Decoding Upload Codes

[droctagonapus]

I said fiasco, because it caused Ha55i to make it not work. I was saying it would not be good to upload something like this because ha55i would remove it. and that would be a very bad thing, because then we could not play with it.

[PickleMan]

If we can get a documentation of the format, I'd be happy to update my program

[Qwerty]

Kuraikiba (11/6/10 3:17:02 PM): The way PG game codes works is like this: Anything before the first asterick is revolves around menu options. Next, elements have these coded in: Current particle type at any given (x,y), speed, velocity, spread, current coding reactions, color, and direction. Next is Wind: Speed, pressure, direction, prescence, location. Air: Speed of expansion, prescence, direction, pressure, location. Other forces are also noted. Then comes Menu Objects: Players: Attribute, Velocity, Elasticity, speed, direction of element, direction of movement, number, location. Fighter: Location, number, velocity, speed, elasticity, direction of movement, jump state check, kick state check. Bubble: Speed, size, location(s), number, shape, velocity, rate of expansion, prescence, direction of movement. Boxes: Number, size, velocity, prescence, speed, location, burn state check, direction of movement. Balls: Same as previous, but with the addition of attribute factors. Then Text is calculated: Text size, material of contstruction, content of text, other factors. Then, create: Number, item attributed check (if yes, go to item checklist), spawn check for frame. That should be generally it Veers. I'll try to see what I missed.

All the "cryptic" numbers are specific states or variables defined by truncated abbreviated code

Basically, a number or letter (or both in combo) at any given point in the code represents something

[PickleMan]

Remember, the save only stores position and elements...

NOT WIND AND SPEED

[Qwerty]

Hey, not my post. I know it doesn't store those. This might still be a hint, though.

[disabled]

Nobody said it was your text. Still I wonder why you post someone elses text without using quote tags and the knowledge that there are wrong informations in there without telling the rest of us...

I think there is not a single correct information in that post.

[Qwerty]

Sure, I didn't use quote tags, but if you actually read the message it states quite explicitly whose chat post it was and when they posted it. I was in a hurry.

Anyway, this isn't a let's-all-flame-Qwerty thread. This is a thread about decoding upload codes.

[ganondorfchampin]

The thing about the first * is true as far as I can tell.

[disabled]

Well qwerty, you had 2 off topic posts and started to defend yourself against claims nobody made. I just didn't understand that.

And Satar, its not correct. A star is not a special character in the save code. A star can theoretically appear in (almost) every position in the save file or in none at all.

[Qwerty]

What do you mean two? The last post was directly addressing you and the claims you did in fact make, and the fact that you CONTINUE to insult me, and the first was addressing the fact that perhaps Kurai wasn't completely lying, and definitely applies to this thread. If you want me to get back on-topic I suggest you stop insulting me, and maybe, just maybe, I can view this thread without your insinuations for once and actually get back on-topic.

As to the asterisk, if it doesn't matter at all in the code, why is it there?

[disabled]

If you want to discuss this further qwerty, please make a new topic or go to PM.

I never wrote the asterisk "doesn't matter at all". I wrote the asterisk is not a special character, like "1" is not a special character. Asterisks don't mark sections of the save or similar.

[ganondorfchampin]

THAT asterisk ALWAYS appears in the exact same place.

[kuraikiba]

I agree with Satar, that is actually true. I recently found some things may not be totally accurate in my hypothesis, however, it indicates this may be a triangulated vector system. It seems to record variables that have Data IDs, and their values and effects. Basically, it defines menu options, then strings Data IDs together and lists their values at specific "vector circuits" for coordinates.

[clockwork]

Can someone answer my question in detail?

[kuraikiba]

What's your question?

[clockwork]

How do you put Upload Information and a play button into your sig like M4 did.

[~Memzak~]

That's something different altogether if I am not mistaken.

[clockwork]

Any proof to back up that claim.

[kuraikiba]

Ask M4.

[clockwork]

He's not on the forum anymore.

[Qwerty]

Yes he is. Not very active, but I still see him here.

[~Memzak~]

Try pm-ing him, or speaking to him on chat about it.

[disabled]

Nov 14, 2010 16:35:15 GMT ganondorfchampin said:

THAT asterisk ALWAYS appears in the exact same place.


0030000000X00u00200q00G00m00n00300y00000*0B00B*0A*0C*0F*0E*0H00D00J*0G00K*0I*0L*0O*0N*0Q00M00S*0P00T*0R*0U*0X*0W*0Z00V00b*0Y00c*0a*0d*0g*0f*0i00e00k*0h00l*0j*0m*0p*0o*0r00n00t*0q00u*0s*0v*0y*0x*0.00w010*0z011*0**12*15*14*17013019*1601A*18*1B*1E*1D*1G01C01I*1F01J*1H*1K*1N*1M*1P01L01R*1O01S*1Q*1T*1W*1V*0s.00spM2

You were saying?

[~Memzak~]

You opened with a code tag and closed with a quote... xD

Nothing makes sense anymores!?!

[disabled]

Yeah youre right, already corrected it 3 minutes before you posted...

*edit*

Nothing makes sense anymores!?!

What do you mean, my post didn't make sense before the edit? Or the save format doesn't make sense?
The safe format is basically described in the second post now. Its:
0: 0
1: 0
2: BG
3: DOT
4: GRID
5: SPEED
6: SIDE
7: 0
8-(end-3): stuff coding the elements
(end-3)-end: checksum

The element coding is pretty weired and I couldn't really describe it in words or even make proper sense from it.

[~Memzak~]

Really? Oh. I must have started typing the post 3 minutes before I posted. (and probably didn't refresh the page)

These upload codes are confusing me. Did you get to move the asterisk by placing laser with no direction?

[disabled]

Happens to me all the time that I forget to refresh the page before posting...

And any element in the left upper corner will do to move the first asterisk further to the right.
And seriously, you don't want to think about how the elements are coded just by looking at saves. I mean I don't want to stop you, but its highly unlikely you figure it out. I'd say I'm pretty good at reverse engineering stuff and I can't figure out what is really done to decode the saves.

[~Memzak~]

But then how did you decode the SR saves? Aren't they both just as hard?

Couldn't you just view the class files and see how they are encoded to begin with?

[disabled]

SR saves have a weak encryption applied. After you remove that, most of the save is pretty easy to decipher. The data what levels you played is a little complex and weired, but its not that hard either.
The PB save has no real encryption. But the element data is something like compressed. I'd say its some kind of run length encoding, but RLE is pretty easy to do and this is definately no simple RLE.
You know, if I had a good reason to encode saves it'd be 20 minutes tops till I have a workable savegame creator proof of concept. But I won't describe this in further detail and point you anywhere further unless you give me a good reason to do so. Cheating with pixel art is not a good reason to me.
I have some ideas about mixing uploads and stuff like that, creating a Firefox extension where you can save codes like with my SR extension and allow it to mix uploads. But I can't think of a good way to make it accessible and work nice. Help me with that and I might pick it up. If someone has a good idea for an online service he can do, I would even provide PHP code. Or if someone has a good offline program idea I could help out too (C(#/++)/java/python/othersanelanguage).
If you post ideas, please make them as concrete as possible. Not only "what about x?", but provide details. Use Paint and draw an ugly gui about how it should work if you want. I have to know how and where this should be accessible...

[~Memzak~]

Sure, how about an offline one made in Java.
Here's what I think.

A simple GUI like this could work...
Save with a down arrow for up to 10 different uploads and load for those same 10 if you click the down arrow. If you just click load you have to navigate to where you saved the txt of it PG code. Save does the same but you navigate to where you want to save.
With each button from 1 onwards being a special feature, like Merge horizontally (one line of the one upload, one line of the other upload) or Merge vertically (One line of the one and one of the other again, just vertical)

And then have the co-ordinates of the mouse and element type in the bottom left corner.