Help plz: Server, frikbot, mapcycling

[golden_boy]

OK, I want to have a quake server on my lan running frikbot. This is the situation:

- I got a machine running proquake -dedicated 4 -game frikbot +map shadows
- I got an id1/server.cfg
- I got frikbot/bot.cfg and frikbot/maps.cfg

I can connect from another machine and frag some bots.

Problem: Map cycling, fraglimit and timelimit don't work.

1. My server.cfg:

fraglimit 20
timelimit 5
localinfo shadows matdm2
localinfo matdm2 dm4
localinfo dm4 dm6
localinfo dm6 e1m2
localinfo e1m2 shadows

2. My bot.cfg:

(some bot aliases)
timelimit 5
fraglimit 20

3. My maps.cfg:

samelevel -5
alias map1 "changelevel matdm2"
alias map2 "changelevel dm4"
alias map3 "changelevel dm6"
alias map4 "changelevel e1m2"
alias map5 "changelevel shadows"

I tried a number of things. No matter what, timelimit, fraglimit and map cycling don't work. I don't know what takes precedence, the server's map rotation setup or frikbot's, and I have no idea why timelimit doesn't work.

I have been trying for hours. I can't see why simple things are so hard to get working. I have googled and searched for quake server guides (not many and no good ones) and frikbot help (not much and pretty short.)

Anyone?

[Baker]

I tried the runebot earlier. It's pretty good, though I think if a player doesn't want the runes / spawn protection etc. they can just use plain frikbot/omicron bot. Map voting in a lan is probably not necessary...

Yeah, that's a weakness of Runebot (lack of configuration ability), but at least the source code is included. That was a different codebase fork off of an old version of Rune Quake written well-before Slot Zero added a trillion vote options/configuration settings into the mod.

Luckily, most quake mods run on linux (I can't remember one not running just because it was Linux.) With Q2, you have a different situation because of the dll format. dll is a Windows format (library) and as such is totally "alien" to any Unix.

That sounds terrible. I had no idea.

[golden_boy]

RuneQuake is an incredible advanced mod.
But bot support would be a little troublesome, but it's been done. The code would just have to be merged.

I tried the runebot earlier. It's pretty good, though I think if a player doesn't want the runes / spawn protection etc. they can just use plain frikbot/omicron bot. Map voting in a lan is probably not necessary...

I think for runequake servers in lans bot support would be a nice feature. Perhaps they will put that in in a future version, who knows.

What I imagine would be cool is a CTF bot. Frikbot is pretty good at teamplay, so it would just have to learn that flags are desirable :-) And even I can remember the few runes in CTF.

You know for casual players who have home lans and play with friends, it would be kinda cool to have. Or so I think.

Anyway, I have the frikbots running now, and that will do.

You might download RQuake Maximum and run it locally on a dedicated computer using ProQuake.

good suggestion, I'm trying all sorts of multiplayer mods now and plan to eventually run some of them permanently. I have a dedicated server in my lan, so that's no problem.

from what Spirit said about only being able to get DarkPlaces to run on Linux (and with no sound) I can imagine (Spirit is a determined guy and eventually gave up on Linux).

hm, that seems totally weird. Almost all quake (1,2,3,4) engines run on linux.

A lot of cool things are coming, but a fair number of them probably won't be available for Linux, at least initially.

Luckily, most quake mods run on linux (I can't remember one not running just because it was Linux.) With Q2, you have a different situation because of the dll format. dll is a Windows format (library) and as such is totally "alien" to any Unix.

It was probably introduced by ID to make Q2 modding more user friendly, and seeing how most gamers -at the time- were Windows users...

Ironically, there are much less Q2 mods than Q1 mods, and C is harder to learn than QuakeC, so the tactic apparently backfired.

Lots of Q2 mods come in dll format with no source code, and if there is source, it has no Linux makefile (needed for the build system - compiler etc.) For example the Lazarus mod only comes in dll format and is not open source.

Nothing we can do about it, it's really the mod authors' fault for not making their stuff cross-platform. Linux, *BSD and Mac OS are by no means obscure systems.

But I'm not whining, Linux was a free choice and I can live with such small drawbacks. I'm not going to Windows just so I can play more games. I can play Quake, Doom, and a number of other games like Starcraft. Most people have no idea how many of the better known games run on linux. I have run Diablo 2 for example. Other ppl are running World of Warcraft, Doom3 etc.

anyway, that's getting very much OT :-)

[Baker]

what do yo mean by old progs? Non-modded Quake?

What would be a modern DM/FFA/TDM mod that has stuff like vote-exit, bot support, and map cycling?

RuneQuake is an incredible advanced mod. You can set 4 or 5 settings (turn off hook, item replacement, runes, rotating armor) and then you are playing a very powerful vanilla DM with map voting, rules voting, etc.

This is what the EuroQuake server does ( http://www.quakeone.com/euroquake ). You might try connecting to it with ProQuake, JoeQuake, Qrack or DarkPlaces and then type "vote-arena" or "vote-match" or "vote-practice" in the console and see what happens and watch it switch modes.

But bot support would be a little troublesome, but it's been done. The code would just have to be merged.

I'll give you some information on something that would interest you later today.

Yeah. However, it would be desirable that newbs have easier access, at least in central areas. Using custom SP maps, playing against bots, playing online, and setting up servers are such central areas.

Those are on the way :d And RQuake already has the custom single player maps covered. Yeah, it's in the United States but tons of Europeans have played there for hours on end. You might download RQuake Maximum (http://www.quakeone.com/rquake) and run it locally on a dedicated computer using ProQuake. Check out the manual.

Haha! You have an idea how "easy" it is to get Doom Legacy running under Linux? Its code structure is idiotic (inherited from the original Doom), for example it wants to use its own sound server instead of using the standard way, it wants to play MIDI music and other things like that. I had to settle for prboom and did not bother to install MIDI software just for that. I don't want to know about running a Doom server. :-D no thanks! I just want some fun now and again!

I have no idea how easy/hard it is to do, but from what Spirit said about only being able to get DarkPlaces to run on Linux (and with no sound) I can imagine (Spirit is a determined guy and eventually gave up on Linux).

A lot of cool things are coming, but a fair number of them probably won't be available for Linux, at least initially.

Or maybe I'll be wrong.

[golden_boy]

I think you have a limited amount of control in the original progs106 to control that with the noexit and samelevel variables, but truth be told I view those old progs as very obsolete (doesn't even have custom map support). There might be something on that at http://console.planetquake.gamespy.com

what do yo mean by old progs? Non-modded Quake?

What would be a modern DM/FFA/TDM mod that has stuff like vote-exit, bot support, and map cycling?

Nothing is easy and newbie friendly, but I guess everyone puts up with it because the game itself is very good.

Yeah. However, it would be desirable that newbs have easier access, at least in central areas. Using custom SP maps, playing against bots, playing online, and setting up servers are such central areas.

Doom never had any of these problems, everything was easy. But at the same time, Doom was rather limited in options -- you know, use the arrow keys and play the maps and select style 1, 2 or 3.

Haha! You have an idea how "easy" it is to get Doom Legacy running under Linux? Its code structure is idiotic (inherited from the original Doom), for example it wants to use its own sound server instead of using the standard way, it wants to play MIDI music and other things like that. I had to settle for prboom and did not bother to install MIDI software just for that. I don't want to know about running a Doom server. :-D no thanks! I just want some fun now and again!

I mean, MIDI!!! *laugh* beep beep!

[Baker]

How would you normally set up mapcycling in a vanilla Quake server (oldschool DM)?

I think you have a limited amount of control in the original progs106 to control that with the noexit and samelevel variables, but truth be told I view those old progs as very obsolete (doesn't even have custom map support). There might be something on that at http://console.planetquake.gamespy.com

The source is the latest Frikbot X. But nevermind, I found out what's happening.

Good, hehe.

In the frikbot readme, you're instructed to use the file frikbot/maps.cfg to set up mapcycling. However, this file is apparently not being sourced, meaning its contents are not read out. After putting "samelevel -5" in maps.cfg, a "samelevel" in the console said it was "0".

Remedy: Telling Quake to +exec maps.cfg, also putting frikbot-specific things like fraglimit in there.

None of this is in the Frikbot documentation... gah...

anyway, it's working now.

You know, there are very few things in Quake that work well without any instruction.

Nothing is easy and newbie friendly, but I guess everyone puts up with it because the game itself is very good.

Doom never had any of these problems, everything was easy. But at the same time, Doom was rather limited in options -- you know, use the arrow keys and play the maps and select style 1, 2 or 3.

[golden_boy]

I immediately notice you are trying to use localinfo which is not something regular Quake supports.

ah, I see. That was somehing I found on the net. I removed it.

How would you normally set up mapcycling in a vanilla Quake server (oldschool DM)?

If you post a zip to your source, I or someone else here should easily be able to modify your code to get the map rotation working.

The source is the latest Frikbot X. But nevermind, I found out what's happening.

In the frikbot readme, you're instructed to use the file frikbot/maps.cfg to set up mapcycling. However, this file is apparently not being sourced, meaning its contents are not read out. After putting "samelevel -5" in maps.cfg, a "samelevel" in the console said it was "0".

Remedy: Telling Quake to +exec maps.cfg, also putting frikbot-specific things like fraglimit in there.

None of this is in the Frikbot documentation... gah...

anyway, it's working now.

[Baker]

I can look into this and see if I can you hooked up with something, however, I immediately notice you are trying to use localinfo which is not something regular Quake supports.

If you post a zip to your source, I or someone else here should easily be able to modify your code to get the map rotation working.

I can't see why simple things are so hard to get working.

I hear you on this. Little by little some of that is changing, but not quite fast enough. *sigh*

Post a zip with your code and I bet all of this is easy to fix. I have some theories on your other problems.

edit = fixed a typo I made