Test mission from BOS Editor ?

[Alfaunostebas11]

Is it possible to test a WIP mission directly from BOS Editor (like from FMB in IL-2 46...) or we must exit and launch the mission in IL-2 Sturmovik (a bit tedious if you want to test the step-by-step advancing...).

[LLv34_Temuri]

It's not possible. You need to launch the mission via the game.

[Alfaunostebas11]

As I feared ... it's a nuisance, but evidently the architecture of the program did not foresee this possibility ... thanks for the information Temuri.

[Murleen]

You don't need to exit, as long as you start the game first you can have both running at the same time and alt-tab between

[WWSitttingDuck]

I have my game copied to another drive.  I start the game first as Murleen pointed out from my c drive, then start ME from the install on my D drive.....that way I avoid landscapes getting locked up (black background in ME)

 

But, it is ALWAYS a good idea when your mission is finished, to load it one more time from ME without the game running, and save it one more time.   Avoids ending up with empty list files, and then no briefing or subtitles.

 

[Habu]

On 12/13/2018 at 1:47 PM, Murleen said:

You don't need to exit, as long as you start the game first you can have both running at the same time and alt-tab between

That feature is not supported by the dev. You use a walkthrough. It's not a good advice because you can have some problem with your mission.  Do as you want, but do not say it's ok please.

 

 

[Gambit21]

Yep - you won't catch me doing this.

[No601_Swallow]

Indeed. And it's probably worth adding that saving your mission is like voting in a Brexit referendum. Save early and save often.

 

Even if it's just to save you from that dreaded "I've moved my entire 'scenery' group about 3 km from where it's supposed to be" moment.

[Thad]

Ah.... don't we all appreciate the JOY of mission creation? 

[Alonzo]

On 12/14/2018 at 12:43 PM, Habu said:

That feature is not supported by the dev. You use a walkthrough. It's not a good advice because you can have some problem with your mission.  Do as you want, but do not say it's ok please.

 

Hi Habu. I just recently started making missions and am wondering how to properly test them. What do you mean by a walkthrough? Do you have any other advice for testing missions? Thanks!

[Thad]

I test my single player missions by running them and after the mission starts I turn Auto on. In the mission editor I place several cameras around the battlefield. I can then watch to see how things play out and adjust as needed in the ME. Rinse and repeat.

[Habu]

1 hour ago, Alonzo said:

 

Hi Habu. I just recently started making missions and am wondering how to properly test them. What do you mean by a walkthrough? Do you have any other advice for testing missions? Thanks!

I build the mission in the editor, save the mission, close the editor and run the game. But i never run the game with the editor open.

 

When you want to test something, test it in single mission, because you can accelerate the time.

 

For example :

You want an Ai group which take off and go to a point where they drop their bombs.

 

1- Build your group and do a group on the location where you want (use the same map as for your mission).

2- save as single mission, then run the mission with time accelerate when they fly between waypoints, not for the action (taxing, dropping bombs, etc..).

3- Open your single mission.

4- Select your group in the left part, then right click and select Move camera to object.

5- You should be on the icons of your group. Then right click on that icons and select Save selection to file.

6- Name it as you want bomber_Ai.

7- Open your mission (not the test mission).

8- Go in File (left top corner) and select Import from file and load the file you saved in point 5.

9- Your group will be import at the same location and elevation where you use it in your test mission.

 

It's very useful when you build complex mission which has many translator and command. Here is the last mission i work on which could help you to understand why i use that trick.

 

Another use can be to test without AA. You can build and test on a test mission, then import your working group.

 

For the debugging, use the translator subtitle. It's very helpfull for the debugging. But put all your subtitle in a debug groups. At the end, when your mission run well, you have to delete the group, and that's fine. With that, you can't forget to delete a debug information.

 

I talk about groups, if you don't mind what i say, you have to learn it. It's very powerful and would help you a lot for debugging.

 

Here is the left part of the same mission which show all the trigger and command.

 

 

[Thad]

Habu… you showoff. 

[Alonzo]

13 minutes ago, Habu said:

I build the mission in the editor, save the mission, close the editor and run the game. But i never run the game with the editor open.

 

When you want to test something, test it in single mission, because you can accelerate the time.

 

For example :

You want an Ai group which take off and go to a point where they drop their bombs.

 

1- Build your group and do a group on the location where you want (use the same map as for your mission).

2- save as single mission, then run the mission with time accelerate when they fly between waypoints, not for the action (taxing, dropping bombs, etc..).

3- Open your single mission.

4- Select your group in the left part, then right click and select Move camera to object.

5- You should be on the icons of your group. Then right click on that icons and select Save selection to file.

6- Name it as you want bomber_Ai.

7- Open your mission (not the test mission).

8- Go in File (left top corner) and select Import from file and load the file you saved in point 5.

9- Your group will be import at the same location and elevation where you use it in your test mission.

 

It's very useful when you build complex mission which has many translator and command. Here is the last mission i work on which could help you to understand why i use that trick.

 

Another use can be to test without AA. You can build and test on a test mission, then import your working group.

 

For the debugging, use the translator subtitle. It's very helpfull for the debugging. But put all your subtitle in a debug groups. At the end, when your mission run well, you have to delete the group, and that's fine. With that, you can't forget to delete a debug information.

 

I talk about groups, if you don't mind what i say, you have to learn it. It's very powerful and would help you a lot for debugging.

 

Here is the left part of the same mission which show all the trigger and command.

 

This is really good advice, thank you. I thought I was getting fancy with my circles and arrows, you have me beat by quite a long way!!!

 

One question: is there an easy way to move objects from/to groups? I haven't found it yet. Sometimes I have the wrong group active when I create an object, and I don't know how to fix it.

[Habu]

14 minutes ago, Thad said:

Habu… you showoff. 

It's a multiplayer mission with AI plane and vehicles. Players have a control on some AI. They can run the spawn of AI. For example, if you are a bomber pilot, you can run the spawn of 4 other bombers which are AI and which run the mission with you. You can also run the spawn of opponents if you don't have enough human player for the opposite side.  There are AI flight by default, but i use a random with 4 or 6 choices to change the kind of plane or patrol area. Even if i'm the mission builder, i can't say which opponent there are, and where they are.

 

2 minutes ago, Alonzo said:

 

This is really good advice, thank you. I thought I was getting fancy with my circles and arrows, you have me beat by quite a long way!!!

 

One question: is there an easy way to move objects from/to groups? I haven't found it yet. Sometimes I have the wrong group active when I create an object, and I don't know how to fix it.

No, you can't. It's something we ask.

 

That's why, it's very important to think about your group.

 

If you have that problem, you can use that trick.

 

Example :

 

A and B are in the group AI

C is outside the AI group but should be inside.

 

1- Select the icon of the group AI.

2- Push the key Control on your keyboard and select the Icone of C (it works as the windows file managment). It will add the new selected object to the selection.

3- Create a group name Temp. You should have that settings

Group Temp --> Sub group AI and 1 object which is C

4- Select the group Temp and do Set as working to wotrkinside teh group.

5- Select the group AI. Select Move camera to object.

6- Right click on the icon of the Group AI, then select Ungroup.

7- You should have all your element in the group Temp.

8- Rename the Group Temp in AI.

 

 

[Alonzo]

47 minutes ago, Habu said:

No, you can't. It's something we ask.

 

That's why, it's very important to think about your group.

 

If you have that problem, you can use that trick.

 

Hmm ok I will be careful with groups.

 

Hey on the subject of debugging: is there any way to write things to the server log? Are subtitles written to the log? Can I send things to server chat and have them logged? I'm just looking to debug things at map start and of course I am not connected to the server fast enough.

 

Sorry for the dumb questions ?

[JimTM]

54 minutes ago, Alonzo said:

 

Hmm ok I will be careful with groups.

 

Hey on the subject of debugging: is there any way to write things to the server log? Are subtitles written to the log? Can I send things to server chat and have them logged? I'm just looking to debug things at map start and of course I am not connected to the server fast enough.

 

Sorry for the dumb questions ?

 

I'm not sure about sending items to chat automatically, but you can type a note in chat re. mission issues while you are in the mission and have it logged. See "Allow a Multiplayer Server Administrator to Save a Chat Log" on pg. 175 of the editor manual.

 

Another testing trick you can use is to set up editor cameras to quickly see 3-D or 2-D (ortho) views that you set up at important locations on your map. These cameras are different than  the camera operator translator. For details, see "Store a View", "Manage Stored Views", and "Go to a Stored View" on pg. 14 of the editor manual.

Note: The cameras that you define are not specific to any map; they can be accessed in any map you open. So, it's good to label editor cameras with a map prefix, e.g., "La-Yantar Airfield", "Ku-Taman Airfield".

Edited December 17, 2018 by JimTM

[Habu]

There are no dumb questions.?

 

Subtitles are not in the log, you have to be in game to see them displayed.

 

For the problem of connection. The timer is your friend. Use a timer as a master timer.

 

Mission begin --- Timer set on 40s or more -- link to all the other event

 

 

[VBF-12_Stick-95]

It would very helpful, and much simpler, if we could have accelerated time for mp missions when playing with "Available from internet" unchecked to test things out. 

[No601_Swallow]

10 hours ago, VBF-12_Stick-95 said:

It would very helpful, and much simpler, if we could have accelerated time for mp missions when playing with "Available from internet" unchecked to test things out. 

 

Yes indeed it would. Of course, the workaround is to save a copy of the same mission as an SP mission (for the purposes of testing).