Doom Editor Interface for the Macintosh Operating System
GENERAL NOTES FOR VERSION 0.3b
==============================
This will (hopefully) be the last public release before Deimos 1.0. By then, most of the more annoying bugs should be ironed out. Version 0.3b contains most of the same features as 1.0, but some of them may end up being implemented differently to correspond more closely with the Human Interface Guidlines and my own personal whims ;)
Two notable, and non-intuitive features of Deimos 0.3b are the ability to delete lumps out of a wad, and to change the position of lumps within a wad (for example, to make sure all of the texture patches fall within the P_START and P_END labels).
In the future, it will allow Mac-using ID fans to edit and modify the elements of wad files used in all of the ID games, including the forthcoming MacHEXEN. Ultimately, wad creators will be able to have all of their favorite editing tools (graphics editors, map editors, sound editors) under one application, so that, unlike our PC bretheren (and sisteren), we will not have to leap from editor to editor, each of which handles wad files differently.
At present, two editors are available: the sprite editor allows you to use copy and paste to bring images into the wad. Note that all black areas on the source photo will become transparent once pasted into the wad (a better system is forthcoming). The sound editor allows you to copy and paste sounds into and out of the WAD. Make sure that all sounds are 8bit, 11.025kHz mono and do not exceed 65535 bytes (about 6 seconds). The current sound editor doesn't check to see if your samples are in the right format before pasting them into the wad.
NEW INSTRUCTIONS
================
The DEIMOS application is underneath the README icon.
TO DELETE A LUMP FROM THE WAD: Select the offending lump in the Wad Window, and press the DELETE key, on your keyboard. There will be no warning, but, like all changes, the lump will not be permanently lost unless you save the WAD.
TO MOVE A LUMP WITHIN THE WAD DIRECTORY: Select the lump in the Wad Window, and press either the Up arrow key or the Down arrow key to move it up or down in the directory. Remember that moving lumps in this way might not be reflected in the window, unless you have the VIEW ALL option selected. The changes will not be permanent unless you save the WAD.
MAKE A COPY OF ANY WAD YOU ATTEMPT TO EDIT WITH DEIMOS 0.3b! THE AUTHOR IS _NOT_ RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE TO DATA OR HARDWARE RESULTING FROM USE OF THE DEIMOS APPLICATION OR ANY EDITOR EXTENSION! THIS IS A BETA RELEASE OF A VERSION 0 PRODUCT THAT HAS BEEN TESTED ON ONLY A FEW MACHINES TO DATE!
DEVELOPER INFORMATION
=====================
The whole concept behind DEIMOS is that developers can create their own plugs for the DEIMOS engine, thereby allowing it to edit more of the different elements in the wad file (palettes, sprites, sounds, maps, etc). If you are considering making a MacDOOM or MacHEXEN plug, I encourage you to send me a message. What I can say now, is that within certain parameters, a plug-in editor has a lot of power. It can create windows, controls, menus, and other items to help it in its duties. DEIMOS supplies the basic interaction between the elements and between the file on disk, making for a consistent user interface and stable platform from which new editors can grow. This allows developers to concentrate on their editor's functionality, rather than establishing a basic user interface and file system.
REQUIREMENTS
============
DEIMOS will not run without the following:
System 7
32Bit Addressing
Although it is possible to run DEIMOS at any screen depth, you will get the best results by running at 8bits or higher.
KNOWN BUGS
==========
• If DEIMOS consistently asks you to locate the DOOM.WAD on startup, try trashing the "Deimos Preferences" file and restarting DEIMOS.
• If DEIMOS freezes on startup (i.e. stops at the blank menu bar), try restarting your computer and rebuilding your desktop. Also, make sure that your Macintosh is set to use 32 bit addressing (check the Memory control panel).
• DEIMOS is sort of sloppy about memory, in so much as it doesn't check to see if it has enough left to fulfill most operations. If you open too many windows, it could conceivably crash the editor. If this happens, you will probably find "rescued items" in your trash upon restart. These should be deleted. Future versions might allow you to salvage these, but for the moment they are unrecoverable.
• If you attempt to open more than one wad file at one time, the editor pop-up menu becomes corrupted. This is a little bit better than it used to be, insomuch as the errors only become apparent when you close one of the WADs. When this happens, you will have to close ALL of the WADs, and open the ones you want again. I know what's wrong, but I'm not devoting too much energy to finding a solution just yet.
REVISION HISTORY
================
• June 4, 1996
Fixed a bug in the Sound Editor that would prevent someone from pasting in a sound that wasn't sampled at Middle C.
• May 23, 1996
Released DEIMOS 0.3b.
• May 10, 1996
Added several features to 0.2.5d, making it almost ready for release as 0.3b.
Added the ability to create new PWADs, as well as methods for manipulating the lumps within the directory.
Improved a few major, but well-hidden, bugs in the save routines. Save routines speed increased by 100%.
Added UNDO features. Currently only implemented for the editors (not the DEIMOS shell itself).
Fixed the window titles, and moved the responsibility for naming the windows from the editors to the DEIMOS shell.
• April 28, 1996
DEIMOS v0.2.5b. Added the abilty to cut and paste lumps in and out of the WADs, giving the first glimmers of usefulness to the DEIMOS engine. It is now possible to copy elements out of the DOOM wad, paste them into the PWAD you are working on, and to then modify the lumps you just pasted into the PWAD.
Also added a VIEW ALL switch. It is now possible to the view the names of ALL of the lumps in the WADs, though it might not be possible to edit all of them.
Partially fixed the Editor menu. It is now possible to open multiple WADs, but closing one of them corrupts the Editor menus for all of the other windows.
• April 21, 1996
Release of DEIMOS v0.2b. A bug in the save routines was fixed, and the saving process was sped up. Now displays a progress report as it saves.
The SOUND editor is available. You can copy and paste System7 sounds into and out of the WAD.
• April 17, 1996
First public release of DEIMOS v0.1b. Not all features are implemented, and only one editor template is currently available.
HOW TO CONTACT THE AUTHOR
=========================
If you discover any bugs, or think of any features you feel would be useful, please send a message to the author at <mikado@io.org>.
