Snake bite - Discussion

[anon]

Yep, that's it. Works perfectly with numlock off, though it's a bit mysterious why it affects the cursor keys.

[Alan]

Great levelset! Levels, music and graphics are all good.

There is one little annoyance tho:

This is from level 3. To get out you have to move the snake right. But as soon as you do so, the boulder above the one you rolled out the way rolls down trapping you in.
It sometimes does that and sometimes not. Is it a bug or just a case of tapping right at the right time?

But well done

Hummm works for me, all the time! (you do have to keep pushing right to get under though)

bojster's tape does finish the level, but skips these two trapped gems.... but, there's all the tapes for all the levels supplied with snakebite (in the Snakebite\Tapes folder), and as you see it works.....

I'm baffled!

[bojster]

bojster's tape does finish the level, but skips these two trapped gems.... but, there's all the tapes for all the levels supplied with snakebite (in the Snakebite\Tapes folder), and as you see it works.....

My tape only skips one gem on this spot, I snapped the other one. Anyway. Now (in 3.1.1) it works ok (I mean pushing the stone and going under the one above it), but I first played it with 3.1.0 and it didn't (you can check that and see), that's why on the tape it's skipped.

[Holger]

[CapsLock/NumLock problem in X11 version]
> I also found this problem in mails we exchanged with Holger in March
> 2004 and symptoms as well as the conclusion were the same. I'm not
> sure if it can be fixed, but maybe Holger can investigate it further.

Thanks for the investigation, and for the solution to the problem. I'll check if this can be fixed in the X11 version, but I'm afraid that I just don't get the right key codes from X11 with CapsLock/NumLock enabled. I could try to map both code sets...

At least it's good to know how to solve this problem! :-)

[Mark]

Hello, everyone! Please welcome Mark as he presents us with the dumb question of today Here it is:

After I downloaded snakebite, how do I upload it onto R&D? Where do I extract this zip file?

[bojster]

You just extract it into 'levels' directory wherever your RnD dir is.

Suggestion for Holger: Put up some brief instructions on levels download page. ;-) Well, a bit less brief than there already are maybe... but people probably don't scroll down to read them anyway...

[Holger]

> You just extract it into 'levels' directory wherever your RnD dir is.

An even better place is the directory "My Documents\Rocks'n'Diamonds\levels". This has the advantage that you always keep your additional levels after an update to a newer version of R'n'D. (In this case you would have to move the additional level directories to the new version's "levels" directory.)

> Suggestion for Holger: Put up some brief instructions on levels download
> page. ;-) Well, a bit less brief than there already are maybe... but people
> probably don't scroll down to read them anyway...

Oh well... I should write it in big, blinking letters everywhere on the "Levels & Artwork" page, I think... ;-)

[Mark]

Thanks. Oh, btw: Snake Bite rules! I love these kinds of puzzles.

[Daniel H.]

Detatching the head from the body
---------------------------------
Is it possible? Not likely! If you do manage to do this, send me a tape and
you will have my respect.

In Snake Bite, it is possible to detach the head of the snake from the body.

For example, going through a door which is about to close at just the right time appears to detach the head from the body. This tape shows an example. *EDIT* I didn't record the tape.

[Alan]

OK you have my respect (and my first born son)

BTW what RND version did you record this with? SNB was made with 3.1.2 so it might be a compatibility thing (excuses,excuses)

I'll have to check it out, but good work finding the bug.

[Daniel H.]

OK you have my respect (and my first born son)

BTW what RND version did you record this with? SNB was made with 3.1.2 so it might be a compatibility thing (excuses,excuses)

I'll have to check it out, but good work finding the bug.

Actually, Nathan H. did it, with 3.2.0. I didn't ever succeed in doing it, but I never tried very hard

But he's done it before with 3.1.1, I think.

[Alan]

Sorry Daniel, no cigar!

It does decapitate the snake in 3.2.0 (and leaves behind a sokoban bulb thing, which is weird), but running the same tape in 3.1.2 kills the snake!

So it is a 3.2.0 "thing". I'm now taking back my respect and first born son (just kidding)

But he's done it before with 3.1.1, I think.

The reason I made that cocky statement about decapitating the snake is because I am 100% sure it can't be done. I spent hours and hours running through the doors at different lengths and times and always died.

You say you "think" he did it. See if he has the tape, but I doubt it....... sorry!

[Holger]

> So it is a 3.2.0 "thing".

AARRGH! Right...! :-O

And it happens *always* if you go halfway though a door and wait there! =:-o :-(

That's something I've never tested with 3.2.0 -- the problem is that I only have "good, working tapes" for Snake Bite that never had such a situation (else it wouldn't solve the level), and if I would have such "bad" tapes, it wouldn't be possible to automatically test them (as not solving the level would result in a "tape failed -- engine must be buggy" result). :-(

I'll try hard to fix that problem in 3.2.1 as soon as possible. I really hope it won't make too much problems, but I fear that fixing it will again break new 3.2.0 features... Oh well, compatibility code, here I come... :-o

[Holger]

OK, I think I was able to fix this (after four hours of debugging :-o ).

Did not change the engine (kept the bugfix in 3.2.0 that broke Snake Bite),
but added compatibility code that fixes all Snake Bite style levels on the fly when loading them.

Alan:
> It does decapitate the snake in 3.2.0 (and leaves behind a sokoban bulb
> thing, which is weird), but running the same tape in 3.1.2 kills the snake!

Yep. The problem was caused by CE 'custom_256' (the last one, called 'pause b4 death & show impact!' in Snake Bite levels). Look at the first change page, at the "target element" -- it's a Sokoban field with the player! (Here's where the "weird" sokoban bulb comes from -- you did place it there by yourself! ;-) )

Simply replacing this "sokoban field with player" with just "player 1" (the "snake head" in Snake Bite levels) solves the problem -- try it! (This will now automatically be done when detecting Snake Bite style levels in 3.2.1.)

In 3.2.1, the above tape now behaves exactly like in 3.1.2 again! :-)

*phew*

[Alan]

You really didn't have to go through all that trouble just for a single level set! (four hours! )

Here's where the "weird" sokoban bulb comes from -- you did place it there by yourself!

Wow, you know I honestly don't remember! Looking at the SNB "engine" after a year is like anybody else looking at it......its all white noise to me now We need CE notes......or maybe CP notes