Yet another new Mission Editor problem

[WWCephas]

/rant on

So I was doing a final prep of Kuban 4 importing some groups from previous missions (namely the German airbase groups North of the Bay) and when I went to test it the next time the mission took forever to load, and then when I tried to select a plane it would weird out and final come back with an error message "#plane already spawned" after a system timeout and not start the mission.  Restarting the game and then rebooting the OS did not help.   Then I tried clearing the ctree/mtree cache files and it got really strange.  The MP select mission would no longer recognize any Kuban 4 files.  It would still load in the Mission Editor with no problem and I tried saving it under different names (including changing the in game name in the briefing box but when I tried loading the mission it would refuse to see it.  Even when I moved all the latest files out and dug back a day old known good archived version of the mission it was invisible to the mission select menu.

So then I thought I would see if the DServer could load it.  I took the original file that caused the error and loaded it on the DServer and it started ok but the tick rate went through the moon, hitting 1200 in under 15 seconds.  (Anything over 19 starts network warping issues and messages)  I quickly stopped it and new I had a looping spawn issue somehow.

So I went back to the Editor and pulled out the German airbase groups I had added last and tried again.  This would still not work on the in game server but the dedicated server loaded it up normally and the tick rate remained at 4.5 and I was able to join and play normally.

I was able to narrow it down to the Abinskaya airbase group that was causing the issue, which is strange because I imported that file to Kuban 2's mission and had no problem.

I then recreated the Abinskaya Group file again by exporting from Kuban 2 and then added it again to Kuban 4 and it worked, on the DServer just fine, but my game server still will not see any mission that uses that base file.

So I gave up yesterday and started new again this morning and tried renaming the file by hand to something completely random, "Squirrrel", including hand editing the .eng file to change the name there, (the other country files do not record the mission name).

I then Made a new SQUIRREL folder for it, moved it there, loaded it in the Mission Editor just fine, resaved it and tried loading on the home server after deleting the cache files again.  Still invisible!  GAHHHHH!!!

Then I put on my thinking cap and thought why would it not see it, there must be something flagged on it and then I thought about the game type.  Firing up the Editor again I found the game type had somehow been switched to COOP.  NO WONDER it did not see it in the Dogfight menu.

Saved it, reloaded it, expecting to see it, and saw nothing again.  OMG!!!!

Then I remembered that damn ctree/mtree cache files that the menu system uses to store mission names under and will not update if anything at all changes to the name of the file or the in game name recorded in the .eng file after the first time they are run.  So I deleted them AGAIN and reloaded AGAIN.

Finally under the menu appears "Squirrel" and it loads and plays just fine.

 

SO DAMMIT NEXT WEEK WE ARE NOT PLAYING RE-KUBAN 4 WE ARE PLAYING SQUIRREL!!!!!  

 

Obviously something had corrupted that group I had imported that caused the looping spawn error but I have no clue how it got changed to COOP somehow.  Maybe if the ME did not crash so much I would not run into this crap, but hey why fix that problem 1C, you would not want to fix a problem that affects all players when you have more new planes to make that few people will use like the Nieuport.   

/rant off

 

[WWSandMan]

Well, I love the new mission name.

Sorry you're having so many issues with the mission editor. Something in the back of my mind says "think through editor issues like a Russian", that may help you. You know, double-negatives and speaking of yourself in third-person.

[WWCephas]

I also changed the old Kuban folder name to Wuhan during the experimentation, not sure if I am going to change it back, but I probably should before my computer gets a virus.....  /drum roll.  

[WWSittingduck]

I feel your pain Cephas.  Not sure if this will ease it any, but believe we all appreciate your efforts.

[WWPlague]

WHO says its impossible to get a virus on your computer, if you have a folder called Wuhan on your computer. However do not under any circumstances, name a folder "bushmeat". 

Cephas, I feel your pain. just when you think you've learned the rules, 777 says they must of changed, "thank heavens we have all ME users being our beta testers after every patch".    

[WWDriftwood]

22 hours ago, WWCephas said:

Then I put on my thinking cap and thought why would it not see it, there must be something flagged on it and then I thought about the game type.  Firing up the Editor again I found the game type had somehow been switched to COOP.  NO WONDER it did not see it in the Dogfight menu.

Saved it, reloaded it, expecting to see it, and saw nothing again.  OMG!!!!

Then I remembered that damn ctree/mtree cache files that the menu system uses to store mission names under and will not update if anything at all changes to the name of the file or the in game name recorded in the .eng file after the first time they are run.  So I deleted them AGAIN and reloaded AGAIN.

Finally under the menu appears "Squirrel" and it loads and plays just fine.

This screwed me up exactly the same way many times do to my bad habit of randomly rolling my mouse wheel like scratching my head while thinking.

So how the hell is this changing

Realized if my curser was over the game type property box "and I wasn't  paying attention to where my curser was" then rolled my mouse wheel; it scrolled the menu... I didn't even realize I change the type and never double checked the main properties before saving, I mean why check, I didn't change anything. Or did I? 

[WWGeezer]

It takes a special kind of crazy to do mission building.  It looks and feels like a programming application, but when you use it feels more like Hans Solo going into that bar in Star Wars.....which guy is going to shoot you in the back?  The 5 eyed guy with tentacles or the fly faced dude drooling into his beer?  You know someone wants to do it, just not sure who.