OFFICIAL NEWS

Ryzom Forge meeting's agenda - 13th of july 2015, 19:30 UTC

on IRC (freenode) #ryzomforge
http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=ryzomforge

1 - Dev group
- Payment system: replacement of PaySpan (PayByCash)
- Ticket system: news about the creation of an internal ticket system
- Creation of a Ryzom Name Generator
- Call to the Devs: project of nel plugins to support Blender instead of 3dsMax only (payed work)
- Ubuntu software library and client update
- Dev document about missions

2 - Level design group
- Validation of the mission workflow
- Lore group's study of the ideas of missions proposed by Ryzom Forge
- Creation of a RF Level Design group on Asana

3 - Artist group
- Creation of the cities banners
- Creation request: female tryker leader armour (for Ailan Mac Kean)

4 - Ark
- anlor winn project

Report of the meeting:

1 - Dev group

1.1 Payment system: replacement of PaySpan (PayByCash)

Payment system will be updated to allow "plugin" systems by accepting payments from others. This will work with Steam and Paypal. 
No deadline for the moment because it's a complex task. But it's the dev's priority.

Q: Will Steam card we buy in shops work to pay the subscription?
A: The Ryzom subscription done using Steam will be done on their platform and not on our website, so all the payment options accepted by Steam will be usable to sub to Ryzom.
  
Q: PayPal tells me something, but please What is Steam?
A: It's the gaming plateforme of Valve http://store.steampowered.com/

Q: So I can create an account on Steam and then pay Ryzom with it?
A: Not for the moment (Ryzom will be on Steam but is not yet). Nevertheless it's what is scheduled.


1.2 Ticket system: news about the creation of an internal ticket system

Uservoice (The Support tool for tickets, that stops to be free) will be slowly replaced by an in-house program. This one already works, only still to improve it to be more comfortable.

Q: It was replaced fast, isn't it ?
A: Yes, in two weeks the new tool was working, and we have been able to retrieve all data stored in Uservoice. Both tools are running in parallel for the moment, we will cut off Uservoice (still free, we profit on it) when the new tool will bemore improved. But if Uservoice became unfree tomorrow, we are ready to switch 100% on the new internal tool.


1.3 Creation of a Ryzom Name Generator

Daexin has created a Ryzom Name Generator: http://atys.wiki.ryzom.com/RyzomNameGenerator/ 
Be free to use it!

Q: Is it done for NPC names create or for the players?
A: It's for NPCs (and for events characters), but it's easy to use it for a player by taking only the first name.

Q: In the game, is the familly name written in first position or there is no strict rule ?
A: It depends on the nations : fist name + familly name for Fyros and Matis ; family name + first name for Trykers and Zoraïs.


1.4 Call to the Devs: project of nel plugins to support Blender instead of 3dsMax only (payed work)

Ryzom Forge's artists have difficulties because of the obligation to use 3dsMax (a very expensive tool). They need to be able to use a free one like Blender. Winch Gate will pay a dev to create this plugin. Please send your project to tamarea@ryzom.com, or tell your dev friends about this!

Q: What is needed is well described somewhere?
A: Here: https://semestriel.framapad.org/p/blender_nel_2015


1.5 Ubuntu logitheque and client update

Despite of many requery, Kervala didn't get a reply from Canonical (the fact that the person who takes care of Ryzom has gone does not help).
Kervala as compiled the new versions on the 27th of june: https://launchpad.net/~ryzom-isv/+archive/ubuntu/ppa. It's not the same visibility but it's better than nothing.
The page on Ryzom Forge Wiki has been updated: http://forge.ryzom.com/wiki/Linux_FAQ_EN and also http://doc.ubuntu-fr.org/ryzom.

1.6 Dev document about mission

Here is a new document for Dev / LD: http://forge.ryzom.com/wiki/Documentation_sur_les_missions. 
It's documentation about different options usable in missions. It covers a very wild field (for example what we can dig, where... etc). At the begining, it's made to be used in primitives (a complex thing) but it could be useful also for those who use ARK : the same functions are called.
You will need to adapt the syntax to ARK, but it may gives ideas about what is possible in the game.
Documentation in English: http://khaganat.net/wikhan/en:rcprimitivemissiondoc

Q: Does proposing a mission imply to code it myself with ARK?
A: No. First, the mission has to be complete, not just a idea. Then, after validation, you can if you wish participate to it's encoding in ARK, but the Ark team, with specialists as Goki, is faster to do it. The workflow is about to be revealed, all the informations are in it.

2 - Level Design group

2.1  Validation of the mission workflow

It is validated!
It will be added in the wiki and translated (currently in french only).

Q: Is there a link ?
A: Not now, it's just validated and is still in a private document.


2.2  Lore group's study of the ideas of missions proposed by Ryzom Forge

The main pad is here:  https://semestriel.framapad.org/p/Missions_LD_2015_DitG10mp64AhiS .
All the current ideas in it are in study both by the Lore Team and the Level Design Team.
Don't hesitate to put yours inside!


2.3 Creation of a RF Level Design group on Asana

The Level Design group needs to be better structured, so Tamarea opened a RF Level Design group in Asana (a tool for team management). 
Asana groups are free (as with no charge) untill 15 people in a group, but it will be enough for our actual needs. Nevertheless this group will be reserved to the LD team, because of this restriction.
To ask for an access, send an email to tamarea@ryzom.com, who will invite you.

The advange is that the Ryzom teams under NDA already use it, and it is possible to share a task between groups. So it's possible to follow a task with more than 15 people.
It will be able to follow the advancement of missions by Level Design group, Lore group, Ark group, with the possibility to send validation requests.
Asana sends emails notifications in case of adding or modifying a task (except if you prefer to desactivate the feature).

Q: Do we need to create an account before ?
A: It is not necessary, invitation is possible with an Asana account or with an email.

3 - Artist group

3.1 Creation of the cities banners

There is already some precise requests in RF forum: http://app.ryzom.com/app_forum/index.php?page=forum/view/3896 but some of them are missing.
Zora, Jen-Lai Crystabell, Windermeer, Avalae banners seems to be decided and waiting for validation. The one from Davae is already done (congratulations to Remigra), we just need to wait for players feedback.

We would need to schedule city assemblies again, either to evaluate the current results, either to choose the banner's pattern and colours.


3.2 Creation request: female tryker leader armour (for Ailan Mac Kean)

All is said in the title!

Q: Is this armor based on the tryker heavy armour shape?
R: N, the male leader has got a medium armor.It's a special version, titally different and unique: https://lut.im/ixDQ7YRP/yvEQRpU2. The problem is to create Still Wyler's armour for a female.

4 - Ark

4.1 Ark interface

The simplification of the ARK interface to make it being usable easily by users paused waiting for the dev to end new ticket system and payment plugin.


4.2 Anlor Winn project

Remigra has done some nice work with a few visual things that we can use for Anlor Winn. These visual changes are for 4 land textures, 4 species of trees and flowers. They will affect the 4 nations, Almati and Nexus (but not the Prime Roots) during the event only:

For information: all mounts are not changed, and the floor only changes in summer because it was summer during the tests. You just have to change the letters of the files for the other seasons and countries when they do not exist.
Since the event will run on 2 weeks, these missing files must be added. The ruse consisting in renaming the files works without any problem. 

The next step now is to come up with a good premise for the event - the primary obligation being that the event has to be *fully* automated.
One idea: Anlor Winn could go out of a burning kitin.
Another idea: dynamic kitin invasions (smaller scale) that are reactive based on player actiity for each region. This is something a little ambitious but to test.

Q: Is "Pocket Worlds" still under developement, or is it on hold too?
R: Yes it is. The first work is to make Ark interface more easy for the players. And priority is the payment method now.

Q: Many have told me that the secular Halloween, had no place in Ryzom actually. What do you think?
R: The issue is that it's a real life stuff, not a Lore one. We would break the roleplay immersion with playing a real life event. That's the reason why we have created Anlor Winn (Malefic Wind), that looks better with Atys world.