Making big PDF maps

[robject]

Originally posted by Elliot:
Can this sector thing be built without the need for Computer 1 skill level? Can a nice GUI be put on the front so that I can have fun with it? Please?

Elliot,

Yes, a nice GUI could be tacked onto it; however I'm not spectacular with GUIs. What I could do is wrap this in CGI and create an HTML interface to it. You'd cut-and-paste in the sector data (or select from a list of data on hand) and tell it how you want it carved out, and it'll return the output list. Would that work for everyone?

 

[Flynn]

Nice job, robject. The new script variation works perfectly.

Thanks,
Flynn

 

[Elliot]

Robject
When I say GUI I dont mean Apple Macintosh pretty, I mean something that a person like me who is 'pooter dim can use to build a sector map.

If it aint pretty but is usable it would be an absolute blessing to the world.

If you can do it, it would be cool.

 

[robject]

Hmm, sounds like a mandate from the masses (and not some farcical aquatic ceremony!).

 

[Elliot]

please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please please pretty please

 

[BeRKA]

Robject, Your script is very cool.

A webinterface would be nice.

If I get Your permission, (and some time to implement it) may I use this with my random subsector generator?

Cheers
/BeRKA

 

[robject]

Originally posted by BeRKA:
Robject, Your script is very cool.

A webinterface would be nice.

If I get Your permission, (and some time to implement it) may I use this with my random subsector generator?

Cheers
/BeRKA

Hi BeRKA, I remember you from the TML. Long time no see. Of course you may use it!

 

[robject]

Originally posted by Elliot:
please please please ...

Elliot et al,

I'm talking with Ron Brown (of Downport.com) about putting the script up on downport, where it belongs. Perhaps we can even link it to the PDF-generation facility for one-stop shopping.

 

[Elliot]

wo ho!! oh yeah!!!

 

[robject]

In the meantime, I have a very, very pathetic little web-based front-end to the program at:

http://24.1.3.180/tas/webps.cgi

It lets you pick the sector to convert, and spills the output to the browser. It also lets you specify sub-extents properly.

Files that have already been converted to PS format are also listed and freely available.

I've also cleaned up the sector names a bit, so that the output will look prettier; I also found the Spinward Marches sector with X-Boat routes included, to make the maps even more interesting.

Caveat Surfer. The address above is not available Monday, 19 April, because I turned the computer off. Check it again in a few hours when I get home from work.

 

[Flynn]

robject,

Were there any changes to the gridps.pl or Alexandria.tas files as you have gone through this most recent exercise? The positioning of the Sector name seems better placed in a file I retrieved from your webpage than from one I generated on my own box, and I didn't know if it was caused by code changes or differences in Perl apps that might be causing that. If the code has been altered, though, I'd like a copy of the newer version.

Thank you so much for this service,
Flynn

 

[robject]

Ah, yes, actually I began tweaking the web version, webps.cgi which is available at

http://24.1.3.180/tas/

It's the 'web-enabled' version of gridps. If you have a little web-server running you can serve sector data with it.

There's one more tweak I want to add to it, which will enable it to run from the command line OR as a CGI script (if you feed it a filename, it would run as a command line app, otw it runs as CGI).

 

[robject]

What I really want to do is write a CGI program that allows the user to add/update/delete system data, a few at a time, and show a JPEG of the area currently under construction. Submit some changes, see the updated JPEG and add some more changes. A PDF of the entire sector can be requested at any time.

Time-locks would permit a designer to only work on a subsector which hasn't been modified by another system in the last several minutes or so; thus sixteen people working together could craft an entire sector without stepping on each others' toes.

 

[BeRKA]

The script is now used together with my random subsector generator.
http://zho.berka.com/data/random/

Click the YES box below "Postscript:" and click generate. Below the generated map there is then a link "Postscript" that will generate a postscript map of the random subsector.

 

[Flynn]

Btw, Berka, how do you go about assigning Amber and Red Zones in your random subsector generator?

Thanks in advance,
Flynn

 

[BeRKA]

Originally posted by Flynn:
Btw, Berka, how do you go about assigning Amber and Red Zones in your random subsector generator?

My script looks at the UPP and the selected race and assigns a probability. I hope the result makes sense. (I think it usually does.)

If You want I can send You the subroutine that does this.

 

[Flynn]

Yes, I would like that very much...

You can pull my addy off the PBEM mailing list, if you like.

Thanks,
Flynn

 

[BeRKA]

Code sent.

 

[Morte]

There is some fantastic stuff going on here. I never thought anything like this would happen when I started the thread. I feel a bit (ok, a lot) greedy putting requests in. But if anybody's looking for suggestions, they might like to try the following:

- Let the user provide the sector data.
- Build maps covering more than one sector.
- Toggle switches for what is or isn't shown.
- Go B&W. Some of us are colourblind, and some will want to print on B&W printers.
- Put the UWP8-PBG where the starport code usually goes, to eliminate redundancy and clutter.

 

[marvo]

If any windows users are looking for a progrm to create .pdf files try.

www.pdf955.com

It creates a dummy printer just like acrobat, so you can create a .pdf from any application that you print from. It's free (but you get a prompt to buy the full version every time you use it.) I think the full version costs $9.95.