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Manual
ZDoom Executor User Manual
Welcome to the ZDoom Executor User Manual, please read this manual thoroughly.
Program Information
ZDoom Executor is a profile based launcher for ZDoom based Doom ports (like GZDoom).
Program Usage
The Main Interface
The Menu Bar
The File Menu
Open Profile...
Loads a previously saved profile.
Save Profile As...
Saves a configured profile
Clear Profile
Removes all profile customization and loads program defaults.
Recent
Displays a list of the last 5 loaded profiles.
Exit
Exits the program.
The Options Menu
Paths...
Opens the path settings window.
Tabbed Interface
Toggles between the tabbed interface (the default for Windows Vista and above) and the tree view interface (the default and only one available for Windows XP).
Output Console Font...
Controls the font used for the "Output Console" tab; when clicked a dialog will be presented so the user can select a font and its quality/smoothing. A monospaced font (such as Consolas or Courier New) is highly recommended. Default: Consolas for Windows Vista & above; Courier New for Windows XP and below/other systems, in both cases with the current system smoothing (if present).
Register File Types (Windows Only)
Register .zdeprof files to open with ZDoom Executor when double clicking them on Windows Explorer.
Show External File Paths
Controls whether the full path to files will be shown in the "External Files" box, if disabled only the file name is listed, the full path can be displayed as a tooltip by hovering the mouse for a moment over the file name. Default: Enabled.
Bottom to Top External File Precedence
Controls how external files are passed to the ZDoom engine; Zdoom and its ports consider the last (or rightmost) file passed to have top precedence. Example: Consider you have file1.wad, file2.wad and file3.wad loaded in external files and all of them contain MAP05, if using the default "Bottom to Top" precedence and having the files arranged like this:
| file1.wad |
| file2.wad |
| file3.wad |
file3.wad takes precedence and the MAP05 level that will be loaded is the one for that file; consider the opposite (option disabled, hence Top to Bottom file precedence) while keeping the same arrangement of files, in that case file1.wad will be the one that provides MAP05 to the game. A small arrow on the top right corner of the "External Files" box indicates at al times what precedence is considered (the arrow's base indicates top predecence). Default: Enabled.
Check for IWAD
When loading an IWAD from external files, all files will be checked for either an IWAD header or a fuzzy match with known games until one that satisfies either condition is found, that file will be passed to ZDoom as the IWAD. If the option is disabled, the top most file in the "External Files" box will be passed as the IWAD. File precedence rules don't affect this criteria. Default: Enabled.
Minimize to Tray
Puts the program when minimized in the system tray (or notification area) instead of the task bar. Default: Disabled.
Save Last Profile on Exit
Preserves the state of all game launching options when exiting ZDoom Executor, those options will be loaded next time the program is started. Default: Disabled.
Minimize ZDE on Launch
Minimizes the program when launching a game, "Minimize to Tray" option is accounted for. Default: Disabled.
Close ZDE on Launch
Exits the program after launching a game, "Save Last Profile on Exit" is accounted for. Default: Disabled.
The Tools Menu
Identify WAD...
Opens a dialog to select a file; that file is checked against ZDE's internal MD5 WAD Database and if no match is found it tries to identify it using fuzzy match that depends on file contents.
List Known IWADs...
Opens a window with a list of every IWAD and its corresponding MD5 hash known to the program.
Show Command Line...
Opens a window that displays the options that will be passed to the game engine on launch.
Create Shortcut From Current Profile... (Windows Only)
Creates a windows shortcut from the active profile wherever the user selects; if the profile hasn't been saved, it will ask to save it first.
The Help Menu
ZDoom Executor Site
Takes you to the ZDoom Executor web page using your default browser.
http://zdexe.sourceforge.net
ZDoom Executor Manual
Takes you to the ZDoom Executor manual (at the wiki).
http://sourceforge.net/p/zdexe/wiki/Manual
ZDoom Executor Wiki
Visits the ZDoom Executor Wiki.
http://sourceforge.net/p/zdexe/wiki
ZDoom
Browses to the ZDoom site.
http://zdoom.org
ZDoom Forum
Visits the ZDoom forums.
http://forum.zdoom.org/
Team TNT (Fix for Evilution Keycard Bug)
Some Evilution versions (including the one distributed by Steam) have a nasty bug that prevents a yellow keycard from being obtained in level 31 if playing solo, the TNT guys provide a .wad with a fix. You can find out if your version's affected by running the "Identify WAD" Tool or adding Evilution to your list of IWADs in the "Paths..." window, if the bug is present the IWAD will be listed as having it in the "IWAD" combo box.
http://www.teamtnt.com
License
Displays the program's GPLv3 License.
About
Displays the program's credits and copyrights, along with a particular build's information.
The Toolbar
File Operations
The first section of the toolbar provides access to the most common options from the "File" menu. (Clear Profile; Open Profile and Save Profile As...).
Quick Profiles
The second section of the toolbar is comprised of the quick profile buttons: 10 buttons to store and quickly recall the user's favourite or most used profiles, the interface is entirely mouse driven and includes tooltips for its operation:
Left click
Load the profile from the selected slot.
Right click
Set a previously saved profile in the selected slot.
Ctrl-Right click
Display the "Save Profile As..." dialog and, when saved, assign it to the selected slot.
Middle click
Removes the profile from the selected slot, the profile file **WILL** remain wherever it was saved.
Launch
The third section includes a button that launches a game using the profile currently in the program.
Exit
The fourth section has a button that exits the program.
The Game Tab
This tab contains everything that's needed for basic game setup.
Basic Parameters
This section lets the user select their source port (engine) and IWAD, both can be configured in the "Paths" settings window.
Both the source forge and IWADs are listed in drop down menus for easy access.
Extended Parameters
The External Files list
This contains a list of additional files to be loaded, the files can be of any kind and each entry can be toggled on and off with a checkbox.
The list accepts files dragged and dropped into it and can be rearranged by dragging elements into place or using the buttons, discussed below.
The buttons from left to right are as follows:
Add Folder as External File: ZDoom permits folders to be treated as single entities (much like a PK3 would behave), this button allows you leverage this ability and load an entire folder as a single external file, clicking the button opens a folder browser.
Add External File: Opens a file browser where you can pick files to add to the list. The browser supports multiple file selection.
Remove External File: Removes the currently highlighted external files; the "Delete" key can also be used to remove external files.
Move External File Up: Moves the currently highlighted file up a position in the external files list. ZDoom is sensitive to the order of passed external files, an explanation can be found in the Bottom to Top External File Precedence section; The Page Up key can also be used as an equivalent to this button.
* Move External File Down: Moves the currently highlighted file down a position in the external files list. ZDoom is sensitive to the order of passed external files, an explanation can be found in the Bottom to Top External File Precedence section, the Page Down key can also be used as an equivalent to this button.
The "External Files" list also contains a visual aid to indicate current external file precedence in the form of an orange arrow in the top right corner of the list, the tip of the arrow indicates the files with least precedence.
The Skill Selector
Most games can be started right after launching by selecting, at least, a skill to play at (The Adventures of Square being an exception, skill selection isn't currently supported in ZDoom Executor), for many supported games the correct skill names will be displayed, if individual skill names aren't yet known or supported, a familiar "Very Easy" to "Very Hard" list will be displayed.
The Map Selector
For most games the starting map can be selected as well; for known maps a list can be displayed that includes the map number (or episode-number) and the map name (if the map's named); the map reference can also be typed, for example MAP01.
The Player Class Selector
Hexen and its expansion let players use different classes (Fighter, Cleric and Mage), the starting class can be selected using this list; class can be randomized by selecting "Random".
The Flags Checkboxes
- No Monsters: disables monsters in levels.
- Fast: makes monsters as fast as "Nightmare" mode monsters even when playing at other skill levels (needless to say it's useless if enabled along the "No Monsters" option).
- Respawn Monsters: sets monsters to respawn (like "Nightmare" difficulty) in all difficulty levels (again, useless if used along "No Monsters").
Command Line Arguments
ZDoom Executor covers most of ZDoom's command line parameters in its panes; but also includes an input box for inserting the user's own parameters into the launcher; whether they're not present in the panes; they are exclusive to some specific source port, or just for the convenience of setting up a game quickly without going through the tabs any and all parameters can be typed in this box, they will be passed verbatim to the launched game.
The Multiplayer Tab
This tab contains the parameters required for hosting or joining a multiplayer game.
The "Multiplayer Game" checkbox must be checked for these parameters to have any effect.
Multiplayer Options
Game Type: here the type of game can be selected:
Co-Op: Players team up to kill monsters and conquer levels.
Deathmatch: Players play against each other and weapons stay after being picked up. Only one player needs to set this flag.
* AltDeatmatch: Players play against each other and items (except invulnerability and invisibility) respawn. Only one player needs to set this flag.
Action: chooses whether to join or host a multiplayer game.
Players: number of players to take part in game (1 to 8 and set by the host).
Dup: causes ZDoom to transmit fewer player movement commands across the network. (1 to 9). For example: 2 would cause ZDoom to send half as many movements as normal.
Timer: sets the number of minutes before ZDoom advances to the next level automatically. 0 disables it.
Extratic: if enabled ZDoom will send a backup copy of every movement command across the network.
AVG: Austin Virtual Gaming, if enabled timer is automatically set to 20 minutes.
Netmode: selects the type of network mode to use in the game, two options are available:
0 (Classic): Peer-to-peer mode, this is the default if no options are selected, check ZDoom's wiki on Multiplayer for a detailed explanation.
1 (Client/Server): Client-Server network model, check ZDoom's wiki on Multiplayer for a detailed explanation.
IP Address: sets the I.P. Address and port to use when joining a game, if the launcher's set to host a game changing the port affects the port used to listen for connections. I.P. Address and port can be copied and pasted using the corresponding buttons, the launcher parses I.P. Addresses in the traditional form:
127.0.0.1:5029
The port is specified with a colon and a number and is optional.
DMFlags and DMFlags2
ZDoom and its variants support a number of DMFlags, these can be specified using the DMFlags and DMFlags2 boxes, the expected values are numbers, check ZDoom's wiki on DMFlags for a detailed explanation on those numbers and how to use them.
The Advanced Tab
This tab contains a number of advanced options to control ZDoom's behaviour. The "Use Advanced Options" checkbox must be checked for these options to be enabled and used.
Video Options
Pixel Resize: controls if pixels are doubled (the resulting video mode is twice the size specified) or quadruple (the resulting video mode is four times the size specified).
Width and Height: lets the user enter a video mode manually (e.g. 1920 x 1080).
Audio Options
No CD Audio: disables Redbook CD audio usage.
No SFX: disables game sound effects.
No Music: disables game music.
No Sound: disables all game sound (music and SFX).
Game Options
Ignore Blockmap: makes ZDoom ignore a map's provided BLOCKMAP lump and generate one itself.
CDROM: makes ZDoom look for saved games, zdoom.cfg and save screenshots in C:\ZDOOMDAT.
No Startup Screens: disables Heretic's, Hexen's and Strife's custom startup screens and forces a Doom like text mode startup screen.
No Autoload: makes Zdoom ignore the AutoLoad section of the config file.
Turbo: the number here represents a percentage of the normal speed for player movement (10 to 255). 100 is the default speed.
No Sprite Renaming: Useful for certain Heretic, Hexen and Strife mods that replace a few select sprites; unless playing one of those you do not need this option.
Win 32 Options
These options affect only Windows (32 and 64 bits) versions of ZDoom.
No Idle: by default, when switching to a Window other than ZDoom the engine lowers its priority class to prevent slowing down the system, if this option is set ZDoom will continue to run at full speed even when out of focus.
Disable Joystick Support: traditional game port joysticks can slow down ZDoom even when they're not used, turn this option on to disable joysticks and prevent this from happening.
Files Options
Config File: lets the user type or select a new or existing file to use as ZDoom's configuration file, the "Browse" button opens a traditional file selection dialog while the "Clear" button removes the file name from the input box, therefore disabling its use.
Save Path: allows the user to type or select (using the "Browse" button) the folder to use for saved game storage in a particular profile, the "Clear" button empties the input box and disables its use.
Load Most Recent Save: instructs ZDoom to load the newest save file in the specified "Save Path" folder. This option is only available and used if a path is set in "Save Path"
Demos & Debug Tab
Lets the user set some ZDoom debug and demo recording/playing options.
Demo Options
Sets demo options, the "Use Demo Options" checkbox must be checked for these parameters to have any effect.
Demo File: let's the user type or select (via the browser button, the button's a "smart button" that lets the user save or load a demo based on the "Demo Action" parameter) a demo file to record or play.
Demo Action: lets the user select the action to be performed with the chosen demo file:
Record: records a gameplay demo in the chosen file.
Play: plays back in ZDoom the contents of the chosen demo file.
* Timedemo: plays the chosen demo file in ZDoom faster than the "Play" option and displays a framerate when playback's done.
Debug Options
Lets the user set some debugging options; the "Use Debug Options" checkbox must be checked for these options to have any effect.
0: resets the window position to the top-left corner of the screen.
Debug File: makes ZDoom write network debugging information to debugN.txt where N is your player number.
No Blit: makes ZDoom disable updates to the display on the screen, while it still draws everything to an internal buffer. Only useful with Timedemo enabled and selected.
No Draw: makes ZDoom not draw anything at all, as with "No Blit" this option's only useful with Timedemo enabled and selected.
No Run: quits the game just before video initialization. To be used to check for errors in scripts without actually running the game.
Pipe ZDoom Output to ZDE Console: redirects all ZDoom output to ZDoom Executor's console (found in the "Output Console" Tab).
