cazfi wrote:Is there some other place Windows users get their downloads?
Until some bugs with the default installation directory and FREECIV_PATH are fixed I'd recommend to get the "portable apps" installation on Vista or later, and put it in a writable directory (outside of Program Files). In essence the PAF is a Zipped copy of an ordinary installation, plus a PAF-laucher for folks with "portable apps" collections (not really needed, just copying an installed Freeciv to a writable directory is good enough.) Most of the PAF stuff is also hosted on SourceForge.
I think the "writable FREECIV_PATH" issue can be fixed in one script (installed as the three *cmd scripts, same file, different names). Rough idea: Handle the %1 business to SET LANG= unless it's auto (as is). If there is a %HOME% believe it, otherwise consider %APPDATA%\.freeciv as %HOME% (partially as is). If there is a %FREECIV_PATH% believe it, otherwise construct it on the fly to overrule the default .;./data;%HOME%/.freeciv/<x.y>;/usr/shared/foo. (Nothing wrong with it on other platforms, but it doesn't exist on Windows, and if it exists it wouldn't survive a changed "current drive" from C: to D: or similar test.)
Main idea for the constructed FREECIV_PATH: Keep .;./data in front to match lots of manual pages, READMEs, wikis, etc. Add the modpack directory %HOME%/.freeciv/<x.y> in position 3, add %HOME%/.freeciv in position 4, add installation direction (with the binaries) as 5, and the installed data as 6 (last). Then start the binary with current working directory %HOME%/.freeciv (above x.y and saves) to get crash reports, stderr, stdout, color tests, score logs, etc. in one obvious writable directory. Added bonus: Anything in %HOME%/.freeciv/x.y in position 3 comes long before installed/data in position 6, therefore folks can tweak individual files by just copying them from say installed/data/misc/some.spec to %HOME%/.freeciv/x.y/misc/some.spec, and edit the latter.
Not yet tested, I was busy with the "test is 2.6 for 2.5.99", all my scripts expected "biggest z in x.y.z is the latest and greatest x.y"
(But they get beta + RC right, only alpha was an issue.)