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Topics - pyrozen

Pages: [1] 2
1

I created this a while back for TA release, but have decided that it may be helpful to other on Qhimm. It is an NSIS script that creates a spiffy installer for you after you declare a few different things. If you are inexperienced with NSIS scripting, this might be an easy way to ease into it, because I have done all of the difficult coding for you already. All you have to do is place your fies in the same directory, then declare them in the script and compile! It's a bit more involved than that, but i have fully commented the entire script, so nothing is difficult to locate. I would suggest using Notepad++ for ease of viewing. If you dont have NSIS experience i would recommend reading about it on the NSIS website, as well as the UltraModernUI website, since i will only provide basic support here.

First you will need to download NSIS and UltraModernUI:
Download

Full Documentation:
NSIS webpage
UltraModernUI webpage

Do a full installation. Without this package you cannot compile this script. There is also a fair chance that this may not compile the same on your computer as mine, I have never tried to transfer a raw NSIS script, but I am pretty sure everything is worked out.

Included in the installer:
=AutoFind FF7 directory (windows only)
=Aali Driver Check
=Spiffy Music
=Background graphics
=Spiffy ending fanfare

All of these elements are changable with the right knowledge. Most elements don't need to be changed, only things such as installer name, folder names, and a few text fields. Everything has been labeled in the script, so any important function will have its use listed next to it. There is also an example installer in the ZIP file so you can try it out before you decide if you want to use it.

Download Template


If you have any problems let me know, if they are graphical in nature, provide a picture. I ask you provide credit for me somewhere, but its not a big deal.

have fun!
lee

2
Team Avalanche / So.... whats happening?
« on: 2010-12-28 22:58:10 »
Just wanted to check up with everyone and see what you've all been working on lately. Holidays have taken most of us away from our projects, but im curious to what you have been doing. It's been a while since we've released anything major, and was thinking of possibly getting a pack together sometime in Jan-Feb. I've started slowly completing the WMRP again, so if persistence pays off and I can continue finding time to work on it, it should be done sometime next year. It is seriously a longest project, and soooooo tedious :D

lee

3
Completely Unrelated / Best breakup ever
« on: 2010-12-22 23:21:44 »
I usually don't post stuff like this.... but it was just too funny. Some of you may remember this letter, but the guy reading it makes it funny all over again.

http://youmakemetouchyourhandsforstupidreasons.ytmnd.com/

lee

4
Team Avalanche / *OFFICIAL* Battle Scene Reconstruction
« on: 2010-11-16 22:23:32 »
8/89 finished

-=BATTLE SCENE RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT=-

The aim of this project is to retexture the various Battle Scenes found throughout Final Fantasy VII. By battle scenes, i mean the locations you enter when you are involved in a random encounter. The steps for refinishing these scenes is fairly straight forward now that Aali's custom driver can inject PNGs into the battle scenes.Most battle scenes contain between 4-6 textures TOTAL! This means that anyone with a bit of spare time can contribute to this project, and possibly learn a bit more about texture creation.
-=GETTING STARTED=-
http://www.mediafire.com/file/ecc0cxpaad9e11w/Zangan.zip
That is a link to Zangan, it allows you to view battle models to verify the right one. Unfortunatly PNG support in FF7 did not exist when it was created, so you cannot preview your modified scenes with it. Some time is saved with it, and if you convert your textures to TEX files and import them into your battle.lgp, you can view them from within Zangan.
-=VERIFYING TEXTURE LOCATION=-
This is not required, but some scenes are difficult to determine where certain textures appear.

The easiest method I found for identifying where textures appear in is to create 512x512, white textures that have numbers on them. If your chosen battle scene has 5 textures, create white textures each individualy numbered 1-5. Save them with generic names.

Now open FF7 config and make sure that show_missing_textures in enabled. Start FF7 and get into a battle in the scene you have chosen to re-texture. Win the battle, and close FF7. Now open you APP.LOG and scroll down until you find an area that has missing textures that pertain to a battle scene. Write down all of the texture names that appear. (ex STAGE37_T00_00.png)

Take those texture names and rename you white numbered textures to match them, while taking into account the numbers on your textures. Place your newly renamed white, numbered textures into "Final Fantasy VII/mods/*your mod path*/battle/"

Start FF7 again and get into a battle in your chosen scene again. Now the entire scene should be numbered, and you can write down where those numbers appear, and match them up with the original textures. Now you have a map of where certain textures appear, so you can redo them one at a time until your finished. Keep in mind, this is a rough guide so you could run into trouble. Keep at it, and if your really having trouble DO NOT post in the Team Avalanche forums. Post in tech support.
-=AVAILABLE SCENES=-
Code: [Select]
oh=Bizarro Sephiroth
oi=Grassland --------Pyrozen/Finished
oj=Mt. Nibel
ok=Forest --------Felix/Finished
ol=Shoreline -------Felix/finished
om=Desert or Mt. Corel
on=Arctic -------Felix/Finished
oo=Swamp --------Felix/finished
op=Sector 1 (Train)?
oq=Reactor
or=Reactor (Guard Scorpion)
os=Reactor 1 Enterance
ot=Subway
ou=Mythril Caves?
ov=ShinRa HQ
ow=Subway
ox=Hojo's Lab
oy=Elevators
oz=Roof
pa=Highway
pb=Don Corneo's
pc=Cathedrel
pd=Ancient Forest?
pe=Midgar Slums
pf=Reactor 1
pg=Reactor
ph=Sector 7 Pillar Stairs
pi=Sector 7 Pillar Control
pj=Sector 8
pk=Sewers
pl=Cave
pm=Cave
pn=Corel passage?
po=Junon Beach ---------Felix/Finished
pp=ShinRa Freighter
pq=Corel
pr=Battle Square ---------PyROZen/finished
ps=Da Chao
pt=Cid's
pu=Lifestream Descent.
pv=Reactor 5 Enterance
pw=Ancient Temple
px=ShinRa Mansion
py=Junon Aerodrome
pz=Cave
qa=Under Sector 8
qb=Gongaga Reactor
qc=Gelnika
qd=Train Graveyard -------Felix/Finished
qe=Ice Cave
qf=Sister Ray?
qg=Sector 8?
qh=Cetra Altar
qi=Cave
qj=Spire in the Crater
qk=Crater (Jungle)
ql=Sephiroth's Vortex
qm=Midgar Area
qn=Seafloor Tunnels
qp=Corel Railways
qq=The Crater
qr=Corel Railway Bridge
qs=Rope Bridge
qt=Da Chao
qu=Ft Condor
qv=Midgar Area
qw=Bizzarro Seph R/L
qx=Bizzarro Seph L/R
qy=Jenova SYNTHESIS
qz=Coal Trains
ra=Cosmo Canyon
rb=Gi Cave
rc=Nibelheim Basement
rd=Cetra Temple
re=Cetra Temple (dragon)
rf=Cetra Temple
rg=Final Battle
rh=Forest
ri=Highwind
rj=Corel Reactor
rl=Wutai Temple
rm=Seafloor
rn=Reactor?
ro=Bloody ShinRa HQ
rp=Gongaga Reactor
rq=Corel Prison
rr=Forest

If you are interested in doing a scene, or have already finished one please post the prefix and name of it and it will be crossed off the list. I have redone the battle arena in golden saucer, but i urge anyone else to give it a go, surely my work is not the best that can be done. I will give this thread a more offical look when i have time, but im running out the door ATM.I will also post an easy tutorial on how to figure out which textures are appearing where within the battle scene if people are interested.

-Team Avalanche Member
lee

5
I am putting the finishing touches on the new TA install system, but i would like some feedback to test functionality. The installer is totally empty, so no files are written to your harddrive. the exception is the fanfare music at the end, but it goes into a TEMP folder which deletes upon a restart.

i would like the following to be tested:
  • The FF7 registry check: rename your main FF7 registry key to fool this check
  • Aali Driver Check: rename FF7_opengl.cfg to fool this one, then make sure the link system works when you click OK
  • Default install directory: change both prior settings back to normal, and run through the installer. Make sure it is pointing to the correct directory.
Any suggestions are welcome, as well as criticisms. Be rough with it and try to find issues with it, i want to make sure i get this 100% right the first time since we will most likely be using it exclusively in the future. Please include your operating system in your feedback.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/j052vhzqz88k63l/TAinstall_test.exe

thanks,
lee

6
General Discussion / Shrink your PNGs
« on: 2010-11-03 22:07:36 »
While investigating various methods to compress PNG files so newer mods can be more easily downloaded, i stumpled across this nifty program.
http://benhollis.net/software/pnggauntlet/

nearly lossless compression of PNGs, i had success in decreasing the total size of the WMRP by around 12%(10MB) using the slowest algorithim. Not to shabby and they still look the same ingame. Just thought i would share this with anyone who is making massive mods similar to TA that have massive installers.

lee

7
I'm putting together an installer that i want to be able to find FF7 locations and automatically put files into the respective folders. I have this part figured out, but only on a winXP machine. Can you guys tell me where your FF7 registry entries reside within your computer, preferably on a Vista and Win7 machine. im looking for max compatibility, so having all three will allow the installer to work the same on any of them. I know a few of you have created these already, i've never toyed with installers before so it's more of a experiment than anything else at this point.

Also, what are the registry entries that pertain to Aali's custom driver? I would also like to run a check before install begins that will abort the install if the driver is not found.

Thanks!
lee

8
Completely Unrelated / ASUS mobo i am selling on EBAY
« on: 2010-09-10 00:17:07 »
Just thought i would throw this out here if anyone is looking. This is my auction so i couldn't see any problems with posting it on qhimm.

It's for a mATX ASUS Rampage Gene II. Its an i7 mobo that i was planning on using in a build, but my funds have been completely cut off indefinitely. I purchased it for $180 and have never even plugged anything into it. I am lacking all the accessories, so i am offering it at a severely discounted price for who ever gets it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290472729113


9
Completely Unrelated / Help Support Qhimm!
« on: 2010-08-24 22:57:59 »
I just realized that there is a Donate button on the main Qhimm website. Not really an oversight since my bookmark takes me straight to the forums, but i think it should be a bit more publicized. I know that Qhimm pays for us to use this space out of his own pocket, and a glace at the donations makes it very apparent that very few of us are helping him out.

Just thought i'd give a heads up, most search engines drop you into the   forums as well so nearly no one sees the donate button. I'm thinking   maybe a sticky at the top of each sub-forum or a donate button in the   forum controls at the top of each page, just so more people have the   opportunity to help support the community. I'm sure Qhimm would   appreciate it. If everyone already knew about this....then i apologize ;-)

I'm not trying to call anyone out, I'm gonna make a small donation of $20 on friday. It only seems fair with the amount of time, enjoyment, and friendships io have gotten out of the community he founded and continues to support (out of his own pocket). I feel even more inclined due to the fact Qhimm does not even visit that often, and supports us out of good faith and kindness rather than a vested personal interest at this point. Can you only afford $5? Throw it in the pot, it could potentially mean good things for the forum in the future, and make sure there IS a future.


here's the link: http://donate.qhimm.com/

*puts down megaphone*

10
General Discussion / location of town field models?
« on: 2010-08-17 21:10:39 »
I wanna work on a small side project with the town models that you see when in the field, but i cannot find them anywhere. I searched through world_us.lgp but none of the models apply to the towns. I also scoured the reconstruction doc butt still came up empty handed.

If anyone knows where to find them, please let me know!

lee

*edit* also, does anyone have a copy of ficedula's old world map file viewer? i can't even recall the name, and i remember that it "barely" worked.

11
Completely Unrelated / what i have been doing....
« on: 2010-07-20 21:30:13 »
I've still been posting, but i haven't been producing too much lately. It's because i've been totally absorbed by a recent hosehold project... concrete countertops. We finally got everything lined up the other day and managed to get one poured...but the a-hole at the store didn't sell us nearly enough concrete. We going for round 2 tonight, and we have PLENTY of concrete to finish the job.
 
some shots of the forms:


 
and the one finished piece, i flipped it over today:

 
The finished piece turned out decent, but it's gonna need some filling in of holes. We didn't vibrate it enough, but its no biggie. I still have to wet sand them to get them super slick, then stain and seal em. I'll post more pics as i get more finished. Until then, i'll do what i can for ff7, but this stuff comes first.
 
lee

12
Archive / [WIP] New Save Crystal
« on: 2010-07-01 00:21:12 »


just a small WIP shot. Mendelevium made the model and i UV mapped it and textured. This is still very preliminary so alot is likely to change. Also, I'm hoping that we can animate the crystal to spin as well.

lee

13
General Discussion / mystery chest in kalm
« on: 2010-06-17 04:02:32 »
everyone knows about the chest in kalm that has never been opened, but i'm curious what the hell is inside of it! it's something that has always bugged me about the game, right next to the cave after the ancient city. Is it possible to "see" inside of the treasure chest by looking at the games code? If it is, could someone see what's inside of this damned box!

lee

14
Team Avalanche / Battle Background Reconstruction Project
« on: 2010-06-07 22:52:56 »
As the title states, this is another fairly large project like the WMRP. With a solid direction for the field files, it only makes sense that the battle fields should follow suit as well. For now, this thread can be a discussion of what works, what doesn't, what looks good, yadadada. I think an open discussion will help get some legs on this portion of TAs full upgrade of FF7.

Sadly, at the moment i am without a PC, so i can only play devils advocate at this point. SL1982 said Timu has got something in the works, so i'd love to hear what has been discovered thus far. We have seen that simply re-texturing the originals produces some so-so results, and IMHO i think full remodels are the way to go. I have modeling experience, and since the battle models are basically empty squares, i would not have any trouble mass creating a bunch of small environment. Textures are also a non-issue, though i guess most of you already know that.

Just want to get the ball rolling, we would also stick to the same model as the field files, start at the train scene and work from there. It doesn't seem like to much of a stretch to maintain an even pacing between the 2 projects, and the battle models seem much easier than recreating the field scenes.

Enough of my blabbering, feel free to discuss what ever relevant information you may have, or any theories as to what may or may not work. Screens or paint drawings are welcome if they help you get the point across.

STAY ON TOPIC OR DIE!

Lee

15
General Discussion / change jobs in FF1?
« on: 2010-04-04 04:01:14 »
I'm playing through FF1 for the first time(now available on my cellphone, sweet!) and im a good ways into the game. One question i have that i cannot seem to find an answer for is, when the heck do my charaters advance to their higher jobs? Is it triggered ingame, or is it based on level?

Lee

16
Team Avalanche / Stepping down from WMRP
« on: 2010-02-23 00:33:21 »
Due to recent life events, i am finding it very hard to fit the WMRP into my schedule. Having just recently purchased a house, attending school fulltime, and working 40 hours a week i have almost no time left to work on this project. I apologize for leaving in a semi-finished state, but i just don't have the energy to continue this project. I learned alot about texture creation, and love the fact i made a lasting contribution to FF7.

Before i just run away though, i will leave you with my set of modding files. It includeds my layered PS and GiMP files, so someone can easily continue to pick up where i left off. I have also included my amended world.lgp file. I have removed any files in the LGP that i have already replaced, so it is a perfect road map for what it left to be worked on.
The PSP and GiMP files can still be altered at the layer level, meaning you can alter them to create new blends with the already created textures. These work prints, combined with the finished PNG files should be more than enough for someone to pick up without to much headache.

Sorry guys, but thanks for the experience and fun of working on this. I will still be active on these forums, but will be contributing significantly less. /if you need any other files i have, please let me know ASAP. They probably wont sit on my hard drive for too much longer.
Lee

http://www.mediafire.com/file/fmmmzz0ojow/PyROZen_work.zip

17
Team Avalanche / Will be MIA for a bit
« on: 2009-12-28 00:34:38 »
I got a new laptop for christmas and it's gonna take me a little while to settle into it and port all of my FF7 stuff over.  I still have my desktop, so some work may continue on that, but my focus for the next week or two will be getting my laptop into shape to replace my ancient desktop.

Here's the laptop for anyone interested:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220635&cm_re=x83vp-_-34-220-635-_-Product

this thing was a steal for the price, and with the rebates it costs the same as most entry level laptops. L4D2 @ 70FPS on highest detail

Lee

18
Completely Unrelated / Windows7 for $30!
« on: 2009-12-13 22:06:07 »
I picked up this info from one of the gaming boards i'm regularly on. It's a fantastic deal w/no strings. The only thing you need is a valid .edu email address and a credit card. I ordered mine last week and save $150 dollars.

you can pick between the Home or Professional editions, and they both come with 32-bit and 64-bit. They are full retail copies, not the upgrades. Some users have reported having trouble with certain sales people, if they give you any gruff just hang up and call back.

tip: get the professional version, home lack XP virtualization and a bunch of other things

also, i think this is only available to people in the states. Sorry guys :(

Merry Christmas!!
Lee


Recently I saw a posting about digital river offering 29.99 for anyone with a student email address. You had to go to the website and choose which version and whether or not you wanted the 64bit or 32 bit upgrade. I placed the order and then called Microsoft Store to cancel my previous preorder. When I told they why the said they can offer me the full retail version at the same price. I signed up and canceled my order with digital river.

Here is what you do:
1. Make sure you have a valid email address with .edu
2. Call 1-877-696-7786
3. Tell them you want to purchase the full retail version of either Home Premium or Professional. Why anyone would not choose Pro is beyond me.

For an extra $5 you can purchase the disk otherwise it is a digital download.

Enjoy a full retail version of Windows 7 for only 30 bucks!

19
Archive / [REL]*FF7 Custom Start Menu*
« on: 2009-12-13 18:21:24 »
This is a background i whipped up as an example for the Team Avalanche Start screen contest. HERE TO COMPETE

It's pretty basic but i like so i figured i'd go ahead an release it to the community.



-To install, just insert "buster.tex" into your "menu_us.lgp" using LGP tools or other app, also this probably works for all languages. Overwrite the original *backup first!*
-Place the "buster_00.png" into {ff7 root}/textures/WMRP/menu (if directories don't exist, create them)
-Start the game and enjoy!
-Once installed, changing your start sreen is now as easy as changing "Buster_00.png" to something else, no more messing with the LGPs!

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Lee

20
General Discussion / Download link for "Reeve"?
« on: 2009-12-12 22:54:42 »
Does anyone know where i can find a copy of Fice's Reeve application? His website has been down for sometime, and i cannot find a copy of this progrram anywhere.
thread:
http://forums.qhimm.com/index.php?topic=6057.0

lee

21
Since this project has come quite a long way, i figure it's kinda odd we haven't yet replaced the opening screen. I'd like to see what some of you can come up with to fill this most improtant of roles. Preferably, i'd like to see the name team avalanche somehow incorporated into your image. Other than that, it's open season on whatever you can come up with.  Please keep images at LEAST 1280x1024, preferably even higher so we don't lose any details. The focus of the image doesn't have to be team avalanche, but it'd be nice if it appears somewhere in the image ;)

here's an example of one i just created, sans the team avalanche name.


don't worry about getting your image ingame if you don't know how, i have everything setup so i can swap in new ones as i please.
The best submissions will be picked, and if we get enough, maybe a vote to let people pick the best one.

if you need help finding source images, or large versions of something you already have, i recommend:
http://www.tineye.com/

Good luck, have fun!
Lee

22
Team Avalanche / [REL] High-Resolution World Maps
« on: 2009-11-07 23:59:52 »
HI-RES WORLD MAPS
CREATED BY JEWELS

This release contains hi-res versions of the viewable world map, as well as the radar. They are a huge improvement over the originals, and recommend you install them ASAP. Jewels created these by hand, all i did was package them and get them working ingame.

Torn Map Version:


Color Map Version:


Radar(same in both packs):


These were planned to go into the next WMRP release, but i couldn't justify holding them back. They are just to good to sit on my HD for weeks inuntil the next release. The color version, however, will be included in subsequent WMRP releases, so your gonna end up with one of them no matter what. 

Download:
DOWNLOAD TORN MAP VERSION by Jewels
DOWNLOAD COLOR MAP VERSION by Jewels

-Team Avalanche

23
PyROZen's Custom Loader Textures
Brief tutorial located below

I'm releasing the set of BLANK textures i've been using to take advantage of Aali's custom driver.  These texture allow you to replace any texture ingame with one located in your FF7/Textures directory.  This set should cover every size texture in the game, so you won't have to HEX edit any more textures by hand.  All you have to add is your texture name/directory with a HEX editor, the "EXT" call has already been placed at the correct spot within the image. I will give a brief tutorial on how to use these, but your best bet is to experiment.  We (Team Avalanche) didn't have the luxury of someone doing this before us(with the exception of Aali) and we figured it out, so just keep at it!

The textues will appear like this ingame if your missing a custom texture to load:


There are 10 in all with the following sizes:
  • 64x64
  • 64x32
  • 64x128
  • 32x64
  • 32x32
  • 32x16
  • 256x64
  • 256x256
  • 128x64
  • 128x128

The following have been added to the pack as well.  Re-download if you need them.
  • 128x32
  • 256x32
  • 256x128
DOWNLOAD EXTERNAL TEXTURES

24
OFFICAL TEAM AVALANCHE TROUBLESHOOTING THREAD
FOR ISSUES RELATING TO 2D OVERHAUL & WORLD MAP RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT
With the 2D Overhaul(2DO) well under way, and the World Map Reconstruction Project(WMRP) starting to get some legs, I feel this thread needs to be created.  Many people are experiencing small install related issues and I don't think the release threads should be bogged down with troubleshooting issues. Post your particular problem in here and someone will be along to help you sort it out.  After a while i see most issues being covered, so it should be as easy as finding someone who already SOLVED your problem.

If you have any problems installing either package, please post your issue here. 

Include the following:
What mod are you installing? (2DO or WMRP)
What other mods have you installed?
What version is your game?
Include your APP.log (enclose it in "code" tags)

Be patient and provid as much information as possible, and your problem will be solved ASAP. 

Please refrain from posting the following in this thread:
Issues with Aali's Driver (post it here)
Issues with running the game in general
Help me beat XXX boss or find XXX item
Issues with PRP or other custom models(post in the relevent thread)

!!!!ONLY POST PROBLEMS OR SOLUTIONS, STICK TO THE TOPIC!!!!

25
Troubleshooting / can't control chocobos?
« on: 2009-09-05 22:12:03 »
I'm having a very odd error within my FF7 game.  My controls work fine everywhere else in the game, but whenever i race chocobos, my controls force me to go to the left.   This sucks because it's nearly impossible for the computer to win class A races, and i cannot manually drive because my chocobo wants to make a hairpin left on the straightaway.  Anyone else ever experienced this?  This is the only area of the game where my controls don't work correctly.

lee

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