[PROGRAM] X Plugin Manager : V1.87 : 2024-01-06

[ASSTEROIDS]

Ah, you mean RMB and select install package? I'll try that.
Here are the problematic packages, in case you have a use knowing.
ADAMS-AAH
advanced navigation software
advanced navigation overrides
advanced thruster control
improved boarding
salvage claim software

They were are all dated prior to 2011, they probably have no use in my game (i'm just testing stuff).

I wouldn't dare ask more time of you, I'm already humbled by the fact that a guy named Cycrow actually answered my question, but I may be interested in knowing if those packages are useless with AP.

Thanks, there are a few "big names" who helped me already, I feel i'm not the only one understanding the value of this game. Now, if only everybody could keep their damm download links alive...

[TheBlackSun]

It should make a copy of the save games rather than moving, or deleting them.

Of course it has to delete them. What's the point of managing your savegames if they all remain there for the game to try and load, even if they're modded and incompatible?
First, it copies the saves to the managed folder, and when switching back to vanilla, it copies them back to the save folder. What else would it do?

It is possible the save games might still be on the computer somewhere.
if it tried to copy them and failed, it most likely meant that windows redirected the filesystem into a virtual folder instead. This happens quite alot when the game is installed into program files.

if you can find this virtual folder its possible they still remain in there. You could try searching the hard drive for save game files

And, where would that be, then?
Searching terrabytes of data isn't something that'll turn up any results in anything under half a day if the location is obscure. There are set paths for files to go to. Virtual folders just don't pop up out of nowhere, so any lead as to where I should look? I really doubt they are anywhere to be found. C:\Program Files, C:\Program Files (x86), that's all I can think of, and they ended up in neither of these. The manager doesn't manage savegames in the actual savegame folder under documents [why is that, BTW] and instead attempts to take them from there and place them in the games directory.

Or is the PluginManager folder supposed to be in user documents? Because it's not.

[X2-Illuminatus]

The Virtual Store is usually located in the user folder on the OS partition under \Users\username\AppData\Local\.

[ASSTEROIDS]

I want to know if the plugin manager is really important. I added mods to quite a few games and I always prefer the manual method instead of all those "installers" which I see as a middle guy not telling me everything, particularly when he made a mistake...

Is the plugin manager doing any kind of merging? Is there a risk if I unpack all the .spk and install them manually instead?

[Cycrow]

I want to know if the plugin manager is really important. I added mods to quite a few games and I always prefer the manual method instead of all those "installers" which I see as a middle guy not telling me everything, particularly when he made a mistake...

Is the plugin manager doing any kind of merging? Is there a risk if I unpack all the .spk and install them manually instead?

There will be some spk files that wont work by simply unpacking them. But it depends on the script.

ship files wont work by simply unpacking them, you will require alot of work if you wanted to add the ships manually into the game.

The main things you would need to do when doing it manually is to check the versions of the script files, many spk files will contain alot of shared scripts, which can be of different versions, you want to make sure you always use the latest version of each of the files.

spk that have custom wares will also not work by simply unpacking them, as the plugin manager generates a number of files that add in things like the wares into the game for the scripts to use.

any fake patches you install you will need to remember to manually rename into sequence

and finally, remember to install the correct version of EMP if you are installing scripts manually

[ASSTEROIDS]

spk that have custom wares will also not work by simply unpacking them, as the plugin manager generates a number of files that add in things like the wares into the game for the scripts to use.

Ok, I guess i'll keep on using it then. I'll still open them, just to see if there is a file I already have in the addon folder.

So, if I have to edit a file in a .spk to make it compatible, I must use the package creator to put it back under .spk form or I risk failure?

Thanks

[Cycrow]

spk that have custom wares will also not work by simply unpacking them, as the plugin manager generates a number of files that add in things like the wares into the game for the scripts to use.

Ok, I guess i'll keep on using it then. I'll still open them, just to see if there is a file I already have in the addon folder.

So, if I have to edit a file in a .spk to make it compatible, I must use the package creator to put it back under .spk form or I risk failure?

Thanks

it depends on the script and what you plan to edit.

but if all you are doing is editing some script files, you probably dont need to package them back up and can just edit them directly.

as long as you increase the version number of the files you edit, if you do ever install another spk that has the same files in, in wont overwrite as your edited version would be a higher version.

[ASSTEROIDS]

The package in question is MBRR, I had to edit setup.plugin.mbase.xml

Apart from that, I opened all my 15 or so .spk and found no files I already had, i'll keep them all under their .spk form, since they all seems to work fine in game too.

The exception is MBRR, this one contained a bunch of files I already had, all very much smaller or older. This is the exact situation which made me question the comportment of the plugin manager in the first place, since it will load MBRR without a word, and the game will do the same. But what happened behind the scene? did it replace that 12Kb job file with the 2Kb file from MBRR? I would guess so.

MBRR is not absolutely critical to my installation, but I like its options. I would be tempted to keep it unpacked and just say no to all overwrites, but I may be playing with fire.

[Cycrow]

what will happen will depend on the files. If the files it replaces are the core game files, rather than script files you have installed. Then the plugin manager backs them up and replaces them with the files from the spk.

if they are files that have been installed by another package, then it'll check the versions to determine which of the files to use.

as for the jobs file, it wont replace the original, instead it will be a separate file.

the game however, can only load 1 of each of the types files (included jobs)
So it'll load the one from MBRR instead of the original

[ASSTEROIDS]

Thanks a lot for the help.

[Fulgrymm]

I have a slight problem. I've installed a bunch of scripts and ships for AP. When I start it up, the main menu doesn't have anything in the background, just an empty starfield. Also, it is not possible to dock at any station besides solar power plants. The scripts and ships appear fine however. If I leave the plugin manager open when I run the game, the menu background is normal and I can dock anywhere again, but then the ships aren't in the game anymore. The scripts still seem fine though. OS is Win 10 64-bit, if that helps at all.

[TheBlackSun]

The Virtual Store is usually located in the user folder on the OS partition under \Users\username\AppData\Local\.

Yeah, just for the record, I checked there and nothing's been there. No folders nor files belonging to any X game, nor the manager.

[pumpkinmountain]

Hi all

A patch is required to build the SPK utilities on modern Linux (like Fedora 23). Published here:

https://gist.github.com/ringerc/c848dc0 ... 8452fa8658

I'd like to port the plugin manager over, but the svn repo seems to have vanished. Has it moved to gh or something?

[Cycrow]

SVN should be available here

http://cycrow.co.uk/svn/spk

[Bearishmouse]

I am having a strange problem.

When I run the manager for the first time it does not go to the main menu but instead opens up my downloads folder.

Even though I have a mod pack in there it can't detect it.

Does anyone know what might be happening?

Edit: When I tried reinstalling the software, the first time I tried to run the program I received a Windows Error code 470 before the behavior went back to the above.

[LloydB]

Is there anything I need to do differently for a windows 10 install, if I try to run a modded game with scripts via Plugin manager or via the usual shortcut X3 Reunion crashes , I have to run a vanilla game to play the game

[Cycrow]

I am having a strange problem.

When I run the manager for the first time it does not go to the main menu but instead opens up my downloads folder.

Even though I have a mod pack in there it can't detect it.

Does anyone know what might be happening?

Edit: When I tried reinstalling the software, the first time I tried to run the program I received a Windows Error code 470 before the behavior went back to the above.

The directory folder will show the first time you run it if it cant find the game installation, you need to tell it where the game is.

not sure the other error, but if its not getting past the error, you could try deleting the pluginmanager.dat file that should be in mydocuments/egosoft
then try again.

make sure you select the folder that contains the game exe, so for AP, you would select the TC directory rather than addon

[Cycrow]

Is there anything I need to do differently for a windows 10 install, if I try to run a modded game with scripts via Plugin manager or via the usual shortcut X3 Reunion crashes , I have to run a vanilla game to play the game

Shouldn't need to do anything differently in Windows 10.

where does the crash happen, is it at the begining or after the main menu you are starting/loading a game ?

also, what type of crash is it.

is it possible you have tryed to install TC/AP mods into X3R?

[Bearishmouse]

Thank you very much! Since I had it installed on a separate hard disk in my steam folder it could not detect it.

Cheers, I feel like a bit of an idiot for not working it out myself.

[sepa]

Hey Cycrow.

Could you please share the secret of adding ships to shipyard - how the plugin manager does it?

I basically screw up and mixed using the PM with the X3Ed2, now I am in a bit uncomfy situation where if I launch PM it will overwrite changes I made with X3Ed2... (yes I can copy stuff over, I used .txt for saving my changes so that I can easily put them back in, but still...).
So I wanted to remove the ships from some shipyards on my own, without use of PM, then do some nice cleanup and think how to package my changes together and make .spk out of it.
Trouble is, I have no idea how PM is adding them to shipyards I've been peeking around, thinking it might be a script as I can see no related things in .cat's, but no luck.

Cheers,
Sepa