This is a mod-makers tool. It allows you to do many things that the Official Construction Set does not allow. A few examples: A auto-clean file function (can't have dirty plug-ins), split plug-in's to a Master/plug-in configuration, convert from master
Description
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TES4Gecko - Version 14.5
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Created by TeamGecko
- New development and Original TES4 Plugin Utility code: ScripterRon (Ron Hoffman)
- Original Gecko plugin splitter and compare code: KomodoDave (N David Brown)
- Gecko project leader: dev_akm (Aubrey K McAuley)
Overview
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TES4Gecko works with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion plugin and master files (*.esp/*.esm). It is designed to let mod-creators manipulate plugin and master files in ways that Bethesda either did not imagine or decided to leave out of the official Construction Set.
TES4Gecko has a wide variety of useful functions, such as merging two or more plugins into a single plugin or removing data that doesn't need to be in a plugin (accidental changes). It can convert a plugin file to a master file or a master file to a plugin file, move worldspaces, generate silent dialog MP3s, and a ton of other useful stuff. Selected plugin records can be removed from a plugin or copied to another plugin. It will also split a single plugin file into master/plugin components and compare two plugins, highlighting the differences between them.
Please see the Available Functions section in the README for critical details and warnings about how individual functions work.
Discussion of TES4Gecko is on the Bethesda Elder Scrolls Construction Set forum. Search for TES4Gecko if you don't see the thread right away.
New Features and Changes
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TES4Gecko Version 13 adds a ton of new features, drastically revamps the code base, and fixes a bunch of bugs. Here's a few of the biggest new features.
The Compare Plugins function has been redesigned to improve performance. It now allows comparisons of very large files, such as Oblivion.esm, which in turn made it possible to add a new "Clean Plugin" function to remove any entries from a plugin that do not actually differ from Oblivion.esm (accidental changes). The 'Toggle Ignore' and 'Copy to Clipboard' functions are now available on the Compare Plugins screen. The "Split Plugin" function now has an option to create an independent ESM/ESP pair (where the ESM has no dependency on the ESP). The Display/Copy function now displays the plugin master list with the associated modindex for records tied to that master, supports both FormID and EditorID search functions, and provides automatic highlighting of master records. The master list order can now be changed, Worldspaces can be moved into the Oblivion.esm modindex (00) to avoid vanishing landscape problems, and BOOK subrecords are merged.
Version 14 mostly adds several important worldspace fixes. It now adds the exterior cell X,Y coordinates to the tree node description, assigns interior cell block/subblock based on the merged form ID for the cell, and changes the Split Plugins function to move visible-when-distant groups to the plugin.
Version 14.5 fixes merge problems with creature sounds and idle animations.
See the version history near the end of the README for a complete list of changes and fixes.
Installation
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To install this utility, place the TES4Gecko.jar and the TES4Gecko-Silence.mp3 files into a directory of your choice. To run the utility, create a program shortcut and specify "javaw -Xmx1024m -jar TES4Gecko.jar" as the program to run, where should be replaced with the directory where you extracted the jar file. If the path for java isn't set on your system, you will need to specify the full path to javaw.
A sample program shortcut is included that specifies Tmp as the install directory. The -Xmx1024m argument specifies the maximum heap size in megabytes (the example specifies a heap of 1024Mb, or 1Gb). You can increase the size if you run out of space merging very large plugins. Note that Windows will start swapping if the Java heap size exceeds the amount of available storage and this will significantly impact performance.
The Sun Java 1.5 runtime is required. If you are unsure what version of Java is installed on your system, open a command prompt window and enter "java -version".
Credits
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TES4Gecko Version 13 and 14 represents ScripterRon's return to working on TES4Gecko project, and the results are dramatic. TES4Gecko Version 12 was created using the source code from ScripterRon's wonderful TES4 Plugin Utility (Version 11.1), which he graciously donated to the project. The vast majority of the functionality here was created by ScripterRon -- TeamGecko merely seeks to expand and enhance his amazing work.
Huge thanks to Lightwave for helping us figure out how to deal with vanishing landscape problems in new worldspaces.
Change log
Version 14.5 fixes merge problems with creature sounds and idle animations.
