Player credit balance changes when screen changes in Ship Outfitting

[dybal]

I have been outfitting my escorts and noticed that my credit balance decreased more than the total of equipments purchased.

Today I loaded a test savefile and started shopping, keeping track of the credit balance and purchase price, and the credit balance before/after each purchase were correct, but sometimes (I didn't notice a pattern) the credit balance changed when the screen changed in Ship Outfitting (both by clicking in <More> and by purchasing the last item in the page).

I tried this in two different stations, one which offered discounted prices and one that offered full price, and it occurred in both, though not at the same point in the sequence of equipment purchased - but the equipment list for sale wasn't the same either, since they had different TLs.

I found a savefile in a main station of TL13 and tried it without OXPs and couldn't reproduce it.

Does the screen changes inside Ship Outfitting as the player browse the available equipments trigger any events? I know the condition scripts for the equipments are called, but does the core game calls anything else?

I want to locate the places in the core game to put a trace showing script name and credit balance before/after the call to locate the culprit, a binary search of OXPs would take too long...

[another_commander]

Can't look at the code in detail right now, but typically the GUI screens setup is done in PlayerEntity.m, in the setGUITo<something>Screen family of methods. Handling of options and keypresses is normally done in PlayerEntityControls.m with the pollGuiScreenControls method.

[dybal]

Thanks, a_c, I will start there tonight

[Cholmondely]

My dear chaps, that is absolutely nothing! No-o-o-othing!!

I have now thrice been charged for various gizmos which somehow never turned up.

After being marmalised by Marmaduke the Myrmidon in our last duel at my hunting lodge, Bertie the Belgian bamboozled me into getting one of those Target Autolock thingummies - you know, that contraption that we supposedly nabbed from those Thargo-thingies - the ones who glow in the dark and bounce when you drop them. Anyway, he told me that I'd have to pootle off to Onrira, so off I went. It's a jolly lo-o-ong way down there, you know? Or maybe you don't.

Anyway, after a number of rather tedious run-ins with those space-borne undesireables who seem to be multiplying like lice nowadays, I eventually heaved-to in front of the docks at Onrira. Horrible Place. They put the boiling water in the tea cup and then jolly well pass you a tea-bag. My butler, Benedict, was quite scandalised. Have you ever heard of such barbaric behaviour? Pater did warn me that the inclement climes to the south were verging on the philistine. But, really? Can you even begin to credit such a thing?

Do you know, those dastards in the shipyards at Onrira diddled me when I tried to buy what they insisted on calling an 'Automatic Target Acquisition Package' - charging me fully two hundred credits AND then doing a runner instead of coming up with the goods. Utter spivs. This is exactly the sort of thing which happens when you let those beastly bourgeois think that they can run things themselves.

And, I'll have you know, this perfidious purloinment has happened under the aegis of both AppleMac and Wyndoze.

Following the advice of my sainted Great-Aunt Gertrude, I protested - most strenuously - to the Stationmaster. Do you know, the blighter just ignored me? He was not even slightly interested in learning how one makes a civilised cup of char. I threatened him with the most crepuscular calumniations and they just dribbled off him - like water off a duck's back. Thinking about it, he was a duck. The blighter. No wonder he doesn't appreciate that the milk really must be put in first.

And, what's more, the last time I pulled into that ugly solar laboratory and production unit at Relaes, the reds offered me a jolly good deal on some military-style 'iron-hide' which I'd rather wanted to fend off the jousting of Julian the Jurisprudential of Joyeaux. Have you noticed just how those buildings of theirs are quite incredibly ugly? And soul-less? Just like they are. Our family chaplain had told us over High Tea that they followed the thinking of a tiresome teutonic type over a thousand years ago called "Mucks". Or was it "Murcks". Imagine! But I digress... ...and guess what! Those lugubrious lefties pulled exactly the same dastardly trick as the miserable middle-classes of Onrira.

It all goes to show, one really must keep the lower orders in their place. If they don't tug their forelocks when one heaves into scene and give one one's due, then one should just maintain the stiffness of the upper lip and make one's way elsewhere to where quality is recognised as it deserves.

Come the counter-revolution, we'll hang them all upside-down from the docking gates at Digebiti before drawing and quartering the blighters. That's the very least those scoundrels deserve.

I beg to remain, yours etc., C

Edited to obliterate various grammatical infelicities

[dybal]

Found what was happening in my test case: the day changed during equipment installation, so there were ShipStorage fees due...

[Cholmondely]

All jolly well for you!

So they swindled you on the pretext that they were charging you for storage for an item which you had bought and that they were too indolent to fit promptly. Is this actionable? Can you sue them for fraud or embezzlement? We've got quite a good lawyer back on the family estates whom I could recommend if you don't have anyone to hand. Phineas could certainly cope with the so-called intricacies of the backwards legal system of .... where did you say that this happened? And what was the name of the fellow who swindled you? Are you quite sure that you couldn't get one or two of your chaps to show him the error of his ways?



The slimy spivs had the effrontery to send me this in an e-mail:

From: Ship Outfitters
Sent: ~~/~~/~~
Subject: Removing Equipment

Commander Cholmondeley,

thanks for shipping at the Torus Station - Tradecenter Ship Outfitters of Onrira. This is to confirm that the following items were removed, as per your request:

-Automatic Target Acquisition

You were charged 200.0₢

Thank you for your patronage.

Etnoinonin Nointige
Sales Assistant

________________________________________________________

You will notice that they utterly failed to utilise any of the salutations appropriate for an honourable scion of the Gracious Dynasty of the Dukes of the Dark Desert of Digebiti. And they palmed the honour of communicating with me onto a mere sales assistant. Imagine! And, this nefarious Nointige did not even display the decency to put a full-stop after his rank - or even underline it.

I'd paid a full two hundred credits for the contraption, He took my money, Oh yes, he took my money - and then claimed that he spent it on removing it. They never even touched my bally ship! (My man, Benedict, did point out that with the grimy state of their manual appendages, that maybe it was just as well). He even dared to thank me. Twice. And the first time using the ghastly term 'thanks' - as though he were addressing one of his fellow felonious feeble-wits. Why can these chaps not use proper diction when speaking to their superiors?

Phineas is looking into it for me. He feels strongly that justice needs to be done and that I should be able to sue for breach of contract, malfeasance of the third degree and dynastic diddlement. He has yet to explain what the last is, but I suppose that it must be some dreary point of corporate contract law. They do go on, these lawyers.

But, here now! We really need to do something about this lack of respect amongst the lower orders. Do you think horsewhipping would suffice? Or should we demand a public impalement instead? There must be enough spars and what-have-you in the shipyards.

No, dear chap, there is no way that I will lower myself to challenging a lowly sales assistant to a duel. But surely there must be other options open to Men of Quality. Do you have any ideas?

[dybal]

All jolly well for you!

So they swindled you on the pretext that they were charging you for storage for an item which you had bought and that they were too indolent to fit promptly. Is this actionable? Can you sue them for fraud or embezzlement? We've got quite a good lawyer back on the family estates whom I could recommend if you don't have anyone to hand. Phineas could certainly cope with the so-called intricacies of the backwards legal system of .... where did you say that this happened? And what was the name of the fellow who swindled you? Are you quite sure that you couldn't get one or two of your chaps to show him the error of his ways?

You misunderstood... EquipmentStorage is an OXP that creates a storage facility on main stations where you can store equipment or cargo and charges a daily fee per item stored. It allows you to transfer the stored items to another system too. I use it to transfer equipment between ships, and I keep a few samples of high TL equipment stored there just in case something is damaged/lost when I'm in a low TL system.

The slimy spivs had the effrontery to send me this in an e-mail:

From: Ship Outfitters
Sent: ~~/~~/~~
Subject: Removing Equipment

Commander Cholmondeley,

thanks for shipping at the Torus Station - Tradecenter Ship Outfitters of Onrira. This is to confirm that the following items were removed, as per your request:

-Automatic Target Acquisition

You were charged 200.0Cr.

Thank you for your patronage.

Etnoinonin Nointige
Sales Assistant

________________________________________________________
<snip>

TAP OXP (the one responsible for Target Autolock Acquisition) code sets a mission variable and removes the EQ_TARGET_AUTOLOCK as soon as it's bought, so you don't see it on STATUS Screen (F5) or the extra equipment dictionary if you look at the savefile directly, but there should be a mission_targetAutolock key in the savefile with value TRUE.

The e-mail is sent by another OXP, EmailSystem, that probably didn't know about that particularity of TARGET_AUTOLOCK and reacted to EQ_TARGET_AUTOLOCK removal.

Were there any other equipment items you bought and are missing?

[phkb]

Yep, didn’t know about TAP (well, I’d seen it, but I haven’t used it), so the Email System wasn’t prepped for it. Fix on the way.

[Cholmondely]

Were there any other equipment items you bought and are missing?

Benedict reminds me that there was the matter of a Military Upgrade to something called Rhinoceros Hide.... What was that, Benedict? Iron? What does Iron have to do with Rhinoceros Hide? I'm not sure that I understand! Is it one of these corrupt corporate contraptions?.

Ah, I think that it may be coming back to me. A nightmare journey to Ensoreus and a recalcitrant rhinoceros? Benedict! Will you please stop interrupting! I'm trying to hold a conversation with this good gentleman.....

[Milo]

IronHide military grade armour still is listed as just IronHide Armour on the F5-F5 screen (ship’s manifest). In the newer versions (now available through the in-game manager), the F5 screen (commander profile, missions list etc.) includes a line detailing the remaining IronHide armour percentage and type.

[dybal]

Were there any other equipment items you bought and are missing?

Benedict reminds me that there was the matter of a Military Upgrade to something called Rhinoceros Hide.... What was that, Benedict? Iron? What does Iron have to do with Rhinoceros Hide? I'm not sure that I understand! Is it one of these corrupt corporate contraptions?.

Ah, I think that it may be coming back to me. A nightmare journey to Ensoreus and a recalcitrant rhinoceros? Benedict! Will you please stop interrupting! I'm trying to hold a conversation with this good gentleman.....

As milo said, IronHide Military upgrade is one of those equipments that exist only for the Ship Outfitting, so you can buy them: once you buy, the OXP responsible sets some configuration and removes the bought equipment. Shield Cycler and Shield Cycler Manual Configurator upgrades follow the same pattern, with text in Manifest Screen (F5F5) describing its status.