Dheuster

So... JUST FYI, The add blocker I am using allows you to right click an add and block it. It causes the ad blocker to examine the pages DOM, identify what you clicked on and prevent it from rendering based on attributes. In this case, the slide in menu came back as an iFrame on the nexus site with the name/id: google_ads_iframe_/58309977/nexusmods_0 Since I blocked that element, I haven't seen the slide in window or had any stability issues with nexus. Still running the ad-blocker, but I have an exception for nexus and other sites I support. And now my ad blocker has a filter for this element. So either one of two things: That element is being injected into the dom by another ad/javascript dependency library, or it is a part of the site by design (doubt it). Regardless, I have disabled the element as it appears to be what was causing my lag and stability issues. For anyone reading this with similar issues, I am using the Chrome extension "AdBlock" with the following custom filer: @@||www.nexusmods.com/$documentwww.nexusmods.com##IFRAME[id=google_ads_iframe_/58309977/nexusmods_0][name=google_ads_iframe_/58309977/nexusmods_0] If the name/id changes and the block stops working, I will update this post. UPDATE: After a few days, the number in the google ads iframe changed. So I had to make my filter more general and filter out all iframes: @@||www.nexusmods.com/$documentwww.nexusmods.com##IFRAME

Happens on Chrome and Edge. If I install an Ad Blocker, it stops. I don't see these slide in ads on any other sites.

Next Slide in Ad. Note the time.

Expanded Details of Last URL request

Here is the Ad playing. I activated the Network Traffic Bar

Recently, when I visit nexus, I see slide in ads coming in from the lower right hand corner of the screen. They have different ads in them, and they are normally movies. The bandwitch is expensive and decreases the usability of the site. It also sometimes causes the browers to react slowly and even crash. Here are some screen shots. The slide in:

I say Kudos to Nexus for trying out something new. But as others have mentioned, I think this first shot will backfire. But hopefully it will be refined into something that works. Personally, I don't like the fact that it will discourage complex mods and overhauls. I fear it will also anger Bethesda, because the system essentially encourages mod authors to pull their mods from other sites and force everyone to download from here. I dont think Bethesda will say "don't do that". Instead, they will just put code in place that requires all Bethesda game mods to come from Bethesda servers. I think the pool is a good idea, but I think it should be treated as a members-only, private internal lottery focused on authors, not mods. When mod authors download some modding tools (the creation kit), we/they agreed to a legal disclaimer saying we/they won't make money directory OR INDIRECTLY from the mods. But nexus supports more than just mods. It supports images, articles, videos (Machinima), save games, batch files, executable programs. A content author is vague and doesn't have to equate to a mod. Focusing monetary rewards on content authors and not specifically mods helps avoid the legal issue of saying the money is somehow related to a specific MOD that was created with Bethesda Tools. It also allows the system to consider an authors previous works. I think there should be a smaller number of "winners" each month (maybe 10?), and getting elected to win the lottery should use a lottery election system similar to kudos but new. Results and leaderboards should be visible to the public, but voting ability should be limited to premium members and users who donated to the current months pot. (Give everyone the button, but tell them what they need to do when they click on it). Allow eligible voters to elect up to 10 other content creators a month. Require a minimum vote to qualify. And If someone wins the pool, they can't win again for 1 year. Any monetary gains by using botnets or fake accounts would be negated by the cost of making a minimum donation and meeting the minimum vote requirements. Such a system would not discourage large mods or push mod authors to pull their mods from other sites and would stand up better in court if a lawyer tried to claim the money was paying users for a mods since technically the lottery would be open to all content authors. My two cents. (Original Post Edited to include legal concerns)

The lack of documentation plays into the learning curb issue. Throughout the code, there are comments like "See http://institute.bethsoft.com/index.php?title=SOMETHINGTECHNICAL for more information". Well, that URL doesn't work and never has. So figuring out things like how the companion system works and how the workshop system works... are all basically through trial and error. There is a huge learning curb for anyone wanting to make a mod of any complexity. I should know, I have been working on mine for 10 months...

Why: Because of consoles, plain and simple. You have to build your game to the lowest denominator. I don't know what is the lowest spec console that runs FO4, but that is what the limit was for. Shame they didn't think to remove it for the PC release. So our build budgets are all based on the capabilities of an 8 to 10 year old console system. How: That red workbench in the middle of the settlement actually tracks the-settlement information. There is a script attached that adds lots of properties like... if the settlement has been unlocked, how many settlers you have, what they have been assigned to, merchants, traderoutes, etc.. It has 4 other important values. A max poly, max draw, current poly and current draw property (accessed as actor values). Most settlement workbenches have a default max budget of 1000000 polys and 1000 draws (objects). Sanctuary has 3M/3000. Spectacle Island has 5M/5000. What I find most interesting is despite these max values, the current values do not start at 0. Notice when you get to Sanctuary and start building, the progress bar is already 1/3 of the way full. Each settlement has a unique starting "currentdraw" count that I suppose accounts for the surroundings. One way to fix the problem is to is to increase the max. You just have to be careful that you don't go crazy. You can accidentally exceed max-int, especially on a 32 bit machines. The other way is to reset the "current" values. IE: Just set them both to zero. That is a lot safer and you can do it as many times as you want and nothing will care. The reason I know all this is because my mod has an auto-scrap and I have to update the current poly/draw counts when I scrap items.

Anyone have a save game where they have taken the time to make a cool settlement (or 20) they would like to share with the world? =) I am finishing up a mod and one of the features is that you can tell followers to scrap settlements and/or build a selection of pre-fabs. Using my mod, I can take a snapshot of a settlement and make it one of my pre-fab options. But I need the settlement to exist to take the snapshot. Specifically I am looking for settlements that use only vanilla game resources (No mod or DLC items) and adhere to the games limits. My mod will be console compatible, so the settlement can't push the limits too far (10 extra items wont break the bank, but 25 might). My snapshopt script recognizes 2000 items. Pretty much anything the vanilla crafting system will allow you to CREATE OR SCRAP. That includes cars and trees which are not part of the normal crafting pallet. So it is OKAY if you use a mod or console to help create the settlement, as long as the elements are vanilla and you don't exceed the settlement budget by more than 10 items. My script also records scale, so scaling items is a viable trick.... If anyone has save games (settlements) they would like to share or would like to take a stab at contributing let me know here or via a message. (This is a repost from the Mod Talk Thread, but I dont know how to move messages...)

Moving this post to: https://forums.nexusmods.com/index.php?/topic/5668257-need-savegames-with-settlements/?p=50435017

I don't see how F4SE would help. It would prevent compatibility with consoles, but that is about it. An activation code is a console friendly solution (which is what I prefer). As for circumventing, if you excluded all source code and the bootstrap was self contained (Use Game.GetForm() instead of injecting/exposing properties) and there was a handshake with all activated quest scripts (You couldn't simply remove the file and tell the quests to start using console), it would be difficult. But... yes, pex files can be decompiled. With enough effort someone could decompile/recompile your bootstrap and remove the prompt. But... any solution can be circumvented with enough effort. It is not about a bullet proof solution. It is about mitigation solutions that make your mod a harder target than the next mod. Whether someone goes the extra mile and adds handshakes to make removal harder isn't really the debate. Here I am simply asking... after all that trouble, you have a prompt and a file that someone has to go download to unlock the mod. Is that too annoying? Also, I am unaware of the Steam ID info. What about people who don't have a steam account? Can you not run Fallout 4 without steam?

I was thinking about the pirating issue (people uploading mods they don't own to unauthorized sites) and I figured the easiest solution would be a bootstrap script that pops up a message box with 5 buttons (2 numbers per button) and a message that says:"Enter Activate Code: (download from .....)". Thus even if someone uploads your mod to other sites, users would need to download that file from nexus to activate it. So you would get a sense of the mods usage and popularity by the number of downloads. The idea hinges on the assumption that Bethesda (like steam) will only accept valid archives. An activation code is simply a text file and can't be distributed as an archive. Alternatively you could add the Activation code to a readme and make it a separate download. Then you kill two birds with one stone : Ensure users are aware of your readme and also get a sense of usage. Only thing is... it may be too annoying. So I made a poll to see what others think.

I don't think he is trying to do harm to the console users machine. Rather, he knows he is not uploading to Bethesda.net, so if a console user is playing the mod, it obviously was pirated. One option would be to make a Boot strap quest with an onInit that enables the other quests by ... setting a Global. Or maybe add the player to a faction. That is harder to bypass. The bootstrap script could check for Game.UsingGamePad() and refuse to allow the other quests to start with a warning message if one is detected. PC users with GamePads could bypass by simply changing to keyboard until after the check. Need to confirm that console users can't disable the GamePad setting. A savvy user could edit the mod and remove the check, but it would require effort. More of a deterrent than anything else. Hey, if your mod is > 1 Gig, it can't be uploaded to Bethesda.net :)

As to who owns mods, I believe the answer is both the author and Bethesda own a portion of the mod. It is a combined work. Like a car that contains parts patented by several different people. A mod is a binary file that contains assets owned by both the mod author and Bethesda. In order for either the mod author or Bethesda to do ANYTHING with it, a agreement has to be reached. Bethesda's EULA lays out some blanket scenarios were you can distribute the combined work without having to contact them. Simply put: as long as it remains free. The EULA also has a clause saying if you upload the mod to Bethesda.net, that you implicitly grant Bethesda permission to distribute the mod (and any owned assets) for free. But it does not imply transfer of ownership of your assets. As for money, if I want to make money off a mod, the Eula says I need to contact Bethesda and work out the details. It isn't just about permission, it is about profit sharing. How much of the mod is simply re-cycled Bethesda assets and how much of the mod is new uniq content. There is a world of difference between a mod that adds a new Pip-Boy TV plugin that streams youtube videos and a mod that simply makes the dog sit.

So I was reading that Bethesda announced their DLC today and has begun accepting requests for Beta-Testers. I thought it would be cool to sign up to get a jump start on creating some Mod content that is compatible with or expands upon the upcoming DLC (or at least accounts for the DLC assets). But you have to create an account on Bethesda.net to sign up. I was reading over the legal agreement and well... it seems like you basically sell your soul to them in order to get that account. Any lawyers reading this that can make sense of it? I'd love to sign up , but seems like their legal jargon basically gives them royalty free permission to steal your User Generated Content (UGC) if you create an account there.... I guess the question is, does UGC extend to mods? "...by submitting UGC or creating UGC on any portion of the Services, You acknowledge and agree that all such UGC is the sole property of ZeniMax and You hereby assign and agree to assign to ZeniMax all such UGC submitted by You. To the extent that ZeniMax cannot claim exclusive ownership rights in such UGC by operation of law or pursuant to the assignment noted above, and to the fullest extent permitted by law, You hereby expressly grant (or You warrant that the owner of such UGC has expressly granted) to ZeniMax and its licensors, licensees and designees a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, paid-up, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sublicensable right and license to exercise all rights of any kind or nature associated with such UGC in all formats and media, whether existing now or in the future, and You agree not to assert or enforce any moral or similar rights You may have which may now or may hereafter be recognized, and all ancillary and subsidiary rights, in any languages and media now known or not currently known. You further grant each user of the Services a non-exclusive license to access UGC and to use, reproduce, distribute, display and perform such UGC as permitted through the Services, including, but not limited to, Game functionality."

I know people have proposed this and there is even a mod that already lets you START as a ghoul. But I want something a little more seemlessly integrated and Lore friendly. Problem is, too much of the game hinges on you being shaun's parent to just have you spawn into the wasteland as a random ghoul. So here is my proposal.. Feel free to steal as I know I wont have time to impelment myself. At the beginning, instead of your spouse hanging around, waiting for you to lead the way to the vault, they steadily make their own way (walking pace) with or without you. And the elevator takes off when they get there... with or without you. If you linger for too long, you get left behind. But you dont die either. You get a massive radiation overdose when the bomb goes off and you are turned into a ghoul. You gain a custom perk that caps your your strength and charisma at 5, but grants a luck boost of 5 and permanent radiation resistance. Alternative start... The game starts with YOU leading a hired Kellog to the entrance of vault 111. After Kellog messes with the controls, you step on the elevator with him and begin to descend (believing your wife and child already dead, but maybe some descendants?) Only scientists and synths teleport in and kellog knocks you unconcious. You wake up in the cryo-pod across from your wife. Game now continues as before... (mostly). Properly implemented, this alternate start could be installed but still totally optional depending on the players actions at the beginning of the game. A few minor dialogue checks would need to be added, but that is about it. You are still old. You still "emerged" from a vault. You still didn't know about the Cryo Pods. But racial conditions would need to be added to some of the dialogues. For example, BOS would become a non-option. And some reply options would need to be removed when talking with the Mayor, Piper, Nick or human companions (For example: You already know it was Kellog that took shaun). It would be unlikely that human companions would show interest in you beyond friendship. And of coarse Feral Ghouls would only attack you if you attack them first, or if you travel with a non-ghoul companion. But a LOT of the main story could remain intact. And you wouldn't need to invent a whole lot of dialogue. This would mostly be an exercise in removing dialogues that no longer make sense.

This could probably get included with a realism or difficulty mod, but I also like the idea of a stand-alone. Here is the idea: Settler beacons let settlers know where you are but guess what... It also lets raiders, gunners, synths, assaultrons, aggressive robots and super mutants know where you are as well. So I would like a mod that significantly increases the probability of attack when you turn on that settler beacon. Bottom line: Better make sure your settlement is fortified and has adequate defenses before you flip the switch. On the other hand, you probably wont get attacked UNTIL you flip the switch, so you have time to get those defenses up. At night, a large group of badies moving towards your settlement will attract less intelligent, bigger, meaner wasteland creatures like Ghoul herds, Deathclaws, and even Bohemiths. So if you leave that beacon on at night, you have about a 1 in three chance of a major battle with multiple enemies come nightfall.

In skyrim, we could change NPC appearances by altering the NPC race. For example, if you turned your companion into a Vampire, their appearance changed. Bottom line: There was a technical way to change appearances. A way of overriding the NPC's default racial skin, eyes and hair. If GECK includes a similar mechanism, there should be a way to "upgrade" anyone's eyes/vision at the right doctor and for the right price. Even the player. I'm actually hoping there is a way to send NPCs to the facial reconstruction guy.

I'm about 95% certain I am going to do this in my companion mod. I doubt there will be only 1 way to save your spouse, but the easiest/default way I am thinking of right now is that you bring Robot Curie to the cryo-pod. Curie... which is a travelling Mechanical doctor companion complete with hacksaw and lasers, shouldn't have an issue repairing a chest wound and saving your spouse there on the spot. The challenge wont be saving your partner in a realistic manner (and early on if you focus on the right skills). It will be creating the commentary and interactions that should take place throughout the game if your spouse is present. (and fixing a few dialogues where you refer to your dead spouse). I could also see the protagonist asking many doctors throughout the wasteland for help. Some will simply turn you down, others may be willing to help in their own way. (Amari may not be able to save your spouse, but might be able to upload their mind into a synth for example... and if that is the case, there is no reason it has to be the original gender...) Finally, in the wasteland, you and your spouse may not agree on all things... especially the fate of your son. So I could see this leading to some very cool, emotionally heavy choices and disagreements. Of coarse if your spouse is in a synth body, you may possess an unfair advantage.

Modding is fun because it is a hobby. Keeping it free also limits the stress I feel in regards to support. Money sounds great, but it wouldn't be steady and it probably wouldn't be enough to make a living on. And even if it was, I don't know how this would work tax wise. Is Valve going to take on the tax paperwork burden for each paid mod author as if they are an employee? People live in a lot of different places with a lot of different tax requirements. I just don't see this working at a large scale. Maybe a few dozen "elite" authors and mods at most. Certainly not the scale we see here at the Nexus.

It doesnt say it in the mods title, but this mod removes hair, hats and masks from several characters. You have to hit the config button: http://www.nexusmods.com/dragonageinquisition/mods/199 Maybe this was the mod you were referring to?

At first I thought it was horrible... then I realized that all the css infromation was cached in my browser. SHift + Refresh and now it looks nice...

In the Whitewolf Universe, vampires are tied to biblical stories and thus the condition is not treated as a disease, rather it is sort of a sacrificial curse. That is why people can drink Vampire Blood in that universe and not become vampires. I suspect the True Blood Universe uses a similar lore as Suki can drink Bills blood and not become a vampire. Rather vampire blood has healing powers and yes... gives humans a high. In that universe, Vampires also do not appear to get a "high" from normal humans, but Suki's blood is different because she is not actually a human. This is the idea I am trying to bring to Skyrim. The Dragonborn may look like a Nord or an Argonian or a Khajiit, but they have the blood of a dragon. They are not a normal human. So whether vampires normally get a high when feeding or not doesn't really matter. The question is, what happens when a vampire drinks Dragon Blood.... it is not even clear if Dragons were around when the first Vampires were around, so it may simply be an unanswered question. As for the embrace, for some reason I saw it more like lyncanthropy. When you become a werewolf in Skyrim, you quite literally drink Aela's blood. Which implies it is the presence of werewolf blood in YOUR body that transfers the disease. Not simple physical contact or even the swapping of saliva (if it was that simple, why not just kiss Aela/Serana). And if the condition was simply magical, then why make the embrace required at all? Why not have a touch based "Make Vampire" spell? So in my mind, it is the presence of Vampire Blood in YOUR body that transfers the condition. And that makes sense to me except the fact that vampires can give you the disease with the drain health spell. But I think that is a result of game mechanics and not so much actual lore. That is, it was much easier to take an existing spell, make it red and be done with it, rather than spend money and time making proper vampire attack animations. Thanks for the responses, I will sit on this till the weekend and then make up my mind. And yes, I hate the Twilight Universe as well.

Thanks for the response. So it sounds like the idea of a victim's blood affecting the vampire is more or less unexplored in skyrim lore. (Which is fine by me). I realize the universe includes Morrowind, Oblivion... there are a lot of games and I assume books based in the universe. I am not versed in the Universe and its lore and history, but if there are no well known examples that would contradict the idea, I am cool with that.