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Protos' Programming Logs - Episode 1
Development Conversations

Protos' Programming Logs - Episode 1

Protos · July 23Jul 23

Problem Identification And Solutions to Many Interdependent Architectural Issues With the program just being in its infancy, we are dealing with many architectural, design and build system issues. We're using the language's (C++) most practiced features and components. For example, we are using CMake as the build tool for the project as I've used other software which are game servers and have proven CMake to be industry standard. There are various features of CMake, GCC, Clang which we use to en
- 0 replies
- 221 views
Protos

July 23Jul 23

Protos

July 23Jul 23
Our Official Technical Documentation for the Horizon Emulator.
Community General News & Reports

Our Official Technical Documentation for the Horizon Emulator.

Protos · March 20Mar 20

Hey all, Today we've added a new sub-domain under our roof. It is for the official Technical Documentation of Horizon. The files are configured using doxygen. Doxygen is a great tool for generating C++ documentation and we've added some features and tweaked the settings a lot for - Better website readability with JS and Graph Images. Generated Graphs for hierarchical view of the project structures. Generated Call and Caller Graphs for over 8000 functions in the specification. PHP powered (ser
- 0 replies
- 215 views
Protos

March 20Mar 20

Protos

March 20Mar 20
Forum updated to v5.0.3
Website & Project Hosting Reports

Forum updated to v5.0.3

Protos · March 19Mar 19

Updated our forum version 5.0.0 to 5.0.3. Upgrade was successful and below are the changes made to the forum codebase. #3871: Disable extensions for recovery mode #3802: Badges in ACP tables were wrapping #3824: Fix issue where guest comments hang instead of showing a "pending approval" message #3843: Removed backgrounds, backdrops and conditionally hid captions from Images Widget #3865: Force Account Settings page to use any predefined FURLs #3883: Fix exception when viewing Blog RSS feeds #38
- 0 replies
- 232 views
Protos

March 19Mar 19

Protos

March 19Mar 19
Introducing The Horizon Code Review Committees
Community General News & Reports

Introducing The Horizon Code Review Committees

Protos · March 18Mar 18

Hey everyone, As we push forward and prepare for the first release of Horizon, it is crucial for us to protect and maintain several rules and strict guidelines shaping the code written in the software. Software can't be written without rules and impositions which create a generic and obedient command over the software and its structure. We cannot disobey the logic followed when the application of concepts and philosophies in our software are imposed, and we cannot create transgression when build
- 0 replies
- 270 views
Protos

March 18Mar 18

Protos

March 18Mar 18
Response time of Horizon
Horizon Vs rAthena Vs Hercules

Response time of Horizon

Protos · March 15Mar 15

So today I attempted to create a project which logged the sent and received times of the walking packet from an openkore client. By modifying the openkore client, I timed the packet sending and receiving functions to mark the time in which the emulator could perform a quick calculation (in this example the walking algorithm) and send back a response to the client. By making the character move on the client I achieved multiple responses and ergo the average response time it took for the emulator
- 0 replies
- 250 views
Protos

March 15Mar 15

Protos

March 15Mar 15

Protos' Programming Logs - Episode 1

Problem Identification And Solutions to Many Interdependent Architectural Issues
With the program just being in its infancy, we are dealing with many architectural, design and build system issues. We're using the language's (C++) most practiced features and components. For example, we are using CMake as the build tool for the project as I've used other software which are game servers and have proven CMake to be industry standard. There are various features of CMake, GCC, Clang which we use to ensure that the software turns out to be of high quality.
CMake provides CTest which is its Test Driver Program. Currently and actually throughout the software's lifetime we're writing tests to ensure that 99% of all written code is covered in unit tests so that we close the gap between broken and working code. We don't want any code to go unnoticed and do something that we're not aware of or have not intended. Writing unit tests are the way to achieve this and CMake is a great tool along with boost's unit testing component we accomplish what we desire from it.
Right now, we're in the middle of getting things to work together, writing systems which are bridging the divide between software features and stability testing components. For example, we've just encountered issues with TSAN failing all tests which use threads because it was paired with gcov and coverage testing suites which created multiple additional functions or methods that compromised the software's safety and resulted in false positive thread race conditions. We've learnt to isolate the problems that are causing these issues and maintain a codebase which is aware of them and restrict the use of its software to the conditions that provide a fully useable and problematically corrected delivery ecosystem.
We want to elaborate on this and ensure that all measures of making software more stable help in also creating a correct and working ecosystem for its continuous integration and delivery. With the problems encountered in CI/CD environments we are able to solve many of the Architectural flaws that cannot be identified by just writing it. We allow the software to go through rigorous testing and validation before it alarms us of its flaws and incapabilities. These flaws shape the major architectural problems within the software itself and the external software ecosystem which help in building it. By identifying these problems we learn to create its environment and "biome" which help in its own building.
For example, in four of the test cases the ASIO / networking driver failed to connect to the MySQL machine due to an unidentified miscorrection in the configuration. Due to this only some of the test cases were failing. I failed to identify it because not all were failing, only some. After creating a new command for the connection parameter string, I was able to resolve the issue. This changed the way in which I understood the underlying architecture of the software, it wasn't that the software was failing under some circumstances, it was that the software was more rigorously tested under sanitization rules and that the failure was a major hinderance.
It is imperative that the software should go through major testing and validation procedures such as Continuous Integration & Delivery. Without the utilization of such advances in the software industry, major setback will be faced.

By Protos · Posted July 23Jul 23
Our Official Technical Documentation for the Horizon Emulator.

Hey all,
Today we've added a new sub-domain under our roof. It is for the official Technical Documentation of Horizon. The files are configured using doxygen. Doxygen is a great tool for generating C++ documentation and we've added some features and tweaked the settings a lot for -
Better website readability with JS and Graph Images.
Generated Graphs for hierarchical view of the project structures.
Generated Call and Caller Graphs for over 8000 functions in the specification.
PHP powered (server-sided) search for more control on the code base.
Feel free to test drive these features by yourself and have a good time understanding our codebase.
New Sub-domain:
http://documentation.projecthorizon.xyz/
Example of the documentation with call and caller graphs -

Best of luck
Sephus

By Protos · Posted March 20Mar 20
Forum updated to v5.0.3

Updated our forum version 5.0.0 to 5.0.3. Upgrade was successful and below are the changes made to the forum codebase.
#3871: Disable extensions for recovery mode #3802: Badges in ACP tables were wrapping #3824: Fix issue where guest comments hang instead of showing a "pending approval" message #3843: Removed backgrounds, backdrops and conditionally hid captions from Images Widget #3865: Force Account Settings page to use any predefined FURLs #3883: Fix exception when viewing Blog RSS feeds #3832: Fix issue where banned users still have menu options on mobile #3902: Filter out empty club field values #3826: Mitigate Icon Picker Lagginess - Issue #3594: Big Lag when using the icon picker... - Issue #3770: Editor icon picker configuration #3854: Active inbox message titles are no longer dark #3857: Ensure widgets with custom backgrounds inherit border-radius #3859: Added ipsBox styles to edit form #3863: Filter out empty secondary group IDs #3870: Fix Elasticsearch Similar Content issue #3881: Fix http links in the privacy page #3882: Fix exception when editing featured content with images #3885: Fixed width of avatar on profile page #3887: Updated gallery stat icons #3891: Fixed minor UI issue in Messenger #3892: Fixed toggling Activity Stream as default #3893: Improved spacing of edit form inside posts/comments #3894: Fixed border-radius of loading dialogs #3895: Fixed spacing in Account Settings #3896: Fixed the UI of "Drag to upload files.." on tablets #3898: Fixed some minor UI issues with ModCP and Notifications page #3864: Forums may not show if last poster has been anonymised. #3852: Advertisements optimisation #3844: Removed gridspan and restored htmlId from radioImages #3840: Fix PII Export XML issue - Issue #3794: Request PII Data XML file invalid - Issue #3830: Cannot export PII Data #3764: Fix issues with importing themes #3835: Sync content promoted in v4 with featured content in v5 #3838: Catch exceptions in the deletion log #3839: Hide items from DatabaseNavigation widget if there is no permission to see them #3842: Improved contrast of form headers in ACP. #3833: Remove hard-coded ipsWidget--transparent class from builder widgets #3790: Hide "Featured By" from Our Picks if the member is not available #3823: Fix issue where all blog comments are moderated #3792: Improved performance of navigation "More" menu #3798: Removed stray '>' in includeJS #3804: Fixed alignment of color settings in Theme Editor #3812: Fix issue where deleting a menu item did not give the option to publish #3814: Don’t share config object between instances #3729: Fix issue where both an address and an online link can show on an event #3785: Include URL in disk log #3787: Add can_edit_tags permission to control cover photo permissions for tags #3820: Made blog/category header UI consistent with other areas of the suite #3789: Fix incorrect tooltip in ActiveUsers widget #3821: Bring back the our picks in email setting #3813: Don't send assignment notifications to the assignee if they are the one assigning #3793: Fixed an issue where archived posts were not deleted on topic delete #3327: Modify Stripe gateway to check for test vs live keys based on NEXUS_TEST_GATEWAYS

By Protos · Posted March 19Mar 19
Introducing The Horizon Code Review Committees

Hey everyone,
As we push forward and prepare for the first release of Horizon, it is crucial for us to protect and maintain several rules and strict guidelines shaping the code written in the software. Software can't be written without rules and impositions which create a generic and obedient command over the software and its structure. We cannot disobey the logic followed when the application of concepts and philosophies in our software are imposed, and we cannot create transgression when building software. Transgressed software is detrimental to our concerns and will illogically provide us bugs and details of unethical conduct of manner which we cannot permit in software. We want our manner to be behaved and rules to be followed. To help us get to this extensive requirement of identifying flaws and areas for improvement we require a team of reviewers or a Software Review Committee who need to create powerful structures and code of conduct within the developer community.
Here are the rules that the committee should seek upon adding to our codebase and its developers alike -
[For Core Development]
Core development is the foundation and the foothold of the software that agrees with the top and structural "machina" of the software. The architecture of the core creates a founding control and stability over the structures and systems that are created above it. The core decides whether the software is sound, stable and right in its design and architecture, while the structures above give it shape and nothing but little structure to understand its design requirements. The core of the software or the foundations comprise of its kernel, and the additional components that make the kernel work and function as a whole. The kernel provides the system above a large foundation to be built on top of. The system doesn't rely on any underlying architecture except for some libraries and dependencies which are outside the scope of the software being built. The core or foundation of the software will guarantee that the structures above don't fail and are provided with what they require to function.

[For Support Development]
Support development is the framework and surrounding structure development of software built on top of its core framework. The support developer team will focus on the business requirements of the software not the founding architectural needs or the dependencies. Support architecture is less focused on when building support systems. The need for several features are important in support development such as the Game requirements or the game logic that functions the business needs and the functioning of game components. For example support developers need to focus on features such as - Player objects, Map objects, Search algorithms, Monster behavior and core technology that will help them function. Additional examples include UI related requests to the server, the UI needs to be made functional by implementing support algorithms and features that will enable the functionality on the client. This is the requirement of the Support Developers that the Review Committee should be well aware of.

[For Script Development]
Script development includes the building of Lua scripts to extend and modify the behavior of the entire software. We have designed scripts to be an extension to almost all parts of Horizon and are welcoming developers to share their ideas on extending areas of the software that we haven't explored yet. For script development, the Lua Review Commitee is a team designated to work with the developers and provide them with the guidelines and help the require to frame and shape Horizon's script codebase.

Guidelines For Each Review Committee Member
As a Review Committee team member you are required to assess the changes (Pull Requests and Merges) that are made by all the core developers and the support developers. We on the review team decide how the software is shaped and how it functions. The Review Committee team will abide by the following rules in reviewing software -
Ensuring Architectural Congruence and Systemic Integrity: The committee serves as an agreement on architectural modifications, meticulously evaluating proposed code to ascertain an adherence with the laws and congruence to the overall architectural blueprint of the software.
Cultivating Codebase Homogeneity and Maintainability: Through rigorous scrutiny of coding style, conventions, and best practices, the review committee fosters a cohesive and uniform codebase, thereby significantly enhancing its long-term maintainability, reducing cognitive load for developers, and mitigating the accumulation of technical debt.
Facilitating Proactive Bug Identification and Mitigation: Functioning as a critical quality assurance layer, the committee diligently examines code for logical flaws, potential edge cases, and latent bugs, thereby enabling the early detection and rectification of defects before they propagate into production environments, ensuring greater software robustness.
Promoting Knowledge Dissemination and Collaborative Learning: The review process acts as a vital conduit for the cross-pollination of technical expertise and domain knowledge within the development team, affording opportunities for less experienced members to glean insights from seasoned professionals and fostering a culture of continuous learning and collective ownership of the codebase.
Upholding Performance Efficacy and Resource Optimization: The committee critically assesses the efficiency and scalability implications of proposed code changes, identifying potential performance bottlenecks or resource-intensive implementations, thereby ensuring the software operates optimally under anticipated load and minimizes unnecessary resource consumption.
Guarding Against Security Vulnerabilities and Ensuring Robustness: A crucial mandate of the review committee is the proactive identification and mitigation of potential security vulnerabilities embedded within the code, safeguarding the application and its data against malicious exploitation and ensuring the overall resilience of the software system.
Verifying Test Adequacy and Quality Assurance Protocols: The committee extends its purview to the evaluation of accompanying test suites, ensuring comprehensive test coverage and adherence to established quality assurance protocols, thereby bolstering confidence in the reliability and correctness of the implemented features.
Enforcing Adherence to Project Standards and Regulatory Compliance: The review committee plays a pivotal role in ensuring that all code contributions comply with predefined project standards, industry best practices, and any relevant regulatory requirements, thereby mitigating potential legal and operational risks.
Serving as a Repository of Collective Wisdom and Best Practices: Over time, the deliberations and decisions of the review committee establish a valuable institutional memory of coding standards, architectural rationale, and effective problem-solving techniques, contributing to the ongoing evolution and refinement of the development process.
How to apply?
There are 3 review committees in Horizon's Development Team -
The Core Review Committee
The Support Review Committee
The Script Review Committee
To apply, send in your application as a personal message to @Sephus here on the forums with the following form filled -
Review Committee Application Form
Name:
Designation: (Which committee are you applying to):
Date of Birth:
Occupation:
Credentials / Qualifications (Work that would make you an ideal candidate for being on the desired review committee):
How many days/months/years will you dedicate to our project? (More days are preferred)
Best of luck,
Sephus

By Protos · Posted March 18Mar 18
Response time of Horizon

So today I attempted to create a project which logged the sent and received times of the walking packet from an openkore client. By modifying the openkore client, I timed the packet sending and receiving functions to mark the time in which the emulator could perform a quick calculation (in this example the walking algorithm) and send back a response to the client. By making the character move on the client I achieved multiple responses and ergo the average response time it took for the emulator to achieve a successful transmission of packets from client to server (request) and back to client (response). The openkore was a fresh install and I had only modified a few lines of code. The patch for this file is attached in this post, feel free to use it in your own openkore to check the packet reception times in your emulator
0001-PacketTimer-Patch.patch
Doing this tells me how fast our emulator is and whether what we are doing is the right thing. By looking at the data received from this patch, it seems our emulator is quite close to the eAthena emulators. Keep in mind that Horizon is not at all optimized at this point and we will be doing so only in a few releases into the future. Horizon is a very fast emulator and you can see the results in this patch that we're able to meet the qualifications of a competent emulator in the online gaming industry. We're there with the top emulators in the RO emulation scene and the MMORPG world. We're quite competent even in our less optimized, not bug-tested and unreleased codebase.
We're quite there with the top few emulators which achieve the importance of providing a platform based on the "competition" element of online gaming. We want our emulator to maximize competition in online gaming and we're making it possible with rigorous efforts as seen in the results today.

We can see that we're just off by 0.001 marks. Which is 1 millisecond of time. We are that much closer to competitive online gaming and we can achieve the difference by working on optimizations on the emulator. Horizon also leverages Hyperthreading (or Multithreading) technology, which means that characters are simultaneously processed on our server compared to the one-by-one processing of them in eAthena based servers. For more clarity, take a look at the diagram below -

In eAthena servers, characters are loaded and processed one after the other. This can cause an issue in processing thousands of characters online. In Horizon, characters are logged into maps which are divided amongst the threads of the Game Logic Layer (GLL). In the GLL multiple threads process a group of maps. If two players happen to be in different groups, they are processed differently.

By Protos · Posted March 15Mar 15

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