Hydra Asset Manager released!
Keebler
Posts: 58
Hey everyone,
The Hydra Asset Manager is ready for it's first release. I've attached a .zip file to this post.
H.A.M. requires .NET Framework 2.0. If you don't have it, here's a link:
Download .NET Framework 2.0
Hopefully this will help the developers do more experimentation with that extra 96KB [noparse]:)[/noparse]
Please check it out and I'm open to any comments/suggestions. Do keep in mind that it's a first release and this is the bare minimum in functionality. It's going to get more polished and more features are already being added.
My email address is in my profile and in the Help | About box in the Hydra Asset Manager.
(Update)
Version 1.0.9 is available here:
http://forums.parallax.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=90044&d=1330294165
Thanks,
Richard Benson
Post Edited (Keebler) : 5/26/2008 8:01:48 PM GMT
The Hydra Asset Manager is ready for it's first release. I've attached a .zip file to this post.
H.A.M. requires .NET Framework 2.0. If you don't have it, here's a link:
Download .NET Framework 2.0
The Hydra Asset Manager Documentation said...
The Hydra Asset Manager was created to help game authors' organize and update the assets for their games. One of the benefits of the Hydra is it's EEPROM cartridges and their ability to hold more than just the 32k executable image. However, this immediately begs the question, how do the programmers get their game assets onto the EEPROM? Like they say, "Necessity is the mother of invention."
With the Hydra Asset Manager (H.A.M.), you can simply drag and drop files into the application, arrange them in memory and upload to the Hydra. Also, you can also download the entire EEPROM image from the Hydra and save it to your PC for later re-use.
Hopefully this will help the developers do more experimentation with that extra 96KB [noparse]:)[/noparse]
Please check it out and I'm open to any comments/suggestions. Do keep in mind that it's a first release and this is the bare minimum in functionality. It's going to get more polished and more features are already being added.
My email address is in my profile and in the Help | About box in the Hydra Asset Manager.
(Update)
Version 1.0.9 is available here:
http://forums.parallax.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=90044&d=1330294165
Thanks,
Richard Benson
Post Edited (Keebler) : 5/26/2008 8:01:48 PM GMT
Comments
My computer is asking me to install .Net framework v2.0.50727 when I try to run the program.
Can you tell me where I can get it ?
Thanks,
Bean.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Cheap used 4-digit LED display with driver IC·www.hc4led.com
Low power SD Data Logger www.sddatalogger.com
SX-Video Display Modules www.sxvm.com
Stuff I'm selling on ebay http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZhittconsultingQQhtZ-1
"USA Today has come out with a new survey - apparently, three out of every four people make up 75% of the population." - David Letterman
Try this:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=0856eacb-4362-4b0d-8edd-aab15c5e04f5&displaylang=en
Apologies,
Rich
Andre'
Rich
Bean.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Cheap used 4-digit LED display with driver IC·www.hc4led.com
Low power SD Data Logger www.sddatalogger.com
SX-Video Display Modules www.sxvm.com
Stuff I'm selling on ebay http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZhittconsultingQQhtZ-1
"USA Today has come out with a new survey - apparently, three out of every four people make up 75% of the population." - David Letterman
I'll go ahead and put the link in the documentation.
Rich
Brian
PS. My daughter loves the piano demo.
Post Edited (Brian Beckius) : 2/2/2007 7:04:17 PM GMT
And of course, the tools is good for data logging since if you write some code for your hydra or demo board that writes to the eeprom, there is no way to get it off the eeprom with the spin tool, but with this program and client you can pull data off the eeprom (any size eeprom) as well and download back to the pc.
Andre'
·
Brian
Yes, one of the features of the Hydra Asset Manager is the ability to "download" the eeprom to the PC. This is especially helpful when you get your game and assets laid out and want to save off the snapshot in it's entirety.
Rich
I tried to download from hydra (I set the com port).I get a "Send:address-timedout" error.
Brian
Hmm.. You should only get that error if something is really wrong. Basically, it means the PC hasn't heard from the Hydra in a full second.
Did the Hydra say, "Sending EEPROM Contents to PC" ?
Can you tell me exactly how you tried to do it? Did you have HAM 1.04 running on the Hydra with it saying "Waiting" ?
When did you get the timeout error? What percentage was the status bar showing in the lower right corner of the PC app?
Also, which EEPROM chip are you trying to download from? We're currently working on a problem with the microchip 24LC1025 chip.
Thanks Brian,
Rich
I reloaded the hydra and now I can get it to download . I see that it saves it as a eeprom file ,but how do I veiw it.
Thanks,Brian
Ps. is saving like this· 14585732985239757.eeprom.spin
Post Edited (Brian Beckius) : 2/5/2007 1:13:45 PM GMT
You can also drag it into H.A.M. and reupload images in their entirety. Admittedly, it's a little tricky to fit an asset that is exactly the size of the EEPROM. I'll fix that soon, but in the meantime, just drag the asset in above the top of memory and the code will clamp it to address 0 and it will fit [noparse]:)[/noparse]
As far as the name, I'm not sure where you get the .spin on the end from?
It always saves it as Download_%%Date%%_%%Time%%.eeprom. This way, it should always be unique.
For example, one of mine is Download_01272007_154844.eeprom (01/27/2007 - 15:48:44). You're free to rename them after they're downloaded of course...
Hope that helps,
Rich
What binary editor would you recomend , also for some reason my computer is attaching .spin in the end of the file.
Thank's Brian
Your computer can't change my code [noparse]:)[/noparse] However, you probably allowed the Propellor Tool to associate .eeprom files with the tool, so maybe it's showing it as a Spin file in Windows Explorer? This won't be a problem if you uncheck "Hide extensions for known file types" in Windows Explorer, Tools, Folder Options, View (Tab)... Then it should definitely show up as a .eeprom.
Anyways, I haven't had a need for a binary editor anytime recently, but when I did, I simply used .NET since it worked fine.
Doing a Google search for Binary Editor pulls up a ton of applications, but I'm sure if someone reading this thread has one they like a lot, they'll chime in with a link.
On a side note, I've been working on integrating the ability to Hex Edit the assets from within the Hydra Asset Manager...
Rich
Now that I have a hex editor on my computer I don't get the .spin added. Works AWSOME !
Thanks, Brian
PS. I have a feeling that the hex editor is going to do nothing but get me in·trouble
Post Edited (Brian Beckius) : 2/6/2007 10:12:54 PM GMT
It iterates the available ports at startup and adds them all to the combo box. If you can't select the correct COM port, that's a huge problem.
I'm confused though, you said, "I select com 18 and see the flashing". So I'm not sure if you can select COM18 or not.
What percent is the progress bar when it times out?
Thanks,
Rich
I see port 18, I hav studio 2005 abd the latest service packs, it seems a little fasted than a second before the popup, one flash. With your demo running I see the prop plug red led flash (dimly) about 300ms when not plugged into the pc.
That should be fine as long as you aren't trying to go beyond the 32KB in the upload or trying to use the download which assumes 128KB
I just mean that H.A.M. only scans for available serial ports when it launches. So if you didn't have the thing plugged in when you launched H.A.M., you'd have to relaunch it to detect the new serial port.
"With your demo running I see the prop plug red led flash (dimly) about 300ms when not plugged into the pc"
I'm not sure what you mean by this.
Rich
Any luck?
Version 1.06 is ready. (It's attached to this post. I'll try and find a centralized upload location so I don't have to keep attaching them here)
New to this version:
Push mode
You can now move multiple assets at once. Any asset that comes into contact with the moving asset will slide with it. (Hold Control to turn on Push mode)
Project support
Save a given layout as a project that can be loaded at any time.
Hex editing support
View and modify any asset's data in a visual hex editor.
MRU list
Easy access to your last 5 opened projects.
More documentation.
The About box has tons of documentation on how to use H.A.M. That documentation is also available as a RTF file in the ZIP.
Enjoy.
Rich
Post Edited (Keebler) : 3/11/2007 6:52:38 PM GMT
Any chance of adding a Download Size?
So I can download just 64KB on my protoboard?
Cheers.
Baggers
Let me see if I can squeeze it in over the weekend / early next week.
Feel free to bug me if you don't hear back [noparse]:)[/noparse]
Rich
I am migrating to HAM for my SpaceWar! project and I think it would be very nice for people distributing HAM-empowered software if there was a quick and easy way for other people to load the software we develop. I had expected that I'd be able to prepare all my assets with HAM, and then when it was all working write all the data to eeprom and then read it all back into a single large .eeprom file that I could distribute along with my release, but (and I haven't done much investigation on this yet, so if I am being foolish please feel free to throw furniture) I found that when I uploaded the entire contents of the eeprom and then tried to drag the resulting .eeeprom file back into HAM, HAM complained that the .eeprom file was larger than the available memory.
However we get there, I believe an easy to use end-user HAM-enabled-app installation solution will help get more people on the HAM band wagon. SpaceWar! is going HAM, and I'd like to make it as easy as possible for people to load and play in the future.
The quickest install solution I can imagine is 1) have an end-user run a pre-compiled .eeprom file which is the HAM communications engine 2) run the HAM windows app and click some new "load .eeprom image" button 3) select the release .eeprom image from a file browser 4) the code loads, you click reset, and you're up and running.
By the way, congratulations on a job well done! HAM works very well and is almost exactly what I would have dreamed of doing if someone hadn't done it already. I'm ever so pleased that you did!!!! How about releasing the HAM vb app source so the community can help evolve it?
Cheers.
epmoyer, yes HAM VB App Source would be great, as we could do lots of mods to it, like exporting a spin file with con statements for file starts + lengths etc.
I've just wrote an app to upload manic miner level files + title screen into upper memory, as I had trouble with HAM, but I've since got HAM working, (IE don't download from eeprom, I was trying to load it back in to check it.)
If you or anyone wants that, your more than welcome.
Baggers.