[General] Trigger editor and percent sign

[Prometheus3375]

I created a function to cast doubles to integers in Lua. Here is the function:

function cast_number(n)
    local s_e_m1, m2 = string.unpack('>I4I4', string.pack('>d', n))  -- two times I4 because WC3 supports only 4-byte integers
    return s_e_m1 >> 31, string.format('%03x', s_e_m1 >> 20 & 0x7ff), string.format('%05x%08x', s_e_m1 & 0xfffff, m2)
end

In Lua console function works as expected. Although, in WC3 the function returns complete garbage. I exported script using the editor and got this:

function cast_number(n)
    local s_e_m1, m2 = string.unpack('>I4I4', string.pack('>d', n))
    return s_e_m1 >> 31, string.format('00a', s_e_m1 >> 20 & 0x7ff), string.format('b1c26af000000020', s_e_m1 & 0xfffff, m2)
end

Why my formatted strings got replaced with some garbage?

 

[Dr Super Good]

Possibly the script compiler is interpreting it with a different meaning. I recall % having a special meaning in tooltips? You might need an escape sequence for it.

 

[Prometheus3375]

I read similar threads, there are some problems with % in trigger editor. You need to duplicate it (in string literals at least).

The only special meaning of % connected with tooltips is <rawcode,filedcode,%>. Such "code" in tooltips takes value of field fieldcode from rawcode and multiplies it by 100. But I do not think that these somehow influence on Trigger Editor.

 

[Luashine]

I've literally just encountered this myself. This makes any meaningful usage of string.format in Lua impossible, because it crashes WorldEdit upon map save:

function dummy()
    print("%s") -- crashes on save
end

Workaround:

function dummy()
    print("\37s") -- works fine
end

 

[Prometheus3375]

@Luashine just duplicate %, i. e., write print('%%') instead of print('%'). I do not why there are such problems. Probably a Trigger Editor parser bug.

 

[Luashine]

@Prometheus3375 even if double percent causes it to pass correctly through WE, that still means it is no longer the equivalent pure Lua code:

print(string.format("%%s", "Hello"))
print(string.format("%s", "Hello"))
-- Output:
%s
Hello

I'd not recommend using it (%%), even if it worked. Instead only the \37 escape sequence :/

 

[Prometheus3375]

@Luashine when you save map, Trigger Editor converts all double percents to a single one. Type inside it print(string.format("%%s", "Hello")) then open terrain editor File -> Export Script -> select where to save the file. Open it, and you will see that all %% are %.

And that's why it is better to use external code editors and some builders. When you add .lua file to map manually, you do not need to double persents, this is required only for code inside Trigger Editor.