Mod Manager ********************** Jack's Open Mod Manager User Guide ************************** V1.08 renamed Context to Modding Hub and Target Locations to Channel. In the main Open Mod Manager (OMM) menu File\New\Modding Hub (better term would be Target Program you want to modify). Enter the path to the game/program to be modified, i.e. receive the mods. Select the desired Modding Hub from the title block below the OMM menu. OMM main menu Edit\Channel\Properties: Create a Channel (path) to one or more folders within the Target Program (Modding Hub) that will be modded; AND specify the Destination Library folder ( where the mod packages you will create for the Channel will be stored. IMPORTANT. Organize the mods you want OMM to install. You will have to specify within OMM the path to the Target Program folders you wish to modify in one of two ways: 1. The Channels you create can include the path, or 2. Include the path in the folder on your PC where you organize the mod files. EXAMPLE: To add a vehicle to DCS Open Beta, create Channel "Saved Games\DCS.openbeta" then create a folder anywhere on your PC "MyMods\Mods\Tech\VehicleModFolder" where the folder MyMods contains the DCS.Openbeta path to the folder where the "VehicleModFiles" will be installed. Note that the Tech folder can contain multiple individual mod folders, several different vehicles for example. The Mods\Tech path could also have been included in the Channel definition instead of the MyMods folder. The MyMods folder can archived in a .zip file if desired. After completing these steps for a given program you should rarely need to repeat or alter them. You can then create OMM mod packages whenever you need them. Under the Library tab select the desired target program Channel that you want to modify. Under Tools menu select Package Editor. If the PC mod folder (MyMods) has not been zipped, select radio button Create from folder content, then navigate to the MyMods folder using the Browse window. If the Mymods folder is zipped, select Edit/Create from existing package. Name the mod package whetever you want. All the files in the MyMods folder display in the Package Content window. Veryify the path is correct. Now the tricky part. The Destination folder is Destination Library where the Package being created will be stored (NOT the Target Program location). This folder was specified when creating the Channel (DCS File Backup). If desired select a Mod Category and enter a description. Save the package BEFORE closing. It will display in the large package window, if created successfully. ********************************************************************************** Contrary to OvGME, the configurations are now separated and "stand-alone". Open Mod Manager configurations are inspired on the "projects" paradigm as you can encounter in some development or multimedia editing software, Open Mod Manager call that a "Context" instead of a "Project": The configuration is stored in an "Home folder", located where you want, which contain configuration files and sub-folders. The two main configuration "object" are the "Context", and "Locations". The Context is the main configuration, intended to represent an environment for a particular software or game. Typically, you would create a Context for "DCS World". A Location is a sub-configuration within a Context, which describe Mods installation envrionment. The Location will tell where Mods must be installed, where is the Mod Library (where mods are storeds) and where backup data must be stored. A Context can contains as many Location as you want. For exemple, for DCS World, you may create two Locations: - One for the main DCS installation folder - Another for the DCS "Saved Games" folder The Software Context home folder is a folder to be created (the Wizard will create it) where Open Mod Manager will "install" configuration files and required sub-folders organization to manager and hold data (and mods) dedicated to the created Software Context. You can create this home folder everywhere you want. *** For DCS new packages for DCS installation folder destination should be Mod Manager/DCS File Backup. The Library Folder, if you let default setting, is created within the Target Location sub-folder (depending the how you named it), within your Software Context home, this is where you must put your mods collection to be installed for this specific Target Location. The Backup Folder, if you let default setting, is created within the Target Location sub-folder (depending the how you named it), within your Software Context home, this is where backup data for installed mods is stored for this specific Target Location. If you have mods that must be installed in the DCS Saved Game folder in parallel of the root installation folder, you must add and configure a new Target Location within your Software Context, this will create a new sub-folder in the Software Context home folder, with another library and backup folder. A Software Context is a kind of "Project" folder for a game or software to be managed, but specific usage is not specified and can be used as user want, it is only a folder that contact specific configuration files and subfolder organization. A Target Location exist only within a Software Context, and describes a specific configuration for mods installation, typically game root folder. There is a library folder and backup folder configured for each Target Location. A Software Context can hold as may Target Location as you want. ***************************************************************************************************** And here is the magical : Once you properly configured Locations, you can create a "Batch" (which is new names of "Presets") which will automatically install desired mods for all locations at the same time. How can I change parsed name, and parsed version? The version is parsed/deducted from the file name according the following rules: - The version number must be at the very end of the filename, before the file extension (if it is a file) - The version number must be preceded by the "v" letter either big "V" or small "v" - The version numbers, major, minor, revision must be separated by one dot. - The version number can be major only, major with minor, or full major, minor and revision. Example: My_Mod_Filename_v1.6.zip My_Other_Mod_V1.2.3.zip Then_another_package_v3.zip Also know that the underscores are automatically translated to space in the displayed (parsed) name. ******************************************************************************************************* File Over-write warning: Overlap are checked before package/mod installation, the warning is thrown if one of these case occur: - A file originally exist in destination tree, one package already overwritten it, the package that is about to be installed is about to overwrite it again. - A file does not originally exist in destination tree, one package added/created it, the package that is about to be installed is about to overwrite it. - A folder does not originally exist in destination tree, one package added/created it, the package that is about to be installed is about to recreate it. The two first cases are pretty obvious, the third one may occur in more subtle situations (in the user point of view). Let suppose a folder "Skins" that already exists in the destination tree. A first mod install a new file "Toto.dds" within a new subfolder named "NewSkin" in this "Skins" folder. This mean the subfolder "NewSkin" was created by this package. Now suppose another package that installs a new file named "zeropluszero.dds" within the same "NewSkin" subfolder created by the previous package. This package does not overwrite the previous "toto.dds" file, BUT, since the "NewSkin" subfolder was created by the first package, it is considerated as "recreated" by the second one, then, an overlap warning is generated. ******************************** REPOSITORIES ***************************************************************** the new Network repository feature is here and operationnal. The repository creators can use the Repository Editor (Tools menu) to create the Repository definition (xml) file to host in theire web server. The repository file must be served by a web server either in HTTP or HTTPS. In the Reopository editor, you will spot the parameter "Download path", this is the relative path (folder) from the Repository "base address" where the software will search for files for download. For example, you want to create a repository nammed "DCS" in your web server: - Let assume you have a web server at th adress http://www.example.org - You create a Repository with the default Download path "files/" and you save your repository file as "DCS.xml" - You upload this file where you want in your server, for example, in the "mods" subfolder, so the xml file will be available on your server at the adress: http://www.example.org/mods/DCS.xml In this case, you must upload packages (Mods) files in a "files" subfolder within the "mods" subfolder, so a package will be available for download at the adress: http://www.example.org/mods/files/My_Package.omp Then you now have to give the right informations to people so they can configure your Repository in the software, according informations above, the coordinates of your repository will be: Base Address : http://www.example.org/mods Name : DCS