Author Topic: MAPVIEW upgrade  (Read 259552 times)

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #210 on: January 24, 2018, 10:30:48 pm »
I have no idea, i really don't.


If i were you, as a test I'd create a directory on the root of your C: drive, dl the 7 files from the github distribution dir (you don't need the ConfigConverter..) to that new dir on your C:

double-click MapView.exe


then a smallish window should pop up asking about installation.

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I don't know what limitations win7 Home has or not, I don't know if it has .NET 3.5, I don't know what MS redistributables are required, I don't know when the dinosaurs went extinct.

The .Chm helpfile was manufactured with the standard Windows Chm creator (HTML Help Workshop), and if even *that* doesn't open ... that's just mind-boggling

Offline RSSwizard

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #211 on: February 13, 2018, 09:01:29 pm »
If i were you, as a test I'd create a directory on the root of your C: drive, dl the 7 files from the github distribution dir (you don't need the ConfigConverter..) to that new dir on your C:

Here you go sir. What is "NTVDM" by the way?

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #212 on: February 14, 2018, 03:37:38 am »
NTVDM = Windows NT Virtual DOS Machine

(supposedly) it's for running 16-bit programs in a Dos-shell. But MapView I/II are not 16-bit programs ... I forced MVii to 32-bit build; i could be wrong because I'm just not sure about that stuff. In this case, however, it's highly unlikely - i suspect that it would be very difficult to even compile a program to 16-bit in today's age.

Also, when I run MV2, if it were 16-bit (which it isn't ;) ) ntvdm.exe should show up in my TaskManager. It doesn't. Neither does it show up when i run PckView2, which is built with the same settings. Also, in the Help screen for PckView i twiddled-in a brief system-inspection routine that prints the build-type (release or debug), the bit-type (for lack of a better way of putting it), and the OS-interaction-type (ditto). Mine says:

release
X86
WoW64

meaning it's a release-build, 32-bit, running under WoW64

It'd be kinda nice if you could get PckView2 to run, just to check that ... but NOTE: PckView2 should not be run until *after* MapView2 runs at least once (because settings that pckview relies on are written to disk only *after* MVII runs).


> im running Win7 Home Premium 32 bit

hm. There's something called a VirtualStore in windows. I don't know much about it; it seems to be a so-called virtual space on the harddrive that Windows will write things like MapView's configuration files to if MapView is installed to a protected space. It has its problems because files are being written to places they aren't expected to be.

I mention the VirtualStore since in your 2nd screenshot i think i see "@MSITStore:C\Mapview2\MapView.chm" .... "Store" suggests to me that Windows is trying to shuffle stuff into the VirtualStore ... eg, it could be trying to make a copy of the .CHM file to the store before opening it.


Have you checked for malware recently? (personally i doubt it 'cause there'd likely be a lot else going wrong on your computer if so)

my best **guess** at this point, is that Win7 Home has extra security that aggressively clamps things into protected spaces. I suggest hunting down things like UAC (User Access Control) and Ownership properties on the Mapview directory ....... personally i obliterated as much of that stuff as I could as soon as I got Win7 64. .. i tried, i really tried to live with it but just couldn't,




edit: Another way of looking at it, why is your computer trying to open a dos-box ? o.O

edit2: it's a long shot but you could try right-click mapview.exe, Properties, Compatibility, Windows XP (Service Pack 3)
« Last Edit: February 14, 2018, 04:33:38 am by kevL »

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #213 on: April 08, 2018, 04:00:15 am »
Hi KevL!

Just a quick question- my copy of MapView 2 (latest build, downloaded last night) can't/won't save .MAP files. It saves images of the map
 (.GIF) correctly, and doesn't display any error message, but the file just doesn't appear.

I'm running it with admin permissions on a Windows 8.1 machine.

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #214 on: April 08, 2018, 04:31:29 am »
to create a .MAP file

use the MapTree (left panel of MainView). you'll need a Group (top level branch), a Category (a branch under the Group), and select the Category w/ a click. Then right-click it and choose Add Tileset ...

Make sure the Tileset's Path is correct (change it w/ the ... button). Type in the name of your new .MAP/.RMP in the Map input-box. Click "Create". Add some terrrainsets from the lower right panel and gtg.


To save a .MAP, have it open in MainView. use File|Save Map, or File|Save All (also saves the .RMP and the MapTree), or File|Save As ... (also saves the .RMP iirc)

It should get saved to its basepath as specified in Edit Tileset, the Path field (left-click the map in the MapTree, right-click it, choose Edit Tileset ... to see the path)

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ps. be careful with permissions under Program Files etc etc. I'm not a multi-machine programmer and can't debug problems in operating systems other than Win7 64. So i don't know what "admin permissions" really does (and doesn't do) in 8.1 ... for that matter, i don't know what "admin permissions" does and doesn't do in win7 also.

i'm just a dos 6.22 guy. /jk


Edit: maybe i'll have to run a check after saving files, that tells if a file was successfully saved or not ...

that's in the future tho

Edit2: oh, if a map is created and saved to disk okay, but doesn't appear in the MapTree, it's likely because the MapTree wasn't explicitly saved. And if using File|Save As ... it won't appear in the MapTree unless/until it's added w/ Add Tileset ...


( it's been a while and, needless to say, the whole MapTree business is ... complicated. )
« Last Edit: April 08, 2018, 07:47:34 pm by kevL »

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #215 on: April 10, 2018, 06:36:30 am »

Okay, here's an interesting one. MapView was running fine but my computer powered down unexpectedly (power cut) and afterwards MapView won't load- it 'encounters a problem' according to Windows with no useful error messages.

The tricky art is that I deleted and redownloaded MapView off GitHub and fired it up again- but the issue persists!

I'm guessing it's trying to look at something in my OpenXCOM install and not finding it/finding garbage but I have no insight as to what or how to fix it. Any advice you can offer would be appreciated!

Offline ohartenstein23

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #216 on: April 10, 2018, 06:43:30 am »
MapView has some configuration/data files for remembering settings and paths to the map and terrain files, maybe one of those was messed up and is saved somwhere that wasn't removed on uninstall?

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #217 on: April 10, 2018, 07:31:39 am »
That's my suspicion, but I don't know where... I killed everything I could find. Hence asking the astonishingly helpful author :)

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #218 on: April 10, 2018, 09:19:43 am »
if that's me idk ...

unexpected shutdowns can cause weird things to the hardrive. (I once had to reformat an entire drive because chkdisk/scandisk refused to reset the "dirty bit". so ... sounds like you can wipe the sweat off yer brow on that one.)

without sitting at your computer there's not much i know - you could try installing to different directory, try running a deep-scan on the hardrive (takes all night), uhh

Mapview1 writes to the registry, so if that's an issue try a registry cleaner like CCleaner. Mapview2 does not write to the registry and all its files ought be under its parent dir.

unless it's using a so-called virtual store ... which you could search around for .. on my machine it's under C:\Users\User\AppData\Local\VirtualStore and perhaps delete a MapView folder (or rename it like, "Mapview_") I've done that with a few other old programs that wanted to use the virtual store and it doesn't seem to cause problems but you should google it first, i guess.

It partly depends on what the computer was doing when the power was cut.

I really can't think why an app that ran before would refuse to run again. I'd try installing to a different directory. and google is our friend, try "power cut application won't run" ( + permutations )

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #219 on: April 10, 2018, 09:23:52 am »
Thanks for weighing in. I'll check the virtual store possibility later tonight.

Failing that, I'm getting a new machine in a couple of weeks so I guess I'll start over on a clean system :P

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #220 on: April 10, 2018, 09:36:16 am »
that's a bingo  ;D

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #221 on: April 14, 2018, 08:54:53 am »

Okay, I've got it starting again, which is progress. But none of the 'right click' functions (such as viewing/editing tilesets or starting a new map) are working, nor am I able to change level in the main window unless I close the tile view and top view.

I'm only mentioning this on the off chance that these particular errors shed some light on the problem?

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #222 on: April 14, 2018, 09:02:26 pm »
not to me unfortunately :|

Quote
But none of the 'right click' functions (such as viewing/editing tilesets or starting a new map) are working, nor am I able to change level in the main window unless I close the tile view and top view.

That sounds like a problem that was/is happening on circa post-Win7 machines. MainView would refuse to take focus if any of the other viewers were open. So i put in an option under MainView->Edit->Options->AllowBringToFront

it should default to FALSE - which is a 'safe' setting. Ie, a user would have to change it to TRUE to allow the bring-to-front behavior, when MainView is clicked to take focus (but TRUE is the setting that could also enable the bug.)

So, and this might be a longshot, since MainView (specifically the view-panel) needs focus for the mousewheel to scroll through levels ... and probably for a right-click on the MapTree to work also ... have a look at MainView->Edit->Options and check the "AllowBringToFront" setting. suggested: FALSE
« Last Edit: April 14, 2018, 09:04:27 pm by kevL »

Offline Keth01

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #223 on: April 20, 2018, 01:45:29 am »

For some reason it's not showing 'AllowBringToFront' as an option on the screen you suggested...

Offline kevL

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Re: MAPVIEW upgrade
« Reply #224 on: April 20, 2018, 01:29:09 pm »
from here?

https://github.com/kevL/OpenXCOM.Tools/tree/master/Distribution

I just downloaded those files and ran MapView.exe in a clean dir, and after the installation dialog this appears under MainView|Edit|Options