Viewing Page 1 of 36 (Total Entries: 3560) |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 02:05:13 PM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
Well... here I am again! After a little bit of Photoshop ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 12:46:00 PM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Rodrigo > my real name is Grégoire Duffez, and i come from France ![]() |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 12:14:20 PM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
All right, Marko, here we go again... ![]() I knew there would be some little problems like these... that's why it's better to release beta versions first! ![]() |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 09:30:34 AM |
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Name: |
Christian |
Comments: |
@Damien: I tried to post: Delivery to the following recipients failed: thefinerminer@hotmail.com Any idea what's wrong with that address? |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 09:28:10 AM |
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Name: |
Christian |
Best expert: |
75 |
Best intermediate: |
22 |
Best beginner: |
2 |
Comments: |
@Damien: Sorry, but I keep getting this: |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 09:01:05 AM |
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Name: |
Marko |
Comments: |
Another thing... The game crashes if the folder/path specified for saving the videos in doesn't exist. The high scores don't get updated when that happens, it's like you never played that game. |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 07:38:59 AM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
That's true, Marko! I forgot to remove it! ![]() ![]() Well, so... there it is the 0.71 beta! ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 07:22:34 AM |
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Name: |
Marko |
Comments: |
The 'record video' option can still be disabled through the options menu (not the options window). |
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Mar 7th 2004 at 06:57:54 AM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
Hi everybody! As I told, I finished today the inclusion of some of the features in that list I wrote here some days ago. The new features are: * Save videos of high-scores automatically. * In legal mode, make the "Record video" option always set. * Assign videos to be opened when double-clicked. * Check usage of Minesweeper Memory Reader. * Correct difference between estimated and actual times. * Generation of the board in the first click. All of them are in the newest version, released today, the 0.7 beta. Also, I included the requested DLL for download on my website, as well as some new videos. As I didn't finish the whole list yet, I didn't give the program the "final" status yet. It's also good because all of you may suggest me to change something in the added features. I ask you to be just a little bit more patient, because I am including the remaining requested features, and I will upload it soon. Just one last thing for Manu and Detrusor: I don't know your names! ![]() ![]() ![]() Well, thanks for all the suggestions! ![]() Rodrigo. |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 06:24:45 PM |
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Name: |
David Barry |
Best intermediate: |
15 |
Comments: |
Missed an est. 13.30 with 27/29 3BV finished yesterday. Arrrggggh. Haven't checked to see which board it is yet; it's not the dreamboard or my 15 (Sriram's 11) board. |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 03:35:48 PM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
I've noticed another thing i'd like to be improved in the clone.... It's about the cheat mode. I think if you play in cheat mode, the design must not be the original one (XP or 9 ![]() So, my suggestion is to change the board's design as soon as the board is finished : screenshots are also impossible to fake (except editing in paint etc...). For example changing into your own design, or adding a big CHEAT mention on the board ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 02:56:58 PM |
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Name: |
Roli |
Best expert: |
Lasse |
Best intermediate: |
Dan |
Best beginner: |
Steffen |
Comments: |
Greetings earthlings, My opinion about Rodrigo's Minesweeper Clone: All in all it's **** good work. It's perfect for practising boards with low and high 3BV's. The problem I have with it that it somehow seems too slow. In legal mode without recording and on a 2,6 GHz-Laptop it still needs about 2 sec. to start a new game after you hit a mine with the 2nd-3rd click. That's the only thing I recognised to be improveable. Keep up the good work... ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 02:06:20 PM |
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Name: |
damien |
Comments: |
@stevan: my 46 record is on a 176 board. @christian: i've cleaned up my account so it should work properly. |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 01:56:56 PM |
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Name: |
Daniel Lynch |
Best expert: |
70 x 3 |
Comments: |
It shouldn't be too long until I sub70. All this expert play makes it really hard to play intermediate anymore. On a non-minesweeper issues, well done to Ireland for beating the World Champions in rugby today. |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 09:31:12 AM |
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Name: |
Christian |
Best expert: |
75 |
Best intermediate: |
22 |
Best beginner: |
2 |
Comments: |
Does anybody have Damien Moore's E-Mail address? The one on the site isn't working for me. |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 08:16:21 AM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
Just noticed something I hadn't noticed before : This morning I got a 15.43 in NF style ( ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 08:08:55 AM |
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Name: |
Gustaf Forsman |
Comments: |
Yeah, that thing about name and stuff on the video is a great idea. Btw, what size do u guys have on your monitors and what resolution do u use. Happy sweeping |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 07:56:24 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
A guy on my website told about a minor "bug"... When you save a video, if you give the same name as an existent video, you don't have a message like "warning, a file with the name... already exist. Would you like to replace it ?" And another thing that i don't remember if someone told about : when you play a video, you should add a progress bar, and of course you must be able to re-read the video just by clicking on a "play" button Last thing : someone has said that you should personnalize the videos you're doing, to avoid having his videos stolen by someone else... Personnalize with name, date or whatever you want (it should be of course modifiable ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 07:10:15 AM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
I agree that 3BV is not THAT important for determining how difficult is a board. But I proposed to use it, as it is the only value that we can easily use to avoid ties. But I really don't care if we keep the possibility a tie, it was just an idea that came to my mind after my two "19,01" ! ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 05:19:30 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Dennis > could you email me your missed sub60 ? Thanks ![]() I have a question for you : have you been playing VERY lot of intermediate to have such times ? Can you tell me how much sub20 you have ? (and what are they ?) |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 03:21:34 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
Stevan - you partly misinterpeted what I said - different 3bv values might not have anything to do with people's style (I can vaguely see how you can argue it would but its not important), but different boards are better suited to different people's styles, so one person might play board x faster, and another might play board y faster And yes, there is a correlation between 3bv and how fast a board is (though you can't really quantify how fast a board is), but its not always the case (I think Stephan Bechtel's website has examples of this). Often very low 3bv boards are incredibly difficult to solve, so either you're very likely to lose, or you have to slow right down I'm sure most people have played a lower 3bv board than the on they got their record on since they made it, so I don't think that its a tight enough indicator for it to be used as a tie breaker |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 03:16:59 AM |
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Name: |
Dennis Lütken |
Best expert: |
68 ... x2! :-) |
Best intermediate: |
13 |
Best beginner: |
1 |
Comments: |
I know... I was supposed to QUIT playing... but with this new clone I just couldn't! It's way too great to quit now! ![]() @Georgi: I would like to see your missed est. 55! Thanks! ![]() Good luck everyone! ![]() |
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Mar 6th 2004 at 03:03:32 AM |
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Name: |
Stephan |
Comments: |
As the 3BV is only a vague indicator for the potential quality of a board, I don't agree to the tiebreaker topic. The are lots of factors, e.g. the number of openings, the number of 1- or 2-square openings etc., which manipulate the explanatory power of 3BV. |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 11:30:42 PM |
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Name: |
Lance |
Best expert: |
56 |
Best intermediate: |
13 |
Best beginner: |
1 |
Comments: |
@Stevan: leftclick/s, dblclick/s, rclick/s counters are already included, and have been for a very long time. They are under the option "show click counter" and appear at the right hand side of the grey box at the bottom of the minesweeper clone's window ![]() Happy sweeping, Lance |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 07:21:24 PM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Rodrigo, include leftclick/s, dblclick/s, rclick/s counters. Also include % finished(3bvs) beside solved 3bvs counter. |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 06:48:28 PM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Best expert: |
57 3bv167 |
Comments: |
Of course there are.... ![]() |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 06:39:50 PM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
OK, Dave, but I must tell you one thing : lower 3bv IS better chance for new record, and it doesnt have to do anything with anybody's style. I dont think there is a man here who has record on over 150 3bv board. ![]() |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 06:05:04 PM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
I disagree with the 3bv thing - lower 3bv does not necessarily mean faster, and different boards suit different people's style of play (+ you generally get higher 3bv/s on higher 3bv boards), so I think if there's a tie, then it should be a tie... |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 04:28:43 PM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
You know guys, for all this work that Rodrigo is doing for us, we had better accept this clone for competitive play. We're asking him to do a lot of work! |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 03:57:29 PM |
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Name: |
Michael S. Repton |
Best expert: |
Still 78 but I haven't played at all for a couple of weeks (I discovered a clone of Repton on the Internet) |
Comments: |
Stevan: no way, I see your point about the timer ought to start at 0 (indeed, I thought this myself a while back...) but then you lose continuity with the current version, and if you try to correct it by subtracting 1 from all existing records it will hugely confuse those who aren't in the know. |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 02:57:39 PM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
It must happen once Georgi, just keep playing ![]() |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 02:48:01 PM |
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Name: |
Georgi |
Comments: |
just missed at 52 sec with 6 clicks to finish ![]() ... estimated 55 |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 02:41:22 PM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
David, Manu is right, 1 bigger 3bv is one bigger... About timer start at zero, I THINK that it SHOULD maybe start at zero, because if you finish game in 44.23s you actually finished it in such time, 45 showed on timer will just show you that you did it sub45, understand me ppl?!? |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 02:30:05 PM |
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Name: |
David Barry |
Comments: |
Manu, I would agree if the first 3BV was 100 and the second 3BV was 180, but I think that small differences in 3BV shouldn't be used as a tiebreaker. So I would prefer that 3BV isn't used at all as a tiebreaker. |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 12:56:16 PM |
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Name: |
Gustaf Forsman |
Best expert: |
67 |
Best intermediate: |
18 |
Best beginner: |
2 |
Comments: |
I just want to say that I think the clone is brilliant. Great job Rodrigo! |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 09:45:51 AM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
Another detail that should be took into account in your clone, Rodrigo : In case of tied record, I think that the higher 3BV should give the new record. I mean that if you tie your record on a higher 3BV board that the previous record, it should be considered as your new record. I can hear everybody think : "There won't be tied records, as the time is counted to hundreth of sec !". Well, believe me if you want guys, but my first 2 sub-20 on the clone are twice the same time : 19.01 !! All I hope is that it is not a bug ( a bit like Sorin's counter that used to make lots of xx.99 times ) but just bad luck... In the best time tables, I think that 3BV should appear next to the time. In the best 3BV/sec ratio tables, the time should appear too ( and of course the faster time would be first, not only because it's a faster time but mainly because it's harder to get a high 3BV/sec ratio on low 3BV boards ). Hope it was clear... but not sure !! ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 05:07:05 AM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
Hello again, everybody! @Detrusor: I really like the idea of creating a special menu with auto recording options! It's brilliant! Specifying conditions for auto recording is something I didn't think until now. And I also agree that "timer starts at zero" should be a cheat option. At first, I didnt't realise the screenshot problem, but now I can notice it more clearly and I agree with you. @Stevan: The idea of generating the board only after the first click is very good! It obviously nulls the action of a supposed Memory Reader in a very elegant way! And it would not take some time from the player to generate the board, even if it takes 2 sec to generate it. Simply because the program would follow some steps in this order: first, would detect the release of the left mouse button. In the next miliseconds, it would distribute the mines on the board, with exception to the square clicked. Only AFTER the distribution, it would start the timer and make the opening. As you can see, the timer can start only after the distribution of the mines, what would be perfect. Maybe you guys haven't noticed how good this solution is for randomization! If it would be done the way I described, then it would never happen the "mine replacing" on the first click, understand? It's good, because the chances of findind two boards that differ by one mine, that happens in the MS version, would be effectively reduced to almost zero! Very good! I will implement it for sure! And I will also try to make the counters occupy all the bottom area, and be more distibuted. About multiplayer, I absolutely love the idea. But I think it will be a little more difficult for me to do it, and would take more time. I believe it is a good thing for doing in a future version. Again @Detrusor: I already had this idea of adding graphics and everything else... I didn't do it yet simply because it would be a little more complex than using the "notepad-style". That's also why I didn't use the classic windows style in this feature. Statistics must be somehow exported, and a good way is by copying and pasting, what is possible for the way it is now. But I fully agree with everything you said, with exception that I think that all games must be stored, and not only some that obey a criteria. I will try to make statistics more detailed also. I started working on the program yesterday night. I started by doing the "timer starts at 0" to be a cheat option, because it is the easier one. Then I went to the estimated time problem (also easy) and now I am implementing the Auto Recording options. I didn't finish it yet, but it's getting very nice! As I could predict, I think I won't find time to complete the whole list of requests of my last post until the weekend. But when I complete the Auto Recording, I will make it available for download. Then the other features will come in a second future version. Then I suppose that there will be some minor bugs (they are always there). I plan to correct them and after finally make the game "final". That's all for now. I promiss I will hurry with the modifications!! Thanks. And sorry for my long last posts! Rodrigo |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 04:17:24 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: I think that modifiable IS a word. Good work! |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 03:45:00 AM |
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Name: |
Marsh8472 |
Comments: |
http://wave.prohosting.com/mars8472/minesweeper.html |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 02:51:49 AM |
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Name: |
Stephan |
Comments: |
I've just read Detrusor's latest post, and I must say that I appreciate his suggestions very much. I'm saving lots of statistics manually as well, and I'm keeping up lots of excel graphics (maybe I should publish some files), so, of course, it would be nice to see these features automatized. Thinking about that, a main problem came up: the statistical history is nice, but of course does only cover games played on Rodrigo's clone. So, it's nearly worthless for me as I have been playing for several years, with excel sheets full of statistical data. Maybe some import function would help, but I don't dare to demand for that. |
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Mar 5th 2004 at 01:42:31 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
The night brought me some new suggestions.... I think the "History" should be improved - some (lot) of sweepers are found of statistics. And i belong to them ![]() * overall sweeping time * number of games played * % of finished games * ... - i noticed that in history the clone displays sub xx. This "xx" should be modifiable (i don't know if this word exist !). For example, i'd prefer that the clone would not count the sub40's. - considerating the statistics, i don't know if it's possible, but I'd be pleased to have some graphical stats... Check this file http://www.planete-demineur.com/stats/minesweeper.xls (which are my personal statistics), in the 'exp hist' sheet. I made some graphics : time repartition, etc... If the clone could display this kind of stats, this would be very nice !! For myself, an ideal statistic feature would be like that : 1. in the "stat options" you set the numbers a game must reach to be saved into stats, which means, for each level, a maximum time (Example : sub5, sub30 and sub100). Of course, you can modify those numbers. 2. Then the clone save all games that reach those specifications ; for each of these games, it saves its time, date, 3BV. 3. Finally, the clone displays : - all stats (numbers) : those that already exist in the History + those that i suggested - some graphical statistics : overall times repartition, time/period (day, week, etc...), 3BV/sec per period, overall 3BV repartition, and all what you can think ! (just check the .xls file, in the 'exp hist' sheet, to see what kind of graphics i'm talking about ![]() In general, i think the actual display of the History isn't ideal : a classic box would be more beautiful ![]() Such a statistics feature would be a sort of Active Statistics ![]() This is just an improvement suggestion : no need to wait for this feature to be done, to validate the clone as the standard Minesweeper version ! |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 04:42:13 PM |
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Name: |
Gergely |
Best expert: |
64 |
Best intermediate: |
22 |
Best beginner: |
2 |
Comments: |
Hello, well, I made some spam to the yahoogroup, as I was not uptodate. Sorry ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 02:36:12 PM |
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Name: |
Marko |
Comments: |
Well, one thing that comes to mind... why not have the game generate new boards over and over in short intervals (maybe every second or so) in the time between clicking the smiley and actually making the first click. It would pretty much rended the memory reader useless without putting any extra stress on the clone itself and it shouldn't be very hard to implement. This way the board is generated before you start the game, so there should be no problems with the first click. Feel free to flame... |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 11:41:11 AM |
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Name: |
Lance |
Best expert: |
56 |
Best intermediate: |
13 |
Best beginner: |
1 |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: good point about a person not being able to tell if a screenshot game started at 1 or 0. I agree that "start at 0" option should be a cheat option. I also like the separate menu for recording options idea, having the game to automatically save record screenshots and videos, and being able to set the game to automatically save screenshots/videos for games that are of a particular score/3BV or better as an option. Also, if Stevan's idea (a very good idea, Stevan) of generating the board after the first click is actually possible and wouldn't require you to completely reprogram the game, it might be worth considering. The problem I see is that if the board isn't layed out until AFTER the first click, what would happen when you make that first click? There would be no mines when you actually make that click. A good idea, but implementation might be very difficult ![]() Good discussions. I might wait to post the poll on whether to accept the clone or not until next week, so that Rodrigo has a chance to make the changes and to consider the suggestions. Happy sweeping, all! ![]() Lance |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 11:32:07 AM |
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Name: |
ravi |
Best expert: |
106 |
Best intermediate: |
25 |
Best beginner: |
6 |
Comments: |
what is the best speed for minesweeper on WINDOWS XP... |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 10:17:31 AM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Lasse could you send me your 45 clone vid on mail?!? |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 10:04:20 AM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Dave its getting memory adresses so it works only for XP and 2000 version of winmine, and generating board after first click could get no more than few milliseconds(on todays computers), isnt it so Rodrigo?!? |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 09:48:05 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: I see now! Its a good idea actually, if you're into that kind of thing. Myself, I just like to keep a video of each record breaking game. I'm kind of an amateur though. I'm sure once I've been playing for longer, I'll want to keep some videos of all my sub-whatevers to help my playing. Good idea, bud! |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 08:55:40 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
And about the memory reader - generating the board after the 1st click is a good idea but would propably take too long and be annoying Rodrigo - have you read the article about that program? I think the website is called code project but I'm not sure. There might be someway to stop it from working. Also, are the video files encryped? I imagine making an editor for them wouldn't be that difficult (not that easy either though), so maybe encryption is a good idea |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:56:20 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
As far as i can tell, the only file you need is the msvbvm60.dll file you need, I think that the .exe just creates the dll in your system folder - but if anyone knows that this is wrong, please tell me because it'd help in my quest to get the clone to run in linux |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:40:08 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
So if the otpion is enabled, you don't have the "save video' and "save screenshot" button under your board If disabled, you have both buttons |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:37:52 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Dave > you did not understood what i suggested (or i did not explain claerly ![]() Considerating the file name, i suggested time_date_3BV, but that was a suggestion, because, that's the file format i'm using !! So, i'd like to see in the options these features : - enable/disable automatic save - file name type : you can modify it, to include the time, 3BV, date, 3BV/sec...etc (any option you want) in the file name - save folder for screenshots/videos - and save conditions : with many options under/over xx 3BV, under/over xx seconds, under/over xx % of completion games, under/over xx 3BV/sec games, etc... And of course, i suggest to put all this as an OPTION, that you can disable if you want... I hope i will be fully understood then, and that Dave will agree me ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:23:09 AM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Comments: |
....five hundredth.... ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:22:54 AM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Comments: |
....five hundredth.... ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 07:19:39 AM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Comments: |
For me for example..... ![]() Just got my 500th (fife-hundreth!!!) sub70, a 58 which should've been at least another 57. I made the mistake of looking at the timer and got nervous when I saw it was at 46... 57x2 58x4 59x3 60x10 61x10 62x13 63x32 64x36 65x48 66x70 67x71 68x89 69x112 I told my friends that I would quit minesweeper if I didn't break my record before hitting 500 sub70s. I hope you guys can keep a secret. I can't stop now, after getting 2 sub60s in 3 days.... ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 06:49:50 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
Hello again, I almost forgot! I think that it would be a good idea if the clone had the date beside your personal records. Wait, maybe not. For some people, that may be a cruel reminder how long it has been since they last broke their record! ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 06:46:20 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: About your option for the clone to save each video. I think that, if anything, that should definitely be an option, not an integral part of the program. I personally don't want the clone to save every single game that I play. I don't need to load up my hard drive with useless videos of crappy times. Some people may want this feature, which is fine, but if included in the clone it should be optional. If people break their personal record, they are going to want to record it in a different folder, with a different file name than time_date_3BV.mf anyway. Same thing with the screen shots. I don't think that every game should have a screenshot saved to a folder. I do believe, however, that there should be a "Take Screenshot" button at the bottom after a game is over. (Either finished or unfinished). |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 06:24:20 AM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Detrusor you are talking about game timer, Rodrigo about counters...whats more I would like to see counters in replay video if you understand me Rodrigo, still abou counters, I wanna see them better placed, not one above other but beside, you have whole 80x20 pixels empty for it, and I wanna see multiplayer ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 06:20:21 AM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Rodrigo I think there is a good way to make memory readers impossible to use. And that way is : dont generate board after pressing F2, but after first click...simple as that, am I genius, am I ?!? ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 06:05:26 AM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Comments: |
Just missed an estimated 55 after 49secs. ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 03:52:21 AM |
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Name: |
Dion |
Best expert: |
48 -> 47 |
Comments: |
OMG FINALLLLY, Im excessively happy ![]() ![]() ![]() 3BV of 144 3.06 3BV/s 47.98 I switched my resolution to 800x600 seeing if it was any different and it definately paid off. ![]() http://diontiu.tripod.com/47.txt |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 03:51:41 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
There was/is a minesweeper clone called minesweeper 2000, i think it was hosted on geocities, which had some nice features like you could make it always open at least 10% (or maybe it was 5) of the board on your first click, and you could set it so that you couldn't die on a guess if there was nothing else you could have done (this included flagging mines so not overly helpful). But one of the best features was that it automatically took a screenshot if you beat your best time. I think that that would be a cool feature, as mentioned, and also a take screenshot option/button, that would take a screenshot and save it without having top copy and paste into paint. Preferably it would automatically use the .png format because it gives quite small files (in some cases even samller tha a tiff) with much less loss in quality than compression formats like jpg/tiff/etc About the timer - its not the size thats the problem, its the spacing between the lines, and also the relative brightness of "on" lines to "off" lines. Open winmine and your clone next to each other and you should be able to see what we mean |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 02:42:39 AM |
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Name: |
Traian |
Comments: |
I've been reading all the posts, especially the ones regarding the sweet clone... And I'm anxiously expecting for it to get official. Unfortunately, I'm not able at the moment to play that much, because my mouse became so messy, it's almost impossible to play a decent game. @Detrusor: excellent suggestions! If Rodrigo will implement what you said, it will be great. I can't wait to get my hands on a decent mouse and "get on down" ![]() OK, so keep up the really really good work Rodrigo, and everybody with brilliant ideas post every suggestion you can imagine. I'm sure the clone will soon become The Ultimate Minesweeper Game. ![]() Bye. |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 02:30:30 AM |
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Name: |
Jon S |
Best expert: |
2.82 3BV/sec |
Comments: |
Improved my best 3BV/sec for expert again. I think it was a 197 3BV-board or something. I haven't tried Rodrigo's clone yet, but I guess I'll do that soon now. If it has advantages (and no major disadvantages) over the original Minesweeper, I think it should be made the standard for WR-times and rankings. Until everything is worked out and "finalised", I think the original should still be the standard. I also think the Active Ranking should keep accepting scores on the original until (at least) the end of the 2004-season. |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 02:09:49 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
I forgot to say that all the record options i mentionned should be placed under a "record options" menu which would contain all video and screenshots options : record folder, file format name, and all record restrictions (cf under), and maybe some other options that someone else can suggest ![]() |
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Mar 4th 2004 at 02:07:02 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
I just wanted to talk about 2 features that i would be pleased to see in the clone : - i think the option "timer starts at zero" should be a cheat option, because you can't know if a screenshot (not a video) has been made with or without this option... - Rodrigo told that the "record video" option would be automatically checked. But you must always click on record video to record it. Could it be possible to add an option that allow to ALWAYS record the video, and AUTOMATICALLY save it without doing it ? For example, it saves the video in a folder THAT YOU CAN CHOSE in the options, with a file format like time_date_3BV.mvf I think this last feature would be very nice... If you add such an option, it would be also great if you could chose which videos you want to save automatically : all, all finished, all >70% finished, all under a certain time, high 3BV/sec, etc... (if possible, i would be very happy if you added the same automatic saves, but with screenshots ! with the same restrictions you've set in the options (all games, all finished etc...), and with a file name like time_date_3BV.jpg) This could avoid me doing that each time i make a sub100, high 3BV/sec, etc... What do you all think about that ? |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 07:08:29 PM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
Ok, people, I didn't have time to check the posts during the whole day, and now I found a great list of requests... I made a summary. Please correct it if there is something missing: * Give the game a "final" version. * Save videos of high-scores automatically. * In legal mode, make the "Record video" option always set. * Add Top-Ten time and 3BV/s lists to the History window. * Check decompilation and cheating. * Kind of links for the top-ten videos. * Add a way to personalise the videos. * Add a kind of correctly flagged mines counter. * Check for patterns/repeated boards. * Assign videos to be opened when double-clicked. * Correct red numbers to be shown more clearly. * Add clicks per second counters. * Check usage of Minesweeper Memory Reader. * Correct difference between estimated and actual times. * Enable MSVBVM60.EXE for download. Exceptionally this week I am not having many free time to make updates. But I will try to implement all these features until the weekend, probably. And some comments: Manu suggested to make bigger numbers for the counters. Someone suggested it before and I already did it. I believe they are the same size as Sorin's counter. I don't think it is necessary to make them even bigger. Detrusor and some others said that there is a difference sometimes between the estimated and actual times. I played literally hundreds of games and it didn't happen to me. I'm getting very curious about it and would like that, if it happens to someone, please e-mail me a screenshot, preferrably followed by the corresponding video. Stephen said the file msvbvm60.exe is necessary. I did a quick search on the internet and found one on http://www.sponkosoft.de/download/common/msvbvm60.exe . But I will upload it to the site, anyway. About the usage of Memory Readers, I think that it will be always possible to know the mines' positions using programs like that, because there is no other place to store this information unless the computer memory. Even like that, I will try to make it more "difficult" to be found. I believe this kind of program should be banned from the internet. All of its copies should be deleted! There are still no programs able to get the positions from my clone and is important that this is not stimulated. About the timer question, I compared my clone's timer to my watch and found absolutely no difference. This question is starting to make me think about giving more importance for times achieved with my clone. But my indecision is simply based on the fact that both the time lag and the 2-second-jump problems that exist in the MS version is absolutely UNFAIR. There is no way to agree that is is fair. But I still think that MS version should be still used. Still. Maybe I can change my opinion after thinking a little bit more. And finally, I think that I will give the game the "final" status after doing the above implements. Once I finish it, I will annouce here for everybody to check out. I seems that the Special Thanks list is increasing a lot!! ![]() Thanks a lot for the support again, guys! Rodrigo. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 03:55:24 PM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
If the clone is the only way to ensure that all times are standardized, regardless of which OS is used or other programs that are running, shouldn't we use that? I understand that by using winmine one might get lower scores, but that doesn't seem important if everyone isn't on the same playing field. In a sense, that gives advantages to some, while disadvantages others. What do you guys think? |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 02:26:01 PM |
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Name: |
Marko |
Comments: |
I figured that much. But obviously something has to be done about that. I'll still be using the clone as i'm on XP and the difference is next to nothing. But like you said, it could keep people from using it. So, let's hear some suggestions. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 02:14:33 PM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
Thing is that Rodrigo's clone has THE good time, but MS version timer is too slow. That is not something new, it has already been discussed many times here. The delay depends on the Windows version and on the PC configuration ( if other programs are running at the same time or not... ). As far as I can remember, the average delay is 3-5% on most PC with Win98 and 0.5% for XP. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:49:22 PM |
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Name: |
Marko |
Comments: |
I only noticed a difference of 0.5s between both timers after a 400s run. Which is nowhere near 5%. But then again, I never do anything to influence the timer. How can we decide what the right speed for the timer is? It obviously varies from pc to pc (or should i say load to load). |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:40:54 PM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
Yeah, Lasse' 41 vid actually is 43s in windows media player... ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:25:42 PM |
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Name: |
Gustaf |
Comments: |
How do I get the Sorin Counter started? |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:09:46 PM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
Even with the 0.63 version, there's still a lag after hitting a bomb or the smiley... any idea ?? Another thing : don't you think that the fact that the clone timer is 3-5% faster than the original's could encourage people to keep the MS version, if it is still allowed, just to keep a 2 sec. advantage ( for a 50 sec game ). Lasse's 45 could have been a 43 on the MS version, for exemple. ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:06:47 PM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Case > that's what i've done... but i expected that it would play the vid with only the double click. Nevermind A guy on my site told me a possible update that could be done in next versions : a progress bar for the video, allowing to move cursor into the video, if you want to see only the end of the vid for example. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 11:40:25 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
if you do what i said then it will set the folder that the clone shows when u go to play video to the folder of the video you were trying to open. so it saves you from having to search the file i guess. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 11:36:52 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
it wont auto-play the video though |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 11:35:26 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
Detrusor, to make the minesweeper clone open your videos by doubleclick: 1. double click one of the videos 2. now it should bring up a list of programs that you might want to open the file with (if you're on windows XP, you would now pick: "Select the program from a list") 3. Now a list of programs is up, make sure to enable the "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file" option. 4. Now click the Browse button and find the Minesweeper clone and hit OK. Now it should always open files of that type with the clone. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 11:20:34 AM |
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Name: |
Stevan |
Comments: |
I vote for accepting it, why not, about minesweeper reader I've tried it with original minesweeper and I've read something about it. It gets mine positions from memory, so for good programmer it would be "piece of cake" to convert it to clone, but every minesweeper game could be cheated that way ![]() ![]() About solver...I'm advancing ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 10:22:53 AM |
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Name: |
Lasse Nyholm |
Comments: |
I would like the clone, to be more of a "final" version before the scores is accepted for WR - just to make sure that there'll be no major changes of the clone after the official accept. But off course we could just take back the accept if a major change happened. So I guess we might as well accept it already - I personally think it works fine, I got a nice 45 earlier today ![]() It would just be nice if it had some sort of finished-ness about it, before the grand acceptance. Well.. see you - Lanyjé |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 09:37:02 AM |
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Name: |
Stephen Arnason |
Comments: |
@Rodrigo, I am at my school right now with time off and i just downloaded your minesweeper cloen onto the computer. however, when i try to play it says that msvbvm60.dll is missing so it can't run (it is on windows 98 i believe). for some reason, even after installing the msvbvm50.exe from your website it doesn't work until you downloaad the one with 60 in it (sixty, not to be confused with typo fifty). so yeah, if you could perhaps upload msvbvm60 on your website i would appreciate it. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 09:36:12 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: Yes, the estimated time has been noticed to be different from the actual time. Hopefully Rodrigo will fix this is his next version. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 09:34:11 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Elmar > OK, it's true... Then rodrigo should add an option to enable that double-clicking on .mvf DIRECTLY read the video in the player... I just made a 80.9 sec in expert, but the estimated time is 79.96 ??? ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 09:19:49 AM |
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Name: |
Elmar |
Comments: |
@Detrusor: If he changes the video format to avi, we will have the old problem with video editing. On the other hand I agree that it would be more convenient to handle.... ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 09:16:13 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Comments: |
Why not use it for the AR??? Its pretty obvious that the game works as well as the original. Besides, the AR works on the honour system anyway. The community just trusts people to submit honest scores, as no screenshots, etc are needed for the AR. |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 08:45:15 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
Ok, now you definitely have to allow it for AR - I'm hideously out of practise (best recent times of 23-88, but havent played much), and I got an 18 on a 34 3bv board, shame I wasn't recording |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 08:13:05 AM |
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Name: |
Dave Morgan |
Comments: |
I've been using windows this afternoon (yuck ![]() I would like to see a couple of features from Sorin's programs though - time to the nearest second during them game, but then display the time to the nearest 100th after the game (the current time to the nearest tength option is off putting). I'd actually rather see the time in the standard MS style format at the top (it would also be good if you could make it look the same, as mentioned before), and the more accurate time at the bottom The other thing I'd like to see is a click per second count, which as far as I can tell isn't present at the moment As for being fake-proof, I've not tried to cheat yet, except by downloading the minesweeper memory reader program, which doesn't work with the clone, but gives a message saying it couldnt find minesweeper. That doesn't mean that it wouldn't be easy to convert the memory reader program to convert the clone though (I imagine it would be, but I'm no expert on the w32 api). On a side note, its interesting to use the memory reader program to see how the board changes when you click on where there should have been a mine with your first click (I'm not convinced that posting about that program is a good idea, but since 2 people have posted links to it before I guess its ok) |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 05:53:59 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
last thing : about the timer... I think it's less clear than MS' one : the parts of the red numbers are more far (from each other) in your version than in MS's one. I made a 88 which is not as easy to read as MS's is... I don't know if it's clear, but i hope that you understood me |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 05:42:36 AM |
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Name: |
Detrusor |
Comments: |
Rodrigo > is it possible to convert the video into a .avi file ? Cause i think it's easier to be able to open the video just by double clicking the file, instead of opening first minesweeper clone, and then opening the file... Maybe it's possible to directly play the video (with minesweeper clone) when you double click on the file, but i don't know how. If not possible, can you add such an option ? |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 03:14:45 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
bah crap, really need to be able to edit. figured out why as i was posting... all the squares i open are on borders of open spaces. duh. i suck lol |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 03:12:53 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
ah playin for a while now, found something strange... sometimes when i die fast the game says i solved 0 3bv and so the estimated time/3bv per sec is 0. Any idea why rodrigo? Playing in normal mode, timer set to start at 0. Screenshot: http://198.37.17.182/minesweeper/bwah.jpg |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 02:42:11 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
oop i forgot why i originally came to post! My hunt for sub60 is back on, just lost at 54s with 10 squares to clear. BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!! |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 02:39:46 AM |
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Name: |
Case |
Comments: |
@Manu: make sure to download the newest version up now. The lag problem is gone as far as i can tell. Used to slow me down a few secs from lag, but i just played it on the new version and it seems to be perfect. @Lance: Dont know if i want to be one of the "alternative" players ![]() ![]() @Rodrigo: Your latest version of the clone absolutely rules. So close to the original I cant tell the difference. I think the only thing that really remains before it gets accepted is some of the council ppl taking time out to play it a lot, and someone to test expert/intermediate for patterns/repeat boards. ![]() |
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Mar 3rd 2004 at 01:37:48 AM |
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Name: |
Manu |
Comments: |
I've tried to play with Rodrigo's clone last night, and here is what I think : The most annoying thing is that there is a delay after each click, a bit like when I used Camtasia with "true colors" ( maybe is it just me ?? ) I love Rodrigo's idea to add a table with all 10 best times and 3BV/sec ratios for each level. It would be even better to add ( at least for the best times and 3BV/sec ratios ) an automatically saved video, as someone suggested. Why not adding also a link in the "High score windows" directly to the videos of the games, and another link to a stats windows including 3BV, number of clicks, etc... Would it be possible to personnalise the videos ? I mean that what is written in the congratulations box when you finish your best game could be integrated directly on the video, to avoid that other people use your own vids ( not that anybody will ever be interested in MY videos but... ![]() I would also appreciate the stats numbers to be bigger, I remember someone already mentionned that. And, I don't know if I am the only one to do that, but after each good game, I'm used to have a look on the vid to see what is the number of mines unflagged at the end of the game ( in my case it can go to 20 to 70 on an expert game !! ). It would be great if it could be integrated to the stats, or maybe the mine counter could NOT go directly to "99" after the last click. Well, suggestions are easy to make, but I guess that it can be complicated to change all that in the next version ! What do you think of all that guys ? ![]() |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 10:00:59 PM |
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Name: |
Lance |
Best expert: |
56 |
Best intermediate: |
13 |
Best beginner: |
1 |
Comments: |
Ok, this is a good start! I'm glad to see the conversation and discussion is moving along. I think more people need to play it, if they haven't already, even if they don't plan on using it, so we can have more people with informed opinions (a big thanks to the posters thus far, having tested it and compared it to the original). Good questions have been raised: 1) for the programers out there, has anyone tried to decompile the clone? Tried to use the board predicting program that is available on the net? 2) for the cheaters out there, umm, I mean, for those people who enjoy alternative ways of achieving records: have you tried to cheat on the clone? have you succeeded? Obviously this question goes to everyone out there who is hammering at the clone to find holes in order to help the community ![]() ![]() Alright, we have good progress so far, let's keep it going! Happy sweeping, all! Lance |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 06:14:54 PM |
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Name: |
Rodrigo |
Comments: |
@Stephen, Marko and Dave: That's true! ![]() ![]() ![]() By the way, I am very happy for seeing that my clone is beeing well accepted by the community. But I believe it is getting nice because of all the help from you guys! ![]() I am not having a single minute for doing updates this week, and I am hardly checking my e-mails. But I am plannig to add two "top-ten" lists in the history window: one for the best times and one for the highest 3BV/s values reached. This would be shown for each level, beg, int and exp. What do you think? Ah, and to correct the estimated time, of course! About accepting its scores to the AR, I can't say too much! My vote is... YES, of course! ![]() ![]() But I don't see any problem with using it also for the Best-Ever. At least at first sight. As you can see, I am far from beeing in any of these lists. My scores can make most of you laugh, but I think I can give my opinion anyway. I totally agree with Lance when he says that there must exist a good discussion about this subject, until a probable poll near the next weekend. I believe it is an important thing that this decision comes from all the community. It is good also to get your opinions about what else to add to the program, what changes to be made, etc. Thanks a lot, people! ![]() Rodrigo. |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 04:54:41 PM |
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Name: |
Stephen |
Best expert: |
66 |
Best intermediate: |
18 |
Best beginner: |
2 |
Comments: |
The time is indeed off by a second, i guess the time that the 3bv/s counter starts at zero, while the red timer starts at 1. maybe this is something to fix, Rodrigo? |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 04:19:49 PM |
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Name: |
Stephen Arnason |
Best intermediate: |
18 |
Comments: |
finally broke the record by 1 second... however i didn't record it (darn it). have a screen shot though, as well as a .mrb (minesweeper reader file) |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 03:20:41 PM |
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Name: |
Marko Jeznik |
Comments: |
@Dave: the est. time is always off by one second, at least on my computer, and I figured it's because the timer starts at 1.00s... Feel free to correct me, anyone. |
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Mar 2nd 2004 at 02:41:17 PM |
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Name: |
Dave Matson |
Best expert: |
99 |
Best intermediate: |
29 |
Best beginner: |
4 |
Comments: |
First of all, I have to say that I love the clone. I think that the pros for the program far outweigh the cons. (Especially since the new skins!) It plays really smoothly, in fact, I can't even tell the difference between the clone and the real thing! Also, there is less of a lag at the end of a game, before you actually find out that you screwed up. (In comparison to 0.54 beta). I do have a question to all who have used the clone. Once you have finished a game, do you notice that your real time in the top-right is never the same as your estimated time? Is it just my computer, or is this part of the program? By the way, I think it was Lance that wanted to see what everyone thought about using the clone in the AR and for world records. (Not that I'll ever get a world record...) I think that for the time being, we should at least allow it for the AR. It seems that most of the obvious bugs have been worked out. As for world records, it's a tough call. We'll have to decide if we'll ONLY accept winmine, ONLY accept the clone, or accept both. The choice of those three lies in the purpose of the clone. One of the main purposes of the clone is to help get rid of cheating. If the clone actually does what it says it does, then it sounds like using the clone is the only way to get rid of cheating. (What happened to the good old days?) If the purpose of the clone is just a toy to have fun with the cheat mode, then there is no purpose to accepting these scores for world records. In any case, its a tough decision. If using the clone is the only way to ensure that no one cheats, then the clone should be the only accepted game. It seems that there are more people coming around saying that they've tied or broken the world record. (Not to mention any names.) If we decide to only accept times reached on the clone, then we ONLY accept times reached on the clone. That's it. Then there is no disputing any score, no matter how silly it is. (most of the game NF, the rest flagging, ahem.) There are likely many people out there that would like to argue some of the points mentioned above, which is good. I agree with Lance, and think that much discussion has to happen in order to help us reach an agreement. |
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