Hi All,

So, it's been a couple days since I released the Animated Prompts MPL. I was just wondering if anyone had a chance to take a look at it yet.

There's a total of 50 prompts included. Some are ones that g00r00 had in the original g-pause, some are remakes of some older prompts that I found, and others are originals. I really had fun putting those together, and will probably make some more prompts to add to the list. :)

I've been spending a few days trying to update the MTAFile program. So far, I've been able to optimize a *LOT* of the code. The Linux executable file was at 1.9MB, and now it's down to 1.4MB. The total number of lines of code has dropped by about 500. The speed has also increased as well. In my testing environment, I'm able to process 500 tic files in about 15-16 seconds. It had been about 2 minutes with all the sorting... Now, in 2 minutes I can process 1000 tic files. ;)

I'm hoping that there will be a release of the updated MTAFile soon. I want to let it run on the production system to find any 'undocumented features'. :)

There will be Linux (32 and 64 bit) and Windows 32 bit available when it's released.


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 13 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

So, it's been a couple days since I released the Animated Prompts MPL. I wasjust wondering if anyone had a chance to take a look at it yet.

Thanks! Yes, installed it and it runs fine.

Except (U)ser Listing from the Main Menu -- which displays "Users: xx" on the last line -- seems to cause the prompts to shift lines. Perhaps the cursor needs to be positioned at the beginning of the line for all prompts for them to work correctly under all circumstances?

Other than that -- very nice mod! Thanks a lot! :)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

On 14 Nov 2020, 07:25a, Zip said the following...

Except (U)ser Listing from the Main Menu -- which displays "Users: xx"
on thelast line -- seems to cause the prompts to shift lines. Perhaps
the cursorneeds to be positioned at the beginning of the line for all prompts for them towork correctly under all circumstances?

It's actually getting the cursor position from Mystic. So, wherever the cursor was when it calls the MPL, is where it starts displaying the prompt.

Let me do some playing around with it and see what I can do to shift the position to X1.

Other than that -- very nice mod! Thanks a lot! :)

Thank you for trying it out! I've been enjoying making these, in hopes that others might enjoy them as well. :)


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 13 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

It's actually getting the cursor position from Mystic. So, wherever the cursorwas when it calls the MPL, is where it starts displaying the
prompt.

Ah, yes, that would explain it...

Let me do some playing around with it and see what I can do to shift the position to X1.

Thanks a lot! =)

(I tried |[X00!rcspause or something similar but it appears that a Mystic theme prompt won't launch an MPL script unless !scriptname is the only prompt "text"...)

Thank you for trying it out! I've been enjoying making these, in hopes thatothers might enjoy them as well. :)

It certainly adds a nice touch to the BBS, just like back in the days...

Is there some place to download even more prompts?
(I selected a few of the bundled ones that I thought looked best.)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

On 14 Nov 2020, 07:57a, Zip said the following...

(I tried |[X00!rcspause or something similar but it appears that a
Mystic themeprompt won't launch an MPL script unless !scriptname is the only prompt"text"...)

What I'm testing right now, is having both the X and Y axis set by the Sysop in the code. I've got it set for 1,24 right now, and it seems to be doing fine. Let me test it for a day or so, and if there aren't any problems with it, I'll release the update.

I wanted to keep it a variable, as I know there are some systems setting up systems with 16:9 (132x37) systems. They would be able to set them on whichever line they would need it on.

It certainly adds a nice touch to the BBS, just like back in the days...

I thought so! :)

Is there some place to download even more prompts?
(I selected a few of the bundled ones that I thought looked best.)

I'm still making some. :) I don't know if anyone else has tried making them yet or not. I'll include any new ones with the updated release.

If you'd like to try to make some, it's actually kinda fun! I would suggest using a good ANSI editor, such as Moebius. It allows you to save the file without the sauce information. The only thing, once you save the ANSI file, you have to open it in a text editor and remove the escape sequence before the 'speed' on the first line.


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 14 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

What I'm testing right now, is having both the X and Y axis set by the Sysop inthe code. I've got it set for 1,24 right now, and it seems to be doing fine.Let me test it for a day or so, and if there aren't any problems with it, I'llrelease the update.

Thanks! Sounds great! :)

And thanks for the custom prompt creation tips!

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

Hello Black Panther!

On 14 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

What I'm testing right now, is having both the X and Y axis set by th Sysop inthe code. I've got it set for 1,24 right now, and it seems to doing fine.Let me test it for a day or so, and if there aren't any problems with it, I'llrelease the update.

I just installed rcspause 3.2 -- thanks!

However I noticed that on the user listing, the prompt overwrites the last
line (showing the number of users).
Perhaps it could always output a new line, then position itself X-wise using X_AXIS (e.g. 1 to start from the left), and optionally (if set to != 0) position itself Y-wise using Y_AXIS (e.g. 24 to force the prompt at the bottom of an 80x24 screen)?

Not sure if this is something along the lines with what the default prompts do...

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

On 16 Nov 2020, 02:10p, Zip said the following...

However I noticed that on the user listing, the prompt overwrites the lastline (showing the number of users).

I had to set up the default user listing again to see how it acted with the prompts. I can now see what your talking about.

Perhaps it could always output a new line, then position itself X-wise usingX_AXIS (e.g. 1 to start from the left), and optionally (if set to
!= 0)position itself Y-wise using Y_AXIS (e.g. 24 to force the prompt at the bottomof an 80x24 screen)?

I'm working with something similar to this. The first way I did it, wasn't getting the correct information from Mystic, so I'm on try number two. I'll get this working correctly. ;)


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 16 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

I'm working with something similar to this. The first way I did it, wasn'tgetting the correct information from Mystic, so I'm on try number two. I'll getthis working correctly. ;)

Thanks! Keeping my fingers crossed! It would be super nice! :)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

On 17 Nov 2020, 07:28a, Zip said the following...

I'm working with something similar to this. The first way I did it, wasn'tgetting the correct information from Mystic, so I'm on try numb two. I'll getthis working correctly. ;)

Thanks! Keeping my fingers crossed! It would be super nice! :)

I just uploaded a test version to your BBS. Let me know how that works for you. If it does, I'll release the update to everyone.

Thanks, both for testing it out, and for the report. It helps make these mods work for more people. I appreciate it. :)


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 16 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

I just uploaded a test version to your BBS. Let me know how that works
for you.If it does, I'll release the update to everyone.

Thanks a lot!

Seems to be working fine -- the number of users doesn't get cut off any
more.

However it would still be nice to be able to skip specifying Y_AXIS (at least), so that it doesn't force the prompt to appear at the bottom of the screen but to let it appearon the line after where the last output ended. E.g. for the Last 10 Callers screen which won't fill up any screen. :)

Thanks, both for testing it out, and for the report. It helps make these modswork for more people. I appreciate it. :)

You're very welcome! Thanks for the mod! :)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

On 17 Nov 2020, 05:12p, Zip said the following...

Seems to be working fine -- the number of users doesn't get cut off any more.

That's what I wanted to hear. :)

However it would still be nice to be able to skip specifying Y_AXIS (at least),so that it doesn't force the prompt to appear at the bottom of
the screen butto let it appearon the line after where the last output ended. E.g. for theLast 10 Callers screen which won't fill up any
screen. :)

I already have a plan for the X,Y Axis consts. I really want to keep them in there, but I also want it to default to where Mystic places the pause prompt if they are not set.

Keep an eye out for a new release. :)


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

I already have a plan for the X,Y Axis consts. I really want to keep
them inthere, but I also want it to default to where Mystic places the pause prompt ifthey are not set.

Keep an eye out for a new release. :)

Great job, BP. Its awesome all the work you're doing on the things..



|07p|15AULIE|1142|07o
|08.........

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/23 (Raspberry Pi/32)
* Origin: 2o fOr beeRS bbs>>>20ForBeers.com:1337 (21:2/150)

On 17 Nov 2020, 07:24p, paulie420 said the following...

Keep an eye out for a new release. :)

Great job, BP. Its awesome all the work you're doing on the things..

Well, I don't watch TV, so I just crank the music, and code on the computer. It keeps the mind active. (the coding, I'm not sure the music doesn't much for keeping the mind active...)

Making Monsters - Five Finger Death Punch


---

Black Panther(RCS)
aka Dan Richter
Castle Rock BBS
telnet://bbs.castlerockbbs.com
http://www.castlerockbbs.com
http://github.com/DRPanther
The sparrows are flying again...

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/06 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Castle Rock BBS - bbs.castlerockbbs.com (21:1/186)

Hello Black Panther!

On 17 Nov 2020, Black Panther said the following...

I already have a plan for the X,Y Axis consts. I really want to keep
them in there, but I also want it to default to where Mystic places the pause prompt if
they are not set.
Keep an eye out for a new release. :)

Thanks! Will do! =)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

Hello Black Panther!

I already have a plan for the X,Y Axis consts. I really want to keep them in there, but I also want it to default to where Mystic places t pause prompt if
they are not set.
Keep an eye out for a new release. :)

I just uploaded a suggested "3.3a" version to your BBS, please feel free to check it out in action on my BBS if you wish. =)

It checks if the cursor is not at the leftmost position -- if it is not, it assumes that there is something on that line which must not be overwritten, so outputs a pipeCR.

In positioning (Set_POS) mode it also allows X and Y to be set to 0 to skip that particular offset. It uses pipe[X and pipe[Y display codes to implement gotox(...) and gotoy(...). Probably the gotoxy(...) call could be replaced altogether with these separate X and Y positioning calls if one would wish... =)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

Hello again, Black Panther!

On 21 Nov 2020, Zip said the following...

I just uploaded a suggested "3.3a" version to your BBS, please feel free

I just uploaded a "3.3b" (rcspause_33b.mps) where the CR output is moved above the graphics detection, so that it works for ASCII, too. :-D

I really like the way Mystic's display codes make output/display files ANSI-/ASCII-agnostic... Gives you ASCII support for free. =)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

Hello again, Black Panther!

On 21 Nov 2020, Zip said the following...

I just uploaded a "3.3b" (rcspause_33b.mps) where the CR output is moved

And also a "3.3c" for you to check out. =)

As the display codes for X/Y positioning need 2-position codes according to the docs. And some simplifying of the positioning process/saving/restoring.

Hoping you'll like some of it and that it can be useful input for future releases!

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/10/31 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)

Hello again, Black Panther!

It could also be worth noting -- if you'd like to retain the "original" Mystic prompt #22 for ASCII users, containing CP437 symbols -- that the script (rcspause.mps) might need to be converted to ISO-8859-1 before copying/pasting stuff from data/prompts.dat to it. Apparently MPL/Python checks the encoding of the file when determining how to interprets its contents...

Thanks again for the nice script! =)

Best regards
Zip

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 2020/11/23 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Star Collision BBS, Uppsala, Sweden (21:1/202)