net.set_slot() replaced destroy() for MP slot management?

[Pikey]

Hi guys, I was gonna PM a few of you but better to just fire it out there. Ciribob got me thinking when he said about checking the new API from ED, then today the patch notes came up with an edit to the DCS_ControlAPI.txt regarding the net.X functions.

 

Now to the problem, there used to be a way of slot blocking in MP by just destroying the unit. But this didn't work after 1.5. This broke two things I loved: Blue Flag and Ciribobs CSAR script.

 

I can't script LUA, can anyone that can see if we can fix these scripts by testing slot blocking using say this:

 

net.force_player_slot(playerID, sideID, slotID) -> boolean

Forces a player to occupy a set slot. Slot '' means no slot (moves player to spectators)

SideID: 0 - spectators, 1 - red, 2 - blue

 

rather than the older _unit:destroy() which no longer works?

 

Ta

[Grimes]

To answer the title of the thread, no it does not but it possibly could. Object.destroy is bugged for clients, and Ciribob has reported it to the relevant dev.

 

These API functions are only available as a server side mod. For instance slmod uses several of them to get information on the mission and server admin purposes. So you'd need a local mission script to be able to communicate with the server side mod to run these functions.

[Ciribob]

Okay, cleared my old incorrect posts. This now works!!!

 

I added the script below in file I created in C:/Users/<USERNAME>/Saved Games/DCS/Scripts/debugGameGUI.lua

 

The trick is, the documentation is incorrect... the dostring_in needs to be executed in the server enviroment, not the mission environment. :thumbup:

 

local debugTest = {}

net.log("testing net")


debugTest.onPlayerTrySendChat = function(playerID, msg, all)

   net.log("chat: 1 "..msg)
   local _status,_error = net.dostring_in('server', "  trigger.action.setUserFlag(1,5); return 5; ")

   if (not _status) and _error then
       net.log("status 1: ".._error)
   elseif _status then
       net.log("status 1: ".._status)
   end

    _status,_error  = net.dostring_in('server', " return trigger.misc.getUserFlag(1); ")

   if not _status and _error then
       net.log("status 2: ".._error)
   elseif _status then
       net.log("status 2: ".._status)
   end

   net.log("done chat 2")



   return msg
end


DCS.setUserCallbacks(debugTest)
net.log("callbacks loaded")

 

Start a server after setting up the script file and then type a chat message. In the DCS logs you'll see that the flag now has the correct value, showing interaction between the server environment and mission environment.

 

With this, its then possible in theory to do slot blocking and dynamic enabling and disabling of slots which i'll have a look at next.

 

Very happy! :D

[xcom]

Oh gawd, great Ciribob!

This will possibly let us more forward again with Blue Flag!

 

Ciribob, I gotta say, from the whole time I'm here, you have shown up only recently, but the time you have been here has helped us scripting guys and mission designers tremendously.

Appriciate all your hard work, your scripts, assistance and commitment!

Thank you.

[Ciribob]

Oh gawd, great Ciribob!

This will possibly let us more forward again with Blue Flag!

 

Ciribob, I gotta say, from the whole time I'm here, you have shown up only recently, but the time you have been here has helped us scripting guys and mission designers tremendously.

Appriciate all your hard work, your scripts, assistance and commitment!

Thank you.

 

No worries :)

 

Was about to send you a PM actually, should hopefully have a proof of concept running tonight that you can just fill in a few bits of code in and it should work for Blue Flag... but we'll see!

[xcom]

Great stuff!

I'll start checking out what you did in that previous snippet meanwhile.

[Pikey]

Ah, I feel like a scripting dating agency, everything I wanted to accomplish in the thread actually happened, with the people I wanted it to :)

 

Let's hope you can make a baby wsith this API and get slot management nailed.

[xcom]

two more and you got a room in heaven.

I'd change nickname from Mule to Cupid ;)

[Ciribob]

LOL Pikey :D

 

Got something working...

 

Put slotBlockGameGUI.lua in C:Users<YOUR USERNAME>Saved GamesDCSScripts or C:Users<YOUR USERNAME>Saved GamesDCS.openalphaScripts if its Nevada.

 

In the mission script, flags will now control which aircraft is currently disabled or enabled, but you will have to host a mission to test.

 

When a slot is disabled and a user tries to join, a chat message will be shown telling them that the slot is disabled which only they can see.

 

This isn't the best solution as you have to find out all the unit ids (listed in the mission file as well), but my better method didnt work.... :(

 

The flag number is the same as the unit id of the unit in a certain slot.

 

For example:

 trigger.action.setUserFlag(1,1); 

 

would disable the slot of the unit with an ID of 1

trigger.action.setUserFlag(1,0); 

 

would enable it again

 

I've also attached an example mission with an F10 radio command . You can use that to disable a slot.

 

Demo video as well:

 

 

EDIT: Forgot to add, if you dont switch slots but the aircraft is disabled while you're flying. You'll be kicked out of it for any of these events - but this can easily be modified :) :

 

--"friendly_fire"
--"kill"
--"self_kill"
--"change_slot"
--"crash"
--"eject",
--"takeoff"
--"landing
--"pilot_death"

 

Xcom, for Blue Flag I assumed you'd limit to pilot_death, crash and eject which'll stop you respawning in the now disabled aircraft

debug.miz

slotBlockGameGUI.lua

Edited January 16, 2016 by Ciribob

[xcom]

Hey Ciribob, thanks.

I've been also working on creating something, basically what I need now is to get a table that is handled in the mission scripting environment to be working on the server environment and to update each time a player changes slot (so we know if to throw him out of the slot).

 

So, I did this -

 

local BFslots = {}
local _PAKInfo = {}
net.log("testing net")

BFslots.onPlayerChangeSlot = function(id)
   net.log("Player Changed ID - "..id)
   _PAKInfo,_error = net.dostring_in('server', "return PAKInfo; ")

   if (not _PAKInfo) and _error then
       net.log("error: ".._error)
   elseif _PAKInfo then
       net.log("PAKInfo retrieved to _PAKInfo")
   end

--[[local abtest = ''
for pakNum,pakT in ipairs(_PAKInfo) do
	if type(pakT)=="table" then
		for ABName,ABTable in pairs(pakT) do
			abtest = abtest..','..ABName
		end
	end
end--]]

net.log(_PAKInfo)
--net.force_player_slot(id, 0, '')
end


DCS.setUserCallbacks(BFslots)
net.log("callbacks loaded")

 

PAKInfo is the table I would like to import from the scripting engine environment.

It does seem to work with the log showing -

 

00281.606 INFO LuaNET: Player Changed ID - 2

00281.606 INFO LuaNET: PAKInfo retrieved to _PAKInfo

00281.606 INFO LuaNET:

 

The 3rd log was supposed to show the _PAKInfo table, but it shows an empty string.

Any idea if return PAKInfo; would actually return the table? is there another way you can think of that might import the table?

 

Thanks!

[Ciribob]

 

PAKInfo is the table I would like to import from the scripting engine environment.

It does seem to work with the log showing -

 

00281.606 INFO LuaNET: Player Changed ID - 2

00281.606 INFO LuaNET: PAKInfo retrieved to _PAKInfo

00281.606 INFO LuaNET:

 

The 3rd log was supposed to show the _PAKInfo table, but it shows an empty string.

Any idea if return PAKInfo; would actually return the table? is there another way you can think of that might import the table?

 

Thanks!

 

Thats exactly what I spend an hour or so trying to do... :(

 

As far as I can tell you can't actually access any mission editor variables, only standard mission editor functions like flags.

 

This is the version I wrote with something similar to your code but you'll see that any global variables you reference in the code that gets executed in the "server" environment will be nil so it doesnt work.

 

This is the code I had in the mission and "ssb" should have been accessible to the other script.

 

ssb = {}

function ssb.chatMessage(_playerName,_message)

   trigger.action.outText(_message.." ".._playerName , 3,false)

   return _message
end

function ssb.shouldAllowSlot(_playerName,_unitId)

   env.info("shouldAllow: ".._playerName.." ".._unitId)

   return {allow=true, message=""}

end

slotBlockGameGUI_scriptversion.lua

Edited January 16, 2016 by Ciribob
added more text

[stinkx]

i wonder if dofile works within the API environment. that way you can store lives of pilots in a file as a table in the scripting environment and then call it from the API environment.

[xcom]

That's what we already do for Blue Flag.

Edited May 7, 2016 by xcom

[stinkx]

thanks for the fast reply. it seems that im a few days behind you guys :)

btw check your pm xcom

[xcom]

replied, I think the first reply was only sent to Ciribob by mistake.

[Pikey]

Hi Xcom, so for stupid people like me, can I just check, in order to use the new API functions, where is the crossover exactly? I know Ciribob says you can share flags because they are global, can we refer to global variables made in the BlahgameGUI.lua? Can mission editor run script refer to functions in the blaggamegui.lua? All I think I know is that we cannot call the functions of the API directly in missions scripts. Assuming this is the gamegui.lua file here, so you could load your pakinfo table (list of owned airports etc?) into this file for referencing...is that the missing link?

 

I've an amateur programming head at best so excuse me missing the eureka moment exactly, I'm looking to see if there are other ways we can exploit the API and the methods we need to do that with (with smarter folk than me!).

 

Mike

[Coug4r]

Some more functions and events would be nice for the gamegui.lua, my mission could really use a base captured event and some method to get the coalition of an airbase so i would be able to save the captured state of an airbase. Crashes occur, it's pretty frustrating for players when the mission completely resets to it's initial state.

[Tyrannik]

Would anyone be able to release a simple version of the slot blocking script used in Blue Flag? It would be exceptionally useful for anyone in the community needing a similar script.

 

I tried using Ciribob's solution using the unitIDs but I have no idea how to say, get the unit IDs of at a certain airfield. I tried to manually look for the UnitIDs in the mission file the .miz, but sadly the units are not given the same names as you assign them in the editor.

 

I myself am not well versed in lua currently so I'm having a lot of trouble finding a solution. Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance!

[rvotri]

So... does it died?

[Pikey]

So... does it died?

Has what died? The API? nope.