Attack of the Red Ps

[Alden Loveshade]

This has happened to me each time I install a GCA4 update: my mage characters end up with red Ps (for missing prerequisite) on several of their spells that they have prerequisites for. If I do the standard Resynchronize (with just the boxes on the left checked), it fixes some of them. But I then have to do it again and sometimes again before I get rid of them. I can also do it with Recalculate Everything, which takes a while on detailed characters.

I can finally get rid of the red Ps. Then the next time I load the character, they're back again.

Before when this happened it was suggested I delete a file, I think an ini file, and that worked. But this time I deleted the GCA 4 program, the exe file to install it, and even the characters (I backed them up on another drive first).

When I reinstalled GCA4, it listed the last four characters I had called up which told me I hadn't actually deleted everything, although the characters themselves weren't there. When I copied the characters back to my computer and called them up, there were the red Ps again.

How can I fix this?

CLARIFICATION: I just reinstalled GCA4 from e23 within the hour.

[Bruno]

None of those things you deleted are the .ini file :)

Run
C:\Program Files\GCA4\GCAClearAppData.exe
C:\Program Files\GCA4\GCAClearVirtualStore.exe

to reset all your settings. These go in and clear out that .ini file for you.

Not sure if that's actually what would fix your problem since I've never dealt with that one myself - but this will replicate that troubleshooting step that worked for you last time

[Alden Loveshade]

Originally Posted by Bruno

None of those things you deleted are the .ini file :)

Run
C:\Program Files\GCA4\GCAClearAppData.exe
C:\Program Files\GCA4\GCAClearVirtualStore.exe

to reset all your settings. These go in and clear out that .ini file for you.

Not sure if that's actually what would fix your problem since I've never dealt with that one myself - but this will replicate that troubleshooting step that worked for you last time

Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately, it didn't work. GCAClearVirtualStore.exe cleared my settings and the history of the last characters I loaded, but double clicking on GCAClearAppData.exe didn't seem to activate it for some reason. I even uninstalled the program again, reinstalled it, and GCAClearAppData.exe still isn't doing anything.

When I had this problem before I had to manually remove a file, I think an ini file. I looked for the info on this site, but it looks like that discussion has been removed.

Anyone know what ini files I can safely remove?

[Alden Loveshade]

I just removed gcaaliaslist.ini and Gcalinks.ini and now GCA 4 won't load. Oops. But I'll reinstall the program now and see if that does it.

I reran gca4setup.exe without uninstalling the program. Same problem, red Ps where they shouldn't be.

I uninstalled GURPS Character Assistant 4 (note I've been using the Automatic setting to remove the program, which may of course be leaving some stuff behind. I don't want to do Custom because I'm not sure what's safe to remove and what isn't).

I reran gca4setup.exe. The last character I had loaded before was listed in the history, which of course means something wasn't removed when I did that uninstall using the Automatic setting.

I then closed GCA 4, and guessing removed gcaaliaslist.ini. I loaded a character (which was still listed in the history of characters I'd opened), and still had the red Ps.

I then removed gcalinks.ini. The program wouldn't load.

So anyone got a solution?

[tmedwards]

You're doing it wrong. There's nothing in GCA's program directory that you want to be deleting. Certainly not gcaaliaslist.ini and gcalinks.ini, which are, respectively, a list of GDF filename changes and URLs used internally by GCA.

The INI that Bruno was referring to is the gca.ini, which is located within your user application data directory. See the GCA4 FAQ entry here for more details on where it is and how to remove it – although, Bruno already mentioned one method. I have no idea if this will solve your problem, I'd tend to doubt it, but it's what you've been looking for at least.

[tmedwards]

And, since I've popped off about the INI, I might as well ask the questions that just occurred to me.

Originally Posted by Alden_Loveshade

This has happened to me each time I install a GCA4 update: my mage characters end up with red Ps (for missing prerequisite) on several of their spells that they have prerequisites for. If I do the standard Resynchronize (with just the boxes on the left checked), it fixes some of them. But I then have to do it again and sometimes again before I get rid of them. I can also do it with Recalculate Everything, which takes a while on detailed characters.

I can finally get rid of the red Ps. Then the next time I load the character, they're back again.

1. Are you re-saving the characters in question after getting all of the prerequisite warning quashed?

2. How old are these characters? I ask because various magic systems in the official GDFs have been virtually completely rewritten more than once, so if you've done partial resynchronizes in the past and saved the characters they may be in the unenviable position of having traits from different versions of the magic systems. Eric could say better than I which areas would require a resynchronize to bring them fully up to date with the last rewrite of the magic systems, but I believe that magic system Attributes, Advantages, and Spells have all had work done at one point or another – a resynchronize with the default settings includes none of these. You might try saving one of the characters under a new filename and then performing a more intensive resynchronize on that copy, then mess around with the copy for a while to see if the resynchronize solved any of its prerequisite issues – if so, yay, if not, it was only a copy and nothing is lost.

[Alden Loveshade]

Originally Posted by tmedwards

You're doing it wrong.

I rather guessed that by the fact it didn't work.

Originally Posted by tmedwards

The INI that Bruno was referring to is the gca.ini, which is located within your user application data directory. See the GCA4 FAQ entry here for more details on where it is and how to remove it – although, Bruno already mentioned one method. I have no idea if this will solve your problem, I'd tend to doubt it, but it's what you've been looking for at least.

Yes, that's the INI file, thanks.

Unfortunately, I don't even have the folder that those instructions say it should be in. So I searched my entire hard drive for gca.ini. I found it in a backup folder but only in a backup folder. Not wanting to delete it, I simply changed the name of the file and noted the name. When I then tried to load GCA4, it wouldn't run. I got:

The following error was encountered in procedure 'frmSplash:CreateGCALinksLabel:

9: Subscript out of range

I tried this more than once and got the same thing.

So I uninstalled and then reinstalled the program. I loaded a character, and there were the red Ps again.

[Alden Loveshade]

Originally Posted by tmedwards

And, since I've popped off about the INI, I might as well ask the questions that just occurred to me.

1. Are you re-saving the characters in question after getting all of the prerequisite warning quashed?

I tried opening the character without saving, re-saving after getting rid of the red Ps, saving the character under a new name. Each time I got the red prerequisite warnings again.

Originally Posted by tmedwards

2. How old are these characters? I ask because various magic systems in the official GDFs have been virtually completely rewritten more than once, so if you've done partial resynchronizes in the past and saved the characters they may be in the unenviable position of having traits from different versions of the magic systems. Eric could say better than I which areas would require a resynchronize to bring them fully up to date with the last rewrite of the magic systems, but I believe that magic system Attributes, Advantages, and Spells have all had work done at one point or another – a resynchronize with the default settings includes none of these. You might try saving one of the characters under a new filename and then performing a more intensive resynchronize on that copy, then mess around with the copy for a while to see if the resynchronize solved any of its prerequisite issues – if so, yay, if not, it was only a copy and nothing is lost.

I tried that with a copy, and got red Ps.

I just made an entirely new mage character. It had no red Ps. I closed it and right after that opened it. Red Ps.

ADDITION: I sometimes use the program from a portable/external hard drive as my main computer is a desktop. With that drive connected to my computer, I just reinstalled it there and tried calling up a character saved my main hard drive. Red Ps. I then tried calling up a copy of that character saved in my external drive. Red Ps.

[ericbsmith]

There does appear to be an issue with spell prerequisite checking when you load an existing character. Some spells just get flagged with a red P for no apparent reason.

Worse, the red P doesn't go away when you use Needs -> Check All. However, if go to Needs -> Spells -> Check All it will clear the red P's... until you save then reload the character.

[Armin]

Hi, Alden (and anyone else affected),

I'm sorry you went through so much effort for this.

As Eric says, there does appear to be an issue. I'm not sure where it got introduced, but I think we got a fix in for the next patch, which I hope will be soon.

Armin