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Builder Tutorial


J2B2

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Builder Tutorial is up!

 

We’re happy to announce the addition of Builder tutorial content to the Wherigo website. This tutorial is designed to teach new users basic scripting and cartridge building concepts, as well as provide an in-depth introduction to the Builder application.

 

The tutorial is divided into three levels for users with different learning needs, from basic to advanced. Each level is presented as a series of interactive Flash videos that walk users through specific concepts. There is also a separate advanced concepts section that outlines higher level concepts. We plan to update this section on a regular basis.

 

Additionally, we have provided a zip file with media and sample cartridges (based on the Zooventure cartridge) that illustrate the concepts introduced in levels 2 and 3. Users are welcome to open these files in the Builder to see examples of scripting. Feel free to edit these files and add content as desired.

 

For those who have never built a cartridge before, the Level 1 tutorial will provide you with the instructions necessary to create your first cartridge. You are welcome to download the zip file and use any of the provided media (this goes for more advanced builders as well!).

 

Did we leave anything out? Any specific concepts you want to learn about? Help us make this tutorial as comprehensive as possible by letting us know!

Edited by J2B2
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Creating zones in the tutorial is done by using the create from map function. This function does not work on this side of the pond. When is this function available over here and if it takes too long could you add a tutorial for creating a zone in a different way?

The easiest thing to do is to set the zone center using known lat/lon. Locating the zone using an address is also handy if the zone is in an urban area. Then use Google maps (the "edit online" option in the builder) to reposition the zone points as needed. I assume that the Google maps option is available to you -- but then, I would have thought TerraServer was available, too. :laughing:

 

Additional information is available here. See the sections on Locating a Zone and Making Adjustments.

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Is it just me, or does everyone see a squished up screen? The way the text has been resized makes it very difficult to read.

 

Is the screen for the entire web page squished or just the videos?

Edited by J2B2
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Thanks both of you for following this up. My browser is IE7. Text looks fine outside of the tutorial video, but inside it is squished.

 

I have just tried it in Firefox and it is similar, but not quite as bad.

 

I have a 15.4" screen on my laptop and the resolution is set at its native 1280x768 pixels.

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I also have squished text, in IE6 and FF2. This is a standard problem with online documentation when trying to reproduce something which ought to be the size of the whole screen, in another window. I suspect that it either needs to be displayed on a higher resolution screen, or for the original to be generated on a modest laptop screen and then integrated into the demo on a larger resolution screen.

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or for the original to be generated on a modest laptop screen and then integrated into the demo on a larger resolution screen.

We'll run some tests over the next few days to see if that doesn't do the trick.

 

In the mean time, the best I can suggest is to right click on the video link to open it in a new tab/window rather than clicking on it to open it in a lightbox. The lightbox automatically sizes to fit the current window dimensions, but with lots of padding so it's still significantly smaller than the window itself. If you open the tutorial video in a new tab/window it will at least be somewhat bigger and easier to read.

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Creating zones in the tutorial is done by using the create from map function. This function does not work on this side of the pond. When is this function available over here and if it takes too long could you add a tutorial for creating a zone in a different way?

The easiest thing to do is to set the zone center using known lat/lon. Locating the zone using an address is also handy if the zone is in an urban area. Then use Google maps (the "edit online" option in the builder) to reposition the zone points as needed. I assume that the Google maps option is available to you -- but then, I would have thought TerraServer was available, too. :o

 

Additional information is available here. See the sections on Locating a Zone and Making Adjustments.

 

I know how to make a zone in the alternate way but i was hoping the official tutorial would also explain this way to make a zone, because this is a basic element of building a cartridge and with the Terraserver maps unavailable to us it would be nice to have a workable tutorial for starters.

Edited by delta123
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Just found out about Wherigo and it is great! ;)

I have done level one of the tutorial. I want to continue with level 2 but i can not find a starting file. The file enclosed in the zip is (i think) the final file of level 2. Can i find somewhere the starting file for level 2?

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Just found out about Wherigo and it is great! ;)

I have done level one of the tutorial. I want to continue with level 2 but i can not find a starting file. The file enclosed in the zip is (i think) the final file of level 2. Can i find somewhere the starting file for level 2?

 

Don't you start level two with were you ended in level one?

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thank you (both) for your reply!

I have done level one step by step. I wrote it out in Dutch (that's my native language :anitongue: ) and i have build the cartridge several times. But when I start with the first tutorial in level two, if-then, I see a new zone in your tutorial> Tropical rain forest. There are 5 characters, my script ends in level one with 3 characters. In the tutorial you select pig and select when talk occurs. My script doesn't show this option, the only script i can select is> when the player clicks on this character.

Did I miss something in the first level? Or do I start with a wrong tutorial in level two?

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thank you (both) for your reply!

I have done level one step by step. I wrote it out in Dutch (that's my native language :anitongue: ) and i have build the cartridge several times. But when I start with the first tutorial in level two, if-then, I see a new zone in your tutorial> Tropical rain forest. There are 5 characters, my script ends in level one with 3 characters. In the tutorial you select pig and select when talk occurs. My script doesn't show this option, the only script i can select is> when the player clicks on this character.

Did I miss something in the first level? Or do I start with a wrong tutorial in level two?

 

Great to hear that you're utilizing the tutorial!

Yes, the first level of tutorial is meant to walk you through step by step. Second and third level tutorials are designed more towards how to perform a certain action, they're more topic based. For example, if you want to learn about how to add a 'Talk' on a Pig, you go to a topic that says, "Add a command" and learn how. Does this make sense? What you have from the first tutorial should be enough for you to practice level two.

 

As to your comment about the first video, I realize that is a mistake! We'll change the ordering of that very soon. Meanwhile, I recommend you watching Command: Standalone and Command: Multiple Objects before watching the IF-THEN video. Thank you!

 

J2B2

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In the meanwhile, i have made my first cartridge with all the staps of the tutorial, level 1. And your tutorial is great. I understand what i am doing (and that with a computer.. :laughing: )

I will follow your advise about the next steps of the tutorial. How will you inform us when you have changed the tutorial? Should I keep watching this topic?

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In the meanwhile, i have made my first cartridge with all the staps of the tutorial, level 1. And your tutorial is great. I understand what i am doing (and that with a computer.. :laughing: )

I will follow your advise about the next steps of the tutorial. How will you inform us when you have changed the tutorial? Should I keep watching this topic?

 

Yes! If you'd like to give me your email address, I will email you when the website is updated!

 

J2B2

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In the meanwhile, i have made my first cartridge with all the staps of the tutorial, level 1. And your tutorial is great. I understand what i am doing (and that with a computer.. :D )

I will follow your advise about the next steps of the tutorial. How will you inform us when you have changed the tutorial? Should I keep watching this topic?

 

Just wanted to inform you that the website is updated. Thank you very much for your feedback.

Keep 'em coming as you go through the rest of the tutorial! :D

 

J2B2

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Just wanted to inform you that the website is updated. Thank you very much for your feedback.

Keep 'em coming as you go through the rest of the tutorial! :huh:

 

J2B2

 

Great thank you, i thought it would take a while.... but you have been very quick with the changes. Thank you and i will continue the tutorial!

kiki

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Sorry, still a bit confused here (maybe since I am also from The Netherlands :huh: ):

 

I also am working with the tutorial and see items in the video that are not in my cartridge (yet?).

 

The first time you really run into that is the "In the tutorial you select pig and select when talk occurs".

 

However: the pig doesn't have an event 'talk' yet.

 

Thing is: did I miss something before, am I using the wrong cartridge. Or is it that the tutorial is not meant to be step by step but wants to let you find out how to create this 'talk-event' yourself?

 

If so: it would be good to say so; the user gets confused here. But I have the impressions that the tutorial is simply incomplete here..

 

Please give me a hint!

 

Best regards,

Hans

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Sorry, still a bit confused here (maybe since I am also from The Netherlands :P ):

 

I also am working with the tutorial and see items in the video that are not in my cartridge (yet?).

 

The first time you really run into that is the "In the tutorial you select pig and select when talk occurs".

 

However: the pig doesn't have an event 'talk' yet.

 

Thing is: did I miss something before, am I using the wrong cartridge. Or is it that the tutorial is not meant to be step by step but wants to let you find out how to create this 'talk-event' yourself?

 

If so: it would be good to say so; the user gets confused here. But I have the impressions that the tutorial is simply incomplete here..

 

Please give me a hint!

 

Best regards,

Hans

 

That's correct. The first level is supposed to be very step by step, but beyond that (this means 2 and 3) - it's chapter based. Level 2 and 3 are supposed to show you how to create a particular event. We decided to do this, because the tutorial will be very repetitive and unnecessarily long if we add every single action. Once you understand the basics (which is level 1), you will hopefully apply them and learn higher concepts. =)

 

J2B2 :huh:

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Sorry for the necromancy, but I've only just discovered Wherigo!

 

I too came to the end of the first tutorial and found things had magically appeared when I started the second one. I get your explanation of why you did it that way, but maybe there should be a note at the start of each T2/T3 tutorial to tell us what we need to have created before we can run that section of the tutorial (i.e. that you have to have given the pig a 'talk' command before doing the IF-THEN tutorial etc). Otherwise, while it isn't repetitive, it IS confusing!

 

Alternatively or additionally, is there a datasheet with all the data on all the items/zones/characters/tasks etc? I know that information is available in the T3 final savefile, but it would be easier to have all the data to hand, rather than having to switch back and forth comparing!

 

"?" (QuizMark)

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