MeanGoof's Scripting Tutorials:
 (17 July, 2002)
 (By: "Meangoof")
 (Former [TiC]Clan Guest)


 Lesson #3:
 Toggle scripts:
 

What are Toggle Scripts?:

What is a toggle script you might ask? Did you ever wish that you had a way to make your move keys toggle between running and walking, without always having to hold down the shift key when you want to walk? Did you ever wish you had a particular key that could turn the radar on when you hit it, and turn it off when you hit it again? Toggle scripts allow you to do exactly this sort of thing.

This class will include the following:

1) A review of last week's lesson.
2) A detailed explanation of a simple toggle script.
3) A session on the clan server to try out your new toggle script (and to debug it if it does not work).


Back to the top of page


 

A review of  previous script classes:

a) CS has over 250 commands that can be invoked through the console, directly from a script, or from a bind to one of your keys.

b) You can create your own commands by using aliases. You build aliases as a sequence of valid CS commands, each separated by a semi column and enclosed in double quotes.

Example: alias crouchjump "+duck;wait;wait;+jump;wait;wait;-duck;wait;wait;-jump"


c) Just like the normal commands, the commands you create can be used from the console, in a script, as part of new commands etc etc.

Example:

Create a command

alias wait4 "wait;wait;wait;wait"

Now create another command based on the previous one

alias wait8 "wait4;wait4"

Now whenever you use wait4 or wait8 they behave like normal commands

for example:

alias +selectHE "weapon_hegrenade;wait8"
alias -selectHE "lastinv;wait4"

In this last example, whenever you press a key bound to the +selectHE alias, the HE grenade is selected.
When you let go of that key, your last selected weapon comes back automatically.

d) +/- commands are special types of commands that are normally bound to keys. The plus version is bound to a key. When the key is pressed, the command is executed, and when the key is let go, the minus command is executed. You can use +/- commands in scripts or other aliases, but make sure that you don't break the semantic of the command by forgetting to call up the minus command. Forgetting this could put your game in a state that has you locked up doing something. For example, is you issue the +forward command and forget to execute the -forward command, you will forever being moving forward.


Back to the top of page


 

A detailed description of a toggle script:

What follows is a toggle script that allows you to toggle between running and walking

alias walkToggle "walk_on"
alias walk_on "+speed;developer 1;echo walking is on;developer 0;alias walkToggle walk_off"
alias walk_off "-speed;developer 1;echo walking is off;developer 0;alias walkToggle walk_on"

bind "1" "walkToggle"

Let's look at this script one line at a time.


1.) alias walkToggle "walk_on" :

In this line I create a new command called walkToggle. This command, when first executed, will execute the walk_on command (which is defined on the next line). This command will change itself to execute something else each time it is executed. By that I mean that the first time it is executed, it will execute the walk_on command, the second time it is executed it will execute the walk_off command, the third time it is executed it will be back to executing the walk_on command and so on.


2.) alias walk_on "+speed;developer 1;echo walking is on;developer 0;alias walkToggle walk_off" :

In this 2nd line, I define the walk_on command. Remember from the previous line, this is actually what gets executed the first time the walkToggle command is executed because the walkToggle command is first aliased to this particular command. The first thing that this command does is to execute the +speed command. This has the same effect as if you pressed and held down the shift key, thus making your player walk instead of running. The second thing this command does is to execute the developer 0/echo/developer 1 sequence which puts the walking is on message on the top left hand corner of your hud (see the description of the developer/echo command combination I provided in the first class on scripting). The last thing the walk_on command does is where the magic lies in toggle script. It executes the alias command on the walkToggle command, to re-alias the walkToggle command to its new meaning, namely walk_off. This means that after executing the walk_on command, the walkToggle command, when executed again, will execute the walk_off command. Very cool euh?


3.) alias walk_off "-speed;developer 1;echo walking is off;developer 0;alias walkToggle walk_on" :

In this third line I define the behaviour of the walk_off command. After executing the walk_on command, this is the command that the walkToggle command is aliased to. The first thing this command does is to execute the -speed command. This is the same thing as if you released the shit key on your keyboard, putting your player back into the running mode. The line then displays the walking is off message on the top left hand corner of your hud. The last thing this line does is to re-alias the walkToggle command back to its original meaning (walk_on) so that when the walkToggle command is executed again, it will cycle back to its original meaning which was to make you walk.


4.) bind "1" "walkToggle" :

Aliases by themselves serve very little purpose. You have to have a way to execute them. This last line binds the 1 key on your keyboard to the walkToggle command. After executing this line, every time you hit the 1 key on your keyboard, it will execute the walkToggle command for you, which will toggle you back and forth between the walk and run mode.

Personally, I would not put this particular line in my private script. I would either drop my console and issue this command from the console (which will automatically update my config.cfg file) or I would put an entry line inside my kb_act.lst file and make my bind from the games controls menu.

That's all there is to toggle scripts. Write this one down in your autoexec.cfg or private script file and lets go on the server to try it out.


Back to the top of page


 

This page was originally created by [TiC]EVIL 28Aug01. Last updated 02/06/03.