Update: The instructions and code downloads have been updated as of 04/13/2004. If you have downloaded the code previous to this date - please download the new code so you have the updated changes. The new instructions include the ability to manually disable the auto quicksave from occuring - this may be preferable for some battles you encounter where an auto quicksave during the battle would be undesirable.
You will need to map the quicksave key in the Beyond Divinity game to shift-z. Note that after you exit Beyond Divinity and reload Beyond Divinity the game may change the quick save key to z (instead of shift-z). I think this may be some kind of bug. Load a saved game and make sure your Caps Lock key is on then remap the quick save key to shift-z (remember the Caps Lock key should be on when you do this). Please also change any key mappings that are dependent upon the shift key (toggle plate visiblity, open load plate, open save plate, etc.).
Warning: To save time you might be tempted to change the quick save key in the keylist.txt file to shift z. I have tried this and it does not work. You need to change this key mapping in the game only.
So,
Caps Lock Key is on = Auto quicksave is enabled
Caps Lock Key is off = Auto quicksave is disabled
Now when you are playing the game and would like to disable the quicksave from running (before or during a battle for instance) just make sure the Caps Lock key is off. Keep in mind when the Caps Lock is off you will eventually get stuck in the script loop that will be retrying every 8 seconds to quicksave the game (shift-z). You will notice this if you are running one of the scripts below that presses the alt key every 2.3 seconds - this will not start working again until you re-enable the Auto quicksave by enabling the Caps Lock key back to on.
Original Post:
I am posting scripts that I created in Visual Dialogscript that automatically performs quicksaves and shows special objects (alt). I am making the assumption that the full game will not have an auto quicksave feature. I am posting this early as I will not be purchasing the game when it first comes out (I will be waiting for some patches first). Anyway, this beats having to remember to quicksave every so often and having to hold down the alt key manually. The quicksave will not work sometimes if you are in menus, in conversation dialogs, etc. However the quicksave game file is parsed, so it will retry approx. every 8 seconds to quicksave (the script runs as low priority, so you shouldn't notice any slowdowns in the game). Obviously you can use this script for other games with minimal modification (I use the code at
http://www.mnimages.com/sendkeys.dsc for quicksaving in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic). You will need a version of Visual Dialogscript to run this script. You can download a free version of Visual Dialogscript at the following website:
http://www.dialogscript.com/vds.html (download Personal Visual DialogScript 4), if you want to compile it into an .exe program you will need to purchase version 5 of Visual DialogScript (note I am not affiliated with the company that makes DialogScript in any way, just posting this because I find the scripts quite helpful).
Notes regarding the code: Shift-z key is mapped to quicksaves. Note that the script is an endless loop - you will need to manually stop the script from running when you exit BD. You obviously will need to change directory references in the code to where you installed the game to and the quicksave locations.
For example lets say I installed the game to the directory D:\Games\Beyond Divinity, so I would change the following lines (download the example.dsc code from the address below).
Note that the directory change entry is the directory where the game starts from and you can find this by using the secondary mouse button (normally this is the right mouse button) on the shortcut icon for Beyond Divinty and select Properties and then look in the Start in: input field.
You can easily change the how often the alt key is pressed and how often quicksaves occur (dowload the example2.dsc code from the address below).
Download the code at (adjust the variables to your preference of course):
(Example code where directory references are located)
http://www.mnimages.com/example.dsc(Example code with remark statements explaining what to change to alter how often the alt key is pressed and how often quicksaves occur)
http://www.mnimages.com/example2.dsc(Script that presses the alt key every 2.3 seconds)
http://www.mnimages.com/sendkeys1.dsc(Script that presses the alt key every 2.3 seconds and auto quicksaves approx. every 6-7 minutes)
http://www.mnimages.com/sendkeys2.dsc(Script that auto quicksaves approx. every 6-7 minutes)
http://www.mnimages.com/sendkeys3.dscTo save the code: From your file menu in your Internet browser select save as... add .dsc to the end of the filename and for the Save as type pull down select Text file (.txt). The formatting should look correct when you load it now in the IDE.
Note: You will notice if you are running a script that presses the alt key every so many of seconds that this causes a slight interruption during battles where you press the the space bar to pause (it conflicts when pressed at the same time as the pause key). If only the alt key could be remapped to a shift-key..... perhaps someone knows how to do this?
