Cloak Detector

Please Help

I'm trying to make an outfit that shows cloaked ships (there's a funtion in the game) but I can't find the right values to use. The ownly values I can find are flags, which don't work.

Thanks,
Bird of War

You'll need to convert the flag value, which is in hexadecimal format, into a decimal number. To do this, multiply the flags you want by their place value.
The place values for a four-digit hex flag are as follows:
(161616)(16*16)(16)(1)
Basically, it's just like normal decimal numbers, except that each place is 16 times the previous one, rather than 10.

Now, a demonstration:
Let's say you want a cloaking device that is visible on radar, uses 1 unit of fuel per second, and is also an area cloak. The flag/hex code for this would be 0x1012.
Now, to convert it to decimal, multiply the left-most digit (1) by 16^3 (4096). This is 4096.
Continue with the next place, 0256=0; and the next place, 116=16; and the right-most place, 2*1=2. Add up all of the numbers you got, 4096+0+16+2=4114. This is the decimalized flag code. It's quite ugly compared to hex flags, but for technical reasons it's neccesary for outfit ModVals.

I hope this was somewhat clear. If not, I'm sure someone else will come along and clarify it for you. And incidentally, this should also answer your question in the other forum.

Edwards

PS. Arturo, if you read this, have you considered trying to fit the decimal versions of all of the ModVal flags into the next version of NovaTools? Oddly, this is one place where EVNEW exceeds all Mac editors... :blink:

That wasnt too terribly clear, but its mostly because the subject matter is rather uselessly complicated. Just find an editor that implements flags as check boxes.

Bird of War, on May 27 2005, 06:34 PM, said:

I'm trying to make an outfit that shows cloaked ships (there's a funtion in the game) but I can't find the right values to use. The ownly values I can find are flags, which don't work.
View Post

First of all, your outfit should have a ModType of 30. If it doesn't, then it cannot detect cloaked ships. OK, I'm not sure about those flags, but if your ModType is 30 (the ModType for cloak scanners), then the flags should work. If not, then you may need to enter the flag value (or the hexidecimal value demonstrated in Edwards's posting) in the ModVal field. Like I said, I'm not sure about that last part. (I haven't made any plugs recently, so I'm a little rusty with this stuff.) For more info on ModTypes and ModVals, look in the Nova Bible, or the Non-Technical EVN Bible, they're generally pretty useful. Furthermore, I only know how stuff works on a mac, so, if you're on a PC, then I can't help.

I hope that I have been at least some help to you.
Good luck with the plug,
Killer Bob

NebuchadnezzaR, on May 27 2005, 09:44 PM, said:

Just find an editor that implements flags as check boxes.View Post

That's the problem. I'm not sure about EVONE, but neither NovaTools nor MissionComputer has checkboxes. In fact, in the version of MissionComputer that I have (I think it's the latest one), it doesn't even tell you what the hex flags are for oütf ModVals.

EVNEW, on the other hand, has a little window that you can bring up for cloaks and cloak scanners, with a set of checkboxes.

Edwards

Thaks for the answers, and I think I got it to work.

Thanks again,
Bird of War

Edwards, on May 27 2005, 07:49 PM, said:

the version of MissionComputer that I have (I think it's the latest one)
View Post

The most recent version of MissionComputer is 3.0.2, but I'm pretty sure that it does give you checkboxes for flags, just not ModVals.

K-Bob

Killer Bob, on May 27 2005, 09:56 PM, said:

The most recent version of MissionComputer is 3.0.2, but I'm pretty sure that it does give you checkboxes for flags, just not ModVals.

K-BobView Post

Sorry, that's what I'd meant. Both NovaTools and MissionComputer have checkboxes for normal flags, but neither of them has checkboxes for the Cloaking Device or Cloak Scanner (NovaTools gives you the decimal flags for the cloaking device, and hex flags for the cloak scanner; MissionComputer tells you nothing).

Edwards

Edwards, on May 27 2005, 08:42 PM, said:

<snip>
Arturo, if you read this, have you considered trying to fit the decimal versions of all of the ModVal flags into the next version of NovaTools?
View Post

Um ... If you're talking about the ModVal comment for ModType 17, I already did that for the current v1.0.1 NovatoolsUpdate. I just downloaded it again from the addons page to verify.

The Novatools STR# 27090 resource, index 18 contains the following ...

in the original Novatools v1.0.0:
0x01 Fast fade, 0x02 Vis. on radar, 0x04 Drops shields, 0x08 Disable on damage, 0x10 1 unit fuel/s, 0x20 2f/s, 0x40 4f/s, 0x80 8f/s, 0x100 1 unit shield/s, 0x200 2sh/s, 0x400 4sh/s, 0x800 8sh/s, Area Cloak 0x1000

in the NovatoolsUpdate v1.0.1:
1= Fast fade, 2= Vis. on radar, 4= Drops shields, 8= Disable on damage, 16= 1 unit fuel/s, 32= 2f/s, 64= 4f/s, 128= 8f/s, 256= 1 unit shield/s, 512= 2sh/s, 1024= 4sh/s, 2048= 8sh/s, 4096= Area Cloak (sum to combine)
Works for NPC shďps too.

Or are you referring to something else? If you're talking about the ModVal comment for ModType 30, then I will indeed change that comment to a decimal equivalence in the NovatoolsUpdate v1.0.2 after I run some verification tests.

p.s.- The NovatoolsUpdate v1.0.2 release will occur as soon as possible after EV:N v1.0.9 is released. I know that there have been some v1.0.9 game-engine changes which will affect verbage in the NovatoolsUpdate. I need to verify those game-engine changes before releasing the (hopefully) final NovatoolsUpdate which will incorporate those changes and make several bug fixes.