forum.webdiplomacy.net

New Version:

Much thanks to Oli, who gave my good advice in improving the user interface of the Interactive Map. The result is this new version.

Changes:

- improved user interface / better integration in the existing interface
- improved structure in js-scripts so options like greyOut can be set from outside the interface
- changed structure in php-scripts, so they can be easily extended for variant specific problems like other scripts as well (e.g. you can use maps by different variants etc. for the Interactive Map)
- 'IA_mapData.map' is now placed inside the variant's cache folder as it is most probably generated by the scripts and not handmade

All files were changed and have to be replaced by the new versions!


The user interface is now integrated into the website. It is clearly separated from the DropDownMenu-Interface as the user has to decide via tabs which interface should be used. Some buttons like the ones for the map history are removed for the new interface as they do not work anyway with the interface.

The integration into the DropDownMenu-Interface:


The new user interface (with GreyOut enabled):



Information about the second and the third change can be found in 'README.txt'.


As I changed the structure of the php-scripts, making it object orientated and so easily to extend, I started a new series of prepared variants. The old versions are still compatible with the new version of the Interactive Map, but I improved some things, mainly concerning the used map.
All the prepared Classic-Variants will use the 'IA_smallmap.png' of the Classic-Variant if they don't use a slightly different map so there is no need to place a png-file in every variant.
I played around a little bit with 'Duo' as it has no territories with land- AND sea-parts. I colored all sea-territories of 'smallmap.png', as well, allowing the InteractiveMap to use the basic map instead of an extra-map. For this I had to extend 'drawmap' in the variant's 'drawMap.php' so it colors every sea territory sea-blue when the drawmap-object is constructed. If you do not like the change, you can simply use the original map instead, rename the new map and change 'drawMap.php' and 'interactiveMap.php' to use the correct maps with the correct functions.
For all changes, please, study the change logs I attached to each variant in the variant-package.

The 25 variants of the first variant-package are:
ClassicFvA
ClassicFvI
ClassicEvT
ClassicFog
Modern2
WWIV
Classic
ClassicVS
ClassicFGvsRT
Empire1on1
Duo
GreekDip
AncMed
Rinascimento
Empire4
Europe1939
ClassicIER
Colonial
ClassicCrowded
SouthAmerica4
TenSixtySix
Haven
ClassicGvR
ClassicSevenIslands
(top-25 of vdip's variant-ranking according to the rating (players*gamesPlayed)

The other variants will follow later!

The needed files for the Interactive Map and the variant-package with the first 25 adjusted variants can be downloaded here:

Interactive Map:

Variant-packages: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zkwkwiam25ag1gr/A_PIFACWPZ

Can i suggest an addition to your install instructions.
after '- Copy the "interactiveMap" folder in the main directory of your webdip.'

You should make sure to set permissions for that folder to read/enter. (because you get a 403 error otherwise) Though i think most people who are able to install this will be able to figure it out...

EDIT: and there is a bug in
'into the "libHTML::$footerScript[]"-String:
"loadIA();" '

I think, because of the new localisation support. I can get the interactive map, but i have to run the commands manually...

Some info for everyone who might read this thread but is not active on vdip:

The development has not stopped last November but slowed down a lot. I moved the project to GitHub as a fork of vdip so it should be easier for Oli to import the files.

You can find the fork here: https://github.com/diptobi1/vDiplomacy

I recommend to use the official vdip-fork of Oli since the version of the interactive map over there definitely works and is already tested with a large player group.

If you would like to have a separate source to download the files without using the whole vdip-version of webdip, you should make a post in this thread and I will offer a new package with an updated ReadMe for the new version, but as long as there is no need for this I'd like to save my time. I hope that's no problem.

--

The last updates did not improve the interactive map as an interface but changed some things in the background that are not visible for the user.

The file structure of the variant specific extensions (normally at least the IA_smallmap.png-file) was changed. Everything related to the interactive map is now placed in a separate folder called 'interactiveMap' instead of somewhere in the 'classes' and 'resources' folders. This guarantees that variants with interactiveMap support will definitely work on servers that do not support the interactive map, as well. Thanks to Oli for the advice.

Another big change is the improved way to prepare variants for the interactiveMap. Variants that do not have special rules that need to be taken into account can be prepared in not more than 5 minutes, even with the files.php-script of Oli, that allows variant-developers on lab.vdiplomacy.com to develop variants without the permission to directly write files on the server.

All in all 40 variants support the interactiveMap at the moment. The previous versions were completely overworked and all special rules of the variants are taken into account. The files for the special-rule-extensions can be found at the vdip-wiki where I wrote a small tutorial for variant-developers about the interactiveMap, that you can find here: http://www.vdiplomacy.com/wiki/index.php?title=Step_10._adding_support_for_the_interactive_map_(optional)

--

@ orathaic: I know it is some time ago since you posted in this thread. Thanks for the hint with the permissions, but as stated above I most probably will not update the install instructions as long as the vdipp-installation is ok for everybody.
About the bug you posted: I'm not familiar with the localization code, did you find a solution for the problem? I doubt that the localization code will remove/replace something from the footerScript-string but I might be wrong.

Hi tobi1

I look forward to getting the interactive map installed on my server. Well done.

_________________
Here's my webDip installation:
http://jimbursch.com/webDiplomacy/

Here's my GitHub:
https://github.com/jimbursch/webDiplomacy/

Hi tobi1

You recommend installing the interactive map on the vdip fork. Is that because the interactive map will not work with webDip, or because it is less well tested with webDip?

_________________
Here's my webDip installation:
http://jimbursch.com/webDiplomacy/

Here's my GitHub:
https://github.com/jimbursch/webDiplomacy/

Well, in fact both points right and wrong.

The interactive map will work on webDip, as well, but it will not look that nice. The reason for this is, that I used a feature of vdip for the map background, the hide-moves-option. This means, that when the interactive map gets activated on a webDip-installation it will not load a 'clean' map, where only the units are drawn onto, but a map with the current order arrows, too. This might get a bit confusing when the interface itself will add the entered orders for the next, not yet adjudicated phase on the same map.

I never tested the interactive map on a clean webDip installation, but as the vdip code is very similar to the webdip code and interactive map is mainly build onto the original js-files for the order interface, I do not expect any problems in functionality.

Apart from the hide-moves-feature the main reason for my recommendation is, that you would simply have to download the vdip-code to get a working version of the interactive map in addition to a nice settings-page Oli created for the interface.
But it can be done manually as well. You will just have to add the interactiveMap-folder, that can be found in the main folder of my github-repository, to your installation, add the css-lines as stated in the outdated interactiveMap/doc/README.txt and check my latest commit for board/orders/orderinterface.php to find out, where which lines of code should be added to get the whole thing running.
Unfortunately I cannot give much advice about the hide-moves-option or the settings page, since they were made by Oli.

P.S.: You will also have to copy the interactiveMap-folder of the variants that should support the interactive map. If there does no folder exist in a specific variant directory, the variant is currently not supported by the interactive map.

Dear friends!

If I install map with IAMap functions on webDiplomacy 1.0.0 version, will these variants work correct (I don't need IAMap functions!!!).

_________________
"There is nothing in the world more majestic than this idiotic Galicia" (GAL)
Jaroslav Hasek

Yes, they will work correctly.

All code related to the Interactive Map is stored in a separate folder and will be just ignored if the Interactive Map is not installed on the server.