A mild suggestion to all modders

[Celedhring]

If you update frequently, please tag the end of the file name before the .rar and .7z extension with the version number so it shows up in mod managers.  Seeing quite a few downloaded mod files that make it hard to figure out if they're the latest version or not without a version number.

To those who already do that..THANK YOU! 

 

[davisev5225]

If it bothers you that much, you can just easily do it yourself when you download it.  ?

[Celedhring]

On 8/16/2022 at 12:05 PM, davisev5225 said:

If it bothers you that much, you can just easily do it yourself when you download it.  ?

Sigh.  Reading is fundamental.  If you download a mod that says "Mod.zip"  You have no way of knowing what version it is even after downloading it.  Then much later after a long period of not updating, you go back to the site and try to "update it"   Then you download it again even though it has a changelog, it still shows up as "Mod.zip"  Without working to find out by looking at it's file size, or hell, unzipping the whole thing to see the dates of what files were updated then check the changelog (if there's one) whether or not it's posted on the site or not and see what it's version number. 

It's much more simpler for modders to add a version number AFTER the file name so players know exactly what version they see in their mod manager. 
 

[Mr. Otaku]

I get what you mean and as a whole i agree, but aren't mod versions usually written in the actual page title even if the file you're downloading doesn't have it? I've seen that to be the case quite often so when i see a mod file with no version number in it's name i just copy the version listed on the title and paste it into the file name as a suffix. Now, if the uploader didn't list the version anywhere on the page that would be a big problem but in general that's very rare from what i've seen. In such a case i would look at the date of the file i previously downloaded and then check the updated date on the mod download page to see if the file there is newer or not.

[Hex Bolt]

13 minutes ago, Mr. Otaku said:

I get what you mean and as a whole i agree, but aren't mod versions usually written in the actual page title even if the file you're downloading doesn't have it? I've seen that to be the case quite often so when i see a mod file with no version number in it's name i just copy the version listed on the title and paste it into the file name as a suffix.

You seem to be supporting Celedhring's suggestion with this response, since every player who downloads the mod would have to do this, versus the mod author doing it once.  Given the time that a mod author already must take to produce & package a mod, adding a suffix to the file name is a very minor thing.  It's a small act of kindness & consideration toward the players who download your mod.  Can anyone be against kindness?  I'm surprised by the responses here to this reasonable suggestion.

[Mr. Otaku]

4 minutes ago, HexBolt8 said:

You seem to be supporting Celedhring's suggestion with this response, since every player who downloads the mod would have to do this, versus the mod author doing it once.  Given the time that a mod author already must take to produce & package a mod, adding a suffix to the file name is a very minor thing.  It's a small act of kindness & consideration toward the players who download your mod.  Can anyone be against kindness?  I'm surprised by the responses here to this reasonable suggestion.

 

Well i did say that i get what they mean and that i agree as a whole, so yes, i am supporting what they said lol. I was just saying what i do when a mod author doesn't bother to put the version numbers on the file names.

[RohZima]

It's horrible when you are looking through a mod list in NMM or whichever and there is a file called "Main File" lol. Then of course, there is no readme either and an obscure plugin name. But that's modding. There is nothing wrong with asking for it, though.

[27X]

3 hours ago, Celedhring said:

Sigh.  Reading is fundamental.  If you download a mod that says "Mod.zip"  You have no way of knowing what version it is even after downloading it.  Then much later after a long period of not updating, you go back to the site and try to "update it"   Then you download it again even though it has a changelog, it still shows up as "Mod.zip"  Without working to find out by looking at it's file size, or hell, unzipping the whole thing to see the dates of what files were updated then check the changelog (if there's one) whether or not it's posted on the site or not and see what it's version number. 

It's much more simpler for modders to add a version number AFTER the file name so players know exactly what version they see in their mod manager. 
 

 

Except that part where you sort by date modified and the newest one shows up first and then you add the date to it.

Edited August 18, 2022 by 27X

[Grey Cloud]

59 minutes ago, 27X said:

Except that part where you sort by date modified and the newest one shows up first and then you add the date to it.

Except the part where that is now three steps:

1. Sort by date modified.

2. Edit file name.

3. Sort by whatever order you had prior to step 1.

 

--------------------------

 

My biggest annoyance is when the archive has a different name than the mod which has a different name than the esp.

Then there is the Sex Lab, Sex-Lab, Sexlab, SL, etc. chaos.

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by Grey Cloud

[axz2]

On 8/16/2022 at 12:44 AM, Celedhring said:

If you update frequently, please tag the end of the file name before the .rar and .7z extension with the version number so it shows up in mod managers.  Seeing quite a few downloaded mod files that make it hard to figure out if they're the latest version or not without a version number.

To those who already do that..THANK YOU! 

 

 

Also it would be nice if "Mod X" (the mod your downloading" has a patch for mod Y in the page, the patch is called something like "Mod X - Patch for Mod Y", rather than just "Patch for Mod Y".   Of course its not hard to do that yourself after downloading the patch.

[davisev5225]

11 hours ago, Celedhring said:

Sigh.  Reading is fundamental.  If you download a mod that says "Mod.zip"  You have no way of knowing what version it is even after downloading it.  Then much later after a long period of not updating, you go back to the site and try to "update it"   Then you download it again even though it has a changelog, it still shows up as "Mod.zip"  Without working to find out by looking at it's file size, or hell, unzipping the whole thing to see the dates of what files were updated then check the changelog (if there's one) whether or not it's posted on the site or not and see what it's version number. 

It's much more simpler for modders to add a version number AFTER the file name so players know exactly what version they see in their mod manager. 
 

 

I did read.  I also don't care.

 

The vast majority of mod pages include some sort of versioning information that you can easily apply to the downloaded file.  Lacking that, you can also append the date you downloaded it ("ModX.2022-08-18.zip").  Mod Organizer even does this date system for any mod that doesn't have a version number included in the meta.ini file (or that doesn't even have a meta.ini file).

 

This is a "you" problem, not a mod author problem.  With all the multitude of things one has to do to mod games (especially Bethesda games...), you're complaining about what is by and far the easiest thing to manage?  Give me a break.

[Celedhring]

On 8/18/2022 at 11:19 AM, davisev5225 said:

 

I did read.  I also don't care.

 

The vast majority of mod pages include some sort of versioning information that you can easily apply to the downloaded file.  Lacking that, you can also append the date you downloaded it ("ModX.2022-08-18.zip").  Mod Organizer even does this date system for any mod that doesn't have a version number included in the meta.ini file (or that doesn't even have a meta.ini file).

 

This is a "you" problem, not a mod author problem.  With all the multitude of things one has to do to mod games (especially Bethesda games...), you're complaining about what is by and far the easiest thing to manage?  Give me a break.

It's a QoL thing.  If you feel it's incumbent on all the downloaders - as someone else pointed out earlier in the thread - to update the file to the necessary file number, it's simpler for the modder him or herself to add the version number to the file itself then that makes it simpler downstream for the downloaders.   And as the poster pointed out it doesn't take much time for the modder to do that.     And that IS the easiest thing to manage - right at the source. 

 

[davisev5225]

2 hours ago, Celedhring said:

It's a QoL thing.  If you feel it's incumbent on all the downloaders - as someone else pointed out earlier in the thread - to update the file to the necessary file number, it's simpler for the modder him or herself to add the version number to the file itself then that makes it simpler downstream for the downloaders.   And as the poster pointed out it doesn't take much time for the modder to do that.     And that IS the easiest thing to manage - right at the source. 

 

 

 

[Vader666]

Do things like wabbajack need the file name to stay the same ?

To me that would be the only valid reason to not include version numbers in file names.

[DoctaSax]

It's a reasonable enough request, but people are obviously gonna do what they want anyway.

[sila]

On 8/18/2022 at 4:15 AM, RohZima said:

It's horrible when you are looking through a mod list in NMM or whichever and there is a file called "Main File" lol. Then of course, there is no readme either and an obscure plugin name. But that's modding. There is nothing wrong with asking for it, though.

This really grinds my gears. If I ever add a mod and see the file is going to be called that I always make sure to add a note about what the mod is before I forget.

 

It's really annoying to have obscure mod files and have to figure out what it is later.

[LongDukDong]

19 hours ago, Vader666 said:

Do things like wabbajack need the file name to stay the same ?

In some cases, yes.  For various mods, the actual plugin file must retain the same name.  One such example would be LoversSlaveTrader.esp which allows the slave trade to exist within OBLIVION.  Other mods are dependent upon the mod, so this is an absolute necessity.

 

As towards the installation/download file that may be a compressed .zip, .rar. 7z or other like archived file... no. The filename of the compressed file holding the contents may be whatever it will.  Towards having the version number within the archive filename, it truly is up to the uploader. For even the upload for Lovers with PK, with the various iterations that has existed, didn't have any version in their filename until version 1.6... others having filenames such as "Lovers with PK Complete Package" (of which I also have)... and that was by way of Ashal and her team.

 

 

On 8/18/2022 at 4:15 AM, RohZima said:

It's horrible when you are looking through a mod list in NMM or whichever and there is a file called "Main File" lol. Then of course, there is no readme either and an obscure plugin name. But that's modding. There is nothing wrong with asking for it, though.

To ME... that's just plain laziness.  Admittedly, I do not use version numbers in my .zip files... But I only keep ONE VERSION uploaded at any time except in special circumstances.  AND I at least have a NAME attached to it rather than MOD.Zip or MAIN FILE.zip.   For LoversCreatures 2.5, I have LC25 Main.zip... with LC25 Textures and so on.  It HAS LC25 IN THE EFFIN' FILENAME!!!!!   *sigh*

 

And yeah, readme files with the version number is certainly something that, while not necessary, is recommended.  When I dealt with programming courses, it was always taught that proper documentation for a program was absolutely necessary.  And the plugins that I've written include a callable Hook where an outside mod could theoretically acquire the version number of my mod(s).  It's IN the mods.

 

But making it manditory that the zip, rar, or whatever actual compressed file include the version number, that will never fly with all the modders present that don't already.  They could just assume host their content elsewhere without such stringencies applied to them.

 

[davisev5225]

40 minutes ago, LongDukDong said:

But making it manditory that the zip, rar, or whatever actual compressed file include the version number, that will never fly with all the modders present that don't already.  They could just assume host their content elsewhere without such stringencies applied to them.

 

 

Or, to put it another way, you'll never force people to use your own particular flavor of versioning.  People will track it however they feel is best, so each downloader should do likewise - track the downloaded files however they (the downloader) feel is best for them.

[Grey Cloud]

A related pet peeve of mine is the failure to use 7zip.

1. 7zip's default compression results in a smaller archive than winrar and zip. This helps those with slow net connections and limited storage space.

2. With 7zip it is possible to drag and drop files into the archive without having to de- and re-compress it.

[Pamatronic]

On 8/18/2022 at 10:15 AM, RohZima said:

It's horrible when you are looking through a mod list in NMM

Yeah, NMM is absolutely obsolete for a reason.

[davisev5225]

17 hours ago, Grey Cloud said:

A related pet peeve of mine is the failure to use 7zip.

1. 7zip's default compression results in a smaller archive than winrar and zip. This helps those with slow net connections and limited storage space.

2. With 7zip it is possible to drag and drop files into the archive without having to de- and re-compress it.

 

A lot of people don't realize 7zip exists.  It suffers from being 3rd in a "two horse" race (zip vs rar).  I actually quite like it, and frequently use it for anything that isn't a .zip.

[Someone92]

That's one thing I like about Nexus.

Files automatically get the mod number and version number added as a suffix.

[RohZima]

15 hours ago, Pamatronic said:

Yeah, NMM is absolutely obsolete for a reason.

 

I wouldn't say it's obsolete. It's still getting regular updates, so people must still be using it. I find it to be quite powerful; how you can choose which mod overwrites which by file or folder or mod, for instance.

[Dwnld]

 

IMO there are at least three ways to fail at file naming. Here are some examples.

 

Typing only the "version" of the mod:

1k Textures-1394-1-0.rar

All in one-32444-2-1582543914.zip

 

Quality of life thing but while some of them does include mod name but you can't find them easily by using the first letter:

Opt. 1 - Wider MCM Menu for SkyUI-22825-1-2-1572528130.zip

Patch - True Storms 1.02-12125-TS1-02.zip
 

And then the ones where they include both but have been shortened to death so if you are lucky, Google tells you what they are:

SE v4.91-4963-4-91.7z

XxA_PxX SSE-5077-2-12.7z

 

 

IMO, the best way to name is:

Caliente's Beautiful Bodies Enhancer - v1.6.1-198-1-6-1-1597588589.7z

Milk-Mod-Economy-Assets-SE-2019-06-04.7z (this one is from LL, well done)

 

There are two cases where file naming matters most: 1. you have a fresh install of a mod manager so it lists the files as they are named, or 2. you are browsing the files using Windows Explorer. I really wish every modder would use above method to name their files but I guess they don't care.

 

[belegost]

22 hours ago, Grey Cloud said:

A related pet peeve of mine is the failure to use 7zip.

 

I miss the days of .arj's glory!