[2.12] viewpos on player HUD and screenshots

[Daft Mugi]

Some folks have been asking about the new tdm_show_viewpos cvar and screenshot_viewpos command, so I thought I'd make an thread about it as a reference.

The purpose of the cvar is to show the viewpos on the player HUD, and the purpose of the command is to add the viewpos to screenshots in order to help with troubleshooting and beta testing.

Bug tracker: https://bugs.thedarkmod.com/view.php?id=6331

 

tdm_show_viewpos

tdm_show_viewpos is a cvar to show/hide the viewpos on the player HUD, which can be set to the following:

0 --- hide
1 --- gray font color
2 --- cyan font color

 

screenshot_viewpos

screenshot_viewpos is a command that takes a screenshot with the viewpos added to it.

screenshot_viewpos
screenshot_viewpos <gamma>

screenshot_viewpos can be typed at the console or bound to a key. The "gamma" is an optional argument, which as of 2.12 Beta is the r_ambientGamma value.

Some mission authors prefer to have screenshots (from players) that are brighter, so they can see what is in the screenshot more easily. Setting the "gamma" argument is a convenient way to temporarily adjust the gamma just for the duration of the screenshot.

For example, I have the following bound:

bind "F12" "screenshot"
bind "F11" "screenshot_viewpos"
bind "F10" "screenshot_viewpos 1.3"

[jaxa]

Was there a specific version of TDM that started putting the coordinates in screenshot file names? Because my current installation does that and now I don't bother with the overlay anymore.

[Daft Mugi]

26 minutes ago, jaxa said:

Was there a specific version of TDM that started putting the coordinates in screenshot file names? Because my current installation does that and now I don't bother with the overlay anymore.

Yes, 2.11 added the coordinates to the screenshot filename.

Some players change the filename and some websites rename it (e.g. removing spaces between the coordinates or other changes). That can make it hard to know where the player was when an issue was found.

Having the coordinates in the filename is helpful, and the new cvar and command can be used as needed.

[stgatilov]

1 hour ago, jaxa said:

Was there a specific version of TDM that started putting the coordinates in screenshot file names? Because my current installation does that and now I don't bother with the overlay anymore.

Unfortunately, TDM forum deletes the separator between the numbers.
So I have to guess where one number ends and the next starts

Also, user can rename screenshot manually, or push it through something that would rename it automatically. Thenwe won't see coordinates on screenshot address on forums.

[jaxa]

3 minutes ago, stgatilov said:

Unfortunately, TDM forum deletes the separator between the numbers.
So I have to guess where one number ends and the next starts

Also, user can rename screenshot manually, or push it through something that would rename it automatically. Thenwe won't see coordinates on screenshot address on forums.

I've uploaded beta testing screenshots to Flickr albums for years, and it preserves file names. I will hit the 1000 cap for free accounts soon, so I'll have to delete the decade old ones.

[datiswous]

What was the console again to move view to a viewpos ?

 

Is there a wiki article about this? If not I can write one.

[Daft Mugi]

3 minutes ago, datiswous said:

What was the console again to move view to a viewpos ?

setviewpos

https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Reporting_Problem#Coordinates

[datiswous]

On 12/18/2023 at 7:13 PM, Daft Mugi said:

For example, I have the following bound:

This doesn't work with binding to certain keys. For example if I do:

bind "KP_SLASH" "screenshot viewpos 1.3"

It does create the screenshot with the gamma change, but there's no viewpos on the screenshot.

Edited January 17, 2024 by datiswous

[Daft Mugi]

36 minutes ago, datiswous said:

This doesn't work with binding to certain keys. For example if I do:

bind "KP_SLASH" "screenshot viewpos 1.3"

It does create the screenshot with the gamma change, but there's no viewpos on the screenshot.

I see there is a missing "_" between "screenshot" and "viewpos". Does it work when the underscore is included, like so:

bind "KP_SLASH" "screenshot_viewpos 1.3"

[datiswous]

No I just typed it wrong in the post. But in the game I did it correct.

[Daft Mugi]

@datiswous I can't think of or find a reason why this would happen.

It works when bound to other keys, right?
What other keys does it not work with?
What if you press KP_SLASH multiple times? Same result?
Does "tdm_show_viewpos 2" display ok?

[datiswous]

I've only tested F11 and KP_SLASH . A lot of keys are already bound to settings. I have to do further testing. Btw. during the screenshot I see it shortly displaying the viewpos, maybe this happens too fast or too slow for some reason.

[Daft Mugi]

7 hours ago, datiswous said:

Btw. during the screenshot I see it shortly displaying the viewpos, maybe this happens too fast or too slow for some reason.

Yep. The implementation is roughly as follows:

tdm_show_viewpos 2; wait; screenshot; tdm_show_viewpos 0

(It's a bit more sophisticated than this, because it sets the ambient gamma and restores the user values.)

That's why you see the viewpos flash on screen, and the "screenshot" is done between viewpos enabled and disabled.

So, it showing the viewpos when bound to F11 and not when bound to KP_SLASH is very odd.

[datiswous]

51 minutes ago, Daft Mugi said:

tdm_show_viewpos 2; wait; screenshot; tdm_show_viewpos 0

I did a test by manually:

bind "KP_SLASH" "tdm_show_viewpos 2; wait; screenshot; tdm_show_viewpos 0"

This gives me no viewpos in the screenshot.

If I change it to this:

bind "KP_SLASH" "tdm_show_viewpos 2; wait; wait; screenshot; tdm_show_viewpos 0"

It does save the viewpos in the screenshot.

 

Maybe you can change the command into double wait; to make it more reliable? I think certain key input is quicker?

Or is it possible to give the full command including the gamma change, so I can test with that included as well?

[Daft Mugi]

3 hours ago, datiswous said:

Maybe you can change the command into double wait; to make it more reliable?

Sounds like a good idea to me. I'll test out that change.

3 hours ago, datiswous said:

Or is it possible to give the full command including the gamma change, so I can test with that included as well?

The full command is similar to:

tdm_show_viewpos 2; r_ambientGamma 1.3; wait; screenshot; tdm_show_viewpos 0; r_ambientGamma 1

[datiswous]

On 1/19/2024 at 3:33 AM, Daft Mugi said:

Sounds like a good idea to me. I'll test out that change.

See also this post from @jonri about the original command I used for screenshots and look at the amount of wait's:

bind "KP_SLASH" "con_noprint 0;wait;wait;wait;getviewpos;wait;wait;wait;screenshot;con_noprint 1"

 

[Daft Mugi]

@datiswous

I added three "wait" commands (code rev 10628). Please let me know if it fixes KP_SLASH for you. The fix should be included in 2.12 beta5.

[datiswous]

I added the console commands teleport, getwiewpos and setviewpos to the Console Useful Controls page on the wiki.

[Daft Mugi]

4 hours ago, datiswous said:

I added the console commands teleport, getwiewpos and setviewpos to the Console Useful Controls page on the wiki.

Would you mind adding "tdm_show_viewpos" to the list?

Also, would you mind adding "screenshot_viewpos" and "screenshot_viewpos <gamma>" to Reporting Problem?

[Daft Mugi]

@datiswous

In beta212-05, does "screenshot_viewpos" now work properly when bound to KP_SLASH?

[stgatilov]

1 hour ago, Daft Mugi said:

Also, would you mind adding "screenshot_viewpos" and "screenshot_viewpos <gamma>" to Reporting Problem?

I added it to this article.

[datiswous]

3 hours ago, stgatilov said:

added it to this article.

You made a lot of changes to Console Useful Controls but some need explaining I think. For example:

listEntities GLOB	lists all alive entities whose names match given glob/wildcard (e.g. use asterisks like *func_static* to search for substring).

What are alive entities?

teleportArea N	teleports the player into the area with number N

What are numbered area's? How can you view the numbers?

g_timeModifier 2	Same as timescale 2 but somewhat different

How is it different?

[datiswous]

5 hours ago, Daft Mugi said:

In beta212-05, does "screenshot_viewpos" now work properly when bound to KP_SLASH?

Yes it does. Thanks a lot!

[Frost_Salamander]

I've added tdm_show_viewpos and screenshot_viewpos to here: https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Console_Useful_Controls

I know they are already mentioned here, there isn't much of an explanation about the arguments and it's nice to have all these commands on one page.