[TEC] *.exe Reverse-Engineering

[reaper7]

Well I had a patch all made up, and decided to test the Mod after applying the Patch.

Hmmm, the stadimeter worked ok, but going to the other dials it looks like there's some unwanted side effects.
The Range Dial no longer turns and the reset to zero bug is more obvious now.

I've done some digging and noticed that the Memory address that I was using for the fix is also being used by not only Range - But AOB, Target Speed and Bearing.

So that explains the Reset to Zero Bug - All these dials are sharing the same Address's to store the value before updating the final value for the relevant dial.

So for example If i set my range its stored in this address, now if I change to AOB it resets to zero (Because the AOB is currently set at 0 degrees so that value is moved to the address) Overwriting the one for range that was stored there.

This was very sloppy programming on behalf of the Devs - Why not give ever dial its own address for storing the temp values - like every other game out there.
Its not like a couple of dials each using a float space in memory is going to amount to much memory maybe 20Bits (160Bytes) in total. Especially when some of the dials have multiple copies of the same value stored in different addresses - where only one is needed - Bad management of the memory.

Looks like this is going to take more than changing the offesets due to the shared address Issue.

[Philipp_Thomsen]

SOUND!

Sound is what needs to be fixed.

We have only ONE stinking internal ambient sound for the submarine. Doesn't matter if you're surfaced, submerged, silent running or what not, the same ambient sound is played.

Now, as a sound editor myself, I could do us WONDERS if we could patch the exe in order to include a function calling different ambient sounds for different situations of the uboat.

I don't know squat about RE, my skills lies elsewhere. But teamwork wins right?

[Trevally.]

Originally Posted by reaper7

I've done some digging and noticed that the Memory address that I was using for the fix is also being used by not only Range - But AOB, Target Speed and Bearing.

So that explains the Reset to Zero Bug - All these dials are sharing the same Address's to store the value before updating the final value for the relevant dial.

So for example If i set my range its stored in this address, now if I change to AOB it resets to zero (Because the AOB is currently set at 0 degrees so that value is moved to the address) Overwriting the one for range that was stored there.

Fantastic find reaper

Hope you can fix it

[urfisch]

Originally Posted by reaper7

Well I had a patch all made up, and decided to test the Mod after applying the Patch.

Hmmm, the stadimeter worked ok, but going to the other dials it looks like there's some unwanted side effects.
The Range Dial no longer turns and the reset to zero bug is more obvious now.

I've done some digging and noticed that the Memory address that I was using for the fix is also being used by not only Range - But AOB, Target Speed and Bearing.

So that explains the Reset to Zero Bug - All these dials are sharing the same Address's to store the value before updating the final value for the relevant dial.

So for example If i set my range its stored in this address, now if I change to AOB it resets to zero (Because the AOB is currently set at 0 degrees so that value is moved to the address) Overwriting the one for range that was stored there.

This was very sloppy programming on behalf of the Devs - Why not give ever dial its own address for storing the temp values - like every other game out there.
Its not like a coiple of dials each using a float space in memory is going to amount to much memory maybe 20Bits (80Bytes) in total. Especially when some of the dials have multiple copies of the same value stored in different addresses - where only one is needed - Bad management of the memory.

Looks like this is going to take more than changing the offesets due to the shared address Issue.

yes, this find prooves the devs where under an extreme pressure of time and the programming is not the state of art over there in romania. what a shame...to present a full price game at this unfinished and unprofessionally coded state to us...



what would we do without people like you, that got the skills to change all these crappy and unfinished delivered things...

i have a lot of respect for people like you and tdw.

[reaper7]

Originally Posted by urfisch

yes, this find prooves the devs where under an extreme pressure of time and the programming is not the state of art over there in romania. what a shame...to present a full price game at this unfinished and unprofessionally coded state to us...



what would we do without people like you, that got the skills to change all these crappy and unfinished delivered things...

i have a lot of respect for people like you and tdw.

Cheers Mate, I wish I had the skills. Only just getting the Basic on how code works. Never did Assembly or reverse engineering before.
Only going on the few youtube tutorials I've found on pointers and addresses.
So not even sure I can figure out how to circumvent the current code.
Most likely going to take some new assembly code injected into the exe (Via patch) to reroute the current dials to individual memory locations for temp before routing them to there final value locations .

[urfisch]

thougt of the same thing. address a whole new area of memory for that, if it is possible. but this was only a thought as to the note of tdw, that we can inject things and change calls in the exe file. that sound to me, as if we might be able to change nearly every file/shader/library the exe uses or calls.

and in the end: i am a noobnoob. so, just a thought, mate.

anyway, you are doing great work. keep it on. i wish i had the time to learn this stuff. i would definitely change a lot of elemental things!

[Pintea]

Originally Posted by urfisch

yes, this find prooves the devs where under an extreme pressure of time and the programming is not the state of art over there in romania. what a shame...to present a full price game at this unfinished and unprofessionally coded state to us...

Good thing we have professionals like you who can judge programming skills from incomplete, misinterpreted due to lack of knowledge and probably incorrect statements read on forums.

[stoianm]

Originally Posted by Pintea

Good thing we have professionals like you who can judge programming skills from incomplete, misinterpreted due to lack of knowledge and probably incorrect statements read on forums.

yes... you are lucky guys

EDIT: you pm box is full

[urfisch]

Originally Posted by Pintea

Good thing we have professionals like you who can judge programming skills from incomplete, misinterpreted due to lack of knowledge and probably incorrect statements read on forums.

uhhh. feels like i tread on someones toes here, did i? please address your personal anger to the ones, who are responsable!

even if the code may not be unprofessionally coded, the game is unfinished and so the code is and THIS is unprofessional. thats a fact no one has to study it deeply for. and as you dive deeper into modding, you will find (even like in sh3 and sh4!) unfinished code parts. functions, that have been planned to be added, but never where.

so brother, step off my foot and judge the greasy tie guys from ubi for this piece of crappy software! and i think you will find 1 of 10 here, who was satisfied with this release. blame the ones who caused this...

dude.

[THE_MASK]

Go thru Pinteas posts and see all the things he has helped with .

[Pintea]

Originally Posted by urfisch

so brother, step off my foot and judge the greasy tie guys from ubi for this piece of crappy software! and i think you will find 1 of 10 here, who was satisfied with this release. blame the ones who caused this...dude.

So please keep bashing the suits with your complaints.
I was speaking in defense of the programmers and your "unprofessional/bad programming" claims. You have insufficient information/knowledge to be judging "programming skills in Romania".

[Obelix]

Originally Posted by Pintea

You have insufficient information/knowledge to be judging "programming skills in Romania".

Knowledge/information on their ability and willingness to work well - it's SH 5 and the "curve" code.

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by urfisch

uhhh. feels like i tread on someones toes here, did i? please address your personal anger to the ones, who are responsable!

even if the code may not be unprofessionally coded, the game is unfinished and so the code is and THIS is unprofessional. thats a fact no one has to study it deeply for. and as you dive deeper into modding, you will find (even like in sh3 and sh4!) unfinished code parts. functions, that have been planned to be added, but never where.

so brother, step off my foot and judge the greasy tie guys from ubi for this piece of crappy software! and i think you will find 1 of 10 here, who was satisfied with this release. blame the ones who caused this...

dude.

Pintea has every right to take your criticism personally, if you get my meaning.

[Targor Avelany]

Stop side-tracking the topic.

butthurt about someone making claims on bad programming for the game? Well, considering that the stadimeter bug does exist and not just "insufficient information/knowledge"... I would suggest you helping reaper to fix it, instead of complaining that he has no idea wtf he is doing... Especially after he admitted that he was wrong in his judgement.

dixi

[TheDarkWraith]

Originally Posted by Targor Avelany

Stop side-tracking the topic.

butthurt about someone making claims on bad programming for the game? Well, considering that the stadimeter bug does exist and not just "insufficient information/knowledge"... I would suggest you helping reaper to fix it, instead of complaining that he has no idea wtf he is doing... Especially after he admitted that he was wrong in his judgement.

dixi

Reaper7 has a stadimeter fix in his UI mod (his is a two step process). I have a stadimeter fix in my UIs mod (totally automatic no user input necessary). So stadimeter fixes already exist. What Reaper7 was trying to do was fix the stadimeter problem at the source - in the .exe