Tweakscale troubles-Please help!!!: What should my GameData and /or Tweakscale folders contain?

[Ben J. Kerman]

I need help figuring out what my KSP Gamedata and Tweakscale folders should look like.  A little while before this, I had been having no problems with or warnings from Tweakscale whatsoever. Then, I updated KSP (Not to the current newest version, but a newer version; can't remember what version or when), and saw a warning how it may not work with this version. I ignored it, and had no troubles. Recently, after I updated to the current newest version (Version 1.11.1), I decided to install the newest version of tweakscale, and attempt to get rid of the "May not work with this KSP version" warning. In doing this=, I messed up my files, and now Tweakscale does not work and all my tweakscaled craft files are corrupted.  I can deal with the files, I just need to know how to get Tweakscale working again; Please help!!!

Edited February 11, 2021 by Ben J. Kerman

[Lisias]

On 2/12/2021 at 11:34 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

Thank you, Lisias. 

Welcome!

Since we are here, and since typing using only the left hand is something I'm getting used to  , let's go:

On 2/12/2021 at 11:34 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

A couple things though: What is module manager, how can I get it and why do I need it-When I downloaded Tweakscale, it didn't appear to come with Module manager, but I have no idea why I need it for Tweakscale.

Module Manager is a tool to allow us to patch some things on KSP.

KSP was made using Unity, and Unity has a thingy called prefab where information about how to initialise Game Objects are stored (being a GameObject something used by the game, as a widget on the screen, a piece of code that handles that widget, etc). KSP adopted a very handy way to define the prefab for parts and some other things, the Config File. So, instead of compiling all the prefab into an asset file, KSP reads a bunch of CFG files and "compile" them at load time - and this allows us to virtually change almost whatever we want - and make no mistake, one of the reasons for the huge success in the past was exactly the extremely friendliness to modding.

Additionally, Modules are collections of related code that implement a specific feature. By example, ModuleControlSurface is the module that implements the ailerons on the parts that we use for aircrafts and spaceplanes. TweakScale is another Module, where I shove my nose on every other module in existence to coerce them into scale things.  (TweakScale is a hell of a nosy guy, it's no surprise that when something borks, TweakScale gets some splash damage, as it's always around).

Since changing directly the config files is a terrible idea (never touch anything you didn't wrote yourself when publishing things - unless there's no other way), in the beginning of time after the creation of Time and Light , one of the Founders created the Module Manager so people could write patches (receipts where you tell Module Manager what you want to change and how).

TweakScale (and the kitchen's sink) needs Module Manager to add to the prefab the information it needs to run, as well to include it on the parts you want to scale.

Without Module Manager, one would need to edit every single config file on the game to add TweakScale manually - about 730 on an vanilla game, and I'm not counting add'ons.

I don't include Module Manager on TweakScale because distributing Module Manager on Add'Ons is a pretty stupid idea. You end up with tons of older, buggy Module Manager on the system, and now on KSP >= 1.8.0, multiple versions of Module Manager on the system is a terrible troublemaker situation (TL;DR : by a glitch on KSP and how ModuleManager's file is named, you end up running always the oldest version available on the system!!!).

There're "integrators" around that built packages with some add'ons preinstalled - I don't have a problem with these, because the dude properly maintain the packages and issue a new release every time it updates something. But TweakScale is not a "bundle", it's a "feature package" and the only reason I include Module Manager WatchDog on it it's because everybody else shoves older Module Manager on the game all the time, and we need something to warns us about this.

In the near Future I plan to build a "Bundle" myself, so people with complex installments and that don't like CKAN could have a easy first installation session (there're going to exist a lot of TweakScale Companions), but for now with the current cycle of releases, maintaining a bundle is too much of a hassle for me.

 

On 2/12/2021 at 11:34 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

Also, is it a problem that I have a GameData folder in my GameData folder? I think it may have to do with the way I unpacked the zipped folder. I have not had any issues until I messed with the files

Boy, it's only the most common mistake on having the Scale_Redist on the wrong place!!   

Yes, it's plain terrible to have a GameData inside the GameData.

Things appears to work at first, because some parts of KSP (and add'ons) don't care too much for where they are installed - but things start to get hairy when other things need to find your assets, as Module Manager.... By shoving the files on the wrong place, some things are not recognised by Module Manager, for example, and so they are not patched.

It's the reason all my Add'Ons bark on you when they detected you installed them on the wrong place.

(And, yes, I do it myself now and then too - a temporary brain fart, and you unzip the thing on the wrong place without being aware: it happens to everybody, so I coded the installment checks)

 

On 2/12/2021 at 11:34 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

And, after installing 1.11.4, I also may have seen a different error message, but I can' t remember; I do remember that I deleted some files-can't remember what ones-I know, not very helpful. I just want to get KSP working properly again as soon as possible , but thanks for the image-It helped a lot!

KSP 1.11.4? Welcome, Time Traveller! How are things on the year 2022?? KSP2 was delayed again?

Well, some things effectively beautifully borked on KSP 1.11.1 - frankly, I would recommend avoiding migrating ongoing savegames to it. Stay playing your current savegames on 1.11.0 , and only use 1.11.1 for new savagames. The 1.11.0 bugs are kinda manageable and some are even fixable (see KSP-Recall) - but there're some things on KSP 1.11.1 that it's plain impossible to fix without breaking forum rules (the "no reverse engineering" stunt).

The problem I see with the deletion-fest is that most files are there for a reason, and removing the files that are borking also remove the features the files aim to implement.

It's a pain in the SAS, but IMHO the best line of action for you is:

1. Backup all your savegames
   1. There's a thingy called S.A.V.E. I strongly recommend everybody to use it (I do).
   2. Believe me, I break savegames all the time while testing new TweakScale features...  
2. Rebuild your KSP 1.11.0 installment
   1. Or 1.10.1, if you skiped the 1.11.0 stunt
3. After checking if everything is fine, KEEP IT SAFE.
   1. I never delete a working KSP installment, I still have my 1.4.5 one lingering here - just in case.
   2. And I still play 1.7.3
4. Now build a new KSP 1.11.1 one for the new savegames

 

On 2/12/2021 at 11:34 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

Never mind

Nah, I need to practice typing with my left hand!  

(right arm is with a light case of tendinitis, so I'm preserving it)

 

Edited February 21, 2021 by Lisias
Entertaining grammars made less entertaining

[VoidSquid]

Maybe @Lisias can help?

[Lisias]

On 2/10/2021 at 11:02 PM, Ben J. Kerman said:

I can deal with the files, I just need to know how to get Tweakscale working again; Please help!!!

You probably installed TweakScale on the wrong place, or perhaps installed it twice?

Well, the layout of the installation should be something like this:

On green , the things you must have installed otherwise things will not work:

• 999_Scale_Redist.dll
  • You need to have this installed, as this is a Common Interface used by TweakScale to communicate with some add'ons that have TS support embedded.
• TweakScale
  • Nuff said!

In blue, optional things you may install or not, it's up to you to decide:

• __LOCAL
  • It's a special folder where I put some personalisations, and where some TweakScale HotFixes should be placed when I give one to you
  • It's convenient because you don't need to remember where you had placed that Kraken Damned patch that fixed something in the past, and now should be removed
  • And you don't risk removing it by accident, by deleting an old version of something with it inside.
• KSP-Recall
  • KSP-Recall is a bag of tricks to fix/work around pesky KSP bugs that usually infest the .0 releases of KSP
    • And since now and then the next release fixes some bugs but create worse others, some people prefers to stick with the less buggy version, and KSP Recall aims to make this more bearable.
• ModuleManagerWatchDog
  • It's a tool that barks on you when  you install more than one Module Manager DLL on your system
    • This is pretty nasty on KSP 1.8.0 and newer, you should not have more than one Module Manager installed on the game!

90% of all installations problems I had helped to fix are related to missing Scale_Redist, and I'm guessing this may be your case.

The Scale_Redist stunt is needed on this exactly place by the same reasons you can have only one Module Manager installed, a thing that changed (for better, let's be fair) on KSP 1.8 that ended up requiring only one copy of a Assembly to be present on the whole game installment, otherwise things will bork - so I had to be absolutely sure that the Cannon DLL is loaded at first, and any (now) rogue copy of the DLL should be blocked from loading after it.

Let me know if this works for you.

Cheers!

Edited February 12, 2021 by Lisias
Forgot about KSP-Recall... :)

[Ben J. Kerman]

Thank you, Lisias. A couple things though: What is module manager, how can I get it, and where do I put it in GameData?-When I downloaded Tweakscale, it didn't appear to come with Module manager, but I have no idea why I need it for Tweakscale. Also, is it a problem that I have a GameData folder in my GameData folder? I think it may have to do with the way I unpacked the zipped folder. I have not had any issues until I messed with the files. And, after installing 1.11.1, I also may have seen a different error message, but I can' t remember; I do remember that I deleted some files-can't remember what ones-I know, not very helpful. I just want to get KSP working properly again as soon as possible , but thanks for the image-It helped a lot!

 

Never mind-I think I was just confused by the way the folder was unpacked into it's own Tweakscale folder; I am going to try and arrange the files properly and get back to you. Hoping it works!!! 

Edited February 13, 2021 by Ben J. Kerman
Realized stuff-Mixed up .1 and .4

[Ben J. Kerman]

It appears that I've fixed it!  Somehow,  the ModuleManager.dll ended up in my OneDrive . I put it back, along with a Physics file and Techtree file, loaded KSP, and I could tweak and scale parts again! My save files are even back to normal. I still need to make sure everything is working, but I think Tweakscale is working again! Thanks, Lisias-I don't think I could have done it without your help !

 

Oh, and sorry about saying KSP 1.11.4. I have been playing Minecraft 1.16.4 since I screwed up Tweakscale, and I got it confused with Kerbal Space Program 1.11.1!