Print Function

[kristof65]

Is there a print function, or will there be anytime soon?

[enrious]

It's been said that it's on the short list after launch; the main focus now is getting things right for entering data and then they can focus on ways to get the data out.

[kristof65]

That's all well and good, but some point in the not too far future, though, they need to pause and focus on some way to get the data out, even if it's rather primitive. It's rather pointless to get too gung ho about entering data, if there is no corresponding way to get it back out.

That is the problem I'm facing right now - I would like to use RW for the new Savage Worlds campaign my co-GM and I are running for our kids and their friends, but I have absolutely no way to share it with her using RW, so RW is basically little more than a toy I can't truly use, which dumps me back to other tools, like Google Docs.

I would be happy with a simple text dump of individual topics at this point.

[AEIOU]

Methinks this is the curse/blessing of being an early adopter.... We get a head start with entering all our goodies, but we may not be able to fully use our goodies for gaming until closer to release.

[thedarkelf007]

You can use it during the session, I've been using it as a reference and displaying the player screen for maps and topics for quite a while now.

[enrious]

Indeed and as was pointed out, we do not have a copy of the final release - only the Early Access.

They have clearly stated their plans on data extraction in the updates for Kickstarter backers.

[rob]

Printing is a rabbit hole that we could easily spend months on while only scratching the surface. Why? There's no such thing as "simple" when it comes to printing, especially for Realm Works. The moment we touch printing, we open up the floodgates for everyone to start demanding their own definition of "simple" for printing. And I can guarantee you there are going to be hundreds, if not thousands, of different definitions of "simple printing".

For example, which content elements do you want to print? There are topics, smart images, plot diagrams, pictures, PDFs, link webs, relationship diagrams, etc. How should each of those be printed?

How much of each element do you want to print? Even if we limit ourselves to topics, there are still huge questions here. Is this for the GM to review or for players (the latter being only the revealed content)? What formatting should be used? How should color-coding on the screen be translated to black-and-white printing? Should we output to the printer, to HTML, to PDF, or something else? The list goes on and on.

We're going to stay focused on content development and content management through the V1.0 release. We've mapped out a small subset of printing (focused on topics) that we'll be implementing soon after V1.0 comes out. When that happens, we'll be flooded with requests for printing that will easily amount to years of work. Keep in mind that there are *entire companies* built around the premise of formatting out from databases (e.g. Crystal Reports), and Realm Works goes far simple databases. Printing is something that will be a constant request but not necessarily a true need for most users, so it's going to be juggled along with all the other features we still want to add - and the hundreds more that users will come up with after release.

[Chemlak]

My requirements for printing range from absolutely essential to non-existent. There is undeniably a "feel" to me having something on paper, but at the gaming table if I can use my laptop, iPad, and iPhone (which I do right now, to ensure I can have everything I need at my fingertips), my need for paper diminishes. I'm even less paper-reliant when I'm gaming online using my desktop (which is most of my roleplaying these days), since dual-monitors gives me a huge amount of screen "real estate" to have Hero Lab, Realm Works, a VTT, and a web browser open.

Printing is low on my personal priority list, because of that. But I still definitely want it.

[pyremius]

For me, the only "simple printing" request would be "Print Snippet". That way I can embed player handouts into the Topic, and print them as needed without having to export to another program somehow.

I'm pretty sure anything else I'd want is "complex printing" from a programming standpoint.

[Spence]

Well I am an old (ancient?) gamer and printing is/was 100% critical for me as I do not use devices at the game table.

Dagnabit! Get off my lawn you whippersnappers!

But after getting a chance to actually run up RW and play around bit, I think that may be changing. I still make up player handouts (maps, etc) separately as it is so that isn't a big obstacle immediately. But I can definitely see a need to print in the near future.