The Editor Situation

[Zini]

I think it is obvious by now that we don't progress with the Editor. pvdk is away for a while and there are also a couple of launcher tasks left that will keep him busy for a while.

Considering the current development speed it looks like we will be reaching 1.0 rather sooner than later. And at that point most of the development work on OpenMW would have to be stopped for a prolonged time, because there are very few new feature/improvements we can add without a custom editor (i.e. modifications to the ESX format).

That is a situation I wanted to avoid and therefore I pushed for having an early headstart with the editor. Well, no more "early". That much is sure. But I would still like to go for "headstart". Do we have any developer with good Qt working knowledge, who would be willing to divert a part of his OpenMW time to working on the editor? I think with the current strength of our developer team, we can afford that without harming progress.

I would prefer an established team member (though that is not a requirement). I would also strongly prefer someone who is willing to work with the design we have developed, because I really don't feel like going through lengthy and time-intense design discussions again.

Considering the current development speed it looks like we will be reaching 1.0 rather sooner than later. And at that point most of the development work on OpenMW would have to be stopped for a prolonged time, because there are very few new feature/improvements we can add without a custom editor (i.e. modifications to the ESX format).

Stuff like that can still be done without a full-blown editor, I'd think. We could make separate tools to create/edit the new data structures, and tools to merge esps and esms. Several smaller tools to each do a specific job, rather than one big tool to do every job.

This could go for vanilla functionality as well, like landscaping and item creation. A full-blown editor could just be built on top of the smaller tools, acting kinda like a front-end to the tools' functionality.

This would have the added benefit that different editors could be made based on person taste, as they'd all use the underlying tools to do the actual work. Or improved tools could be made without having to bother the editor much.

[Zini]

Stuff like that can still be done without a full-blown editor, I'd think. We could make separate tools to create/edit the new data structures, and tools to merge esps and esms. Several smaller tools to each do a specific job, rather than one big tool to do every job.

That's just asking for trouble. Might work with a small scale project. For anything as large and complex as Morrowind.esm this is a complete no go.

Not to mention that the TES-CS doesn't work under Linux and also it is buggy like hell. If we want to move OpenMW forward, a new editor is a must.

I actually agree with you both, it might be interesting having tools for specific tasks (e.g., merging dialogues...)
But the full blown editor is also needed for something serious like using the new scripting system.

Just a note, the editor do works in Linux. The only flaw is that it cannot save new .esp, but it is hardly a problem as you just a need an empty starting esp.

[Zini]

Just a note, the editor do works in Linux. The only flaw is that it cannot save new .esp, but it is hardly a problem as you just a need an empty starting esp.

Under WINE I presume. Interesting. I didn't know that. Still not very trust inspiring.

I actually agree with you both, it might be interesting having tools for specific tasks (e.g., merging dialogues...)

Even that is better done within the editor. Normally I would say go for it if someone proposes to develop a set of smaller tools that work in concert instead of one large monolithic tool. Usually a much better choice. But this is one of the few cases where it would not work well, because in the MW world model pretty much everything is related to everything. Touching one kind of record might affect any number of other (types of) records.

Ok, one monolithic editor then.

Under WINE I presume. Interesting. I didn't know that. Still not very trust inspiring.

Well, the CS has never been very trust inspiring... It has lots of bugs and problems. But it is not fault of Wine (or MS Windows for that matter.) Just... save soon, save often and in different files...

[Zini]

Words more true have never been spoken.

I am writing up a recruitment letter for the editor, I am going to include information about OpenMW, and I want to know what you would like included? What qualities you'd like the person to have, what sorts of obstacles should they might expect, etc...


On a side note, did anyone read this SuperTuxKart blog post about using of Blender as a game editor? http://supertuxkart.blogspot.kr/2012/04/blender-as-game-editor.html

[Zini]

Required qualifications: Knowledge of Qt and C++. And willingness to work with the design we established.

Here is a draft I wrote up based on the style of a few other recruitment letters I saw. Depending on the forum I'll also include a link to our latest video.

The OpenMW project is a community of fans creating a new open source engine for running Morrowind, the recipient of the 2002 “RPG Game of the Year”. You will be collaborating with experienced and passionate volunteers from all over the world.

OpenMW is constantly on the search for individuals who are passionate about open source software, game design, preserving classic games, and game modification. We need C++ developers, a Qt developer to work on our editor, and volunteers to bug test and review our code.

The main project we are currently recruiting for is coding a game editor. The editor is an external program capable of controlling almost all of the game or of create mods, adding user-made game content, viewing game data, retexturing the game world, and altering GUI elements.

Qualities we desire:
Knowledge of Qt and C++
Committing code early and often
Willingness to work with an established design

Below are the specific requirements for all of our positions:

Qt Editor Developer
– Experience with C/C++
– Experience with QT Framework

C++ Software Developer
– Experience with C++
– Experience with Ogre3d would be useful
– Experience with Bullet physics would be useful
– Experience with QT Framework would be useful

Bug Tester
– Identify software bugs while playing the game
– Replicating the bugs and submitting them to the bug tracker
– Ability to write clear bug reports

Non-technical requirements:
– Problem-solving skills
– Initiative and the ability to detect both the advantages and the limits of a solution
– Good communication skills
– The ability to work both in a team and as an individual

Benefits:
– Opportunity to learn about game engine design
– Learn other open source software for making games like Ogre3d, Bullet, OIS, and OpenAL
– Involvement in an international open source project
– Build an amazing piece of software that encourages creativity in others


Join us:
Official Youtube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/MrOpenMW
For New Developers: http://openmw.org/wiki/index.php?title=Contribution_Wanted
OpenMW Homepage: http://openmw.org/
Chat @freenode http://freenode.net/ #openmw