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To Modders on Packaging Mods


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It has been brought up several times and now seems like a good time to say this. There are many Mac Ghost Recon players out there that would love to be able to play more user made mods and I can't blame them, can you? There are some really awesome mods like Frostbite and Saving Pilot Ryan.

The problem is that most mods are packaged in an .exe format and not a .zip format. .exe is a Windows only type of file and totally incompatible with Mac, thus keeping your hard work from being enjoyed by the entire GR community.

With this post, I am asking all modders to start packaging their mods for both PC and Mac users by using both a self installer for PC users and WinZip for Mac users. I know that more Mac users will appreciate the effort you put in when you package your mods for them.

Rocky will post both versions at FilePlanet with no problems.

Spread the word amongst y'all and help to accomodate everyone of us Ghost Recon players.

Thanks, WK.

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Hey,

Not actually sure where to post this, but I cant seem to see how the mac users can convert any custom sounds in a mod from .wav to aif. without having lost the correct name on the 'EFFECTS' listing, which would then be ending in .aif for each entry, not .wav. I have also disovered that mac users cannot use Igor, so how is the new .aif effect entry made?

I can only find an .aif converter that is for a mac computer, and if it involves buying another converter anyhow, I just cant right now.

Oh well, the music may have to be foregone in my mode at worst for the mac guys I guess.

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hey all

WOW. I had no idea what the requirements are for mac mods. hm. I have to change the statement I made earlier from "shouldnt be long" for my mac ready mod to I am not sure when. After discovering file names cant be more than 31 characters long, well, its going to be a big undertaking because of many of my actor files, then I will have to change the names in the missions they are in too. I have a lot of actors(like over fifty in some missions).

Sorry about that. I thought all that was needed was to just zip the mod instead of .exe. I guess I was wrong. :wall::wall:

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mr. pibb, the filename issue is moot. it only applies to people running mac os 9. in mac os x the filenames can be as long as you want. I myself am a mac user and have little sympathy for those still running 9. if their hardware can handle ghost recon then it can surely handle mac os x.

to everyone: regarding .wav vs .aif, don't worry about it. all the .wavs will play just fine in mac ghost recon, only there is a bug with the sound volume. so, if you are within rolloff range of the sound it will play at full volume. this is only slightly annoying, and the mac users can convert the .wavs to .aifs themselves with a free utility called soundapp. also, if you do convert them to .aif, be aware that for some reason, in all the xml files (this includes effects.xml and all the .gun files) the entry must still have .wav behind it, EVEN IF the sound is .aif. don't ask me why.

so in short, as long as you make your textures with the correct alpha channel settings, and don't package your mod in an installer, they are totally mac friendly.

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mr. pibb, the filename issue is moot. it only applies to people running mac os 9. in mac os x the filenames can be as long as you want. I myself am a mac user and have little sympathy for those still running 9. if their hardware can handle ghost recon then it can surely handle mac os x.

to everyone: regarding .wav vs .aif, don't worry about it. all the .wavs will play just fine in mac ghost recon, only there is a bug with the sound volume. so, if you are within rolloff range of the sound it will play at full volume. this is only slightly annoying, and the mac users can convert the .wavs to .aifs themselves with a free utility called soundapp. also, if you do convert them to .aif, be aware that for some reason, in all the xml files (this includes effects.xml and all the .gun files) the entry must still have .wav behind it, EVEN IF the sound is .aif. don't ask me why.

so in short, as long as you make your textures with the correct alpha channel settings, and don't package your mod in an installer, they are totally mac friendly.

Thank you for the clarification Swifty. That will make it easier on the modders to help y'all out.

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  • 1 month later...

Actually, I would like to note, that you can not use 32+ character names for files for mods on macs. Ghost Recon was ported to Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X as a hybrid application (works in both systems), which also means it was ported and built as a "Carbon" (not sure whether this is a programming language) application. The Ghost Recon application itself cannot handle over 31+ character names at all, if so, the file will not be found.

gg i5works (the ones who ported it, Aspyr is merely a publisher).

Vi Sees

Edited by S.p.i.d.e.r. [CMG]
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  • 1 month later...

Now all we need is for the old .exe mods to be converted to .zip files. I keep finding mods i love but thay are in .exe so I can't use them! I also really hate zipped exe files. I think it will work but it turns out to be an exe file :wall: ! If any kind sole out there can convert the Sabre Teams to a Mac compatable file then that would be great. Thanks!

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some mods like Sabre Teams, CdnOps2 and War of Infamy use external pre-launch apps to configure the mods. In those cases a simple repackage won't help much, or you'll be very restricted in how the mods work. Just a fyi for the MAC users.

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  • 3 weeks later...

So, as a new member of this dleightful gaggle of modders, could I expect anyone to take up the gauntlet and attempt a mac version of Sabre Teams? I have a mac and a PC on my home LAN so I get to enjoy the PC mods but I have 7 other people who use macs who are sure to castrate me if I cannot find some good weapons mods that are compatible across both systesm. M16 armoury would be a good one as well!

I'm simply a player and not a modder so don't overload my brain with too much techno!

Cheers in advance people!

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  • 4 months later...
........ the filename issue is moot. it only applies to people running mac os 9. in mac os x the filenames can be as long as you want.

I wish this were a correct statement but it is not. OS X cannot read filenames over 31 characters either.

Unfortunately the port for Ghost Recon was designed for OS 9 and the Carbon OSX version is designed under that.... therefore all filenames have to be 31 characters or less. If not the textures will not show up incorrectly in-game. Trust me there are tons of mac people out there spending countless hours converting mods to make them run 100% on a mac.

Sorry if i'm repeating what someone already said, but there has been a bunch of mods released lately that have been a pain in the butt to convert, to say the least. Packaging is a small issue, the long file names and incompatable texture formats is the hard part.

Edited by MovingUnit:SOG
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  • 1 month later...

:( Help:

I just opened a ripway.com account. Do i upload the

files in the same pattern/heirarchy as in the mod?

:huh: [ Ex: Modname> Character> Allied ]

Or do i just upload them?

I'm having trouble uploading my mod and i have no idea

how to make it available for download after uploading.

And. . . What's a Blog? :blink:

Edited by Gen.Montgomery
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:(  Help:

I just opened a ripway.com account. Do i upload the

files in the same pattern/heirarchy as in the mod?

:huh:  [ Ex: Modname> Character> Allied ]

Or do i just upload them?

I'm having trouble uploading my mod and i have no idea

how to make it available for download after uploading.

And. . . What's a Blog?  :blink:

get in contact with rocky, he can arrange this for you.

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