The All-in-One Guide to OXZ Packaging and Distribution

[Cholmondely]

Apple Mac issues (reference)

Well. DarkRay OXZ for example.
Unzipping (extracting) this folder will create new folder DarkRay (usual folder without any extensions).
It contains three files and one folder:

info.plist
manifest.plist
readme.txt
Textures

Go into DarkRay folder and select all these items, not DarkRay folder per se!
Right click onto these 4 items will show contextual menu with option Archive 4 items. Select this option.

Now you have new element in DarkRay folder:

Archive.zip
info.plist
manifest.plist
readme.txt
Textures

Relocate this new created Archive.zip onto Desktop and change name from Archive.zip to DarkRay.oxz

That's all. It is ready to upload.

Stranger's technique is right on the button!
Right click is also achieved by holding down the control key and clicking again - once the items you wish to zip have been highlighted (shift-click to select more than the one).

To find the real name (hidden) of the page in the back-end of the wiki where your .oxz is stored, download the .oxz from that page to your AppleMac (either from that wiki page itself, or from the http://www.oolite.org/oxps/ page if you have already begun sorting out the manifest there. When your oxz is downloaded, click it and press Command-i and you will see the info page:


The lower .alioth address is the url link needed for successful downloading.

Don't forget to change the version number in the Manage Expansion Packs manifest page when you change it in your .oxz, or civilisation will crumble to its doom!

[stranger]

Stranger's technique is right on the button!

Not mine, original Diziet Sma's guide contains description of this techique. I'm just wrote an example how to use it in OS X.

[RockDoctor]

I'm just updating the system on my laptop after the HDD failed and ...
At least one OXP appears on an "installed" system as a piece of "Equipment" ('Station Self-Destruct Codes', but I suspect it's not limited to that), but appears in the (freshly downloaded, from "oolite.space") OXP list under "Weapons".
Is this a glitch in the database, a quirk of the management system I'd not noticed previously or ... I'm pretty sure I updated both systems from 'oolite.space' before starting the rebuild process.
Actually, I know I updated both systems - one is completely virgin, while the previously-built "Ooniverse" is showing up some "blue - your OXP is an old version" lines.

So - database glitch, or is to possible to have an OXP display in one class while pending download, but a different class after installation? Which ... seems a bit odd.

[hiran]

I'm just updating the system on my laptop after the HDD failed and ...
At least one OXP appears on an "installed" system as a piece of "Equipment" ('Station Self-Destruct Codes', but I suspect it's not limited to that), but appears in the (freshly downloaded, from "oolite.space") OXP list under "Weapons".
Is this a glitch in the database, a quirk of the management system I'd not noticed previously or ... I'm pretty sure I updated both systems from 'oolite.space' before starting the rebuild process.
Actually, I know I updated both systems - one is completely virgin, while the previously-built "Ooniverse" is showing up some "blue - your OXP is an old version" lines.

So - database glitch, or is to possible to have an OXP display in one class while pending download, but a different class after installation? Which ... seems a bit odd.

A likely reason can be that the data located in the OXP's manifest.plist is not in sync with the expansion manager's manifest.
Did I mention the OoliteAddonScanner? In it's index files such discrepancies are marked up as warnings. We just never tried to do something about them.
Here you find the currently latest index files: https://github.com/HiranChaudhuri/Oolit ... x-20230603

[RockDoctor]

such discrepancies are marked up as warnings. We just never tried to do something about them.

Somewhere between the "To Do" and "Done, test" lists then. I'll looks at your Addon Scanner when I've got the game back to my (approx) stable state.

[hiran]

such discrepancies are marked up as warnings. We just never tried to do something about them.

Somewhere between the "To Do" and "Done, test" lists then. I'll looks at your Addon Scanner when I've got the game back to my (approx) stable state.

You are welcome.

I configured Github to run the scan whenever I change something on the scanner, plus at least once a month. The index files have the timestamp of generation, and so does the download package. You will not get confused comparing too many similar looking pages

BTW, do you use version control? That can help tremendously when you know it worked once before and are unsure what you changed meanwhile.
Since I encountered that problem and saw the value I barely do anything without VCS...

[RockDoctor]

BTW, do you use version control? That can help tremendously when you know it worked once before and are unsure what you changed meanwhile.

I know of version control. I spent over 20 years working for a mainly software company, trying to get them to implement some sort of version control in what they sent out to paying clients without success (applications, and the data we collected for them ; and occasionally the data we had dispatched to them, and they then lost).
I looked at the idea of implementing various schemes (Subversion ; RCS ; GitHub when it came along) for my own personal life, but I managed without it myself. And I saw there was no reason to learn one particular system because, guaranteed, work would then adopt a different one, and my next client a third one. You've probably got similar war stories.
Reporting a bug one decade, and getting it addressed the following decade was normal. Getting it actually fixed another 5 years later, also normal.
Anyway, that's dead history. They decided they made more money just selling software, without sending experts out to run it in the field and train client staff. 2/3 of the company laid off. Situation normal.
For me, it's the old familiar story - I know version control would probably be a good thing, but it's not clear which system is best, and it's not clear that the pay-off would be enough to be worth the effort. Same with OOP - nice in theory, but I have so little use for it that the second time I need it I've forgotten the last time. Ditto for 'C' when that was available.

Anyway, other things going on at the moment.

[hiran]

Seems you know and took an educated decision.
Fair enough.

[LittleBear]

Sorry, I'm a bit suck with creating an issue on github in order to add an OXZ to the Expansions Manager.

I have a link for the OXZ file on the wiki: https://wiki.alioth.net/img_auth.php/7/ ... booted.oxz

I've created a new issue, but what do I need to put in the Box and where do I put the link?

[UK_Eliter]

Hi all

Having changed to a new computer, I cannot find the webpage to where I upload my manifest.plist. Please help. Thanks. (I did find, in the guide at the start of this thread, a link to http://www.oolite.org/oxps/; but that link is broken.)

EDIT: oh, hold on. The procedure these days is to file an issue at https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite ... on-catalog.

[phkb]

Hi all

Having changed to a new computer, I cannot find the webpage to where I upload my manifest.plist. Please help. Thanks. (I did find, in the guide at the start of this thread, a link to http://www.oolite.org/oxps/; but that link is broken.)

EDIT: oh, hold on. The procedure these days is to file an issue at https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite ... on-catalog.

I started the rebuild of the catalog, so that's underway.

However, I had a look at your manifest file, and saw this line:

Code: Select all

	"required_oolite_version" = "1.821";

That's not right. the most recent official version of Oolite is 1.92.1, and the trunk version is 1.93. That line will prevent Oolite from loading your mod on *any* version of Oolite. I tested it, and sure enough, I get this message in the log

Code: Select all

08:39:44.251 [oxp.versionMismatch]: OXP ../AddOns/Oolite.oxp.UK_Eliter.InterstellarTweaks.oxz is incompatible with version 1.93 of Oolite.

So, I'm not sure what you were going for here, but I think I'm safe to say you didn't quite nail it!

[UK_Eliter]

phkb: thanks. Perhaps I incremented `required_oolite_version` rather than the version of my OXP (though subsequently I did increment the latter). Also, hold on: `required_oolite_version` specifies the minimum version of Oolite needed, right?

EDIT: I've uploaded a new version of the file - but also, possibly, a little earlier, one that involved a new and imaginative flaw. But the new one will have overwritten that last, extra-borked one.

[phkb]

Yes, required_oolite_version specifies the minimum version of Oolite needed to run the mod.