters, and in the case of the painting, you probably enjoy doing it, as well.

OTOH, how many thousands of hours have been spent cumulatively by people around the world, scanning their ASLRB in, because they want an electronic version but an eASLRB is not available. Copyright issues aside, this is something that should only need to be done once, there's no value in everyone doing it themselves.

Similarly, clubby, myself, and almost certainly others, have spent days of work each converting the Q+A into a format that can be used by a computer program; again, something where there's no value in each person repeating the same work. That's why I suggested to Klas that he maintain the Q+A as JSON instead of HTML and PDF, so that anyone else who wants to write an ASLRB-related program can just grab it, instead of having to redo the same work themselves.

Crafting your own ASLRB, absolutely, but you don't have to reinvent the wheel every single time... :-/
If you decide to NOT do it.

You don’t waste anytime.

All good :)
 

hongkongwargamer

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That's exactly what I had in mind. The work is being done many times, just because of copyright issues; if it were not for them, we'd have several download links here and on any ASL fansite, and that would certainly cut down in the number of people who decided to craft their own e-ASLRB. (I myself had this revolutionary idea in the early '90s, to create a HTML rulebook. Started typing, for loooong hours, including HTML tags - that was before I ever learned about style sheets. I think I got to the end of chapter A - but the files have long been lost)

If there were an official eASLRB, some people might create their own because the official version didn't have this or that specific feature that they wanted, but it would certainly be a marginal movement. Similarly, if there were no copyright issues, most likely this or that version would emerge as the one that feels the best, and community efforts would go towards maintaining it.

Also, I'm not one of the people involved, but I'm pretty sure one or the other eASLRB "creators" would agree to give MMP their files if it meant an official eASLRB became available.
That’s cause you want to.

I scanned the ASLRB into PDF and was using it for a while until a gentleman shared his wonderful creation.

Hardship comes from want.

Pain comes from desire. No desire no pain.

If you decide to craft your own ASLRB because of your love for the hobby, then comes joy.

There’s a very fine line between Heaven and Hell.
 
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Maurizizio

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I am not a good painter and not a good programmer. So I would consider to put in my budget also the electronic copy and the updates of Q&As.
At the end of the day, if you have the option to prepare your own program or to buy/subscribe, you pick what it is more suitable for you. Today, such a choice is not available.
Unfotunately
 
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