We need suggestions for software collaberation tools (also we can still use another artist)

[lancelotdulak]

We're doing a dmd/big brother ISH game. We need a good collaberation tool that allows us to share and permanently store a: general files.. graphics w thumbs would be nice... software.. something like a mini Git.. preferably with a chat function but we can use discord for that... Any suggestions would be helpful as the net is inundated with sales cockroachs pushing their management software or bullshit crap dev software tha doesnt even tell you the features.. just tries to sell it to some low iq business major. Any help would be appreciated. Hard to inspire my coder and writer posting one image at a time that goes poof

 

[I'm Not Thea Lundgren!]

Try something like Dropbox or OneDrive along with Discord, you all always have the latest version of the files and Discord keeps you in touch.

I use Visio and Project to keep track of my game, but they're expensive for every team member to have.

You could also use GitLab for your files; just remember to make the project private.

 

[anne O'nymous]

Any help would be appreciated.

It depend of what you can do.

It goes from a full online forge service, like

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that have a free offer (just remember to mark your project as private like said by I'm Not Thea Lundgren! ), to the same totally hosted by you, with by example

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, an Open Source forge project.
You can also split the task. You can have a private forum or mailing list for the communication ; there's many available for free, and some ISP also offer a support for your own mailing lists.

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for the bug tracking, and something like

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as software versioning ; both can be hoster either locally (but beware of the possible security issues), or externally.


This being said, is the problem effectively located at this point ?

Hard to inspire my coder and writer posting one image at a time that goes poof

It looks more like a motivation issue, or perhaps a process issue, than something else.
They should both know exactly what you expect from them, and how many time they have to deliver.

The writer should have a script telling him what the scene should be. Something like :

This is a scene where the MC will enter his work office, talk with the secretary. He'll have the possibility to greet her neutrally, to be charming, or to be rude.
By default there X CGs planed for this scenes :

• The MC entering the office and seeing both his desk and the secretary desk at the left
• The MC shift his head and now look directly at the secretary desk
• The MC going to the secretary, while she's busy working and don't see him approach
• [...]
• If the MC is charming, there will be a CG of the secretary starting to blush and looking on the side
• If the MC is rude, there will be a CG of the secretary lowering her eyes, but visibly angry
• [...]

Then, the writer will extend the script into an effective narration/dialog scenario, and return you something like :

[CG] MC entering the office
[MC thought] "Yet another day at works."
[CG] MC now look at the secretary
[MC thought] "at least the view is pleasing."
[...]
[A CHOICE HERE]

• [NEUTRAL CHOICE] "Hello"
  [MC] "It's a good day, isn't it ?"
  [SECRETARY] "Yes"
  [...]
• [CHARMING CHOICE] "Seeing you is always the first pleasure of my day"
  [SECRETARY] "Oh, mister..."
  [CG] The secretary blush and look on the side
  [MC THOUGHT] "Oh, she's blushing"
  [MC] "It's even more beautiful when you're blushing."
  [ADDED CG] The secretary blush even more
  [...]
• [RUDE CHOICE] "Have you finally finish what I asked for two days ago ?"
  [CG] The secretary lower her eyes, and looks angry
  [SECRETARY] "Yes mister. I'm sorry, I should have finished it earlier."
  [...]

[...]

You'll edit the script to replace the CG descriptions by the name that you'll give them, and add the instructions for the coder :

[CG] CH1_MC_ENTER_OFFICE
[MC thought] "Yet another day at works."
[CG] CH1_MC_LOOK_SECRETARY
[MC thought] "at least the view is pleasing."
[...]
[A CHOICE HERE]

• [NEUTRAL CHOICE] "Hello"
  [MC] "It's a good day, isn't it ?"
  [SECRETARY] "Yes"
  [...]
• [CHARMING CHOICE | ONLY IF MC's CHARM > 5] "Seeing you is always the first pleasure of my day"
  [SECRETARY] "Oh, mister..."
  [CG] CH1_MC_CHARMING_BLUSH1
  [MC THOUGHT] "Oh, she's blushing"
  [MC] "It's even more beautiful when you're blushing."
  [CG] CH1_MC_CHARMING_BLUSH2
  [...]
• [RUDE CHOICE] "Have you finally finish what I asked for two days ago ?"
  [CG] CH1_MC_RUDE_ANGRY
  [SECRETARY] "Yes mister. I'm sorry, I should have finished it earlier."
  [...]

[...]

Then you pass the script to the coder, and he'll turn that into code without need for further instruction since he already know perfectly what game mechanism you want.

In the end, the coder deliver the code for this scene, and you integrate it to the game.

For this, a software versioning is enough. Just define the following tags :

• RAW
  It's for the original script of the game, the one you wrote to tell what the story is and what the scenes are.
  When the writer have done his job for a scene, he change the tag to the next one.
• DRAFT
  Here, you comment the narration/dialog, the write correct it, and so on.
  Once you come to a compromise, you change the tag to the next one.
• WROTE
  It's where the coder take the script he'll have to turn into code.
  Once he'd done it, he change the tag to the next one.
• PRE
  You take the code, test it, signal the bug you noted during your test, the coder correct them.
  Once the code is fine, you change the tag to the next one.
• FINAL
  It's the code you've to integrate into the game

Each document having its revision number, everyone know precisely what have be done, what is yet to be done, and all. And you can couple this with a mailing list to avoid to only communicate through the comments, and/or to explain more explicitly what the comments mean.

 

[79flavors]

My recommendations would be for software to manually keeping your source code and files in sync with your collaberators, if you don't want to use tools like

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.

• You must be registered to see the links
  - a bit like google drive or microsoft's onedrive. Can include
  You must be registered to see the links
  .
• You must be registered to see the links
  - simple way of keeping your main project folders separate from the sync'd/shared folders.
• You must be registered to see the links
  - Compare your source code/images with someone else's version.
• You must be registered to see the links
  - Very basic version of what BeyondCompare3 does, but as an online website instead.

Using these, or tools like these, you can keep a shared version of your project separate from "main" project folders. So you can preview what other people have done before you merge them back into your master copy of the project. You could share the project folders directly, but that risks some arsehole getting upset with your or the project and deliberately doing bad thing to the source code.

In my mind, I would initially create a full copy of my project and share that copy using syncthing. Then use BeyondCompare to compare and merge that shared copy with my "main" project file as needed. freefilesync and diffchecker aren't strictly needed for this way of doing things, but at least offer some alternatives.

This is all theoretical to me, I don't work this way.

 

[anne O'nymous]

In my mind, I would initially create a full copy of my project and share that copy using syncthing. Then use BeyondCompare to compare and merge that shared copy with my "main" project file as needed. freefilesync and diffchecker aren't strictly needed for this way of doing things, but at least offer some alternatives.

That's what software versioning are for.
Basically speaking, they keep an integral copy of the original file, then only keep a diff for the updates. Like each update have their own version number, at any time you can reverse to a previous version ; whatever to check something or because it was finally better.
Therefore, they natively and automatically do all what you said.

 

[79flavors]

That's what software versioning are for.
Basically speaking, they keep an integral copy of the original file, then only keep a diff for the updates. Like each update have their own version number, at any time you can reverse to a previous version ; whatever to check something or because it was finally better.
Therefore, they natively and automatically do all what you said.

I completely agree.

However, whilst I have a programming background, I've never actually used software versioning software on a PC. It's just a blind spot in my experience. I could go and learn it, but honestly it always feels like it would be hard work compared with just keeping track of things myself. Which is more of an excuse than a reason, hey ho.

It's just me being a newbie... and therefore I presume that other newbies will have the same reservations. So as I said "if you don't want to use tools like

You must be registered to see the links

..."

Proper versioning control is undoubtedly a better solution.
I just offer up the caveman solutions as an alternative.

 

[anne O'nymous]

It's just me being a newbie... and therefore I presume that other newbies will have the same reservations. So as I said "if you don't want to use tools like

You must be registered to see the links

..."

In the end of the day, GitHub is just an advanced software versioning. It do a little less on the "version reversion" side, and the tags are more for forks than for the project evolution. But in the same time it do way more on the "everything else you can need for team development" side.

Proper versioning control is undoubtedly a better solution.

It is... and at the same time isn't.
Most of the teams in the adult game scene are amateurs. Using a pure versioning software, like the previously named SubVersion by example, can be overkill for them, since globally they only need the last version of a file. And in the same time, using an integrated platform like GitHub can also be overkill, because it offer way too much than what they effectively need.

I just offer up the caveman solutions as an alternative.

Which is fine and was needed. There isn't a definitive solution, just solutions more adapted for one team.
Reading your answer I realized that I talked about versioning software, but didn't explained what they did. This part of your own answer was the perfect place to correct this omission.

 

[lancelotdulak]

Software versioning: programmers have done it since.. programming started. And vs etc included it as a basis
Github.. i and morhe talked about it.. both are programmers. both have used it. Then we talked about explaining it to our writer.. laughed.. and decided on google drive + discord. And ya github really is just kindof advanced versioning. Honestly i think we should look into writing good small team dev comms software after this. I found nothing that was what we wanted.. nothing even close. Lots of bullshit market hype though written by business majors who wouldnt know printf from str()

As far as the "writer should do this".. wow.. ima be quiet so i dont get really really rude....

as far as bug tracking..seriously??? on one of these games? Ive written 3d engines .. not kidding.. without bugtracking software....

 

[lancelotdulak]

Try something like Dropbox or OneDrive along with Discord, you all always have the latest version of the files and Discord keeps you in touch.

I use Visio and Project to keep track of my game, but they're expensive for every team member to have.

You could also use GitLab for your files; just remember to make the project private.

I just wanted to thank you man this is what we finally ended up doing (or close) as Morhe drug me kicking and screaming into the modern dev communication era and made me start using google drive

 

[I'm Not Thea Lundgren!]

I just wanted to thank you man this is what we finally ended up doing (or close) as Morhe drug me kicking and screaming into the modern dev communication era and made me start using google drive

Make sure your GDrive is locked with the right permissions, it's pretty easy to get into if it's not secured properly. I would recommend using 2FA on all accounts with access to the drive.