D20Sharp OGF library / News: Recent posts

I am working hard on the DataManager RC1 code - which is a major refactor that redefines the way the DataManager is used and both simplifies using it a lot while adding more extensibility. It is the Right Way - trust me.

Therefore. If you are running CVS code be careful with updating the DataManager code. The apps have not been tested with this code. The DataEditor should work, but not the CharacterEditor - I think.... read more

Finally released and it has been tested with the RTM og .NET 2.0. So everybody can now have a go without having to struggle with intermediate 2.0 releases.

The release consists mainly of the Beta of the Character Editor, the Beta 2 of the DataPacks and Core system. A slightly updated DataEditor and XMLDataProvider is also here.

As you may have seen, I stopped using the news list for blogging. I will figure out some new project blog mechanism when I get time to look at the new web page.... read more

The CharacterEditor is now nearing Alpha state with only the Equipment and Spells tabs missing. Data on races and classes have also been fleshed out. The Alpha will be released as soon as the GUI is done, the requirements data on feats have been punched in and the "bonus feats" action script have been made.

I hav eto say that DataBinding in Windows forms have improved greatly with .NET 2.0. This is awesome. So I had to revamp the DataElementList for providing DataBinding, but it is definately worth it. The Abilities page is finished in the Character Editor and it was as easy to implement as expected - once I got the hang of DataBinding that is. So I am overjoyed.

It also has a back side of course. I have realized that the DataManager needs a major overhaul and the DataEditor might as well benefit from my new wisdom - it will remove a lot of the crummy code used now to update the grids and such - and should make the program much easier to use and cooler of course!

I finally managed to get the CharacterEditorController class finished. For now that is. Some small modifications and missing features may come up when I pull together the dialogs. But boy has it been a toughie. In retrospect, I should probably have done it differently - making the Dialogs alongside. Getting to see your progress is mentally more satisfying than droves of code.

This is a major step towards the RC's of the v.1.0 framework. An Alpha of the CharacterEditor will be available when the GUI behaves, and the Beta will be out when the data is completed enough for it to actually work.... read more

I will now stop trying to use my own pathetic version of the SRD documents. They are very difficult to use properly due to the fact that WotC provide them in that silly RTF format.

The solution is right here folks : http://www.d20srd.org/index.htm. Very good work Jans! The first $15 donated to this project is going to be used for a years subscribtion to your site to support your great work.

"Long time...". It has been a long eventful couple of months and I haven't been putting that much effort into the project. Pity... But as you can see some code has been committed yesterday and today.

Not much remains on the controller for the character editor, and I have made some realizations for the project that has to be done before it gets into production.
1) .NET 2.0 has to be released proper.
2) The DataManager needs work/simplification with generics and for making it more flexible.
3) I will use the Wintellect.PowerCollections more.

The build server is up and running. Still has some quirks that I am ironing out - but I am reasonably satisfied with the way it runs. Unfortunately I am not able to put the results up for public view as the server can also be controlled from the site, and I dont want any malicious visitors to clobber the server.

So I am back to coding. Has been giving it a couple of hours each day since the last post, and I am finding the rhythm again. There is still some way to go with the character editor, but I hope to be able to present a beta of it soon.

In order to more closely monitor the progress of the project (and becuase it is immensely satisfying working like that), I am setting up a continuous integration build server for the project. When the server is up and running and all projects are set up, the coding will commence.

Phew... I have really been so busy doing other stuff so I got out of the coding rhythm.

My experiments with the new MS Testing framework and then returning to NUnit also screwed stuff up so I had difficulty getting TestDriven.Net working properly. I chose to return not becuase the MS framework was bad, but because it did not make sense for an open source project to use assemblies that require the use of VS.NET. So unless MS releases the testing framework for the express editions I will stick to NUnit.... read more

I have been fairly busy doing other stuff the past weeks, so I have not have much time for the project. Irritatin actually - I was making good progress and now the trail has grown somewhat cold.

It started after the refactor where I suddenly discovered that the editor had problems. So I spend a lot of time debugging that, only to find that I had been foolish with my references, and that was the only problem... But I got the data back in shape and was back on track.... read more

The last couple of days I have made a lot of changes that I discovered I required... It was just one of these periods where one change takes the other.

Some progress has been made on the Character editor, but mostly it is the character class that gained a lot of needed code and properties.

I have introduced a new generic dictionary class that elimiated a lot of code in the d20Sharp base assembly - but added a lot of badly needed features on the dictionaries. A list with some nifty fetaures have also been added.... read more

I got a lot of stuff done today. Finished off the ActionManager, and then progressed to the CharacterEditor controlller. Finished the supporting classes and I am now working on the controller itself. Most of the basic plumbing is done which makes the implementation easier from here - but I have not even finisheded the entire abilities phase. So a lot of work remains.

I made some implementation of some of the ActionManager stuff and actually managed to complete thress tasks fairly quick. This means I am ahead of schedule right now - but the last part of the ActionManager can upset that.

I have made some local rearrangements of my solutions which have changed some references in the project files.

Lastly the module d20Sharp.DataManager.PropertyEditing has changed name to d20Sharp.DataEditor.PropertyEditing. It was malplaced in the DataManager namespace. This has caused some small changes too...... read more

The design of the CharacterEditor has finalized. Implementation will now commence with a work breakdown being done first, adding tasks to the task list.

The design document will be updated with changes found during implementation until the implementation is about 50% through - then the design will be considered locked and any further changes will only be shown in final documentation.

No real timeframe can be given before work breakdown is complete, even then it will only be guiding dates as I cannot say how much time I can spend. It is a free time project until donations happen after all!!!

Ahh... Easter is over. What a relaxing time. I had very little time for doing work on the project - not written down anyways. Had too many other things to tend to. Spring weather finally came to Denmark, I had to enjoy that!

Made some more stuff today. I am progressing rapidly on the design and hope to have that finished soon so coding can commence.

Check out the new ActionManager design, the corner stone of extensibility - it can be found in the Documentation section on the home page : http://d20sharp.sourceforge.net/Documentation.htm

The design of the character editor is beginning to shape up. All screen mocks are now finished so you can see how the editor will probably look when it is done, as well as a description of how it will work.

The last package design that needs to be made is the Controller. Then implementation will begin for the first shot of the editor. I already know that it will lack some parts that will require some new fancy classes in the DataManager package - but more on that later...

With the help of Frontpage I have created a simple web site for the project. You can find it by following the "Home Page" link. It does not contain much - but it grows steadily.

Of highest interest for the user must be the emerging design document for the Character Editor found in the Documentation section. Here you can see what to expect in 1.0 final.

Also in the Documentation section is a small description of how to install and use the editor. More will come there as well.... read more

I have been waiting sooo long for this, and worked very hard at i too. But finally it is here, the beta. The beta release is a much more rewarding release to make than the alpha, which was just a set of classes with some relations. Now you can really see that the classes do something.

The data pack is still incomplete. Most elements are there, but supporting data for nearly all of them lack. I wanted to get the beta out instead of spending time on editing data - because it is going to take some time to complete the data. There is a lot, actually.... read more

I started editing data today, and stumble upon some irregulaities in the editor that had to be removed, as well as some small bugs in the Controller and Manager.

I also chose to move all the generic property editors out of the d20Sharp assembly into a new assembly d20Sharp.DataManager.PropertyEditing. This was done so other classes could benefit from the property editors I have spent so much time on. BTW They also got a workover today.... read more

I know you are all waiting for the beta to arrive, and I am certainly anxious to get it done. It looks like I will have time to finish the beta up by the end of the week. But much depends on how long the editing of data actually takes.

There will probably be some rough edges on the editor - but these will be smoothed out before final release. I have to use it a lot myself, which make it easy to spot the issues and fix them.

I am still involved in getting the editor down, and one of the tougher things was to get the default editor to display lists of other objects in a neat way. This succeeded thanks to Generics. I got a drop down list working in the PropertyGrid for one type and then swiftly converted it to a generic class and it all worked.

This is one of the great moments when you feel that the code you have just written kicks ass.... read more

The Editor is progressing rapidly now. Most of the classes can be edited nicely, but references need a decent editor to use. I am working on this.

It is great working with the PropertyGrid. It really makes a lot of things so much easier when dealing with editing dynamic classes. Much appreciated.

When this is done, I need to fix the references RFE so that loading the library from XML works correctly, and then it is time for punching data in for the Beta.... read more

I want to have som sort of database provider for the 1.0 release. My plan was that this should be a MSDE/SQL Server provider. However the work in getting these databases to accept the dynamic nature of the data could cause serious headaches and take long time to implement.

Luckily I stumbled upon the db4objects database framework (http://www.db4o.com). This framework can both be used as a standalone/local database and as a client/Server solution. Furthermore it is inherently dynamic in nature, thus suit the d20Sharp framework perfectly. It also has a very small footprint.... read more

The Controller is giving me a hard time. The design I made up front was not robust enough - and because the testing has been chopped up, I have been very inconsistant in my test methods and have forgotten details. Furthermore NUnit is giving me a hard time with the built-in .NET config things. It seems there are some ugly caching going on that makes it possible to run the tests seperately, but when run all together things get messed up. So I am trying to avoid using the damn thing... Furthermore it is hard to assure that the save has taken place. Grr...... read more