Could someone clarify how arguments work in objectdock?

bump

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thanks for the bumps, iplural
doesn't anyone run games off of objectdock? how do you do it?

you might be able to create a batch file that loads the game and link to that from an OD icon?

that or if it's a windows ready game, just link to it and the put the args in the field below your link as you would in the normal link in windows?

not sure, don't have any games installed...

oh wait, my daughter has a barbie game on a system, let me try and I'll let you know what I find out...


that or maybe someone else does this already and can help? peoples?

Well, I got curious - so I installed 0.88... none of my games use arguments - but some of my other apps accept arguments.

So I set up some shortcuts to test. All I did was created the shortcut on the bar normally, and in the 'arguments' field of 0.88 I put in whatever arguments I needed to pass to the app, and they were all sent correctly.

cool

thanky kthxbye

I was playing hell trying to decide if I wanted to put Quake 3 on a system or not, found my daughters game only runs under 256 colors, ick...

kthxbye- could you post exactly what you entered in the "arguments" field. i think my problem is i'm not using the correct syntax. maybe i don't really know what an "argument" is. basically what's happening is that games that need to be started in their directory don't work from OD. All quake 3 engine games say something like "can't find *.cfg" or something (im at work so i can't check to see exactly what it says) some other games (gta3,battlefield 1942) don't start at all or give an error. If i make a shortcut in the directory, same thing happens, but they run fine from a windows (not OD) shortcut no matter where it is, so it must be because the game's directory is automatically in the shortcut's "Start in:" field. i guess my question is how do i get the info in a Windows shortcut's "Start in:" field to run when i click on a OD shortcut??

if you right click on the icon you use now to laod it and then properties, you will see what file or what args are being passed to run it, I think..

Right. Arguments are options passed through to a program as its run (as you probably knew ^_^)
The biggest problem is, while there are unnofficial standards, there's not really a set standard for arguments and the like.

Usually, they're in the form of

/ or - in windows.

So, say "C:\Program Files\My Game\My Game.exe" -config mygame.cfg -res 1024x768x32

The -config and -res entries (with the data after them,) are the arguments.

As for where to enter them - I'm going by 0.88/0.088 (whatever, I've already removed it again ^_^) and it doesn't have a "Start In:" entry in the icon properties - it has an actual "Arguments:" field (in which, in my example, you would enter:
-config mygame.cfg -res 1024x768x32

And yes - the place you'd find those would be from your existing shortcut on your startmenu or on your desktop. In a standard Windows shortcut, it would be in the Target: box - after the path to the .exe (which will probably be in quotation marks.)

Target: "C:\program files\my game\my game.exe" -config mygame.cfg

Is how it would look in the shortcut properties.

yeah but the windows properties has a "Start in:" field....the objectdock properties has a "arguments" field. when i enter whats in the "start in:" field in the "arguments" field, it don't work none.

thanks kthxbye i was writing #10 while you were posting so please disregard

so if i were to put in the Objectdock Properties:

In the "Link" field:
C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe

And in the "arguements" field:

-"C:\Program Files\GTAIII\"

Would that work? or does there need to be "Start in:" somewhere. What would the shortcut properties for the game look like if it was written command line style:
C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe -"C:\Program Files\GTAIII"

Like that? that doesn't seem right. I'm asssuming everything after the space after gta3.exe is exactly what would go in the agruments field

I appreciate your help sorry if i am making this too complicated.

Basically... Ignore the 'Start in' field in windows.

If the Target field has "C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe" -"C:\Program Files\GTAIII"

then, IIRC, in Object Dock it would be:

Link: C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe
Arguments: -c:\program files\gtaiii\

I'm unsure if Object Dock requires the "'s or not, like Windows does.

( Oh, and I just pretty much repeated what you said, yes. ^_^)

The Start In: option in Windows shortcuts is... really irrelevant for most programs - even from Windows shortcuts!

ok...that makes sense, but i believe the target path in the apps i am having trouble with only has the executable, ie:
"C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe" NOT
"C:\Program Files\GTAIII\gta3.exe" -"C:\Program Files\GTAIII"
i will have to try at home to know for sure
thanks again for the help

Hmmm - if you have any problems, post a screenshot of the GTA III shortcut properties window (the Windows properties, not OD's,) and we can see.

Make sure it shows the /end/ of the Target line - not the beginning.

ok
lets use MOHAA as an example because it has a console that comes up and tells the error. it says:
Current search path:
C:\Program Files\ObjectDock/main

so my problem is the search path. how do you change that with an argument.?
I tried -"C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\MOHAA" in the arguments field both with and without quotes---didn't work

I'm having the exact same problem. It occurs with all games built using the Quake 3 engine (may be others). I have tried copying the text exactly as it appears in the Windows shortcut into an Objectdock icon (Placing the text in the Target field into the Link text box and the text in the Start In field into the Arguments box)

This problem is occuring because Objectdock does not interpret the path placed in the arguments box as a "start in" folder. Does anyone know a way to rectify this, or how you specify a start in folder using the Command Prompt.

I don't use objectdock (litestep junkie) so forgive me if I'm offbase.
Rather than worrying about correct syntax for paths and arguments; can you point objectdock to the program (game) shortcut that would exist on the desktop (desktop directory)
Trigger the shortcut, to trigger the game?