I'm working on an NWjs windows app that can edit the metadata in large batches of files such as JPGs and others. My app searches and replaces certain words or phrases according to very specific needs. The problem is these files contain characters that get corrupted when my app loads them into a text string via Ajax or whatever. So basically the app does everything it's supposed to but corrupts all the files it changes because of this issue.

I tried loading and saving the files using the binary plugin but I have no idea how to actually make any changes in their content. I hope I'm missing something here because everything I tried seemed to go nowhere. So, does anyone have any ideas about how to edit these "binary" files without ruining them? Thanks.

The answer is double tap on an object. The >> button doesn't do anything. Okay, nevermind lol.

Thank you for your help, everyone. What I've found is that most binary data in eps files saved by Illustrator stores editability functions. Without it the files are a mess to work with for anyone who opens them. Illustrator does the same with svg files but the editability data in them doesn't seem to be binary. I could have done everything I needed through svg files but even though they can store any metadata, Illustrator refuses to load the metadata when it opens an svg so when it converts it back to an eps, the eps is void of metadata.

This is obviously a problem I'll need to dedicate more time and effort to. Thanks for the leads.

I would expect that Illustrator would use the basic svg format which is essentially xml.

That's one of the formats it can open and save, yes, but the files I work with need to be eps. The metadata part of the eps is also xml I suppose.

EDIT: I may be able to convert the eps files into svg easily, edit the svgs with my app without corrupting them since it's really just text and then reconvert them back to eps. I'm going to give it a try, thanks!

I don't use nwjs, but I tried loading a binary file with ajax and saving it with the browser object. The file doesn't load. It looks like saving and loading as text will not work. Nwjs saves and loads as text as well.

To save and load as binary will require an entirely new plugin to do so or to use javascript to do it in the browser execjs action. There's a fair amount of stuff to look up to do that.

But then if you get past that, there's the matter of modifying the file in a way that doesn't break it. It depends on how the file format is laid out.

Right, so it's not exactly simple to do this. Thank you for putting things in perspective. I'm pretty sure what I need is doable with MS Word and macros however so I may give it a try.

It’s a bad idea to add data to a file like that. It would

Break it. The write file feature focuses on text files but that’s not the issue. Basically you need to know or have a JavaScript library know how the data is stored in the files. And even then many formats don’t allow you to add unrelated data in it.

Here’s a different idea. You could create your own file in the folder and store the extra data there.

I process over 100 eps files every day and for each one I have to add a title and a headline in the metadata, in both of which I insert the name of the respective file. I do this using Illustrator but it would have been so much easier to do by script if only I could get my app to write the eps files correctly. I mean I can even edit eps files with MS Word without corrupting them so I was hoping it wouldn't be too difficult to do by script.

I've made a useful little app using Construct 2 and NW.js to help me with managing lots of files on my windows desktop. It does stuff like moving files and renaming them automatically, saving me loads of repetitive work. However I really wish I could insert small bits of information in these files as well. The files are .eps, a vector format used in graphic design and editable with Adobe Illustrator and such.

I got my script to make changes in the files, using the NWjs object and the Write File command but the files it generates are no longer readable by Illustrator. I can edit these eps files with a binary text editor just to add some bits of metadata that Illustrator can't add but I was hoping I could do the same, automatically, with my Construct app. Does anyone know if it is possible at all? Maybe with javascript or some plugin?

Thanks

I am now playing it and I just can say you made an excellent job. It's very polished, so congrats. I hope you find success with it.

Thank you, I'm really glad you like it. Judging by the game's competition in this laser puzzle segment of Google Play I'm fairly confident it could get at least moderate success but first I have to get it in the top of a couple of searches and there's no guarantee I can achieve that. Time will tell.

You are not the first to tell me about the bolted plates so I think it's time to address the issue. In the next update I'll probably try your suggestion and also add a sound and change the model for the empty bolted plates (sort of draw an X on them). Thanks for pointing it out.

I didn't have to use Cranberry plugins. I used the Cocoon IAP, ads, native share and Facebook plugins but those aren't a walk in the park either. They tend to work in very specific ways, unlike the native ones made by Scirra. You can get the plugins here https://github.com/CocoonIO/cocoon-plugins-c2. I don't remember finding tutorials for In App Purchases but the plugins come with Construct 2 capx examples. It's not as good but you can sort of copy their code and change the variables to suit your products. The IAP system is a bit of a head-ache at first but mostly because it's slow to test.

What you need to know is that in order to test the product you must first upload the apk on Google Play (preferably as an alpha) and then add your account to the testers list so you can test buy-your products. It's also recommended to have a Restore Purchases button so that buyers who uninstall the game and later re-install it can re-activate their already-purchased products. This is only for non-consumable products, like removing ads or unlocking content. I tried to make the whole process automatic but it was kind of impossible with the Cocoon plugins so I recommend using a good ole' button. Besides, I think Apple requires one.

Also, I used Canvas as a web engine. Canvas makes you app significantly smaller than Webview and achieves higher frame-rates but has some limitations. For instance, you must not have normal text objects in your Construct project (use Sprite Font instead) or the frame-rate will drop badly.

EDIT: If you want to try Cocoon and it's plugins I recommend starting with this tutorial

. There's not a lot of them for Construct 2 games compiled with Cocoon unfortunately so every bit helps.

Laser Links

A block sliding puzzle game where you redirect lasers to light up all the LEDs. It's got 120 levels and more to come.

It's available for free on Google Play

The gods of Apple have not been as kind but I'm not about to give up just because I can't afford a Mac and iPhone...

Also, here's a bit of actual game-play.

Due to me being a bit of a maniac the game is not only HD but UHD, meaning that if you run it on a 4K screen it will load native 4K graphics without stretching them at all. In hindsight I'm not sure how many people would even notice this but it's a technical achievement I'm quite proud of and was pleasantly surprised I could pull it off with Construct. If however the game is running on a tiny screen it will load much smaller graphics and use under 20 mb of ram. This system makes the game look really clear on any screen and the interface auto-adjusts to any ratio.

I've been testing SVGs with Construct 2 by loading them into Sprites. All the graphics I make for my projects are vector so I could hugely benefit from using SVGs and loading them to any size I need. The problem is I can't control the size at which they are rasterized. If I export my SVGs as responsive Construct somehow chooses a fixed size for them. For example a 64x64 SVG is rasterized at 150x150 for some reason. If I stretch the image to 128x64 Construct makes it 300x150. I learned that by using the "Load image..." command with "Resize to image size". Later I tried the same SVG at 256x256 and again it was resized to 150x150.

On the other hand if I export my SVGs as non-responsive Construct rasterizes them at their native size. The same 64x64 SVG will be rasterized at that size instead of 150x150. The problem is that if I can't dynamically control the native size of the SVGs they are not a lot more useful than PNGs. They are smaller but I will still need multiple sets of them with different sizes.

My question is, how can I control the size of responsive SVGs? I want to make them smaller or bigger depending on screen size before they are loaded and therefore rasterized. I know there is no direct command for this but, is it maybe doable with javascript commands? Any thoughts?

I just added a light version of the game on the Scirra Arcade!

You can give it a try here Laser Links (Light)

There are some PC-specific controls but all the mobile functionality has been kept. On mobile the game runs in both landscape and portrait mode if play it in full screen. All the graphical assets are still there so every screen resolution is supported and the graphics stay sharp.

If only uploading were this easy on every site