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Suggestions for improvements in forms - 3/16/2021 9:10:31 AM

Angeldust2

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I was really excited and thankful to Steve, when he announced and showed some small improvements in already existing forms. An example from December 2019 is the number of losses in CONV and PIL in the Destroyed Pool. Another example would be the increased number of units to be shown in one window without needing sliders. Thanks a lot for these small enhancements, Steve!

I would like to ask for considering more of such small, unspectacular, but most likely not too complicated improvements:
1. In the main menu, there is a lot of important info displayed, when you move the mouse cursor around the map. For example, in named hexes you get displayed ressources, factories and minor/major port distinction. But you do not get the info, if it contains a city or not? Which has strong implications on combat, stacking, supply, etc. So in the moment I have to remove all units from the map view quite often to check for cities.
2. Sometimes messages appear, mentioning certain units, for example when they get placed, get destroyed, are put in construction or repair pool, etc. It would be nice, if the message does not only display the "name" of the unit, but also the type. So it would be "MIL K�nigsberg" destroyed, not "K�nigsberg" destroyed. Or "CVL Triumph" added to Construction Pool, not just "Triumph".
3. When you have to decide on roles for CVP in Naval Air Combat, you cannot see neither your own LBA taking part in this battle nor CVP with a-t-a only, which can act as fighter only. It would be very helpful for decision making, if these other own forces would be displayed at the same time.
4. The lendlease form needs the same functionality as the scrap form. In the scrap form, you can first mark several units of a category and only after you scrap them all with one button push. In the lendlease form you cannot do so, you have to first mark and then lend/not lend them all individually. In the later scenarios there are a lot of air units to be lendleased or not. Try to set-up the 1944 Decline and Fall scenario several times and you will understand my request.

What other suggestions for small form enhancements do you have?

Post #: 1

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 3/16/2021 1:31:02 PM

Joseignacio

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Post #: 2

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 3/17/2021 12:51:17 AM

ViktorKormel

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Joined: 1/1/2015
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I�ve got one but I�m afraid that is not easy to code. I would love to simulate attacks in land movement phase. It would be very useful you could see the attack odds and modifiers, saving mental calculations and tables checks.

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RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 8/26/2021 8:41:15 AM

Angeldust2

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5. In some forms there are warning hints and sometimes you need to confirm first, before you close a form with OK. One example is, if you are going to scrap valuable units like HQ or ENG.

Such a warning and an additional confirmation first would be nice too for the Use Oil form
a) when you are going to use/expend the last saved oil, as after that you might not longer be able to reorganise any oil-dependant units, not even for 0.45 oil for free each turn, as long as you have 1 oil saved
b) when you are closing the form (unintended) by pushing OK, while you still have oil and disorganised units left

< Message edited by Angeldust2 -- 12/8/2021 5:52:03 PM >

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Post #: 4

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/8/2021 5:56:02 PM

Angeldust2

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6. In the set-up tray form, you have to assign pilots to a certain number of air units of each type. If you click on such a unit, it shows "ready". This status cannot be undone. Would be nice, if you could still change your mind, and choose a different unit instead.

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Post #: 5

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/8/2021 8:25:53 PM

Joseignacio

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7- [Solved, it does show you the units if you had the flyout on] Then you select "hide units", to see the land you are going to move, attack , etc., you no longer get info on which units are there, it would be nice if there was a small form with the units of the stack that lies in the hex you are pointing on, aside. If you move your cursor, the image would change to that hex's stack. This works well in some Vassal WIF CE modules.

All the same, whether this can be done or not, a shortcut for this would be very desirable, you need to do this a lot of times in a game.

< Message edited by Joseignacio -- 2/19/2022 1:07:34 PM >

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Post #: 6

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/8/2021 8:27:06 PM

Joseignacio

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From: Madrid, Spain
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deleted

< Message edited by Joseignacio -- 12/8/2021 8:28:05 PM >

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Post #: 7

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/8/2021 10:50:46 PM

paulderynck

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

7-Then you select "hide units", to see the land you are going to move, attack , etc., you no longer get info on which units are there, it would be nice if there was a small form with the units of the stack that lies in the hex you are pointing on, aside. If you move your cursor, the image would change to that hex's stack. This works well in some Vassal WIF CE modules.

All the same, whether this can be done or not, a shortcut for this would be very desirable, you need to do this a lot of times in a game.

The Flyouts still work when units are hidden. Since this can be toggled between Naval Review and the normal land Flyout, you need to double-click on an empty hex (best done before you hide the units) to ensure Flyouts are "on".

There's also the Units in Hex form which can be brought up with CTRL-H, but it also toggles with double-click on land versus sea, and seems a bit unpredictable when used with Flyouts as well.

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Post #: 8

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/9/2021 9:23:20 AM

juntoalmar

Posts: 601
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From: Valencia
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Undo function for the form where you spend oil to reorganise units.

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Post #: 9

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/9/2021 1:57:37 PM

Joseignacio

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quote:

ORIGINAL: paulderynck

quote:

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

7-Then you select "hide units", to see the land you are going to move, attack , etc., you no longer get info on which units are there, it would be nice if there was a small form with the units of the stack that lies in the hex you are pointing on, aside. If you move your cursor, the image would change to that hex's stack. This works well in some Vassal WIF CE modules.

All the same, whether this can be done or not, a shortcut for this would be very desirable, you need to do this a lot of times in a game.

The Flyouts still work when units are hidden. Since this can be toggled between Naval Review and the normal land Flyout, you need to double-click on an empty hex (best done before you hide the units) to ensure Flyouts are "on".

There's also the Units in Hex form which can be brought up with CTRL-H, but it also toggles with double-click on land versus sea, and seems a bit unpredictable when used with Flyouts as well.

Didnt know that, thanks. The shortcut would still be good but not so necessary in this case because you dont need to alternate both views constantly to see a certain area, but it would still save some time.

< Message edited by Joseignacio -- 12/9/2021 1:58:36 PM >

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Post #: 10

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/12/2021 2:31:37 PM

TrogusP96

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I would like to add my thanks to AngelDust2 opening remark starting this thread that I really appreciate all the work done to bring this game to life and the continuing. I could never have enjoyed it again if it had to be set up on a table etc.Thanks Steve. To a person who knows nothing about programming it always seemed that an advantage of a computer versions of board games is that you are not locked into the original printed format and it can more readily evolve with experience.It's been interesting to follow this effort.

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RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/12/2021 2:39:06 PM

TrogusP96

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RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 12/14/2021 10:37:25 PM

Shannon V. OKeets

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Angeldust2

6. In the set-up tray form, you have to assign pilots to a certain number of air units of each type. If you click on such a unit, it shows "ready". This status cannot be undone. Would be nice, if you could still change your mind, and choose a different unit instead.

You can undo your choice. I think it is Right Click on the selected unit. - It's in the documentation on the Setup Tray.

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RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/14/2022 12:31:50 PM

Joseignacio

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8- When you have to return both sides' planes after a Gstr or Gsupp the screen changes to Return to Base, if you do not realize that the flag is your opponent's or you dont pay attention to your WIF knowledge that the attacker returns first you may be tempted to RTB your defender planes when it is not your turn yet, the game allows, then hangs. It would be good that it didnt allow it, we had to reload already 3 times by my mistakes in this. Same happens with declaring battles, you can declare a batttle with the JA while it's the GE stage, fortunately this doesnt seem to bring hangs.

Edit: Fourth time now

< Message edited by Joseignacio -- 2/19/2022 9:49:51 AM >

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Post #: 14

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/19/2022 11:17:43 AM

Joseignacio

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9- In the oil consumptin phase, the game tells you that if less than 0.5 remains you need to spend the whole oil resource. However, the game works like if you need to spend it if less than 0.6 remains (i.e. 0,5), not less than 0.5.

Dont know well which of the two is correct but it would be good that they were coherent with each other, else you can spend oil you wouldnt have, and there is no cancel for oil assignation, need to reload several subphases back. Final Production phase maybe.

< Message edited by Joseignacio -- 2/19/2022 11:44:48 AM >

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Post #: 15

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/19/2022 11:41:10 AM

Joseignacio

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10 - When you are in a naval combat, you cannot see what is the final result of the attack of your opponent after applying surprise. Of course you can go to the table and make it yourself, but it would be nice to have an idea before the program rolls for an X that you possibly didnt know there was.

11- In the deploying production screen, first I got this screen with a green button, I dont know what would have happened if I had pressed it, for it wasnt my turn. Then, you get false info and you may think or doubt if the game has hanged, because the screen tells you your opponent is removing air, a matter of seconds, while in truth he is deploying which may take minutes. Changing the name would be much more clear.

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Post #: 16

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/19/2022 12:32:09 PM

Centuur

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

9- In the oil consumptin phase, the game tells you that if less than 0.5 remains you need to spend the whole oil resource. However, the game works like if you need to spend it if less than 0.6 remains (i.e. 0,5), not less than 0.5.

Dont know well which of the two is correct but it would be good that they were coherent with each other, else you can spend oil you wouldnt have, and there is no cancel for oil assignation, need to reload several subphases back. Final Production phase maybe.

I don't understand this. MWIF works correctly, IMHO. If an oil point has 0,5 point or less left after reorganisation, you have to spend it. If an oil point has more left, you can voluntarily spend it.

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RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/19/2022 1:01:46 PM

Joseignacio

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From: Madrid, Spain
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12 As we all know, one of the most usual place for the game to hang is in the naval battles. We try to save as much as possible, not to have to recreate so many rolls.

But sometimes we simply dont know whether the game is hanged in one of those, or our opponent is thinking. If you are not talking but messaging it can be disturbing to be asking all the time in this and other cases as well

In the image, my opponent was thinking, but there were two flags in the image and I didnt know if it was his turn or mine but the game was hanged...

Or maybe I cannot interpretate the flags meaning well. Maybe I skipped that point, where can I see how that flags inform us of the sequence of subphases and who is supposed to act?

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Post #: 18

RE: Suggestions for improvements in forms - 2/19/2022 1:05:46 PM

Joseignacio

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From: Madrid, Spain
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quote:

ORIGINAL: Centuur

quote:

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

9- In the oil consumption phase, the game tells you that if less than 0.5 remains you need to spend the whole oil resource. However, the game works like if you need to spend it if less than 0.6 remains (i.e. 0,5), not less than 0.5.

Dont know well which of the two is correct but it would be good that they were coherent with each other, else you can spend oil you wouldnt have, and there is no cancel for oil assignation, need to reload several subphases back. Final Production phase maybe.

I don't understand this. MWIF works correctly, IMHO. If an oil point has 0,5 point or less left after reorganisation, you have to spend it. If an oil point has more left, you can voluntarily spend it.