[interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
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- PapaSmurfReloaded
- Posts: 820
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- Location: Argentina
[interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
It would good if players could have some sort of visual notification in the main screen telling them add-on they have installed has an update available. Like a mouseover or something.
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Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
Wesnoth would have to automatically connect to the (last used or so) addon server which people might not like though this could be controlled by a preference setting. Sounds like a good idea to me.
"If gameplay requires it, they can be made to live on Venus." -- scott
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
If we do this, we might as well show an indicator on the new campaign / new MP game screens that lets you know if a campaign / map / mod that you're about to start a game with have an update you haven't downloaded yet.
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
The problem I see with this is that it appears to be really pushing people to always update their add-ons, even though that may cause problems in some cases. If a player is in the middle of an add-on campaign, updating the add-on may cause problems, because there is no guarantee the new version is compatible with the old version.PapaSmurfReloaded wrote: ↑July 6th, 2019, 1:36 pm It would good if players could have some sort of visual notification in the main screen telling them add-on they have installed has an update available.
That sounds like a better idea (although it would probably be more complicated to implement).
- PapaSmurfReloaded
- Posts: 820
- Joined: November 17th, 2007, 1:10 pm
- Location: Argentina
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
Indeed, the idea is just letting people know there is an update they will probably be interested in, and in a non-invasive way.
Not pushing an automatic update onto them.
I see what you mean, however I do not agree. Especially if it is done as a preference setting as Soliton suggested.gnombat wrote: ↑July 7th, 2019, 2:48 pm The problem I see with this is that it appears to be really pushing people to always update their add-ons, even though that may cause problems in some cases. If a player is in the middle of an add-on campaign, updating the add-on may cause problems, because there is no guarantee the new version is compatible with the old version.
Being notified about an available update does not actually create a new problem, even if there wasn't a notification of some sort about available updates, updating an add-on like you described it would cause compatibility issues. Also, the opposite case is possible too, that the old version of an add-on has some sort of fatal flaw that is addressed in the newest version. I believe the pros outweigh the cons.
On the other hand, it is also possible to address the compatibility issue, allowing the add-on author to write some sort of note with a short text to be displayed when you select to download an add-on. For example, to notify compatibility issues between the newer and the oldest version, and letting the user choose whether to go on with the update or not.
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
We should probably point out somewhere (in the documentation about how to create addons) that addon authors need to consider forward and backward compatibility when they upload new versions of addons.
We could even consider having addon version checks in the "Load Game" flow: "This savegame uses addon Foo 1.2.3 but Foo 2.0.0 is installed, continue? y/n"
We could even consider having addon version checks in the "Load Game" flow: "This savegame uses addon Foo 1.2.3 but Foo 2.0.0 is installed, continue? y/n"
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
But at that point, there's not much the player can actually do about the problem. The add-on server doesn't provide a way to access old add-on versions, so once you've updated an add-on from version 1.2.3 to 2.0.0, you can't get 1.2.3 back again (unless you've manually made a backup of your user data directory).
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
I think a note that an update might non-obviously break existing saves (on loading an old save and/or on update) is the most we can reasonably do. Figuring out what changes break saves is very much non-trivial. I wouldn’t expect every addon author to be able to recognize all the ways that can happen. Infact I don’t necessarily expect mainline content authors to get it right every time and put in compatibility code when possible.
A good way for addon authors to provide update notes if they want to would still be nice though.
A good way for addon authors to provide update notes if they want to would still be nice though.
"If gameplay requires it, they can be made to live on Venus." -- scott
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
Just adding my 2c, because I'm of the faction who wouldn't like if the game automatically connects in the background, and does so every time it's started.
I already have to reinstall addons with a major release anyway, and checking in once a week -heck, once a month- looks to be plenty often in my case.
That change would also mean each addon would have to remember, on install, from which addon-server it was installed, so that it can check back with the correct server for updates.
I would vote for it it to be an opt-in (disabled by default) feature, if people need this.
I also like that clicking on "Addons" brings up a connect dialog as confirmation (it's non-obvious that clicking "Addons" is an online action, at first).
It might be an improvement, if I connected to an addon-server, that it would then list any updates to installed addons on top of the list. (Though that selection is only one drop-down-click away currently.)
Also, it could be nice to have, say, the 5 last (breaking) versions of addons kept on the server, to be able to revert after an upgrade. This seems not easily possible with non-packaged addons, unless I'm missing something?
Update Notes/Changelog: that seems like a nice improvement.
I already have to reinstall addons with a major release anyway, and checking in once a week -heck, once a month- looks to be plenty often in my case.
That change would also mean each addon would have to remember, on install, from which addon-server it was installed, so that it can check back with the correct server for updates.
I would vote for it it to be an opt-in (disabled by default) feature, if people need this.
I also like that clicking on "Addons" brings up a connect dialog as confirmation (it's non-obvious that clicking "Addons" is an online action, at first).
It might be an improvement, if I connected to an addon-server, that it would then list any updates to installed addons on top of the list. (Though that selection is only one drop-down-click away currently.)
Also, it could be nice to have, say, the 5 last (breaking) versions of addons kept on the server, to be able to revert after an upgrade. This seems not easily possible with non-packaged addons, unless I'm missing something?
Update Notes/Changelog: that seems like a nice improvement.
Re: [interface] Notifying players when there are add-on updates available.
Now that you mention it, I wonder if wesnoth should backup 1.2.3 before installing 2.0.0 on top of it, so there's a way to downgrade...gnombat wrote: ↑July 12th, 2019, 1:14 pm But at that point, there's not much the player can actually do about the problem. The add-on server doesn't provide a way to access old add-on versions, so once you've updated an add-on from version 1.2.3 to 2.0.0, you can't get 1.2.3 back again (unless you've manually made a backup of your user data directory).