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[request]Creating items for the item management interface

Ever since I'd first seen it I was hugely impressed. I'm willing to work for it, but I dislike the idea of every GM who ever wants to use it having to work for it, which discouraged me from trying last time. After working out how to get it to work there will be the step of populating it with items... which I imagine quite dreadful as I'm rather a completionist. STEP ONE: Establishing do-ability: From one token's gm notes to many many many "character" (i.e. items) There are some Character importing scripts, which go from one token to one character sheet. - It only now occurred to me: Is it possible to go from one token's gm notes to creating multiple character sheets? If so, one should be able to come up with a format that parses item lists from the gm notes and creates one journal entry per item in the notes. That way I could write a table with all items in it (and volume and weight, and maybe other properties?), and save it in a text file and share that file such that other people could just put all that in a random token's gm-notes, run the script and boom have the bazillion items... BONUS: It should add a script-specific tag to all of those, so that a second command could delete all those (in case someone runs this in their main campaign instead of an "inventory campaign" - and swamps their normal characters, journals and such with these items and wants to fix it). What do you think?
Julix said: ...Is it possible to go from one token's gm notes to creating multiple character sheets? Yes, it's also possible to delete jounals.
1435341645
The Aaron
Pro
API Scripter
Totally doable.
That would be an incredible piece of time saving - assuming enough GMs are actually interested in using the inventory system. However, since we still don't have external images linked we can't add links to images as part of the text file to somehow be parsed too, right?
1435345800
The Aaron
Pro
API Scripter
Correct, currently.
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Edited 1435346121
I feel that is enough reason to hold off on doing the work now. :( - I actually could imagine this being enough work (making all the needed images without breaking copyrights) to last me until the change comes... but I don't know when the change comes and it's hard to trust that it will given the claim that it's not just because it's inconvenient to change but supposedly a "safety" issue. I don't get why images in chat are okay, but objects aren't. Can someone please show me where it is explained, if anywhere, or else provide an answer?
1435347750
The Aaron
Pro
API Scripter
I'm sure it is largely to do with protecting the property of Marketplace Artists. The interesting thing is that by attempting to protect it Marketplace content in this way, it actually exposes it to more danger of being pirated (as any script author that has tie-ins to the marketplace knows!). Images in chat are less useful to the game, and less of a threat. Also, they are a lot harder to police, without being completely draconian.
I figured it was something like that... quite deeply affects my emotions in an uncomfortable way... is this sadness or anger? :( The idea was that the market place was supposed to be this major resource to help GMs and players have better games - and at the same time give back to the community by paying the artists. I remember somewhere it said they don't allow free stuff because it would cut into the markets viability - and anything that's worth being shared is worth charging for. -- Yet at the same time API writers and Character Sheet makers don't get nor demand anything. As far as I know they don't even get membership, at least not from Roll20. In a set, similarly to songs in an album, I typically only like/need one of few things. I wish it was all open source and with an efficient donation system. - Sure, per user the income would go down, since not everyone will pay as much - but because there'd be so many more users the popular things would still get good money and the less popular ones coffe cash. It might have a voting system in it too, so that what is presented how and where organizes itself. Of course the tags from these items would also stick by default so you wouldn't have to retag it all after getting them... Anyhow enough venting. I think Roll20 has to realize they are popular enough that they don't have to worry about knowing exactly how much money is coming in (i.e. the strong focus on subscriptions, vs. allowing people to pay 1-3 bucks for Mentor access for a single day if they want - purchasing only a time increment, say by paypal, if they care...) -- They'd know there's enough coming alone through the already subscribed people that opening new channels for less committed users could only be better. I'm not saying they'd necessarily make more profits, though I think they would - worst case they'd make slightly less - but it would buy more flexibility for the customers, and I think strengthen the community. The suggestion forum is so stingy with votes and so chaotic that it's little fun to engage with. - To fix the voting system let there be a difference between favories and votes. You could "like" as many ideas as you want (this should also be available to the free members - thus showing what the community is actually interested in, because they don't have to be stingy) while still showing what you love the most (thus showing the developers which to prioritize perhaps). Anyhow, sorry I got a bit off topic. Whenever it seems to me that cautiousness over profits is getting in the way of ease of use or innovation it hurts my feelings and I get a bit... off topic.
Julix said: Yet at the same time API writers and Character Sheet makers don't get nor demand anything. That's pretty much the FOSS world. People want the utility of something, but once they have it, they forget about the underlying framework they're using. Something you can tangibly see however such as art assets, garner more sympathy; not to say there aren't a large number of art thieves or freebie requesters out there. Within the programming world, FOSS developers have been robbed of much, including myself, as I've seen my logic incorporated into some IP where they make slight changes and call it something else, sidestepping GPL. It's very annoying, but I enjoy the FOSS community for the culture it develops, and at the end of the day employers look for innovators, and many come from the FOSS world... A google search for "How do I code...<thing>" are usually developed at the root by some FOSS contributor somewhere, especially when related to anything above layman level. That touches on a much deeper topic though so that's off topic. [End rant] Anyway, I'm fine with the system, the only thing that i'm uncomfortable with is being asked to upload to the API repository which is MIT which would be fine if there weren't already a paywall to contribute .
The whole mentor experience is about contributing. You go to the forums and report bugs, and discuss solutions and ideas for making the product better - and you pay for the privileges of being able to do so. - Typically it's the GM doing this, and then buying or making assets, then buying or building a campaign of sorts, then working hard to actually run it. Meanwhile players say things like "no to pay to play!" which means the GM gets to pay and work, so others can play... or try and get by with the normal tools which means work and work harder to allow others to play. But I honestly don't have a solution to this either. But the smaller question: Does someone have a solution to the image as token thing? Is the problem mainly that anyone who has access to the paid for tokens could link the image in their campaign, make that part of the script and then share the script and have everyone use the art unlicenced?