ffx 3.3 on vista

[ferrers1023]

Hey I hope this is the right place ...

I'm looking to add ffx 3.3 to a ffttr install but because it's an .exe and vista is irksome, it won't let me without admin privs which i don't have. Does anyone know if there's a .zip, .rar or .7z file of all of the files in 3.3? Is it even possible to amend the necessary files by hand? I don't even have command console, so batch files are automatically out.

If you have any thoughts, please let me know. Thanks!

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

It's just a matter of dropping the files in the right place, really.  The one thing the exec does is make sure you have the right .dats if you use EZFX.

[ferrers1023]

I hoped it might be simple. Now I just need the files - I tried extracting from the exe with 7z and Winrar, with no luck.

[laughing paradox]

I hoped it might be simple. Now I just need the files - I tried extracting from the exe with 7z and Winrar, with no luck.

You know, there's a way to gain administrative authority on your computer. I think you have to shut down the User Account Control. Do a search online for information on it. That way, you won't have issues doing things like opening up zip files anymore.

[ferrers1023]

Zips aren't the problem, it's the executable file - UAC is a major painus in the ... you know. Zip files are fine. I just need to find one that has all the files from ffx 3.3 and I'll be able to sigh contentedly while having someone telekinetically throw a car.

Incidently, that's a cool avatar paradox. I'm looking for info now though - thanks for the tip.

[Epimethee]

It's just a matter of dropping the files in the right place, really.  The one thing the exec does is make sure you have the right .dats if you use EZFX.

It does a few more things, such as adding FFX version info to the registry, setting shortcuts (launch the mod, access hidden documents folder, etc.) and edits localinit.py to work with startup plugins. Nothing critical for now, though.

The problem is that Microsoft's decision to make non .msi installers persona non grata is rather recent; I certainly didn't know about it at the time.In addition, the installer tool I used, Inno Setup, is apparently not going to be rewritten to use the MSI format. What's more, I don't have Vista and testing the installer would probably be the only reason I'd really want it.

Thanks for the info on batch files and non-admin accounts. So, you could install a programming language such as Python which would have commands for manipulating files and folders, but can't run a batch file program?

I've posted the .7z archive at http://drop.io/ffx3310
There are no instructions, but if you're a bit familiar with scripting, you can read the content of ffx3\ffx3setup.iss (the file used to buid the installer) to get pointers. Basically, put the StartupPlugins and FFX3 folders inside your main FFvsTTR folder.

[ferrers1023]

Afterthought or not, your thought is genius. Thanks so much for uploading it - I'm working my way line by line now to make sure I don't screw up. I did 3 years of Java and one of C++, so I'm able to get the gist - to me the python used in the game is fascinating but this language is a bit more ...  tedious ... but totally worth it.

Thanks again

EDIT pt2: Ok I am having a problem with something 2 somethings really. What's this mean?

Code Select Expand

procedure UpdateLocalinit();
begin
  localinitString := '';
  localinitAddendum := CRLF + CRLF + '# Startup Plugins Importer; info in the StartupPlugins folder' + CRLF + 'try:' + CRLF + '    import startupplugins' + CRLF + 'except:' + CRLF + '    pass' + CRLF + CRLF;

{Does localinit.py exists? if not, create it}
  if not FileExists(ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py') then
    FileCopy(ffx3Path + '\..\system\init.py', ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py',FALSE);

{if the import startupplugins code isn't aready there, back up localinit.py and append the code to the file}
  LoadStringFromFile(ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py', localinitString);
  if not (Pos('import startupplugins', localinitString) > 0) then
    begin
      FileCopy(ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py', ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py.old',FALSE);
      SaveStringToFile(ffx3Path + '\..\system\localinit.py', localinitAddendum, TRUE);
    end
end;


And what how is the executable supposed to be set up? I tried -game [ffx path] -log like the file said and it didn't like it.

EDIT pt3:
Ok, got it working, with one small problem - it's not loading the new power effects in game when i do create character. Thoughts?

[Epimethee]

pt 1: My pleasure.
Nice having your programming experience around. A coder can have quite a bit of fun with this game and Python.

As my only programming experience is FF-related Python (plus a tiny bit of old-school JavaScript), the installer's Pascal felt both tedious and extremely frustrating (as my poor code plainly shows). But when embedding a programming language in your executable adds only an 8KB overhead...

pt 2: The code appends the following to .\System\localinit.py:

Code Select Expand



# Startup Plugins Importer; info in the StartupPlugins folder
try:
    import startupplugins
except:
    pass


For the shortcut (as you probably found out), it's only the folder name: -game ffx3 -log

pt 3: Did you run the FFX Control Centre to brand your character? (And does the FFXCC detects your game correctly? It's supposed to need the registry info to do so. I suppose you don't have write access to Regedit, do you?)

[ferrers1023]

Yes I learned through trial and error  the shortcut path. :doh:

I got the correct graphics to work (it was a branding problem - as it's vista, the hero files were in a place I didn't expect) so everything is hunky-dory now.

Thanks again for all your help - I'm so glad that there are still other people out there who really like this game enough to offer support like this for others.