CoriBoom 2nd Beta - All 3 City Halls Fixes + 1 for ModPacc Zero

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

Rise & shine.

From what I see here and other gaming forums, the question of commas and dots is an ubiquitous problem in modding.

I don't know much about programming, but some .Net-based mods, freqently provide additional config files which allow users to set up correct symbol for decimal values.

Not sure if LUAs can provide this type of functionality or not, but I just wanted to give you an example of how this is (succesfully) solved elsewhere.

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

2 hours ago, TheMurderousCricket said:

Not sure if LUAs can provide this type of functionality or not, ...

Turns out there is something that's partially equivalent which CB found: os.setlocale("en") and with that we can solve the first half of the problem. Then with my custom functions we can solve the other half to make the displays not go goofy. However, this forces everyone to see the numbers in the UK/US display format.

Now, that we can do this tho, I can set up a set of master control files where peeps would pick only one to then have the thousands separators and decimal points of their choice as well as parentheses for negative numbers for the places that show them that way. (With the characters stabilized to one set, I can then do character substitutions within the string of characters based on the selected control file.)

This latter part will be a bunch of work to integrate into all we've already coded, but the MZ package cannot go forward without it since a patch that doesn't have options for everyone just wouldn't be worth putting out in the wild.

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

42 minutes ago, CorinaMarie said:

However, this forces everyone to see the numbers in the UK/US display format.

Now, that we can do this tho, I can set up a set of master control files where peeps would pick only one to then have the thousands separators and decimal points of their choice as well as parentheses for negative numbers for the places that show them that way.

Are you sure you want to do this? Personally, I don't really mind having decimals either after periods or comas. 

Perhaps just stick to two separators instead of "thousands". I don't think the world uses anything other than periods or comas anyway... maybe just an occasional dash...

[AsimPika3172 1,155]

Cool! 🥰️

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

@CorinaMarie

Good news! I changed number formats on my computer and the values displayed in the city hall panel got back to normal. 

What is more, it turns out one does not have to change the language as such. Only numerical formats. In other words, Windows can run in one's native language but display values in a foreign format.

Here's a screenshot of the options involved which worked for me. Yep, it's in Polish, but this is why we have icons and tabs, right?

Besides, it's a proof that language settings don't have to be changed:

In a nutshell:

1. Steering panel
2. Regional and language options
3. First tab
4. First rolldown list, select "English (US)"

Problem solved. Or worked around at least! 

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

@TheMurderousCricket

That's great (and a bit concerning). &

I'm very glad to hear you can do that and see the panel as we intend it.   OTOH, the latest method we're working on will handle it automatically with no separate control file needed. We can use that built-in Lua function to see what language the game is using and then adjust which characters to use for the thousands separator, the decimal point, and whether or not a negative number has the minus sign on the left or the right.

For normal integers the underlying UI code itself does that, but for more complex numbers where we want both thousands separators and decimal precision we build up the number ourselves inserting the appropriate characters. As an example, we want the columns of numbers to be decimal aligned and the UI's code has no method for that by itself. Say a fire coverage is 87.94%, the UI itself would simply show 87% and we don't like that. If it were 92.40% we do want that last zero so they stay visually aligned. (Ofc, even that is subject to slight alignment differences because the Arta font is not mono-spaced, but we've done the best we can.)

So, if someone uses one language and sets their numeric format to another our new method will still show the numbers in the format which the local language uses. Hopefully (once we get this re-coded), you won't mind to change back.

Anyhow, back to the panel and its data. How's the information looking in various cities where you've seen it?

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

7 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

How's the information looking in various cities where you've seen it?

I checked it in only one city so far. I'll have another look in the evening or tomorrow but I think the effect should be universal.

7 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

thousands separators

Gahhh... only now did I understand what you meant by that. *facepalm*

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

@carlosmarcelo

If you have time, would you check something for us? 

It'll need the Census Repository Facility plopped in your game and then query it. What we are curious about is if negative numbers display for you. When CB and I set our game to Portuguese, all negative numbers just show up as blank. We are wondering if that is because our OS is still set to English and has the numeric display format different.

Here's an example when set to English:



And the same with the game set to Portuguese:

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

I've done my bit of research.

I experience no further problems with your mod after switching the numerical format on my machine. I checked several cities and all city/village hall variations and everything displays correctly.  Of course, the stats are also correct when compared with the graphs windows.

All good, I wouldn't mind sticking to beta!

[carlosmarcelo 982]

On 04/10/2021 at 5:36 PM, CorinaMarie said:

If you have time, would you check something for us? 

Oops! I've been summoned! 
I started testing just now and I've already collected the first results, which unfortunately are not favorable. 
I want to test some more situations before making my report here. 

I'm just going to tell you what the language setting of my computer is, totally pt-br:

See you later.

[carlosmarcelo 982]

Responding quickly, no pictures, follows the results I got from the test.

Test environment
Win10 full updated
SC4 GOG offline instalation version full updated
I used the game's language change tool that comes with GOG
ZERO plugins, except census, census dependences and new cityhall

Results
win ptbr and sc4 ptbr - error cityhall; error census
win ptbr and sc4 en - error cityhall; ok census
win en and sc4 ptbr - error cityhall; error census
win en and sc4 en - ok cityhall; ok census

Explain:
error in cityhall: exactly what has already been reported
Census error: exactly what happened to you: the negative number disappears

I confess that I found it very strange that cityhall works in only one of the situations above. But I did the tests again and that's it. I have pictures of all these scenarios that I can upload later if you like. 

I am available for further testing if you need it. Hope this helps. 

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

@carlosmarcelo

Thanks so much for testing. We now know what the trouble is for the number formatting getting borked and are diligently working on the fix. We've learned enough that there's no need to upload your test pics. (Thanks for offering, ofc.)

There is another easy test you could do for us over in this thread.

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

All Three City Halls + 1 - Beta v1.1  (for  ModPacc Zero )
With New Proper Number Formatting For All Supported Languages
And other enhancements!

Number Format Logic

As it turns out there are three possible number formats for the languages the game supports. The one CB and I are familiar with uses a Comma for the group separator and a Dot for the decimal point. Then there are languages which use either a Dot or Space for the group separator and a Comma for the decimal point.

We've now written Lua code that can detect which language the game is set to use and have updated the data panels to properly show the numbers. Note: We have not translated any of the text we added for the data labels. They are all in English. Those'll be something other peeps can translate if they like as it's way beyond the scope of making functional improvements to the game. Should peeps create translations, we can add them as optional downloads for the files.

 

Changelog Summary

Following up on the discovery that our extended data panel was seriously borked when the game is played in other languages, we have made the following corrections and updates. This also includes a few other additions which we thought y'all might like too.

As follows:

• Numeric display is based on the language in use.
• Tooltips added to the data values. These explain what each means, along with some containing additional related info.
• Additional space added above the City Name for easier panel movement.
   
• Additional colour formatting added to some values:
  • Power Usage and Power Surplus display in Orange when between 80 and 90 percent.
  • Power Usage and Power Surplus display in Red when 90 percent or more.
  • Water Usage and Water Surplus display in Orange when between 80 and 90 percent.
  • Water Usage and Water Surplus display in Red when 90 percent or more.
     
• Radiation no longer displays goofy numbers if queried immediately after entering the city tile.
• Garbage data display logic greatly improved.
• Units added for the Power (mwh) and Water (m³) values to give clarity on what they represent.
• Logo and Close Button moved for improved visual aesthetics.
• Version number added to the MZ logo.

 

Sample Data Panels

When starting the game, the data panel will now dynamically update between three formats which covers all possibilities of numeric display.

Here are the sample data panels in the three formats:
(Left refers to the position of the minus sign, which is the same on all.)
 

Format CDL   (Comma Decimal Left)

• 0x01 US English
• 0x0E Japanese
• 0x0F Korean
• 0x11 Chinese (Simplified)
• 0x12 Chinese (Traditional)
• 0x13 UK English
• 0x15 Thai

This one uses a Comma for the group separator and a Dot for the decimal point:

 

---

Format DCL   (Dot Comma Left)

• 0x02 French
• 0x03 German
• 0x04 Italian
• 0x05 Spanish
• 0x06 Swedish
• 0x08 Dutch
• 0x09 Danish
• 0x0A Portuguese

This one uses a Dot for the group separator and a Comma for the decimal point:

 

---

Format SCL   (Space Comma Left)

• 0x07 Finnish
• 0x14 Polish
• 0x16 Norwegian

And last, but not least, this one uses Space for the group separator and a Comma for the decimal point:

 

Then, additionally, CB has created Tool Tips for all of the data values which is just another way of saying a text box will pop up when hovering the mouse over the numbers. Here are some samples and all shown with English number formatting:

        

^ The number format in these will also change based on the language in use.

 

Testing Requested

It would be beneficial if y'all would put this mod thru its paces and give us some feedback.

Just make sure to remove our previous v1.0 file from your Plugins. (And if you haven't tested v1.0, be sure to also read the initial post as it explains all the parts which have not changed, but are also in this new v1.1.)

 

Special Thanks

A big kudos to @TheMurderousCricket for discovering the numeric data format bug when not set to English.

Also thanks to @gwada971, @rsc204, @aom1550, @ulisse, and @carlosmarcelo for testing the os.locale info for us.

 

The Files Contained in the .Zip:

1.  MZ City Hall Package (Beta v1.1).dat  <--- The main file (updated).
2.  MZ Fluff News Remover (Beta v1.0).dat <--- Optional file (same as before).
3.  No City Hall Query Sound v1.0.dat     <--- Optional file (same as before).

 

The Download File:
ModPacc Zero - City Halls (Beta v1.1).zip

 

Thanks!

-Cori & CB

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

Another version of an already good mod?

Cricket likezzzz. 

[carlosmarcelo 982]

17 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

It would be beneficial if y'all would put this mod thru its paces and give us some feedback.

Yes, I did it. All right with this new version. Thanks!  It was tested alone and with this plugins: SC4Fix.dll, SimCity 4 Extra Cheats Plugin.dll, SaveWarning_Disable_Exit_Quit.dat and DataView - Cori Parks Aura10.dat.

A curiosity: how will the translation process be?
We will pass the translated texts to you with the location indications or do we take the .dat file ourselves and make the changes? Would it be a separate file that would overlay the main .dat?

  Edited October 18, 2021 by carlosmarcelo  

[Cyclone Boom 17,031]

2 hours ago, carlosmarcelo said:

All right with this new version. Thanks! 

Excellent! We're pleased to hear it.
(Of course, anyone else who can check in their game and post back (especially if seeing the borked version previously) it'd help us to know it works for you also.)

 

2 hours ago, carlosmarcelo said:

A curiosity: how will the translation process be?
We will pass the translated texts to you with the location indications or do we take the .dat file ourselves and make the changes? Would it be a separate file that would overlay the main .dat?

Our original idea was you would extract the LText and Unknown (plain text) entries that have text which needs translated to make an override, but because of how we've had to deal with the alignment some of the text is inside the Lua as well.

So, we now believe one way to do it would be to rename the file, make all the needed translation changes in place and pass that on to us to include as an option for the STEX download once it's all finalized. In the meantime you could post it as an attachment in this thread. If you do work on it, we can explain the parts in the Lua that'll need changed. It'll take a lot of trial and error because the font is variable width, and the number of spaces before or after an equal sign or colon would change depending on the number and width of the characters in the text needed. Also some words in other languages might be longer than in English, such as "City Hall" translates to "Municipalidad" in Spanish. Some words might go the other way though, like "maintenance" is "huolto" in Finnish. (According to what Google Translate says.)

One possibility is the entries can have incremental GIDs as this topic explains. Then the game would know which to display based on the language one runs the game in. This is the ideal solution for the LText individually, but there is still the issue of the hardcoded text we've added in the Lua code. We might be able to do something about this, though at the moment with other MZ components to work on, it's not something we've got on our current agenda.

With this said, another idea has come to mind...

Would it be useful if we provided a master text file in English with all the words to be translated? 

If so this is something we'll create and post, so then you (and anyone) can work on translating each line individually.

You could then send us a new text file with each line translated, so then we'd know what each should be. Then given it's quite complicated for all the editing, that can be something we'd implement later on like for the main overall MZ Beta release. Although beyond the scope of what we can do entirely ourselves, supporting translations is something we're open-minded to, and so any help from people like yourself who are able to assist with the process will be very beneficial.

Let us know if this might be a useful way forward.

[carlosmarcelo 982]

8 hours ago, Cyclone Boom said:

Let us know if this might be a useful way forward.

Thank you. Honestly I want to do it, but I also suggest that it be after we have the final version released because I believe there may still be relevant changes to interfaces, texts and notices.
But the main point is that until next year I couldn't do anything about it: my big personal project is still ongoing and I have the reorganization of the SimCity Brazil files in line; I have neither forgotten nor abandoned it and, in comparison, I find this one more important than the translation. 

As for how to do it, my opinion is that it has to be the easiest for you because you are already making a huge effort to deliver all of this to us in such a brilliant and incredible way, that the translation work should not generate "overwork" for you guys. The only thing I ask for is a "manual" on how to do it. 

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

5 hours ago, carlosmarcelo said:

I also suggest that it be after we have the final version released because I believe there may still be relevant changes to interfaces, texts and notices.

That's a very good point since we've already felt we had it complete once before and it turned out it wasn't so there could be later changes.

 

5 hours ago, carlosmarcelo said:

I have the reorganization of the SimCity Brazil files in line; [ ... ] I find this one more important than the translation. 

We very much agree your organizing project is indeed more important.

 

5 hours ago, carlosmarcelo said:

The only thing I ask for is a "manual" on how to do it.

When the time comes, I believe we can work back and forth with you to create said manual. For instance, we could ask for a list of words from the screenshot pic of the data panel for their translations, do the internal conversion ourselves while making notes, and then present that. In general, the method will be similar for all of our MZ mods so the first one will take the most time while we'd get the instructions laid out step by step.

After your post and CB's reply, we discussed how we might make it even easier for later translations. The part about where we have some of the text in the Lua code (because it was easier to make the numeric digits align vertically in the hover over Tool Tips) might be something we could rework to all be within LText entries. If so, this would simplify the number of steps needed.

So, all in all, we'll consider the translation and translating help something for later down the road. For now, testing of the mod itself will be the most beneficial.

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

I have discovered yet another problem with your mod. It is a rather serious issue...

It seems that placing any of the city hall buildings you provided causes random "No power" zots to appear throughout the city, without any particular pattern.

The zots will start appearing the very moment the city hall building is planted, after which it will affect various, random areas of the city being played. The zots will typically last full month after which they will gradually disappear in a "wave" type of fashion. West to east in my case.

The very moment I bulldoze your city halls, the problem disappears, so there is no doubt in my mind that the "City Hall" mod is what triggers it.

Interestingly enough, no buildings are being abandoned or distressed in the process. It seems more like a display problem rather than a game mechanics error.

EDIT _________________________

Further down the rabbit hole, it turns out that the same happens in version 1.0 and even with the vanilla city hall!

There has to be some sort of a deep-down bug that is causing it, because even when I removed the city hall, the problem would continue to linger on, even if the city has no city hall at all.

I'm trying to pinpoint the cause but I'm not sure which direction I should go from here. Maybe this is some sort of interference from a faulty BAT or something?

 

[TheMurderousCricket 5,107]

Umm... It looks like I made a jerk out of myself and *sigh* confused brownouts with a glitch.

I'll shut up now and try to redeem myself...

[theTeaCat 18]

I have noticed if you use  the "Increase font size" modd  by  KorvinGump you have a slight overlapping of some letters and number as can be seen in the following pics

Normal in game font

Increased font size installed

 

 

[Cyclone Boom 17,031]

11 minutes ago, theTeaCat said:

I have noticed if you use  the "Increase font size" modd  by  KorvinGump you have a slight overlapping

Thanks so much for testing and posting the pics.

In terms of the overlapping, we plan to increase the width to allow the panel to be multilingual if anyone can help with translations in future, so this can be something we'll keep in mind with the widening. It is pleasing to see the data being displayed correctly there in your city.

[markussaage 762]

Hi y'all!

I put your mod to the test yesterday for the first time. It works just fine atm.
I like all the additional information about the cities. That's awesome.
Something was resolved, that was always bugging me with Mr. Truesage's fix...
The stats window didn't work properly...

The only thing I've changed so far is I tweaked the lots of all city halls to my liking
with other textures and props. But that's just me.

Anyway guys, job very well done.

Kind regards!

[Zeratai 84]

Hello, is this mod compatible with Manuelito Maxis Civics Renewal?

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

12 hours ago, Zeratai said:

Hello, is this mod compatible with Manuelito Maxis Civics Renewal?

Yes.

Place our MZ City Hall Package (Beta v1.1).dat file in a folder in your Plugins then add their z_CityHallFixRelot.dat file to that same folder. Because of the file names, theirs will override ours.

This works because their file contains the 3 LotConfigurations exemplars using the same building exemplar references which means all our other updates will remain in place. The only difference is you will see their relots in your game.

[memo 1,473]

I've tested this mod in combination with Real Upgradeable City Halls which is supposed to be compatible. However, both mods use different conditions for unlocking the rewards for stage 2 and 3 of the city hall.

MZ City Halls uses

tuning_constants.CITYHALL2_POP   = 31000
tuning_constants.CITYHALL2_MR    =    45
tuning_constants.CITYHALL3_POP   = 62000
tuning_constants.CITYHALL3_MR    =    50

whereas Real Upgradeable City Halls uses population >= 45000 (stage 2) or population >= 95000 (stage 3), regardless of mayor rating, apparently hardcoded in the DLL C++ code.

This is a bit unfortunate, as for each stage, two different reward-unlock advisor messages will be displayed, one for each mod – and the option to upgrade is unlocked way after the option to build stage 2 on its own.

Any chance compatibility could be improved?

Of course, this could be fixed in the DLL source code by making it use the Lua tuning constants as well.

It might be easier though if the MZ City Halls mod checks whether the Real Upgradable City Halls plugin is installed, and if so, it would hide the MZ advisor messages and change the reward unlock conditions. For example, this could be accomplished in Lua as follows:

function advice_exists(_guid)
    local guid = _guid
    if (type(guid) == 'string') then
        guid = hex2dec(_guid)
    end
    local i, n = 1, advices.n
    while (i <= n) do
        if (advices[i].guid == guid) then
            return true
        else
            i = i + 1
        end
    end
    return false
end

local _city_hall2_upgrade_advice_exists = nil
function is_upgradeable_city_halls_installed()
    if _city_hall2_upgrade_advice_exists == nil then
        _city_hall2_upgrade_advice_exists = advice_exists('391d3389')
    end
    return _city_hall2_upgrade_advice_exists
end

where '391d3389' is a Lua advice ID from the Real Upgradeable City Halls plugin. The function "is_upgradeable_city_halls_installed()" can then be used in Lua code, for example in an advice trigger condition. I have little experience with Lua though, so maybe the code can be improved.

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

4 minutes ago, memo said:

Of course, this could be fixed in the DLL source code by making it use the Lua tuning constants as well.

It's been way too long ago now for me to remember the specific tests I did, but I do remember writing a detailed PM to the author requesting changes to make them compatible, but never received a reply back. (CB might be able to find that later since the messenger search isn't helping.)

Also, as I recall when answering a question elsewhere, it seems the DLL only checks the reward threshold when loading the city tile and never again. If that can also be tweaked to either use Lua or do it's own internal check more often would be good. The workaround I suggested was to acquire the right population, save, exit to region, and then reload and the reward would pop up.

[memo 1,473]

22 minutes ago, CorinaMarie said:

it seems the DLL only checks the reward threshold when loading the city tile and never again.

Actually, I've observed something different. The reward threshold is checked every month by the DLL. If you decline the advisor message, it'll pop up the next month again and again. The message also popped up during normal gameplay once the threshold was reached, without having to re-open the city. (Edit: I already was at around 54000, not 45000, when the DLL message first appeared though. Either there was some delay, or a lot of growth in a single month.)

As explained above, I think this can be solved in the MZ Lua code. It would also be good to lock the stage 1 reward once stage 2 or 3 have been built, since otherwise the DLL will ask you to upgrade it to the next stage every month – after which you could build another stage 1 city hall again, and then repeat the cycle.

[CorinaMarie 29,891]

55 minutes ago, memo said:

The reward threshold is checked every month by the DLL.

Ah. Then I was prolly doing something wrong because when I grew the pop past a threshold the reward popup would not popup. Only if entering the city and it already would qualify did the message come up. (And yes, that would repeat if declining iirc.)

 

57 minutes ago, memo said:

As explained above, I think this can be solved in the MZ Lua code.

Ok, sure if that patches everything up as you need it to be, GFI.  

[memo 1,473]

Alright, here's an updated version: ModPacc Zero - City Halls (Beta v1.2).zip

I've tweaked the Lua file as outlined above. The changes improve compatibility with the Real Upgradeable City Halls DLL:

• The population thresholds have been increased to 45000 and 95000 (as hardcoded in the DLL) if the DLL is installed.
• The MZ advice message for stage 2 or 3 will now only pop up if no city hall has been built. Otherwise, the advice message of the DLL will pop up and offer to upgrade.
• With the DLL installed, only one city hall can be built per city. If you demolish it, you can rebuild it, of course.

For players without the DLL, nothing has really changed.

I've tested the changes during gameplay up to stage 2 with DLL, and for all stages without DLL.

Staff Edit: restored attachment link