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This suggestion/submission is duplicated and extended here: http://forum.zdoom.org/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=29995

Original function: bool SetActivator(int tid)
New function: bool SetActivator(int tid[, int pointer_selector]);

Using only a single parameter, or passing AAPTR_DEFAULT as the second parameter, performs the same operation as the original function:
Setting activator to NULL (world) for TID 0. (Return false)
Setting activator to NULL (world) for TID not found. (Return false)
Setting activator to first instance of TID found. (Return true)

If a non-default second parameter is passed:

Step 1

* Setting origin to SELF for TID 0.
* Setting origin to NULL for tid not found.
* Setting origin to first instance of TID found.

Step 2

* Setting activator according to the pointer selector, using the selected origin. (If AAPTR_TARGET were used, set activator to origin's target.)

Step 3

* return activator != NULL

This extends the behaviour of SetActivator, but cannot exactly duplicate SetActivatorToTarget, because I chose non-existence-handling to be consistent with SetActivator.

"SetActivator(sometid, AAPTR_PLAYER_GETTARGET|AAPTR_TARGET)" most closely duplicates "SetActivatorToTarget(sometid)". The difference occurs when a non-null activator without a valid target makes the call: Both functions will return false, but SetActivator will change the activator to NULL (world). For some reason, this has been carefully avoided in SetActivatorToTarget, and explicitly depended on in SetActivator.

Spoiler: AAPTR-recap

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The available values for AAPTR are the same as for other functions of this kind:

Priority 1, player-only selectors (used if specified with a player origin):

AAPTR_PLAYER_GETTARGET
AAPTR_PLAYER_GETCONVERSATION (I will perform some tests to find out if this is useful in ACS)

Priority 2, any-actor selectors (used if specified with any non-null origin):

AAPTR_TARGET
AAPTR_MASTER
AAPTR_TRACER
AAPTR_FRIENDPLAYER

Priority 3, any static selectors (used if specified)

AAPTR_PLAYER1, AAPTR_PLAYER2, AAPTR_PLAYER3, AAPTR_PLAYER4, AAPTR_PLAYER5, AAPTR_PLAYER6, AAPTR_PLAYER7, AAPTR_PLAYER8
AAPTR_NULL

Minimum-priority

AAPTR_DEFAULT (return the origin, be it null or an actor)

Selectors from different levels are combined using bitwise OR. Only one selector can be specified for each priority level.

Purposes of this extension

• Extending the activator-changing to entail MASTER and TRACER
• Allowing explicit selection of any player as the activator of a script (returns false and sets activator to null if the player is not in the game)
• Could be extremely useful in Strife-dialogues (I'll try to make use of it)
• Prepare ACS to benefit from any future improvements of the pointer selectors.

Spoiler: Very simple usage demonstration

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Pukable scripts. Tested in single and multiplayer.

Code: Select all

#include "zcommon.acs"

script 1 (void) net
{
    int strbuild = StrParam(s:"Script 1 was triggered by ", n:0);
    int i;

    for (i = AAPTR_PLAYER1; i <= AAPTR_PLAYER8; i = i<<1)
    {
        if (SetActivator(0, i))
        {
            strbuild = StrParam(s:strbuild,c:'\n',n:0,s:" is in the game");
            if (SetActivator(0, AAPTR_PLAYER_GETTARGET))
            {
                strbuild = StrParam(s:strbuild,s:" and looking at ",n:0);
            }
        }
    }

    printbold(s:strbuild);
}

script 2 (void) net
{
    int strbuild;

    if (SetActivator(0, AAPTR_TARGET|AAPTR_PLAYER_GETTARGET))
    {
        strbuild = StrParam(n:0);

        if (SetActivator(0, AAPTR_TARGET|AAPTR_PLAYER_GETTARGET))
        {
            print(s:strbuild,s:" has you targeted");
            // This message does not necessarily go to the original caller of the script, or even a player...
        }
    }
}

Spoiler: Minor internal change

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ALSO, I couldn't quite help myself: There's a minimal internal improvement to SetActivatorToTarget. The code contained two subsequent if-blocks:

Code: Select all

if (actor != NULL)
{
    // assignment of new value to "actor"
}
if (actor != NULL)
{
  // assignment of actor to activator, return true
}

Since actor is guaranteed to be null if you did not enter the first conditional branch, and since the second conditional branch returns when the condition is true, I put the second conditional branch inside the first one, at the end.