Quote from: WillLem on May 09, 2021, 09:38:14 AM
I know for a fact that the WINLEMM extraction process has put a number of potential users off playing SuperLemmini. It has also recently caused issues for me as well - I can't use SL on my Mac because it won't get past the "Patching files..." stage of the process (I suspect this could be a JDK compatibility issue, since that's the version of Java I have on my Mac).

I suspect the cause of your problem there is that Java's PNG writer doesn't have bit-for-bit-identical output across all Java versions. I at least know this is the case between the Windows versions of Java 8 and recent Java releases. At least this won't matter once mandatory Windows Lemmings resource extraction becomes a thing of the past.

Quote from: WillLem on May 10, 2021, 02:28:09 PM
Other that Timed Bombers, WinLemm assets and hotkeys (which you've already commented on), what are your thoughts on some of the other points? For instance, I know you've mentioned previously that backwards framestepping would be difficult to implement, but does that mean it won't be happening?

Regarding backward framestepping, I do intend to implement it eventually. It won't happen in the next version, though.


Now for my thoughts on some of the items on the wish list:

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Display "In" (lems in hatch), "Out" (lems in level) and "Home" (lems that have reached the exit) on the panel

You mean where "IN" and "OUT" are currently displayed, albeit with different meanings? I can do that, although space may be a bit of a concern.

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Full-screen mode

100% agreed! The problem is that I don't know how to do it. I remember toying with exclusive fullscreen mode (which Java does support), but I think I was unable to use dialog boxes and the menu bar while in that mode. Perhaps I would have better luck attempting a borderless fullscreen window...

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"Hide menu bar" option (via an arrow button)

Considering the arrow keys are already assigned to other functions, I don't think that would be the way to go. (Or do you mean a button on the screen?) Still, I do agree that being able to hide the menu bar (or even getting rid of it altogether) would be a nice feature.

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Remove the "External Levels" system altogether, and simply display all available levels in the level select menu (if they do not have an associated levelpack.ini file, display them in a separate folder called "Other Levels")

For this to happen, there would have to be a location dedicated to storing loose level files. (There's no way I will have SuperLemmini scan the entire disk for levels!)

I will comment on the remaining requests later.

Quote from: WillLem on May 10, 2021, 02:28:09 PM
Also - would it be easier/better for you if these requests were made into separate [SUG] posts?

You can make separate topics if you want--I don't really care.

Below is a template levelpack.ini to get you started. To learn what everything means, see Level Pack Format.txt in the docs folder that came with SuperLemmini.


name = Title Goes Here

codeSeed = ANYTENLTRS

# music selection
music_0 = song1.mod
music_1 = song2.mod
music_2 = song3.mod
music_3 = song4.mod
music_4 = song5.mod


# ratings
level_0 = First Rating
level_1 = Second Rating


# Levels: name, music ID

# Rating 0 - First Rating

# First Rating 1 -  Level 1-1
level_0_0 = level00.ini,0
# First Rating 2 -  Level 1-2
level_0_1 = level01.ini,1
# First Rating 3 -  Level 1-3
level_0_2 = level02.ini,2
# First Rating 4 -  Level 1-4
level_0_3 = level03.ini,3
# First Rating 5 -  Level 1-5
level_0_4 = level04.ini,4


# Rating 1 - Second Rating

# Second Rating 1 -  Level 2-1
level_1_0  = level10.ini,0
# Second Rating 2 -  Level 2-2
level_1_1  = level11.ini,1
# Second Rating 3 -  Level 2-3
level_1_2  = level12.ini,2
# Second Rating 4 -  Level 2-4
level_1_3  = level13.ini,3
# Second Rating 5 -  Level 2-5
level_1_4  = level14.ini,4


You can find more examples in root.lzp, which is just an ordinary zip file. (You may first need to rename the ".lzp" part to ".zip", but if you do, copy the file first and rename the copy.)

Regarding music, you place the music files that you want to use in the "music" folder and add the file names to your levelpack.ini as shown above.

A free Dropbox account will probably work, but keep in mind that a free account is limited to 20 GB of download bandwidth and 100,000 downloads per day. (And that's for the entire account, not for each file!) Paid accounts have higher limits, depending on the plan.

WillLem sent an e-mail to Volker Oth, the author of Lemmini, asking for permission for SuperLemmini to include the Windows Lemmings assets. Volker replied, and WillLem sent me copies of his and Volker's messages.

From what I can tell, Volker forbids the inclusion of Windows Lemmings resources only to (possibly) stay out of legal trouble, and doesn't intend to actually enforce that policy. Also, he didn't seem to care what I do with SuperLemmini, at least as far as Lemmings assets are concerned.

So, I now announce that, starting with the next version of SuperLemmini, extraction from the Windows version of Lemmings will no longer be required; instead, all the required assets will be included, ready to use. This will address any problems related to the extraction process, and should make SuperLemmini a bit more accessible (since it won't require a version of a game that's probably long out of print).

To be honest, I would rather just bring back the 5-second timed bombers and do away with untimed bombers. Having the level or level pack determine which type to use may cause player frustration due to not knowing in advance which one the level uses. Then again, SuperLemmini already allows levels to modify certain game mechanics (such as fall distance and steel), so maybe an option like this would be OK to implement...

I'm not a fan of having multiple types bomber skills available at once. That would require having more skills on the toolbar and new hotkeys for the additional types. It would also require new icons. All this just so the player can choose how long the bomb timer should last. Yeah, doesn't sound good to me.

Enabling Simple Autosteel without also enabling Autosteel won't enable any kind of autosteel, not in NeoLemmix 1.43 or SuperLemmini.

To put it another way, if you want any kind of autosteel at all, you must enable Autosteel. Then, if you want simple autosteel, you must also enable Simple Autosteel and leave Autosteel enabled. Enabling Simple Autosteel without also enabling Autosteel is the same as enabling neither option.

In case that's not clear enough, here is a list of all four combinations of those options and what they do in NeoLemminx 1.43 (and what they should do in SuperLemmini):

• Autosteel off, Simple Autosteel off: No autosteel
• Autosteel off, Simple Autosteel on: No autosteel
• Autosteel on, Simple Autosteel off: Advanced ("NeoLemmix") autosteel - only visible portions of steel pieces are indestructible
• Autosteel on, Simple Autosteel on: Simple autosteel - Steel pieces, even obscured portions, are indestructible unless erased

With my bug fix in place, autosteel should behave exactly as described in that list. (And if it doesn't, then that's a bug that I have to fix.) Unfortunately, this does mean that any level made with only the Autosteel option enabled that expects "simple" autosteel may not play properly anymore.

Quote from: WillLem on May 09, 2021, 10:44:56 AM
Incidentally... the (Super)Lemmini versions of the WinLemm resources include the Xmas graphics as well as the "horned" Fire Exit.

Where did these come from, out of interest? Were they manually reproduced or have they been extracted from somewhere else?

The graphics that were originally specific to the Xmas style came from other versions of Lemmings. The terrain pieces came from the DOS version, while the objects came from the Macintosh versions. The horned Fire exit was made by the Lemmini author and is based on the Windows Lemmings graphic.

Quote from: WillLem on January 14, 2021, 01:22:46 AM
2) Confusingly, "Autosteel" and "Simple Autosteel" options are interpreted differently by SuperLemmini than by NeoLemmix, thus:

[SuperLemmini]{Autosteel} = The steel area fits the steel block exactly, and is indestructible
[NeoLemmix]{Autosteel} = The steel area fits only the visible part of the steel block, and is indestructible

[SuperLemmini]{Simple Autosteel} = No function (the steel is completely destructible)
[NeoLemmix]{Simple Autosteel} = The steel area fits the steel block exactly, and is indestructible

The "normal" autosteel behaving like simple autosteel is a bug. I fixed it just now for the next release.

Simple autosteel works fine for me. Are you enabling both "Autosteel" and "Simple Autosteel"? In both NeoLemmix 1.43 and SuperLemmini, you need to do that for simple autosteel to work.


EDIT: Regarding the behavior mentioned in the original post, it seems to simply be a consequence of mimicking Amiga behavior. If I play the original version of that level in the Amiga version, start building exactly where the lemming in the video starts (so that the right edge of the step is directly above the center of the bolt), and have the lemming bash after laying 15 bricks, it refuses to bash due to the steel. If I do the same thing except start building one pixel earlier, then the lemming starts bashing and then stops and turns around due to steel (like in the video). I also tested this in SuperLemmini (from both positions) and the same things happened. If you did move the right edge of that steel area by two high-res pixels (to match the steel blocks), then the behavior shown in that video is expected.

SuperLemmini actually does support NeoLemmix-style autosteel. To quote the level format documentation:

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autosteelMode: (integer) (ignored if mainLevel is set) Sets the autosteel mode. Valid values and their effects are as follows:
--0: Disables autosteel. This is the default value.
--1: Terrain pieces listed in the current style's steelTiles parameter act as steel unless erased.
--2: Same as 1, except that parts of steel pieces that are obscured by non-steel pieces do not act as steel.

Mode 2 is the NeoLemmix-style autosteel mode.

The file name for the replay icon is icon_restart (along with the appropriate extension). It should be placed in the gfx\icons folder.

Here are all the current and previous releases of SuperLemmini:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/52rwl5ztnawqpo1/AAAHbhfy6T0sKI7QXB7EZUqDa?dl=0

And I do intend to add bomber timers back in, either outright or as part of a difficulty mode.

Quote from: WillLem on January 27, 2021, 09:43:31 AM
Remove the need to extract assets from WINLEMM; Microsoft are now giving Lemmings away free, and other clones have been freely sharing the original assets for a while now with no consequences. This will make SuperLemmini a more attractive option for people, and will remove any potential initial hiccups getting the platform working

Are you referring to the one on the Microsoft Store that has a red logo and is distributed by "pcio.dk"? That's clearly just another fan game, not an official release from Microsoft (which wouldn't happen anyway since Lemmings is owned by Sony).

In any case, if you want SuperLemmini to no longer require the Windows version of Lemmings, you need to contact the original author of Lemmini, Volker Oth. His e-mail address (according to lemmini.de) is VolkerOth [AT] GMX [DOT] de. (And if we happen to live in that one universe where Volker does give the OK (which I highly doubt), I need to get it from him first-hand, whether from him directly or from his website.)

As of now, mods indeed can only be specified by level packs, not individual levels. I can look into adding this later; no promises, though.

Just so you know, redistribution of Windows Lemmings resources extracted by Lemmini (and, by extension, SuperLemmini) is prohibited, according to the Legal Stuff section found at the Lemmini website:

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Lemmini is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Use it at your own risk.

The resources used are under copyright of Psygnosis/Sony. Therefore only legal owners of "Lemmings for Windows" are allowed to play Lemmini.
No code of the original game is used, also no illegal form of reverse engineering of an original game was performed to create Lemmini.

Lemmini itself (the game engine) is freeware in the sense of "free for all to use". Download it, give it to your friends or whatever.
If you intend to put it as download on your site, please make a reference to the original home page. Same is true for distribution on magazine CDs/DVDs.
Anyway, to respect the rights of the original copyright holders, I explicitly forbid to distribute Lemmini with the "Lemmings for Windows" resources in any form. If you intend to do so, please contact the copyright holders.
Please note that also the distribution of the resources extracted by Lemmini is not allowed; neither with or without the Lemmini engine. If you need help to extract the resources from the WinLemm data for your own Lemmings port, just contact me or have a look at the source code.

As of version 0.82, Lemmini is "free software", as all parts of the source are released under licenses approved by the Free Software Foundation. See chapter Source Code for details.
Lemmini uses code by Martin Cameron and Jef Poskanzer. See above  for references.

Yes, this includes repackaged resources, like some of your NeoLemmix Editor packs (specifically, 1 and 6). So I recommend removing or editing them to not include any Lemmini or SuperLemmini files.

Do you still have this conversion with the non-working mod? If you do, could you send it to me so I can determine the problem?

You say that the lemming ignore most of the terrain in the Sega styles. Does this happen only when trying to load the style as part of a mod, or does it also happen if the style is loaded from the main styles folder? In either case, I'm guessing the problem is somehow caused by the styles not having separate terrain masks, but that shouldn't cause any problems if the style names are different from those of the ones included with SuperLemmini.

Just so you guys know, I am alive and well, and I have not officially given up on SuperLemmini! Admittedly, though, I have done little with the project since I last wrote here.

The main thing I want to implement before releasing the next version is the oft-requested controls customization. I already implemented a lookup system that accepts key codes and returns the action assigned to that key code. The main thing that's left is to implement a dialog window that allows the user to change the key bindings.

I haven't read any recent posts yet; I intend to do that over the next few days and address them.