Command Files
The Command File capability is used to allow you to program maps
using the name of a function rather than the actual command characters.
Command Files are really just a list of commands that the game
understands and the characters needed to activate that command. In
their basic form, they look something like this:
LandingGearDown g
LandingGearUp G
FlapsExtend f
FlapsRetract F
On the left is the command name, on the right the character(s) that need
to be sent to activate the command. Command Files only work with
character-based commands and can only be used in the GUI. A similar sort
of capability is available for the CMS scripting facility by using
the %DEFINE statement covered in the section on CMS Programming.
This whole process has several advantages and makes the
map easier to create. If you initially sit down with the manual
and just create a Command File for the game which lists all the key
commands and their names, you don't really need to refer to the manual
to create the map, and with many of the newer games having manuals
on CD ROM you can frequently get most of the command information
with a cut-and-paste from the manual itself.
Once the Command File is complete, modifying the map becomes
easier, and the Map will be largely self-documenting. If you maintain
a consistent set of command names, you can create
a default map for a new sim in a matter of seconds. Choose a
basic set of names for the most common functions GearUp,
AutopilotToggle, FlapsDown, LookLeft, etc. Use those names to create your
default map. Now when you get a new sim, you only need to create
the CMC file with the commands named as they are in the default
map. You can load your basic map, set it to use the CMC file for
the new sim and the map is complete. Even though "GearToggle" may
be "L" in one sim and "G" in the other, the command names will be
the same and so the default map will get the appropriate button
commands in both cases. Normally, you can't do this 100% of the
time, some commands just have to change, but it can work for the
most common function and get you up and running very quickly.
Another benefit - if you can find a MAP/CMC file for download
somewhere, you can use the CMC file even if you don't
particularly care for the Map itself.
The next section details the Command Files, how they are created,
and how to use them.
