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Writer's Support Scripts for Starsiege Tribes -- February 23, 2001
by Lorne Laliberte (writer@planetstarsiege.com)

http://www.writerscripts.com
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This support pack consists of:

support.vol    (contains support scripts that add useful functions to Tribes)
support.acs.cs (mounts the vol so the contents are visible to Tribes)
support.txt    (this text file)


I. Disclaimer

    Although I have made every attempt possible to ensure my scripts are safe, I 
    provide no warranty of any kind.  You must use these scripts entirely at 
    your own risk.

    You are free to modify these scripts in any way, but if you make any
    changes, you MUST send me a copy.  Please.  And if you come up with
    something really cool, please share your discoveries and your scripts with
    the rest of us.

    Feel free to borrow from my code as much as you want - there is nothing 
    cooler to me than seeing other scripters learn from my examples. But if you 
    distribute any scripts based upon my work, please indicate that in the 
    credits. I will not be responsible for the harm to your karma that results 
    from any failure to give props on your part.


II. Installation instructions

    Important: please make a backup of your config directory before installing
               these scripts. :)

    If you are using version 3.6 or earlier of Writer's scripts, you may need
    to backup, then delete your config.cs file to remove some old key binds
    so they won't interfere with the new stuff.  Alternatively, you can
    remove the old modifier.cs binds from the actionMap section of your
    config.cs yourself -- if you don't understand what this means, then just
    delete your config.cs and let Tribes rebuild it.

    Note: after deleting your config.cs, you may need to rebind the keys you
          had bound in the Tribes option screen.

    Tip: set up a duplicate of your config.cs file that has the key binds the
         way you like them, and then execute that file from your autoexec.cs
         file.  This way you can delete the config.cs file whenever you feel
         like it, without having to rebind all your (options screen) keys.

    To install this support pack:

    1. Copy the contents to your config directory

    2. (optional) Edit the settings at the top of the support.acs.cs file

    3. My scripts will autoload if you have NewOpts installed, however, NewOpts
       is not required for my scripts to run.

       If you don't have NewOpts installed, add:

       exec("support.acs.cs");

       ...to your autoexec.cs file

    4. If you're running the Presto pack or other scripts, or if you run into
       any problems, add:

       exec("writer\\force.cs");

       ...to the VERY LAST line of your autoexec.cs file

    5. That's it!


III. Changing your settings

    If you ever need to change the support pack settings, you can edit the
    wp_support.cs file in your Tribes\config directory.


IV. Important notes

    The scripts in the support.vol file are not executed automatically -- each
    script is loaded only when another script you are using requires it.

    To run my "feature" scripts like jump.cs, simply download them from my
    website and install them in a Tribes\config\writer directory.  Any of my
    scripts found in Tribes\config\writer are loaded automatically when you
    start Tribes if this support pack is installed.

    If you've used my scripts in the past, note that there is a setting in
    support.acs.cs (and the wp_support.cs file) that you can set to "true" if
    you want my scripts to use the settings in your WriterPrefs.cs file.


V. Notes for scripters

    The scripts in support.vol are accessed as though they were in a
    config\writer directory.

    To ensure that the support.vol is mounted before any of your scripts
    use it, add:

    include("support.acs.cs");

    ...to your scripts before any calls to include support files.


VI. Troubleshooting

    If you run into any problems and need some help, please try to provide as
    much information as you can.  It helps if you can send me a log of your
    console output -- to enable console logging, add:

    $console::logmode = 1;

    ...to the start of your autoexec.cs.  Then, try whatever it is you're trying
    to do in Tribes, and send me the Tribes\console.log file that is generated
    as a result.

    The #1 cause of problems is having old, outdated files being used instead
    of the newer versions in this support pack.  The worst culprit is the Presto
    pack, which has some scripts I had modified for Presto that haven't been
    updated -- these older versions lack features and also contain a couple
    bugs.  (This isn't any fault of Presto's...aside from not being around to
    replace the older files in his pack. :)


VII. Why not Newopts?

    I agree that it would be really cool if these scripts used NewOpts, but they
    don't.  These scripts are intended for people who want fast, efficient,
    well-designed scripts and aren't afraid of editing a few simple text files
    to make 'em work.

    If you can't live without NewOpts, other scripters like BigBunny, Cowboy,
    and MrPoop offer some excellent alternatives to some of my scripts.  Most of
    our stuff should coexist fine, if you're careful not to try using two
    scripts that serve the same function.

    I have nothing against NewOpts, though -- I use plenty of scripts that use
    it, and I think it's pretty nifty.  Just not quite nifty enough to justify
    the huge amount of work it would take to build all the NewOpts pages I'd
    need for all my scripts.  (I had actually planned to do that, but I changed
    my mind after the T2 beta was announced. :)


VIII. Some thoughts

    If for some reason these scripts don't work for you, the problem could be
    the unique blend of scripts you're using.

    Feel free to send me an email if you need support, but understand that I
    don't have as much time for support as I would like -- and do keep in mind
    that this is an entirely volunteer effort which I am not being paid for.

    If you have any questions about the support functions in this pack, let
    me know -- I've decided to document these things on an "as needed" basis.
    So, if you spot something you think you might use if you just knew how it
    worked, send me an email, and I'll see what I can do.

    I hope you have as much fun using these scripts as I've had building them.
    :)

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Lorne Laliberte, Writer
