Difference between revisions of "Manual:DIL Manual/findsymbolic()"

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<span id="bffinds"></span>
 
 
  unitptr findsymbolic ( s : string )
 
  unitptr findsymbolic ( s : string )
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     s : Symbolic name of the NPC or Object to find.
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     s : Symbolic name of the unit to find (player, room, object, NPC)
 
     return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
 
     return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
 
     Example: findsymbolic("bread@midgaard")
 
     Example: findsymbolic("bread@midgaard")
  
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    This routine supplements findroom and findunit. It comes in handy,if it is
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This routine supplements findunit() and findsymbolic(#,#,#). It comes in handy, if it is
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    important to get a correct reference to a NPC in the world.  If for example,
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important to get a unitptr to a unit in the world. This is super fast
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    Mary needs to send a message to John the Lumberjack,  then she should NOT
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and a great routine if it doesn't matter where in the world the unit is.
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    use the findunit() since it may locate a different John - even a player!
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Otherwise, look at the findsymbolic(u,s,i) below If for example,
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    If she instead locates him using findsymbolic("john@haon_dor") she will be
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Mary needs to send a message to John the Lumberjack,  then she should NOT
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    certain that it is in fact her husband, and not the player John Dow from
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use the findunit() since it may locate a different John - even a player!
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    Norway. It will NOT locate rooms, for the only reason that findroom is a
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If she instead locates him using findsymbolic("john@haon_dor") she will be
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    lot more efficient.
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certain that it is in fact her husband, and not the player John Dow from
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Norway. If there was two john@haon_dor in the game, she'd get a random one of
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them (but there's only one John and if there was two it wouldn't really matter
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which one she would activate). This function also will return rooms and players (which it did
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not do in the past), making findroom somewhat superfluous.
  
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unitptr findsymbolic ( u : unitptr, s : string, i : integer )
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    u : Search is relative to this unit.
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    s : Symbolic name of the NPC or Object to find.
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    i : FIND_UNIT_XXX bit vector of places to search.
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    return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
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    Example: findsymbolic(self, "bread@midgaard", FIND_UNIT_INVEN)
  
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This routine supplements findroom, findunit and findsymbolic(#). 
 +
It will simply return the first unit matching the symbolic name.
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It comes in handy, if it is important to get a correct reference to a unit somewhere
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relative to 'u'.  If for example, Mary needs to check if she has her own
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cooking pot, then she should NOT use the findunit since it may locate a
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different pot, not belonging to Haon-Dor but to some other zone.  If she
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instead locates it using findsymbolic(self, "pot@haon_dor", FIND_UNIT_IN_ME)
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she would be certain that it is in fact her own cooking pot that she is
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carrying around, and not some other pot from a Joe Blow's zone.
  
  
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  ---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---
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  unitptr findsymbolic ( s : string, idx : integer )
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    s : Symbolic name of the unit to find (player, room, object, NPC)
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dilbegin zonelog (s:string);
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    idx : is the index to match (find precisely the right city guard), see unitptr.idx
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code
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    return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
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{
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    Example: findsymbolic("guard@midgaard", 71262816721)
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flog (self.zonidx+".log",s,"a");
 
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return;
 
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}
 
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dilend
 
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---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---
 
  
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</i><!--ENDCODE-->
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This routine helps you find a precise unique unit in the world. So imagine a
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The previous DIL function will work in any zone to log to a file with that zones
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bounty hunter. Locks on a city guard that has committed a crime. Because you
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  name each zone could use it to keep zone logs separate.
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cannot secure a unitptr not in your local environment how can you find the right
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cityguard in a city of 100? So when you first catch the unit, store its symname and
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idx. The use this function to retrieve it again. For players it will find the online
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player regardless of the idx.
  
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Example:
  
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---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---~---
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  // Presume target is pointing to a particular cityguard
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  s := target.symname; // Save the symbolic name
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  i := target.idx;
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  // Do stuff. Wake up 9 hours later. Find the target again like this:
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  target := findsymbolic(s, i);
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  // and if the guard is still alive you'll get your pointer back.

Latest revision as of 21:36, 1 February 2021

unitptr findsymbolic ( s : string )
   s : Symbolic name of the unit to find (player, room, object, NPC)
   return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
   Example: findsymbolic("bread@midgaard")

This routine supplements findunit() and findsymbolic(#,#,#). It comes in handy, if it is important to get a unitptr to a unit in the world. This is super fast and a great routine if it doesn't matter where in the world the unit is. Otherwise, look at the findsymbolic(u,s,i) below If for example, Mary needs to send a message to John the Lumberjack, then she should NOT use the findunit() since it may locate a different John - even a player! If she instead locates him using findsymbolic("john@haon_dor") she will be certain that it is in fact her husband, and not the player John Dow from Norway. If there was two john@haon_dor in the game, she'd get a random one of them (but there's only one John and if there was two it wouldn't really matter which one she would activate). This function also will return rooms and players (which it did not do in the past), making findroom somewhat superfluous. 

unitptr findsymbolic ( u : unitptr, s : string, i : integer )
   u : Search is relative to this unit.
   s : Symbolic name of the NPC or Object to find.
   i : FIND_UNIT_XXX bit vector of places to search.
   return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
   Example: findsymbolic(self, "bread@midgaard", FIND_UNIT_INVEN)

This routine supplements findroom, findunit and findsymbolic(#). It will simply return the first unit matching the symbolic name. It comes in handy, if it is important to get a correct reference to a unit somewhere relative to 'u'. If for example, Mary needs to check if she has her own cooking pot, then she should NOT use the findunit since it may locate a different pot, not belonging to Haon-Dor but to some other zone. If she instead locates it using findsymbolic(self, "pot@haon_dor", FIND_UNIT_IN_ME) she would be certain that it is in fact her own cooking pot that she is carrying around, and not some other pot from a Joe Blow's zone. 


unitptr findsymbolic ( s : string, idx : integer )
   s : Symbolic name of the unit to find (player, room, object, NPC)
   idx : is the index to match (find precisely the right city guard), see unitptr.idx
   return: A pointer to an instance of the unit, or null.
   Example: findsymbolic("guard@midgaard", 71262816721)

This routine helps you find a precise unique unit in the world. So imagine a bounty hunter. Locks on a city guard that has committed a crime. Because you cannot secure a unitptr not in your local environment how can you find the right cityguard in a city of 100? So when you first catch the unit, store its symname and idx. The use this function to retrieve it again. For players it will find the online player regardless of the idx.

Example: 

 // Presume target is pointing to a particular cityguard
 s := target.symname; // Save the symbolic name
 i := target.idx;
 // Do stuff. Wake up 9 hours later. Find the target again like this:
 target := findsymbolic(s, i);
 // and if the guard is still alive you'll get your pointer back.
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