Play withSIX Community Preview [Evolution of SIX Launcher and in time also SU]

[iceman77 18]

Is there anyway to keep the enabled mods in a mod "tree" persistent? For example, the ace mod, now has sub sections. By default, only the @ace (mod) folder itself is enabled. You have to go and manually enable the rest of the ace mod. I forget most times and always have to exit out, reopen pws ,enable all of the ace mods and then start the game back up. While that's my own doing, it sure is a hassle to have to enable all of the mod folders every time I want to run ace. I mean, who only plays with just the core ace mod and not the rest of the mod anyhow?

Also, when I enable a "parent" mod folder (one that has sub folders) it should auto enable the sub mods ie; The ACEX has the ACEX_RU and the ACEX_USNavy sub folders under it's tab. When I enable ACEX it should automatically enable the usnavy and the ru extras.

Also, is there a way to turn off the snowflakes in the ui?

[sickboy 13]

The enabled mods being forgotten sounds like a bug, will look into.

You can turn off the easter eggs on the Settings tab.

Also, when I enable a "parent" mod folder (one that has sub folders) it should auto enable the sub mods ie; The ACEX has the ACEX_RU and the ACEX_USNavy sub folders under it's tab. When I enable ACEX it should automatically enable the usnavy and the ru extras.

It actually works the other way around - ACEX is a dependency for ACEX_RU and USnavy, so ACEX will enable if you enable ACEX_RU or USNavy. And Disabling ACEX will also disable its dependencies.

I am not convinced yet it should work differently.

For feedback and support please refer to http://play.withsix.com/support or http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix

Edited December 31, 2012 by Sickboy

[soldia 1]

Well, the additional mods is THE enhancement which make PwS the alround tool we need. Sure, some things may need some polish, but congrats Sickboy. Keep up the good work.

Regarding the non persistent mod "tree". The sub-mods are persistent for me. The "ACEX" sub-mods as well as self added mods. They are listed checked/unchecked even after restart.

But one other thing: Is it possible to delete one sub-mod from i.e. the @ACE "tree"? For example, I tested a mod, wasn't convinced, want it to be out of the tree...doesn't work.

[paragraphic l 2]

You have to clear the additional mods field at this moment, AFAIK.

So if you have a couple of additional mods, you will have to add the rest back in.

This is the most basic implementation of this feature and will get the most of our attention to do right, this is the meat and bones of our tools. There are so many variables that come with user made content and the whole (public) multiplayer aspect. So stay tuned for more improvements here.

[sickboy 13]

Well, the additional mods is THE enhancement which make PwS the alround tool we need. Sure, some things may need some polish, but congrats Sickboy. Keep up the good work.

Regarding the non persistent mod "tree". The sub-mods are persistent for me. The "ACEX" sub-mods as well as self added mods. They are listed checked/unchecked even after restart.

But one other thing: Is it possible to delete one sub-mod from i.e. the @ACE "tree"? For example, I tested a mod, wasn't convinced, want it to be out of the tree...doesn't work.

Thank you, glad you like it ;-) We indeed wanted to deliver this around the x-mas, before the end of the year :) There will be more improvements soon.

Next up will be Creating new ModSets and SU Custom Repository support.

Good point regarding removing a single mod from the set.

We've just deployed build 212 on auto update, with context menu on the mods available, just right click a mod and select "Remove mod",

amongst several other fixes and improvements.

Edited December 31, 2012 by Sickboy

[paragraphic l 2]

See how fast we improve things here! ;)

[sickboy 13]

See how fast we improve things here! ;)

Ha, yeap, that's us! ;)

[iceman77 18]

Well, the additional mods is THE enhancement which make PwS the alround tool we need. Sure, some things may need some polish, but congrats Sickboy. Keep up the good work.

Regarding the non persistent mod "tree". The sub-mods are persistent for me. The "ACEX" sub-mods as well as self added mods. They are listed checked/unchecked even after restart.

But one other thing: Is it possible to delete one sub-mod from i.e. the @ACE "tree"? For example, I tested a mod, wasn't convinced, want it to be out of the tree...doesn't work.

hmmm, which settings do you use to make the mods persistent? Everytime I start up PWS and want to launch ACE, I have to click the drop down menu and check/enable @ACEX + it's sub directory folders (RU & navy) & @ACEX_SM. Else, it just runs @ACE by itself.

[sickboy 13]

hmmm, which settings do you use to make the mods persistent? Everytime I start up PWS and want to launch ACE, I have to click the drop down menu and check/enable @ACEX + it's sub directory folders (RU & navy) & @ACEX_SM. Else, it just runs @ACE by itself.

How is that with build 212?

If still issues, please post the log files and exact repro steps to a support topic.

http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/where_can_i_find_the_log_files

[iceman77 18]

It's working fine now after this latest update (just few minutes ago).

[Sakowski 1]

This is a reason why I went back to Six Updater, easier way to use it not being complicated, and I am grateful that you allowed using older version, I as a user looked for a arma 2 launcher to launch and download mods from a program, not something similar to xfire :)

((/criticism/))

[sickboy 13]

This is a reason why

What is "this" referring to?

something similar to xfire

Because of the social features? They're optional.

SIX Updater and Play withSIX Preview have different target audiences.

We're working hard on moving Play withSIX out of Preview http://play.withsix.com/changelog, it should be able to fully replace SIX Updater by then.

On a technical level, PwS is far ahead of SIX Updater, performance wise, memory usage wise etc.

Also it should be much easier to use, and the server browser has better filtering and ordering, and is more flexible.

When is the last time you checked? PwS recently got a much enhanced Mod browser with submodsets and optional + additional mod support for modsets.

Anything specific you like better in SU? If it's about the server grid, instead of list in PwS, you can change it in the Settings.

Edited December 31, 2012 by Sickboy

[soldia 1]

Thank you, glad you like it ;-) We indeed wanted to deliver this around the x-mas, before the end of the year :) There will be more improvements soon.

Next up will be Creating new ModSets and SU Custom Repository support.

Good point regarding removing a single mod from the set.

We've just deployed build 212 on auto update, with context menu on the mods available, just right click a mod and select "Remove mod",

amongst several other fixes and improvements.

Sweeeeet :)

Thank you very much! That is fast ;)

[sickboy 13]

Sweeeeet :)

Thank you very much! That is fast ;)

NP, if anything else comes up feel free to let us know, preferably over the PwS Support box.

[Sakowski 1]

What is "this" referring to?

Because of the social features? They're optional.

SIX Updater and Play withSIX Preview have different target audiences.

We're working hard on moving Play withSIX out of Preview http://play.withsix.com/changelog, it should be able to fully replace SIX Updater by then.

On a technical level, PwS is far ahead of SIX Updater, performance wise, memory usage wise etc.

Also it should be much easier to use, and the server browser has better filtering and ordering, and is more flexible.

When is the last time you checked? PwS recently got a much enhanced Mod browser with submodsets and optional + additional mod support for modsets.

Anything specific you like better in SU? If it's about the server grid, instead of list in PwS, you can change it in the Settings.

The reason is the layout its self, everywhere you click you get lost... IF playwithsix wouldnt be so confusing with layout like sixupdater aint I would of use it but I do not want to spend hours working out every button or option...

[sickboy 13]

The reason is the layout its self, everywhere you click you get lost... IF playwithsix wouldnt be so confusing with layout like sixupdater aint I would of use it but I do not want to spend hours working out every button or option...

I see, interesting, the general opinion on SIX Updater layout etc is similar, if not worse.

Any hints/requests on sorting these issues?

[Sakowski 1]

Can't really give a hint/requests if I do not use it but when I did all I can say that it was too confusing to use as I wrote before :)

Well probably impossible but would of be nice to have two styles/layouts that user can choose from, either the sixupdater one or playwithsix but using the same engine/script of playwithsix?

[doveman 7]

It seems when using the Server Grid there's no way to open the Server Info window. I can open it in List mode before switching to Grid and then it will work but that's a bit inconvenient so perhaps it could be added to the right-click menu in Grid mode?

As for server signatures, that seems like a bit of a nightmare trying to read through the list, which can be very long on something like Militarygaming.org servers, work out which mods are already enabled as part of the Mods list, then decide which additional signature mods you want to enable, check you've got these and so on. Couldn't the signature list be translated into a list with tickboxes (with any that are already enabled as part of the Mods list filtered out) so that users can just tick the ones they want to enable for that server? Obviously those mods would have to be present in correctly named folders (i.e. @jsrs14v2, @ibr) and if not present, they could be greyed out in the list, which would give a hint to the user if they're sure they have that mod that it must be in a folder with a different name so they can track it down and rename it.

[sickboy 13]

Can't really give a hint/requests if I do not use it but when I did all I can say that it was too confusing to use as I wrote before :)

Well probably impossible but would of be nice to have two styles/layouts that user can choose from, either the sixupdater one or playwithsix but using the same engine/script of playwithsix?

Hmm, we intentionally strayed far away from the SU design for reasons as said; The general opinion seemed to be that it was really bad user experience.

I would rather look at how we can improve our design, instead of going towards SU design even if it would be optional.

Did you check recently btw, because we've made great progress in the past months, also many feats are documented in the app by tooltips.

I understand that when you're used to an application, it is easy, and getting used to a new program is hard at least in the beginning, but I think it's part of it :)

I do think it's very much worth it to get into PwS as it is mostly superior in different ways.

[soldia 1]

I know that a lot of guys have a problem with non-windows-style applications. I don't know why but I got a friend of mine who said that about PwS. I hope I can convince him to use it anyway because it makes it much easier for me to test some new mods on dedi server as he can only update stuff he needs to play on it.

I don't have a problem with the style. PwS is VERY EASY to use if one may spend 15 minutes to understand the way of working. And with the new features (mod list is very important for me) it is even better.

[doveman 7]

I agree that PwS is much easier to use than SU was. I'd used SU for 6-12 months before PwS and still didn't really know how to use it and mostly only used it for updating server mods, which it was very handy for. I think the only thing I miss with PwS is it doesn't show me which mods need updating and just mentions them all in the popup when it's going to update something.

[sickboy 13]

It seems when using the Server Grid there's no way to open the Server Info window. I can open it in List mode before switching to Grid and then it will work but that's a bit inconvenient so perhaps it could be added to the right-click menu in Grid mode?

Good point, we'll look into how to deal with that.

As for server signatures, that seems like a bit of a nightmare trying to read through the list, which can be very long on something like Militarygaming.org servers, work out which mods are already enabled as part of the Mods list, then decide which additional signature mods you want to enable, check you've got these and so on. Couldn't the signature list be translated into a list with tickboxes (with any that are already enabled as part of the Mods list filtered out) so that users can just tick the ones they want to enable for that server? Obviously those mods would have to be present in correctly named folders (i.e. @jsrs14v2, @ibr) and if not present, they could be greyed out in the list, which would give a hint to the user if they're sure they have that mod that it must be in a folder with a different name so they can track it down and rename it.

Interesting ideas.

We've had some extra functionality in SIX Updater regarding signatures but it was never perfect.

For PwS we intended to do something with the signatures, but weren't really sure yet as to what exactly, while other issues had priority so far.

We'll look into this soon, thanks!

---------- Post added at 13:53 ---------- Previous post was at 13:41 ----------

I agree that PwS is much easier to use than SU was. I'd used SU for 6-12 months before PwS and still didn't really know how to use it and mostly only used it for updating server mods, which it was very handy for. I think the only thing I miss with PwS is it doesn't show me which mods need updating and just mentions them all in the popup when it's going to update something.

Hmm since the ModSet tree a few versions back, it should show in the tree at each modset and it's submods if there are updates available etc.

Also if you get the Update state on the main action button, you can hover over it for update details etc.

But besides that, I do agree that we should enhance this a lot.

---------- Post added at 13:59 ---------- Previous post was at 13:53 ----------

I know that a lot of guys have a problem with non-windows-style applications. I don't know why but I got a friend of mine who said that about PwS. I hope I can convince him to use it anyway because it makes it much easier for me to test some new mods on dedi server as he can only update stuff he needs to play on it.

I don't have a problem with the style. PwS is VERY EASY to use if one may spend 15 minutes to understand the way of working. And with the new features (mod list is very important for me) it is even better.

:) Did you mean Classic vs Modern Windows applications?

SU was more designed as a classic Windows application, perhaps comparable to Excel 2007, the Ribbon made it a little less classic though, I'd say.

PwS on the other hand is following several Windows Metro design principles, and our own touch.

Inspired by Microsoft Zune: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-US/how-to/wp7/zune-software Screenshot: http://cdn.redmondpie.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Zune42.png

and GitHub for Windows: https://s3.amazonaws.com/github-images/blog/2012/gh4w/dashboard.PNG

For me, what makes something a Windows or non Windows app is mostly in:

- Menu when right click left upper corner

- Minimize, maximize, close on the right upper corner

- Resize window on the corners, official place right down corner

- Application title in the top left or center

And some more UI behavior and expectations

Edited December 31, 2012 by Sickboy

[doveman 7]

Hmm since the ModSet tree a few versions back, it should show in the tree at each modset and it's submods if there are updates available etc.

Also if you get the Update state on the main action button, you can hover over it for update details etc.

But besides that, I do agree that we should enhance this a lot.

Ah yes, I think I see that now. I'll have to wait until UnitedOperations/ACE needs updating again to check for sure though.

I do find having the information in a popup is rather cluttered and inconvenient (disappears if I nudge my mouse by accident) though and having a list of mods showing which need updating, as in SU, was preferable IMHO (ideally it would show their size or more particularly the size of the required update). If the popup that appears after clicking Update only listed the mods that were going to be updated that would be an improvement but I'd still like to be able to see this list before I start the Update process.

[sickboy 13]

Ah yes, I think I see that now. I'll have to wait until UnitedOperations/ACE needs updating again to check for sure though.

I do find having the information in a popup is rather cluttered and inconvenient (disappears if I nudge my mouse by accident) though and having a list of mods showing which need updating, as in SU, was preferable IMHO (ideally it would show their size or more particularly the size of the required update). If the popup that appears after clicking Update only listed the mods that were going to be updated that would be an improvement but I'd still like to be able to see this list before I start the Update process.

The dialog you get about "About to process many mods" - the intention was to make the user aware of the massive amount of mods that he is going to process, especially if you blindly join servers, this might not be what you intended.

It wasn't intended to give detailed information about the updates etc.

But we'll find something nice ;-)

[doveman 7]

But we'll find something nice ;-)

Yeah, I'm sure you will :)

Regarding using optional mods with servers, I don't actually see how to do this. When I select a Mod, like ACE, I can add mods to that but that will obviously apply to any server that uses ACE. If I go onto the ServerBrowser and select a server I can look at the Mods and Signatures but don't see a way to add any mods manually.