TIL: /image objects can walk()

ID:2537499
 
Jan 14 2020, 3:17 pm
So, Lummox and I are discussing images and improving the means of removing them from the world (see bug report) and he got to looking at the deletion routines and saw something he didn't expect; the walkers list was checking for images.

His reaction was as swear-jar worthy as mine, so he went digging a little more into some of the other code relating to things that can walk, and by tacos, there it was, images as valid targets.

        WalkingImage()
            var/image/I = image('trail.dmi',loc=src.loc)
            src << I
            walk(I,dir)


It works, he and I went 20+ years not knowing it worked, but it does. I have no idea what you'd use this for over an actual object, since it has no bounding, no density, nothing that would let it check collision, and it doesn't call image/Move() (which also exists but does nothing) so there's not a whole lot you can do with it.

Maybe some kind of variant of missile() without the pathing?

DM, you so crazy.
Jan 14 2020, 4:45 pm
I mean, it's kinda like a particle system
Jan 14 2020, 4:46 pm
That was about as close as I could come to something to use it for, but the tedium of managing the client.images aspect of it is... ugh.
Jan 14 2020, 7:38 pm
Will it be maintained?
Jan 14 2020, 7:44 pm
At this point, I'd say 50/50 that Lummox guts it from the language for being pointless overhead, or leaves it alone and ignores it forever.
Jan 15 2020, 10:27 am
This could be useful for some special effects.

Nothing that can effect the game world but for visual effects it could be great. Keep it.
Jan 15 2020, 10:29 am (Edited on Jan 15 2020, 1:42 pm)
..for example...

a cloud or piece of fog that moves around on the client's screen...

Honestly, images let you do a lot of cool things because you can have players see things differently from other players, so the fact images can walk only enhances the capabilities of that

Sure, the effects are visual, but that's the fun of images.

For example, imagine having a 'ghost' walking around on the screen only one player could see...
Jan 15 2020, 12:48 pm
This is weird, but it kind of makes sense given that images can have turf locs, and behave in a lot of ways like movable atoms.
Jan 15 2020, 3:08 pm
That was my first reaction "well, they do have a loc..."

As for your "ghost" example, good luck, without being able to do things like detect collision and when the thing is actually moving you'd have very little control, an object with an override image would be much better suited (for pretty much anything I can think of using these for).