ZGameEditor forum

In case we do get a robust existing scripting language added to ZGE, which one would have your preference?

K

Can I choose ansi C? Yes I know it's not a scripting language but I still don't get why one can't statically link C code in Delphi... :/ It MUST be possible

Ansi C could be possible if gcc compiler is installed so that ZGE can call this compiler when needed. However it would not be static linking because the ZGE runtime is not recompiled whenever ZDesigner generates a exe-file, so it would require some kind of dynamic layer even though the actual C object-code is included in the exe.

And again there is a problem with cross-platform: to generate a binary for Linux from ZDesigner you need to call GCC with parameters for generating linux object code. This is possible but requires a fully configured GCC installation, and this would make ZGE a much larger installation than the current "unzip to install" 1.3 mb file.

On the positive side: C-code brings excellent performance. But it is also hard to use for beginners, so I think ZGE would also need a simpler scripting language. So link with C-code is a good idea, but not as the primary scripting language.

To keep ZGE-development as a small and separate download it would be best if existing compilers in Windows can be used somehow. This includes C#, JScript and VBScript.

Actually I might have understood how the whole thing does work:
the runtime is pre-compiled and everything is added as "data"
EG: ZExpressions, MeshExpressions and so on are added as data and then they are interpreted by the runtime? At the beginning I thought they were compiled Actually, it was really stupid interpretation I admit.

I have not used any of these,. so I will be just going on wikipedia, rumor, and inuendo,. Coming from GM I found GML simple to learn and use, and I hear that scripting language is closest to C or Delphi..,
Personaly I would go for the simplest one, that is most compatible with ZGE design philosophy,.
Lua looks interesting to me, I recall liking it last time I was shoping for a scripting language,. many good ideas., and miniD is also high on my list, it has lots to like,. also python seems to be widely utilized and liked,.
Although I have no idea how any of these will be integrated with ZGE so I leave that to the architechs,. good luck and godspeed!

Hi guys,

To be honest, I don't know much / anything about the knows and hows of compilers either. But in case there would be a obvious preference towards a certain scripting language, perhaps it would influence any decision in that direction?

jph: The MiniD syntaxs looks nice & clean, unfortunately i don't think there are any Delphi bindings for it available as of yet. Same problem with GameMonkey. LUA would be a solid choice, it has proven itself already ( Crysis, Homeworld 2 ).

Ville: Are you considering Java or Javascript? In case it's the latter .. not a big fan of that language And I personally won't have any problems with C#, but other choices might be less complicated for beginners ..

Francesco: .. even more so for C obviously

K

As a beginner, VBScript maybe my first choice. Easy for new programmer due to the fact that it is more like human language than machine.

VBScript does not work on linux and MacOsX as far as I know...

Coming from BASIC, Foxpro and Game Maker I've little experience with any of those choices. I've heard good things about Lua regarding games.

I'm not the target user for ZGameEditor as I've never made a demo and 3D was never my forte. With that in mind, my needs are to focus on creation rather than working around the syntax and IDE of any given environment. Defining variables, using anything but ENTER to signify a new line and needing to define return values and main functions all don't sit well with me.

Doing a Google search on Lua revealed some nice syntax examples.. maybe that one wouldn't be bad.

EDITED: For clarity.