VASL Map Online Problem/Suggestion Form

[Tuomo]

So, to summarize. Large White Center Dots are NOT Stairwell Symbols. I was wrong to think of it that way, many moons ago; I certainly can and do make mistakes, all the time, and my machine gun spam of posts here hopefully isn't borne from not wanting to admit an error, rather from trying to understand if the error has any real effect. At the moment, I don't think this mistake produces a problem, given the functional equivalence between "inherent stairwells" and "Printed Stairwells" that has become (IMO) the norm over the years. We just don't see many distinctions between printed stairwells and inherent stairwells, particularly in SSRs that may remove upper levels from buildings. So much so, that I'll bet I'm not the only one who thinks of LWCDs as Stairwells, and has not been corrected as to this fallacy because for nearly all purposes except the obvious ones mentioned above (Factory Roofs and Vehicular Sized Entrances), they are functionally equivalent. The fact that they AREN'T completely equivalent is the reason why you don't see multihex buildings with LWCDs.

If anyone can think of cases I'm missing where mixing up these two would cause a real problem, please let me know. I hate to think I've messed something up for someone.

 

[zgrose]

I guess it all comes down to what one is trying to accomplish. If the designer wants to add stairwells in multihex buildings by removing the Stairwell symbol, I'm not sure they want to couple that choice with lowering single hex buildings.
Board 68 makes for a good test case. Stairwell symbols in K2, Q6 and single hex two story houses in E6 and DD5.
Seems like one should be able to remove large squares independently from large dots.

 

[von Marwitz]

Seems like one should be able to remove large squares independently from large dots.

@Tuomo has gone through the thinking of what a 'stairwell' might be and what not or whether it makes a practical difference to remove square/round 'stairwells' in order to reflect a 'Ground Level only' SSR.

Maybe it is indeed the cleverest way to dodge that rules guru issue by just providing three checkboxes:

1. Remove square stairwells (or call'em center dots)
2. Remove round stairwells (or call'em center dots, but watch out for wide city boulevards where these need to be kept)
3. Remove Steeple symbols

Of course, I have no idea whatsoever, what horrifying consequences this might have with regard to coding, redoing 200 maps, etc. Certainly a factor, which should be considered if the issues is to be addressed.

von Marwitz

 

[zgrose]

Just to be crystal clear, simply placing a small dot in a multi-hex building does not visually inform the VASL user that a given multi-hex building is now Ground Level only. That's the crux of my objection to the need for a 'Ground Level only' SSR and/or conflating No Stairwells is somehow synonymous with all buildings have a Ground Level only.

(edit) To illustrate, I offer board Z. How many levels above Ground does building E5 have.

 

[Tuomo]

Just to be crystal clear, simply placing a small dot in a multi-hex building does not visually inform the VASL user that a given multi-hex building is now Ground Level only. That's the crux of my objection to the need for a 'Ground Level only' SSR and/or conflating No Stairwells is somehow synonymous with all buildings have a Ground Level only.

(edit) To illustrate, I offer board Z. How many levels above Ground does building E5 have.

Right. Given where we're at now, there's no simple way to do it. Taking away the printed (square) Stairwells or the Large White Center Dots doesn't remove those inherent stairwells represented by multi-hex multi-level buildings like ZE5. The user has to imagine that the inherent stairwells are there when L1 locations exist, and has to imagine the L1 locations don't exist when an SSR says so. With that level of hand-waving going on, I'm OK with not feeling the need to treat Large White Center Dots differently than Printed Stairwells.

Course, to be honest, others like Big Al have been doing the VASL boards more than I have for some time, and in the VASL spirit of "You got the energy to implement it, go for it", if any VASL Elf wants to tweak all of the boards to enable this, they're free to have a go. I'd suggest pinging the community on whether this is really necessary or not - one does need to prioritize one's work, and if the bang per buck isn't there, IMO it's not worth doing. I bet if you change it to be more explicit (along the lines of what vonM posted in #923 above), somebody's gonna wonder why they have all those options.

Shrug. No criticism implied Zoltan - you've done great stuff for VASL, and we've all benefited from your work.

 

[zgrose]

FWIW, on Board 68, No Stairwells converted the big squares and big circles to normal center dots.

 

[von Marwitz]

FWIW, on Board 68, No Stairwells converted the big squares and big circles to normal center dots.

I seem to recall that this is indeed the 'standard behavior' for most boards.

This is why I have reported specifically for board 46 v6.1 that the big round center dots persist if 'No Stairwells' is checked.

I think that they disappear on others, but I have not double-checked this.

von Marwitz

 

[Actionjick]

FWIW, on Board 68, No Stairwells converted the big squares and big circles to normal center dots.

just an observer

 

[von Marwitz]

An observation made recently watching a game of VASL:



Board 62. Within the depression, Palm trees appear in the wrong color (ground level), and on Ground Level, the Palm Trees have the same color as the Open Ground (see Hex H2).

I do not know which version of the board this might be, as I was only an onlooker.

Secenario played was AP89 To the Pain.

Terrain SSR:



von Marwitz

 

[Bruce Stevenson]

Hi,
I'm having trouble with the LOS tool when I use boards 35 and 58 together. When I use them separately, the LOS works fine. But together, the LOS thread shows red no matter where it goes.
I'm using VASSAL 3.5.5 and VASL 6.6.1.
Thanks,
Bruce

 

[von Marwitz]

Hi,
I'm having trouble with the LOS tool when I use boards 35 and 58 together. When I use them separately, the LOS works fine. But together, the LOS thread shows red no matter where it goes.
I'm using VASSAL 3.5.5 and VASL 6.6.1.
Thanks,
Bruce

Not sure if this relates to your problem - but I think that some LOS issues have been resolved by the new VASL v6.6.2. So you might try an update of VASL to determine if the issue persists.

von Marwitz

 

[Bruce Stevenson]

I was thinking of trying that. But since I've already started a scenario with VASL 6.6.1, I decided to wait until after we finish it. I was worried installing the new version mid-game may mess it up. After we finish, I'll install VASL 6.6.2.
Thanks,
Bruce

 

[von Marwitz]

I was thinking of trying that. But since I've already started a scenario with VASL 6.6.1, I decided to wait until after we finish it. I was worried installing the new version mid-game may mess it up. After we finish, I'll install VASL 6.6.2.
Thanks,
Bruce

You can install more than one version of VASL in parallel without issue. Make a copy of your save-game just in case. Do a parallel install of VASL v6.6.2 and try if it works. In case anything screws up - which I doubt it will - you can fall back instantly on v6.6.1 and your backup scenario file.

von Marwitz

 

[Bruce Stevenson]

Thanks.

 

[commissar1969]

I want to contribute some scenario setup files to VASL . How do I do that?

Thanks in advance,

Chuck

 

[von Marwitz]

I want to contribute some scenario setup files to VASL . How do I do that?

Thanks in advance,

Chuck

One collection is kept at vasl.info:

VASL - Download Scenarios

vasl.info

I think that an email to Sam Tyson, who is in charge of the site would do the trick:

styson@gmail.com

However, the last batch of VASL setups I sent him around the beginning of the year seems not to have made it to the collection, nor did I get a reaction.

The other possibility is to add the VASL files to the 'ASL Scenario Archive' Website.

ASL Scenario Archive

www.aslscenarioarchive.com

You need to register there and log in. Then you can add 'User Files' to particlar scenarios.



Click on the tab 'User Files' to see this:



This allows you to upload several sorts of files:

• Images
• Map Images
• VASL Setups
• VASL Log Files
• ...

Dave Ramsey (also active in this forum) is in charge there. I understand that he wants people only to upload 'quality setups', i.e. no shoddy work, as not to clog the site with useless files.

Generally, if you provide VASL setups, you should make sure that they do not include Victory Conditions, Special Scenario Rules, or pictures as to respect copy-right. The intention is to get people to play the scenario quicker but not to make it unneccessary for them to purchase it.

It does make sense to include information in the file name and/or the opened VASL file, with which version of VASL/VASSAL the setup has been created. This will make it easier for others to figure out why certain things might not work (if they use older versions or if they use newer versions, some fuctions of which might not be supported by the older pre-pulled counters).



Sometimes, older VASL files might exist. Rather than redoing them from scrap, updating them can be much quicker if the original one is well made. This normally only requires the automatic updating of the counters and manually adjusting a few labels. The process is described in depth here.

When making VASL files, you should avoid pulling OB-given Concealment counters. These are keyed to your (the creator's) user. If other users take one of those and place them atop an unconcealed stack, it will Conceal but they cannot unconceal them any more because the Concealment is 'owned' by you, the creator, who 'pulled' them.



Instead, pull a blank counter of the given nationality and label it accordingly. Then the user playing that side will pull the appropriate number of "?" counters himself with the 'correct ownership' and thus avoid issues.


von Marwitz

 

[commissar1969]

One collection is kept at vasl.info:

VASL - Download Scenarios

vasl.info

I think that an email to Sam Tyson, who is in charge of the site would do the trick:

styson@gmail.com

However, the last batch of VASL setups I sent him around the beginning of the year seems not to have made it to the collection, nor did I get a reaction.

The other possibility is to add the VASL files to the 'ASL Scenario Archive' Website.

ASL Scenario Archive

www.aslscenarioarchive.com

You need to register there and log in. Then you can add 'User Files' to particlar scenarios.

View attachment 18108

Click on the tab 'User Files' to see this:

View attachment 18109

This allows you to upload several sorts of files:

• Images
• Map Images
• VASL Setups
• VASL Log Files
• ...

Dave Ramsey (also active in this forum) is in charge there. I understand that he wants people only to upload 'quality setups', i.e. no shoddy work, as not to clog the site with useless files.

Generally, if you provide VASL setups, you should make sure that they do not include Victory Conditions, Special Scenario Rules, or pictures as to respect copy-right. The intention is to get people to play the scenario quicker but not to make it unneccessary for them to purchase it.

It does make sense to include information in the file name and/or the opened VASL file, with which version of VASL/VASSAL the setup has been created. This will make it easier for others to figure out why certain things might not work (if they use older versions or if they use newer versions, some fuctions of which might not be supported by the older pre-pulled counters).

View attachment 18110

Sometimes, older VASL files might exist. Rather than redoing them from scrap, updating them can be much quicker if the original one is well made. This normally only requires the automatic updating of the counters and manually adjusting a few labels. The process is described in depth here.

When making VASL files, you should avoid pulling OB-given Concealment counters. These are keyed to your (the creator's) user. If other users take one of those and place them atop an unconcealed stack, it will Conceal but they cannot unconceal them any more because the Concealment is 'owned' by you, the creator, who 'pulled' them.

View attachment 18111

Instead, pull a blank counter of the given nationality and label it accordingly. Then the user playing that side will pull the appropriate number of "?" counters himself with the 'correct ownership' and thus avoid issues.


von Marwitz

VIELEN DANK!!!

 

[commissar1969]

Herr von Marwitz:

Another question - when I go into the ASL Scenario Archive, under my profile, I find this:

Next to "Scenario Credits" it just shows "$0" - how can I edit this to list the scenarios I've designed?




Thanks,

Chuck

 

[von Marwitz]

Herr von Marwitz:

Another question - when I go into the ASL Scenario Archive, under my profile, I find this:

Next to "Scenario Credits" it just shows "$0" - how can I edit this to list the scenarios I've designed?

View attachment 18112


Thanks,

Chuck

Hm, I do not know.

I think that the green number next to the $ sign indicates your credit with which you can actually buy some scenarios in the shop (where there is a price in a very similar format given):



But I have no idea how one can increase one's credit which is displayed in one's profile.

If you want to add a scenario description to the archive, this is of course possible. Anyone can do that even without being the designer. Indeed, some users ('hoxon' is most active I seem to recall) are working hard to feed the Archive with information.

You can do this by selecting '+Add Scenario' from the menu. Note, that this allows you to add some general information but it will not add your scenario to some sort of shop nor to make money with it via the ASL Scenario Archive. Before adding anything here, one should make a thorough search to avoid creating double entries.




You could create such entries for your own scenario designs.

I have not tested if it would be theoretically possible to add an entire scenario card as a PDF (provided you would want to make them available for free) via the upload of User Files described upthread.

What I do not know is which file formats are supported for uploads (.gif, .jpg, .png, .vsav, .vlog apparently work for pictures, setup files, and log files). There is an option for AARs, Reviews, and Misc Files, but I have never checked out what the required formats for these are. Of course, .PDF, .txt, are probable guesses.

You could ask @daveramsey who runs the show (i.e. the ASL Scenario Archive) and who is active here in the forum for details.

Cheers,
von Marwitz

 

[commissar1969]

Hm, I do not know.

I think that the green number next to the $ sign indicates your credit with which you can actually buy some scenarios in the shop (where there is a price in a very similar format given):

View attachment 18114

But I have no idea how one can increase one's credit which is displayed in one's profile.

If you want to add a scenario description to the archive, this is of course possible. Anyone can do that even without being the designer. Indeed, some users ('hoxon' is most active I seem to recall) are working hard to feed the Archive with information.

You can do this by selecting '+Add Scenario' from the menu. Note, that this allows you to add some general information but it will not add your scenario to some sort of shop nor to make money with it via the ASL Scenario Archive. Before adding anything here, one should make a thorough search to avoid creating double entries.

View attachment 18115


You could create such entries for your own scenario designs.

I have not tested if it would be theoretically possible to add an entire scenario card as a PDF (provided you would want to make them available for free) via the upload of User Files described upthread.

What I do not know is which file formats are supported for uploads (.gif, .jpg, .png, .vsav, .vlog apparently work for pictures, setup files, and log files). There is an option for AARs, Reviews, and Misc Files, but I have never checked out what the required formats for these are. Of course, .PDF, .txt, are probable guesses.

You could ask @daveramsey who runs the show (i.e. the ASL Scenario Archive) and who is active here in the forum for details.

Cheers,
von Marwitz

Thanks again!