Since it has been a while since anyone has asked for help with using Lich on a MAC. I have OS X 10.8.3. and wonder if anyone has figured an easier way to set up lich with a Mac since the last series of posts a while ago.
I admit I started going cross-eyed reading the directions from the Lich site.
I don't even know where half of the things they mention are to be found. This is my second day with my new Mac. Have always been PC. I was lost in the first two steps because I have no idea how to start lich using the commands they list.. Where does one even PUT those commands in?
Anyone think if I brought the instructions to the Apple store they would or could help me? I don't even think I have avalon done right since it appears as a series of tiny windows scattered all over my screen. I miss playing! And the reason I have a mac is I am tired of going through 3 PC's for every one of my sisters Macs...
Thanks
Wren aka Junniper et al...
Mac + Avalon + Lich
An alternate set of instructions are found in this post.
You may need to install Xcode in order to use MacPorts. You can find the Xcode install package in the "Optional Installs" folder on your OS X Install DVD.
Follow part 1 and Part 2 of this guide to install MacPorts.
Open a terminal and type the following to install Ruby with GTK bindings:
sudo port install rb-gnome
Download and extract lich-4.4.9.zip.
Start Lich using one of these commands:
sudo ruby lich.rbw --gemstone --avalon
sudo ruby lich.rbw --gemstone --platinum --avalon
sudo ruby lich.rbw --shattered --avalon
Log in using Avalon. (After starting Lich, you have two minutes to log in before it times out.)
Note: Avalon needs an update to connect to Shattered. If Simu hasn't done it by the time you read this, here's how to do it yourself (as posted by Naos):
Quit any instances of Avalon you have launched. You will need to update all copies that you may have downloaded or created.
Locate your Avalon.app application bundle using Finder -- I expect it lives in most people's Applications folder.
Select the application bundle in Finder, Control-Click (or Right-Click) on the icon, and select Show Package Contents from the context menu. (If you don't see this option in the context menu, you can try clicking on the toolbar button with a gear icon, which should give you a similar menu with the option.)
Open the Contents folder. Open the Resources folder. You should see a list of file including "Custom Games.plist" -- this is the file of interest.
Open the Text Edit application. It should be located in your Applications folder.
Drag the "Custom Games.plist" file onto the dock icon for Text Edit -- this will open the file using Text Edit.
The file is a plain text file that stores a list of games to display in an XML format. You will be adding two lines to this file.
Find the following two lines:
<string>GS3</string>
<string>GS4D</string>
You want to insert a line between these two so that your file looks like this:
<string>GS3</string>
<string>GSF</string>
<string>GS4D</string>
Find the following two lines:
<string>GemStone IV</string>
<string>GemStone IV Development</string>
You want to insert a line between these two so that your file looks like this:
<string>GemStone IV</string>
<string>GemStone IV Shattered</string>
<string>GemStone IV Development</string>
Save the file. You're done!
GRIFFONMAG
DOUG
Re: Hoping there has been some new easier way to use Lich with a Mac
05/27/2013 06:09 PM CDT
Hi there, Wren aka Junniper -
I'll be more than happy to help you with this, if you wish.
First things first -- Mac OS X has gotten progressively harder to deal with through the iterations (Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion). I have my private suspicions for why this is happening, but at its core, you're caught in the Open Source movement -- and it can be a challenge and burden for you.
The good news is, there are several ways to manage this -- some of them the down and dirty type of instructions similar to what you've seen here, and other ways which are 'click the icon and wait for the magic' type approaches. Most of the time, the latter simply isn't attempted because it takes a LOT of work to get that approach set up. And it's not 'error free' all the time. More on this later -- because it's important you know why we're struggling here.
The reason for all the dirty activity is Open Source. We're relying on three primary open source projects to allow Lich to run on the Mac OS X (and all flavors of Linux, and two of the three for Microsoft OS) and connect to the game. Those three projects are Ruby (which Lich is written in), XQuartz for Mac, or X11 for Linux (a GUI / window type environment that allows us to work with windows), and GTK (a graphical command application programming interface, which allows us to give windows / graphics commands to any OS, be it Microsoft Windows, Debian / Ubuntu Linux or Mac OS X and have it work the same).
For all three operating systems, Mac OS X, Microsoft and Linux we need to have a special set of programs called 'command line tools' which allow us to 'build' the open source software to work on our system. Sometimes, someone will get a wild hair and pre-compile ('build') the software to be installed on various systems. I thought about doing exactly that for Mac OS X -- but Mountain Lion is a distinct pain to work with right now, so I haven't done that just yet. Perhaps someone else will.
If you're interested in experiencing the game on your Mac with Mountain Lion, and you like the Avalon interface, I can help you. There are a few things I need you to do first, though (command line tools install, and an open source delivery system -- MacPorts is listed here, but MacPorts worked great UNTIL Mountain Lion, and now is more of a pain than it's worth, and finally -- installing Xquarts). The good news is, two of these three we can do with good ol' download and install activities similar to what you want to have happen.
If you're interested, drop me an email at doug at play dot net, and we'll get you into the game with Avalon and Lich running with a 'minimum' of fuss. I might even write an Apple script that will run most of it for you -- but I hesitate to do that for a 'general release' because of how much changes between the OS variants. We'll see.
As intimidating as it may be -- I can tell you I personally use a Mac for most of my gaming -- and I even have it set up to use the Wizard (not StormFront) from the PC side -- simply because I prefer that interface to Avalon. That's extra work, but certainly worth the effort in my view if you like the Wizard. I've also helped about 10 other Mac users in email to get Lich + Avalon working -- although Mountain Lion upgrades have caused several of them to have to come back to get 'fixed'. In all, you should plan probably 3 hours of work -- most of that work is watching the computer do the work.
Or if you want, I might even suggest we 'beta test' this mad idea of an Apple Script to do all the hard work for us.
Drop me a note if you want to try.
Doug
I'll be more than happy to help you with this, if you wish.
First things first -- Mac OS X has gotten progressively harder to deal with through the iterations (Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion). I have my private suspicions for why this is happening, but at its core, you're caught in the Open Source movement -- and it can be a challenge and burden for you.
The good news is, there are several ways to manage this -- some of them the down and dirty type of instructions similar to what you've seen here, and other ways which are 'click the icon and wait for the magic' type approaches. Most of the time, the latter simply isn't attempted because it takes a LOT of work to get that approach set up. And it's not 'error free' all the time. More on this later -- because it's important you know why we're struggling here.
The reason for all the dirty activity is Open Source. We're relying on three primary open source projects to allow Lich to run on the Mac OS X (and all flavors of Linux, and two of the three for Microsoft OS) and connect to the game. Those three projects are Ruby (which Lich is written in), XQuartz for Mac, or X11 for Linux (a GUI / window type environment that allows us to work with windows), and GTK (a graphical command application programming interface, which allows us to give windows / graphics commands to any OS, be it Microsoft Windows, Debian / Ubuntu Linux or Mac OS X and have it work the same).
For all three operating systems, Mac OS X, Microsoft and Linux we need to have a special set of programs called 'command line tools' which allow us to 'build' the open source software to work on our system. Sometimes, someone will get a wild hair and pre-compile ('build') the software to be installed on various systems. I thought about doing exactly that for Mac OS X -- but Mountain Lion is a distinct pain to work with right now, so I haven't done that just yet. Perhaps someone else will.
If you're interested in experiencing the game on your Mac with Mountain Lion, and you like the Avalon interface, I can help you. There are a few things I need you to do first, though (command line tools install, and an open source delivery system -- MacPorts is listed here, but MacPorts worked great UNTIL Mountain Lion, and now is more of a pain than it's worth, and finally -- installing Xquarts). The good news is, two of these three we can do with good ol' download and install activities similar to what you want to have happen.
If you're interested, drop me an email at doug at play dot net, and we'll get you into the game with Avalon and Lich running with a 'minimum' of fuss. I might even write an Apple script that will run most of it for you -- but I hesitate to do that for a 'general release' because of how much changes between the OS variants. We'll see.
As intimidating as it may be -- I can tell you I personally use a Mac for most of my gaming -- and I even have it set up to use the Wizard (not StormFront) from the PC side -- simply because I prefer that interface to Avalon. That's extra work, but certainly worth the effort in my view if you like the Wizard. I've also helped about 10 other Mac users in email to get Lich + Avalon working -- although Mountain Lion upgrades have caused several of them to have to come back to get 'fixed'. In all, you should plan probably 3 hours of work -- most of that work is watching the computer do the work.
Or if you want, I might even suggest we 'beta test' this mad idea of an Apple Script to do all the hard work for us.
Drop me a note if you want to try.
Doug
