Electricity Mod

[ss7]

Hello,

 

I'm trying to implements electricity for my bridgemod. I made a cable block with setBlockBounds(etc...); and a CableTileEntity where i can store the power in. And each second i'm looking for cables nearby and adding the power of them to my cable. But when i have a setup like this:

 

BCC --B=Battery--C=Cable

 

and the battery has a power of 500 then the cable beneath it has a power of 500 and the cable beneath that has also a power of 500, but the next 1 second tick the cable in the middle has 1000 power, because it gets the power of the battery and of the cable right of it.

Maybe Calclavia can help me with this, because he has also cables in his UE Mod. And i also don't understand how i can make connected texture with my cables.

 

ss7

[GotoLink]

  Quote

each second i'm looking for cables nearby and adding the power of them to my cable

It then sounds logical that the power increases each second.

You should replace the power value if it is any different.

[ss7]

Hello,

 

But when i have a setup like this:

 

    b1

b2 cccccc

 

b1-power=500

b2-power=500

 

c=cable

b=battery

 

Shaped like a crossroads.

 

Then the cable would also have a power of 500, but it should have a power of 1000.

 

Do you know how to make connected textures?

 

ss7

[Mazetar]

Take some graph paper, and try to draw out how you're logic works and how the "power" flows.

See the flow of the logic, because you my friend need to re-think the logic behind how you want it to work

 

What do you exactly mean by "connected textures", texture continuing from the block next to it, so three blocks in a row of the same type form a specific pattern? Then you need to write a special render (ISBRH or a TESER - check wiki for tutorials) which checks the block next to it and based upon that decides which texture to use

[ss7]

Hello,

 

But how is the logic? How do mods like ic2 or bc do this?

 

Yes, i mean that the cables are connecting. I've searched the wiki for ISBRH and TESR, but found no tutorial.

 

I think i need 16 textures, 1 for the left, right, front, back + 1 for left-right, front-back, front-right, front-left, back-right, back-left + 1 for

front-right-back, right-back-left, back-left-front, left-front-right + 1 for all + 1 for no connection. Is that right, because my cable is like redstone i don't need up and down? Can i just check each 5 ticks or so if the nearby blocks have changed and change the texture, or can i

just change the block bounds? I use a normal brick texture and only set the block bounds, so that it looks like a cable.

 

ss7

[Mazetar]

  Quote

I've searched the wiki for ISBRH and TESR, but found no tutorial.

 

Really?

Did you try the tutorials page?

 

Probably not

[Mazetar]

  On 8/14/2013 at 5:13 PM, ss7 said:

But how is the logic? How do mods like ic2 or bc do this?

 

Well that's the thing with modding, you can learn the syntax.

You can learn what an if statment does, and how an interface work.

Even how an API like forge works.

 

But creating the logic and coming up with how to USE all that functionality is up to the programmer.

Programming is more about creating the logic than typing code. The code is a formality, the logic is the core concept

 

The best way I've found is to break the logical problem down into smaller parts, then solve them one at a time.

Maybe draw out what needs to happen for the system to work?

 

[Mazetar]

I'm not sure exactly how they are doing it, for IC2 I have no idea.

BC, well you can check out how their system works by looking into their src code on github.

 

Also Universal Electicity is a nice system to look into and try to understand.

It's nicely written so it should be quite easy to understand if you know Java

 

 

One way it could work is to group all cables and power users and power generators into a network of them.

Could you think of a way to do that?

Anyways I imagine that way all adding and requests for energy go to that specific networks power handler.

The cables are then code wise just acting to connect things to the network, but in practice none will know the difference if you implement it correctly

 

I haven't done any tests on the claimed possibility, but I'm pretty sure it could work. Logically speaking it would work.

That's anyways ONE way to do it

 

I'm 100% sure that if you look at 3 power mods (for example IC2, RP2, BC) then you will find that they ALL do this in different ways than eachother!

[GotoLink]

  On 8/14/2013 at 3:52 PM, ss7 said:

Hello,

 

But when i have a setup like this:

 

    b1

b2 cccccc

 

b1-power=500

b2-power=500

 

c=cable

b=battery

 

Shaped like a crossroads.

 

Then the cable would also have a power of 500, but it should have a power of 1000.

 

Do you know how to make connected textures?

 

ss7

Nope. When calculating the new value, you just take every neighbour into account.

 

Here is how I would think a simple power:

Each powered part should have an internal power value, inputs and outputs.

On a regular basis, the old value is shared between the outputs, then the power value from the inputs is added to the value left. That represents the power flow.

How many inputs, outputs, and how to share, would make different pieces of the power system.

A power battery : mainly outputs, initial power value=high

A circuit : outputs and inputs in equal number, initial power value=0

An engine : mainly inputs, initial power value=0

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Ok, i think i found a pretty good solution:

 

When a block needs power, it searches for cables nearby, and when it founds the first cable, it executes the method DrawPower(int howmanypower, int theid, thepowerconsumertileentity) (the id is a random number generated in each cable, because if there was no id, it would be an endless loop, when the right cable found the left cable, the left cable found the right cable, and vice versa...) the next cable searches for the next cable and executes DrawPower and so on... And when the cable founds no cable, but a battery, it draws the power from that battery and adds it to the consumer. That works perfectly for me!

 

Thank you for your tips!

 

Can't i just check every second or so if a block is nearby and change the texture? Or can i just change the block bounds?

 

ss7

[larsgerrits]

Are you using a ISBRH or a TESR? If not, you can use the getBlockTexture method, and calculate where the blocks of the same type are, and add a texture based on the neighbour blocks.

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Can't i use the getIcon() method?

 

But i don't use a custom texture for my cable, i use the normal brick texture and set the block bounds.

And when i make my texture smaller it's not smaller in-game.

 

ss7

[ss7]

Hello,

 

OK, now i've got my TESR, but i don't if i need 16 models? Then i would need 16 custom model classes, or is there a easier way to do this?

 

ss7

[hydroflame]

*suspicious look*

why 16 model.. just use as much as you need ............

[ss7]

Hello,

 

I made my first power-consumption block with a nice progress bar for power, and a progress bar for the progress.

But i don't know how i can update my progress bar. I should be if a block is in slot 0 and 1 then update progress.

Do i need to use packets? And i've got another problem: If i shift-click a item into the slot and then shift-click it out, a ghost item remains in the slot, and when i take it out and try to right-click with it, it's gone! And i can't save the power of my machine, even if i write it to nbt  :'(. I can't even read the power value of my power-consumer and do something when it's full.

 

ss7

[ss7]

Hello,

 

I think it has something to do with de-sync of the client and the server, but i don't know a good packet tutorial, and i don't know where to put packets.

 

ss7

[Mew]

  On 8/19/2013 at 8:45 AM, ss7 said:

Hello,

 

I think it has something to do with de-sync of the client and the server, but i don't know a good packet tutorial, and i don't know where to put packets.

 

ss7

 

I would suggest this tutorial: http://www.minecraftforge.net/wiki/Advanced_Packet_Handling Its the way I do my packet handling now :3

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Yeah, i know how to send packets, but i don't know where i should send packets  :'(

 

ss7

[GotoLink]

Only two possible destinations for packets:

server and players (=clients)

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Yes, but i don't where i should send a packet in the code. At the TileEntity, the Container, or the GuiContainer?

 

ss7

[MineMaarten]

You should send packets at places where client/server can desync. This mainly is the case when parts of code are only executed by either the server (updates of electricity) or client (button press in a GUI). You then should send packets at these locations. If you're updating the electricity flow (which is in the TileEntity) and the client should know about it, send a packet there to the client (with PacketDispatcher.sendPacketToAllPlayers(Packet)). If the player presses a button in a GUI, send a packet to inform the server with a packet (with PacketDispatcher.sendPacketToServer(Packet)).

[ss7]

Hello,

 

But the electricity shows also when i don't send a packet. And that's not the problem. I think the problem is at transferStackInSlot. Should i send a packet there? And where should i send that packet?

 

ss7

[ss7]

Hello,

 

OK, i think i should send a packet when i run

inventory[i].stackSize--;

 

But where should i send the packet? To the client or to the server? And what should i do on the client or server side?

 

ss7

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Also, if i don't look at my cable, it doesn't render correctly with the connected textures. Only if i look at the cable

 

ss7

[ss7]

Hello,

 

Really, that's my only problem now, and i think you know how to solve it!

 

ss7