Thief III Editing Wiki (discussion)

[GlasWolf]

This isn't perfect, but hopefully it gives an idea:

Editor

• Komag's Tutorial
• Installing the Editor by David & others
• Working with Brushes by scumble
• Working with textures
• Working with groups
• Using the Flesh renderer
• Zones and portals

Editor -> Level distribution

• Generating IBT files
• A Basic Mission Tutorial by d'Spair. Despite the name, this is an advanced tutorial that covers mission packaging and distribution. Also see Basic Mission Troubleshooting.

Editor -> Advanced

• Creating New Schema Metafiles by rujuro

Mission Design

• Early Performance Tips by Null

Mission Design -> Visual

• Distance fog
• Shallow Water by Nomad
• Underwater Vision by ascottk
• Creating Your Own FX Using Emitters by ProjectX

Mission Design -> World Objects

• Ladders by Nivanhye
• Making a Readable Book or Scroll by David
• Elevators
• Building Static Meshes for Shadow Casting by rujuro
• Custom Static Meshes by Ulukai

Mission Design -> World Objects -> Doors, locks and keys

• Creating Different Lock Difficulties by Nhivanye
• Locking a door and making it pickable by David
• Unlocking a door with a key by ascottk
• Double Doors or Changing a Door's Rotation by David
• Making Keys usable from inventory by Rantako
• Making a Combination Lock by Rantako

Mission Design -> World Objects -> Physics

• Adding Havok Physics to arbitary objects by Mandrake
• Adding a Rotating Static Mesh and Controlling the Rotation by ProjectX

Mission Design -> Gameplay

• Objectives by David
• Fences (selling stolen goods) by David
• Displaying if AI is Unconscious or Dead by ascottk

Mission Design -> Gameplay -> Inventory Objects

• Equipping the player by darkcosmos
• Giving the player upgrades (lockpicks, wall-climbing, statue-whacking) by David
• Invisibility Potions by Shockeye
• Adding Books to the Inventory and Making them Readable by ProjectX
• Making Throwable Flares by Shockeye

Mission Design -> Sound

• Adding ambient sounds by d'Spair
• Adding EAX reverb styles

Mission Design -> Scripting

• Difficulty And Scripts by Nhivanye
• How to make Scripts in the Trigger Script Browser by ProjectX
• Introduction to the Triggerscript system by Krypt
• Triggerscript Conditions Overview by Krypt
• Triggerscript Actions Overview by Krypt
• Triggerscripting and Links by Krypt

Mission Design -> Lighting

• Placing lights

Mission Design -> AI

• Giving NPCs Pickpocketable Items by ProjectX
• Navmesh and Patrol Paths by Krypt
• Making the AI perform animations by Ziemanskye
• AI Customization by example of fire elemental by Zillameth
• Torch Bearing Guards by MrJay
• Pagan WilloWisps by ascottk
• Creating Custom Melee Weapons by Crispy

Mission Design -> Miscellaneous

• Converting Thief 1 and 2 missions by [NAUC]Chief

[Crispy]

And while we're at it, could you put a link to ScriptingReference on the front page under "Useful pages", scumble? I don't know if it really belongs there, but it definitely doesn't belong under T3edTutorials. It's a reference, not a tutorial.

GlasWolf - Looks good, even if it's a bit *too* fragmented given the amount of content in there now. But I guess things should be easy to find.

Also, I think "Early Performance Tips" should go under Mission Design -> Lighting as well as Mission Design, since most of the performance tips are lighting-related.

I don't know that player upgrades go under Inventory Objects - just straight Gameplay, surely?

Anyway, it's certainly a good start.

[scumble]

Crispy - I think it makes sense to have the scripting reference in a prominent position, so I put a link on the home page. Still, that page probably needs some work done on it. It needs to really give a good overview of all the major areas, rather than just linking to a bunch of pages.

[GlasWolf]

GlasWolf - Looks good, even if it's a bit *too* fragmented given the amount of content in there now. But I guess things should be easy to find.

I agree, but I think it will encourage more people to add some of the simpler tips and tricks that aren't worthy of a full-blown tutorial but seem out of place at the moment (if that makes sense). It also makes the less well-covered areas obvious.

[Crispy]

Crispy - I think it makes sense to have the scripting reference in a prominent position, so I put a link on the home page. Still, that page probably needs some work done on it. It needs to really give a good overview of all the major areas, rather than just linking to a bunch of pages.

Great, thanks.

It does need work, but I guess a wiki is always "in progress".

[scumble]

So I've been playing about with the HomePage a bit, making use of the ability to put in floating layers, in this case for "important" links.
Floats can be used to put in references relating to material in the main page without messing up the flow of the main text. It may be useful to put some images in a float perhaps.

Also, I noticed there is a discrepancy with the preview option - it appears to be using the old formatter somehow. This makes the preview a bit useless, particularly when doing something fiddly. I'll have to investigate this when I have some time for code hacking...

[New Horizon]

Any chance of getting a link to my T3EnhancED installer on the wiki, or perhaps just a sticky in the thread? I don't want to keep reposting the link and cluttering up the boards, and also wouldn't want to see my work disappear without having been sampled by at least a few members.

[scumble]

I actually have been flirting with the idea of sticking the thread, I was just getting worried about the number of stuck threads at the moment. The time has come to cut a couple loose, I think, give that the wiki should contain most pertinient information. I have stuck the T3EnhancEd thread anyway.

[New Horizon]

I actually have been flirting with the idea of sticking the thread, I was just getting worried about the number of stuck threads at the moment. The time has come to cut a couple loose, I think, give that the wiki should contain most pertinient information. I have stuck the T3EnhancEd thread anyway.

Thanks scumble. Very much appreciated.

[scumble]

You might want to begin creating a page for T3EnhancEd on the wiki - there's a link in the box on the front page now.

[New Horizon]

Will do.

[GlasWolf]

The float looks pretty smart Scumble, much improved from its original appearance.

Incidentally, I wouldn't jump all over the wiki and implement the structure I described above, but I still think it's a valid concept. Are we going to tidy the tutorial section up or are people happy with it as it is? For the record, it wouldn't be the first time anyone's accused me of over-organising things.

[Krypt]

Well, I'll put my vote towards Glaswolf implementing his organization structure if he wants to spend the time on it. I don't think the current organization method of 3 columns sorted alphabetically by (sometimes not very descriptive) link names is working out. Sometimes I'll go on there looking for something and have to dig around blindly for 5+ mins to find it. The structure you described in your above post would make it much easier for people to find what they're looking for.

[scumble]

I'd be glad for anyone to go in and clear up the tutorial page. If you want to have a go GlasWolf, give it a try - it's always possible to rollback to a previous version if something goes wrong...

Krypt - the 3 column layout is just the category list. It could be improved by adding some more categories much like GlasWolf's proposed subpages of tutorials.

[edit]OK, so I ended up actually doing quite a bit of reorganisation and now it's 2am Most of it isn't too pretty but I followed GlasWolf's plan - it should be easier to link in any new pages now...

[GlasWolf]

Brilliant, Scumble! I've added descriptions and navigation links all over the place and tidied up the formatting. The only change I made to your stuff was to take the main tutorial topics out of the float and add them back into the main page. That allowed me to add decent descriptions of each category to make things easier to find.

Incidentally... "physicalizing"?

[GlasWolf]

There's a dead page now at MissionDesignVisual - I changed it to MissionDesignEnvironmental as it's a much better description. The contents have been moved and links updated, so I'd appreciate it if a mod could delete the old one - cheers.

[scumble]

Incidentally... "physicalizing"?

It seems to be the term for "adding physics" in the game development world.

Also, got rid of MissionDesignVisual - I agree that "Environmental" is a better term for the category. Very good work overall - I'm glad I got the ball rolling by doing an untidy initial job that you couldn't bear to leave in that state It's now in a format that I was sort of aiming for - doing the boring work of copying links takes longer than you think...

Also, I'm usually the only WikiAdmin who actually has time to spend on the wiki, so you may as well just ask me to do stuff as a general rule...

[jtr7]

Where may I find information about how to manipulate the views? I've messed about with the mouse and find it non-intuitive (for me, I admit), and a lot of bumbling effort to get the cameras where I want them. I remember mentions of pressing keys (Shift?) for more options....

Somehow, just moving the virtual camera around, and clicking on the view I want to change, leads to crashes.

This should be basic, getting started information in the Wiki: What the mouse and buttons can do, what the keys can do, etc. Is there a list somewhere? Like a quick reference?

I'd like to avoid the presumption that if one is running the T3Ed app., he/she wants to build a mission, and is fluent in the jargon. Heck, I can't even pick the correct key words for a search to get me in the ballpark. As some of you know I am working on an Encyc. of the Thief Universe, which includes making maps directly from the overhead views. The maps of the Training mission and the Rumfords' mansion are nearly finished, and Bafford's is halfway there. Gliding around in the 3D view helps me determine which 2D lines are rendered visible, invisible, above, or below, etc. Any ways to speed up the process are very much appreciated! I'd also like to be able to take composed screenshots of objects, as well as iconic architecture, and being able to position the camera where I want it will facilitate much of this.

Thanks!

Pssst! Happy Birthday, scumble....

[GlasWolf]

Komag's tutorial is your best bet, as it starts out by introducing the editor interface and how to manipulate the views. Get it from here.

Oh and happy b-day scumble!

[jtr7]

Thanks. I'll see if I can get the hang of it. No wonder it doesn't come up in a search, it has to be downloaded. If I could get a similar movement to circle-strafing, I'll be set.

[Beleg Cúthalion]

You're still looking for these, aren't you?

[jtr7]

Those images might have to do if I can't make maps closer to this:




From T3Ed overhead views similar to this:

[Judith]

I was adding a small note in the wiki and while searching for recent changes I found this:

http://www.ttlg.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:Get_T3ed

and this:

http://www.ttlg.com/wiki/index.php?title=Wefdsf


Can we defend ourselves from these bots somehow?

[David]

Ok,
I've upgraded MediaWiki to the latest version, which now allows us to force email addresses to be verified before they can edit the Wiki, so that's been turned on.

I've made myself an Administrator, cleaned up all the crap that I could find and set it so that I receive an email every time a change is made to the Wiki so that I can keep a really close eye on it. I've also changed it so that the email address the emails come from is now fleshworks@ttlg.com rather than from scumble's email address.

[David]

I've also changed it to run on friendly urls, just like Wikipedia, so there shouldn't be any index.php?title=blah links anymore, however it is not strictly supported under our configuration and MediaWiki seems a bit... ahem, so let me know if anything looks a bit wonky.