any news on upcoming additions to marine aquarium 3?

[Sergiales]

Hi,

When you open your VS2003 project into VS2005, doesn't it ask you for a code migration process?. I'm not sure if it exists for VC, but it definitely exists for VB and C# projects.

Anyway, some old projects need to be rewritten in order to get upgraded properly, which means a considerable programming effort.

Good luck.

Regards,
Sergio.

[Jim Sachs]

I don't think my old dev program was 2003. Probably more like '98. When the project was opened in VS2005 for the first time, it converted it from a project to a "solution". How ironic that something which worked fine was called a ""project", while something while something which doesn't is a "solution".

[Sergiales]

Ah ah! "Solution" is the way Microsoft calls a group of projects (referenced each other), although a "solution" can contains only one project.

If your code was writen in earlier version of Microsoft IDE (VisualStudio 6), it's likely you have to reorder it. You can search in Google by: migrate from vc++ to vc++.net.

[Jim Sachs]

I won't use the .net framework. It requires an enormous and unnecessary .dll, and gets into the whole "managed" code mess (basically giving Microsoft total control over your program while it's running).

[hillover]

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

I won't use the .net framework. It requires an enormous and unnecessary .dll, and gets into the whole "managed" code mess (basically giving Microsoft total control over your program while it's running).  

Would you mind explaining that a bit?

I thought the MA3 simulation is running under the Microsoft Window operating system (which has total control), and that the .dll is shared code present on the machine regardless of whether it is being used by MA3.

It "feels" like this is preventing progress on "upcoming additions to marine aquarium 3" (the title of this thread). But perhaps that's not the case - which is why I'm asking for education.

It's certainly your choice, of course. And, of course, I recognize that my question is "off topic".

[Jim Sachs]

Managed code basically turns your computer into a "virtual machine", so that instead of just executing commands directly from my program, the .net framework interprets things first. Assuming you have already downloaded and installed the correct version of the 20-meg .net famework (a HUGE assumption), my program must find the .net dll on your machine, load it, and turn control over to it to "manage" all aspects of my program, including the critical timing necessary for smooth animation.

[jleslie]

.net code is more code that the operating system works better with, rather than code left to screw stuff up on its own despite the operating system...

Tho I'm really not fussed how MA works, not my call.

[F34R]

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

My development system was on XP. I'm now using Win7.  

Sorry I caught this too late. I had a spare xp key....

[Jim Sachs]

I was right about the version of Visual Studio that I had - it was Version 6 (1998). Unfortunately, everyone else still wants this version too, and prices seem to start around $350 for used copies.

[elsbree]

Jim -

I might be able to help you start untangling the header files. I've been using Visual Studio since before it was even called Visual Studio, and I use the most recent version on a daily basis. Please send me an email.

John

[harris]

Jim,

I see a lot of MA3 movement for the Android version and you're still having software/hardware upgrading difficulties. Does this mean MA3 for the PC is down for the count, or is there still hope for a comeback!?

Jerry

[elsbree]

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

Do you really want to go there? OK, the very first error is:
1>C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 8\VC\PlatformSDK\include\winnt.h(222) : error C2146: syntax error : missing ';' before identifier 'PVOID64'

Which, in typical cryptic Microsoft fashion, does not REALLY mean that a semicolon is missing, it means that it doesn't inderstand what PVOID64 is. Well, PVOID64 is something that is referred to by Microsoft's own header files, which are called by other MS header files, and never actually used by the code. But if you try deleting the offending line from the header files, all Hell breaks loose and you end up with even more errors.  

Jim -

I'm looking at a somewhat newer version of the header file (the version that's installed by Visual Studio 2012), but I think this is the line you're referring to:

typedefvoid * POINTER_64 PVOID64;

The problem here is likely that POINTER_64 has not been defined at the point when the compiler encounters this line. Depending on which platform you are building for, POINTER_64 should be defined to expand to __ptr64 (64-bit platform) or expand to nothing at all (32-bit platform).

In the version of the header files I have, POINTER_64 is defined in a header called basetsd.h.

If you could send me just the beginning of your source file (up to and including the last #include line), I might be able to help you sort out what's going wrong. I'll probably also need to know which compiler options you're using.

[Jim Sachs]

I got my old '98 version of Visual Studio working again, so I should be able to continue developing MA3.

[pcunite]

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

1>C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 8\VC\PlatformSDK\include\winnt.h(222) : error C2146: syntax error : missing ';' before identifier 'PVOID64'  

Jim,
I'd be happy to help you port your code over to Visual Studio 2005/2008 development. It is much nicer than Visual Studio 6 (from 1998 !!). If you're going to purchase a new version of Visual Studio then VS2008 is a very good one and what I use today. It will still produce binaries that will run on Windows 2000 (but none older) and offers excellent 64bit support. If you really want to support Windows 98, then VS2005 is the way to go, but its x64 development environment is lacking.

The error you're getting is because you have not download the PlatformSDK (now called the Windows SDK) or do not have your project file setup correctly. VS6 included many headers for you, but the newer versions of VS do not. The SDK is a free download. I've been using version 7.1 of the Windows SDK for years now (also known as Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4). Note that you will not use the .NET framework. I don't use it.

[Jim Sachs]

I think I'll just stick with VC 98 for the duration of my PC programming days.

[Jim Sachs]

Good news - I got Lightwave up and running again, so I can create new objects for the Aquarium. I plan to add two more Featherduster corals.

[cjmaddy]

- https://www.feldoncentral.com/forums...13&#post117113


.... And then have the star fish setting to default to last position!

[harris]

... to have the option to disable/enable Harvey the Eel.

[patscarr]

Have you started working on this yet or is it planned for a later time?

[Jim Sachs]

Cliff - OK.

Harris - OK.

Pat - I'm starting on it today. I haven't checked out the whole process of creating new objects yet, so there may still be some missing tools, but it should be easy to fill in the gaps. Now that Visual C++ 6 and Lightwave are working I'm finally on my way to recovery after my disastrous hard-drive crashes.

By the way, the NewTek Customer Service rep was very helpful. I had an old parallel port dongle which doesn't work on any modern computers, but I found a copy of Lightwave 8 on eBay with a USB dongle for only $45. NewTek allowed me to re-download a copy of Lightwave 9.6, and they gave me a registration number which would work with the USB dongle. Back in business!