*windowed* SE4, running on windows!

[Suicide Junkie]

http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Tools/zip/WindowedSE4.zip

Simply run the WindowedSE4.exe any time. (Only run it once, or the two copies may fight over the window positioning)
The black border is eliminated, and you can press the arrow keys while holding ScrollLock to move SE4 around, even off edge of the screen!

Note: was for 1280x1024 screen resolution, now handles anything!

Check it out!
http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Screenshots/WindowedSE4.png
http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Screenshots/WindowedSE4mini.gif

[Atrocities]

Man I didn't think any one still played this old game.

[Suicide Junkie]

Why in the world wouldn't you?
Its got superior UI, rock solid gameplay and extensive mods available.

[geoschmo]

Is this written in Autohotkey? I love that scripting program. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Ok, I'm having some problems though. I can't see the top part of the game window with all the buttons. Only the system window and the right hand windows display. My display is 1280x800.

Second, It's physically impossible for me to hold down the scroll lock key on my Dell laptop and move the mouse. Scoll lock on my keyboard is shared with num lock. To get scroll lock I have to hold an fn key in the lower left while pressing the num lock/scroll lock in the upper right. My fingers don't reach so this takes two hands, leaving my none to move my mouse with. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif Any chance you could add an .ini file for the script so we can change the hotkey button ourselves?

Geoschmo

[Suicide Junkie]

It is set for 1280x1024 at the moment.
I'll have to see about allowing arbitrary screen rezzes.

BTW, its not the mouse, it is the arrow keys to move the screen. Does that make any difference?

Uploaded new version!
It was surprisingly easy; Now it handles any screen rez that SE4 will handle.
Note: If you change your screen rez in the middle of playing, and then restart SE4, you will have to restart the tool as well, otherwise the clipping edges won't match SE4's new size.

[geoschmo]

Ah, misread that. I can do the finger twister thing and manage holding fn with one hand while holding num lock/scroll lock and pressing arrow keys with the fingers of the other hand. However the window doesn't move for me. My keyboard being non standard 101 key maybe the problem?

Also, I changed my resolution to 1024x768 and I still can't see the top part of the SE4 screen. System display, planet window and galactic map only.

Geoschmo

EDIT: Ah didn't see you posted new version. With the new version the entire game window shows up. Cool. Still can't make the window move though. It does give me room on either side to put a chat window though while I'm playing. Kind of nice. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Suicide Junkie]

My bad. I meant 1280x1024.
But it now handles any rez, even nonstandard aspect ratios.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Elbows, Geoschmo! Elbows!

[Combat Wombat]

Yaaaaa your my new hero SJ http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Atrocities"
Who doesn't still play SE4? Beats SE5 in just about every way as far as I am concerned....(Note: Please don't start a SE4 vs. SE5 debate in this thread)

[Fyron]

You just started it though, CW. d'oh! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/stupid.gif

[dogscoff]

S_J That is truly brilliant. Now I can hide se4 away in some tiny corner of my 1600*1200 display so that my boss won't notice it!

[Fyron]

A tiny 1024x768 corner? That's still 40% of the screen! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/stupid.gif

[se5a]

Geo, I had the same problem, but then on a hunch tried using crtl instead of the function button, and it works fine.

[dogscoff]

A tiny 1024x768 corner? That's still 40% of the screen!



That's still sufficient to hide behind my email client. All I need now is a GUImod to make se4 look like an excel spreadsheet=-)

[Will]

dogscoff said:


A tiny 1024x768 corner? That's still 40% of the screen!


That's still sufficient to hide behind my email client. All I need now is a GUImod to make se4 look like an excel spreadsheet=-)


Won't your boss be suspicious why you are suddenly so engrossed in your work? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[geoschmo]

se5a said:
Geo, I had the same problem, but then on a hunch tried using crtl instead of the function button, and it works fine.

Tried Ctrl, still can't move the window.

[Suicide Junkie]

New Version, same link!

Features:
- Click and drag the Name/Date/Resources bar to move the window with your mouse!
- ALT-F12 = Boss key for 'Scoffo; SE4 will hide with only 3 pixels peeking out from the left hand side of your screen.

[Suicide Junkie]

Yet another update!

Now, you can move ANY window by clicking and dragging the top of it!

http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Screenshots/WindowedSE4mini.png

[geoschmo]

Two words to say to you SJ.

Suh and WEET! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

[Atrocities]

I really had the impression that this game was long since dead. Glad to see that people still play it. Makes me feel not so out of date knowing that other people still play it too.

[Suicide Junkie]

BONUS: Hold Control and ALT when you click in the design screen, and it will automatically add or remove 10 of whatever is under the mouse.
Add Shift to the mix for 50 at a time!

Leaky armor is now a snap to design with! Add 70 or a hundred components with the greatest of ease. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Combat Wombat]

Suicide Junkie said:
BONUS: Hold Control and ALT when you click in the design screen, and it will automatically add or remove 10 of whatever is under the mouse.
Add Shift to the mix for 50 at a time!

Leaky armor is now a snap to design with! Add 70 or a hundred components with the greatest of ease. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif



/me drools

[Captain Kwok]

This is very cool. Too bad it wasn't around a few years ago. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Black_Knyght]

Can't get this yo download for some reason

[Artaud]

Atrocities said:
Man I didn't think any one still played this old game.



I'll be playing SE4 for years to come.

SE5 just doesn't excite me.

But at least it's 3D!!!!!! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/yawn.gif

[Suicide Junkie]

File attached in case of download troubles

[dogscoff]

OK, I've actually used it now. SJ, this program is truly brilliant. If you didn't already have my eternal gratitude for your various outstanding contributions to the game and community over the years, you definitely have it now.

*dogscoff awards S_J a "community service medal", hoping no-one notices its made from a beer-bottle cap.

[dogscoff]

WindowedSE4 is now WIKIed. (http://wiki.spaceempires.net/index.php/WindowedSE4) Includes a feature list, usage instructions and links.

Couldn't find a better place to link to it from than "Spreadsheets (SEIV)" so if anyone has any better ideas, you know what to do.

[bearclaw]

SJ, this is wonderful!!! Absolutely amazing but there is one issue. If you are running multiple monitors it only shows a small portion of SE4. That small portion can be moved but you can't see the system window or the command bar.

[Suicide Junkie]

Hmm... SE4 normally does not blot out the second monitor with the black, right?
SE4 just centers on the first monitor, rather than being in the center of the desktop, and that is probably what is throwing it off.

[AgentZero]

Hurray! This was one of the things that always bugged me about playing SE4. I have my resolution set at 1600x1200, so running SE4 in full screen mode at 1024x768 seemed a bit wasteful. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Suicide Junkie]

New version uploaded.
This one should probably handle multiple monitors better.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

SJ should get some sort of community service medal.

[Renegade 13]

/threads/images/Graemlins/Flag_Canada.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/icon44.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/Flag_Canada.gif

[Captain Kwok]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
SJ should get some sort of community service medal.



Maybe he already has?
http://www.captainkwok.net/community.php

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Hey, I was just responding to what Dogscoff said.

[Fyron]

Speaking of those... when is the next one going to be awarded, Kwok? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

...And shouldn't community awards be awarded by community vote? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/confused.gif

[Fyron]

They weren't community awards, they were community service awards.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Po-tay-to, pa-tah-to.

[Fyron]

Eh? A community service award is just an award given for service to the community; its not necessarily an award given by the community.

[Ragnarok-X]

So, Fyron wants one as well or how does it sound to you guys http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[zippyg]

Are there special system requirements for this?
I have tried it but absolutely nothing happens even though i get the little green 'H' icon in the system tray.

I am running SEIV deluxe on win98se with an nvidia graphics card. The resolution I have my monitor set to is usually 1152x864. Are any special settings required?

I would love to get it working. thanks. bye.

[Suicide Junkie]

I know what the problem is.

I should have a new version up this afternoon.

[Fyron]

Ragnarok-X said:
So, Fyron wants one as well or how does it sound to you guys http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Huh?

[Suicide Junkie]

Update to the main program:
http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Tools/zip/WindowedSE4.zip
- This fixes a bug with windows not noticing if you release CTRL, ALT or SHIFT while doing a multiadd.
- This also fixes a bug which prevented the click and drag from being noticed by 98

And, a tool to remove the black border on win98:
http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Tools/zip/LaunchSe4Windowed98.zip
Some setup required; you need to specify what screen resolution you want to use in the restorez.bat file.
After that, just use this exe to launch SE4 with instead of SE4.exe directly.
Note: It can't yet detect when SE4 shuts down, so you'll have to close it manually by right clicking the tray icon when you are done playing.

[zippyg]

Hi, I have it working now on my win98 system. All windows seem to be movable except for the main menu (F2) and the planet 'scrap facility' windows (Ctrl K) which don't seem to be movable. However I'm very happy with what it does now.

thanks
bye

[Suicide Junkie]

You wouldn't believe how many windows there are in SE4... pages and pages of names http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif
I'll add the missing ones tonight.

[bearclaw]

Thought I had posted this before but I guess i just thought about it.

Works great, looks great, but won't work if you have multiple monitors running. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[geoschmo]

bearclaw said:
Thought I had posted this before but I guess i just thought about it.

Works great, looks great, but won't work if you have multiple monitors running. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

You did post this before and SJ answered. He thought he addressed it with the latest version. Have you downloaded the updated version?

[Suicide Junkie]

And another update for the missing draggable windows.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Kwok already gave Fyron one.

The imbalance arises from an award given for service to a community from someone who is not the community, but only a part of it.

(This has nothing to do with who got the awards; I agree with all of them).

It is simply that community service awards should be given by the community. It doesn't make sense, otherwise.

What you have, otherwise, are "Kwoks' awards for service to the community". Which doesn't make much difference, but that is not to say that it doesn't fit what is happening better.

[Captain Kwok]

I did call it "Captain Kwok's Community Service Award" which I believe matches up with what you are saying. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Well, then, Fyron is definitely wrong.

Which, really, is all that matters. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Fyron]

Doesn't that actually prove my point? They are community service awards given by Kwok, as opposed to given by community vote... I was never arguing for the "balance" or validity of such awards, just that they don't intrinsically require being given by the community. Unless you want to argue semantics over the term "community service award..."

Perhaps we should consider not clogging SJ's thread up anymore?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Aww, but clogging up threads is what I do! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif OT FTW!

Eh. But I can stop clogging this one.

[Suicide Junkie]

New version!
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/download.php?Number=527474

- Add-10 changed to SHIFT-click
- Add-50 changed to CTRL-click
(To better match the existing SE4 UI)

- Game Screen will minimize while the turn processes, and restore when complete.
- Processing progress dialog is now draggable
- Combat Replay dialog is now draggable

[dogscoff]

Wiki updated to reflect new version.
http://wiki.spaceempires.net/index.php/WindowedSE4

PS S_J, if you want to steal text from the wiki to flesh out the somewhat sparse readme.txt, feel free=-)

[Suicide Junkie]

Just a note:
It dosen't hide the turn processing screen. It hides the big main window and leaves only the small processing progress bar screen visible during processing.
*This applies to simultaneous games, as the progress bar is not used by SE4 in sequential mode.

[Gromitt]

thanks guys, looks good

[Quasar]

Is this using the AHK scripts?

I'd love to see the scripts if so. I use gridmove from donationcoder.com and there may be some odd interactions http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Suicide Junkie]

All it does it look to see if the mouse button is being held down and if the mouse is within the top 30 pixels of SE4's window, it moves SE4 to match the mouse movements.

[Quasar]

I was wondering what language / scripts you used to make this. Do you use the AutoHotkey stuff from

www.autohotkey.com (http://www.autohotkey.com)?

Could you share the scripts if so?

I would like to have this capability for some other program I can think of...

[Suicide Junkie]

Uploading it here didn't work.
http://imagemodserver.mine.nu/other/MM/SE4/Tools/MakeSE4Windowedsrc.zip

[Quasar]

Thank you sir!

What is the play by commitee thing I read about?

[Suicide Junkie]

Basically, it is bunch of players running pieces of one empire together. A little big like AI ministers, with more focus on controlling territory than empire-wide functions.
Everybody posts orders for the stuff they own into the forum, and I do the grunt work of merging and typing it all in before posting the results for the next turn.

See here:
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=518812&page=0&view=collap sed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

And here:
http://www.spaceempires.net/home/forum-c13.html

[Kana]

PBC is also highly Role Play oriented. Think of it as weaving a story, while playing and adding your one little part.

[Arralen]

Suicide Junkie said:
New version!
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/download.php?Number=527474

- Game Screen will minimize while the turn processes, and restore when complete.




Any way to turn that off?
It sucks: SE4 does not re-draw nicely (flickers partly-drawn over the screen until it stabilizes), and the log window will be hidden behind the main SE4 window, means you have to click on "Space Empire IV" in the taskbar twice to make it appear .. each turn.

[Suicide Junkie]

Shouldn't be hard to tweak. I'll post a new version tonight.

Uploaded.

Just hold scroll lock when you process the first turn (until the progress bar appears), and the minimize/restore on processing will be disabled until you restart the script.

[Arralen]

Works like a charm (after I figured out what a "scroll lock" key is .. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif ). Thanks!