widget: CustomFormations v2.2 (17 Jan 08) *PLEASE UPGRADE*

[jK]

The widget replaces the inbuild line formation (hold right click+mouse move), so you can draw any line the units should line up.

Now you can easily surround your base to defend it, or circle enemy's comms with flashes, etc.

NEW: the destination points are now optimized to reduce the total movement distance.
Also you can now use ALT to use a random algorithm.




(version 2.2)

changelog v2.2:
*fixed hard freeze bug (whole spring freezed) *PLEASE UPGRADE*
*add minimap support

changelog v2.1:
*merged gunblob's hungarian implementation (used for upto ~20 units)
*integrated my own lazy linear optimization algo (used for upto ~80 units)
*fixed issue with shift and CMD_FIGHT

changelog v1.1:
*fixed a bug if you use any command menu buttons (Move,Fight,Attack,Patrol,...)
*now you can also use it with CMD.FIGHT

changelog v1.02:
*fixed ctrl mod key

[det]

This is AWESOME.

[Ishach]

There seems to be a bug with fleas, and i assume its something wrong with tiny units.

When I drew a line across an area all the fleas would get a move order to clump near the start of where i was drawing, rather than spread evenly over the line.

[jK]

it was a combination of huge amount of units and too less line vertices

[Ishach]

Sorry you're right, it was the amount of units not the size :X

[jK]

lol, no reason to be sorry, I have to be cos I wrote bad code >_<

However, I already expect a v2.3 >_>

[TechnoTone]

Awesome indeed!

Can you get this to work with the Fight move command too?

[Warlord Zsinj]

This would ideally be under modders control, rather then user control.

It's a pretty big advantage to be giving to players 'in the know'.

Which isn't to discount the fact that it's an excellent achievement, well done jK.

[tombom]

This would ideally be under modders control, rather then user control.

It's a pretty big advantage to be giving to players 'in the know'.

Which isn't to discount the fact that it's an excellent achievement, well done jK.

You can say something similar about pretty much every widget.

[BrainDamage]

can you code that it stores the formation and when you send a move order to the entire group it recontructs the formation at the arrival point?

[Lippy]

This would ideally be under modders control, rather then user control.

It's a pretty big advantage to be giving to players 'in the know'.

Which isn't to discount the fact that it's an excellent achievement, well done jK.

Bah, do you know how many people don't know that holding SHIFT and ALT they can build squares of buildings? Or the wait command? (Or even the more advanced wait commands; which i estimate over 95% of people don't know about). And these features are built in.

'Players in the know' are the players who can be bothered to check the forums/unknown files and deserve to use this widget.

Oh yeah, and awesome script jK.

[TechnoTone]

can you code that it stores the formation and when you send a move order to the entire group it recontructs the formation at the arrival point?

You mean like CTRL+Move does?

[Pendrokar]

Suggestion "If unit doesn't fit into line make new"- If units won't fit with other units that are going close to that position(with checking collision size) then the lua spreads units in another same formation line(checking the units biggest collision size)!

[TechnoTone]

...Or even the more advanced wait commands; which i estimate over 95% of people don't know about...

Where? WHERE? It's not in the wiki.

[jK]

He refers to CMD_TIMEWAIT, CMD_DEATHWAIT, CMD_SQUADWAIT and CMD_GATHERWAIT.

You have to bind them yourself in uikeys.txt

[TechnoTone]

Ah, those. I remember seeing them before but I had forgotten.

[Warlord Zsinj]

You can say something similar about pretty much every widget.

Yes, I have similar feelings about every widget.

I think abstracting them into full player use was a bad idea for both level playing fields, and for modder control.

Having so much variability on the player's end is just a recipe for disaster, especially where gamedesign for mods is concerned.


[flameshield on ]

[LordMatt]

I think this is a really cool widget, but it seems not to work in Linux Dual screen mode. The version on UF essentially disables right click when you have more than two units selected, and a second version jK sent just does the default behaviour. Strangely it works fine in single screen mode, but dual screen mode is pretty important to me .

[Gnomre]

This would ideally be under modders control, rather then user control.

It's a pretty big advantage to be giving to players 'in the know'.

Which isn't to discount the fact that it's an excellent achievement, well done jK.

Bah, do you know how many people don't know that holding SHIFT and ALT they can build squares of buildings? Or the wait command? (Or even the more advanced wait commands; which i estimate over 95% of people don't know about). And these features are built in.

'Players in the know' are the players who can be bothered to check the forums/unknown files and deserve to use this widget.

Oh yeah, and awesome script jK.

Difference is, those are built into the engine. Everyone has them, not everyone knows how to use them. Some people might read about it, some might be taught, some might find out on accident, but it's always been a level playing field from step one.

Widgets which are based solely on a user seeking them out and installing them himself (and are not strictly GUI rearrangements, which is permissable) is not exactly fair. Yes, it'd be slightly more fair if this widget was packaged with the engine installer, but what about the next widget? And the next? And the one after that? Where is the advantage/disadvantage line drawn for including a widget in the installer and expecting users to trawl download sites or forums to find out how they can level the playing field against their opponents who are outperforming them due to an enhancement only they have? Or even better, what if someone like jK shows up, makes this kind of widget, but keeps them to himself? There's no rule or sync or anything to make sure every user has the same widgets or that every author has to publish them.

It's barely a step below aimbotting in the wrong hands, and worse, it's not even protected against in the least except for word of mouth "don't play with that guy" on the lobby. It's bound to happen, unless we're quite happy with the same 200 people for the rest of time.

JK, don't get me wrong, it's nothing personal. The core of this widget is a good function. I just don't think this kind of thing should be left up to the users.

[Felix the Cat]

TBH the best solution that is intermediate between "widgets are very useful, let anyone use whatever they want" and "widgets are bad, banwagon them" is the oft-suggested "display which widgets a player is using in lobby, and allow the host to enable or disable certain widgets globally".

This way, you'd be able to have all your widgets in casual battles, but competitive battles and ladder games would have strict rules on which widgets are allowed.

We've been having conversations like this for a LONG time (all the way back to when GroupAI functionality was introduced) and I think this is the most reasonable solution that has been proposed.