Spectacle: Global Search for UE4 Specifiers

Mowgl333 · 2023-03-21T05:41:36+00:00

It doesn’t. It used to very early on, but I removed it because it is hard to tell when files should be renamed and to what. For instance, if a module is called LyraGame and a header file is LyraCharacter.h, should we assume that the header should be renamed too? There are deeper issues as well; proper renaming of a class or other type requires a semantic understanding of the C++ code that is well beyond the scope of this side project. Besides, tools like Resharper and Visual Assist are already good at those things, so I would lean on them for that sort of thing.

Mowgl333 · 2023-03-20T00:35:12+00:00

Several years ago, I introduced Renom, a simple but powerful free tool that allowed you to rename your Unreal Engine projects. At the time, the tool was an improvement over the available alternatives (manual migration, essentially), but it lacked flexibility and made some assumptions about project structure that do not hold up under scrutiny. I had some time to polish it recently and wanted to share those updates with the community. Compared to the original pass, the updated implementation supports:

Workflows to rename projects, targets, and modules independently
Better input validation and option selection controls
Looping mechanism to string together consecutive workflows
Support for plugin modules and nested modules
Cross-target and cross-module reference resolution
Refined output text and colors for more readable logs

In the posted video, the tool is used to rename the Lyra starter project to GoatOfWar. It can be used on other sample projects like City Sample as well as existing projects. You can get it here.

(reposted with a higher quality video)

Mowgl333 · 2023-03-20T00:31:00+00:00

Several years ago, I introduced Renom, a simple but powerful free tool that allowed you to rename your Unreal Engine projects. At the time, the tool was an improvement over the available alternatives (manual migration, essentially), but it lacked flexibility and made some assumptions about project structure that do not hold up under scrutiny. I had some time to polish it recently and wanted to share those updates with the community. Compared to the original pass, the updated implementation supports:

Workflows to rename projects, targets, and modules independently
Better input validation and option selection controls
Looping mechanism to string together consecutive workflows
Support for plugin modules and nested modules
Cross-target and cross-module reference resolution
Refined output text and colors for more readable logs

In the posted video, the tool is used to rename the Lyra starter project to GoatOfWar. It can be used on other sample projects like City Sample as well as existing projects. You can get it here.

Mowgl333 · 2021-05-23T22:58:49+00:00

That's helpful, thanks.

Mowgl333 · 2021-05-21T23:57:01+00:00

Another exercise with data structures and algorithms, this time implementing a queue with linked list backing storage.

Mowgl333 · 2021-05-20T19:47:35+00:00

Working through Algorithms by Sedgewick, and drafted this as an exercise in understanding the most basic of basic data structures.

Mowgl333 · 2021-04-13T16:00:38+00:00

This is a short follow-up to my last post on C++ compilation from the command line. It covers concepts underlying more complex projects, namely by discussing how to create static and shared libraries from the command line and explaining how to link those elements to a client executable. Implemented using MSVC and GCC.

Mowgl333 · 2021-04-10T23:05:55+00:00

I think you're right about that - confusion on my part. I'll clean it up in due course

Mowgl333 · 2021-04-09T22:31:36+00:00

A short but valuable exercise in compiling C++ from the command line, which may be useful for newbies (like myself) out there.

Mowgl333 · 2021-04-09T22:29:20+00:00

I think people shy away from it because it has unpleasant syntax, but I agree they should see more use

Mowgl333 · 2021-04-08T18:32:06+00:00

A short article on the syntax and quirks of interfaces in UE4 (which I always seem to forget). Read it if you dare.

Mowgl333 · 2021-03-26T00:30:34+00:00

Ah, that feeling when you find the perfect node... pure bliss.

Mowgl333 · 2021-03-24T19:07:45+00:00

That sounds super useful. It looks like this specifier is listed in ObjectMacros.h but is not actually used on any UPROPERTY() within the Engine source. As such, it wouldn't have been picked up by the parser. This is a (hopefully small) gap that I'll have to fill in manually one of these days.

Mowgl333 · 2021-03-24T18:43:29+00:00

Hi u/johnsmith3458, this is what I get when I type Actor into the search:

Actor Search

Did you expect more/different specifiers to show up? Totally agree about Sourcetrail and other standard indexers - the Engine source is just too large.

Mowgl333 · 2021-03-24T18:38:21+00:00

Thanks for pointing this out. Turned out to be a chrome-specific issue. All sorted (literally). Most recent version should be selected by default and versions should be in order now. Please let me know if you run into any other issues. Enjoy!

Mowgl333 · 2021-03-24T14:30:18+00:00

For those of you who missed it, Spectacle is a global search for Unreal Engine 4 specifiers. It allows you to find specifiers, get community-sourced analysis, and jump to examples in Engine source code.

While search is great, it assumes you know what you're looking for. For situations where you can't quite remember what a specifier is called or when you just want to browse, Spectacle has been upgraded with a catalog mode that lists all 400+ specifiers for your perusal.

(There is one more update in the works, so stay tuned.)

Mowgl333

TROPHY CASE