Thanks for the feedback Stiebler. I don't understand part of your thought process though. How do you intend the software to know how to find and edit the values in the files? Many are not ASCII files, but rather binary files with values that are not locked to a specific location within the file. Further, additional files may be added or old files removed in order to provide the functionality desired. I am not following how you would intend for this to work.
In fact, quite contrary to your opinion, I think the logging is the trivial part. Parsing many files of different type into their base objects and those objects' properties can be quite a task indeed. I do not intend to be argumentative with the responses I get, but I apparently posses a method of software design uncommon among my friends here at SubSim.
As for scripts, that is the intended (or at least one of) way for this software to work, thus allowing the exact functionality you describe. It would also except command line functions however, which would permit someone to write a small program to execute them in order if they really desired some secrecy as to what changes were made. Personally, I think it is ridiculous to try to keep things secret as I only have to use a file compare program to see each and every change made by any program. It is also possible to use debugging tools to trace all operations performed in a folder/registry hive in order to deconstruct an installer. Trying to keep secret the changes in a MOD is in practice impossible. You can only make it more work than it is worth to find them. I think my suggested software would permit either method that was desired.
When it comes to making mods, this software would function as a one stop shop for changing any value or file in SH3/4/5/6, whatever. It would permit you to access all known data for the game in a categorized listing and change whatever value you wanted to any possible range for the value type. Changing art would have to be done by file copy in most cases since the locations in these files are set by the config files and not standardized. In that case, the software could even give you a preview of the file and copy it into place much as S3D does now.
MODS would need meta data not so that the software knows a great deal about them, but rather so that the user is informed as to what they are using. More of a convenience than anything. If this is to work, a non modder would have to be able to use it with a similar knowledge base as is required to use JSGME.
What is more, if it were properly designed, it could probably construct a script file by doing a comparison between a fresh install and a changed folder and find all differences. A modder could then just tell it to build a script rather than have to do so themselves. At the very least, a script building UI would not be that hard to make if a bit time intensive for the programmer (myself in this case).
However, since it appears that this community prefers the current method of mod application for this and future versions of the game, I am content to only release the commercial version of the software. I can always use it on my system regardless of what everyone else does. You are welcome to purchase it and write your own plugins for SH3/4/5/6+ files or any other game for that matter.
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