MODManager V1.0

[Angelo Scotto]

Installing Kestrel Extended MOD (BTW great work!) i was quite unhappy because the standard extended game files were overwritten by MODPack files and the procedure to backup original files and restore them is quite long and boring so i decided to realize a program to automate the backup & restore work.
MODManager is the result of these thoughts and IMHO even more;

Here its features:
-Easy "Plug&Play" installation of new MODPacks (you only have to unzip them in a specific directory and you've done!)
-Ability to install different MODPacks at the same time (obviously you cannot mix them, you have to select one)
-Typical use: Select MODPack, click a button and ToT will start with the MODPack installed; exit from ToT and standard files will be restored into ToT directories automatically

Plus you'll get "Classic": a Graphic Mod i've done with CivConverter, it'll restore ToT graphic to Civ2 classic version.

I tested it only on my computer and it worked (and it's still working) without problems, but i don't know if the program actually works or if i was just lucky .
Clearly it's not perfect (as you can see from the version number: it's V1.0 and is a beta) but it's free!
I uploaded it to Click2Send (www.click2send.com) using CivConverter directory
(Click2Send->pickupfile->CivConverter)
Make me know what do you think about it.

Angelo
[This message has been edited by Angelo Scotto (edited February 28, 2000).]

[astrogator]

Progress, but no success.

I managed to download the mod manager and unzip the files, however the program will not start.

When I attempt to run modmanager, it starts to load, then terminates without opening a window or generating any visible error messages. I really have no idea what to do. I checked to see if I had the required DLL, and it is present on my system.

[Angelo Scotto]

This is very strange.
It's better to continue our discussion by e-mail
Send me answers to these two questions:
1)It never worked? neither the first time?
2)Check your computer, is present a MODManager.ini file? (it should be located into windows directory)

Angelo

[This message has been edited by Angelo Scotto (edited April 26, 2000).]

[DarthVeda]

What did you program this executable in?

[Angelo Scotto]

I programmed MODManager in C++,
Precisely using Visual C++ 5.0

Tell me, does ModManager works for you DV?

Angelo

[DarthVeda]

Well, I haven't tried it yet but I know with Visual Basic 6.0 that people who don't have the .dll files that come with Visual Basic can't run the programs.

It *may* be true of VC++ also.

For those having errors: see what the required dll is, and if it starts with the letters "VC", you'll have to download that file from Microsoft.
[This message has been edited by DarthVeda (edited April 30, 2000).]

[Angelo Scotto]

Mmh, i don't think so,
VB is well known for using tons of externals DLLs but i'm quite sure this is not appliable to VC++, the only external DLL it usually requires is the MFC one which is used also by Microsoft programs (IE for example) to manage windows (and so usually it comes with the operating system or MS products).
And if the program needs a DLL file which cannot find, the OS usually gives you a warning or something similar.

Angelo

[techumseh]

Will this Mod manager allow us to change the city, boarder, and dialog gifs in the main directory? One of the biggest frustrations for me is that these files can't be changed in the scenario folder, they must be changed in the main directory. So if you really want to customize your scenario, you have to manually back up and replace these graphics files each time you play a given ToT scenario. Can you help with this?

[Angelo Scotto]

Actually MODManager replace all custom files except for sounds and sprites (they're simply ignored) i hoped to fix this thing soon after the first version of ModManager came out but i've never found time to make this;
Anyway dialog,city & boarder files are replaced as well.
But remember, MODManager first task is to manage MODS, i've never tested it's behavior with scenarios (but, as you can imagine i think that it works well, MODS are scenarios without a SCN file after all)

Angelo

[astrogator]

Allright! The latest version is working for me now. MODManager is very easy to use. Now what we need to do is get busy and make a bunch of modpacks for TOT. Or maybe we can convert some of the old ones



It's not a game, it's a lifestyle!

[astrogator]

Hoho!

I converted HiRes2 to a TOT modpack using CivConverter and used MODManager to switch it in. It works great and it was easy to do.

You don't get Tim's cool new city layout, but all of the unit, city, and terrain graphics came through nicely.

Great job, Angelo. These two programs are an excellent addition to the Civer's toolbox.


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It's not a game, it's a lifestyle!