Chip 1997 January

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The Wizard: DragonRealms Edition A Front-End program for DragonRealms on America Online Copyright (c) 1996 America Online, Inc. All rights reserved. NOTE: This program was not written by, nor is it supported by, Simutronics Corp. Please DO NOT contact Simutronics personnel with questions and/or comments about this program. Support for this program is offered through a message board at America Online keyword "AOL Wizard". What is The Wizard? ------------------- The Wizard is a front end program (that is, it "sits in front of" the normal AOL interface) that greatly enhances your game play in DragonRealms. It has many features to make your game play more enjoyable, such as: * Windows Multiple Document Interface allows different windows for different functions, such as the: Terminal window Thoughts window Deaths window Familiar window Arrivals window * command line recall of the last 64 commands entered * programmable keyboard macros * full ANSI support for DragonRealms' monster name highlighting * keypad "direction" keys for walking * script processor (with a record option) * graphic display of room exits, defensive stance, and character posture (sitting, standing, etc.) * ability to change background color, foreground color, and screen font for each individual window * quick-access buttons to automate those tasks that you do all the time (sheathing/wielding your sword, etc.) * quick-access STANCE menu for setting your parry * graphic "round time" counter display for both combat and spell preparation Installing The Wizard --------------------- It is highly recommended that you install Wizard into its own subdirectory on your hard drive. After using Wizard for a while, you will quickly amass a large number of files such as log files and script files. With these files being in their own directory, it will make tasks such as backing up your Wizard configuration much easier. NOTE: throughout this document, you will see references to the "home" directory. The home directory is the directory in which the WIZ_DR.EXE file resides. 1) Create a subdirectory on your C: drive named WIZ_DR. 2) Copy the files that you unzipped from this Wizard package into this C:\WIZ_DR directory. 3a) If you are running Windows 3.1, do the following: - from the Program Manager, select File/New from the menu bar. - Choose "Program Group" and click Ok. - Enter "DragonRealms Wizard" into the description field and click Ok. - Select File/New from the menu bar again. - Select "Program Item" and click Ok. - Enter "DragonRealms Wizard" into the description and "C:\WIZ_DR\WIZ_DR.EXE" into the command line field. Then click Ok. 3b) If you are running Windows '95, do the following: - right click on the desktop and choose New->Shortcut. - key in "C:\WIZ_DR\WIZ_DR.EXE" and hit Enter - key in "DragonRealms Wizard" and hit Enter You are now ready to run Wizard. The steps are: - log on to AOL - enter the DragonRealms game - minimize the America Online application - Double click on the icon for DragonRealms Wizard that we created in the above steps. The Menu Items -------------- File Menu: Open Log File opens a file which will log all incoming data from DragonRealms. Close Log File closes out the log file, writing any unsaved data to disk. Auto-Log Each Session if you turn on this option (a checkmark will appear next to it), Wizard will automatically open a log file each time you enter the game. The file will be named DREALMS.LOG in your home directory. There will be a header written to the file with a date and time stamp each time it is auto-opened. Run Notepad when you select this option, Wizard will run Windows' NOTEPAD application to edit a file named DR_NOTES.TXT in your home directory. Very handy for writing notes to yourself during game play. Configuration Menu: Inventory Names: this option will pop up a dialog where you key in the commands to be executed when the quick-access buttons at the top of the screen are pressed. Alt-Key Macros: this option will present a dialog screen where you enter in any Alt-key macros you wish to define (see the Macro Keys section later in this document). Ctrl-Key Macros: this option will present a dialog screen where you enter in any Ctrl-key macros you wish to define (see the Macro Keys section later in this document). F1-F12 Macros: this option will present a dialog screen where you enter in any function key macros you wish to define (see the Macro Keys section later in this document). Text Colors and User-defined Strings this option will present you with the dialog box where you can specify to Wizard those strings that you wish to be highlighted (see the Highlight Strings section later in this document). Player Names to Highlight this option will present you with the dialog box where you can specify to Wizard any player names that you wish to be highlighted (see the Highlight Strings section later in this document). Buffered Screen Updates this on/off option specifies to the Wizard whether it should "buffer" updates to the screen. It is -highly- recommended that you keep buffered updates on, since this will greatly speed up the processing of Wizard screen updates. It will also give keyboard input a much higher priority - which is very important when you are in a crowded area and a lot of data is coming across to the screen. Pass Text to Old AOL Window if this option is on, Wizard will pass any screen updates to the "old" AOL DragonRealms window. There is rarely any need to do this, however, and it is recommended that you keep this option turned off. Hide StatusPrompt Wizard depends on the "StatusPrompt" setting in DragonRealms for a lot of its information, such as whether you are sitting, standing, dead, bleeding, etc. If you turn this option on, Wizard will still use this information, but it will "hide" the extra prompt data from you -- all you will ever see is the simple '>' prompt. Recommended setting: ON. Show Cursor in Terminal Screen if this option is turned on, Wizard will simulate a "cursor" in the terminal window with an underscore ('_') character. Only Show Arrivals of Player Highlight List if this option is on, and you have SET LOGON and/or SET LOGOFF turned on in DragonRealms, Wizard will filter out these incoming messages and only display the arrival/exit of players that are in your "Player Names to Highlight" list. Squelch Sounds if you have set sounds to be played with certain highlight strings, you can turn this option on to temporarily squelch those sounds from being played (yes..I know you'd never play from work -- but somebody else might). Stance Menu: This menu will present all possible stances to you, and will pass your selection in the form of a STANCE command to DragonRealms. Dragging Menu: Drag Someone or Something selecting this option will present a dialog box into which you can enter either a name or an object. Now, when you use the keypad to move in a direction, your command will be replaced with a "DRAG <object> <direction>" command. Stop Dragging choosing this option will turn off the "auto-drag" function. Thoughts Menu: Compress Thought Messages turning this option on will shorten the thought messages that go to the terminal screen (this setting is ignored if a Thought Window is currently open). Ignore Yells if this option is on, any YELL commands received will be replaced with "You ignore a yell.". Scripts Menu: Execute a Script you will be presented with a dialog box where you select a script to execute. Record a Script this option allows you to record a new script. You will first be prompted for a filename to save the script as. Next, you will be prompted to enter a string to describe this script file (this description is what is presented in the "Execute a script" dialog box). From this point on, all keypresses will be recorded to the script file. Stop Recording once you are done recording your script, simply choose this menu option and the new script file will be closed and written to disk. Edit a Script this option will present you with the script selection dialog box, and then run NOTEPAD.EXE to allow you to edit the script. Window Menu: NOTE: to modify the colors or font of any open window, you must RIGHT-CLICK the mouse on the window that you want to modify, and a pop-up menu will appear. Open a Terminal Window opens a "terminal" window, which is where the main gameplay is done. A terminal window is always opened by default when you run Wizard. Open a Thought Window if a thoughts window is open, all incoming THINK messages will go to this window instead of the terminal window. Open a Familiar Window for those of you who have the familiar or eye-spy spell, opening a familiar window will put all actions of that familiar to the familiar window instead of the terminal window. Open a Death Window if you have a deaths window open, all "* so-and-so was just struck down!" messages will be duplicated to this window, along with a timestamp of when that person died. Very handy for keeping track of how much time someone has before they decompose. Open an Arrival Window if this window is open, and you have SET LOGON and/or SET LOGOFF specified to DragonRealms, those arrivals and exits will go to this window instead of the terminal window. Special Keys in The Wizard -------------------------- The Wizard has many built-in "shortcut" keys, which are listed below: Ctrl-Enter will repeat the last command entered. Alt-Enter will repeat the second-to-last command entered. Keypad-Enter will repeat the last command entered. Ctrl-1 thru 9 will place the word "first", "second", "third", etc. in the command input field. Up Arrow recall previous command in the history list. Down Arrow recall next command in the history list. PageUp will scroll the active window back one page. Shift-PageUp will scroll the active window back one line. PageDown will scroll the active window down one page. Shift-PageDown will scroll the active window down one line. Escape will clear the input command area, and take all windows out of scroll-back mode. It will also abort any script that is currently running. TAB key will toggle the terminal window between "zoomed" mode (full screen) and not zoomed. Identical to clicking on the terminal window's "maximize" button. Ctrl-TAB will toggle between each open window, making it the "active" window. Keypad Keys: .------. .-------. .------. .------. |NumLk | |health | |exper | |glance| ------ ------- ------ ------ .------. .-------. .------. .------. | nw | | n | | ne | | | ------ ------- ------ | look | .------. .-------. .------. | | | w | | out | | e | | | ------ ------- ------ ------ .------. .-------. .------. .------. | sw | | s | | se | | | ------ ------- ------ |repeat| .----------------. .------. | last | | down | | up | | cmd | ---------------- ------ ------ Macro Keys ---------- A macro is simply a string of text that gets output when you press only one key. For example, if you set the Alt-A macro to be "attack ", and then pressed Alt-A, the string "attack " would be placed in the input command area. However, there are some "special" tokens that you can use within these macro definitions to make them much more powerful. In this section, we will cover these special tokens, as well as write some macros that you may want to use in your own setup. Press Enter (& token) The first token you can use is the '&' character, which tells the macro processor to "hit the enter key". For example, this macro would prepare you to go off to battle: take broadsword from my backpack&remove my shield& This macro would output take broadsword from my backpack <press Enter key> remove my shield <press Enter key> Note that DragonRealms can really only handle two stacked commands, so you should not do more than two commands in one macro, unless you put in a pause (see below). Cursor Placement (@ token) When you put the '@' character in a macro, this tells the macro processor to "put the cursor right here". For example, if you set up a macro like this: take @ from my backpack the processor would (a) place the text "take from my backpack" in the input area, and then (b) position the cursor in between the words "take" and "from". Prompt Me (? token) If you place any '?' characters in your macro, the macro processor will prompt you for a string to replace the ?'s with. For example, here is a macro I define as the Alt-T key (for 'T'ake): take ?&put ? in my backpack& When you hit the Alt-T key now, the program will prompt you for a string (let's say you key in "gem"), and then it will replace all occurances of '?' with 'gem' and then output: take gem <press Enter> put gem in my backpack <press Enter> Last Attacked (# token) If you place a '#' character in your macro definition, it will be replaced with the name of the last thing you attacked (or cast at..so be careful). A use of this might be an Alt-H macro (for 'H'ead): ambush # head& Pause (~ token) Placing a '~' character in a macro will pause for 1 second. For example: stand&~~take broad from my backpack&~~remove my shield& would: stand <press Enter> <pause 2 seconds> take broad from my backpack <press Enter> <pause 2 seconds> remove my shield <press Enter> Stance Pop-up Menu Setting a macro key to the string {Stance} will pop up the Stance menu when you press that key. Execute Script shortcut Setting a macro key to "{script}" (no quotes) acts as a shortcut to the "Scripts/Execute Script" menu item. Record Script shortcut Setting a macro key to "{record}" (no quotes) acts as a shortcut to the "Scripts/Record a Script" menu item. Run Script shortcut You can bind macro keypresses to a script file; that is, pressing that key would immediately invoke the named script file. This is done by setting a macro key's value to "{=filename.wiz}", where "filename" is the name of the script you want to execute. This script must be in your home directory. Highlight Strings ----------------- From the Configuration/Text Colors and User-defined Strings menu option, you can get to one of the most popular features of the Wizard. This is the dialog where you can key in your own strings that you want to be highlighted. On this screen, you will find a list box containing (a) color settings for built-in functions of Wizard and (b) color and string settings that you add yourself. Remember that when you are adding your own highlight strings, what you key in must match EXACTLY to what comes from DragonRealms. That is, the string "you see" will -not- match "You see" (since the 'Y' in one string is upper case, and the other one isn't). There are also some special tokens that can be used in your highlight strings: {filename.wav} if you want a WAV sound file to be played when this string is detected, you must place that WAV filename, bracketed in {}'s, in the FIRST position of the highlight string. This sound file must exist in your home directory. $ a '$' at the front of your highlight string tells Wizard to highlight the entire line that this string appears in. * a '*' at the front of your highlight string tells Wizard to match this string even if it isn't on a "word break". In other words, if you want both "wand" and "wander" to highlight, you would specify "*wand". Note that these tokens are listed in the order in which they must appear, from left to right. As an example, lets say that you want to play the WAV file "clang.wav" when you swing your sword, and you want the entire line to be highlighted. You would set a highlight string to this value: {clang}$You swing Script Processing ----------------- Wizard has the ability to execute two types of script files. The first type, which is identified by its .WIZ file extension, is typically used to walk from one place to another. The second type of script, which is identified by its .CMD extension, is a "command line" script; that is, you invoke it directly from Wizard's command line area. These .CMD scripts can accept up to 9 command line parameters, which are accessed using the variables %1 thru %9. The script verbs are as follows: comments - a '#' in the first position of any line marks that line as a comment. PUT <action> - outputs <action> to DragonRealms. example: PUT remove my shield WAITFOR <string>- waits for the string to come in the input stream. The string must match EXACTLY to what you're expecting to see (the match is case sensitive). NEXTROOM - waits for a new room description to come back; that is, it waits for the [xxxx] room title. Useful when doing commands that move you. MOVE <direction>- the MOVE command is a shortcut that moves you in the direction specified AND waits for a "nextroom" description. So, this: move sw is functionally equivalent to: put sw nextroom PAUSE <amount> - pauses the number of seconds specified, or one second if <amount> isn't specified. GOTO <label> - goes to the named label, which is signified in the script by the label name followed by ':' (on a line by itself). SHIFT - the SHIFT verb "shifts down" the command line parameters; that is, %2 becomes %1, %3 becomes %2, etc. This makes it easy for you to "loop through" multiple parameters, always accessing them as %1. EXIT - the EXIT verb stops the currently executing script immediately. ECHO - prints the specified text to the terminal window. if_0 <command> - executes <command> if the parameter named through was passed to the script (%0 is the entire if_9 <command> command line). When writing your own scripts (as opposed to recording them), it is important to understand that the Wizard has no inherent ability to know when a command you've sent has been answered. If you don't pause, you will quickly overrun the send buffer. The rule of thumb is this: for every command you do, you MUST "waitfor" a reply of some type (unless you use the MOVE command, which has a "wait" built in). With that said, I can now point out that you will be able to create about 95% of your scripts simply by using the "Record" feature. Very rarely will recorded scripts ever need to be edited (unless you need to add some pauses or something). As an example, let's say you want to create a script to take you from the western gate to the Empath's Guild. Here's what you'd do: - Make sure you're currently at the western gate :) - Choose "Scripts/Record a Script" from the menu bar. - Key in the name of this new script, such as "wg2emp.wiz". - Key in the description for this script, such as "Western Gate to Empath's Guild". - Now, just walk to the guild using the numeric keypad, GO DOOR, etc. - When you get there, choose "Scripts/Stop Recording" from the main menu bar. - Viola! You've just created a script! Command-Line Scripts -------------------- As was mentioned earlier, the difference between .WIZ scripts and .CMD scripts is that "command" scripts are invoked from the Wizard input line and can accept up to 9 parameters for use in the script file. These scripts are executed by entering a period ('.') followed by the command name. For example, doing the following on the Wizard command line: .drop box chest strongbox <press enter> would invoke the DROP.CMD script file from your home directory, passing it 3 parameters (%1 = "chest", %2 = "box", %3 = "strongbox"). If you need to pass parameters that contain spaces in them, such as "other strongbox", you must use an underscore ('_') in place of the spaces ("other_strongbox"); Wizard will transform these back into spaces when the variable substitution occurs. Ok..so what all can you do with this? As an example of the power available to script writers, here is a command script named DROP.CMD that will drop up to 9 things from your backpack with one command line entry! MainLoop: if_1 goto DoNextParameter exit DoNextParameter: put take %1 from my backpack put drop %1 waitfor You drop shift goto MainLoop Support for Multiple Characters ------------------------------- The Wizard can support multiple characters. It does this by accepting an optional .INI filename on its command line when it is invoked. If you don't specify an .INI filename on the command line, Wizard will use a default of WIZ_DR.INI. If you have, for example, a Trader and a Warrior Mage, you can go through the steps that we did above for creating your icons to execute the Wizard. Only this time, when you key in the filename of the Wizard program, put an INI filename on the command line, like this: C:\WIZ_DR\WIZ_DR.EXE Trader.Ini or C:\WIZ_DR\WIZ_DR.EXE WarMage.Ini Enjoy! [End of Document]