I think your doing it wrong. You need both Export() and Topic() to have communication between servers. Also look into Import() for transferring data. If your having trouble setting this up you should move this post to the "How-To" section.

Chris is right, you cannot send information to a BYOND world unless it is being functionally hosted. On top of that, Topic() currently has such a broken success rate, that it is not nearly reliable enough to be considered for anything that is even remotely important, like managing player save files.

Why not export to a PHP file and store the ip port in MySQL? There is a way In PHP to export back to the client which was posted on the forums... I think I still have it on my laptop... You can easily store the players info in a MySQL table.... You can use this system on any free host really...

@A.T.H.K - There's usually always a workaround to the issues we have with BYOND (i.e pixel movement before native), but I personally don't like to use them, especially since BYOND's major redeeming factor is the networking, giving us a easy online multiplayer environment, I don't think just because i'd like to make something a little more sophisticated that I should not be able to rely on the built in functions.

@Falacy - I've been using it, but I don't have the larger player counts as yet, if it really becomes that bad, added to being unable to have a safe single player [without much workaround], meh... The future is bleak here.

Chris Gayle wrote:

A challenge faced with making single player games is the integrity of the save files that when using dream maker we are forced to store on the user's computer. If they could communicate with a central server it would be great, this way they can play locally, taking advantage of everything their computer has to offer and also provide security and probably additional functionality as a game experience can be built to be a network of worlds.

Unless they're not connected to the internet while they're playing the game. You can find safe ways to store data on the client's computer. It's a much better solution and it's something you can implement.

Falacy wrote:

On top of that, Topic() currently has such a broken success rate, that it is not nearly reliable enough to be considered for anything that is even remotely important, like managing player save files.

You can build a reliable protocol on top of an unreliable one. All messages sent between computers are unreliable.

Forum_account wrote:

You can find safe ways to store data on the client's computer. It's a much better solution and it's something you can implement.

Agreed. You can ascii2text(), text2ascii(), and even hash it. For more security measures you can also add some random values in the data and remove them when loading.

Chris Gayle wrote:

@A.T.H.K - You linked back to this post :S

@Forum_account - Safe ways such as? I'm open to suggestions in that regard. Either way that would be great but what if I want saves to migrate from multiplayer to single player? and visa versa.

Use the client.Import() and Export() procs. The server can access the savefile stored on the client so the player can easily transition from server to server or play offline and always use the same saved data. The only drawback is that you can't easily switch computers (you'd have to move the savefile manually).

Falacy wrote:

Forum_account wrote:

You can build a reliable protocol on top of an unreliable one. All messages sent between computers are unreliable.

Hardly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acknowledgement_(data_networks)

If one server needs to send a message to another, have it try sending the message once per second until it receives an acknowledgement. The receiving server sends an acknowledgement every time it receives the message. With a 50% chance of messages being received it'll take, on average, four tries for the message to get through and for the sender to receive confirmation that it was received.

Use the client.Import() and Export() procs.

Using these are flunky, since you can't properly save a player when they logout. That same issue seems like it might effect this entire concept.

Games don't have to save when the player logs out. Most BYOND games do work that way so people may think that's how it has to be done, but you can save a player's data at any time.

Regardless, you shouldn't be making a single player game in the first place!

I don't think it's about making single player games, but making it so a person can use the same saved data whether they're playing on someone else's server or running the game locally. When you host a game yourself it starts out as a single player game.

What do exactly want, Server to server communication? Then for that use world.Export() in the client, if you want Client to server and wise connection in the client you do world.Topic() and in the Topic() of the server you do "return" + things to be returned.

I've made an example in your thread.

MYSQL can easily do this ...

You can store anything in a MYSQL table from saves to guilds to text to numbers ....

I linked you back to my post for a reason ..

If the user is offline you can easily save it locally hash it protect it as much as you wish then when they are online update the database with what they have done...