WebEditor beta

Alex
I've been working on a web-based editor for Quest, which means you can create games entirely in your web browser - no downloads required.

It's now in private beta, so if you'd like to give it a test run, please email me or reply here. You'll need an account on textadventures.co.uk so let me know which email address you registered with.

Thanks!
Alex

Alex
Here's a blog post and a preview tour:

http://www.textadventures.co.uk/blog/20 ... r-browser/

Pertex
Fine, I found the link to create a game. My first impression: I like this blue color and the design of tabs and menus. :D
Where do you want us to post bugs? In the normal Q5-Forum? Here is the first one: If you create a german game, the link to go into a direction shows 'go' so that it says 'go Süden' which does not work

Alex
Thanks :)

You can post bugs via the usual channels - Issue Tracker preferably!

sgreig
I have to say I really like the web editor so far, and I think it will be incredibly useful for being able to work on projects from different computers (like on a lunch break at work, etc.)

The biggest limitation for me right at the moment, and I know Alex is planning on implementing this soon, is the ability to upload and download the game files for offline editing. I would be more than happy to work on Sleuth with the web editor, but having to go through Alex for the time being to transfer files to and from the server is a bit of a hassle. :D

Once that feature is implemented however, I think the web editor will be my medium of choice for Quest game development. Alex should be commended for his excellent work!

MerchantToo
I use dropbox to be able to edit from multiple computers.

Pertex
I try to activate "Show player score" and "Show player health" but I get an internal error. But I think, this features are not supported yet, right?
I am missing a save-button. If an error occurs, all changes are gone.

edit: ahh, I see. All checkboxes throw an internal error.

Changing a value in the game/display-tab and then starting the game leads to internal error.
Wow, now any change brings up an internal error when starting the game. The player says "Error running script: Error compiling expression '': SyntaxError: Unexpected end of fileLine: 1, Column: 1"

Alex
There's no "save" button because all changes are saved automatically as you go along.

I can't reproduce a problem with an internal error after clicking a checkbox. It sounds like maybe you got logged out? I can't see any exceptions in the log.

The game you created gives you an expression error because it has an invalid expression in it. You've added a "SetTimerInterval" command to your start script with a blank timer name.

guzmere
Hi Alex I'm sorry to compound problems but I too have wrote a few lines and played it to see what it looks like and ever since that it comes up with the same internal error. And I can't do anything with it. :oops:
I have just tried to create another one, just in case I had ticked a wrong box somewhere. But as soon as I created another room it started all over again saying there is an internal error, and won't let me do any thing
On the bright side I love the script options. :D :D :D

Pertex
Alex wrote:There's no "save" button because all changes are saved automatically as you go along.

What does this mean exactly? Will the game be saved after every change I do? Or when I start the game?

OK, I found the problem. Its not a problem with checkboxes. If you add the command "set timer script" and add a new script to it (just a "print a message"), you get the internal error and after it the game in the editor is "dead", you can't change any value/field any more without this error and new loading the game.

And I think there is a problem with timers in the gui even with the offlineversion. If you want to set the timerinterval, the combobox of the timername is not editable, so you can only choose an existing timer. But normally you would create the new timer with a previous command, so the combobox of the timernames should display all timers, even if they are created with script.

Another problem: sometimes the list of scriptcommands behaves strange. See picture
edit: ok, after restarting the webeditor it seems to be ok again
script.jpg

Alex
When you get an internal error, can you please send me a screenshot? Also are you able to consistently get the error after following the same steps?

Pertex, the game is saved as you go along. Specifically whenever you click any button, click a checkbox, or move between objects in the tree.

I can reproduce the timer script error, so I'll take a look into that.

The script commands are supposed to display in a JQueryUI Accordion. If they're not, some script probably broke before it was set up. What browser are you using? If you press Ctrl+Shift+I in Chrome you can view the Javascript, so if you could let me know any errors that would be great.

Alex
Managed to get a repro for the missing accordion so will look into that too.

Alex
Worked it out - will deploy the update later.

Please please please keep these bug reports coming! It's still early days so there are bound to be these kinds of problems. That's why it's only a closed beta at the moment :)

guzmere
Hi Alex sorry about this again just a couple of things, it seems when I try to play the game the tree on the left seems to judder from left to right. And after a while it then comes up with an internal error.

(But I have since discovered that if I close I E 9 and then start it up again and re-log in everthing works again )

Also can we post a picture on the game like we could on the downloaded version.

Also on the downloaded version in the tree on the left we could click and drag the player into different locations to try them out, but we can't on the website. Is there another way to achieve this effect.
I admire you for this as by now I would be pulling my hair out.Soz :D :D :D :D

Alex
Missing accordion issue should now be fixed. Also, I found that although I thought I was logging all errors, actually it turns out that the behaviour is different once deployed on the server, so what I thought was a blissfully error-free log was in fact just not showing me any errors :(

That is fixed now so I can see the missing error messages! So hopefully whenever you see an internal error I should now have the info I need.

The tree "juddering" is probably just it reloading, so shouldn't anything to worry about.

Picture/sound upload ability is what I'm working on right now, so that should be available later today.

No way to drag and drop in the tree at the moment. One hacky workaround for now would be to use the game start script to move the player.

guzmere
That's sorted with the player. Can you tell me about local commands within each location. As I can't seem to find the script as yet for them Thanks :D :D :D :D

Alex
I haven't implemented a way to add commands yet :)

Pertex
Alex wrote:
Pertex, the game is saved as you go along. Specifically whenever you click any button, click a checkbox, or move between objects in the tree.


But not all actions will save the game eg. simply filling textboxes or changing comboboxes. In my eyes correct saving is one of the most important things of an editor

Alex
But the game will be saved as soon as you click Play. I do agree that there needs to be some more code though to prompt you to save before closing the tab, in case you've filled in a textbox and not clicked anywhere else. But I'd prefer to not have a "Save" button at all if possible. The idea is that you should be able to just use the editor without having to worry about saving at all, confident that every change you make will be saved.

Pertex
The Undo/Redo-functions seems to be a bit tricky. It shows the wrong state of undo/redo (active or inactive button), I get internal errors . Just add a new room, then undo it, redo it and then click fast several times on undo :D

How many actions can be undone?

Alex
Yeah I think some of the Editor functions are not creating transactions properly, so undo/redo may be a bit flaky at the moment.

Pertex
Is it possible to display a hourglass if the editor is working?

Just a detail: in the object-tab there is the box 'other names:' . Shouldn't this be correctly named as 'Other aliases' ?

If you select 'Handle objects individually' in the comboboxes within the use/give-tab of an object, it displays [scriptdictionary] under the combobox.
Ahh, I see. Its not done yet :lol:

Alex
Hourglass - good suggestion, logged http://quest.codeplex.com/workitem/1030

"Other names" has always been that... I suppose really it is "other aliases" but I think "other names" makes just as much sense.

Editing a script dictionary is not currently implemented, but it is of course on the list!

RedTulip
This is great!

Could I have a try, please? :D

Alex
Access granted!

Alex
File uploads are now implemented, so you can now put pictures and sounds in!

greenelvish
Hi Alex,

the editor works confortably and efficiently both on laptop and on ipad.

I see you recently added "insert HTML from a file" script (I didn't see it when I logged in for the first time). But after choosing my file, it returns an "Invalid file type" message.

Not specifically related to online editor: I really appreciate your new "first time" script.

Thanks for your great job.

Pertex
Alex, are you working on the server? The webeditor only says loading but nothing happens and I couldn't start a game. Perhaps it's a problem with m ygame. I used an indefinite loop and after starting this game the editor stop working :cry:

Ok, its working again

guzmere
Hi Alex would I be right in assuming that because I cannot use the local commands for manipulating the scenario in each room , such as [move cat;move the cat;kick the cat] then print out a msg for that command, such as "the cat has run away"
That I would have to use verbs instead. And that would make it as every object and every room would have to be an
[object and/or room].

I have tried to add a global command but the pop up just says todo command and I have to close it.

Also the scripts drop down only allows me to see the output part of it so I can not see the ok button, or anything else to close it off. :D :D :D :D

Alex
Support for adding commands will be implemented soon. Also I'm aware of the problem with the long script adder - is this on the iPad? You can rotate to portrait to see the OK button. Also try changing to Simple Mode (use the Settings button) as that will make the script adder shorter :)

guzmere
Hi Alex sorry to bother you, but all day I've tried to get into my game and it keeps telling me
Sorry your session has timed out. I've tried logging in and out to no avail. :D :D :D :D

dgchichester
Hi, following the tutorial on the web beta - and can't seem to find the attributes tab on an object (to add weight to the flour).

Is it missing or reassigned on the web?

Best

Dan Chichester

Alex
The Attributes editor is not currently implemented. I probably won't implement it for the first release.

dgchichester
Thanks, Alex, I will route around that in the tutorial.

sgreig
dgchichester: You can get around it by setting the attributes in code. If you wanted to add the weight attribute for example, you would choose "set variable or attribute" and add the expression eggs.weight with whatever the weight value is.

You can then, of course, substitute eggs for whatever object needs e weight attribute. Best place to put the script would be in the game start section for that I think.

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