Important: WeiDU 134

[Jessayla]

I don't know if this is just something I've experienced, or if it's happened to anyone else, but after a fresh reinstall of SOA, TOB, the patch and Baldurdash, when I install my 'necessary' mods (Kelsey, Ease, Solau, Valen, Tactics, Item Upgrades, DBG, Flirt Packs) if I install something that's using version 13.3 of WeiDu and then try to install something with an older version, I get parsing errors on loading the setup file, though the mod proceeds to install just fine.  However, when I checked my weidu.log file, only the most recently installed mod was listed, not any of those that I had installed prior to the mod using weidu 13.3.  Okay, that sounds even more vague than I intended.  To put it a little more succinctly, I had Kelsey SOA installed, then popped in the new Kelsey TOB, which comes with WeiDU 13.3.  After that, I tried installing the flirt packs, which use an older WeiDu version.  The only thing that showed up on my weidu.log file was the flirts, though Kelsey SOA and TOB were also installed.  Trying to run setup-kelsey to uninstall gave me the options as if the mod wasn't installed at all (install, skip, quit; no uninstall).  This occurred with any instance of installing a non-13.3 mod on top of a 13.3; I was able to get around it by just installing them all after updating weidu on each to 13.3.

Not sure if this is an actual reproducable thing or if it's just me..Wouldn't be too surprised if it's just my incredible inexpertise, but I thought I'd mention it here in case it had happened to someone else.

Thanks!

[jcompton]

I wonder if this doesn't have something to do with the new commenting feature in weidu.log. You're not the only person to notice this happening on occasion...

...ugh.
 

[Sim]

I think this is a fairly substantial problem given that many people will in many cases stuble across newer WeiDU mods before searching around a little more and finding old ones.
I'd suggest that perhaps the next WeiDU version should forgo this new feature, and possibly even "clean up" bad log files. And we should definitely stop using 133.

[reiella]

Problem tends to solve itself  if you use the auto-update feature of WeiDU.

Just run one instance of the newest WeiDU before running the other install, no parse error.

[Kismet]

Quite a lot of people who download mods aren't going to know enough to look and see what version of WeiDU any particular mod came with (and really, nor should they have to).

It's quite easy to wipe your weidu.log by simply downloading and installing a mod made with an older version of WeiDU after installing mods made with a newer version.

[jcompton]

Problem tends to solve itself  if you use the auto-update feature of WeiDU.

Just run one instance of the newest WeiDU before running the other install, no parse error.

As Kismet points out, it's counterintuitive to do the following:

- Install Kelsey-TOB and play away merrily
- Learn that there's an Improved Hell Trials mod
- Unzip Improved Hell Trials mod
- Run Setup-KelseyTOB.exe to update Setup-ImprovedHellTrials.exe
- Run updated Setup-ImprovedHellTrials.exe

Except that's what's required at the moment.
 

[Topaz]

Except that's what's required at the moment.

Not with MaxOS X! There is this extremely useful gadget called Mod Organizer (programmed by Devons) which uses the version of WeiDU you have at that time (requiring the user to get the latest -or the best- version, of course). Totally gui, you only need the tp2 and the resource folder and off you go! Kudos to Devon!

[jcompton]

Ah, that sounds pretty swanky.
 

[weimer]

Interestingly enough, the change in the log file format has been around since 130.

134 undoes this change (134 weidu will read either format but will write the old format) as a favor to Jason.

The real problem here was with WeiDU's auto-update -- previously, running New-WeiDU would cause it to write over Old-WeiDU in the same directory. However, as Jessayla formalizes, if you run New-WeiDU, then unpack Old-WeiDU, then run Old-WeiDU, you run into problems. 134 fixes this problem: it and all future versions of WeiDU will also update *themselves* if they see a newer copy. [ In particular, v134 finds the newest WeiDU and copies it over all other WeiDUs, then reruns itself. ]

Traditionally, WeiDU has had a history of "general backwards compatibility" (somewhat like "salutory neglect"). In general, new versions work perfectly with old versions. However, every once in a while a new version puts in an appearance and its adoption is  more or less required if everyone is to play together. Version 40 (introduction of weidu.log) was such a watershed, as was 104 (introduction of auto-update). 134 is as well.

It has been the standard WeiDU policy to continue to introduce new features as users demand them. Fred's BCS diffing is a recent example. Almost invariably, these features break backward compatibility: an old WeiDU cannot even read a TP2 file that includes BCS-diffing directives. This is the common case.

As a result (and given the presence of the updater bug in all WeiDU < 134), we cannot (and I shall not) "hide behind" claims that many legacy, never-updated mods exist. Doing so logically precludes all but the most trivial future WeiDU development. Such mods must either update their distributions to a newer WeiDU (email and pester the author if you use such a mod) or we must explicitly warn users on the download installation page to rerun our up-to-date Setup-Mod.exe files after downloading other mods but before running other mods.

Mod authors who aren't willing to stay reasonably current (3 or 4 times in all of WeiDU history is not that much to ask) and users who download and install mods without following the directions lack my sympathies in this regard. As much as we would like to claim that all WeiDU mods just magically work together, that claim is known to be false. Well-designed WeiDU mods that were crafted with an eye toward compatibility and were installed correctly tend to work together.

As per Jason's request, I will do my best to avoid introducing any WeiDU changes for some time (a few weeks, say) that, in light of the auto-update bug, could cause mods to fail to play well together. However, this "cease fire" will not be permanent. I would appreciate it if everyone qualified would take a minute to try out WeiDU 134 and check out the auto-update feature (you can copy files around or use 'touch' to make them appear newer). Assuming that it works in that regard, encourage all of your mod author friends to upgrade now to the latest version.  

[jcompton]

Interestingly enough, the change in the log file format has been around since 130.
 

Sometimes it takes us a little while to notice a pattern beyond "It must be this beta I got from some guy screwing things up."

134 fixes this problem: it and all future versions of WeiDU will also update *themselves* if they see a newer copy. [ In particular, v134 finds the newest WeiDU and copies it over all other WeiDUs, then reruns itself. ]

I'm interested to see this in action. And thanks for the log thing.

Well-designed WeiDU mods that were crafted with an eye toward compatibility and were installed correctly tend to work together.

And my concern was that one could do nothing wrong and still end up with a problem... but I'll check this out.

[Grim Squeaker]

One small question, how does the new version (134) of WeiDU work?  To update my old mods' Setup-Blah.exe files (e.g. Setup-Kelsey, Setup-Tashia etc) then I did the following (as I always do when a new verison of WeiDU comes out).

- Made a copy of Weidu.exe
- Renamed it Setup-Harvey.exe
- Copied it into my BG2-SoA directory replacing the previous copy (NOTE: The Harvey Mod is NOT installed on my computer at the moment)
- Ran Setup-Harvey.exe

This is what I got (NOTE: The Setup-Harvey.tp2 was still in the BG2-SoA directory):

[D:\Program Files\Black Isle\BGII - SoA\Setup-Harvey.exe] WeiDU version 134

Newest WeiDU is [Setup-Harvey.exe], updating!
                         WeiDU (version 134: "fred's happy-rom")

usage: WeiDU [options] BAF,BCS,D,DLG,TRA,TP,TP2-files

General Input Options:

  --game X          set main game directory to X

etc etc

This what I would expect to get (or similar to) if I ran WeiDU.exe in the WeiDU directory but not what you get if you run a Setup-Blah.exe!

Also, it did not update the other Setup-Blah.exe files in ym BG2-SoA directory (as per normal WeiDU update).

What do I do?

[Senka]

Well, after installing DBG and aPACK I received a message " ...80% strings are lost..." and use the next
weidu.exe --tlkout dialog.tlk modname.tp2
because I use a lot of weidu mods... Am I right? I wonder because in my previous game I lost the lot of original dialogs between party members
And next question about order of mods installing: what is this exactly? I remember the one on Interplay forum. Is it correct?

A perfect install order of the game and WeiDu mods.
===
SoA
ToB
Latest Official Patch
===
Baldurdash Fixpack

Mods:
Revised Hell Trials (SoA Hell)
Ease Of Use
Spell-50
Tashia (Female romancable NPC- Sorcerres)
Imoen Romance (Romance Imoen )
Dungeon Be Gone
Ascension (WeiDu Version)
Redemption 1.0.1
Solaufein (Romancable male Fighter/Mage (romances regardless of gender)
Kelsey SoA 1.5 (Male romancable Sorcerer)
Kelsey ToB
Valen (Powergamers delight with a Vampire Fighter/Thief NPC)
Item Upgrade
Expanded Thief Stronghold
Tactics.
Flirtpack 81 ( Flirt with the one you are romancing)
 

[Moonfruit]

Feel free to add Ruad and Imp. Battles anywhere into that list (after BGII and ToB of course)