DM Genie

[Brent]

Luke,

If I want to change the ability mod in RPM from SCORE/2-5 to SCORE/3-2, how do I do this?

 

[Fractalwave]

Re: code notes

It sounds like Wotc is in the process of considering new wordings for the licenses to specifically speak to software issues, which I'm glad to hear.

Yeah, they're rewording. But I'm going to go out on a limb here...

I think that what you will see is a rewording that will still leave a good bit to interpretation and will thus be a "work in progress" as opposed to the be-all, end-all license regarding software.

One reason I think this is that it is still being worked on and I would expect them to have to make corrections later. Another reason I think this is that technology changes quickly and any license dealing with technology, in this case programs, needs to be able to change as necessary.

The inherent problem is that this is a marriage of two slightly different industries, printing books and creating computer programs. They don't quite work the same way regardless how the governments like to classify them. (Remember, governments tend to think 5 year old computers are still cutting edge, too.) And currently, these licenses are attempting to control both industries in one document. There's bound to be conflicts.

What does this mean? This means that what is "ok" now may not be deemed as "ok" six months from now for any number of reasons which cannot be foreseen. If you develop now, you need to take that into consideration.

Of course, I may be wrong though I'd be surprised if I was. But I would rather develop in a worst case scenario as opposed to a best case scenario so as to not have a huge problem with rewrites later if they become necessary. Plus, there are other inherent advantages to developing this way that I won't go into here.

 

[Klintus Fang]

does that mean that i can't make an OGL/SRD application that adds values in it's binary? (I hope i just heard a resounding NO!) Then my question is what can i code into a binary and what can't i?

I'm far from an expert on this, but it seems to me that the distinction lies in whether or not you have any algorithms embedded into the binary that are specifically derived from their material.

Being able to add two numbers is a generic ability. I can't see how they could tell you that can't happen in the binary. But I think you've entered into the problematic space if your binary contains explicit algorithms that are directly derived from the SRD material. For example, the example that keeps coming up is the Stacking rules. If you've encoded the actual stacking rules from the SRD into an algorithm you're in an uncertain area. I suspect you may also be on shaky ground if you explicitly encode rules for even the ability score bonus, i.e., if you explicitly assume in the binary that it is [(score-10)/2] then it seems to me that you've used SRD content and placed it in your binary.

I'm not saying that doing either of those things is a violation of the license. That I am not qualified to say. But I am saying that both these things seem to be on the edge of what the license allows and what it does not allow.

Again, I'm not an expert and haven't followed threads of this nature on other boards. But this is how I logically understand it.

 

[Luke]

Luke,

If I want to change the ability mod in RPM from SCORE/2-5 to SCORE/3-2, how do I do this?

Given the nature of this thread, this isn't a thinly veiled compliance test to ensure that I honestly do SRD mechanics in open script is it?

In the file "rpm.js", simply find the function called "abilityModifier", and edit it so that it looks like this:

function abilityModifier( creat, ab )
{
var num = creat[ab];

return ( num > 0 ) ? floor( num/3 - 2 ) : 0;
}

In other words edit the "2" so it becomes a "3", and the "5" so it becomes a "2". The other "fluff" is a special test for creatures that have a "0" ability (such as constitution scores for undead), where ability modifiers are meaningless, and should display "0".
You can do a "ReCalculate (all)" on any existing characters or creatures to force the change to ability modifiers immediately.

If you want to implement a few house rules like this, make a note of your changes. That way if you upgrade to bigger and better versions of RPM in the future, you get a new "rpm.js" file, but can re-apply your special rule changes.

 

[smetzger]

I doubt highly that this is the case. You are saying that some number of non-technical people made a guess on software tecnology and figured that it would be out of the limits of fan based software to make a externally data driven program.

Anthony Valtera has said on more than one occasion that he thought the creation of d20 software was impossible.

 

[dpmcalister]

Off Topic

Remember, governments tend to think 5 year old computers are still cutting edge, too.

You've worked with the British military before then...

 

[Fractalwave]

Re: Off Topic

You've worked with the British military before then...

Actually, not personally. But the really weird thing is most governments tend to act almost the same way when it comes to this subject. Maybe they're all clones of each other.

Government D20...coming soon to your local gaming store!

 

[Davin]

Re: Re: Off Topic

Government D20...coming soon to your local gaming store!

Oh, no!!!

That is one new game we definitely do not need! Don't give them any ideas!

 

[ddavison]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Fractalwave
Government D20...coming soon to your local gaming store!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I think GWB has been rolling a lot of critical failures on his foreign policy.

 

[Traxx]

Klooge Werks at http://www.klooge.com is really good. We've been using it now for a few months and it's made the games go far smoother and added Roleplaying elements to our game without overpowering the game during combat.

Too bad a few of the programs couldn't be combined....hint hint.

Later,
Traxx