[VIDOC] OpenSauce (Caveat Emptor!)

Newest Vidoc is out now: HTML Link.

You can download the powerpoint slides here.


Vidoc is meant to give end-modders an overview of OpenSauce and highlight the Halo1 Yelo portion of OS. A "Buyer beware" informational.

Bungie appears to pronounce "Vidoc" as "vye-doc" but I and an English TTS program pronounce it as "vi-doc" (vi as in video). I guess in a way this could actually be labeled a "Pidoc" for "Presented Visual Documentation". But what's in a name really? Just as long as you're consistent 90% of the time I guess

Links are borked.

Fixed

Damn this is descriptive.

The audio was actually recorded (in blocks) before the slideshow was recorded. Camtasia kinda screwed with the timing of the slide changes tho.

I probably won't write an actual full script for the next one, just more like bullet-cards it. Didn't like the feeling of reading back verbatim the script and then messing up in one part which will then mess me up on the next line etc. The second part was unscripted.

I assume thats you in the vid? You sound waayyyyyyyyy different on xbl. But nice video

Xbox mics are cheap and are like...8 bit or some shit

No offense but that breathing is pretty weird.

Yeah, I was having a rough time finding a suitable cut-off for input sound so it wouldn't pick up small stuff. Then since I didn't do it all in one take, I'd end up coming back and having the headset's mic adjusted some place else

Thank you for all your hard work and congrats on achievment! Well Done! I learned alot watching this vidoc! I think this is better than a vidoc! Its very informational and instructional. Anyway as of right now I have been trying to write a new plugin for SteelIXB's HEK+ to use open sauce. at the moment i have only write 1 new definition which does work however its not fully tested. and im not sure if I have included all your features to imput correctly.This new definition will add a new menu inside tool-Ex and add a new build-cache-file-ex to that menu, from there you can fill in the rest and hit start. my next was going to be real time tag editing but I can't seem to get tool-ex to work right with. os_tool.exe unfortunately I believe a new tool-ex.dll is needed to accomplish the task of this work. Anyway here is the one new definition I have so far.

Quote:

---

<MenuItem Text="Open Sauce Tool">
<MenuItem Text="Build a Map or Yelo Cache File Ex" Description="Builds a cache file with extra Open Sauce arguments from a Scenario tag. Output cache file will be in .yelo format instead of .map if the use-memory-updates is on.">
<TextItem Text="Mod Name" Name="Mod Name"
Description="The name of the mod this scenario belongs to. This will also be used when naming the new data-files" />
<ListItem Text="Create A New" Name="Create A New"
Description="Should new data-files be created before building the cache?" />
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" />
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" />
<ListItem Text="Store Resources" Name="Store Resources"
Description="Should the scenario's bitmaps/sounds/locale data be stored in the data-files?" />
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" />
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" />
<ListItem Text="Use Memory Upgrades" Name="Use Memory Upgrades"
Description="Does the scenario require Open Sauce's memory upgrades to run? Produces .yelo file instead of .map" />
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" />
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" />
<FileItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Filter="Scenario Tags (*.scenario)|*.scenario"
Description="Scenario tag to create a map or yelo cache file from." />
<Tool Arguments="build-cache-file-ex [Mod Name] [Create A New] [Store Resources] [Use Memory Upgrades] [Scenario]" />
</MenuItem>

---

[size=2][font=Comic Sans MS]Might as well update this I have been useing it to get the job done for months now.
in order to set this up you need to completly deactivate tool.exe.
you will need to make another copy of OS_Tool.exe and rename it to tool.exe
I hope that makes sence to you because HEK plus is desined to work with the tool.exe.
and this deffinitions update only works with os_tool.exe so it must be renamed!
I cant make hekplus work with os_tool.exe as of yet unless it is!
I am doing this to make a gui for real time open senario tag editing but so far I dont have it. however I have mannaged to come up with a useful feture. that is quick and easy compileing of .yelo map files!
I realy want a gui for realtime tag editing i try and make working deffinition but cant seem to get it working because of the hek+ toolex.dll that StealXB Made hes not around anymore and I have no accsess to the sorce code.
we basicly realy need a new one for us to use it with OS. But anyway renaming of the exe file seems to close the gap when it comes to the program serching for the exe now exicuting the commands is a diffrent story. this whole proces of understanding how StealXB wroght the deffeinitions file was complicated for em to figure out I probaby stare at the code for a good couple of days and we wright it 3 times before I got it working and functioning as I had intended.
all you need to know is this is a realy easy set up that is totaly worth your tiem to set up and will save you alot of time.
when compileing your maps to yelo format in os tool.exe
you simply need to rename the file and update with my deffintions file.xml
not only have I included a new feture. but I have layed it on top of a new section (frontend)inside hek plus.
this way when ever a new function is invented they will all be under the Open Sause Tool section.
[green][size=4]I am very intrested to know what other functions or OS_tool commands you would like to see implemented?[/size=4][/green]
Trouble shooting tips!
make sure you install hek plus with the orignal .msi installer from V1 and then updated with the latest updated files
If you plan on useing a diffrent task I recomend you simply restart the program!
EG:if you switch from wanting to compile maps to wanting to compile bitmaps.
You should be running your hek+ from the proper directory!
EG: C:\Program Files\SteealXB\Halo Editing Kit Plus
Make sure your Hek Plus is totaly up to date and installed in the proper directory! Not some folder on your desktop or root of halo!
Make sure you have all your .hekp files!
hekplussamples.hekp
hekshortcuts.hekp
tagdefinitions.hekp
tagextractor.hekp
tagproperties.hekp
toolex.hekp[/font=Comic Sans MS][/size=2]

Screenshots.
http://www.mediafire.com/convkey/c73...tnyc7yp46g.jpg
This makes it really easy to compile your map with memory upgrades with one click.
I use it constanly.
Just Leave the mod name blank and choose yes to memory upgrades!
I leave my program open with the senario directory set and make tag edits.
then when im ready to test i simply click start!
so simple!

Instalation place this text in side your definitions.xml@ the top.

Quote:

---

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?&gt;
<!-- Tool EX GUI Definitions by SteelIXB --&gt;
<ToolEx&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Open Sauce Tool"&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Build a Map or Yelo Cache File Ex" Description="Builds a cache file with extra Open Sauce arguments from a Scenario tag. Output cache file will be in .yelo format instead of .map if the use-memory-updates is on."&gt;
<TextItem Text="Mod Name" Name="Mod Name"
Description="The name of the mod this scenario belongs to. This will also be used when naming the new data-files" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Create A New" Name="Create A New"
Description="Should new data-files be created before building the cache?" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Store Resources" Name="Store Resources"
Description="Should the scenario's bitmaps/sounds/locale data be stored in the data-files?" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Use Memory Upgrades" Name="Use Memory Upgrades"
Description="Does the scenario require Open Sauce's memory upgrades to run? Produces .yelo file instead of .map" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<FileItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Filter="Scenario Tags (*.scenario)|*.scenario"
Description="Scenario tag to create a map or yelo cache file from." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="build-cache-file-ex [Mod Name] [Create A New] [Store Resources] [Use Memory Upgrades] [Scenario]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;

---

This is the new part that I wright here^ If you can see how I wright the code & study it you can see how easy it is to make you own options and commands. if you can understand this format.
If you can invent a new command inside the gui please share it here!
if you have any questions or need help please dont hesitate to ask.
ASLO SO YOU DONT MAKE A MISTAKE I will just post a version of the full new definitions.xml

Quote:

---

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?&gt;
<!-- Tool EX GUI Definitions by SteelIXB --&gt;
<ToolEx&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Open Sauce Tool"&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Build a Map or Yelo Cache File Ex" Description="Builds a cache file with extra Open Sauce arguments from a Scenario tag. Output cache file will be in .yelo format instead of .map if the use-memory-updates is on."&gt;
<TextItem Text="Mod Name" Name="Mod Name"
Description="The name of the mod this scenario belongs to. This will also be used when naming the new data-files" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Create A New" Name="Create A New"
Description="Should new data-files be created before building the cache?" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Store Resources" Name="Store Resources"
Description="Should the scenario's bitmaps/sounds/locale data be stored in the data-files?" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Use Memory Upgrades" Name="Use Memory Upgrades"
Description="Does the scenario require Open Sauce's memory upgrades to run? Produces .yelo file instead of .map" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="No" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Yes" Value="1" /&gt;
<FileItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Filter="Scenario Tags (*.scenario)|*.scenario"
Description="Scenario tag to create a map or yelo cache file from." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="build-cache-file-ex [Mod Name] [Create A New] [Store Resources] [Use Memory Upgrades] [Scenario]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Animation Tags" Description="Create animation tags from exported animation data from using blitzkrieg in 3DS Max"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="SourceDirectory" Description="Source directory containing the animations exported using blitzkrieg from 3DS Max." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="animations [SourceDirectory]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Bitmap Tags" Description="Create bitmap tags from Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) bitmaps"&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create a Single Bitmap Tag"&gt;
<FileItem Text="TIFF File" Name="Bitmap" Filter="Tagged Image File Format (*.tif;*.tiff)|*.tif;*.tiff"
Description="Bitmap source file saved in the Tagged Image File Format (TIFF)." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="bitmap [Bitmap]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Bitmap Tags from Folder"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Bitmaps" Description="Source directory containing Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) bitmaps." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="bitmaps [Bitmaps]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Build a Map Cache File" Description="Build a map cache file playable in Halo CE from a Scenario tag"&gt;
<FileItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Filter="Scenario Tags (*.scenario)|*.scenario"
Description="Scenario tag to create a map cache file from." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="build-cache-file [Scenario]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Collision Model Tags" Description="Create collision model tags from blitzkrieg exported data"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Collision" Description="Source directory containing the 'physics' folder that contains the exported blitzkrieg data." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="collision-geometry [Collision]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Hud Message Text Tags" Description="Create Hud Message Text tags from 'hud messages.hmt'"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing the file 'hud messages.hmt' (saved in Unicode Text Format)." /&gt;
<TextItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Description="Name of the Scenario tag to reference the Hud Message Text tag. (in the equivalent 'tags' folder to above source directory)" /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="hud-messages [Source] [Scenario]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Lightmaps" Description="Create lightmaps for a particular BSP."&gt;
<FileItem Text="Scenario Tag" Name="Scenario" Filter="Scenario Tags (*.scenario)|*.scenario" Description="Scenario tag referencing the BSP you wish to generate lightmaps for." /&gt;
<TextItem Text="Scenario Structure BSP Name" Name="BSPIndex" Description="The name of the BSP tag referenced in the scenario tag" /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Quality" Name="Quality" Description="The quality to generate the lightmaps at."&gt;
<LIItem Text="Debug (Fast)" Value="0" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Final" Value="1" /&gt;
</ListItem&gt;
<TextItem Text="Stop Threshold" Name="Threshold" Default="0.005" Description="A decimal at which to stop the process between 0 and 1. Example: 0.0000001 (would stop at 0.000000). Use a higher value to generate lightmaps faster and lower quality, such as 0.005" /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="lightmaps [Scenario] [BSPIndex] [Quality] [Threshold]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Model Tags" Description="Create GBXModel tags from data exported from 3DS Max"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing the 'models' folder that contains the exported blitzkrieg data." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="model [Source]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Physics Tags" Description="Create Physics tags from data exported from 3DS Max"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing the 'physics' folder that contains the exported blitzkrieg data." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="physics [Source]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Sound Tags" Description="Create sound tags from either Wav, Xbox, or Ogg sound files."&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing folders that contain certain sound formats. The sound tags created will use the folder names, and use the sound files in the folders as permutations." /&gt;
<ListItem Text="Platform" Name="Platform" Description="The platform of the sound files in the folders."&gt;
<LIItem Text="Xbox (Requires Xbox codec)" Value="xbox" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Wav" Value="wav" /&gt;
<LIItem Text="Ogg" Value="ogg" /&gt;
</ListItem&gt;
<TextItem Text="Quality or Bitrate (Ogg Only)" Name="Ogg Value" Default="22050" Description="The bitrate or quality to convert the Ogg sound files to when creating the tag." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="sounds [Source] [Platform] [Ogg Value]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create String List Tags" Description="Create String List / Unicode String List tags from text files in the data folder."&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create String List Tags" Description="Create String List tags from 'ANSI' encoded text files in a folder"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing 'ANSI' encoded text files with '.txt' extension. Each string in the text file must end with ###END-STRING###" /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="strings [Source]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Unicode String List Tags" Description="Create String List tags from 'Unicode' encoded text files in a folder"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing 'Unicode' encoded text files with '.txt' extension. Each string in the text file must end with ###END-STRING###" /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="unicode-strings [Source]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
<MenuItem Text="Create Scenario / Structure BSP Tags" Description="Create scenario and structure bsp tags from data exported with blitzkreig from 3DS Max"&gt;
<DirItem Text="Source Directory" Name="Source" Description="Source directory containing the 'models' folder, that contains the exported blitzkreig data." /&gt;
<TextItem Text="BSP Name" Name="BSPName" Description="The name to give the final bsp and scenario tags." /&gt;
<Tool Arguments="structure [Source] [BSPName]" /&gt;
</MenuItem&gt;
</ToolEx&gt;

---

or just download the new definitions.xml
http://www.mediafire.com/download/gc...efinitions.xml
Installation:
Local Disk (C:) &gt; Program Files (x86) &gt; SteelXB &gt; Halo Editing Kit Plus &gt; Data &gt;Plugins &gt; SteelXB &gt;Tool eX