call an XML thru Persistant Database

[PITN]

Can an xml by called into a mission from a database when a condition has been met? The database is only storing the active mission. Example: MSO.

Say I wanted to attach a medic graphic to a vehicle thru xml when only the medic was driving.

If the above is true then can I dynamically assign the xml thru a condition or trigger?

Say if you had several groups and you assigned each group it's own xml. When the you join the group and they meet the condition and thereafter the xml will appear on their equipment.

Another option I suppose would be to make custom textures and use hidden selections and set object texture. But that's doesn't make the mission new content friendly.

[=VG= SavageCDN (Inactive Duty)]

I think Arma reads that xml info (ie: for squad xml) at player connect and I don't know if it can be updated dynamically. This would be a good question for the BIS forums.. or maybe one of the MSO devs? I can ask if you like.


How's Insurgency? Haven't had a chance to look at it again since last week.

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

Reconnect would be needed to update any changes to the XML. There are other ways to accomplish your goal, if I understand it correctly. You'd just include an alternate skin for the vehicle with your medical cross on it, and call the image to be placed over/instead of the default whenever a medic is driving, or however you want that to work.

XML is not quite the way to go for that stuff, IMO.

[PITN]

yeah, that's what I thought. But an XML type texture would be an awesome way to make a mission that was not texture heavy.

[=VG= ciro (Inactive Duty)]

From what i know of xml, if the "statement" provides a condition to be met then yes this can be done but to do that you will need to provide the xlm with a XSLT(xsl) condition but im not sure if real virtuality adopts this manner of process:

http://www.google.co.uk/#hl=en&sclient=psy-ab&q=xml+conditional+statements&oq=xml+conditional+&gs_l=hp.1.3.0l4.1878.7393.0.11377.16.11.0.5.5.1.1152.4056.4j2j1j1j6-2j1.11.0...0.0...1c.1.8.psy-ab.DBkC08lREEA&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_qf.&bvm=bv.45107431,d.d2k&fp=77298bfcd0266709&biw=1920&bih=978

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

PITN LAN_WROTE ...

yeah, that's what I thought. But an XML type texture would be an awesome way to make a mission that was not texture heavy.

The XML is still a .paa graphic just like any image in the game, and still needs to sit somewhere for it to get into the game. Our Squad XML image, squad_logo.paa sits here on the website at the link we use in our settings, and the actual XML file in there tells Arma personal info about each player that matches the player in the XML file. It's basically a table of names and id's, and a pointer to an image. The exact same kind of thing happens in missions, they pull images from files.

All this is way too over the top for just some in-mission image manipulation. Right now, even MSO only pulls in strings of data, not files or actual images - and we can do the opposite, too, like the MSO Leaderboard test. That's about it.
Whatever it is you want to do would not be hard, or hard on mission updates. Just not in any "XML" way, as that's not really a thing.

K.I.S.S.
!cheers

[PITN]

The objective is to change add a transparency over any existing texture. Regardless of were the paa is stored it just needs to be called for certain conditions.
I have an uncompressed jpg that is 3mb. This coveres the entire object. A tiny texture can be less than 100kb. The xml is the only way that I know of to superimpose an image on the current texture.

[PITN]

btw the channel had the next ins added last week. but even that one doesn't fix the most glaring flaws.

[=VG= SavageCDN (Inactive Duty)]

Do you want me to up that newer version to the server?

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

PITN LAN_WROTE ...

I have an uncompressed jpg that is 3mb. This coveres the entire object. A tiny texture can be less than 100kb. The xml is the only way that I know of to superimpose an image on the current texture.

That Squad XML image on the vehicle is only present when a player is in the vehicle. And it will be overwritten by the highest ranking unit in the vehicle each and every time. Anytime your "medic" vehicle takes on a customer that outranks him, his vehicle will change from a medic symbol to some dudes Squad XML image.

Besides the obvious, trying to use the Squad XML system to behave in this way just to keep down on some file sizes is not really the way to go. When you load into a game with players who have their Squad XML images at various .com's, all those images are sent to your computer, in a folder called Squads. I guarantee you have mine and L.A.M.B.S. in your folder, so next time you join with us, it will only call that image from your PC, not the website URL it originated from.

YES- - that image must exist on every players machine before it shows up in game. If you want to use tiny image files like that and attach them to vehicles, you could do this via scripting, and I can tell you right now that you will not be able to interrupt the Squad XML system in Arma to become a triggered image system without making your system a Mod, a Mod that breaks the Squad XML system completely to accomplish this goal. And if you are going to make it a Mod, why mess with the Squad XML system? You'd just make an area on a vehicle that will take an image, somewhere empty, and designate it as a spot for your dynamic tiny images, to be called on conditions you scripted.

People use Mods for heavy image manipulation - like Camo packs - to keep mission file size down, and to make it multi-mission friendly. This is the only way to go to get this idea you want done. It is not possible to call an XML image thru Persistant Database for the purposes you have described, not without modding at the very least.

[PITN]

@Savage,

yes the newest version should be in the testing rotation.


edit: It's there now VG_03