Authors CurseForge

at the moment i use http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/info9370-EasyRage.html for Rage but i'd like to make my own addon like this.

i'd like to add other stuff to it also but for now i would like to just get going what that addon has.

i do not wish to copy it i don't know where i'd like to go with it.

So.. whats the point of this thread? You basically said "I want to make a similar addon, I don't have any idea on what to change, but I don't want it to be exactly the same.", and you didn't ask a question.

sorry i was really tired when i posted that. sorta can't sleep been napping on and off.

how can i make something like that is what i'm asking. i'm brand new to this also >.<

alright thanks i'll double post when i make it. thanks ppl ^_^

ok i'm getting a bit overwhelmed and frustrated.

I've figured out i need to use Unit Power, Unit Power type, and making the frame drag-able. I'm at a loss of where do go from here tho.

Where do i read on how to make this frame for the unit power? All i've found is to put it into chat

do i have to xfer the data from chat to the frame?

i'm confused.

Dry-coded, but this should be a workable example.

local f = CreateFrame("Frame",nil,UIParent)
f:SetFrameStrata("BACKGROUND")
f:SetBackdrop({bgFile = "Interface/Tooltips/UI-Tooltip-Background",  edgeFile = "Interface/Tooltips/UI-Tooltip-Border", tile = true, tileSize = 16, edgeSize = 16, insets = { left = 4, right = 4, top = 4, bottom = 4 }});
f:SetBackdropColor(0,0,0,1);

f:SetWidth(80)
f:SetHeight(80)

local ftext = CreateFontString(nil, "OVERLAY", "GameTooltipText")
ftext:SetPoint("CENTER",f) 
ftext:SetText("MY TEXT HERE")

f:SetPoint("CENTER",0,0)
f:Show()

erm that made me even more confused and frustrated. i didn't really want you to write the code for me or something. atm i'm not even sure where to put it.

i do understand whats there tho.

umm this might be a good time to mention i haven't tried loading anything in game yet.

i think my problem is i want to read what i need to read and not all this other stuff cux all this other stuff is making me mad.

What do i need to read to make a moveable text box that displays the unit's power.

i've read the following:

http://www.wowwiki.com/API_UnitPower
http://www.wowwiki.com/API_UnitPowerType
http://www.wowwiki.com/Making_Draggable_Frames

There's only two ways to help someone write code, point them at documentation or write the code for them. Both of which were done in this thread. If said docs are making you mad, then perhaps you don't have the aptitude for coding.

Conversely, there's only two ways to learn how to code, read documentation and look at other people's code.

See the similarities?

egingell, what i'm saying is i feel like i'm not getting anywhere with anything i read. it just leads to more unanswered questions. I want to learn it i really do but at the moment it feels like i'm in a sea of information that i can't piece together to make something of. it's not like i haven't completed the simple HelloWorld tutorial but everything i read makes more questions and from those questions come more questions which i can't find an answer to. Maybe i'm just getting a little ahead of myself. i think i'll complete the Show Me The Money Tutorial then read some more stuff.

Btw is there like a list or an explanation of what some of theses xml/lua are for in Blizzard Interface Data folder?

Alright let me know if i got this straight.

i need to do the following:
create a frame
make an event handler
make the event for rage
i need to put the event in an edit box as text
i need to set the base value to player
then i need to make the whole thing drag-able

Basically yes, though I'd go at it in this order:

1) Create a frame.
2) Add a font string to your frame.
3) Make your frame draggable.
4) Set an event handler on your frame.
5) Register the appropriate event(s) on your frame.
6) When your event handler is called, set the text of your font string.

i'm having problems figuring out which is xml and which is lua. i understand lua is script and xml is look and feel. it feels as if i missing something or i didn't read something. also just putting this stuff in seems i'm missing alot of filler of code that i don't know about.

Quote from ET20

i'm having problems figuring out which is xml and which is lua. i understand lua is script and xml is look and feel. it feels as if i missing something or i didn't read something. also just putting this stuff in seems i'm missing alot of filler of code that i don't know about.

The bolded part is wrong. Lua and XML are simply two different file types. You can have Lua code in an XML file, and you can have code that performs the same function as XML in a Lua file. You do not need an XML file to have an addon, and most addons do not use an XML file, as it is generally simpler to just create frames in Lua than in XML.

You may find the following pages on WoWWiki useful:

http://www.wowwiki.com/API_CreateFrame
http://www.wowwiki.com/Making_Draggable_Frames (see the "Lua only approach" section near the bottom of the page)

You can also look at my addon Speedometer for a very simple example of a draggable frame that displays a single text string, all in pure Lua:

http://wowinterface.com/downloads/info8726-Speedometer.html

True, but XML is so icky that nobody should want that! :p

so how does this all relate to the ace3? i understand ace3 is a collection of libs for reuse among other addons so i'm guessing nothing in ace3 has to do with my addon.

Phanx:
Is there a tool to look at ur code better it's not entirely neat like some i have looked at. Like it's all 1 line almost. Also what is the purpose of the xml file then if it is purely Lua?

Quote from ET20

so how does this all relate to the ace3? i understand ace3 is a collection of libs for reuse among other addons so i'm guessing nothing in ace3 has to do with my addon.

Ace3 simplifies a lot of stuff, and reuses code for other things. Any addon can be done with or without Ace3, its just easier to do some things in it.

Quote from ET20

Is there a tool to look at ur code better it's not entirely neat like some i have looked at. Like it's all 1 line almost. Also what is the purpose of the xml file then if it is purely Lua?

How the code looks is up to the person that writes it. There are many editors that will help you with formatting (while writing code), but its a fact of life: when looking at other people's code, it will often be messy and hard to follow because they don't write code the same as you do.

XML is largely irrelevant now. At the time of WoW's release you couldn't do frames entirely with LUA, or even do much manipulation of frames with LUA. In a later patch, (1.10, I think) CreateFrame was added to LUA, and in subsequent patches other frame-affecting functions were added. This made it possible to do anything XML can do in LUA.

XML frame-creation is simply part of WoW's engine, its up to you whether to use LUA or XML. *WE* consider LUA to be better, but it is every author's choice and opinion.