Staredit Network

I been thinking about a new way of protecting maps from map stealers. Heres my idea. If EUD can be used to detect text messages, than this might work.

Most(Or All) map stealers are noobs. They probly wouldnt know how most triggers work. But heres the deal. If someone put at the start of the map,

"Made by (Whoever made it)"

Than have a EUD trigger to make sure it says the exsact same thing. Like if someone tries to steal it and they put,

"Made by Medardo(Map Stealer)"

The trigger detects it says something different. Therefore ending the map, saying its a stolen version. Maybe this could be put to use somehow? Or am i just babbling nonsence?

its a quite good concept. but i dont think its worth making a map pc only just for this.

i'm not sure, but i think someone already thought of something similiar to this. the only issue with this is hiding your protection triggers.

what that trigger can do is very limited.

Because lag discrepency cause text detection triggers to desync people, the only actions that can be taken on detection of a map being stolen would be ones that simply give the players a text message, or a map ping; nothing that is sent over the network...

Also, this wouldn't make a map PC only, since a maccer simply wouldnt activate those triggers, and since nothing is done over network, there'd be no desync.

If something IS done over the network (taking the chance for a lag-based desync), the people on a Mac would only drop if they action goes through (ie, its found the map is stolen...)

well, his system does use text messages, so it shouldn't be a problem then right?

macs have problems

and i think some1 can take out that trigger(i do nothing think map stealers would be that noob to avoid looking at triggers)

Does it really matter people are desync'd when they play a stolen map? No it doesn't. The whole point is to prevent gameplay on a stolen map
Not if there were hundreds of triggers to look through. They would barely understand it if you didn't have any text messages in it.

the problem with putting dozens of fake worthless triggers is that on the normal editor they would show up as disabled and a noob can look through them ezly
as i have said b4 in some other post the solution will be in our editors

How about...

In one of the EUD trigger that detects the text, we put a trigger that the map needs in order to run properly, So if the map stealer finds the reason that the map can detect its stolen, That person will probly will delete the trigger, and deleting the trigger also in there that the map needs, and makes the map all trippy and stuff, Or whatever you want it to do.

You get where im going with this?

Other things you can do is make all location names the same (just do this at the end of editing), put blank comments on EVERY trigger, disabled or not.
EUDs just look like death triggers, because they are, and if you use enough of them people will not know what they do and might delete them, deleting vital parts to the map.

You don't need to place dozens of worthless triggers. Just have the triggers that you need to run the map. That should already be enough so that people won't look through them.
You do know that:
1. Newer protections automatically null location names. OSMAP resets them.
2. Newer protections automatically blank all comments. OSMAP deletes comments.

plus you specifically need starforge with the correct data files to edit them. anbd any other editor will screw them up just by looking at them.

On the note of 'network-sent' actions and such, are switch statuses and their changes sent over the network? As in, if one player has a switch on and another player has a switch off, but no actions run based on the settings of these switches, do the players desync?



The possible issue I was thinking of is the game desyncing regardless of the map is stolen due to any actions taken by text detection. If it desyncs only in the case of the map being stolen that's ok...

Well with OSMAP around why do you even need to protect?

Desync is another word for "server split", something that'd occur on one computer but not on the other (say with 2 players), and would cause everyone who doesn't have the same thing happen to them to drop out of the game...

In the case of text detection, that's exactly right. If the 2 text displays are off by a time period in which the trigger ends up running for one player and not the other, you get a desync, or a server split, and everyone who acts "differently" drops out (relative to the player, you could have 2 groups of 4 players each of which have the same effect in their group, but not the same as the other group, so relative to each other, 4 players would stay in each game)...

This could also be caused by Line numbers, which is why 11 identical triggers are required to make any detection of text work. At any point a player could be at a different line number depending on private messages, so its likely that any trigger that runs would be a different trigger for the different players... making 11 identical ones allows for it to work since even though its a different trigger that runs, if the effect is identical, it doesnt desync...

As for the other actions, yeah, I'd assume they gave some leeway on them to ensure desyncs didn't happen...

You can toggle those options off. I think it doesn't always delete location names too. Like uBe3 scrambles them and it only seems to reset the messed up ones.

Would it possible to say set a timer for the text detection, for example until a unit moves from location a to b. If during that time the text is detected as displayed, then it will create a unit for the player. If the correct text is detected by all players within a given amount of time, then it would be detected that the map is an original, otherwise other mehods can be taken: desync, display text that the map is faulty, etc...

Also what do computer players or player 12 for that matter get text messages? Could you set a trigger to fire and display text for a computer player or player 12 that can be detected using EUD's? If so, would that be able to act as a global lag free standard between the different players?

Once again though, the problem here is that a new patch would cause all maps to bug. An interesting program though would be something that would automatically add such triggers to a map using the correct offsets for different patch versions. This could then act as a new form of protection program. Some sort of randomizing would have to be included so that an OSMAP progam wouldn't just delete these EUD triggers.

For that matter, would it be possible to use EUD's to detect something else from the map that would cause any map run through OSMAP to break? So say could EUD's detect location names or something else that OSMAP changes when it opens a map? A program could then once again be created that automatically adds something like this that would cause the map to bug after it's run through OSMAP.

But...
What if I just put

Made by map maker

At the VERY START of the map. And have the trigger detect it, And than just simply turn off the trigger. Will that help to prevent Desyncs?

Macs indeed would not be able to play the map. There are about 1/3 computer users who are mac users. Not to mention all college people who use college comps use macs.


I did see a strange map protection exclusively used by the Kk clan. The bounding clan. They used some sort of program that scrambled the map tiles when it was opened. Ill try to find a Kk map and post it for you to inspect. When you play the map, the tiles are in place, but opening it in a map editor will scramble. :/ Maybe a starforge glitch?

I like this idea, It would deffinately work. But it probly cause problems, like if someone typed something while that was up, would this occur if someone types and entered a message. It would probably cause it to glitch!

... no, that wouldn't be an issue at all. The only 2 standing issues are mac's and desyncs... Both of which can be resolved with some creative thinking...

and this stops someone from going into your map and setting a unit to be invincible and a ton of damage so well!!!

Ok so your name might still be on the map in the start but in the Mission Breifinegs, Forces, Scenario Propereties it will not be.


I'd be worried about someone rigging my map ahead of someone putting there name on my map anyway.

But, that wont matter if the game doesnt start... because, if I understand correctly, if the map stealer looks at the triggers, then they will be ruined.

If they dont, do the triggers automaticly correct themselves when the map is opened, or must they be looked at?

0_0 how can i put that as my siggy?