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

[sickboy 13]

Hotfix build deployed to address reported performance issue while idle, and some other minor corrections:

• Fixed performance issue using up CPU even while idle
  
• Improved SIX Tools dialog / message. Might also process faster with the cpu issue resolved
  
• Added Show pings as Number Setting - changes the serverinfo panel in the controller, and the pings in both grid and list
  
• Added Refresh Server Info and Show Server Info to server context menus. And Refresh Server Info to Server Info Panel
  

Updating from build 282 should be a smooth ride.

Edited January 11, 2013 by Sickboy

[runforrest 10]

how do i install mods with PlaywithSIX???

I want to be able to play on public ACE servers

So far i just installed ACE 1.13 stable manually (which is horrible as theres is x hotfixes - not ONE 1-file download for easy install- confusion for new users should be perfect,even experienced ArmA players struggle - i still dont know if everyone in our gaming group has the same,right hotfixed stable version)

I always install mods manually since years (i have 150 active or so) and have no problems

Now i am FORCED to use a "social"-network-idontgiveafuckaboutprivacy-idontgiveafuckaboutsecurity- tool to be able to play a community made mod on public servers. Ok great. Im not happy with it but i want to play so lets see how it works.

I go to ACE Wiki (http://wiki.ace-mod.net/)

I click on download

I click on ongoing development

i have to scroll down the whole document and at the very end it says Downloads, Updater DOWNLOAD very easy to find lol

ok i click Download

there it says:

SIX Launcher is in the process of being replaced by the evolved and much improved Play withSIX. Recommended:

I install PlaywithSIX, i agree to whatever it takes (hello Steam, hello Origin,hello F.ckbook, hello ICQ... f...youall)

So im logged in, click on mods... nothing

Nowhere there is any sign,hint,whatever how i install/download/upgrade mods... really?

Sry that im a bit pissed off atm. I know i have no right to demand anything. This is all hard work of many many people and im sure u try to do ur best, but getting ACE to work for public use is horrible.

This is not userfriendly at all! And keep in mind i am an experienced ArmA user.

P.S. I tried to post this in support section of PlaywithSIX

I typed in "how to download mods"

I used the first link that popped up as it was exactly what i was looking for (3month old)

There some1 was asking the same thing

Sickboy replied with something similar what i quoted above and a link

The link was no help at all

I wrote the reply that i am just posting here right now

When i tried to send the reply it said i need to be logged in

I WAS logged in and i tried to send the reply at least 10 times no success!

I hope this helps u to make thins (especially ACE) more userfriendly

Edited January 12, 2013 by RunForrest
typo

[sickboy 13]

Hi,

ACE recommends to use SIX Updater, the documentation over there is also for SIX Updater. Not Launcher, nor Play withSIX.

SU is still available for download on the www.six-updater.net download page. OTOH, I do recommend PwS over SU.

I do not entirely understand what problem you are experiencing, if you want to install and run manually, then there would be no need for any of the utilities (But, I can't recommend doing it manually as ACE 1.13 stable is very old. 1.14 is scheduled for a release in the near future).

For starters, Play withSIX advertises the basic guide available at http://play.withsix.com/thankyou

With PwS, installing ACE is as simple as:

1. Start PwS

2. Go to Mod Selection and Select ACE. If you want to enable extra optional expansions, expand the ACE ModSet (arrow on left) and enable what you desire

3. Click the main action button at the bottom that says "Install"

If you run into any issues in this process, please specify them, our support section is available at http://play.withsix.com/support

Lastly the social features of PwS are optional. You do not need to register, login, or even expand the PwS social (left) section, if you have no interest in such features.

The ACE documentation will be updated for PwS once it goes out of Preview, once it can replace SIX Updater fully.

---------- Post added at 11:42 ---------- Previous post was at 11:26 ----------

See the red marked areas on this pic:

Edited January 12, 2013 by Sickboy

[runforrest 10]

Hi, thanks for ur reply

Now i see the problem

I didnt have the window that ur screens shows, or i had but couldnt see it

It shows up first (was very small- and overlapped by the other next opening window) and i clicked on register

Than the other window comes up

If u minimize that window the main PwS Window gets minimzed too, and i never noticed its there! After i registered i totaly forgot that there was another window before.

I alwyas clicked on the Mods tab in the other window, so it was a (unfortunate) misunderstanding.

Maybe u should look for that window thing, thats really confusing when u dont know it :)

Regarding ACE

I see nowhere a recommendation to use SU rather than PwS, i just rechecked

If u follow my steps ahead and click the Download button for SU theres recommendation to use PwS instead of SU.

Btw why does ACE recommend to use SU? What can go wrong when i use PwS? Of course now i want to use PwS since i already installed it.

Additionally i want to keep the ACE 1.13 stable version installed, temporarily i will add "_stable" to the ACE folders names - would that work with PwS? Will PwS ignore those folders?

I also have my own addon folder structure within my ArmA2 directory for best clarity (e.g. @GDT\Binoc, @GDT\Compass, @GDT\jav_fix or @Fixes\Landtex, @Fixes\sap_clutter etc...) Can PwS handle that?

Afaik(maybe im wrong) SU installed mods to prenamed fixed foldernames.

I do not entirely understand what problem you are experiencing, if you want to install and run manually, then there would be no need for any of the utilities

I cant manually install the ongoing development version, that i need to play on public servers (can i ?). Theres is no servers that use the stable version, or i cant find them because the ArmA miltiplayer browser doesnt really work very well as we all know...

Lastly the social features of PwS are optional. You do not need to register, login, or even expand the PwS social (left) section, if you have no interest in such features.

I apologize to rant about the social features, it was a wrong assumption by me that registration is needed to use PlaywithSIX, i didnt even know that the main tool and the "social" stuff is devided.

Im very cautious with registration/account stuff. No one cares about customer/user privacy, companys try to get ur data no matter what... Thats a topic where i get mad fast, it wasnt directly aimed at u :)

*edit

oh and

1.14 is scheduled for a release in the near future

thats awsome news :bounce3:

[sickboy 13]

Hi, thanks for ur reply

Now i see the problem

I didnt have the window that ur screens shows, or i had but couldnt see it

It shows up first (was very small- and overlapped by the other next opening window) and i clicked on register

Than the other window comes up

If u minimize that window the main PwS Window gets minimzed too, and i never noticed its there! After i registered i totaly forgot that there was another window before.

I alwyas clicked on the Mods tab in the other window, so it was a (unfortunate) misunderstanding.

Maybe u should look for that window thing, thats really confusing when u dont know it :)

Ahhh, right, thanks we'll look into it!

Regarding ACE

I see nowhere a recommendation to use SU rather than PwS, i just rechecked

If u follow my steps ahead and click the Download button for SU theres recommendation to use PwS instead of SU.

ACE only talks about SIX Updater, it is once you get to SIX Updater that it mentions that SIX Launcher (the dumbed down client) is in process of being replaced. SU is still available there.

But i'll admit it can easily lead to confusion :)

Btw why does ACE recommend to use SU? What can go wrong when i use PwS? Of course now i want to use PwS since i already installed it.

PwS is officially still in Preview stage, although I think it is pretty decent these days already.

SU also has a few more features and use cases that are not completely covered yet in PwS. As such, officially, SU is still recommended for ACE.

If PwS suffices for your needs, I definitely recommend sticking to that. We're close to moving it out of preview and will then adjust the ACE docs accordingly.

Additionally i want to keep the ACE 1.13 stable version installed, temporarily i will add "_stable" to the ACE folders names - would that work with PwS? Will PwS ignore those folders?

Yes that's the way to do it - rename the stable folders to names unknown to PwS, and they will be ignored.

I also have my own addon folder structure within my ArmA2 directory for best clarity (e.g. @GDT\Binoc, @GDT\Compass, @GDT\jav_fix or @Fixes\Landtex, @Fixes\sap_clutter etc...) Can PwS handle that?

Afaik(maybe im wrong) SU installed mods to prenamed fixed foldernames.

I am afraid we do not support this, and there's a chance we might never.

Technically it is complex to support, especially once you loose the mapping between folder structures and mods, e.g on reinstall, new PC, or otherwise. (imagine with 100's of mods etc)

We would rather prefer to enhance the mod browsing/searching/filtering experience in the client, so that you hopefully do not feel any need to have such folder structure, and have no need whatsoever to even visit the game or mod installation folder in Explorer.

Support for installing mods not downloaded over our network should complete that.

However we're open to arguments for the structured folder handling; our opinion is not written into stone :)

I cant manually install the ongoing development version, that i need to play on public servers (can i ?). Theres is no servers that use the stable version, or i cant find them because the ArmA miltiplayer browser doesnt really work very well as we all know...

Correct, over at ACE we are used to rapid development and deployment, and the mod is fairly massive. It is senseless to redistribute full sized archives or even setup elaborate schemes with incremental update packages.

Especially when the technology used by PwS/SU etc handles this all and much more. It uses delta patching to only download delta's representing the changes between the local and remote file, and enforces correctness of the files and removes unknown added files and makes sure there are no missing files.

It also takes care of the elaborate launching process with all the modfolders and such :)

I apologize to rant about the social features, it was a wrong assumption by me that registration is needed to use PlaywithSIX, i didnt even know that the main tool and the "social" stuff is devided.

Im very cautious with registration/account stuff. No one cares about customer/user privacy, companys try to get ur data no matter what... Thats a topic where i get mad fast, it wasnt directly aimed at u :)

No worries, we've been around long enough to know how it is, and we're only human too and know all too well how frustration can get the better of us :)

Still, it is somewhat painful to run into these after long and hard weeks of development and just having released another major milestone, but we will survive :P

Edited January 12, 2013 by Sickboy

[runforrest 10]

So it seems everything works like a charm, i really like the convient serverbrowsing, ACE update was smooth, only small issue was i had to remap all ACE keys again, my bindings didnt survive the update.

Regarding custom folder structure, for me that is no problem, i prefer having control over everything that happens on my pc anyway.

I havent tried yet how to join a server with my own addon collection, but i think i will stick to spirited machines ArmA launcher, i dont think i want to rearrange my addonsorting.

This tool is a big step forward and should have been there from the start of ArmA2 from BIS itself imho, or even after release as small addon for low price.

Keep up the good work, im sure this is the future of addon management, even for control freaks like me :)

[tonygrunt 10]

Slight annoyances with the installer/updater.

I have installed PlayWithSIX in another drive and yet when updating it prompts to install on the default.

I got the sorry prompt and after that the thank you prompt. Wasn't this already addresed?

[sickboy 13]

So it seems everything works like a charm, i really like the convient serverbrowsing, ACE update was smooth, only small issue was i had to remap all ACE keys again, my bindings didnt survive the update.

Regarding custom folder structure, for me that is no problem, i prefer having control over everything that happens on my pc anyway.

I havent tried yet how to join a server with my own addon collection, but i think i will stick to spirited machines ArmA launcher, i dont think i want to rearrange my addonsorting.

This tool is a big step forward and should have been there from the start of ArmA2 from BIS itself imho, or even after release as small addon for low price.

Keep up the good work, im sure this is the future of addon management, even for control freaks like me :)

Awesome, and thanks, stay tuned! :)

Slight annoyances with the installer/updater.

I have installed PlayWithSIX in another drive and yet when updating it prompts to install on the default.

I got the sorry prompt and after that the thank you prompt. Wasn't this already addresed?

Hi,

This was announced together with the release announcement: http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?138444-Play-withSIX-Community-Preview-Evolution-of-SIX-Launcher-and-in-time-also-SU&p=2276736&viewfull=1#post2276736

Regretfully this requires a "Major Upgrade" type, performing an uninstall and reinstall of the software. Apologies for the inconvenience

Major upgrade types are sometimes technically required, like when removing components; and boy did we remove a few ;-)

ThankYou (with basic guide) / Sorry (with feedback option) are intended for Clean installs, and for Uninstalls respectively. Since Major Upgrade types do both, you get both.

The difference with before though is that they are optional now, and don't just open the browser without asking.

The other issue we solved a while ago is that we unintentionally suffered from Major Upgrade types even when they seemed technically not required.

Edited January 13, 2013 by Sickboy

[runforrest 10]

hi

I noticed when updating ACE, CBA and beta patch are also updated. Is that really necessary? That would mean that everyone in my group is forced to update cba and beta very often(has also to use SU or PwS), or i have to revert my CBA and beta patch to older versions. So in the end its all or nothing or more work me?

[galzohar 31]

It is probably a good idea for everyone to update in the same fashion to ensure everyone are using the latest versions of everything. If you wish to not update certain mods, even if it is somehow possible, will require you to check whether not updating them is even an option (for example if new version of ACE requires new version of CBA).

[Gunter Severloh 4064]

Hi, when i start playw6, I get an error message, and says something like i need to update the net framework,

so i did, and then i got the latest version which is 4.5, trying to install that gives me an error

The .NET Framework 4.5 is not supported on this operating system.

So now what, SU works np for me, but playw6 will start but i get an error message once started, i followed the links and instructions but to no avail.

Other then that. I had posted on the Six updater thread about a small issue about SLX Im wondering about, and then a post before that I had asked a

few questions about getting COWarMod on six updater, and maybe on Playw6, but right now Im not sure.

[iceman77 18]

So in the end its all or nothing or more work me?

Feels that way sometimes! Just to do simple things...

[tryteyker 28]

Okay so I'm still getting used to PwS since I recently switched from SU to this. Question is, am I able to start singleplayer via PwS (since pws does not seem to install the mods directly), or is it MP only? It's pretty neat that once you want to join a server it automatically installs everything for you, but I still haven't been able to start up SP or install specific mods (it only seems to show the mods popular mods, such as ACE, I44 etc). Also I'm not on my home computer so I can't check anything atm.

//Edit

Actually doesn't matter anymore because I got ArmAII Launcher to check in the My Documents folder. Just leaves me with installing custom addons since I'm only able to look at 16 mods (but am able to add custom mods to a particular set, like ace)

Edited January 31, 2013 by tryteyker

[sickboy 13]

A new build with several improvements was released recently; http://play.withsix.com/changelog

Expect more builds coming weeks with new features and improvements, more on that soon!

We welcome your feedback, suggestions, questions and bug reports at our tracker: http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com

(you can login with your withSIX account, or any of the other supported authentication methods)

hi

I noticed when updating ACE, CBA and beta patch are also updated. Is that really necessary? That would mean that everyone in my group is forced to update cba and beta very often(has also to use SU or PwS), or i have to revert my CBA and beta patch to older versions. So in the end its all or nothing or more work me?

Hi,

CBA is a dependency of ACE so generally it needs to be updated with ACE too, also each CBA build should be backwards compatible.

Regarding Beta; not sure what's wrong with updating it frequently, the new versions contain often useful fixes, and the software deploys delta patching?

Also as long as there is no Major or Minor version bump, there should generally not be any issues running different versions on clients connected to the same server.

When BI makes incompatible changes generally they always bump the minor version (e.g 1.62 -> 1.63 etc).

But you can disable Beta updating if you like; http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/how_to_manually_control_arma_2_oa_beta_patch_updates

The purpose of the software/official network has always been to update your mods to the latest version available on the network, this includes all dependencies.

To have full control you could setup a SU custom repo with the versions of mods/missions you desire.

However for the future we're looking into providing more control in general, and if we could support multiple versions

Doing this right is fairly complex, and we're talking about even more space and bandwidth usage for our Network.

---------- Post added at 12:41 ---------- Previous post was at 12:39 ----------

Hi, when i start playw6, I get an error message, and says something like i need to update the net framework,

so i did, and then i got the latest version which is 4.5, trying to install that gives me an error

So now what, SU works np for me, but playw6 will start but i get an error message once started, i followed the links and instructions but to no avail.

Hi,

The alternative solution is to install .NET Framework 4.5,

if you're still on Windows XP, use the primary solution listed in the dialog instead.

See the two notes for some more info: http://play.withsix.com/posts/87-play-withsix-v1-2-build-282-released

---------- Post added at 12:45 ---------- Previous post was at 12:42 ----------

Okay so I'm still getting used to PwS since I recently switched from SU to this. Question is, am I able to start singleplayer via PwS (since pws does not seem to install the mods directly), or is it MP only? It's pretty neat that once you want to join a server it automatically installs everything for you, but I still haven't been able to start up SP or install specific mods (it only seems to show the mods popular mods, such as ACE, I44 etc). Also I'm not on my home computer so I can't check anything atm.

//Edit

Actually doesn't matter anymore because I got ArmAII Launcher to check in the My Documents folder. Just leaves me with installing custom addons since I'm only able to look at 16 mods (but am able to add custom mods to a particular set, like ace)

To operate in Singleplayer mode instead of Multiplayer, please find the switch at the bottom of the Play tab that reads: Multiplayer (0 ) Singleplayer

PwS preview is designed for supporting the larger popular mods like DayZ, I44, CWR2 and ACE. You can indeed add any of the other 400+ mods available on our network to any of the main supported modsets.

Fully custom modsets, SU Custom Repo support, and much more is in development, and are targets to move PwS out of Preview.

In the mean time you can still use the old SIX Updater if you need these features right now.

Edited February 3, 2013 by Sickboy

[doveman 7]

There appears to be a bug in PwS as even if I untick the "Update beta mod" option and restart, it's still showing the big orange Update box and when I mouse over it, the only thing it refers to is beta 101480. I very much don't want to update my beta as there's been a lot of issues with the ones since 100697. Until this is fixed I can't update any of the mods like ACE as it will update the beta as well.

[sickboy 13]

There appears to be a bug in PwS as even if I untick the "Update beta mod" option and restart, it's still showing the big orange Update box and when I mouse over it, the only thing it refers to is beta 101480. I very much don't want to update my beta as there's been a lot of issues with the ones since 100697. Until this is fixed I can't update any of the mods like ACE as it will update the beta as well.

Please see http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/how_to_manually_control_arma_2_oa_beta_patch_updates

Btw some of the issues with latest betas are solved with the newly released CBA_CO.

Edited February 7, 2013 by Sickboy

[sickboy 13]

New build released to address issues with joining servers / starting the game with the right mods which some users experienced with specific encoding in username, etc:

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

[sickboy 13]

plz del

Edited February 11, 2013 by Sickboy

[sickboy 13]

I am happy to report that basic SU Custom repo client support for Play withSIX is pretty much in the final stages of development.

Several community admins are already experimenting and providing feedback, and we hope to make it widely available real soon.

The first implementation supports downloading/updating mods based on server.yml,

from existing SU Custom Repo's hosted either on http (zsync) or rsync mirrors, as well as App support like TS3/Mumble etc.

In the near future, we'll add full Repo Browser support so that you can also browse repositories again and manually pick mods from them (so without server.yml).

We have more in store for you guys regarding repo support, management and hosting but more on that later!

Lastly, as an added bonus, we've added support for Yoma AddonSync repositories (yea you read that right, YAS) as well,

making it extra easy to migrate, or allow players to join from either clients, without need to adjust existing infrastructure at the same time.

We have another surprise for you all lurking in the dark... But .. few more days before we shine some light on that ;-)

There appears to be a bug in PwS as even if I untick the "Update beta mod" option and restart, it's still showing the big orange Update box and when I mouse over it, the only thing it refers to is beta 101480. I very much don't want to update my beta as there's been a lot of issues with the ones since 100697. Until this is fixed I can't update any of the mods like ACE as it will update the beta as well.

Please see http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/how_to_manually_control_arma_2_oa_beta_patch_updates

Btw some of the issues with latest betas are solved with the newly released CBA_CO.

For next build there will be a message box explaining this when you disable Update Beta option, however for the future we hope to improve the control much better.

Edited February 11, 2013 by Sickboy

[armatech 8]

cant wait to get this going

[doveman 7]

Please see http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/how_to_manually_control_arma_2_oa_beta_patch_updates

OK, that seems to have worked. If the option doesn't work without also deleting the rsync folder though, I'd suggest that PwS automatically deletes that folder when the user unticks it (and then restarts PwS because it doesn't take effect until it's restarted) as it's not very user-friendly at the moment.

[Gunter Severloh 4064]

Hi Sickboy,

Thank you for adding COWarMod to Play with Six Network, and SU.

Two questions, I seen that on the PW6 that the mod is under AI Enhancements, mod I'm thinking probably should be under total conversion as

there are only a handful of addons/mods in CWM that are AI enhancements, the majority of the mod (95%) is all gameplay features.

2nd question is I also see that COSLX and COWarMod are on the sixupdater, my question is what happens when you convert the mod to be on SU?

[daleyg 0]

Nice tool!

Just started using it to aquire the latest ACE mod, server browser is also a big plus for me I like it.

But one question about the browser, Is there a way to filter out DAYZ servers only?

Thanks!

[sickboy 13]

Nice tool!

Just started using it to aquire the latest ACE mod, server browser is also a big plus for me I like it.

But one question about the browser, Is there a way to filter out DAYZ servers only?

Thanks!

Thanks :) Please have a look here; http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/add_to_filter_of_servers_function_exclusion_by_name_mods_improvement_option_hide_modded

---------- Post added at 13:46 ---------- Previous post was at 13:19 ----------

Spent yesterday on improving reliability, fallbacks/recovery on transfer failures etc, improve compatibility with security suites (AV/FW),

and improved notifications to the user on error, with possible causes, resolutions, workarounds or where to find more info and support etc.

We've also increased our network capacity again, Peak times seem to really really Peak these days :)

We've also setup and are continuesly improving our Troubleshooting FAQ: http://getsatisfaction.withsix.com/withsix/topics/troubleshooting_connection_problems_exception_during_convert_install_update

In case of issues, as always, we are ready and waiting for your reports, suggestions/feedback and requests over at http://play.withsix.com/support

[fraczek 4]

With the penultimate and the last update as well (.340), when PwS asked me to Update and restart, a dialog popped up during the MSI install progress telling me that it need to reboot in order to update (don't remember the exact text), with Ok and Cancel. Clicking Ok, PwS finished updating and restarted, without the reboot. Is the reboot really needed, and is this expected behaviour?