Release the 0.5.x client!!

[Bertram]

Hi everyone,

I'm opening this topic about the release of the 0.5 mana client version.
I'm speaking of this piece of code:
http://gitorious.org/mana/mana/commits/0.5

For people who doesn't what I'm talking about, the mana client 0.5 version is a client version
aiming at the most stability possible with many improvement, including options to get it run
on older computers.

Why 0.5?
Because this version only supports the tA protocol, which is by the only used most of our users, anyway.
It's an half-protocol release, hence the name, but IMHO, much more stable than the beta2 we're
proposing on the manasource.org website.

So now, what is preventing the release of the 0.5 version?
Wouldn't be consistent to release the 0.5 version on manasource since it could permit to add it to the TMW download page, after rebranding, and make our 0.0.29.1 users slowly get away from this version?

Thanks for your answers

Best regards.

[natsuki3]

its work for Windows ?
( to try it )

[Big Crunch]

I've got it for windows and compiled it in linux and it works well

[chaslinux]

aiming at the most stability possible with many improvement, including options to get it run on older computers.

Bertram I've been installing the 0.29 client (under Linux) on systems as little as PIII 800MHz with 512MB RAM and it seems to run fine.

Will the 0.5 client continue to work with other TMW eAthena-based servers or is this tA-only protocol only for the new TMWServ server?

If you need someone to compile on a range of systems pm me or catch me on IRC.

[Freeyorp101]

Will the 0.5 client continue to work with other TMW eAthena-based servers or is this tA-only protocol only for the new TMWServ server?

tA -> tmwAthena, the new manaserv will not work with 0.5.


---Freeyorp

[AnonDuck]

From what I gather, everyone is confused about how to do the branding on 0.5.

I think these are the issues that need to be resolved before a TMW-branded release can happen:

ManaClient's branding system is funky, therefore branding it as TMW requires an OS/desktop environment that can do .mana file associations and complicated installers to setup these associations. Instead I suggest that it be modified to search for a default branding.xml file somewhere, but still accept an override on the command line.

Should it install as "The Mana World", "Mana", "Mana for TMW", or what? What should the install folder(On some OSes) and binary(on all OSes) be called?
What should it be called in the README, help, and docs?
The packaging scripts for all OSes will have to be edited to reflext the above

All the documentation in the source archive has been search/replaced "TMW" -> "Mana", much of the time this does not make sense, ex: "ManaSource is a 2d MMORPG".. eh?

The current branding system does not allow all of these issues to be easily resolved...

[chaslinux]

Should it install as "The Mana World", "Mana", "Mana for TMW", or what? What should the install folder(On some OSes) and binary(on all OSes) be called?

On Ubuntu the installation is sudo apt-get install tmw, so something like manaclient (not mc == midnight commander) makes sense as a name. We know it's a client and that it's tied to something "mana."

Since Freeyorp mention that it's eathena-only it might be more appropriate to brand it something like manaEAclient, but it doesn't sound very good -- ditto for EA-manaclient.

[Bertram]

Hi,

I think these are the issues that need to be resolved before a TMW-branded release can happen:

ManaClient's branding system is funky, therefore branding it as TMW requires an OS/desktop environment that can do .mana file associations and complicated installers to setup these associations.
Instead I suggest that it be modified to search for a default branding.xml file somewhere, but still accept an override on the command line.

A default branding file somewhere is an idea, especially for Os like windows. I second that and wonder if the others agree about it.

Should it install as "The Mana World", "Mana", "Mana for TMW", or what? What should the install folder(On some OSes) and binary(on all OSes) be called?
What should it be called in the README, help, and docs?
The packaging scripts for all OSes will have to be edited to reflect the above

The mana world, just as the former tmw release.
The README should be adapted in the tmw repo (I said tmw, not mana) to reflect the current client state.

All the documentation in the source archive has been search/replaced "TMW" -> "Mana", much of the time this does not make sense, ex: "ManaSource is a 2d MMORPG".. eh?

Once again, in the mana repo, yes, but not in the tmw repo where the current doc is still at the 0.0.29.1 state. This one is to be upgraded.

And as usual, please everyone, don't complicate simple things.
The mana client can be released as a mana client. Then, and only then, the code can imported in the tmw repo and the branding can start.

General needs can be pushed to the mainline client. Specific need can be kept up in the tmw repository, once the code has been imported.

Best regards.

[Rotonen]

So you're suggesting we rebrand and republish Mana 0.5 as TMW 0.0.30 as a transitional step towards how branding is supposed to work over time?

That sounds fairly good to me, actually.

[Bertram]

Hi,

Exactly

Best regards.

[i]

So you're suggesting we rebrand and republish Mana 0.5 as TMW 0.0.30 as a transitional step towards how branding is supposed to work over time?

That sounds fairly good to me, actually.

I agree :P

[Bertram]

Hi,

Translation files have been updated and the autotools support removed from the 0.5 client.

Now, translations updates apart, a last blocking patch has to be included to make the client be auto-branded,
as requested by MadCamel and agreed by thorbjorn, here: http://bugs.manasource.org/view.php?id=271

Once done, the client will be technically ready for release as is. The branding process will then be able to start.

Best regards.

[nmaligec]

Will this become the new official client and do you think that everyone using the old one will switch over? I really wanted to use mob attack particle-effects to give them visible range, but this was not supported in the old client. I am hoping that this will become an official feature.

Also can I make a request for a new feature? If its not too difficult, I would like to eventually be able to have an npc switch animations from inside a script. Obviously new server side functions would also be required. The intention would be to add interactive objects, like: players opening and closing gates; spike traps that are hidden until stepped on; a water pump that pumps water when used; lighting or extinguishing fires, torches, candles. In my opinion, this would make the world a lot more dynamic.

[Bertram]

Hi,

I think no actual new features will make it in the client.
Yet, what you're requesting seems totally server dependant to me.

Ta Server developpers will be able to this question.
I also wondered whether it would already be possible to switch the npc based on such events.
For instance having two npcs: one closed chest, and one opened chest and adding the key to one would switch the npc.

I hope someone will answer.

Best regards.

[nmaligec]

Thanks for the quick reply.

I did get a gate opening on player interaction. Its a really messy implementation but looks good in game. I was hoping to clean this up and make it easier to do, with the request I made. A simple 2 frame open/closed chest should be easy, but anything with animation is fuggly. I'll start a new thread for a server only approach.

My 2 other questions are still unanswered though:
1. will mob arrow attacks be possible in the new client?
2. will this become the new official client that everyone will upgrade to?