[WIP] ToEE Front-End X 5.0 Progress Report

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

UPDATE: Updated to Release Candidate 9. Some documentation updates. Added an option to switch the random number generation algorithm from the Patch 2 Mersenne Twister to the original vanilla Quick'n'Dirty. This option is only useful for people who want to see the original RNG algorithm in action. Keep in mind, however, that the old algorithm was considered inferior by the developer and was known to underperform (even compared to Mersenne Twister). If, however, you played in the vanilla/patch 1 days and liked your experience and now believe that you're having worse random number generation results with Mersenne Twister, you may want to try out the old algorithm for nostalgic reasons (but don't keep your hopes up too much ).

EDIT: Also, working on a FAQ here. Here's the current set of questions and answers, feel free to suggest something to add (or ask a question or two so that I can have them answered and possibly put in the FAQ if they are important and interesting enough):

Code:

Q: Why is there a need for the new ToEE Front-End X?

A: The original, classic ToEE Front-End X is quite good, but over the years of
   usage it has proven to have certain weaknesses and issues that have recurring
   character and that bother the users. The file formats used by the front-end
   and the general technology are solid and well-tested though, and that demands
   a rewrite which keeps the strong points of ToEE Front-End X while taking care
   of the weak points. Also, as the Circle of Eight community is progressing
   with the mod pack, there is a demand for some new and updated features, which
   also means that a new version of ToEE Front-End X needs to be released.


Q1: I'm already using ToEE Front-End X version 3.x. Do I need to completely
    reinstall my game in order to start using the new ToEE Front-End X?
Q2: When the next version of the Circle of Eight Modpack is released together
    with the new ToEE Front-End X, will I have to reinstall the game to use the
    new mod pack and the new front-end?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X v4.0 Maywind is fully backwards compatible with the
   classic ToEE Front-End X v3.x. Moreover, it is designed to be a drop-in
   replacement for the old front-end. As such, you do not need to take any extra
   action in order to start using the new front-end - you just need to overwrite
   your old front-end with the new one and you are immediately ready to go. Your
   options and module activation settings will be preserved as is. The only
   minor exception here is the case if you're using a highly dated version of
   ToEE Front-End X (in particular, v2.0 or lower). In that case, you will still
   be able to run the game immediately with the new front-end after copying it
   into the game folder (so, you don't need to reinstall anything), but you may
   want to check the game options in the "Options" menu of ToEE Front-End X to
   make sure that all the options are still set up correctly (enabled or
   disabled as you need them).


Q: I'm still using a very old ToEE Front-End (ToEEFE) from mid-2000s that was
   released before ToEE Front-End X and shipped with the v4.x.x builds of the
   Circle of Eight Modpack. Can I upgrade my installation to the new ToEE
   Front-End X format without reinstalling the game?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X does not support converting an installation using
   a technology as old as ToEEFE 3.0 or 4.0 into the new format. Moreover, 
   attempting to run the new ToEE Front-End X on an installation like that will
   have unpredictable side effects which are practically guaranteed to ruin
   your game. You will have to reinstall your game to start using the new 
   ToEE Front-End X and the newer builds of the modpack. If you need to back up 
   anything (like saved games or player character files), please do so manually
   before reinstalling.


Q1: Does the new ToEE Front-End X require .NET Framework?
Q2: I have Java 6 installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE Front-End X?
Q3: I have Java 7 installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE Front-End X?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X Maywind is written in Java and is designed to run
   on the Java virtual machine. As such, it does not depend on .NET Framework
   but requires Java Runtime Environment to be installed. The minimum requirement
   for the version of Java is 1.6.0. As such, ToEE Front-End X can work with
   both Java 6 and Java 7 without any restrictions or caveats.


Q: I have Java 5 or lower installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE
   Front-End X?

A: No. Unfortunately, the minimum requirement for ToEE Front-End X is Java 6.
   If you're using a Java Runtime Environment as old as Java 5 or lower, you
   should consider upgrading.


Q: I'm using the open source OpenJDK instead of the standard Oracle JRE. Will
   ToEE Front-End X run on OpenJDK or do I need the proprietary Oracle package?

A: ToEE Front-End X is fully compatible with OpenJDK 6 and OpenJDK 7 and will
   run on systems running OpenJDK without any restrictions or caveats.


Q: I'm using the GNU Classpath set of libraries for Java. Can I use the new
   ToEE Front-End X with it?

A: No, ToEE Front-End X uses some of the features of JDK that are not (yet) in
   GNU Classpath and, as such, is not compatible with it. You will have to 
   install either OpenJDK or the standard Oracle JRE to run ToEE Front-End X.


Q1: Is ToEE Front-End X Maywind compatible with Linux?
Q2: Is ToEE Front-End X Maywind compatible with Mac OS X?

A: Yes, ToEE Front-End X is designed in a way that allows it to run on multiple
   platforms in a consistent and reliable way. ToEE Front-End X was tested on
   several different Linux systems, both 32-bit and 64-bit, and was confirmed
   to work properly without any extra dependencies. While it was not officially
   tested on Mac OS X, it should work on it as long as Java and Wine are both
   installed.


Q1: Do I need Mono to run ToEE Front-End X on Linux?
Q2: Do I still need an unreliable hacky version of ToEE Front-End X to use it
    on Linux?

A: No, Mono is not required for the new ToEE Front-End X as it does not depend
   on anything related to .NET Framework. Also, a special version of ToEE Front-
   End X is no longer required for its operation on Linux and other operating
   systems. No matter whether you are on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, or another
   system with Java (and Wine if necessary), you will be using the exact same
   version of ToEE Front-End X, with the same level of stability and the same
   set of features.


Q: Is Wine required for ToEE Front-End X itself on Linux/Mac OS X?

A: No, ToEE Front-End X can be launched without Wine, but Wine is required to 
   run the game from the front-end on operating systems other than Windows. 
   Since it is the only way to run ToEE on non-Microsoft operating systems, 
   Wine is required on all Linux and other Unix-like systems for correct 
   operation.


Q1: ToEE Front-End X could not launch the game and showed an error instead. Why?
Q2: ToEE Front-End X was supposed to launch the game and closed itself as if
    getting ready to start ToEE, but the game never started. Why?

A: There can be a variety of reasons why ToEE Front-End X may fail to start the
   game. If you are on Microsoft Windows Vista or a newer operating system from
   Microsoft, please ensure you are running the front-end as administrator. Not
   running the front-end as administrator may result in the denial of permission
   to launch and executable file from the game folder. Also, please ensure that
   your game is not installed to any system folder (e.g. Program Files), as it
   may cause additional trouble for the front-end as the system is reluctant to
   give full permission to read, write, and execute files in the game directory
   to a third party program if the game directory is a part of a certain system
   path. Instead, please consider installing ToEE to a custom directory, such
   as C:\Games. Another situation which may lead to a failure when starting the
   game may occur if a certain anti-malware software blacklists and/or deletes
   the main game executable (toee.exe) while ToEE Front-End X is attempting to
   start it (this may happen in case the scanner considers toee.exe to be a 
   trojan virus, even when it's a false positive). In a case like that, you can
   restore the executable, disable your scanning software and then try again.
   On Linux and other Unix-like systems, the game may fail to start if Wine is
   not installed or is installed incorrectly. Another possible reason for failure
   is the absence of execute (+x) permissions on the main ToEE executable
   (toee.exe). While the front-end will attempt to run the game even without
   having an execute permission by calling Wine directly with a parameter, if all
   other things fail, try changing the permissions on toee.exe in such a way that
   it includes execute (e.g., chmod +x ./toee.exe).


Q1: I launched the front-end and it showed me a warning saying that one of the
    game executable files (toee.exe and/or temple.dll) was not found but it was
    possible to successfully recover it. Why?
Q2: I launched the front-end and it was unable to start, showing an error that
    one of the game executable files (toee.exe and/or temple.dll) was not found
    and it was impossible to recover it. Why?

A: This problem typically happens on Microsoft Windows systems on which some
   virus scanning software is present that detects a (usually false positive)
   trojan horse virus in either toee.exe or temple.dll (the former is by far
   the most common scenario). All the executables that are bundled with the
   Circle of Eight Modpack are tested to be virus-free and, as such, are false
   positives if blacklisted this way. If this happens to you, you should consider
   adding both toee.exe and temple.dll into the trusted list (white list) of your
   antivirus scanner (if possible) or disabling the scanner while playing the
   game. If the blacklisting occurs, however, ToEE Front-End X will try to recover
   from the situation gracefully by looking for alternative backup locations for
   the executables. In most circumstances, it is possible to recover the files
   from known backup locations. However, it may sometimes be impossible, in which
   case ToEE Front-End X will fail to start with a critical error. If that happens,
   consider recovering the mentioned files manually. In either case, you will have
   to do something about your antivirus scanner to avoid this potential situation
   in the future. NOTE: in case you install the new ToEE Front-End X Maywind on
   a fresh game installation, it will automatically maximize the capabilities of
   the self-recover subsystem. If you upgrade your installation from a previous
   version of ToEE Front-End X, the options for self-recovery may be somewhat more
   limited, even though not substantially (basically, if you upgrade from a TFE-X
   v3.x installation, the self-recovery will work the same way as the TFE-X-repair
   utility worked; if you install ToEE Front-End X v4.0 Maywind from scratch, it
   will be able to do everything TFE-X-repair could do and also a little bit more).

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

@ sirchet: I'm glad I could make it work seamlessly for you and for everyone else who is on Java 6! Thanks!

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

Hey Ag, a couple things ...

If we think that the Program Files limited access issue is significant enough (and personally I think it will only continue to be moreso, as more and more players inevitably migrate to more modern OSs than Windows XP), we could update the modpack installation instructions to reflect an 'assumed' installation to a neutral directory like C:/games/ToEE. This would have no adverse affects on XP users beyond them having to reinstall the game to such a location if they wished, and they would of course still have the option to leave it or install the game wherever they want. We could do likewise with the installation utility, where it would default to C:/games/ToEE as the location to install the modpack and force users to navigate to a different directory if desired. (Currently the default directory is C:/Program/Files/Atari/ToEE - the boxed vanilla default location.)

Also, you may want to elaborate a bit more on the antivirus snafu, namely the fact that some AV makes may actually have to be uninstalled in order to stop them killing toee.exe.

Looking good otherwise.

Oh, and I forgot about the launch icon but I will try to work that up for you soon.

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

Thanks, Gaear! Yeah, I agree, we probably should change the path to something else and update the mod docs to reflect the change, it's a good call! I will definitely update the documentation a bit more soon according to your suggestions!

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

Updated the FAQ:

Code:

Q: Why is there a need for the new ToEE Front-End X?

A: The original, classic ToEE Front-End X is quite good, but over the years of
   usage it has proven to have certain weaknesses and issues that have recurring
   character and that bother the users. The file formats used by the front-end
   and the general technology are solid and well-tested though, and that demands
   a rewrite which keeps the strong points of ToEE Front-End X while taking care
   of the weak points. Also, as the Circle of Eight community is progressing
   with the mod pack, there is a demand for some new and updated features, which
   also means that a new version of ToEE Front-End X needs to be released.


Q1: I'm already using ToEE Front-End X version 3.x. Do I need to completely
    reinstall my game in order to start using the new ToEE Front-End X?
Q2: When the next version of the Circle of Eight Modpack is released together
    with the new ToEE Front-End X, will I have to reinstall the game to use the
    new mod pack and the new front-end?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X v4.0 Maywind is fully backwards compatible with the
   classic ToEE Front-End X v3.x. Moreover, it is designed to be a drop-in
   replacement for the old front-end. As such, you do not need to take any extra
   action in order to start using the new front-end - you just need to overwrite
   your old front-end with the new one and you are immediately ready to go. Your
   options and module activation settings will be preserved as is. The only
   minor exception here is the case if you're using a highly dated version of
   ToEE Front-End X (in particular, v2.0 or lower). In that case, you will still
   be able to run the game immediately with the new front-end after copying it
   into the game folder (so, you don't need to reinstall anything), but you may
   want to check the game options in the "Options" menu of ToEE Front-End X to
   make sure that all the options are still set up correctly (enabled or
   disabled as you need them).


Q: I'm still using a very old ToEE Front-End (ToEEFE) from mid-2000s that was
   released before ToEE Front-End X and shipped with the v4.x.x builds of the
   Circle of Eight Modpack. Can I upgrade my installation to the new ToEE
   Front-End X format without reinstalling the game?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X does not support converting an installation using
   a technology as old as ToEEFE 3.0 or 4.0 into the new format. Moreover, 
   attempting to run the new ToEE Front-End X on an installation like that will
   have unpredictable side effects which are practically guaranteed to ruin
   your game. You will have to reinstall your game to start using the new 
   ToEE Front-End X and the newer builds of the modpack. If you need to back up 
   anything (like saved games or player character files), please do so manually
   before reinstalling.


Q: If anything goes wrong (e.g. I end up using ToEE on a computer without Java),
   is it still possible to use the old ToEE Front-End X on an installation which
   was updated to use the new version?

A: First of all, please remember that the old front-end is deprecated and we
   do not recommend to use it anymore now that the new one is tested and
   released.  However, due to the nature of the new ToEE Front-End X as a
   drop-in replacement for the old front-end, the old Front-End (v3.x) has
   limited forward compatibility with the new front-end which allows it to be
   used interchangeably with the new one. In particular, you can use the two
   front-ends side by side if necessary (just rename the executable of one of
   them so they don't overwrite one another). You can also go back to using the
   old front-end and then switch over to the new front-end again. However, there
   is a caveat: you have to keep in mind that the old front-end has a certain
   fixed set of features and it can't make use of any of the advanced features
   supported by the new ToEE Front-End X Maywind. As such, if you configure the
   game with the new front-end and then launch it with the old one, the game
   will start, but some of the new options from the new front-end will either be
   inaccessible or even disabled. In particular, there is no way to change the
   portrait pack from the old front-end and the game launched from the old FE
   will use the portrait pack that was last chosen in the new front-end. Also,
   there is no way to choose the random number generator from the old front-end
   and it will always use the new algorithm even if the vanilla one was chosen
   in the new front-end. The windowed mode will be restricted to whichever
   resolution was last set in the new front-end, even if you change the
   resolution in the old front-end. Also, please remember that the old front-end
   still has all the bugs and issues that it always had, so you will not be
   protected from having the issues with the old front-end that you've always
   had even if you installed the new front-end and configured your game with it
   once.  As such, unless you absolutely must switch back to the old front-end
   for an unavoidable reason, you are highly discouraged from doing so. If you
   have to, please remember that we no longer support the old front-end and do
   not provide support for the users using the old front-end or a mixed
   front-end installation.


Q1: Does the new ToEE Front-End X require .NET Framework?
Q2: I have Java 6 installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE Front-End X?
Q3: I have Java 7 installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE Front-End X?

A: The new ToEE Front-End X Maywind is written in Java and is designed to
   run on the Java virtual machine. As such, it does not depend on .NET
   Framework but requires Java Runtime Environment to be installed. The minimum
   requirement for the version of Java is 1.6.0. As such, ToEE Front-End X can
   work with both Java 6 and Java 7 without any restrictions or caveats.


Q: I have Java 5 or lower installed on my computer. Can I use the new ToEE
   Front-End X?

A: No. Unfortunately, the minimum requirement for ToEE Front-End X is Java 6.
   If you're using a Java Runtime Environment as old as Java 5 or lower, you
   should consider upgrading.


Q: I'm using the open source OpenJDK instead of the standard Oracle JRE. Will
   ToEE Front-End X run on OpenJDK or do I need the proprietary Oracle package?

A: ToEE Front-End X is fully compatible with OpenJDK 6 and OpenJDK 7 and will
   run on systems running OpenJDK without any restrictions or caveats.


Q: I'm using the GNU Classpath set of libraries for Java. Can I use the new
   ToEE Front-End X with it?

A: No, ToEE Front-End X uses some of the features of JDK that are not (yet) in
   GNU Classpath and, as such, is not compatible with it. You will have to 
   install either OpenJDK or the standard Oracle JRE to run ToEE Front-End X.


Q1: Is ToEE Front-End X Maywind compatible with Linux?
Q2: Is ToEE Front-End X Maywind compatible with Mac OS X?

A: Yes, ToEE Front-End X is designed in a way that allows it to run on multiple
   platforms in a consistent and reliable way. ToEE Front-End X was tested on
   several different Linux systems, both 32-bit and 64-bit, and was confirmed
   to work properly without any extra dependencies. While it was not officially
   tested on Mac OS X, it should work on it as long as Java and Wine are both
   installed.


Q1: Do I need Mono to run ToEE Front-End X on Linux?
Q2: Do I still need an unreliable hacky version of ToEE Front-End X to use it
    on Linux?

A: No, Mono is not required for the new ToEE Front-End X as it does not depend
   on anything related to .NET Framework. Also, a special version of ToEE Front-
   End X is no longer required for its operation on Linux and other operating
   systems. No matter whether you are on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, or another
   system with Java (and Wine if necessary), you will be using the exact same
   version of ToEE Front-End X, with the same level of stability and the same
   set of features.


Q: Is Wine required for ToEE Front-End X itself on Linux/Mac OS X?

A: No, ToEE Front-End X can be launched without Wine, but Wine is required to 
   run the game from the front-end on operating systems other than Windows. 
   Since it is the only way to run ToEE on non-Microsoft operating systems, 
   Wine is required on all Linux and other Unix-like systems for correct 
   operation.


Q: Can I use the JAR file to launch ToEE Front-End X directly instead of using
   the executable (.exe) on Windows or the shell script (.sh) on Unix/Linux?

A: Technically speaking, you can, but you shouldn't. The platform-specific
   executables perform some extra initialization that can potentially help in
   certain difficult cases where otherwise the front-end may have trouble
   initializing. Therefore, while it's possible to use the JAR file directly
   and in most cases it will work the same way as when using a platform-specific
   executable, you're better off launching ToEE Front-End X via a launcher
   in order to avoid getting into potential difficulties.


Q1: ToEE Front-End X could not launch the game and showed an error instead. Why?
Q2: ToEE Front-End X was supposed to launch the game and closed itself as if
    getting ready to start ToEE, but the game never started. Why?

A: There can be a variety of reasons why ToEE Front-End X may fail to start
   the game. Depending on what exactly happens and how the operating system
   treats it, the front-end may either detect the failure and show the error
   message or be none the wiser about the fact that something had failed. If you
   are on Microsoft Windows Vista or a newer operating system from Microsoft,
   please ensure you are running the front-end as administrator. Not running the
   front-end as administrator may result in the denial of permission to launch
   an executable file from the game folder. Also, please ensure that your game
   is not installed to any system folder (e.g. Program Files), as it may cause
   additional trouble for the front-end as the system is reluctant to give full
   permission to read, write, and execute files in the game directory to a third
   party program if the game directory is a part of a certain system path.
   Instead, please consider installing ToEE to a custom directory, such as
   C:\Games. Another situation which may lead to a failure when starting the
   game may occur if a certain anti-malware software blacklists and/or deletes
   the main game executable (toee.exe) while ToEE Front-End X is attempting to
   start it (this may happen in case the scanner considers toee.exe to be a
   trojan virus, even when it's a false positive). In a case like that, you can
   restore the executable, disable your scanning software and then try again.
   Please note that with some (rare) antivirus software, you may even have to
   uninstall it [and install a better one] if you don't find a way to whitelist
   the executable binaries or to disable active scanning.  On Linux and other
   Unix-like systems, the game may fail to start if Wine is not installed or is
   installed incorrectly. Another possible reason for failure is the absence of
   execute (+x) permissions on the main ToEE executable (toee.exe). While the
   front-end will attempt to run the game even without having an execute
   permission by calling Wine directly with a parameter, if all other things
   fail, try changing the permissions on toee.exe in such a way that it includes
   execute (e.g., chmod +x ./toee.exe).


Q1: I launched the front-end and it showed me a warning saying that one of the
    game executable files (toee.exe and/or temple.dll) was not found but it was
    possible to successfully recover it. Why?
Q2: I launched the front-end and it was unable to start, showing an error that
    one of the game executable files (toee.exe and/or temple.dll) was not found
    and it was impossible to recover it. Why?

A: This problem typically happens on Microsoft Windows systems on which some
   virus scanning software is present that detects a (usually false positive)
   trojan horse virus in either toee.exe or temple.dll (the former is by far the
   most common scenario). All the executables that are bundled with the Circle
   of Eight Modpack are tested to be virus-free and, as such, are false
   positives if blacklisted this way. If this happens to you, you should
   consider adding both toee.exe and temple.dll into the trusted list (white
   list) of your antivirus scanner (if possible) or disabling the scanner while
   playing the game. Certain antivirus software may have to be fully uninstalled
   to make things work because there is no way to whitelist the executable
   binaries or disable active scanning (if you are a proud owner of software
   like that, it might be a good time to look for some better antivirus programs
   on the market). If the blacklisting occurs, however, ToEE Front-End X will
   try to recover from the situation gracefully by looking in alternative
   backup locations for the executables. In most circumstances, it is possible
   to recover the files from known backup locations. However, it may sometimes
   be impossible, in which case ToEE Front-End X will fail to start with a
   critical error. If that happens, consider recovering the mentioned files
   manually. In either case, you will have to do something about your antivirus
   scanner to avoid this potential situation in the future. NOTE: in case you
   install the new ToEE Front-End X Maywind on a fresh game installation, it
   will automatically maximize the capabilities of the self-recovery subsystem.
   If you upgrade your installation from a previous version of ToEE Front-End X,
   the options for self-recovery may be somewhat more limited, even though not
   substantially (basically, if you upgrade from a TFE-X v3.x installation, the
   self-recovery will work the same way as the TFE-X-repair utility worked; if
   you install ToEE Front-End X v4.0 Maywind from scratch, it will be able to do
   everything TFE-X-repair could do and also a little bit more).

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

@ AjiTae: Alrighty, will do it tomorrow! Thanks for not giving up on it!

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

@ AjiTae: Sadly, the newest dll crashes even before starting the first cutscene (basically, immediately as it starts)

@ ghfdhd: Unfortunately, I don't remember the exact reason it was put into a forced enabled mode via an override, so your question is best addressed by someone else who remembers (I hope Gaear will know), but I do know that it is indeed the desired behavior in the Co8 modpack. As for the front-end, the new front-end operates in exactly the same way the old one did - it allows the modpack creators to override certain options if necessary. The Co8 modpack has done it for a while by now and there are no plans to go back to the old functionality.

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

That was done because of the 'less humble NPCs' mods, which require some script interaction for NPC behavior and would be broken and goofy if Humble NPCs was disabled. Less humble NPCs is the most sophisticated behavior we can get from the NPCs, and being as no one wants the vanilla NPC behavior anyway, it was kind of an easy decision to make it mandatory for the modpack. If anyone wants vanilla NPCs and crazy looting and encumbrance, they should play vanilla.

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

@ AjiTae: This seems to work very well!

- Agetian

 

Re: [WIP] ToEE Front-End X 4.0 Progress Report

@ Gehennis: It seems like either you've confused yourself with multiple game installations or you were being overprotective of your game installation and that backfired on you.

All the symptoms you've listed tell me of only one thing - you did not extract the new TFE-X 4 into the root game folder (and that has always been, since the first days of the first front-end ever, the absolute requirement). As it stands right now, you still have the old TFE-X 3.0e executable in the game folder (this is confirmed by the fact that it indeed identifies itself as v3.0e and runs on .NET instead of Java), and wherever you're starting TFE-X 4 from is definitely somewhere else because it can't even find toee.exe (and, just like the other front-ends before it, it looks for toee.exe in the same folder as TFE-X.exe). At the same time, you busted your original TFE-X 3.0e installation because you deleted its support files but you haven't replaced the executable with the new front-end. As such, the new front-end can't run because it's in the wrong place, and the old one can't work correctly because its support files are missing. Chances are, you could have corrupted your installation by running the old front-end without its support files and making it crash. Considering you even tried to activate modules using the old front-end without having the libraries to support the operation (basically, you kept clicking buttons despite the crashes and exception messages and obviously abnormal behavior), I'd say there's a pretty high chance you killed your game right there, but let's hope for the best and assume that you didn't and your installation is still intact.

Installing TFE-X 4 is as easy as it can get. In simple words, the procedure is exactly the same as for TFE-X 3 and below. To make things work, extract the new ToEE Front-End X 4.0 archive into the root game folder (on top of the old TFE-X, if any). If your game is installed to, for example, C:\Games\ToEE, then the TFE-X executable must end up having the absolute path C:\Games\ToEE\TFE-X.exe. If you're asked to overwrite any files, agree to do that. That's it, you're done.

If done correctly, you should *definitely* NOT see v3.0e in the help box for the front-end, nor should you see anything ever coming from .NET Framework (that's a telltale sign of the old front-end operating, not the new one). If you run the front-end (e.g. via a desktop shortcut) and it identifies itself as v3.0e or shows some errors from .NET Framework, you're running the old front-end, not the new one! In your case, it seems like you're running at least two distinct game installations, so you could have extracted the front-end into one game folder while your desktop shortcut points to the other, or something like that (only you know what's going on though).

If the new front-end starts successfully once you do the above, I'd highly recommend to reactivate your module (switch to vanilla then back to Co8 7.8.0) to hopefully prevent possible after-effects from crashing the old FE. Note to self: do we actually need a "Reactivate" button in the front-end for cases like that?....

P.S. In case you do the above and still won't be able to get the new front-end going, please check and see if toee.exe is indeed in your game folder. If it isn't, it could mean you've busted your installation pretty good with that experiment with launching TFE-X v3.0e without its libraries - if that is the case, you can either try manual recovery (may be hard to do + who knows what else might have gone wrong) or just reinstall the game from scratch and install the new front-end correctly next time. Good luck!

- Agetian