How do I record a demo in Zdoom?

Thanks in advance.

Read this post. Most ports are pretty similar with respect to what you need to put into the command line to record a demo.

I read all that already, by command line you mean DOS correct? I didn't know that would work for Zdoom also.

A command prompt of one sort or another. I generally use Start button - Run... and put it in there*. In that case you need to give a path too (e.g. c:\doom2\eternity -file av.wad -warp 01 -skill 5 -record an01-xxx for the example I gave in the ATTN thread).

* Actually that's not quite true - I normally use a batch file when recording, as this saves time if you're going to make a large number of attempts at a short demo, but let's not complicate things. :)

Could you post that batch file ?
Also, I always wonder if it´s possible to resume recording ingame, for example when recording a map with a very hard start, if I die then I must exit and start again ?

gravitar said:

Also, I always wonder if it´s possible to resume recording ingame, for example when recording a map with a very hard start, if I die then I must exit and start again ?

Not in ZDoom. You'll have to use Andrey's modified PrBoom for that. It is compatible with the original executable, Boom, and MBF.

http://www.doomworld.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=31839

can you create demos from saved games like Prboom?

and why do people put strings of numbers in their demo filenames? I didn't see this mentioned.

You may find it convenient to make a small batch file to assist with the process of recording demos. Typically, this batch file would include one line to delete the previous attempt and a second line to record the new one (be sure to rename any attempts you want to keep before running the batch file again!), though there are more elaborate possibilities.

That´s why I asked Grazza to post the batch file, I have no clue what to write in there.
Anyway thx for replying.

EDIT:
@Xanthier: there´s a naming convention for demos to make them easier to identify, for example s2201048.zip would be Scythe2 map 20 in 10 min 48 sec.

gravitar said:

Could you post that batch file ?

Well, it depends what I'm recording, but here is a typical one:

del kp13-xxx.lmp
glboom -file ksutra.wad -warp 13 -skill 4 -record kp13-xxx

Nothing complicated: just one line to delete the previous attempt, and one line to record the new attempt (I don't put a complevel in this, as it is in my cfg file). Obviously, if I wanted to keep the previous attempt, I'd rename it before running the batch file again. :)

When using doom2.exe, I use a slightly different batch file, such as:

novert
doom2 -nosound -file ksutra.wad -warp 10 -skill 5 -record kn10-00x

No need to have a line to delete the previous attempt, since doom2.exe will overwrite it, but there is a line to load the TSR program to disable vertical mouse sensitivity.

And, um, yeah, the x's are just in the filenames as placeholders for the numbers that will go in there if the attempt turns out to be a keeper. Obviously you don't know what the time will be before you've recorded it.

Xanthier: I don't know of any way to use joining with Zdoom.

Note that with standard PrBoom, recording from a savegame only works with -complevel -1. And remember that using saves or joining makes it a TAS demo, so if you release such a demo, make it very clear in the textfile exactly how it was recorded.

Xanthier said:

can you create demos from saved games like Prboom?

and why do people put strings of numbers in their demo filenames? I didn't see this mentioned.

I believe the strings of numbers are the time the level took to run or to kill everything. At least that's what I've seen.

Thanks for that reply but I still can´t figure out: do you have to quit the game and run the batch again if you screw up an attempt ?

Yes, you quit the program and then try again by running the batch file.

BTW, to save a bit of time in Prboom, I have the "Y" key bound to "Quit", so I can leave the program with a quick double press on "Y".

Another way to save a little bit of time between attempts is to have a shortcut to the batch file in the middle of your desktop, rather than having to go to the "Run..." line. I don't normally do that though - the last time was when I was trying to do ks25-001 - when each attempt takes less than two seconds, any delay between them can become irritating.

That makes me really appreciate all the super hard demos, must be quite tedious to start-quit all the time.

A good demo does not use any restarts unless they are TAS demos.

The best demos used zero restarts.

I don't use a batch file. My method recording with prboom 2.2.4 is ...

before session:
- open prboom folder (files are sorted by date), it's opened the whole session
- open start/run (it's attached to middle mouse button) and enter command line like
c:\spiele\prboom\prboom -file hr2final -warp 32 -skill 4 -fast -complevel 0 -record h232xxxx

recording:
1. click middle mouse button and press 'enter'
2. play doom
3. press 'esc', 'arrow up', 'enter', 'y', 'enter' within a second (the last 'enter' is for closing the 'demo recorded' window just when it appears)
4. if bad attempt, click on h232xxx.lmp file in the prboom folder and 'del', 'enter'
5. go to 1

Grazza said:

BTW, to save a bit of time in Prboom, I have the "Y" key bound to "Quit", so I can leave the program with a quick double press on "Y".

Thx, I'll try that :)

Angus Thermopyle said:

(the last 'enter' is for closing the 'demo recorded' window just when it appears)

That dialogue is removed in Budko's version - one of a number of reasons why I prefer it.

Again, thanks Angus for the explanation.

Angus Thermopyle said:

4. if bad attempt, click on h232xxx.lmp file in the prboom folder and 'del', 'enter'

I notice that the latest version of Budko's Prboom (226_18 - new today) provides the option of overwriting an existing demo. The relevant line in the cfg is:

demo_overwriteexisting        1