Packet Collector

[Arremis]

I would have posted this in the Tools section, but apparently I'm not able to make new topics there.

I noticed when running the collector, that you can zone ONCE and it will pick up the next zone key. However, if you zone again, it doesn't pick up the zone key, but still continues to collect packets. Presently, when I'm zoning and I don't see it pick up a key, I log out and back in again, and everything's running normal again. For example, I log into Antonica and it picks up the zone key. I zone to Stormhold and it picks up the zone key there. If I zone back out to Antonica, it doesn't pick up the zone key, but still continues to collect packets.

I'm going to make an assumption here: Since I started out in Antonica, it picked up the zone key. When zoning back out to Antonica from Stormhold, the reason it doesn't pick up the zone key is because it already collected the key earlier when I logged in, and doesn't need to pick up the key because it already has it. Thus, I'm logging out and in unnecessarily, and can just continue collecting when it's picking up the packets. Is this a correct assumption?

Assuming my assumption is incorrect, and the collector needs the key EVERY time you cross a zone line (including back into the same zone you were in earlier), does this mean the collector is somehow missing the ability to pick up more than 2 zone keys (actually 3 keys, because the character select screen is a zone and it picks up that key)? If this is the case would it be possible to add the ability to pick up more than just the zone-in-zone-out keys?

EDIT: Another question: I know the collector picks up everything in your field of vision, however, do graphics settings make a difference? I currently run in extreme mode in order to maximize my ability to speed through quests and stuff like that. Rendering distance is quite short, and I was wondering if this made any difference to what the collector can see.

[John Adams]

a) Don't zone too much. http://eq2emulator.net/phpBB3/viewtopic ... 1042#p1042

8.- Talk and interact as much as you can, go through all quest dialogs, open each merchant window! Click open and closed each door. Try not to zone too much, as you risk damaging the log.

A log file can become corrupt, where it is unreadable by the packet parser, and thus becomes useless. We might be able to find the point of corruption and edit around it manually, but that usually requires extensive work. If the log is too hard to repair, it is not used.


b) I am not 100% positive, but I assume the client fetches every bit of detail from the server regardless of graphics settings - and the client just decides what to display depending on what those settings are. Otherwise, we'd have really crappy appearances for items, and no spell effects to see. I'd recommend Balanced at a minimum, just in case - but someone else might know better than me.

[Zcoretri]

I would error on the side of caution and stop/restart the collector if you stop getting a key after you zone.