L5R v5.3

Ah, new data files. And with new data files, Rob finds new reasons
to
hate my nitpicking @$$....

No, I'm not going to list them. What I am going to do is ask if
someone can point me in the direction of a "Card Vault for Dummies".
I've tried reading the files for creating your own datefiles, but
with
my complete lack of XML knowledge, they read like stereo
instructions.
Since I would be working with cards that have already been coded,
I'd
just like to know what to cut and paste to quicken the process. I'm
sure Rob has much better things he'd like to be working on, like the
next update and the Warlord files.


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[rob]

Please list the errors you've found for me. You can send them directly to
me so that the list doesn't get cluttered with them. However, if others are
finding errors, then it might be worth listing them here to avoid duplicate
reports. I'll let you decide.

Hey, I bet you didn't expect to be hearing THAT from ME, eh? :-)

The main reason I need you to report the errors is that all the data files
are currently being generated with an automatic converter. If you simply
correct the mistake in the data files, it will be wrong again in the next
set of files. :-( I need to know the root problem so that I can fix it in
the converter if needed. Some problems are corrected in the raw data,
depending on the actual error.

Once the automated file converter gets more stable, it can be handed off to
someone else so that an L5R expert can maintain the files. The converter is
table-driven, so a little more work will make it possible for someone else
to manage the files without having to tweak the converter itself. At least,
that's the goal. :-)

The problem is that, until the converter is solid and stable, I keep
needing to tweak it. Tweaks to the converter mean that all the data must be
re-processed. And that means that the problem has to be fixed by me. :-(
I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that the converter will be stable by
the next L5R release. :-)

As for working with CV data files, the manual is the only thing that exists
at the current time. There is no tutorial on data file creation. :-( That
being said, you really don't need to worry much at all about XML for
editing existing data files. Just use the CVEdit tool that is installed
with the Authoring Kit. CVEdit is a graphical tool that makes editing of
cards very easy. You'll still need the Kit documentation for details on
what things do what (e.g. what's a tag). And you'll still need to reference
the L5R files to know what tags/groups are used for what purpose. But
you're largely sheltered from any XML issues by CVEdit.

Hope this helps,
Rob

P.S. The Warlord files ought to be out within a week (with a little luck,
by the end of this week). I know, it's only about two months later than
originally anticipated. Sorry. :-(

At 03:35 AM 10/22/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>Ah, new data files. And with new data files, Rob finds new reasons
>to
>hate my nitpicking @$$....
>
>No, I'm not going to list them. What I am going to do is ask if
>someone can point me in the direction of a "Card Vault for Dummies".
>I've tried reading the files for creating your own datefiles, but
>with
>my complete lack of XML knowledge, they read like stereo
>instructions.
> Since I would be working with cards that have already been coded,
>I'd
>just like to know what to cut and paste to quicken the process. I'm
>sure Rob has much better things he'd like to be working on, like the
>next update and the Warlord files.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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--- In cardvault@yahoogroups.com, Rob Bowes <rob@w...> wrote:
> Please list the errors you've found for me. You can send them
> directly to me so that the list doesn't get cluttered with them.
> However, if others are finding errors, then it might be worth
> listing them here to avoid duplicate reports. I'll let you decide.

No errors yet, just missing reprints. Stuff from the Mantis and Rat
starters from Winds of Change, the winds from each set, Heaven &
Earth
and Broken Blades reprints. Then theirs the missing mon-backed
stronghold promos... The only errors I've noticed is that a couple
of
strongholds have picked up traits they shouldn't have, which I'll
send
you by private mail.

> Hey, I bet you didn't expect to be hearing THAT from ME, eh? :-)

Nah, I actually had no expectations about what you'd say. Well,
other
than, "Durden, get off my list!" (It's an L5R-CCGlist joke)

> The main reason I need you to report the errors is that all the
data
> files are currently being generated with an automatic converter. If
> you simply correct the mistake in the data files, it will be wrong
> again in the next set of files. :-( I need to know the root problem
> so that I can fix it in the converter if needed. Some problems are
> corrected in the raw data, depending on the actual error.

I think the main problem with the converter is that their's no "bold"
in the data your getting. In L5R, bold text means trait, where as
the
computer seems to be pulling stuff out of action text, which doensn't
count.

> The problem is that, until the converter is solid and stable, I
> keep needing to tweak it. Tweaks to the converter mean that all
> the data must be re-processed. And that means that the problem
> has to be fixed by me. :-(

As you see, it's not really errors, it's missing cards, mostly
reprints.

> As for working with CV data files, the manual is the only thing that
> exists at the current time. There is no tutorial on data file
> creation. :-( That being said, you really don't need to worry much
> at all about XML for editing existing data files. Just use the
> CVEdit tool that is installed with the Authoring Kit.

But the real question is, "Will CVEdit allow me to *add* cards to a
data file?"


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[rob]

At 06:24 PM 10/22/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>No errors yet, just missing reprints. Stuff from the Mantis and Rat
>starters from Winds of Change, the winds from each set, Heaven &
>Earth
>and Broken Blades reprints. Then theirs the missing mon-backed
>stronghold promos... The only errors I've noticed is that a couple
>of
>strongholds have picked up traits they shouldn't have, which I'll
>send
>you by private mail.

I'm an L5R ignoramous, so please send me all the missing stuff. I'll get it
added in the next update.

>I think the main problem with the converter is that their's no "bold"
>in the data your getting. In L5R, bold text means trait, where as
>the
>computer seems to be pulling stuff out of action text, which doensn't
>count.

Very true. Without the clear identification of traits, the converter has
all sorts of rules for trying to identify what is/isn't indicative of a
trait. Compounding that is that Bob originally maintained the L5R files by
hand, so he invested the extra effort to manually identify additional
keywords from non-trait text. I have invested a lot of effort trying to
automate the recognition and extraction of these extra keywords in the
converter, but the heuristics are rather messy due to the lack of language
consistency through the evolution of L5R over 8+ years. :-( The converter
is doing a pretty solid job, but it's still got some problems that need to
be sorted out. :-)

>As you see, it's not really errors, it's missing cards, mostly
>reprints.

Yeah!

>But the real question is, "Will CVEdit allow me to *add* cards to a
>data file?"

Absolutely! The new data file of promo cards I added in V5.3 is fully
created using CVEdit. Since I don't have data for these cards from AEG,
they get entered into CVEdit. It's a separate file that isn't part of the
automatically converted stuff.

Launch CVEdit. Create yourself a new file that is separate from the current
files. Use the New button to create a card. Then enter all the particulars
for the card. You will not be allowed to save the new card until it
satisfies all the rules defined for L5R. That means that you must specify a
variety of required tags (e.g. rarity, card type, etc.). Once all the
required things are defined for the card, the Save button will be enabled,
and you can save the changes to the card. Just be sure to also save changes
to the data file (as a separate step).

Once you've added a card, re-compile the data files in CV. I recommend
re-compiling instead of re-loading the files, since any errors will be
reported without forcing CV to exit. Once the files are compiled, re-load
them and your card can be verified.

Hope this helps,
Rob

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rob Bowes (rob@wolflair.com) (559) 658-6995
Lone Wolf Development www.wolflair.com


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