[Server] Xanadu

[Kilarin]

How about keeping the old protector nodes and adding new ones that can be configured, or setting the default configuration to what it is in Xanadu?

configurable would be GRAND. If not configurable, how about a protector block with something more valuable in the center (a mese fragment?) that protects twice as much area.

AND, if we are talking about adding new protector blocks, I have noticed that the cubical shape of the protected area is great for protecting buildings, but wasteful when you are protecting a road, bridge, or tunnel. Especially because the extra protected area makes it more difficult for anyone else to link up with your road or tunnel. For example, look at the roads coming out of spawn. They are three wide (typical road width), but the protection is 5 wide in each direction, meaning that anyone who wants to attach a "driveway" to the common road has to coordinate with the roads builder. Which is, of course, fine if the road builder didn't want people connecting to the road without permission, but a bit of a hassle when the whole purpose of the road is just to act as a main city street.

So, what if we had a protection block that protected an area that was 1 down, 1 to each side, 3 up, and. say, 30 forward and 30 back. That would make a total area of 3*4*60 which is a little over half the area of the standard 11x11 block, but would sure be nice for roads. You would need to be able to rotate the node with the screwdriver so you could make the long protected area point along the x, y, or z axis.

Of course, an individually configurable block would be far superior to this. But then, I know there has already been some issues on the server of people claiming vast swaths of land where they hadn't built anything. So there would need to be some kind of balance system to keep people from just plopping down a single block and claiming whole forests for themselves.

Oh, one more note while we are suggesting protection block changes. currently the system works so that you punch a block and the protected area glows purple. But what people are usually actually trying to figure out is if any areas are NOT protected. And that involves running around punching several nodes and trying to figure out if there are any gaps. I wonder if there would be some way to make it so that you could, instead of seeing the protected areas, punch a node and all areas within visual range (or some sufficiently large area) that are NOT protected would glow purple? Probably messy to implement. Might not work.

Just some ideas. I think protection works ok the way it is in Xanadu, but there is always room for improvement.

[Inocudom]

How about keeping the old protector nodes and adding new ones that can be configured, or setting the default configuration to what it is in Xanadu?

configurable would be GRAND. If not configurable, how about a protector block with something more valuable in the center (a mese fragment?) that protects twice as much area.

AND, if we are talking about adding new protector blocks, I have noticed that the cubical shape of the protected area is great for protecting buildings, but wasteful when you are protecting a road, bridge, or tunnel. Especially because the extra protected area makes it more difficult for anyone else to link up with your road or tunnel. For example, look at the roads coming out of spawn. They are three wide (typical road width), but the protection is 5 wide in each direction, meaning that anyone who wants to attach a "driveway" to the common road has to coordinate with the roads builder. Which is, of course, fine if the road builder didn't want people connecting to the road without permission, but a bit of a hassle when the whole purpose of the road is just to act as a main city street.

So, what if we had a protection block that protected an area that was 1 down, 1 to each side, 3 up, and. say, 30 forward and 30 back. That would make a total area of 3*4*60 which is a little over half the area of the standard 11x11 block, but would sure be nice for roads. You would need to be able to rotate the node with the screwdriver so you could make the long protected area point along the x, y, or z axis.

Of course, an individually configurable block would be far superior to this. But then, I know there has already been some issues on the server of people claiming vast swaths of land where they hadn't built anything. So there would need to be some kind of balance system to keep people from just plopping down a single block and claiming whole forests for themselves.

Oh, one more note while we are suggesting protection block changes. currently the system works so that you punch a block and the protected area glows purple. But what people are usually actually trying to figure out is if any areas are NOT protected. And that involves running around punching several nodes and trying to figure out if there are any gaps. I wonder if there would be some way to make it so that you could, instead of seeing the protected areas, punch a node and all areas within visual range (or some sufficiently large area) that are NOT protected would glow purple? Probably messy to implement. Might not work.

Just some ideas. I think protection works ok the way it is in Xanadu, but there is always room for improvement.

That is where protector blocks having a maximum range would come in handy. Another feature that would be needed is that protected areas by different players could not overlap. In such a case, the one that comes first is the one that keeps its domain.

[Sokomine]

In order for this server to be good for large buildings, protector blocks with bigger protection areas will be needed. How about adding additional ones?

The protector mod is part of the problem, but by far not the only issue. Where it only a case of which protection mod is run, simply adding another, more builder-friendly one would help.

Rollback is disabled for speed...

Yes, and that's another issue. Again, if it where the only problem, it could be amended by a better protection mod and other factors. Redcrabs server ran for a long time without rollback capabilities.

It is still a survival server though at heart but many do enjoy building :)

That's perfectly ok :-) Just don't claim it to be a builder's paradise (which it is not). There are certainly many players who enjoy the server, and there arn't that many servers which focus on survival.

So, what if we had a protection block that protected an area that was 1 down, 1 to each side, 3 up, and. say, 30 forward and 30 back. That would make a total area of 3*4*60 which is a little over half the area of the standard 11x11 block, but would sure be nice for roads. You would need to be able to rotate the node with the screwdriver so you could make the long protected area point along the x, y, or z axis.

Yes, it would be good if that where possible, but that's not so easy and kind of contradicting the way the mod is implemented. Right now, it searches in a radius of 5 blocks or so around the position the player does something at and checks if there are any protector blocks in that area. Now, if you extend that to a road extending 30 nodes in each direction, you'd increase search range considerably. At best, you'd have to add an additional search in x direction and one in z direction atop the current search. Really not a good idea as far as lag and performance are concerned. Smaller blocks might be a far better idea.

On building orientated servers, the roads are usually not protected at all. Should one be griefed, it can be checked and damage rolled back (including as yet undiscovered further griefings by the same player).

Of course, an individually configurable block would be far superior to this. But then, I know there has already been some issues on the server of people claiming vast swaths of land where they hadn't built anything.

That's always an issue and happens with all kinds of protection system. Even with the more advanced ones. There's no way to protect form that, sadly.

But what people are usually actually trying to figure out is if any areas are NOT protected. And that involves running around punching several nodes and trying to figure out if there are any gaps. I wonder if there would be some way to make it so that you could, instead of seeing the protected areas, punch a node and all areas within visual range (or some sufficiently large area) that are NOT protected would glow purple?

That might be very difficult as it would involve a lot of entities that would have to be placed in order to indicated unprotected areas. In short, if your building is larger than what one block may protect, it's too large for the protector system.

All protection systems out there have their pros and cons. The advantage of this one here is that it's very very easy to use even for inexperienced players (as long as you build small!). The disadvantage is that it can't - by design - do more complicated things like protecting a larger building without hassle, or to protect a road, or an area for a city.

If you're looking for a similar and yet more advanced system, take a look at the Landrush landclaim mod. I dislike it a lot in its older version where it did hurt players who digged in protected areas, but that can be disabled now. The system is as easy to use as the protector system, but with one important change: Instead of protecting x blocks around the protector node, placing one landclaim node protects the area for the player (with the map broken down in a fixed 16x16 nodes grid). This doesn't work well with roads either, and it leads to buildings which tend do be 16x16m (or multiples thereof) in size, but it's still less complicated than the protector mod. You don't have to calculate the best positions for protector blocks.

The system I like most is the areas mod. It is well suited for protecting even large, complex buildings, or entire towns with individual buildings inside. Its disadvantage is that the commands are very difficult to remember, and even with my markers mod, people do tend to have problems figuring it out. I'm considering adding a block to the markers mod that will act like the protector mod - by simply protecting a set amount of blocks in each direction. Unlike the protector mod, the block would just initiate the protection, and would not be needed afterwards anymore.

[Kilarin]

Right now, it searches in a radius of 5 blocks or so around the position the player does something at and checks if there are any protector blocks in that area.

Oh! I should have looked at the code first. I didn't realize that was how it was implemented. Makes sense, of course, that would be the simplest most efficient way to do it.
A double size area block MIGHT be practical then, but the odd shaped, or even customizable area blocks are almost certainly not. Better to just combine the simple protection block with an area mod.

On the rollbacks. I assume there are regular backups made of the world? Would a compromise be to offer to rebuild damaged areas from yesterdays backup? Wouldn't save todays work, but would save something that had been built for a long time. BUT, more work for the admins. And they are already providing us with a free server.

[TenPlus1]

Adding a new protector node would still need the protection area increased in the mod itself, I would have to add another protection mod to handle the new nodes and their different size... For now lets stick with the 5x5x5 area we have and have the protection logo's work their magic...

[TenPlus1]

Xanadu has now been converted to leveldb and system updated to 3.16.2 kernel... enjoy the speed increase :)

[MykieDoesStuff]

Speed increase has been great but it's too buggy now. Objects multiplying and despawning in few mins, not a good sign. Now the server will have to revert back to past world to make the server playable to players. Great idea, but it got issues...

[TenPlus1]

Agreed, fast but glitchy... Oh well, least the system got a fresh update...

[MykieDoesStuff]

May you upload this skin for me personally, not public to anyone.

[Johnny Joy]

I missed the post about leveldb. That explains what happened. I had spend 3 days traveling as far from the spawn as possible, and managed to find an island with Crysptal Spikes. I managed to collect some 50+ and then found plants of all kinds for farming. It was the best collection I had seen anywhere. I loaded up 4 heavy bags. Then Saturday morning I went back to my home and loaded it all into chests. Sunday everything I manage to collect was gone, no longer in the chests. I picked the worst time to move my stuff. LOL

After reading this I've read the source on the database interface, and it's extremely basic. I'm thinking of writing a postgres interface for minetest/freeeminer to play with. I'll let you know when it's done.

[Kilarin]

Xanthin's Caravanserai

[TenPlus1]

Very nice :) I would recommend using the protection logo's since they can blend in more with the actual building...

[MykieDoesStuff]

Or try to use protection blocks under or behind the blocks. Since I learned that you can make sandstone I will be digging up my desert at much more faster rate :) And if my tools break ill just go back mining again...

[Xanthin]

Thank you Kilarin for the nice screenshots. I am pleased you both like it. The Caravanserai is far from being finished, like most I started to build (I think the hanging bridge is the only one), not even the tower I rebuilded from the last map is it and I started it right after map change. :D That's why I yet did not cared about hiding the protection , so I can easy see and adjust it. I want to add a second layer on the outside (one day) so there could be some counting and placing again. But thats alright.

And, this has to be mentioned: the decoration of the room of the Innkeeper family at screenshot 6 was designed (in an astounding speed) by Chinchow. Thanks again.
Of course, the maids and servants of the building have only mats :)

[Kilarin]

not even the tower I rebuilded from the last map

Speaking of which.

TenPlus1 said in the Ethereal thread:

I am currently testing a level-like mapgen that is more realistic.

Does this mean there is much of a chance of a map restart? And if so, is there a way we can get backups of structures we have worked on for a long time? (Or perhaps even get the transferred to the new map?)

[Sokomine]

Does this mean there is much of a chance of a map restart? And if so, is there a way we can get backups of structures we have worked on for a long time? (Or perhaps even get the transferred to the new map?)

There are said to be backups. I'm not sure if they can be put to use. The best - and probably only safe - way might be to save your buildings locally with the map-saving client sfan5 wrote.

[Kilarin]

The best - and probably only safe - way might be to save your buildings locally with the map-saving client sfan5 wrote.

That is what I meant by getting a backup. Some way that I could save it to my own computer.

Could someone point me to this map-saving client? That sounds like exactly what I want. I fully understand the right of server admins to decide that they need to start with a fresh map. But I'd like to at least have a personal copy of what I've spent so much time building. :)

[Kilarin]

A FASCINATING "floating island/bridge" location in Xanadu!

[TenPlus1]

No, there isn't going to be a map restart... Xanadu will continue to use the spread-like map...

[Kilarin]

there isn't going to be a map restart.

That's nice to know! I'm not done with my treehouse yet.

[Achilles]

Wow, nice floating islands :)

[Guinzo]

Ok, i would ask a thing....i have protected building, but when i return play the building are disappear. And my question is: why this? And if have something wrong(I think that behind this there is a mod / admin) which rules i broke?
Had happened to me before as well, but I found that my pixel art in which I put a lot of effort disappearance ... it is not right...

(Sorry for my bad english)
Ah, my nick in game is TheGuinzo.

[MykieDoesStuff]

Ok, i would ask a thing....i have protected building, but when i return play the building are disappear. And my question is: why this? And if have something wrong(I think that behind this there is a mod / admin) which rules i broke?
Had happened to me before as well, but I found that my pixel art in which I put a lot of effort disappearance ... it is not right...

(Sorry for my bad english)
Ah, my nick in game is TheGuinzo.

TheGuinzo, It may be that you played during the server conversion update/test. We said many times that all building or anything that you gained will be lost. I'm sorry but you just may have to try again. :/

[noob]

Hi!

Maybe this is a newbie question but... Does anyone know how I can the biome of an area? ie, how I can change the color of the dirt or how I can plant different trees (reed wood trees, forst trees...) on an area?

Thanks

[MykieDoesStuff]

Dear Ten,
The new update on the furnace about the distance on active limit update thing you made is annoying the hell out of me and other players like Fredrick. This really ruins the productivity... It took me a while to figure out why it took over 5 hours just to smelt a simple 30 node item... Could you please remove that feature? Or just make the distance much more larger like 300 ft .

Regards,
iDevMe