DAMN Manager

[Ajax]

Yes, I do have Rush Hour.  I'm still using the same discs since the game first came out.  So, I only have the "SimCity 4" file in the "Maxis" folder.  The DAMN has therefore only created a folder in the Maxis\SimCity 4\Plugins location (that is the one with "Root" and "Support", I also have the "zzzzzz_DAMN_Hidden" folder in the Libraries\Documents\SimCity 4\Plugins location).  Again, this installation worked on my Vista system so I don't understand why this would be an issue, but there is obviously an issue with my understanding or I would be able to get this to work.  One thing that is different is that on Vista vs. Win7, I think I remember that Vista used My Documents and didn't have "Libraries"(Although, I could be remembering back to XP).  I don't know what you are hoping the easy fix is.  Are you suggesting that there should be another folder with a dummy plugins file, or that I need to obtain SimCity 4 Deluxe, or something else?

[APSMS]

One could hardly suggest that buying the Deluxe version is a "fix". If it works, I guess it's worth it, but I'm not recommending it at this point. Really it was me just hoping that the problem was as simple as a misplaced directory, which was, of course, wishful thinking, but stranger things have gone unnoticed before...

One thing I did, mostly to ensure that Terraformer worked with my new laptop when I switched from Vista, was to move my "My Documents" folder (which exists in Windows 7) to the root drive (so C:\My Documents). I don't think this is necessary for DAMN, but one thing I did is open the My Documents folder from the User filespace, rather than the libraries one.

IIRC, you can find your specific Userspace by going to the C drive (or root Hard Drive directory) navigating to Users, and clicking on your username. There you will notice that there are a bunch of folders, some of which are named in the traditional Windows Vista/XP/2000 format, like My Documents, My Music, etc. Obviously the Plugins files are already there, else the game would not see them, but I like to do my thinking for me and avoid the chance that Windows is placing the stuff in public userspace, even if I know for a fact that it is not.

I can post some pictures if what I'm saying makes no sense; I'm not advising you move your My Documents folder, just that you avoid the standard Libraries directories when working with files for SC4. I'm currently scanning the archives for inconsistencies. Could you post any pictures of your installation, like the file windows or the shortcut/.exe properties? That may help in identifying what's wrong...

Did you use any known operable DAMN menus, like the ones for RTMT, in your testing to see what the problem was? If a menu system created by a 3rd party is known to work (in a clean DAMN install), then we may be on to something. Or not.

[Ajax]

Since Deluxe is just the combined Original SC4 and Rush Hour, I wasn't sure how that could be a fix, but at this point I am willing to try just about anything.  I know strange things can happen, seemingly without reason.  When trying different installation locations for the DAMN, one time it un-zipped missing several of the files.  I've used the Terraformer since switching to Win7 and have not had any problems with it and did not do anything special with the installation.  I had to take a little trip down memory lane, which I anticipated I would have to do at some point, since I have not posted any pictures in a few years.  Here are the shortcut properties for SimCity 4:



and for DAMN:



Which file windows would you like to see, specifically?  The My Documents/SimCity 4..., the Program Files (x86)/Maxis/SimCity 4..., where I have the DAMN installed (which is currently also in the Program Files (x86) directory), or something else or all of them?  I will get pics of whatever you think might help.

[Donician]

Is it possible to delete items from the DAMN Manager and have them reappear where they would normally appear without DAMN? For example, I have RRP Ploppable Water and Draggable Paths. Neither would work in the DAMN Manager (the icons show up, but when I click on them, my cursor turns red and it doesn't plop anything). So, I tried to remove them from the DAMN Manager, expecting that they would revert back into the MMP menu. However, they are not there. I even tried deleting them from my plugins folder and re-installing them, but it didn't work. I'm having the same issue with the PEG Pond terrain MMPs (had them in DAMN, they didn't work, and now I cannot get them to appear in my regular MMP menu). Any help would be appreciated.

By the way, DAMN is great!

[Yild]

updated to 1.2.0

Donician - all hiding data is stored in zzzzzz_DAMN_Hidden (default) folder in your main plugins folder, each file there is a single menu branch - delete selected branch (file name) where your lots ware added and they will reapear in SC menu.

If you provide links to a problematic plugins I will try to fix it if time permits.

[Donician]

Yild,

Thanks for responding. I actually posted a similar request over on SimPeg and SimCoug told me to delete the files from the zzzz_DAMN Remove folder. Once I did that, they reappeared in my MMP menu. So, problem solved.

As far as the problematic plugins, here are the links:

RRP Draggable Paths - http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1885

PEG PPond Terrain Prop Pack 1 - http://www.simpeg.com/forum/index.php?action=downloads;sa=view;down=492

The other problematic plugin is RRP Ploppable Water, but I can't find a link for it at the moment.

[vortext]

Maybe it's because those are all MMPs instead of lots? 

[ScottFTL]

I'm experiencing a perplexing problem with DAMN Manager.

When I use DAMN Manager v1.20 to install the DAMN plugin and create a DAMN menu, I can see the menus in-game but plopping a DAMNed lot causes a crash to desktop.  I select the lot from the DAMN menu, then I see a green cursor as I plop followed by an immediate crash to desktop.  I've tried with several different sets of lots, so I don't think that is the issue.

I removed everything and used SSP Tool instead to install the DAMN plugin and create the exact same menu.  Surprisingly, it worked perfectly.   

Any ideas?

[Sabretooth78]

I'm experiencing a perplexing problem with DAMN Manager.

When I use DAMN Manager v1.20 to install the DAMN plugin and create a DAMN menu, I can see the menus in-game but plopping a DAMNed lot causes a crash to desktop.  I select the lot from the DAMN menu, then I see a green cursor as I plop followed by an immediate crash to desktop.  I've tried with several different sets of lots, so I don't think that is the issue.

I removed everything and used SSP Tool instead to install the DAMN plugin and create the exact same menu.  Surprisingly, it worked perfectly.   

Any ideas?

I've been using DAMN for some time now (haven't upgraded to 1.2 yet) and initially I was having that problem apparently randomly.  Turned out I was able to avoid it by just not hiding any items from the menu.

[Yild]

Any ideas?

I just look in my glass ball... coz you didn't provide enough information...

[Ajax]

O.K., before you think "Oh man, not this guy again!", I would just like to say:



I decided this morning to take another stab at getting this thing to work.  So I took a deep breath and started clearing out all the files from my last failed attempt.  I went step by step installing everything as I thought I had before.  And now I can state with extreme joy that I have those beautiful DAMN menus in my game again.  Unfortunately, I do not know what I did differently with the installation this time that I did not do any of the other times that I installed the tool.  All I can say is that whatever I did wrong, I did right this time.  Apparently persistence pays off!  I would just like to say thank you to everyone who tried to help me, and to all who had a hand in creating this fantastic tool.  Now I just have to re-build all of my menus (and hope I don't mess something up in the process  ).

[Yild]

did you used 1.2 version ?

[APSMS]

O.K., before you think "Oh man, not this guy again!", I would just like to say:


<snip>

That is excellent news. Hopefully everything stays working, and perhaps you may be able to figure out what was wrong and let us know. I, for one, would be interesting in knowing.

[ScottFTL]

I just look in my glass ball... coz you didn't provide enough information...

What additional details would be helpful?

I installed DAMN Manager v1.20, installed DAMN using your tool without the default menus using the options for Urgent Advice Dialog, Columns 3/400 with max items 50 and reduce news messages selected.  I tried 3x to create a simple menu as a test with the same results each time using MGB's Hedges, TWrecks' IRM Fillers and finally SFBT's Diagonal Fillers.  For each test, I completed removed the DAMN folder from the App Plugins folder and removed the Hidden folder from the Docs Plugins folder.  The hidden option was selected for all lots.  The menus appear as they should in-game, but when I select a lot to plop the cursor turns green and the game crashes to desktop when I plop the lot.

As a final test, I completely removed DAMN again and used SSP Tool v2.2.5 to install DAMN with the same options.  I created the same simple menu with the same lots as a test, and this time it worked perfectly.  The cursor did not turn green when I selected a lot, and there was no crash when the lot was plopped.

I also noticed that the SFBT placement props that are visible in the preview for these lots was visible with the SSP Tool menu, but I saw nothing except a blue square when using DAMN Manager to create the same menu.  I don't know if that is relevant, but I suspect that something is going wrong in the process that creates the hidden lots.

My computer is running Window 7 SP1 x64. SC4 is installed to "C:\Games\Maxis\SimCity 4 Deluxe\" and I double-checked the Start In value for the desktop shortcut.  I have full permissions on the Plugins folders, and I also run DAMN Manager as Administrator.

I would be happy to provide any other details that might assist you in troubleshooting, if you are interested.  SSP Tool still works fine for me, but I wanted to report the problem nonetheless.

[Yild]

now its more than enough

MGB's Hedges, TWrecks' IRM Fillers and finally SFBT's Diagonal Fillers

this will help me to investigate a problem

[Ajax]

That is excellent news. Hopefully everything stays working, and perhaps you may be able to figure out what was wrong and let us know. I, for one, would be interesting in knowing.

What I tried to do was to make it work the way it had on my previous computer.  When I first started using DAMN, I installed the SSP version and then Yild's version when it came out.  With the new computer, I tried jumping straight to Yild's version without installing the SSP version first.  When I was having problems, I did try installing the SSP version, but I don't remember how thorough I was in removing everything else.  All I know is that it did not work at the time.  This time I made sure all remnants of the DAMN were removed and started from scratch.  First install DAMN, second install SSP Tool, third install SSP Tool DAMN Plugin, fourth install Yild DAMN Manager, and verified each step as I went along. That seemed to work...

This morning I gleefully sat down to start building my custom menus and at first all was going well.  I made a couple menus, then checked them in game.  All good!  Made a couple more, all good in the game again!  Made a couple more, and some weird stuff started happening.  The buttons showed up in game, but some of them did not have any entries, others had lots from the wrong menus.  Tried to make a couple more, and the same errors were happening.  So, just out of curiosity, I tried adding a couple menus with the SSP Tool, checked them in game, and those menus are fine but the menus that had errors still had the same errors.  All of the lots I have DAMN'd so far are my own personal lots that had been in the menus on my previous computer so I don't think they are the problem.

I was unaware at the time of my previous post that there is a 1.2 version of the DAMN manager.  Since I thought I had solved the problem, I did not want to try the new version, but now I think I will give it a go.

[Sim.Rico]

ROFL   it really DOES say what i thought the title says!!!

[joshua43214]

Thank you for the work on this tool.

There is one thing I really really wish it had.

I would love to be able to have items in the Lot List color coded to indicate they are already DAMN'd, or even the ability to able to filter out all DAMN'd lots.

Hopefully this is something simple to do and you feel the urge to do it.

Thanks again.

[joshua43214]

Version 1.2 has a borked DAMN installer.

Here is the story;
After mucking up my plugins folder trying to get IRM for CAM to work, I decided to do a clean install of everything.
Reinstalled SC4, NAM, CAM, LE, etc, and my entire plugins folder. Basically a clean install of everything SC4.
I noticed that v1.2 was available while I was still setting up my DAMN menus and upgraded.

When I would try to plop a WMP light pole from the DAMN menu, I would get a CTD, I was also getting this for some other items, but I can't remember exactly which ones. So I started doing the divide and conquer routine of my zzzzzz_Damn_Hidden folder and found the WMP crashed the game even when all alone. I deleted all the DAMN stuff, reinstalled DAMN, and had the same issue.
I uninstalled DAMN and reinstalled and only made a menu for Maarten's LRM light set, an item I know for certain worked in the past. Game still crashed. I started dividing my plugins folder until I had only LRM and DAMN, game still crashed when I plopped the light.

With only LRM in my plugins, I reinstalled DAMN, added LRM - game crashed.
Uninstalled and installed DAMN using v1.1.1 - no game crash
Added all my plugins back in - plopped the lamp with no crash.
Uninstalled DAMN, and reinstalled with v1.2 - CTD plopping a lamp.
Reinstalled DAMN with 1.1.1 - no crash when plopping a lamp.

It follows with no uncertainty that v1.2 has a bad DAMN installer.

Specs (not that it matters)
Win8.1 pro
i7-3770 3.50GHz
16GB RAM
Dual GTX 570's in SLI

[Yild]

I would say this... closed file structure sux big time!

there is a problem with exemplars binary coded vs ascii coded (text)... my DBPF decoding/encoding library is based on iLive Reader DBPF routines - from time of first release I had to modify my source code to read/write some mods that was OK for Simcity but iLive and my app would throw exceptions or crash (yes... there are still errors in iLive...). 

atm DAMN Manager saves (encode) all hiding exemplars as binary entry, even if original exemplar was decoded as text entry... this may result in malformed files due to errors with encoding as binary data. This is the case where we don't have official file structures and all data was reverse engineered.

So returning to those damn ploppable lamps... original exemplar is saved as text file, hiding exemplar as binary,
Manager and iLive can read them correctly but Simcity crash when we want to plop them... there must be an error some ware... best solution is to save exemplars binary as binary and text as text but I must think it over. This isn't some major change (2 lines of code to comment) but it may cause other unpredicted problems.


Second option is to save all hiding exemplars as text. It would seem that simcity is more immune to errors in text data (by my 'experience' of 20 mins modifying those damn lams properties - SC didn't even crash, some values was set as default or 0 only).
Third option is (for end user) to disable hiding lots from menu so that new overriding exemplars wouldn't be created.

Probably I will resolve this with second option.


ps. I don't play SC for some time now (to many mods... to long to load... to old computer)  so updates are from time to time - if I would use Manager by myself I would be able to find some issues earlier or even add some additions (like I wanted to add NAM puzzle pieces automatically)...