MTG Gatherer Downloader

[Huggybaby]

Our links have been up for years. Sometimes one goes away due to a MF screwup, but they're mostly reliable.

A skydrive will get killed in one day if linked to your app.

It may be time to abandon the hta and go the exe route.

[woogerboy21]

Our links have been up for years. Sometimes one goes away due to a MF screwup, but they're mostly reliable.

A skydrive will get killed in one day if linked to your app.

It may be time to abandon the hta and go the exe route.

I was thinking the same for the skydrive. Also, I don't wish to compile the code. Not that I can't but the original concept for the application was to have the source easily readable without including it in a non-compiled form. But then again the app seems to be extending beyond the original concepts. Unless I hear from some more people I think I will release the next version once I compile a listing of HQ downloades for most (if not all) of the sets supported by the gatherer. Future versions of this include an external setinfo file and an external config file that can be modified so the main source application code does not need to be updated.

edit:
oh and when I was refering to media fire and the links expiring. The url you post doesn't expire. mediafire thenselves looks like they create a host to share link when someone goes to the url and that gets changed after so long so you don't have a direct download link path and they can dynamically increase or decrease the number of hosts providing the information based on demand.

[woogerboy21]

Maybe it is time to go to a compiled form. Using a compiled form I have ALOT more options for UI controls. So for all the users that have been wanting a UI update how would you like to see the application UI updated? Would you prefer a single page with all optioins (similar to how it is now) or would you like more of a guided method, were there would be multiple windows asking questions one after another? Maybe both? Oh the posibilities....

[Huggybaby]

I like the single page option if at all possible.

[woogerboy21]

Alright I have thrown together a compiled non-flashy ui that I am debating on using but want oppinions. Attached is the compiled UI with no main code so run it and let me know what you think.

[Ark]

Nobody remembers http://ark42.com/mtg/progs/GathererDownloader-1.0.1.zip ?
I never got a single comment on it when I posted the first version a long time ago.

I updated the default set list (although you could always edit it anyway) to include up to Scars. Otherwise, not much has changed in the past years.

*edit* click that thumbnail, this forum ruins animated GIFs apparently.

[woogerboy21]

Thats awesome!
However I see various aspects of the card details missing (such as number, artist etc). Is there a way for it to collect that information? Also is there a way to save the images as there oracle id numbers? And one more thing, I noticed the option to save the file using the .full is checked but appears grayed out and when i click download images they aren't labeled with the .full in the filename.

[Ark]

Thats awesome!
However I see various aspects of the card details missing (such as number, artist etc). Is there a way for it to collect that information? Also is there a way to save the images as there oracle id numbers? And one more thing, I noticed the option to save the file using the .full is checked but appears grayed out and when i click download images they aren't labeled with the .full in the filename.

Read all the info in the F1 Information screen. I didn't feel like writing a real Help file.

Check the Additional Card Information option if you want to get the info that isn't on the text spoiler. It's slower, but not needed if you only want to get the pics and not save the card database.

The .full option only applies to saving Fulls. Fulls are not Originals, so check that you want Fulls (slightly cropped, to remove the borders) and then that option is ungreyed.

Yes, you can save by oracle ID.jpg, that's one of the 3 options to save as, for folder names. It basically doesn't create the "Scars of Mirrodin" or "SOM" subfolders if you do that.

[woogerboy21]

Think I may still try and throw something together that pulls the images for both high and low quality. Personal project really. I like the look of your app!

[Ark]

Think I may still try and throw something together that pulls the images for both high and low quality. Personal project really. I like the look of your app!

Yeah, I wouldn't really want to try to automate downloading the HQ stuff in my app. They are too prone to disappear or move around. Torrents are probably fine, but it would be nice to have a better direct-download method.

I keep all the HQ pics unzipped and organized on ark42.com like http://ark42.com/mtg/cards/Scars%20of%2 ... r.full.jpg but I don't have the bandwidth to be an official download source for people. It would be nice to have another place that was the official source for the HQ images, and have them all be unzipped like that too.

[Huggybaby]

Sorry for the lack of response ark. Your app looks sweet. Why don't you make a post about it with some pics or that animated gif, and a couple of links?

[Ark]

Sorry for the lack of response ark. Your app looks sweet. Why don't you make a post about it with some pics or that animated gif, and a couple of links?

Ok, I made a thread for it: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3371
I don't mean to steel woogerboy21's thunder here, I just thought I'd bring it up again since it exists.

[woogerboy21]

Sorry for the lack of response ark. Your app looks sweet. Why don't you make a post about it with some pics or that animated gif, and a couple of links?

Ok, I made a thread for it: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3371
I don't mean to steel woogerboy21's thunder here, I just thought I'd bring it up again since it exists.

Oh don't worry about stealing my thunder. I may be a good script kitty but I know when my works been outdone.

[Ark]

Sorry for the lack of response ark. Your app looks sweet. Why don't you make a post about it with some pics or that animated gif, and a couple of links?

Ok, I made a thread for it: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3371
I don't mean to steel woogerboy21's thunder here, I just thought I'd bring it up again since it exists.

Oh don't worry about stealing my thunder. I may be a good script kitty but I know when my works been outdone.

Well to be fair, I don't have a clue how to write Hello World in whatever an HTA file is

[woogerboy21]

Alright so with the posting of Ark's software and my last post I decided to change directions with this application. It no longer pulls set data information and makes spoilers. I never have like the way the HQ set list has been maintained and always thought its a pain to try and find most any older sets. I also took things into account as far as performance is concerned with the HTA form of this application and went with a compiled route. Here are some screenshots of the application as it sits right now in development of the compiled form:

The way this is written you can create a custom setinfo file that contains some of the setinformation such as setname setabbr hqmedia fire url shares (crop and full). You also have a configuration file that contains applications settings that can be configured such as app menu drop down options, window labeling etc. Currently the application will assist users in downloading card images for the magic workstation, magic album, and wagic applications placing the pictures in the respective application folder structure and file naming scheme. Also when using the high image quality will open the media sharing page link and display a box indicating exactly were to save the file to (you can simply copy and past from the window into the save as window!). Once done the application expands the file and processes the images accordingly. So far it seems to be working how ever there are a few things to point out.

1.) When using high image quality the various zip's and rar's do not contain all the expected card images which can cause the program to fail to process that particular set. For example the zip may contain an incorrectly named image file OR the set data on the gatherer includes tokens and no tokens exist in the zip.

2.) There are a number of crop media sharing links that are dead / broken. Obviously if you cant get the file it wont work for that set so using the "all sets after" with high quality settings is somewhat useless.

What do you guys think? Something usefull? At the very least users can use this to pull HQ zip files in a more orderly fashion. If you use the low quality option it pulls the image off the gatherer and even will detect if a card image is just a card backing and warn you. (original functionality of the application). Let me know.