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Refactoring Concept/Component documentation. Still not done
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docs/source/Coding/Soft-Code.md
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docs/source/Coding/Soft-Code.md
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# Soft Code
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Softcode is a very simple programming language that was created for in-game development on TinyMUD derivatives such as MUX, PennMUSH, TinyMUSH, and RhostMUSH. The idea is that by providing a stripped down, minimalistic language for in-game use, you can allow quick and easy building and game development to happen without having to learn C/C++. There is an added benefit of not having to have to hand out shell access to all developers, and permissions can be used to alleviate many security problems.
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Writing and installing softcode is done through a MUD client. Thus it is not a formatted language.
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Each softcode function is a single line of varying size. Some functions can be a half of a page long
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or more which is obviously not very readable nor (easily) maintainable over time.
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## Examples of Softcode
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Here is a simple 'Hello World!' command:
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```bash
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@set me=HELLO_WORLD.C:$hello:@pemit %#=Hello World!
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```
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Pasting this into a MUX/MUSH and typing 'hello' will theoretically yield 'Hello World!', assuming
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certain flags are not set on your account object.
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Setting attributes is done via `@set`. Softcode also allows the use of the ampersand (`&`) symbol.
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This shorter version looks like this:
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```bash
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&HELLO_WORLD.C me=$hello:@pemit %#=Hello World!
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```
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Perhaps I want to break the Hello World into an attribute which is retrieved when emitting:
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```bash
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&HELLO_VALUE.D me=Hello World
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&HELLO_WORLD.C me=$hello:@pemit %#=[v(HELLO_VALUE.D)]
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```
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The `v()` function returns the `HELLO_VALUE.D` attribute on the object that the command resides
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(`me`, which is yourself in this case). This should yield the same output as the first example.
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If you are still curious about how Softcode works, take a look at some external resources:
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- https://wiki.tinymux.org/index.php/Softcode
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- https://www.duh.com/discordia/mushman/man2x1
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## Problems with Softcode
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Softcode is excellent at what it was intended for: *simple things*. It is a great tool for making an interactive object, a room with ambiance, simple global commands, simple economies and coded systems. However, once you start to try to write something like a complex combat system or a higher end economy, you're likely to find yourself buried under a mountain of functions that span multiple objects across your entire code.
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Not to mention, softcode is not an inherently fast language. It is not compiled, it is parsed with each calling of a function. While MUX and MUSH parsers have jumped light years ahead of where they once were they can still stutter under the weight of more complex systems if not designed properly.
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## Changing Times
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Now that starting text-based games is easy and an option for even the most technically inarticulate, new projects are a dime a dozen. People are starting new MUDs every day with varying levels of commitment and ability. Because of this shift from fewer, larger, well-staffed games to a bunch of small, one or two developer games, some of the benefit of softcode fades.
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Softcode is great in that it allows a mid to large sized staff all work on the same game without stepping on one another's toes. As mentioned before, shell access is not necessary to develop a MUX or a MUSH. However, now that we are seeing a lot more small, one or two-man shops, the issue of shell access and stepping on each other's toes is a lot less.
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## Our Solution
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Evennia shuns in-game softcode for on-disk Python modules. Python is a popular, mature and
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professional programming language. You code it using the conveniences of modern text editors.
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Evennia developers have access to the entire library of Python modules out there in the wild - not
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to mention the vast online help resources available. Python code is not bound to one-line functions
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on objects but complex systems may be organized neatly into real source code modules, sub-modules, or even broken out into entire Python packages as desired.
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So what is *not* included in Evennia is a MUX/MOO-like online player-coding system. Advanced coding in Evennia is primarily intended to be done outside the game, in full-fledged Python modules. Advanced building is best handled by extending Evennia's command system with your own sophisticated building commands. We feel that with a small development team you are better off using a professional source-control system (svn, git, bazaar, mercurial etc) anyway.
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## Your Solution
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Adding advanced and flexible building commands to your game is easy and will probably be enough to satisfy most creative builders. However, if you really, *really* want to offer online coding, there is of course nothing stopping you from adding that to Evennia, no matter our recommendations. You could even re-implement MUX' softcode in Python should you be very ambitious. The [in-game-python](../Contribs/Contrib-Ingame-Python.md) is an optional pseudo-softcode plugin aimed at developers wanting to script their game from inside it.
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