So I stopped by the forum section to see if a new version of Quest had been put out. And, to my happiness, one has been. Thanks Alex!

But... (here we go again)...

I downloaded it (w/ all virus protection off) and opened my game (which I haven't worked on for many months) and started to edit it. All I did was add a "Speak to" text to an object and then pushed the Save icon in the upper bar. I got some SaveFile error though. I try to push the OK button in the pop up box, but all that happened was that annoying *ding* noise. So I went to Task Manager and closed out of the QDK program.

Then...

I reopened QDK 4.1. I attempted to open up my game once more, but all I got was Error 62 - Input past end of file in ASL.Load From File pop up box. I pushed OK, then got the Error 9 - Subscript out of range in ASL.NumberLines pop up box. I pushed OK, but I just get that annoying *ding* indefinitely.

So... (and this is when I have a bone to pick)...

I opened WordPad to open up my ASL code for my game to see how the new Speak to text was inserted at the code level. Thought maybe QDK goofed it. BUT! When I opened my game code, all I got was a Blank Screen!! So I tried opening it AGAIN! And I got a blank screen AGAIN!! Hmmm, I thought. I went to my C-drive and right clicked on my game, went to properties and discovered my game is now 0 BYTES!!!

Care to explain this one ALEX!!! Has my half-way finished, very large game been erased!?!?!?!?

Warning: If my game (and the countless days of programming) has been erased, I will trash Quest forever.

But,

If it hasn't, then this experience will just cause me to put off working on my game for another year or whenever. Just like every other time a new version comes out, I try it, and get errors in the first five minutes of using it.

I do hope you made a backup of the game, first! Especially when trying a new version of something; whether it's a new version of an application, or a new OS version. No software is ever bug free, and bugs seem to turn up most frequently in new releases. Trust me - I know, being a programmer myself.

This sounds like a variation of the bug I reported earlier (though It didn't trash the file contents in either the original game I was working on, nor the "bugtest" project I created to replicate the problem.) I think the problem is in QDK Pro's "Save" code. I'm going to try to do a file diff between a saved bugtest file, and the one still in memory.

Sorry to hear you're having problems. I do hope you have a backup - it's one thing having virus protection but in my experience you're far more likely to lose data through a software or hardware failure than a virus. Do you have the AutoSave option turned on in QDK? This will automatically save a copy of the file for you as you edit it, so check your Quest Game Backups folder if you have this option enabled - your game may still be in there.

If you still have the file, can you please send it to me with exact steps to reproduce the problem? I'll then be able to have a look at what's happening.

Sorry to hear you're having problems.

Thank You.

I do hope you have a backup

Phewwww! Actually, I found one.

Do you have the AutoSave option turned on in QDK?

No. I didn't. Only used QDK 4.1 for less than 5 minutes, and didn't even know the option existed. I found the option box though.

If you still have the file, can you please send it to me with exact steps to reproduce the problem?

I'll send it, but read my post for steps.

P.s. By the way, I've started on a new game with Quest. I still find it's interface awesome.

Do you have the version of the file that existed before QDK trashed it? If I can reproduce the trashing behaviour on my machine, that will help me diagnose the problem.

Just sent it. Not sure if it's the exact version though. I'm not sure how long ago I produced that second copy. Haven't worked on my game for about a year or something.

Thanks. I can reproduce an error when I save. It occurs a few times, but it doesn't trash the file (so maybe killing the process in Task Manager caused that - obviously you don't want to have to click OK on an error message hundreds of times though!)

I'll take a look into it and fix the bug for v4.1.1.

You can use the three-file method to make your system safe against accidentally trashing old versions:

File 1 is the .asl file. File 2 is an alternate version of the .asl file. File 3 indicates which of those two is good.

Loading: If file 3 is absent, or just contains a zero, load file 1. Otherwise, load file 2.

Saving:
- If file 3 is present, and is not just a zero:
-- Save over file 1.
-- Erase file 3, or overwrite it with zero.
- If file 3 is absent, or just contains a zero:
-- Save over file 2.
-- Overwrite file 3 with a one.
-- Copy file 2 over file 1.
-- Erase file 3, or overwrite it with a zero.

Alex wrote:I'll take a look into it and fix the bug for v4.1.1.

Thanks. Sorry for being such a hard-ass in my post. It's just that writing a text-based game is my childhood dream, and when it has been screwed with, I get anxious and pissy. I guess I deserve a big "WAH!" Thanks for taking time to produce Quest.

Freak wrote:You can use the three-file method to make your system safe against accidentally trashing old versions:

File 1 is the .asl file. File 2 is an alternate version of the .asl file. File 3 indicates which of those two is good.

Loading: If file 3 is absent, or just contains a zero, load file 1. Otherwise, load file 2.

Saving:
- If file 3 is present, and is not just a zero:
-- Save over file 1.
-- Erase file 3, or overwrite it with zero.
- If file 3 is absent, or just contains a zero:
-- Save over file 2.
-- Overwrite file 3 with a one.
-- Copy file 2 over file 1.
-- Erase file 3, or overwrite it with a zero

Who's on second...
What?
No! What's on third.
Where?
No. Where's on first.
Who's on first?
No who's on second!?
Ugh! That's what I'm trying to figure out!

So... (and this is when I have a bone to pick)...

I opened WordPad to open up my ASL code for my game to see how the new Speak to text was inserted at the code level. Thought maybe QDK goofed it. BUT! When I opened my game code, all I got was a Blank Screen!! So I tried opening it AGAIN! And I got a blank screen AGAIN!! Hmmm, I thought. I went to my C-drive and right clicked on my game, went to properties and discovered my game is now 0 BYTES!!!

Care to explain this one ALEX!!! Has my half-way finished, very large game been erased!?!?!?!?

Warning: If my game (and the countless days of programming) has been erased, I will trash Quest forever.

But,

If it hasn't, then this experience will just cause me to put off working on my game for another year or whenever. Just like every other time a new version comes out, I try it, and get errors in the first five minutes of using it.

I can be such an a-hole sometimes. This attitude is a result of me truly believing I died when I attempted suicide about 9 years ago. I think I'm in an afterlife and you all (everyone) either know that or not, but either way, you're programmed (e.g. w/o conscious mind) to give me the worst experiences to punish me for things I did when I was alive. This is how I feel the harshness of reality. So I pull out the attitude you see quoted above to provide a retalliation against what I perceive as an insult to my spirit. Me; dead as a door: Paranoia or Truth? Hard one to decipher. Regardless of what you'd tell me, I'd think you'd be up to something. (I don't have money for a shrink, so save yourself the time of suggesting that option).

Oh boy.

This is probably not the place to post the following link, but it goes with this message, and I'd like to share it...

http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/262108
...Song I wrote for God to hear.

Alex: A thousand hearts to you for taking your time to give Quest to us!