dungeon craft update!

[manikus]

cocoaspud has just posted an update of dungeon craft. version .908 is ready to download.

http://uaf.sourceforge.net/download.html

-manikus

[Ziroc]

AWESOME!! Going to update the IW DC site this Month along with the release of my next 'pack' of art for DC.

BTW, since DC doesn't have a readme that describes every function or a PDF, anyone here want to work on one? This alone will bring MANY more folks into DC, and will learn to use it faster..


Ideas? I can add to the PDF as well, I think we should split each area function and give them to people that want to help write a readme on it..

This would be like an instruction manual--I can do all the page art and screenshot work as well as other art.

Anyone want to help out with this?

[Paul Stevens]

If you really plan to create new documentation I hope
you include all the information in the current help
file. A great deal of work went into it and it would
make a solid starting point.

[Ziroc]

Originally posted by Paul Stevens: If you really plan to create new documentation I hope you include all the information in the current help file. A great deal of work went into it and it would make a solid starting point.

Oh heck yeah I would include that.. That helped ME out a lot!

I'm talking about all the new features, and walkthroughs for each function and quick 'how to's' for making walls, icons and placing them and encounters etc..

I can't do it all by myself, but I can do the art and some of the feature descriptions and stuff, but I need some help on it. I'd like to do this in PDF (for the images and such)

[Paul Stevens]

I plead guilty to starting the original help file
that comes with the game. I am proud to have started
the project but not too proud of the method. It is
a bit awkward to update, intricate, and difficult to
compile.

Documentation is a royal pain and anyone who volunteers
will be welcomed with open arms. I would like to express
a couple of my views:

--I think the help should be maintained with an open-source
(or at least a freeware) program. We used Cheetah editing and
a freely available Microsoft Help Compiler for
the current file and it worked. PDF requires a commercial
program to create the source, does it not? It is likely
that you will quit before the project is done and it should
be easy for someone else to pick up where you leave off.

--I think the help should be referenced with an extremely
widely available client. PDF certainly qualifies.

--Documenting DC is going to be an enormous undertaking.
Please think twice or thrice before starting and be prepared
for a couple years' of hard work.

Good luck. And I am willing to help by answering questions
about those parts of DC which I implemented or am relatively
familar with.

[Tarlanon]

Thank you Cocoaspud! I noticed that one of the updates was the issue of saved quests overwriting the ones actually placed in the design. I am so excited that this is fixed!

I can't wait to get home to try it out!

Thanks again! It is going to make finishing the design of my first mod soooo much easier now that I don't have to start everything from scratch again when I add or delete an event! W00t!

[Steve McDonald]

I have a .rtf (I think) copy of the original UA manual, which I have sent to manikus in the past. If anyone wants that you can have it. It may come in handy in writing a manual for DC.

[manikus]

i think documentation for dc would be great. [img]smile.gif[/img]
i personally prefer .pdf b/c it is so versatile, but i own adobe pagemaker and distiller. i think you paul makes some very excellent arguments for using another format, i think we should be as easy to access for anyone that wants to help, and open source, to be read as free, is certainly easier to access than adobe, to be read as expensive.
i have cheetah 8 i think, and it's really quite easy to use.
there's always html as well.

honestly, there's no reason why it can't be all of the above. and it probably wouldn't hurt to have a .txt version sans the pictures for those of us still using dial-up.

some individual points-
ziroc- readme files or tutorials? i think it's very different to have a file that says what a function does, and to have a file that walks someone through making an item or monster. i think both are very valuable, depending on what you want to get out out of the program.

paul- that help file you started has done more to help me than just about anything else.

steve- i do indeed have a copy of the ua manual that you emailed me, but have been hesitant to post a dungeon craft version of it for copyright purposes. i suppose it could be posted in it's present state, without any changes.

lots of thoughts i hope some of them make sense. i've had a long day. [img]smile.gif[/img]

-manikus

[Ziroc]

Originally posted by Steve McDonald: I have a .rtf (I think) copy of the original UA manual, which I have sent to manikus in the past. If anyone wants that you can have it. It may come in handy in writing a manual for DC.

Actually, if you could email that to me at webmaster@ironworksforum.com, It would for sure help me out! And give me an idea of how they lay out placement.

I'll also do all the monster art (since I've drawn updated versions of them) and the page background plate (bordering).

[Ziroc]

Originally posted by Paul Stevens: I plead guilty to starting the original help file that comes with the game. I am proud to have started the project but not too proud of the method. It is a bit awkward to update, intricate, and difficult to compile. Documentation is a royal pain and anyone who volunteers will be welcomed with open arms. I would like to express a couple of my views: --I think the help should be maintained with an open-source (or at least a freeware) program. We used Cheetah editing and a freely available Microsoft Help Compiler for the current file and it worked. PDF requires a commercial program to create the source, does it not? It is likely that you will quit before the project is done and it should be easy for someone else to pick up where you leave off. --I think the help should be referenced with an extremely widely available client. PDF certainly qualifies. --Documenting DC is going to be an enormous undertaking. Please think twice or thrice before starting and be prepared for a couple years' of hard work. Good luck. And I am willing to help by answering questions about those parts of DC which I implemented or am relatively familar with.

Good stuff! It will indeed take a lot of time, but I told Richard that I was in this till the end, and joined him 2-3 years ago now, and will not quit. [img]smile.gif[/img] I think this project is amazing, and worth putting a lot of time into!!

I just saw the latest Computer Gaming World mag, and they show a lot of freeware games, and mods, but they TOTALLY ignore Dungeon Craft. That pissed me off. We NEED to get the word out on this game, and it'll bring in loads more people. (Maybe we should email Computer gaming world, PC Gamer, and Computer Games Magazine and tell them about the project). Worth a shot!