Could some of you regulars start compiling Frequently Asked Questions. You don't have to provide answers, necessarily, just the questions themselves, and we can fill in the answers later.
Once we get a fairly comprehensive list put together with answers, I will tack it to the top of the forum.
Just post 1 question/answer (if exists) per post and I will compile them all into a nice big FAQ.
If someone wants to condense/textualize the Cathedral and the Bazaar text on how to ask questions, I'll include that into there as well.
Gullork
06-19-2002, 11:39 AM
Q. Why is it sometimes that when I zone in, no mobs show up at all. It worked on the last zone.
A. The zone has not decoded yet. ShowEQ sometimes needs something to spawn so that it can find the key to decode the zone. This can be a mob, another player entering the zone, or creating a pet. Some zones also take longer to decode than others.
Gullork
06-19-2002, 11:41 AM
Q. I zoned in, but not all mobs showed up, or the mobs show as unknown. What is wrong?
A. Could be several things, but the most common is a missed transmit between the servers and your EQ client. You could have a problem on your network causing your EQ computer to ask for retransmits from the servers more often than is considered normal. Since ShowEQ doesn't see retransmits, the zone was not properly decoded due to missing information. The problem can be anything from a bad network card sending erroneous packets over the network, to a low quality hub, to a bad wire.
Gullork
06-19-2002, 11:42 AM
Q. I just installed ShowEQ and everything compiled fine. It seems to starts up correctly. However when I log into EverQuest, ShowEQ just sits there. What am I doing wrong?
A. The most common problem here is your switch/hub. You must use a hub in place of a switch between the Linux and Windows EQ client computers. ShowEQ listens to the network card on your EQ client. It can only do this if you are using a hub. A hub broadcasts all traffic through all ports, so the Linux computer can hear this information. A switch only sends information to the destination port that needs it, so ShowEQ only hears silence.
However, not all new 'hubs' are really hubs, but are in fact cheap switches. This is a problem with many new hubs, and Linksys is one of the most common culprits of this. This can also be a problem on a hub that is 10/100. Sometimes the 10mb network cards are on one side of a plane inside the hub, and the 100mb network cards are on the other. Again, it ends up getting switched. SMC and Netgear still make some real hubs.
NOTE: If you want to use your switch for the rest of the network, just uplink your hub into your existing switch. For example: Internet -> Router/Switch -> Hub -> Linux and WinEQ Clients.
Gullork
06-19-2002, 11:48 AM
Q. What about a Windows version of ShowEQ?
A. Attempting to make and distribute such a thing will bring the entire ShowEQ community down on you, not to mention Verant. You see, the only reason Verant doesn't break ShowEQ is because the user base is so small. The reason that the user base is so small is because not everyone understands linux, has an extra unused computer, can figure out how to set ShowEQ up, and/or can set up their network properly. If a Windows version of ShowEQ were to exist, the user base would skyrocket, and Verant would finally be able to justify the cost and trouble of breaking it and breaking it regularly. Thus, the rest of the ShowEQ community would not like you very much. If you do find a way to do so, please keep it to yourself and do NOT distribute it to anyone!
high_jeeves
06-19-2002, 12:33 PM
Q. How do I build and install ShowEQ?
A. Please see the documentation in README.newbies, or one of the walkthroughs that can be found at seq.sourceforge.net in the help forum.
Gullork
06-19-2002, 12:34 PM
Q. How do I update ShowEQ?
A. The first step, is to make sure that you have the lastest libEQ.a file. You can tell if you have the correct one by looking at the top of the main page of these forums and writing down the number it lists. It looks something like this:
The current md5sum of libEQ.a (14/Jun/02): 23249.... (and so on)
Then use the md5sum command in this manner:
cd /usr/lib
md5sum libEQ.a
It will return a unique number like so: 23249b5a6a04f2b900449d9c4aa0994a
If the numbers do not match, then you need to get the newest libEQ.a file. Now be careful to get the file from a trusted source such as those listed in the readme file. Here are some trusted locations for the file known at the time of this faq (again, see the readme file to verify):
ftp://azriel.trifocus.net/pub/libeq/i386/linux
ftp://smurfette.trifocus.net/pub/libeq/i386/linux
http://www.doomed.to/showeq/
So... now it is time to get the new file. First, lets rename the old file so that you have a backup that ShowEQ can't find and use accidentally (in other words, don't just copy the file somewhere else):
cd /usr/lib
mv libEQ.a libEQ.a.old
Now lets get the new file:
wget --passive-ftp ftp://smurfette.trifocus.net/pub/libeq/i386/linux/libEQ.a
And double check that it is indeed the right one:
md5sum libEQ.a
If it matches the posted number at the top of the home page of this website, then we are ready to move on to the actual upgrade:
cd /root/showeq
make distclean
cvs -d:pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq login
cvs -z3 update
cvs -d :pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq logout
export CC=gcc3
export CXX=g++3
export QTDIR=/usr/lib/qt-2.3.2
make -f Makefile.dist
./configure
make
make install
Everything should have compiled fine and you should be all done. Enjoy!
(Please feel free to edit any of my posts to correct errors)
high_jeeves
06-19-2002, 12:38 PM
Q. Where can I find libEQ.a?
A. Please see the README.libEQ file that comes with the souce, one you have downloaded ShowEQ. To download any of these files, use "wget <url>". You may need to use the --passive-ftp switch "wget --passive-ftp <url>" for some of these locations. Once you have downloaded this file, type "md5sum libEQ.a" on it, and make sure that the output matches the md5sum printed on the top of the page at seq.sourceforge.net.
fryfrog
06-19-2002, 01:41 PM
before you guys waste lots of time thinking up more and more questions and their answers, take a peak here (http://www.hackersquest.org/boards/viewtopic.php?t=274). i compiled a fairly long list of frequent questions a while back. could be a decent starting point ;)
Dedpoet
06-19-2002, 01:56 PM
Q. EQ just got patched today, and SEQ doesn't work anymore!
A. Verant often makes changes in the network packet structure on patch days that Seq doesn't know about, causing it to choke. This is usually resolved in the code within a few hours, and can be fixed with a cvs update and recompile (see above). Checking the Announcement forum at seq.sourceforge.net on patch day will often let you know when the update is complete.
fryfrog
06-19-2002, 02:01 PM
you can shorten the following if you like :)
cd /root/showeq
make distclean
cvs -d:pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq login
cvs -z3 update
cvs -d :pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq logout
export CC=gcc3
export CXX=g++3
export QTDIR=/usr/lib/qt-2.3.2
make -f Makefile.dist
./configure
make
make install
cd ~/showeq
cvs -z3 update
make -f Makefile.dist
CC=gcc3 CXX=g++3 QTDIR=/path/to/qt ./configure
make && make install
it is a tad shorter. make -f Makefile.dist actually does a backup of your old executable AND does a cleaning of the source (this is from zaphod). for the longest time, i had done the "make distclean" but it is (no longer?) neccesary.
Gullork
06-20-2002, 12:28 PM
Nice didn't realize you could shorten it like that.
As for the faq, yea I remember reading that a few months ago when I got started. Should definately merge that in with whatever we post here.
Mr Guy
06-21-2002, 06:54 AM
Q: How do filters work? What is regex? Where can I get some default filters?
A: Filters work by building a string from the information received about mobs (and PC) from the EQ servers. The filters search these strings using regular expressions. You can find the exact description of the string in the file "conf/filters.conf.dist" off of the directory you downloaded the CVS into.
A regular expression is a way of describing patterns of letters, numbers, spaces, and other symbols. When this pattern is compared to a string, it is said to match if the special symbols in the pattern match the symbols and characters in the string. Think of it as algebra for words.
The most commonly used special symbols are as follows:
[ ] : matches one character inside the brackets
eg
[aA] would match either 'a' or 'A' but not 'b'
\w : matches any word character (letters, symbols, numbers, but not spaces)
\s : matches any space character (space or tab)
. : matches ANY character except return
Special symbol modifiers
+ : Matches 1 or more
* : Matches 0 or more
{ } : Matches X number
eg:
\w+\s would mean at least one letter (or many more) followed by a space
Example Regex for EQ
Name: [gG]riff.*
Translation:
The exact characters N a m e : {space}
follow by either g or G
followed by exactly r i f f
followed by 0 or more anything
This would match:
Name: griffawn
Name: Griff The Wonder Basher
Name: griff
Name: griffon, a
and many more.
This would NOT match:
Name: Grimfeather Race: griffon
You can learn more about regular expression all over the web, or with 'man perlre'.
BlueAdapt has worked very hard to provide us with some nice default filters to use. They can be found on his website at
http://www.seqstuff.cjb.net
or the mirror:
http://www27.brinkster.com/blueadept
Just tacking this on here so I don't forget it.
FAQ: ShowEQ Frequently Asked Questions (unofficial)
Last Updated: 01/23/2002
Purpose:
This FAQ is intended to be read before you post any questions to the forum. I have tried to answer as many questions as I can, based on my time spent reading the forums devoted to ShowEQ. I can tell you in all honesty that your question has probably already been asked at least once, if not more. Please read this in hopes that you will at least get some sort of idea about your problem. If your question is NOT in here, and it is a good one which will help others it WILL be added.
Unofficial ShowEQ HOWTO and FAQ
This link is for discussion of this FAQ. This will keep the FAQ thread itself uncluttered with junk while still allowing questions, fixes and additions to be implemented. Thanks.
What is ShowEQ?
ShowEQ is a packet analyzer for the game EverQuest. It passively monitors network traffic for EverQuest data and displays it onscreen in a readable format.
What do I need to run ShowEQ?
In the broadest of terms: a 2nd computer, a Linux distribution, a hub and some time. oh, don't forget EverQuest the game and a non-banned account. :)
What information does ShowEQ actually show?
Anything that the EQ client knows, ShowEQ knows. This includes things like EVERY mob position in the zone, its level, class, race, items it is HOLDING which effect the way it looks, an accurate map of the zone, drops, traps... the list is very large.
Can ShowEQ be detected using software means by The Man?
The short answer is no. It would take a fair amount of work on their side to be able to tell that a NIC was in promiscuous mode, and even then they would not be able to tell if it was tcpdump, ethereal or ShowEQ that was sniffing packets. ShowEQ is totally passive and transmits no data.
Can ShowEQ users be detected in game by real people?
The short answer is yes. A ShowEQ user can very frequently spot another ShowEQ user. Knowing more information than you should is a dead giveaway. Making a beeline for a rare right when it pops (well, unless you are a druid/ranger) is a dead giveaway. Saying in game that you use ShowEQ or SEQ can also be a giveaway. Basically, don't be stupid and you shouldn't be caught.
Can I be banned for using ShowEQ?
Yes, you can also be banned for anything they want. If you don't want to risk your account, don't use it.
Does ShowEQ run on Windows(tm)?
No, ShowEQ does not run on windows and it will never run on windows.
Why doesn't ShowEQ have a Windows(tm) version?
The simple answer is this: So that the Linux version can exist. When the decryption library was open source, there was a Windows(tm) version. Every time the decryption was broken, days or hours later The Man would rotate the encryption. Basically, they did not want a Windows(tm) version to exist. The reasoning behind that is very simple and easy to understand. More people can use Windows(tm) than linux. That means that a MUCH larger number of players could use ShowEQ. In The Man's eyes, this is a bad thing.
Can ShowEQ tell me what loot a creature will drop?
More no than yes. The only information ShowEQ can display is that which the client receives. Loot info is not sent until the mob is actually looted. That being said, you can get a half decent idea if it is carrying something. An orc with a sword will probably drop some sort of sword. The shard wurms in GD that glow carry a light source, and that actually means they will drop the glowing bile.
ShowEQ is setup and working, but it looks like hit points are broken. It displays 65536, 0, 100. When is this going to be fixed?
Actually, The Man changed the way hitpoints are sent to the client. Group member hitpoints are always updated, no matter where in the zone they are. Player hitpoints are actual values, so if they have 1700hp it will show them having 1700hp. Mobs on the other hand were changed to ONLY reflect a percentage, and ONLY if you are within a certain range will you get an update. Until you have come close enough to a mob, its HP will show as "65535" or "-1" or perhaps some other value.
Back in the old days, I used to be able to figure out my exact faction. Now those dumb developers went and took that away, and all i see is one silly number! When is this going to be fixed?
Once again, this is a change The Man made. If you think about it, it really was silly of them to send a number between -100000 and +10000 (numbers are not actual number, only examples) when they only really had about 10-15 different things that it could be. Well, the realized this and changed it. Hurray for them, bad for us.
Dear god, the developers of ShowEQ can't seem to get ANYTHING right. Now the great experience watching portion of ShowEQ doesn't seem to work. When are they going to fix this?
Once again, The Man is responsible not the ShowEQ developers. Now instead of reporting all the number to the client, and letting the client display everything properly... they send a number which just tells the client to move the little orange/blue bar a tad. Fortunatly, since ShowEQ has a pretty good idea of what your experience is (it is sent when you zone in), ShowEQ knows which mob you killed, and the formulas involved in exp calculation it can make a pretty good estimate of the exp you just got. This portion of ShowEQ is being refined more and more in CVS.
What EVIL things can be done with ShowEQ (what do the developers NOT want you to do)?
ShowEQ makes it fairly easy to farm rare spawns. It also makes it easy to find and kill rare spawns that others might have already been after for hours. This is NOT what ShowEQ was intended to do. Farming for EBAY is another of the bad uses. While the developers can't stop anyone from doing this, they ask that you don't.
What GOOD things can be done with ShowEQ?
Probably the best thing that can be done with ShowEQ is not getting lost. Personally, i don't see how anyone could enjoy spending hours lost in a zone. The Man could easily implement a mapping skill to the game, and a map reading skill. This would remove one of the biggest reasons for using ShowEQ. It makes finding corpses pretty easy as well. There is nothing like helping a newbie find their lost body to make them happy and increase your Karma. Finding rare spawns falls in both the good and evil question. Use this feature in a way that would increase your Karma. ShowEQ also tracks spells cast by the user. This feature is great for timing your buffs. You can see all your skills and stats, as well as watch your experience rates. It shows exp / kill and a lot more information based on exp. It includes chat-monitoring capabilities, and can be very useful for organizing, running and tracking large raids. The list of things ShowEQ can do is huge, and getting bigger every CVS update.
Will ShowEQ run on a default install of Mandrake 8.1 or RedHat 7.2?
No, but all you need to get is qt-2.3.2 and compile it and it will then run. See the wonderful HOWTO's for help with this.
Why does ShowEQ require gcc-3.0.1 and qt-2.3.2?
There are two theories behind this:
1.) To make things more difficult and thus weeding out the people that don't really deserve to run ShowEQ (better known as the "conspiracy theory")
2.) To increase the stability and features in ShowEQ. QT-2.3.1 had some bugs in it that were causing issues. Compiling qt-2.3.2 with the -thread option helped solve a lot of these. The version of gcc that RedHat uses is an odd one that caused a lot of compile problems. Standardizing on ONE compiler and ONE qt release allowed them to move forward with out have to worry about backward compatibility.
I am having problems compiling/running/using ShowEQ, where can i turn for help?
The sourceforge.net forums are the best place to find help for ShowEQ. They can be found here. Keep in mind that your question has PROBABLY been asked. Before you post a new thread, take the time to use the search feature. If you fail to do this, someone will insult your thread and it will probably be locked as well.
I went where you said to get help, but everyone called me mean names and my problem still exists. Did you know that would happen?
People probably made fun of you and called you mean names because you asked the same question that many others have asked before. Did you use the search feature? Maybe you were unable to find anything related to your problem, so you posted your question as "My ShowEQ is broken, help!?" and this could be the problem. When asking for help, you need to provide as much possible information as you possibly can. This includes pasting the exact error message and maybe even logs of the problem. Most of the people who help on these forums are not psychic or choose not to use their psychic abilities on these types of posts.
I have it installed and have seen it decode, but when I goto empty zones like Kedge Keep it doesn't decode. Why doesn't it decode in these zones?
ShowEQ runs a brute force attack on the encryption used to keep the data secure. The weakness in the encryption makes it fairly easy for ShowEQ to compare certain things to new spawns. So, ShowEQ depends on NEW SPAWNS to decode. This can be you summoning a pet, someone zoning in after you or a mob spawning because you killed him 20min ago.
For some reason even though I compiled and run ShowEQ, it doesn't actually show me a damn thing. Is ShowEQ broken?
No, chances are pretty good that you are using a switch instead of a hub. To get the information that you are seeing in EverQuest, that data has to be seen by the Linux computer as well. A switch directs traffic only to the two computers (nodes) involved. A hub broadcasts all traffic to all nodes that are connected to it. Also, if you are connected to the internet with your Windows(tm) box using a directly connected dial up, dsl, or cable modem Windows(tm) will not broadcast the packets out over the second nic. Also, 99.9% of the time those Residential Gateway/Routers with X number of ports are switches. This means you will have to plug all your computers into a real hub, then uplink that hub to your router/gateway. Another recent "feature" of most current hubs is that in a large number of situations, they will behave as switches. This sucks, but can be worked around. Typically, the 10mbit and the 100mbit section of a 10/100 hub are switched. So if EQ is 100mbit and SEQ is 10mbit, they won't see each other's traffic. Also, if a 10mbit device is hooked to the 10/100 hub it will frequently become a REAL hub on the 100mbit section. So, if your router is 10mbit and your SEQ and EQ boxes are 100mbit all hooked to the same hub-switch, you should probably be able to sniff packets! (I know this is true for the two different models of linksys hubs I own).
How do I actually GET ShowEQ?
Right now (and probably for the remainder of its existence) CVS is the way to get the latest and greatest version of ShowEQ. I'm not going to go into the details of how, as they are in the HOWTO guides. At some point there was someone who had a script that made a nightly tar.gz file of the source, but i don't think this is happening anymore. Perhaps if someone with a decent pipe and a cron job finds it in their heart to provide this, it will exist again.
Is there an alternative to ShowEQ?
Yes, there are two or three alternatives actually. One is SINS (Sins Is Not ShowEQ) found here. The other (while not working at this moment due to SoL and DX 8.1) is Xylobot found here. At this point, most of the advantages of SINS have been incorporated into ShowEQ 4.0.1. This includes its low CPU usage and its multiple map feature. One thing unique to SINS at this moment is its spawn tracking feature. I am looking forward to this being ported into ShowEQ. While SINS is actually a fork of ShowEQ from a while back, Xylobot is a program that runs on the same computer as EQ. It provides on screen maps as well as macros and a few other features. Of course the last alternative to ShowEQ, SINS and Xylobot is to just have a web browser open to EQAtlas and keep track of your position by hand using the /loc command. :)
Who are the developers of ShowEQ?
That is a good question. It shows that you care, and want to be a part of a community that hugs each other all the time. I will try and list them... but my memory sucks as bad as my spelling. Ratt, Fee, Zaphod, Casey, Ashran (inactive), Cpphack, Dohpaz... and probably more I forgot. Also, there is NOTHING stopping YOU from helping the ShowEQ project! That's right, you yourself can even submit code and help ShowEQ become (insert what you want to do here).
If ShowEQ is on sourceforge.net, shouldn't it be open source?
Yes, and it is! That was a very smart question. Now, we know you are asking this because you want the source to the libEQ.a file. This file USED to be distributed with the ShowEQ source on CVS, but eventually someone pointed out that since the source to this file is unavailable it is against the GPL. So, ShowEQ was made so that it can optionally use this file... and the download was placed separately from CVS. See the file "README.libEQ" file from CVS for download info.
What hardware/distribution do YOU recommend?
First of all, I don't feel that there is ONE single Linux distribution that is hands down the best. It all depends on what you want out of it, how skilled you are and how much time you have. I personally used RedHat 7.2 and Mandrake 8.1. I have switched entirely to Mandrake 8.1 because i feel it is faster. It was optimized for the i586 (Pentium+) platform and it is my (humble) opinion that it makes it faster and more responsive. It is also VERY well suited to the beginner Linux user. It has a very easy to use and pretty installer and once installed has many easy to use apps which... are you guessed it... pretty. Other options include (but are not limited to) RedHat, Debian... whelp, that was my list of Linux distributions. go to linuxiso.org for more distributions.
Hardware wise, I would say go with the best you can afford. Personally, I don't think I would want to run it on anything less than a P2 processor with about 64mb of ram, but I know for a fact that it can run on a P133. While Linux will run on pretty much anything, the faster the better. Generally, your 2nd or 3rd generation Windows(tm) computer should work fine. You will most likely need a 2+GB drive, and that will be pushing it very close to being full. A half decent video card helps, but it runs fairly well on a 2mb video card.
Does ShowEQ work with the EverQuest Emulators that are available?
Truthfully, I don't actually know. I don't think they do, but I also think I read a post about someone who had gotten it to work and posted a patch someplace.
Did you know that I can't run EverQuest in a window?
Yes, we know that The Man doesn't want you to run EverQuest in a window. Nor do they want you to be able to alt-tab out of The Man's world. By using the program EQW, you can leave and enter their world at anytime. You can find it here.
Are you stupid? That last question/answer wasn't even related to ShowEQ in anyway. What is your problem?
Yes, actually not only am I stupid I'm retarded as well.
I have a question that isn't in this list, if its good will you add it?
Of course! If it saves on the number of stupid posts made to these forums you can bet your ass I will add it to this thread/post.
Who the hell are you?
No one you know or care about. I was just bored and couldn't sleep, so I wrote this in hopes that this poor forum would not get flooded with these stupid questions over and over and over again. My only hope is that the thread gets made sticky and everyone is forced by a large hairy man to read this the first time they come to the board.
I really enjoy eating my own buggers. Is this going to interfere with my using ShowEQ?
No, eating your own buggers should not interfere in any predictable way with using ShowEQ.
I don't want to piss anyone off, but I would like to point out that a lot of the developers are pretty mean. What is up with that?
Well, I will try and answer this to the best of my ability based on my opinion and my observations over the past nearly 2 years. Nearly all of the intelligent Linux users who also use ShowEQ start out with the best of intentions. If you go back in time, you would find that both Ratt and Casey were very nice and tried to help everyone they could. Another good example is Ahimus (and I'm sure I have the spelling wrong) who wrote a VERY good install guide for RedHat 7.1 and answered many questions, but has since disappeared off the face of the earth. They answered the same question over and over and over again. At some point, they snapped and decided that answering the same stupid post time after time after time was a waste of their time. Then they got mean. Right now, Zaphod is in the helpful stage and I am in the helpful -> asshole stage. If you ask a stupid question, I will call you a dumb ass while helping you.
I play Dark Age of Camelot and for some reason ShowEQ doesn't work with it. When are they going to make it work?
I know you aren't really asking this questions, because it is a very dumb one right? Well just in case you didn't know... the "ShowEQ" for DAoC is called "Odinseye" and can be found right here on these forums!
fryfrog
06-27-2002, 08:34 AM
i was reading it over the other day when you mentioned it, and didn't realize how long it was. i didn't wanna piss anyone off by pasting the whole thing at once... and i sure as hell didn't feel like posting it in the single Q/A per post :)
hope ya use some of them, i especially like the sarcastic ones ;)
**oh, i was thinking... you might want to attribute questions to people. that way, if someone has a problem with any of the sarcastic (or insulting ones) they will know who to come and beat up ;)
Twinky
07-05-2002, 11:12 PM
Originally posted by high_jeeves
Q. Where do I download ShowEQ?
A. From the unix command prompt type (without quotes):
"cvs -d:pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq login". Press enter when asked for a password (the password is blank). Next, type "cvs -d:pserver:
[email protected]:/cvsroot/seq co showeq". This will download the source and maps for ShowEQ.
Just did this with a blank password and got ..
cvs Login: authorization failed: server cvs.sourceforge.net rejected acess to /cvsroot/seq for anonymous
high_jeeves
07-05-2002, 11:22 PM
As is found elsewhere on these boards... the cvs server is at maximum load when you get this message (or you typed something wrong)... Try again in a few minutes/hours..
--Jeeves
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.1.11 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.