Difference between revisions of "A beginner's guide, lesson 2 - Creating a room"

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A beginner's guide, lesson 2 - Creating a room (edit)

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-'''TES IV: Oblivion Modding for Beginners'''
+{{ABGContents}}
-'''A. BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES'''
-'''Lesson Two: Creating a room'''
+==Preamble==
 This is the second in a proposed series of Tutorial Lessons aimed at teaching how to mod ''TES IV: Oblivion'' aimed at beginners. It will build up into a Complete Modding Course. Don't worry there
 are no exams, though there is some homework. It is not intended to aid the transfer of modders
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   A - Toggle Bright Light
+==A Note on Dirty Mods==
+Before we get started I would like to begin with a little addendum to some advice I offered in [[A beginner's guide, lesson 1 - The Construction Set Primer|Lesson One]]. As I have said, I am a beginner, and it’s always great to receive some tips from one of the pros - in this case a modder called Klinn. I have come across Klinn’s work in connection with Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, and was as thrilled as could be to find that he spared some time to offer some advice regarding the topic of ‘dirty mods’. These are mods which, although well meaning, have unfortunate effects on the whole game world. Something as simple as altering the content of a chest can have a dramatic effect on all the other chests in the game. I should have been clearer about this in lesson one because…
+'''In lesson one, I wrote:'''
+<blockquote>
+"Aside, double-click on the block and a dialog box will open giving information about the block. Check that the name of the object is <name>. If it is not, close the dialog box, deselect and try again. In the central area is some information about the object's position. This lists the object's x, y, and z co-ords, and some info about rotation. These should all read 0,0,0. This is the default position. If in the course of the tutorial you drag the building out of the way by mistake. Don’t panic. Select it open the dialog and reset it to 0,0,0."
+</blockquote>
+'''Klinn correctly pointed out:'''
+<blockquote>
+"Unfortunately, trying to reset objects this way can lead to a "dirty mod". The Editor has no way of knowing that you are 'un-doing' an accidental change, so it will still mark that object as modified with the '*' beside it.
+Experienced users of mods will check them out for signs of their being 'dirty' since they know the problems that can cause.
+If something is marked as changed that does not have anything to do with the mod, e.g. you accidentally moved some wall in some other tavern while checking it out, then they will know something is up and therefore will be less likely to use your mod. So if you want your work appreciated, be sure to keep it clean.
+Always keep backups as you work on your mod. Then if you accidentally move something, it's easy to revert to the last good version without losing too much work. There are ways of using the Details list or possibly other tools (I'm not sure how the Oblivion tools are coming along, there used to be some for Morrowind) to patch up a dirty mod, but it's best to develop working habits to avoid the problem in the first place."
+</blockquote>
+Clearly, if you have no intention of releasing a mod, it makes no difference whether it is dirty or not. But it is good practice to follow the advice given and save, save, save. It is also good practice to follow the advice to look at any mods you are downloading, and scan for the changes it is making. A mod that adds a new building should not change any of the existing buildings or objects. If you see that it has altered one of the standard chests, crates or containers, be very wary of that mod. I would also advise you to keep an eye on the changes you are making, and where necessary record them. The above issue where a building was edited by accident and then corrected will mark the mod as dirty. However a well documented Readme.txt explaining why it shows up as edited could be the difference between a mod being loaded or not.
+<blockquote>
+If you do find that you've accidentally created a "dirty" mod, and the prospect of losing several days' work is not appealing to you, there are ways to clean it up again.  See the [[Mod Cleaning Tutorial]] for more information.
+</blockquote>
 ==The Setting: The Oak and Crosier Inn==
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-Close the dialog box. We have now linked our cellar to the tavern. But we still have a really important job to do - which is to set our teleport markers. The CS has a curious but practical default setting. It establishes the marker inside the door itself. If we used it as is we would materialise in the middle of the cellar door and that is never fun. We should be able to see the marker inside the tavern. It behaves just like every other object. We can drag it, rotate it, and use the '''F''' key to make it fall. Reposition it so that the pink pyramid faces away from the door and you have a good clearance, avoiding collision with objects in the tavern.
+Close the dialog box. We have now linked our cellar to the tavern. But we still have a really important job to do - which is to set our teleport markers. The CS has a curious but practical default setting. It establishes the marker inside the door itself. If we used it as is we would materialise in the middle of the cellar door and that is never fun. We should be able to see the marker inside the tavern. It behaves just like every other object. We can drag it, rotate it, and use the '''F''' key to make it fall. Remember to hold your right mouse button over the door marker to rotate it about the z axis.  Reposition it so that the pink pyramid faces away from the door and you have a good clearance, avoiding collision with objects in the tavern.
 Now add a teleport marker to the cellar. Save your mod. Go test it, making sure the door works in both directions.