Commit Graph
45 Commits
Author SHA1 Message Date
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 7afbda900e the terminal that never closes: every launcher waited for ANY btl4.exe on the machine
Operator report: "X-closing the game leaves the terminal open and leaves
orphaned processes."  Investigated on the rig against 4.11.600.

The terminal half is real and is THIS: :btwait polled
`tasklist /FI "IMAGENAME eq btl4.exe"`, which is machine-wide, so a bat that
launched nothing at all keeps spinning while an unrelated instance lives --
proved with btwait_probe.ps1.  A second client, the operator's own pod, or an
orphan from a crash therefore hangs every join window, which reads as "the game
never exited" and invites people to start killing processes.  All four
launchers carried the identical block.

Fix: snapshot the btl4 PIDs alive BEFORE the launch; wait only on PIDs absent
from that snapshot.  The `if /I "%%P"=="btl4.exe"` guard is deliberately kept --
tokens=2 alone parses tasklist's "INFO: No tasks are running" line as a PID and
spins forever with nothing running, which would be worse than the bug.

Verified with the text lifted verbatim from the shipped play_solo.bat: nothing
running -> signs off (the regression guard); someone else's instance -> signs
off; our own generation -> keeps waiting; decoy gone -> signs off.  The patched
bat still launches (pid + launch_report.txt).  NOT verified: the full handoff
E2E, because the bat blocks on the FE menu waiting for a human.

The orphan half did NOT reproduce on 600: closing the MAIN window exits cleanly
in ~1s during solo model-load, in the relay join wait, and after a real console
launch, with the relay logging the seat freed.  The orphans the playtesters saw
match 584 and earlier, where every close relaunched.  Full write-up, including
the aux windows that hide instead of closing and the WM_QUIT that BTLoadPump
swallows, in phases/phase-12-orphan-processes.md.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-27 16:06:39 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 39cb8647c7 launcher logs: rotate, never delete -- and solo/joyconfig must stop destroying the MULTIPLAYER log
Prompted by "does the steam path still generate our logs?".  Answer: yes --
play_steam.bat sets BT_LOG=steam.log with append, and matchlogs arm because both
Steam launch paths pass -net (the default trigger).  But the audit found two
evidence-destroying bugs on the way:

1. play_steam.bat DELETED the previous steam.log at every launch -- the same
   pattern fixed in join.bat/join_lan.bat last night.  A Steam player who
   crashes and relaunches loses the stack.  Now rotates to steam.old.log.

2. WORSE: play_solo.bat and joyconfig.bat deleted content\join.log -- the
   MULTIPLAYER log, not theirs.  A player who crashed in MP and then ran solo
   to investigate (or ran the joystick wizard) DESTROYED THEIR OWN CRASH
   EVIDENCE.  That is a very plausible part of how Conn Man's owens-laser stack
   vanished (#35) -- he had every reason to poke around after crashing.  Each
   bat now writes its OWN log (solo.log / joyconfig.log), rotates it, and never
   touches join.log.  Their launch-forensics + "send the operator" lines are
   repointed to match.

VERIFIED in the zip layout (the bats need build\ + content\ beside them, so a
repo-relative test is meaningless -- my first two attempts hit the badpath
guard and proved nothing):
  solo.log     = [boot] btl4 4.11.599 ... (the NEW run)
  solo.old.log = OLD-SOLO-CONTENT        (rotated, not deleted)
  join.log     = SEEDED-MP-EVIDENCE      (untouched by the solo run)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-27 09:18:37 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 35bdb505df join bats keep the previous session's log as join.old.log
Conn Man's owens-laser crash stack (#35) was in his join.log -- and re-running
join.bat deleted it before it could be sent.  The bat now rotates instead:
join.log -> join.old.log at launch.  One generation of history, the exact
insurance that would have closed #35 tonight.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-27 00:42:15 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 12d6862c1f keylight: unship it -- opt-in (BT_KEYLIGHT=1), gone from all player docs
Operator decision: the player base is not on Windows 11, so the RGB keyboard
mirror should not be shipped or promised.  The feature is NOT deleted -- Cyd's
implementation stays intact behind the gate for whoever wants it -- it is
simply off by default and invisible:

  * PadRIO gate flips from opt-out (BT_KEYLIGHT=0 disables) to OPT-IN
    (BT_KEYLIGHT=1 enables).  Default boots produce zero keylight lines, and a
    stub build and a real build now behave identically for players: nothing.
  * Removed from every user-facing artifact: the README paragraph, the
    CONTROLS.md section, the CONTROLS.html footer line.
  * environ.ini template: the entry stays (it is the discoverable home for the
    opt-in) but now says OFF-unless-1, Windows 11 22H2+, and why it is
    unshipped.
  * mkdist's cut-time stub warning removed -- it existed to protect a README
    promise that no longer exists.
  * context/glass-cockpit.md records the decision, the opt-in, and the
    build-time SDK stub gate in one place.

VERIFIED: default boot logs zero keylight lines; BT_KEYLIGHT=1 engages the
feature (the stub on this machine: its one honest log line + the key map).
All three console suites pass; checkctx CLEAN.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-26 17:06:00 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 c4202d92ca zip-doc audit: last stale key claim + a keylight-stub warning at cut time
Full audit of every user-facing artifact in a freshly cut zip (33 checks, all
passing -- README substitutions/controls/migration story, CONTROLS.txt ASCII
flatten, CONTROLS.html loader + wrap, launchers byte-identical, exe carries the
migration):

  * README's intro still said 'Press V any time to toggle the external camera'
    -- the one key claim outside the rewritten controls block, stale for every
    fresh/migrated install since the board took V.  Backtick now.
  * mkdist warns at cut time when the exe carries the KEYLIGHT STUB (build
    machine's SDK < 10.0.22000), because the README promises the RGB feature
    -- nobody should ship a stub build believing that promise ships with it.

The audit zip itself was deleted after verification: its version stamp predates
today's doc commits, and a release cut should rebuild the exe at final HEAD
first (the 554 procedure).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-26 16:51:17 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 8edce41f88 bindings: one-time migration to the board-2 layout -- the two-population fork is gone
Operator decision: "make this version devour their custom settings and re-output
the correct binding file with the updates -- I'd like to eliminate competing
code paths."  Before this, the preserved-bindings.txt convention meant upgraders
stayed frozen on whatever layout their file was written under, forever: two
player populations, two sets of true documentation, and every future default
improvement reaching only fresh installs.

THE MIGRATION (PadBindingProfile::MigrateBindingsFile, run once at load):
  * A file carrying the new "# bindings-board 2" marker is left alone -- the
    check is the first thing that runs, so this is a no-op forever after.
  * Otherwise: every row matching the UNION OF EVERY DEFAULT SET EVER SHIPPED
    (85 canonical rows, harvested from c2ee729..1cda880 and embedded as a
    table; comments stripped, whitespace collapsed, uppercased) is dropped --
    those rows were never a player's choice, they were just the old board.
  * Rows the player actually authored are CARRIED with their original text and
    comments, and WIN over the new defaults: the losing default row is emitted
    commented out as "# (yours wins) ...", keyed by the control ("KEY T",
    "PAD A", "PADAXIS LX") so key rows only displace key rows.
  * The joystick wizard's marker-delimited section is preserved VERBATIM (the
    same markers L4JOY rewrites between), so HOTAS players migrate without
    re-running the wizard.
  * The previous file is saved as bindings.old.txt first.  Restoring it over
    bindings.txt just re-migrates next boot -- deliberate: the old WORLD is not
    restorable, only the player's own rows persist.  That is the point.

VERIFIED end-to-end with the real exe (three planted scenarios):
  A. old-world file (8 old-default rows + 2 authored rows incl. a rate tweak +
     a wizard section): both authored rows carried with comments, both
     conflicting new defaults stood down with "(yours wins)", wizard section
     byte-preserved, backup written, log line states all counts, and the
     migrated file parses with ZERO malformed lines.
  B. already-migrated file: byte-identical md5 after a full boot, no migration
     line, no backup touched.  (First attempt at this check clobbered its own
     evidence by running case C first -- re-run properly.)
  C. no file: fresh defaults now carry the marker as line 1, no migration.
  The operator's real bindings.txt was stashed before testing and restored
  untouched; it will migrate on their own next launch, as intended.

Docs flipped to the new reality: the README's "your keys DO NOT change"
upgrade promise is replaced by the migration story (customs + stick kept, old
stock keys replaced, bindings.old.txt escape hatch); CONTROLS.md gains the same
note; context/glass-cockpit.md records the mechanism, the 85-row table's
provenance, and why restoring the backup re-migrates.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-26 14:19:13 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 150961176c merge fix-ups: the four review findings + a build portability gate the merge exposed
Applied on top of the glass-cockpit-refit merge, all from the pre-merge review:

1. README CONTROLS TABLE REWRITTEN for the new default board.  It still taught
   "W/S throttle, A/D turn" while the defaults moved flight to the numpad and
   handed the letter rows to the MFD banks -- a fresh install would read
   controls that do not work.  The new table teaches the numpad flight block,
   the panel-on-your-keys groups, F7 for control mode (was M), backtick for the
   camera (was V), the coolant valves on 1-3/QWE with the detent warning kept,
   and PgUp/PgDn volume.  UPGRADERS ARE TOLD EXPLICITLY that their preserved
   bindings.txt keeps their old keys, and that deleting it opts into the board.

2. BACKTICK VIEW-TOGGLE GUARDED.  The bindings-row-wins rule (KeyHasBinding)
   covered V and J/K/L but not backtick itself, which polled unconditionally --
   and BACKTICK is a nameable, unbound key, so binding it to a button
   double-dispatched (button + camera).  Both halves of the view poll are now
   guarded.

3. ENVIRON.INI REFUSES ONE-SHOTS.  The loader applied ANY key=value line, and
   BT_JOYCONFIG in the file would defeat the #66 one-shot in a sneaky way: the
   wizard DELETES the process var after running, so in every relaunched child
   there is no real env var left to win over the file -- capture wizard at
   every mission start.  BT_JOYCONFIG is now skipped with the reason in the
   template header, which also warns that test/debug hooks (BT_MP_FORCE_DMG
   and friends) do not belong in a file that silently persists forever.

4. VOLUME DOCUMENTED EVERYWHERE IT WAS MISSING.  CONTROLS.md gains the
   PgUp/PgDn row (the old "- / = (see below)" cell pointed at a note that never
   mentioned volume) and the note that the keys moved so they no longer share a
   key with anything in any layout; the bindings template header reserves
   PgUp/PgDn informally.

5. L4KEYLIGHT BUILD GATE (found by building the merge on this machine).  The
   C++/WinRT Dynamic Lighting TU does not compile against SDK 10.0.19041 --
   its bundled cppwinrt fails inside winrt/base itself (C2039 'wait_for').
   CMake now detects an SDK older than 10.0.22000 and builds a dormant stub
   with the same five-function scalar interface (logs once at Start, identical
   behaviour otherwise) -- extending the feature's own runtime philosophy
   ("no Dynamic Lighting -> log once, stay dormant") to build time.  Dynamic
   Lighting is a Windows 11 22H2 feature, so nothing real is lost on an older
   build machine, and machines with a newer SDK build the real mirror
   unchanged.

VERIFIED on the merged tree (4.11.572):
  * build clean -- 0 compile errors; the 40 /FORCE-tolerated unresolved
    externals are byte-identical to every pre-merge build (20
    CreateStreamedSubsystem + 20 DefaultData; the earlier claim that all 40
    were CSS was shorthand -- corrected here for the record).
  * solo boot: environ.ini template written + loaded, mode resolver announces
    the surround, historical bands L276/R276/T223/B336 confirmed, keylight
    stub logs its dormant line, BT_SHOT capture shows the under-glass button
    treatment and the corrected hat labels, 0 faults.
  * PgUp/PgDn volume PROVEN LIVE via injected keys: 5%->10%->15%->10%, saved
    to volume.cfg.  (Side catch: content\volume.cfg had been sitting at 0.00
    from an old test -- anyone using this tree had a silent game; reset.)
  * full relay cycle on the merged exe: 2 pods staged, launch pair, mission,
    StopMission, round RESET -- all clean.
  * all three console suites still pass; checkctx CLEAN.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-26 13:24:22 -05:00
CydandClaude Opus 5 02b1b50e45 RGB keyboard lamp mirror + the shipped controls reference
KEYBOARD LAMP MIRROR (L4KEYLIGHT).  Ported from RP412, itself a port of vRIO's
KeyboardLampMirror.  Keys bound to a lamp address in bindings.txt glow with the
panel palette through Windows Dynamic Lighting -- yellow for the map's side
columns (0x10-0x1F), red for the rest -- flashing in step with the on-screen
buttons (its LampLevel copy matches the FIXED BTLampBrightnessOf).  Per-key
boards light each bound key; zone-lit boards mirror the strongest lamp
board-wide.  All WinRT runs on a private worker thread: watcher, claim, and a
100 ms paint loop that repaints only on change.

RP412's packing hazard does NOT transfer: it forces default struct packing there
because its engine is /Zp1, which would break the WinRT ABI.  BT411's BT_OPTS
carries no /Zp, so only the dialect flags are needed -- /std:c++17
/permissive- per-file, since the project otherwise builds C++14 /permissive.
The scalars-only interface is kept anyway so the isolation survives if packing
is ever added.

Wired in PadRIO: map built from bindings.keyBindings (ActionButton binds only,
first-binding-wins per key), fed from PadRIO::SetLamp, stopped in the dtor
(which hands the LEDs back to Windows).  BT_KEYLIGHT=0 opts out; a machine
without Dynamic Lighting logs once and stays dormant.

Verified live: claimed this machine's 24-zone keyboard and mirrors 25 bound
keys; BT_KEYLIGHT=0 and the pod profile produce zero keylight lines and run
clean.

SHIPPED CONTROLS REFERENCE.  docs/CONTROLS.md carries the keyboard table plus
the full 72-BUTTON POD MAP, grouped by the display each bank surrounds, with the
coolant-valve detent warning (1-5-50-CLOSED, one press past max shuts the loop)
and the jam/eject procedure.  mkdist flattens it to ASCII as CONTROLS.txt at the
zip root, the README's own idiom.  players/README.txt gained pointers to it, to
environ.ini, to -fit, and to the RGB mirror.

KB: context/glass-cockpit.md and docs/GLASS_COCKPIT.md updated for the whole
branch -- layout modes, L4RIOBANK and the under-glass rule, the letterbox fit
and its ordering trap, player-tunable displays, the measured legend grid, the
closed dead-button backlog, and this mirror.

Verified: five-mode regression (surround/exploded/dock/pod/dev) boots and
simulates with zero faults; mkdist writes a 5149-byte pure-ASCII CONTROLS.txt.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-26 02:24:30 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 da617e6f8f README + release notes: match reports UPLOAD THEMSELVES -- stop asking testers to send them
The operator caught this: I had carried the old "please send the operator your
matchlog" instruction into the release notes, and the shipped README has said
it for a while.  It is out of date.

Since 2026-07-22 the client auto-uploads its match forensic log to the relay
after every round: btl4main.cpp:914 calls BTRelayUploadMatchLog() once
RunMissions() returns, and the console receives it on route -9 and saves it as
matchlogs/<peer>_<name> (btconsole.py:1026-1042).  content/matchlogs/ is
already full of them.

So the instruction was making every tester hunt down and attach a file the
operator already had.  Corrected to state the real contract, including the
gaps the auto-upload genuinely cannot cover:

  * RELAY modes only -- join.bat and join_lan.bat both set BT_RELAY, so both
    upload.  play_solo.bat and play_steam.bat set none, so those still need a
    manual send.
  * The upload fires when a round ends CLEANLY (after RunMissions returns), so
    a mid-round CRASH loses it -- exactly the case we most want the file for.
  * join.log is NEVER uploaded -- no mechanism exists -- so that one is still
    a manual ask, and is now called out separately rather than buried.

Also added the same correction to dist/RELEASE_NOTES_4.11.550.md.

The zip cut before this (BT411_4.11.550.zip) carries the stale README and must
be re-cut.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-25 19:56:56 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 4360908d38 README (the shipped tester doc): repair two corrupted paths + bring it current with today's wave
Asked to double-check the launchers and make sure the user-facing docs in the
zip are up to date.  players/README.txt is the ONLY user-facing doc mkdist
ships (content/VIDEO/RESULT2.TXT is a game asset), and it was last touched
2026-07-24 -- before all of today's work.

1. CORRUPTED PATHS (real defect, worst possible placement).  The file
   contained literal CONTROL BYTES where two paths should be:

       offset 440  0x08  ...personal files (content<BS>indings.txt with...
       offset 490  0x0b  ...joystick setup, content<VT>olume.cfg with...

   i.e. `content\bindings.txt` and `content\volume.cfg` had been written
   through a string that interpreted \b as backspace and \v as vertical tab.
   Testers read "contentindings.txt" / "contentolume.cfg" -- files that do not
   exist -- in the UPGRADE paragraph, the one place that tells them which
   personal files to preserve when extracting over an old install.  Repaired
   by byte, and verified: 0 control bytes remain in all four packaging
   variants.  (The other two occurrences, content\join.log and a later
   content\bindings.txt, were undamaged -- \j and the second \b happened to
   survive.)

2. CONTENT now current with today's 13-issue wave, tester-relevant parts only:
   * AMMO BAY FIRE is now LETHAL (#46) -- flagged prominently as a gameplay
     change, with the ~10 s fuse, what it costs, and the EJECT-hold escape.
     Previously these fires were harmless; a tester who ignores one now dies.
   * ENG-page buttons FLASH on a jam or bay fire (#47) -- the restored pod
     annunciator, so testers know to look for it.
   * KNOWN ISSUE + WORKAROUND for #62: the BUS MODE button's second press
     detaches a weapon from its generator and the auto re-attach is dead, so a
     weapon can go permanently dark.  Documented with the recovery (press a
     GENERATOR SELECT A/B/C/D button) to pre-empt a wave of "my weapon broke"
     reports.

Verified by simulating mkdist's own marker processing across all four
steam-on/off x expire-on/off variants: new content survives every path, no
leftover {VERSION}/{STEAM}/{EXPIRE} markers reach the tester, no control bytes.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-25 19:03:37 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 bf40c53e1e Launchers: make the handoff wait tool-independent -- my first version broke on any PATH carrying Git-Bash/MSYS
Regression in my own fix from an hour ago, reported immediately by the
operator on relaunch:

    find: '/I': No such file or directory
    find: 'btl4.exe': No such file or directory
    The game has exited. ...

The wait loop called bare `find`, which resolves to the MSYS/Git-Bash **Unix**
find on any box with git on PATH (confirmed here: `which find` ->
/usr/bin/find, `which timeout` -> /usr/bin/timeout).  So the loop errored out
and fell straight through -- restoring exactly the misleading "The game has
exited" message it was meant to remove.  `timeout` was the same exposure one
line later (GNU coreutils ships one, with different arguments), so the block
had TWO PATH-dependent failures.

Harmless to the game (the loop only reports; it never touched the session),
but it made the fix a no-op for anyone with git installed -- which is every
developer and a fair number of players.

FIX: no external tools at all.
  * detection is now a pure-cmd `for /f "tokens=1"` over tasklist output,
    comparing the first token to btl4.exe -- no find/findstr;
  * tasklist and timeout are both invoked by ABSOLUTE %SystemRoot%\System32
    path, so a shadowing PATH cannot reach them.

Failure modes stay safe: if tasklist is unavailable the variable never gets
set and the loop degrades to reporting immediately (the old behaviour, never a
hang), and a genuinely dead exe still falls straight through so the #41 launch
forensics are untouched.

VERIFIED both branches by running the shipped detection lines from THIS bash
shell -- i.e. the hostile shadowed PATH that broke v1, a harder case than a
playtester's clean environment:
    game running        -> RESULT: WOULD-WAIT [process detected]
    absent-name control -> RESULT: WOULD-EXIT [no process]
No find/timeout errors in either.

(players/ is the shipped source per tools/mkdist.py:78; the gitignored root
copies re-synced byte-identical.)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-25 18:37:56 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 5 145bf368c8 Launchers (players/, the shipped source): wait for the handed-off game process instead of announcing "The game has exited" mid-load
Operator report while trying the build: the window said the game had exited
"with an error", yet the game loaded and played fine.

There was no error.  The launchers were lying.  The front end does NOT stay
resident: btl4console.cpp CreateProcessW()es the mission generation, closes
both handles and ExitProcess(0)s itself.  So the bat's child exiting means
"the menu handed off", not "the game closed".  All four launchers then
immediately printed

    [.. ] btl4.exe exited with code 0
    The game has exited.  If it closed unexpectedly, send the operator ...

while the game was still loading in the handed-off process.  Verified live on
the operator's own session: first process pid 33352 = MENU profile, handed off
to pid 12564 = GLASS profile, which was the one actually running; exit code 0
throughout.  Harmless in itself, but it reads as a crash to a playtester and
would have generated false bug reports on a test night.

FIX: after the front-end child exits, poll until no btl4.exe remains, THEN
report.  Applied to play_solo / join / join_lan / play_steam.

The #41 launch forensics are preserved: an exe that dies before it can run
leaves no process, so the wait falls straight through and launch_report.txt
still records timing, exit code and whether the log was ever created.

Verified the wait condition both ways against the live session (read-only, no
second instance spawned): btl4.exe present -> WOULD-WAIT; absent -> WOULD-EXIT.

NOTE for future edits: players/ is the SOURCE OF TRUTH (mkdist packages from
there, tools/mkdist.py:78); the root-level copies are gitignored local
conveniences AND were LF-only, while players/ is correctly CRLF.  Since this
change adds a `goto` label -- the construct most likely to misbehave in an
LF-only bat -- the root copies have been re-synced byte-identical from
players/ so local runs match the shipped artifact.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-25 18:31:34 -05:00
arcattack 37a520d8a0 README: control mode vs experience level are different systems + NumLock note
The same careful tester hit the BASIC-mode trap twice because 'expert/
veteran modes' (menu experience) sound like control modes (M key).
Spelled out the distinction + the numpad NumLock dependency.
2026-07-24 12:47:15 -05:00
arcattack b710a848c2 README: upgrade = extract-over-top (preserves bindings.txt + volume.cfg)
The advertised upgrade flow was delete-and-unzip, which wipes the two
per-player files (key/joystick bindings incl. joyconfig output, saved
volume) every version.  The zip carries neither file, so extract-over-
top preserves them by construction -- now the documented flow, with the
copy-out fallback for clean-delete preferrers.
2026-07-24 12:16:28 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 ef9a648c89 README: BASIC control mode does not steer with pedals (Ferret's 510 report)
Field report (new tester, 510): keyboard A/D + arrows 'not working' --
can twist and drive but not turn.  Root-caused live via key injection:
fresh spawns start in BASIC control mode, where steering rides the
STICK (authentic rookie mode) and the pedal-bound keys are inert by
design; one M press (MID) makes A/D steer.  (A false regression-bisect
chase established the metric noise came from an attached pad's stick
drift nudging BASIC steering.)  README now warns about the default
mode; kept the env-gated [padwrite] diagnostic from the hunt.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-24 11:57:44 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 41e899a9d7 Issue #41: launch forensics in the player bats -- exit code + never-started detection
David's failures leave a 0-byte (or absent) join.log -- the exe can't
testify about a death before WinMain.  The bats now bracket it from
OUTSIDE: launch_report.txt records the launch timestamp, the exe's
EXIT CODE (fingerprints the failure class: 0xC0000135 DLL-not-found,
0xC0000005 AV, AV-kill signatures, our clean exits), whether join.log
was ever created (never-created = blocked before our first
instruction), and its size.  Verified with a synthetic -1073741819
exit.  The 'exited' message now asks players to send BOTH files.

With this + the 507 first-breath line + the crash self-report, every
failure mode now leaves evidence somewhere: bat report (pre-WinMain),
first-breath (WinMain reached), [crash] stack (anything after).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-24 10:02:51 -05:00
arcattack 26439c2e1a Boot forensics: first-breath log line + generation-safe bat logging
Field 2026-07-23 (second night): a player's join.bat failed 3x in a row
with a 0-byte join.log -- indistinguishable from 'never ran'.  Two
causes of evidence loss fixed:

1. The first flushed log line now happens the INSTANT the log opens
   (version, pid, args, first-process vs relaunched-generation).  An
   empty log after this build means the exe was killed before WinMain
   -- an external cause (antivirus/loader), not ours.
2. The menu->game relaunch chain truncated join.log each generation
   (BT_LOG_APPEND was unset in the player bats): the crashed
   generation's evidence was erased by the next attempt.  The bats now
   delete the log once per bat run and append across generations.

Also explains the confusing 'The game has exited' bat message on
SUCCESSFUL launches (the menu process exits after relaunching the game
detached) -- the log now records the whole chain.
2026-07-23 21:33:27 -05:00
arcattack 3ee980ba46 README: coolant flush/valve keys + the valve detent trap (max -> CLOSED)
The 1-5-50-0 cycle's closed detent one press past max is what cooked
both SRM6s in the 2026-07-23 field session -- players need the warning
and the shared-supply note.
2026-07-23 17:32:51 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 c2ee7299b2 Generic joystick / HOTAS / pedals support: DirectInput 8 layer + capture wizard
Tester ask: configure non-Xbox controllers.  New L4JOY layer (DI8):
enumerates every non-XInput game device (up to 4), DIJOYSTATE2 polling
with range normalization, reacquire-on-loss, 3s hot-plug re-enum.
XInput devices are excluded via the documented RawInput IG_ VID/PID
check (live-verified skipping a real XBOX360 pad -- no double-feed).

bindings.txt grows joydev/joyaxis/joybutton/joyhat rows (device slots
by name substring or ordinal; axes X..RZ/SL0/SL1 with invert/slew/
deadzone; hats as 4-direction buttons with diagonal chords).  PadRIO
runs them through the existing channel/event machinery -- per-binding
edge arrays release automatically on detach (the #24 rule), and a
direct throttle axis maps full lever travel onto the 0..1 channel
while the gait detent still snaps a lever parked in the walk/run dead
band.

BT_JOYCONFIG=1 (joyconfig.bat) runs a console capture wizard: move
each control when prompted (stick/twist/throttle/fire), invert derived
from the move direction, hat look cluster auto-added, output written
between markers in bindings.txt with the rest of the file preserved.

Legacy L4DINPUT DIJoystick (L4CONTROLS=DIJOYSTICK) untouched.
Verified: grammar accept/reject per line, XInput-exclusion live,
30s in-mission no-device polling clean.  Awaiting a tester with real
stick hardware for axis verification.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 16:36:32 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 2edd1b5363 Issue #31: wire the EJECT button (EjectAmmo msg 0xb @004bb9b8) -- the in-mission unjam
Disasm-faithful transcription of the export-gap handler onto
ProjectileWeapon (MESSAGE_ENTRY id 0xb, the #19 pattern).  PRESS arms
the ~3s UpdateEject countdown (bin alarm -> Ejecting(3); gate 2 parks
the weapon offline mid-eject -- authentic).  HOLD to completion =
DumpAmmo jettisons the bay -> NoAmmo.  TAP (release early) cycles ONE
round out via FeedAmmo and returns the weapon to Loading -- clears a
jam at the cost of a round (and recovers a FailureHeat 7 while rounds
remain).  Binary structure kept exactly incl. the press-no-bin
fall-through into the release block.

AmmoBin: Ejecting(3)/Ejected(4) alarm levels decoded + named
SetAmmoState accessor (databinding rule).  Always-on forensics:
'[weap] EJECT tap' + '[ammo] bay DUMPED overboard (N rounds)'.

Rig-verified live (BT_EJECTTEST=1 / =hold on LRM15): taps eject one
round each and return the weapon to service (15->8 across cycles);
hold dumps all 16 -> NoAmmo.  Awaiting a human press of the actual
ENG-page button on a jammed weapon.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 13:49:11 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 225fe43f0c CORRECTION: EJECT tap IS the in-mission unjam (EjectAmmo @004bb9b8 decoded)
Old-timer testimony (tap = eject one round, hold = eject the bay, eject
clears a jam) checked against the binary: raw disasm of the export-gap
handler @004bb9b8 confirms it byte-for-byte.  PRESS arms the ~3s
UpdateEject countdown (hold-to-completion = DumpAmmo whole bay ->
NoAmmo); RELEASE before completion (TAP) ejects ONE round (@004bd4f4)
and, with ammo remaining, sets weaponAlarm 3 + restarts the reload --
the weapon returns to service.  A tap even recovers a FailureHeat
level-7 launcher while rounds remain (empty-bin gate 2 re-pins 7 only
when the bay is dry).

The earlier 'jams are mission-permanent / no unjam exists' claim read
only the HOLD path -- corrected + swept: projweap.cpp case-5/jam-log/
CheckForJam comments, players/README.txt, decomp-reference.md
(message-tables entry), open-questions.md (state-7 recovery note).
Gitea #31 updated; wiring the handler now restores the pod's actual
jam-recovery mechanic.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 12:21:06 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 420d739d75 README: jam behavior + where the jam lamp lives (field-confirmed)
Live verification closed the loop on issue #30: heat-jammed SRMs light
the authentic BTEJAM lamp on the weapon panel's ENG DATA page; the
default view shows nothing (authentic).  Testers get told where to look.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 10:30:17 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 4e0fcbf328 Issue #26: runtime master volume (-/= keys, persisted)
The game audio plays hot with no in-game control -- testers couldn't
hear voice chat without the Windows mixer (playtest night).  The -/=
keys now step the OpenAL listener gain (the master scale every source
inherits) in 5% steps, clamped 0..150%, edge-detected in the per-frame
poll with a foreground guard; the value persists to content\volume.cfg
and reloads at boot (BT_AUDIO_VOLUME env still wins when set; default
stays 0.6).  README updated.

Verified: volume.cfg 0.25 -> boot log "master gain=0.25"; key stepping
needs a live focused session (awaiting live verification).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 00:53:07 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 8368163b04 Lobby loop: auto-rejoin between rounds + seat reclaim + live mission edits
The between-rounds arcade flow (first-playtest-night field request): at
mission end every pod exited, seats dropped, and every round required
everyone to re-run join.bat with no way to adjust the mission.

1. AUTO-REJOIN: StopMission (operator END / mission clock -- NOT a
   window close) sets gBTMissionStoppedByConsole; after the matchlog
   upload btl4main relaunches the pod into the join wait with the same
   cmdline (BT_CALLSIGN/BT_MECH ride the inherited environment).

2. SEAT RECLAIM: the assigned tag is mirrored file-scope
   (BTRelaySelfTag) and re-presented as the 3rd SEAT_REQUEST payload
   field (BT_SEAT_CLAIM); the relay holds a dropped seat for its tag
   for 90s and a returning player gets their EXACT seat back -- static
   ordering across rounds, the real-pod model.  Non-claim joiners skip
   reclaim-held seats.

3. LIVE MISSION EDITS: the console gains "Apply mission settings"
   (enabled while a session runs) writing arena/time/weather/length
   into the session egg; the relay re-reads the file at round reset and
   egg release (roster shape locked mid-session).

Verified 2-pod 3-round: pods self-relaunched after each clock end; the
SECOND-to-rejoin still reclaimed its original seat (ordering held); the
between-rounds edit landed ("mission length now 75s").  Known edge
noted in the KB: a stale ready flag from a not-yet-exited old conn can
satisfy the launch gate mid-rejoin -- operators launch on green dots.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-23 00:28:56 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 fcedc046cf Walk-up callsign/mech request: join menu -> relay -> the session egg
The 1995 front-desk conversation, over the internet.  join.bat/
join_lan.bat now open a JOIN-GAME menu (the FE in BT_FE_JOIN trim:
CALLSIGN edit + the 18-mech list + JOIN); the choice relaunches into the
normal join with BT_CALLSIGN/BT_MECH env, rides the relay SEAT_REQUEST
as {callsign NUL mech NUL} (empty payload = roster defaults, wire-
compatible), and the relay validates the mech tag, HOLDS egg delivery
until every pod's console pad is connected, rewrites the egg via
eggmodel (vehicle= + rasterized callsign bitmaps, graceful no-PySide6
fallback) and streams it to all pads -- so every player's egg copy
carries every player's callsign.

The hold is gated on CONSOLE-PAD count, not game-side registration: a
pod HELLOs only after parsing the egg's roster, so a registration gate
deadlocks (hit live in the first run; pods animate in WAITING FOR
MISSION ASSIGNMENT during the hold).

Verified 2-node e2e (env-injected requests): thor/vulture requested over
roster defaults bhk1/ava1 -> relay held 1/2, released at 2/2, rewrote
both seats (relay log), the delivered egg carries vehicle=thor/vulture +
name=VIPER/MONGOOSE, both pods launched and built [cyl] tables for both
requested mechs.  Join-menu layout screenshot-verified; the menu's
click-through relaunch awaits live human verification.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-22 13:58:51 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 eb618fe9e6 BT_EXPIRE: tester builds stop working 14 days after build (compile gate)
Distributed test zips go stale and stray.  BT_EXPIRE (CMake option,
DEFAULT ON so a zip can never accidentally ship without it) makes the
exe refuse to start BT_EXPIRE_DAYS (default 14) after its build day:
boot logs the remaining window, an expired build logs + shows a
"test build expired -- ask the operator for the current build" box and
exits.  btversion.h now stamps BT_BUILD_UNIX (UTC-midnight-rounded so
the only-on-change header churns once per day, not every build) +
BT_BUILD_DATE.  Dev is unaffected: every build re-stamps the day.

-DBT_EXPIRE=OFF builds a non-expiring exe; mkdist reads the cache and
marks such a zip "-noexpire" + prints a warning, and the tester README
expiry note is {EXPIRE}-marker-gated like the steam lines.  Second
compile-gate exception after BT_STEAM (convention updated in
glass-cockpit.md).  Quality gate, not DRM -- a clock rollback defeats it.

Verified live: default build logs "test build window: 14 day(s) left";
a -DBT_EXPIRE_DAYS=0 build logs TEST BUILD EXPIRED and parks on the
explanation box (window title checked) without starting the game;
restored to 14 and rebuilt clean.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-22 13:39:19 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 753540de96 MP match forensics: per-peer matchlog + relay auto-upload + matchcheck
For the 8-player playtest.  Damage authority is VICTIM-side, so no single
peer sees the whole match: every -net instance now writes a compact
machine-parseable matchlog_<date>_<time>_<pid>.txt (auto-armed by -net;
BT_MATCHLOG=1/0 overrides; solo silent), and at mission end a relay-mode
pod dials the relay game port (the seat-request throwaway-dial pattern,
envelope route -9) and streams the file back -- the relay saves every
peer's copy under matchlogs/ on the operator's machine, so testers send
nothing by hand.  tools/matchcheck.py <dir> reconciles all of them:
damage claimed (FIRE/PROJ/SPLASH/RAM, shooter-side) vs applied (DMG,
victim-side authoritative), kill/death replication across observers,
PLAYER_DEAD counts, scores, version skew, replicant-application and
unattributed-damage anomalies, mid-mission disconnects.

Hooks at the authoritative sites: Mech::TakeDamageMessageHandler (DMG,
post-base, zone + post-application damageLevel), MechWeapon::
SendDamageMessage (FIRE), projectile impact/splash/collision dispatch
(PROJ/SPLASH/RAM), wreck entry (DEATH -- a ONE-SHOT latch at
MovementMode 9, NOT the transition: a replicant arrives at 9 straight
from the type-6 record header and never runs the transition branch),
BTPlayer vehicle/death/score handlers (VEHICLE/PLAYER_DEAD/SCORE), zone
crit cascade (CRIT), APP.cpp RunningMission (MISSION), L4NET host
handlers (PEER_UP/PEER_DOWN).  Every line t=/w=/st=-stamped + fflushed.

Verified 2-node: mesh run pairs A's 22 FIRE 1:1 with B's 22 DMG (same
amounts, cylinder-resolved zones, ~200ms latency); force-damage kill run
logs 103 DMG + 3 DEATH inst=M + 3 PLAYER_DEAD across three respawn
cycles victim-side and the kill SCOREs shooter-side; relay-mode run
auto-uploaded BOTH peers' files at the mission-clock stop and matchcheck
produced the full report with exactly one (correct) anomaly -- the force
hook's claim-less damage, the unattributed-damage detector working.
Relay gained a route-specific 8MB cap for the upload frame (game frames
stay capped at 1600).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-22 13:22:10 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 2717c33e4e play_steam.bat: clear BT_FE_SOLO (full menu even after play_solo in the same shell)
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:56:01 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 04d50c9242 FE menu: BT_FE_SOLO=1 trims to a solo-only menu (play_solo.bat)
The user hit the full session menu from play_solo -- HOST/JOIN LAN modes,
NET PORT and the Steam buttons don't belong in the solo flow (LAN goes
through the join bats + operator; Steam through play_steam.bat).

BT_FE_SOLO=1 (set by play_solo.bat + the btoperator generated bat):
- the MODE cycle keeps only the two solo entries (kModes lists them first:
  SOLO MISSION, RAW SOLO) via the GroupSize clamp
- NET PORT row and the HOST/JOIN STEAM buttons are not laid out
- a stale fe_last.ini mode of hostlan/joinlan is rejected by the existing
  LoadPersisted GroupSize clamp, so the selection can never land on a
  hidden mode
play_steam.bat keeps the full menu.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:54:09 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 aaa252a4a3 play_solo.bat: open the mission menu (mech/map/options pickers)
play_solo hardcoded -egg ARENA1.EGG, bypassing the miniconsole front end
that already carries the full pickers: SOLO/RAW-SOLO/HOST-LAN/JOIN-LAN
modes, 8 maps, all 18 mechs, 4 experience levels, colours/badges/patches,
drop zones, advanced damage, time-of-day, weather and mission length.

The bat now launches zero-arg (BT_PLATFORM=glass -> the menu); the menu
relaunches the exe with the generated egg and the cockpit/gauge env
(BT_START_INSIDE/BT_DEV_GAUGES) inherits into the mission child.  Menu-boot
verified with the bat's exact env; the solo menu->mission->menu cycle was
verified at FE landing.  README + the btoperator generated-bat template
updated to match.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:49:01 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 ec44bc5dfa play_steam.bat: cockpit view + gauges (BT_START_INSIDE + BT_DEV_GAUGES)
The steam bat missed the two client flags the join bats set -- steam-launched
missions booted 3rd-person (the same field bug fixed for join.bat earlier).
Env inherits through the menu's mission relaunch.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:42:32 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 d53fcf61ad BT_STEAM restored as THE compile gate (license) -- default OFF
The unification flattened BT_STEAM into the always-on exe; the user flagged
the constraint that makes it the one legitimate compile gate: the Steamworks
SDK license bars a public release with Steam inside, so a release build must
exclude it entirely.

- CMakeLists: option(BT_STEAM OFF) restored around the Steamworks block --
  an OFF configure touches no SDK headers, no steam_api.lib, no DLL copy.
  BT_GLASS stays retired (always defined); ONE build dir either way.
  Dev checkout: build/ configured once with -DBT_STEAM=ON.
- mkdist: reads BT_STEAM from build/CMakeCache.txt.  Steam-OFF zips exclude
  play_steam.bat + steam_api.dll (explicitly filtering a STALE DLL left by
  an earlier ON build), strip the README steam section ({STEAM} line
  markers), and take a -nosteam name suffix so the flavors never clobber
  (found live: both stamped 4.11.436 and the release zip overwrote the dev
  zip).

Verified both flavors:
  ON  (dev build):  steam smoke degrades to Winsock without the client;
      zip carries play_steam.bat + steam_api.dll + README steam lines.
  OFF (scratch build-relcheck, deleted after): 0 compile errors; exe dir =
      btl4.exe + OpenAL32.dll only; boots + simulates; BT_STEAM_NET=1 inert
      (transport not in the binary); end-to-end zip has zero steam bits and
      a clean README.

KB: context/glass-cockpit.md unified-build section records the license gate.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:40:03 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 dd74d13120 mkdist: redist runtime DLLs + versioned tester README
The first zips (pre-mkdist) shipped d3dx9_43.dll / msvcp140.dll /
vcruntime140.dll next to the exe -- testers without the VC++ / DirectX
redistributables cannot load the exe otherwise.  mkdist missed them (the
clean-extract boot test passed only because this machine has them system-
wide).  Carried into redist/ (recovered from BT411_4.11.341.zip) and
packaged next to the exe.

Also: players/README.txt -- the tester instructions (updated for the
unified build: one exe, clickable cockpit surround, trigger-config regroup,
the settled keymap, play_steam.bat) -- stamped with the version and placed
at the zip root, matching the original zips' shape.

Clean-extract verified on BT411_4.11.435.zip: root has README + 4 bats,
exe dir carries all 4 DLLs, glass-profile boot simulates.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:32:11 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 10ed66bd7c UNIFY: one exe -- retire the pod/glass/steam compile split
The three build dirs (build\ pod, build-glass\, build-steam\) were compile-
time splits of the same game; the tax was real: a stale steam exe shipped 2
days behind, the felt keymap flipped with the boot flavor, and cockpit
clicks were silently dead in the pod build (the trigger-config incident).

Now everything compiles into the single build\ exe:
- CMakeLists: BT_GLASS/BT_STEAM options removed; the glass TUs (PadRIO,
  bindings, panel, glass windows, plasma) + FE/console + Steam transport
  compile unconditionally; both macros always defined (seam markers).
- Steam: steam_api.lib linked with /DELAYLOAD:steam_api.dll + delayimp --
  the DLL maps only when SteamAPI is first called, and every call site
  gates on BT_STEAM_NET=1 (BTSteamNet_* short-circuit on steamActive), so
  machines without the DLL run everything but Steam sessions.
- CABINET GUARD (btl4main): the miniconsole menu previously claimed any
  zero-arg launch -- unified, that would hijack the pod cabinet's boot
  shape.  The menu now requires BT_PLATFORM=glass (or BT_FE_MENU=1);
  platform parse moved above the fe_menu_mode computation.  A bare boot
  behaves exactly like the old pod build (DEV profile, wait for egg).
- Bats (play_solo/join/join_lan/play_steam) + the btoperator.py template:
  single build\ path + BT_PLATFORM=glass.  mkdist: one exe (+DLL scan
  picks up OpenAL32 + steam_api).  build-glass\/build-steam\/build-glass2\
  (a stale Jul-20 cache) deleted.

Verified matrix on the unified exe:
  bare zero-arg boot == old pod exe (same DEV profile + egg-load path;
    the segfault on a missing egg is pre-existing, baselined vs the zip exe)
  glass + BT_BTNTEST scripted click -> [cfgmap] ENTER/EXIT (trigger config)
  runs with steam_api.dll ABSENT (delay-load proven)
  glass zero-arg -> miniconsole menu
  2-node loopback MP: 145 ticks each, cross-connected
  BT_STEAM_NET=1 without Steam client -> "staying on Winsock", game runs

KB: context/glass-cockpit.md compile-gates section rewritten for the
unified model.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:28:51 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 3b17b60c19 Join bats: same glass-preference treatment as play_solo
join.bat + join_lan.bat + the btoperator.py generator template now prefer
build-glass\Release\btl4.exe when present and set BT_PLATFORM=glass with it
-- so MP sessions on a dev checkout get PadRIO (mouse-clickable cockpit
buttons: trigger config, MFD banks, radar rails) and the bindings.txt keymap,
identical to solo play.  Player zips (which ship only build\) fall back to
the pod build exactly as before.

Verified: 2-node loopback MP smoke on the GLASS build (the documented
procedure: A -egg MP.EGG -net 1501 + B -net 1601 + tools/btconsole.py) --
both nodes cross-connected (GameMachineHost 1502/1602), ~150 sim ticks
each, no errors.  btoperator.py syntax-checked; regenerated bats carry the
same guard.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 10:04:02 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 4215b98655 Trigger config: root-cause the dead cockpit clicks (missing BT_PLATFORM=glass)
The user held the MFD PROGRAM button and nothing happened (weapons kept
firing).  Diagnosis, verified end-to-end:

- The cockpit mouse handler DID register the click ([cockpit] CLICK addr=0x8
  press) and 0x8 IS a streamed PROGRAM element (EVENT msg 0x9 -> weapon,
  Mfd1 quad page mask).
- But every launch ran the DEV platform profile (no BT_PLATFORM) ->
  L4CONTROLS=KEYBOARD -> no PadRIO instance -> PadRIO::SetScreenButton
  no-ops (activeInstance NULL) -> the press never entered the RIO queue ->
  ConfigureMappables (id 9) never dispatched -> the mode never flipped ->
  fire keys kept firing.  The config machinery itself was never broken.
- With BT_PLATFORM=glass (the GLASS profile: L4CONTROLS=PAD -> PadRIO), the
  full chain now proves out headlessly:
    [btntest] PRESS 0x8 -> [cfgmap] ENTER session on ERMLaser_1
      mode 0x450421 -> 0x448421 (NonMapping 0x10000 -> Mapping 0x8000)
    [btntest] RELEASE 0x8 -> [cfgmap] EXIT (mode restored)

Landed:
- mechweap.cpp: [cfgmap] BT_FIRE_LOG diagnostics in the real
  ConfigureMappables/ChooseButton handlers (they were silent -- the G-key
  harness had logs but the authentic button path had none).
- L4PADRIO.cpp: BT_BTNTEST="addr,pressPoll,releasePoll" scripted screen-
  button harness through the REAL click seam (EmitButton -> RIO queue ->
  manager drain -> buttonGroup mapping) for headless verification.
- play_solo.bat: prefer the glass build when present AND set
  BT_PLATFORM=glass so PadRIO exists and cockpit clicks work.

Side finding (the user's keymap "flip-flop"): CONTROLS.MAP (btinput, DEV/pod
profile) and bindings.txt (PadRIO, GLASS profile) are two parallel binding
engines; which one runs depends on the platform profile, so the felt keymap
changes with the boot flavor.  Unification pending (user decision).

Awaiting live verification of the full hold-PROGRAM + tap-fire regroup flow.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-21 09:31:52 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Opus 4.8 cae616dc7c join_lan.bat: pin the operator's LAN IP (auto-discovery was unreliable)
Field report: LAN auto-discovery (BT_RELAY=auto) didn't work -- a joiner had to
hand-set BT_RELAY=10.0.0.46:1500 to reach the console every time.

- players/join_lan.bat: BT_RELAY=auto -> BT_RELAY=10.0.0.46:1500 (the operator PC's
  LAN IP), with a comment on updating it if the IP changes.
- tools/btoperator.py: the export now DETECTS the operator PC's LAN IP (UDP
  default-route probe, no packet sent) and stamps BT_RELAY=<lan-ip>:port into the
  generated join_lan.bat instead of "auto" -- so regeneration keeps it correct and
  doesn't revert to the broken auto-discovery.  Verified: detects 10.0.0.46 here.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-20 22:27:12 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 80c9394131 play_steam.bat: dev-tester launcher for the Steam path (EXPERIMENTAL)
Zero-mission-arg launch of the build-steam exe -> lands in the glass FE
menu, where Steam sessions actually form (host or join an ISteamMatchmaking
lobby; there is no address to dial, so this is a LAUNCHER not a joiner --
unlike join.bat/join_lan.bat).  Sets BT_PLATFORM=glass + BT_STEAM_NET=1,
logs to content\steam.log.  Guarded like the sibling bats, with the two
failure modes spelled out (zip without build-steam\; Steam client not
running = menu works, no lobbies).

Requires distributing the build-steam variant (BT_GLASS+BT_STEAM) alongside
content\ -- a different zip shape; the pod-build zips are unaffected.  For
dev testers to exercise the Steam path further (prior tests were buggy);
NOT for general players yet: the live 2-machine exit criterion
(docs/STEAM_TEST.md) is still open and the AppID is the 480 test id.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-20 10:04:01 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 1cb93d7b75 play_solo.bat: open gauges too (BT_DEV_GAUGES), matching join bats
Solo practice already started in-cockpit (BT_START_INSIDE) but didn't
open the MFD gauges window -- inconsistent with the join bats.  Add
BT_DEV_GAUGES=1 so single-player practice mirrors the pod experience.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 20:15:24 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 2fb2f8a36d join bats: default to cockpit view + gauges (BT_START_INSIDE + BT_DEV_GAUGES)
Field report: a remote player had smooth gameplay but in 3RD-PERSON with
NO gauges.  Cause: view mode + gauges are CLIENT launch flags, not
something the relay/console can enforce -- and join.bat set neither, so
remote players booted in the game's desktop default (external camera, no
MFDs).  The operator's own local launch sets both (the app's 'Start in
cockpit' + 'Dev gauges' checkboxes, on by default), which is why the
operator saw the correct view but remote players didn't.

The pod is a first-person cockpit with MFD gauges and no '3rd person' at
all, so cockpit is the right default for players.  join.bat/join_lan.bat
now set BT_START_INSIDE=1 + BT_DEV_GAUGES=1.  (Players can still press V
to toggle the external camera.)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 19:50:21 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 0b83d71578 Harden player bats: location guard for 'cannot find path specified'
Field report: a remote player ran join.bat from the wrong place (inside
the zip, or the .bat separated from content\/build\) and got 'The system
cannot find the path specified' + dumps -- the relative 'cd %~dp0content'
failed cryptically.

Now each bat: cd to its own dir, verify build\Release\btl4.exe +
content\<egg> exist, else jump to :badpath and print a clear message
('this file must sit in the extracted folder next to content and build;
right-click the zip - Extract All and run it from there').  Verified: run
from a dir with no content/build -> the guidance prints, no dump.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 19:16:38 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 954175e44e Diagnostics: pre-launch readiness warning + named friend logs (join.log)
Two additions after the live-session troubleshooting:

1. LAUNCH-SHORT is now VISIBLE (btconsole).  Pressing LAUNCH with an
   empty roster seat previously did NOTHING (eggs_done_at only sets when
   ALL seats ACK, so the manual-launch arming silently no-op'd -- the
   'I pressed launch and nothing happened' confusion).  Now the relay
   logs 'LAUNCH pressed but NOT all seats are filled' + a per-seat
   readiness line + a WARNING naming the empty seat(s) and the fix
   (reduce the roster).  When all seats DO fill it auto-arms (launch
   request persists).  Verified: 2/3 filled -> clear warning naming
   seat3.

2. Friend logs are now retrievable (btoperator exporter).  join.bat /
   join_lan.bat set BT_LOG=join.log and their exit message tells the
   player to send content\join.log to the operator if the game closed
   unexpectedly -- closes the friend-side-crash blind spot (their log
   was the generic btl4.log, un-named, easy to miss).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 19:05:34 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 52ce7c58c8 play_solo.bat: single-player practice launcher in the player export
A zip recipient can dork around offline -- no -net argument means the
game self-launches a solo mission (all maps ship in content/).  Solo
gets its own exit message (btl4.log pointer, no server language).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 14:57:26 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 dfd1894fb9 Unreachable-server UX: message boxes + bat guidance instead of a 'crash'
Field report (first internet-join attempt): both join bats 'hard
crash' on the remote machine.  Root cause was procedural -- the host
session was not running -- but the failure PRESENTATION was the bug:
Release Fail() is a bare abort(), so a dead relay = silent process
death + instantly-closing console window.

- L4NET: the two player-facing dead-ends (LAN discovery no-answer,
  seat request unreachable/full) now show a MessageBox saying what
  happened and what to do before exiting (verified live against a
  dead relay: 'BattleTech -- can't join the game' appears).
- join bats: echo + pause after exit so the window stays readable;
  join_lan.bat header now says it is LAN-only (the remote user ran
  both -- join_lan can never work over the internet).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 14:23:29 -05:00
arcattackandClaude Fable 5 f04e8019c2 D1: relay-assigned seats -- players never need a player number
A pod launched with no BT_SELF asks the relay for a seat before joining:
new control frames SEAT_REQUEST (-6) -> relay reserves the lowest roster
seat not claimed or reserved (60s reservation so simultaneous joiners
can't race onto one seat) -> SEAT_ASSIGN (-7, int32 hostID + NUL tag)
becomes relaySelf; everything downstream (egg self-match, HELLO) runs
exactly as if BT_SELF had been set. Roster full -> SEAT_FULL (-8) ->
clean Fail(). A real HELLO pops the reservation; a pod drop frees the
seat. Explicit BT_SELF still claims a specific seat (the operator's
local launches use it).

Client: L4NetworkManager::RelayRequestSeat (throwaway TCP dial to the
relay game port, 10s reply window). Relay: SEAT_REQUEST branch in
_handle_game_frame. Operator exporter collapsed from per-seat
join_as_playerN.bat to ONE universal join.bat (+ join_lan.bat with
BT_RELAY=auto) -- every player gets the same file, first come first
served, the arcade walk-up-to-a-pod model. players/ regenerated.

Verified: 8/8 seat stub tests (distinct seats in roster order, FULL on
exhaustion, claimed+reserved stays FULL, HELLO claim accepted, duplicate
HELLO refused); 2-node localhost e2e with NO BT_SELF on either pod ->
both seated, full ladder, RunMission pair, UDP flowing post-launch;
regression smoke: explicit-BT_SELF relay session clean with zero seat
requests, classic mesh (no BT_RELAY) un-regressed.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-07-18 12:11:03 -05:00