Comments on: Scripting in PotBS http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/ Joe Ludwig's blog Sun, 01 Jan 2012 19:08:41 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Marauder http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-131187 Marauder Tue, 08 Apr 2008 20:46:26 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-131187 Interesting.. it is funny how many companies put level designers on script duty. How often does that actually work out? Interesting.. it is funny how many companies put level designers on script duty. How often does that actually work out?

]]> By: Charles Crain http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-112776 Charles Crain Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:41:24 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-112776 Excellent observations. I have a good deal of experience modding games with LUA, and I have been struck on many occasions with the poor quality of the LUA code included with the game itself (which I would guess is a manifestation of your lesson learned #1). I'd submit though, that if you solve your issues 2-6, that will go a long way toward alleviating the problems you had with #1. Or put another way, if your designers are having to write too much software, then your API is not clean and/or high-level enough. If you get the API right, then the "software" that the designers have to write will approximate the simplicity of the data-driven approach you are using now, but still allow more flexibility if needed. They're also not mutually exclusive...I used to own a MUD, which are of course almost totally based on scripting, but we used a data driven approach where appropriate and where we wanted to make things friendly toward non-programmers. The data driven stuff was written *in* the scripting language. Excellent observations. I have a good deal of experience modding games with LUA, and I have been struck on many occasions with the poor quality of the LUA code included with the game itself (which I would guess is a manifestation of your lesson learned #1).

I’d submit though, that if you solve your issues 2-6, that will go a long way toward alleviating the problems you had with #1. Or put another way, if your designers are having to write too much software, then your API is not clean and/or high-level enough. If you get the API right, then the “software” that the designers have to write will approximate the simplicity of the data-driven approach you are using now, but still allow more flexibility if needed.

They’re also not mutually exclusive…I used to own a MUD, which are of course almost totally based on scripting, but we used a data driven approach where appropriate and where we wanted to make things friendly toward non-programmers. The data driven stuff was written *in* the scripting language.

]]> By: Anti Patterns http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-65385 Anti Patterns Sat, 24 Nov 2007 12:00:44 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-65385 <strong>L'art du script...</strong> La plupart des moteurs de jeu modernes ont plus de rapport avec des systèmes d'opérations qu'avec des jeux. Contraint d'être souple et versatile, les moteurs sont amenés à être exploité dans de multiples productions.     Du coup, la... L’art du script…

La plupart des moteurs de jeu modernes ont plus de rapport avec des systèmes d’opérations qu’avec des jeux. Contraint d’être souple et versatile, les moteurs sont amenés à être exploité dans de multiples productions.     Du coup, la…

]]> By: Dr. Cat http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-59824 Dr. Cat Thu, 08 Nov 2007 18:18:23 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-59824 We've had a lot of luck with my DragonSpeak scripting language. It was designed for our players to use, but our staff uses it internally a fair amount too. The language is designed not only to be very english-like and easy to learn for non-programmers, but it's also designed to make it pretty hard to generate large amounts of CPU overhead or bandwidth usage, and impossible to generate an endless loop, array overflow, or crash. If you're interested in taking a look at the language, it's in Furcadia, which is a free download. Not the right answer to every problem, but it's a good answer to some. We’ve had a lot of luck with my DragonSpeak scripting language. It was designed for our players to use, but our staff uses it internally a fair amount too. The language is designed not only to be very english-like and easy to learn for non-programmers, but it’s also designed to make it pretty hard to generate large amounts of CPU overhead or bandwidth usage, and impossible to generate an endless loop, array overflow, or crash. If you’re interested in taking a look at the language, it’s in Furcadia, which is a free download. Not the right answer to every problem, but it’s a good answer to some.

]]> By: alexjc http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-59783 alexjc Thu, 08 Nov 2007 15:45:44 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-59783 Lua is definitely popular because it's so easy to embed. It's also nice and elegant, as it uses tables everywhere in a similar way than Scheme has lists... I hadn't considered Javascript though! I'm sure there's an implementation that's just as easy to work with. alexjc AiGameDev.com Lua is definitely popular because it’s so easy to embed. It’s also nice and elegant, as it uses tables everywhere in a similar way than Scheme has lists…

I hadn’t considered Javascript though! I’m sure there’s an implementation that’s just as easy to work with.

alexjc
AiGameDev.com

]]> By: wowpanda http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-59314 wowpanda Wed, 07 Nov 2007 23:24:47 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-59314 Interesting! It is not possible for me to go LUA now because javascript is already choosen, but I will look at it in case of future use. But one advantage I am sure about LUA is, because javascript is heavily used on the web, it will be much easier to find embedding information on LUA than javascript, just because all the garbage might be pulled when searching for javascript embedding. javascript engine is very small though. The entire javascript engine plus glue code only added about 300k in my final exe. Interesting! It is not possible for me to go LUA now because javascript is already choosen, but I will look at it in case of future use.

But one advantage I am sure about LUA is, because javascript is heavily used on the web, it will be much easier to find embedding information on LUA than javascript, just because all the garbage might be pulled when searching for javascript embedding.

javascript engine is very small though. The entire javascript engine plus glue code only added about 300k in my final exe.

]]> By: Joe http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-58237 Joe Mon, 05 Nov 2007 23:38:36 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-58237 There is a small, fast runtime available for Lua that's easy to embed in a larger app. And everyone who is using Lua is doing that embedding, so there is lots of help on the web on the subject. The reason no one is embedding Javascript is probably just that no one is embedding Javascript. :) Also, Lua is quite good as a file format for data. It's able to do arbitrarily nested hierarchies of data well. My impression of Javascript is that Lua beats it in that regard, but I'm not really familiar enough with Javascript to say that for sure. There is a small, fast runtime available for Lua that’s easy to embed in a larger app. And everyone who is using Lua is doing that embedding, so there is lots of help on the web on the subject. The reason no one is embedding Javascript is probably just that no one is embedding Javascript. :)

Also, Lua is quite good as a file format for data. It’s able to do arbitrarily nested hierarchies of data well. My impression of Javascript is that Lua beats it in that regard, but I’m not really familiar enough with Javascript to say that for sure.

]]> By: wowpanda http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-58229 wowpanda Mon, 05 Nov 2007 23:30:06 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-58229 is there a reason everyone is using LUA (WOW)? No one every think of javascript? After I realized the need for custom code in my bot for WOW, I added in javascript engine from Mozilla, because it is small and been used since the beginning. It turned out pretty good. Any comparsions between all the script languages (php, LUA, ruby etc)? is there a reason everyone is using LUA (WOW)? No one every think of javascript?

After I realized the need for custom code in my bot for WOW, I added in javascript engine from Mozilla, because it is small and been used since the beginning. It turned out pretty good. Any comparsions between all the script languages (php, LUA, ruby etc)?

]]> By: Matthew Weigel http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-57039 Matthew Weigel Fri, 02 Nov 2007 03:37:46 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-57039 Well, now I'm interested in this list... Well, now I’m interested in this list…

]]> By: Joe http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/comment-page-1/#comment-56809 Joe Thu, 01 Nov 2007 17:52:46 +0000 http://programmerjoe.com/2007/10/31/scripting-in-potbs/#comment-56809 That's good to know. If only Decoda (and Lua 5) had come out a few years earlier. :) That’s good to know. If only Decoda (and Lua 5) had come out a few years earlier. :)

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