What's Wrong With Ev-Edit?

Now don't flame me, I can tell you're tempted. I see all of you struggling along to use Res-Edit and get all the tiny little pieces of everything together for one new ship to work or to make another weapon or to edit acceleration data or add desc resources etc. I have always used Ev-Edit. I back up my plugs and use Res-Edit when I have to, but I just use Ev-Edit. It seems to me you can do just as much with it as you can with Res-Edit (except maybe add sound - though I'm not sure if Res-Edit can even do that). So, other than a bit of bugginess once in a while, will someone please tell me what's wrong with Ev-Edit? (Is it too easy?)

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Shrout1

(This message has been edited by Shrout1 (edited 12-17-2001).)

Quite simple. It is extrememly buggy... I tried once to create a plugin with EV-Edit, and only once. The plug file was so corrupted and filled with bugs, I just went back to doing things the old fashioned way (ResEdit).

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(This message has been edited by Captain Skyblade (edited 12-17-2001).)

Things really aren't that hard to do with Res-Edit, you know...

EV Edit had this annoying tendency to not save files correctly. I was literally forced to go back and fix every single error that it caused to a plug-in I made with it in Res-Edit, and I don't want to waste my time if I have to use Res-Edit anyway.

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"My guitar gently weeps." George Harrison, 1943-2001

In terms of bugginess:
EV-Edit = Windows (something old, like 95)
ResEdit = MacOS

Like night and day. It's not just a little bugginess now and then.

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- Macavenger | e-mail: (url="http://"mailto:e-gamerguy1@attbi.com")mailto:e-gamerguy1@attbi.com(/url)e-gamerguy1@attbi.com

I've found ShipWrite to be nearly as buggy as EV-Edit... ResEdit is the way to go (rather easy to understand as well).

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(url="http://"http://saberstudios.evula.net")Saber Studios(/url) - Your source for original EV/O/N graphics.
GameRanger: -Sß- Captain Skyblade | Battle.net: Skyblade86
(url="http://"http://home.cfl.rr.com/aresev/")The Legion(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.gameranger.com")GameRanger(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.evula.com/")EVula's Lair(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.meowx.com/")Meowx Design(/url)

Quote

Originally posted by Shrout1:
**...but I just use Ev-Edit. It seems to me you can do just as much with it as you can with Res-Edit ..
**

With ResEdit tou can:
Add and renumber sounds
Create and edit #STR resources
Edit dialogue boxes
Replace splash screens, startup screens, etc.

Probably some other things, I gave up using EV-Edit so long ago I have forgotten some of its features and limitations. And of course the biggest advantage of ResEdit is not having to make multiple backups of your multiple backups so you have a chance of recovering your data when EV-Edit destroys your plug.

If someone prefers EV-Edit, he should use it - whatever works is the right tool. But I will stick with ResEdit until something better comes along - and for me EV-Edit ain't it.

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Joe Burnette
"I find that humans can be divided into only two meaningful categories: Decent Humans and Sonsofbitches; both types appear to be evenly distributed
among all shapes, colors, sizes, and nationalities." -- Keith Laumer

EV-Edit's problems:

  1. The mission editor doesn't work at all.
  2. If you reopen a system and don't change it, it shreds the ship appear percentages
  3. It saves incorrectly on large files some of the time - always make a backup and check it before you replace it
  4. It sometimes assigns pictures IDs in a 'unique' way.
  5. Can't edit some of the deeper features

If you are aware of these and work round them, it will serve you well. Always use PlugChecker, and always backup several generations.

ResEdit's problems:

  1. Very unhelpful interface for EV - but DrRalph's templates can solve this
  2. Dangerously powerful -- you can copy entire sections of one version of a plugin to another, which is fine if you're copying the right way, but not if you make a mistake.

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M A R T I N • T U R N E R
(url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/vftp/show.pl?product=evo&category;=plugins&display;=downloads&file;=FrozenHeart104.sit.bin")Frozen Heart(/url)
(url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/vftp/show.pl?product=evo&category;=plugins&display;=downloads&file;=FemmeFatale.sea.bin")Femme Fatale(/url)
(url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/vftp/dl-redirect.pl?path=evo/plugins&file;=Frozen Heart - the No.hqx")Frozen Heart - the Novel(/url)

I tend to use a combination of EV-edit, ResEdit, and ShipWrite for what I do. Trust me when I say that EV-Edit is extremly buggy, but it is a very much needed part of my work. Listen to those people who have posted and listen when I say: don't use the same method I use. It works for me because I can understand it; it may not work for others.

Whitehawk

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(url="http://"http://pub51.ezboard.com/fquillzfrm4.showMessage?topicID=10.topic")A Pilot's memory(/url)

Quote

Originally posted by Martin Turner:
**ResEdit's problems:

  1. Very unhelpful interface for EV - but DrRalph's templates can solve this
    **

Sorry, I'm a little new. Where are these templates? Are they the same ones from the EV Bible?

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(url="http://"http://homepage.mac.com/captainz")Captain Z's Starbase of EV Stuff(/url)

(This message has been edited by Captain Z (edited 12-18-2001).)

I'm curious about those templates too, and I never knew that some of those bugs were that specific (ship percantages, etc.). If I were to use Ev-Edit only in the areas such as Desc and stuff would it still wreck those things? Oh and mission editing seems to work all right, I have changed around some missions with it and even made my own.

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Shrout1

Quote

Originally posted by Captain Z:
**Sorry, I'm a little new. Where are these templates? Are they the same ones from the EV Bible?

**

No. They haven't been released yet. They are due to be released at an undetermined point in the future. It's popular speculation that it will be at the same time as EV Nova, but there's no real truth behind it.

Anatole.

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God, money will do anything for you.
Trent Reznor. Nine Inch Nails, "Head Like A Hole."

The EV:O ResEdit editors have been avaliable for a while. (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/vftp/dl-redirect.pl/govteditor.hqx?path=evo/utilities&file;=govteditor.hqx")govt(/url) and (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/vftp/dl-redirect.pl/outfeditor.hqx?path=evo/utilities&file;=outfeditor.hqx")outf(/url) editors are avaliable at the moment.

Personally I've never had a problem with ResEdit. I dont know if Resourcer templates are avaliable for EV:O, but I found them useful. Resourcer costs ~$200 however...

EV-Edit is buggy in my experiance, and more can be accomplished with EV:O Formula Calc, the EV:O Developers Map and ResEdit, I also find those tools more friendly (not including ResEdit :p). You can find them (url="http://"http://members.chello.se/warlordpontus/ev/tools.html")here(/url)

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--sitharus
(url="http://"http://www.damnsw.net/~triplet/forums/")Carracho Help - Updated, upgraded and better!(/url)
EV Development IRC channel: #evdev on irc.ambrosia.net
Insults are the arguments employed by those who are in the wrong.

(This message has been edited by blackhole (edited 12-18-2001).)

Well, I don't make anything big anyway, so I think I'll just use Ev-Edit (Maybe except for sound). It is too bad that it is so buggy, I wonder where the flaws lie within its code. I also wonder what it was written in, I don't know any C, but I plan on learning and maybe I could help to get whoever made it to fix it. It really would be an awesome tool if it had no problems and could copy.

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Shrout1

Quote

Originally posted by Martin Turner:
**ResEdit's problems:

  1. Very unhelpful interface for EV - but DrRalph's templates can solve this

  2. Dangerously powerful -- you can copy entire sections of one version of a plugin to another, which is fine if you're copying the right way, but not if you make a mistake.**

  3. I don'ty find it unhelpful in the slightest, besides you've already mentioned a fix for it, so what's the problem. I actually like it better than EVE's interface to begin with, but I'll concede by this point that that's weirdness on my part. 😉
    2)Not a problem if you take a little time to learn what you're doing.

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- Macavenger | e-mail: (url="http://"mailto:e-gamerguy1@attbi.com")mailto:e-gamerguy1@attbi.com(/url)e-gamerguy1@attbi.com

Quote

Originally posted by Macavenger:
**1) I don'ty find it unhelpful in the slightest, besides you've already mentioned a fix for it, so what's the problem. I actually like it better than EVE's interface to begin with, but I'll concede by this point that that's weirdness on my part.;)
2)Not a problem if you take a little time to learn what you're doing.

**

Yes, resedit is a leaner, quicker interface. type tab type tab type tab cmd-w cmd-k down arrow cmd-o type tab type tab etc. However, it's much easier sill to just type all your values straight into a hex editor. then you get rid of all the disruptive opening and shutting of windows and creating new resources and so on and so forth, and those damn invalid rectangles. Just type in values, type in seperation sequence, type in values, all without ever using anything but the numeric keypad. I guess though if you aren't as familiar with hex as you were with base 10 you'd have to use a program that converted all the values typed into a text file or something into hex values and added the seperation sequences

Quote

Originally posted by Macavenger:
**EV-Edit = Windows (something old, like 95)
ResEdit = MacOS
**

Well, I wouldn't say THAT... perhaps ResEdit = Linux.
-david-

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(Ahg! Spell check first, click submit later!)

(This message has been edited by Meowx Design (edited 12-19-2001).)

Quote

Originally posted by blackhole:
**
Personally I've never had a problem with ResEdit. I dont know if Resourcer templates are avaliable for EV:O, but I found them useful. Resourcer costs ~$200 however...
**

Interestingly enough, I just found a copy of it on my hard drive. Had no idea we had it... Might give it a shot should ResEdit cause any difficulties.

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(url="http://"http://saberstudios.evula.net")Saber Studios(/url) - Your source for original EV/O/N graphics.
GameRanger: -Sß- Captain Skyblade | Battle.net: Skyblade86
(url="http://"http://home.cfl.rr.com/aresev/")The Legion(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.gameranger.com")GameRanger(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.evula.com/")EVula's Lair(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.meowx.com/")Meowx Design(/url)

To date I have made 0 working plugins with Ev-Edit. Every time I got anywhere near half way done it would corrupt my plug-in and crash EV. Wait, and use NovaTools. (better engine, doesn't corrupt plugins)

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Quote

Originally posted by blackhole:
Personally I've never had a problem with ResEdit. I dont know if Resourcer templates are avaliable for EV:O, but I found them useful.

The official EV Override templates are for ResEdit only.

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David Arthur
(url="http://"http://davidarthur.evula.net/")davidarthur.evula.net(/url): MissionComputer and the Talon plug-in for the original Escape Velocity

Quote

Originally posted by blackhole:
**I dont know if Resourcer templates are avaliable for EV:O, but I found them useful.
**

I think that there are Resourcer templates for EVO.

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"My guitar gently weeps." George Harrison, 1943-2001