2021-09-19 - Maintainer Meeting Notes

Info

Any decisions taken in these notes may no longer be applicable.

Attendees:
Paul
Smug
Silver
Vera
PJB
Shadow
Mirrorcult

Overall Summary

Next Meeting Items:

  • have a moderator
  • buy pjb a MoMMI plushie for the meetings
  • less ideaguying, more concrete topics

Action Items:

  • combat and disarm shouldn’t be actions
  • PJB fix UI (or anyone else)
  • multi hotbar (switching with shift+num) should be optional, so it isn’t used accidentally.
  • add the ability to perform actions from the Action List Menu
  • Resolve should assert UIDs match in debug only.
  • Code wide-chat.
  • add as an optional UI style.
  • Code Shuttles first. Revisit this after.
  • Fix Ui for lathes and research
  • Investigate better research server sync mechanic
  • Delete research code. Maybe from memory too
  • Investigate KSP style point return
  • Investigate Point Types
  • Balance point receiving mechanics.
  • Add Debug Only UI for errors. Make it on HUD and hard to miss on debug
  • Enforce naming things OnX instead of HandleX. Use OnEntityEvent vs HandleEntityEvent etc
  • Investigate how shuttles would be created.
  • Shuttles should be able to fly and warp between z levels
  • Investigate Shuttlebombing as a problem.
  • admin tools and logging
  • EU/US Biweekly playtests.
  • split game admins to EU/US
  • Three month limit on progress reports.
  • Two month minimum for progress reports.
  • Fix Slow Tests. Fix Test framework to be fast and cancer free
  • Write Docs on how to write Tests
  • what should have required tests: medium to large changes, systemchanges
  • Write docs for ss13 dev transitioning like system xyz and you or byond to C# for byond refugees
  • YAML Real time Linter. Language server
  • GOTO YAML
  • XAML Linter hot reloading, Previewing
  • Fluent Linter
  • Custom editor for yaml prototypes/constructiongraphs.
  • worldline debugging
  • save states
  • test pooling

Individual Discussions

Action Bar

Summary: Actions should be used for item actions & spells etc. Combat & Disarm just dont really belong there.

Discussed Items:

  • using is a pain (especially combat & disarm action)
  • combat is so specific it should just be a button
  • alt click should be disarm in combat mode
  • ui broken (pjs fault)
  • Having to bind “scream” (for example) to the bar to use it is dumb. Specially if you’re only gonna use it once or on special occasions.

Action Items:

  • combat and disarm shouldn’t be actions
  • PJB fix UI (or anyone else)
  • multi hotbar (switching with shift+num) should be opt in so it isn’t used accidentally.
  • being able to perform actions from the Action List Menu

(18:12 – People distracted by SS14 in-game chess)(they lost btw) (18:16 – PJB can smell her dinner already. Oh no.)

Entity System Method Resolves

Summary: Everyone agreed that ES resolution works fine now. Resolve testing only in debug should assert matching UIDs between server and client.

Discussion Items:

  • Everyone seems to agree that this is the cleanest way to do it?
  • resolve should assert that the entity UIDs match so components don’t get mixed. (but only in debug!!)

Action Items:

  • Resolve asserting UIDs match in debug.

Wide-chat UI

Summary: code it as an option, leave it off by default, evaluate maybe making it default later.

Action Items:

  • Code wide-chat.
  • add as an optional UI style.

Salvage Crew

Summary: Code Shuttles. Revisit afterwards.

Discussion Items:

  • do we really wanna focus on this right now?
  • probably want shuttles & docking first

Action Items:

  • Code Shuttles first. Revisit this after.

Research

Summary: Code Shuttles. Revisit afterwards.

Discussion Items:

  • UI for lathes and research is bad
  • the code and syncing with the server is bad
  • ctrl+a backspace the code
  • can I ctrl+a backspace it from my memory?
  • KSP-style diminishing point returns?
  • different types of points?
  • avoid continuous points source or make sure they’re not op

Action Items:

  • Fix Ui for lathes and research
  • Investigate better research server sync mechanic
  • Delete research code. Maybe from memory too
  • Investigate KSP style point return
  • Investigate Point Types
  • Balance point receiving mechanics.

(18:27 – pjb announces there is a meteor swarm (AND CARP) on station)(now xenos)

Exception tolerance in debug

Summary: We need a debug ui that shows errors

Discussion Items:

  • a debug-only ui that shows the errors that occur (make it obvious)
  • yes exception tolerance

Action Items:

  • Add Debug Only UI for errors. Make it on HUD and hard to miss on debug

Minor formatting naming like OnEntityEvent vs HandleEntityEvent.

Summary: Format Naming Discussion for OnX vs HandleX prefixes. Use OnX.

Discussion Items:

  • on- because it’s shorter

Action Items:

  • Enforce naming things OnX instead of HandleX. Use OnEntityEvent vs HandleEntityEvent etc

Shuttle

Summary: Investigate Creation, Flying, Warping and Shuttlebombing.

Discussion Items:

  • how would players create a shuttle?
  • cargo shuttle should be autonomous/untamperabler
  • shuttles should be able to fly and “warp” (go between z levels)
  • not sure how to handle remote shuttle control. Necessary for latejoin miners but abusable if shuttle not static (can get lost)
  • shuttle bombing limited damage

Action Items:

  • Investigate how shuttles would be created.
  • Shuttles should be able to fly and warp between z levels
  • Investigate Shuttlebombing as a problem.

Scheduling Playtests

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

  • our current game admins are… slightly uncommited
  • we desperately need admin tools & logs
  • we’re not building a community, but recruiting admin ties into this
  • we should get a roadmap to see when we’re ready for building a community?
  • do one us & one eu time, biweekly
  • split eu and us game admin

Action Items:

  • admin tools and logging
  • EU/US Biweekly playtests.
  • split game admins to EU/US

progress reports

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

  • PJB proposed smaller progress reports every now and then
  • Having a “max amount of time between progress reports” was discussed
  • Releasing a progress report before playtests was discussed
  • need better way to keep track of stuff for progress reports
  • robust film maker ???

Action Items:

  • Three month limit on progress reports.
  • Two month minimum for progress reports.

(19:11 – PJB mentioned how Unitystation gets more upvotes than us on Reddit. All hell broke loose.)

(19:15 – Vote is held for progress report time. using discord reactions :clap: :clap:) result: six weeks won with 7 votes. or not ok MORE wins 2months

(19:20 – PJB screwed up the voting reaction order, we just realized. Some people voted wrongly due to this. Laughs were had. curtains roll, exit stage left. )

(19:24 – PJB: “Discord screwed up the order don’t blame me”)

(19:25 – PJB said “I’m hungry” and left. Just like that.)

CI/Testing

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

  • Speed is a concern with CI. Integration tests are very slow. But why are they slow: because they we reuse the server -> we need to have a possiblity to reset the server instead of making a new one they are also not pooled/multithread.
  • they are also ass to write, which means its alot of effort. write docs on how to write tests
  • make it not cancer

Action Items:

  • Fix Slow Tests. Fix Test framework to be fast and cancer free
  • Write Docs on how to write Tests
  • what should have required tests: medium to large changes, systemchanges

Reaching out to (ss13) devs

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

  • mirror wants to make docs specifically for ss13 devs: here is what it looks like in byond, here is what it looks like in ss14. helping devs transitions
  • passively attract devs by helping them transition, dont poach people
  • more “system xyz & you”

Action Items:

  • Write docs for ss13 dev transitioning like system xyz and you or byond to C# for byond refugees

Tooling!!!! that doesnt suck ass

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

  • yaml goto, real time linter. language server
  • xaml linter, (preview), hotreload, not make it ass for vs, automatically call robustxamlloader.load(this)
  • ref events are ass to work with have an analyzer/attribute? name it a specific way?
  • ftl linter, markup
  • editor for yaml, prototypes, constructiongraphs. in-engine? per command?
  • worldline debugging (@pjb)
  • save state of game to save ourselves from redoing testing enviroments all the time
  • do a doc in ss14docs for this (tooling ideas)
  • TEST POOLING (WIP)

Action Items:

  • YAML Real time Linter. Language server
  • GOTO YAML
  • XAML Linter hot reloading, Previewing
  • Fluent Linter
  • Custom editor for yaml prototypes/constructiongraphs.
  • worldline debugging
  • save states
  • test pooling

Roadmap

Summary: Playtest Scheduled for every two weeks. We will have US/EU seperated.

Discussion Items:

Action Items:

  • Law !@#!$>.
  • Admin tools and logging
  • Test suite fix
  • Debugging (Debug ui, exception tolerance in debug)
  • Tooling suite
  • medbay
  • traitor

Conclusion

Summary: for the next meeting, maybe have a moderator and less ideaguying, more concrete topics

Discussion Items:

Action Items:

  • for the next meeting, maybe have a moderator
  • buy pjb a MoMMI plushie for the meetings
  • less ideaguying, more concrete topics

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