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General discussionRunning games from the Dropbox folder(7 posts)(7 posts)
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Posted January 30, 2018
I'm just wondering if anyone else does this.

I'm using the ZDL launcher with GZDoom and Project Brutality to run Doom and Doom 2 from my Dropbox folder. It works great, because my saves and configuration files get synchronized between my home and work computer, making the games completely portable.
What's especially cool is that GZDoom names the configuration files after the user that is logged in, meaning I have a file called SjurHome.ini, which is configured for my ultra-wide screen at home, and a file called SjurWork.ini, which is configured for my work laptop. When I run the game, GZDoom loads the appropriate file depending on which computer I'm on. And saves are not dependent on user, so they work normally with both computers. ZDL also remembers all file paths correctly on both computers. It couldn't be more perfect!

I tried it with Evil Genius as well. It synchronized saves just fine, but I had to change resolution every time I switched computers.

Do you know any other games that could be made portable? I would like to have a folder full of portable games that are always ready to play. I want to hear your suggestions!
Posted January 30, 2018
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Sjurdur: I'm just wondering if anyone else does this.

I'm using the ZDL launcher with GZDoom and Project Brutality to run Doom and Doom 2 from my Dropbox folder. It works great, because my saves and configuration files get synchronized between my home and work computer, making the games completely portable.
What's especially cool is that GZDoom names the configuration files after the user that is logged in, meaning I have a file called SjurHome.ini, which is configured for my ultra-wide screen at home, and a file called SjurWork.ini, which is configured for my work laptop. When I run the game, GZDoom loads the appropriate file depending on which computer I'm on. And saves are not dependent on user, so they work normally with both computers. ZDL also remembers all file paths correctly on both computers. It couldn't be more perfect!

I tried it with Evil Genius as well. It synchronized saves just fine, but I had to change resolution every time I switched computers.

Do you know any other games that could be made portable? I would like to have a folder full of portable games that are always ready to play. I want to hear your suggestions!
That's taking the definition of portable a bit far. You are effectively drm'ing your software in an online system. Also, you will not be able to run old or low resource games and effectivley the whole thing has to go back and forth across the internet. A far simpler solution, and the way most will portabilise is to install a game on and external drive of some sort, apply a nocd where needed and then plug that in, it occasionally works that simple, but a lot of the time there are path requireements, extensions and drivers, settings, reg entries etc. That make the process difficult. Portableapps.com for instance is a site which portabilises apps (some games).
Posted January 30, 2018
Wouldn't windows just see this as a network or mapped drive?

Or at least you can set it up this way. I know with Azure you can do it for an example:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/files/storage-how-to-use-files-windows

Onedrive:

http://www.thewindowsclub.com/map-cloud-storage-drive-windows

Seems to be a fair number of programs that help with this as well:

https://www.google.com/search?q=cloud+storage+as+a+network+drive
Posted January 30, 2018
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nightcraw1er.488: Also, you will not be able to run old or low resource games and effectivley the whole thing has to go back and forth across the internet.
No. It doesn't.
Dropbox (and most other similar solutions) have a folder that gets synchronized. So you have a local "dropbox" folder that will get uploaded to the cloud, and the other machines will also download it locally. When a file changes (and in games that should mean saves and/or settings, not game files), that file will be uploaded to the cloud and then distributed to the other machines. Should dropbox suddenly disappear, the local folders will still be there, though they will no longer be able to synchronize through dropbox.
There should be a couple of software that don't even need the cloud for syncing, like BTSync I had used back in the day, but those still require the files locally.
Posted January 30, 2018
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nightcraw1er.488: Also, you will not be able to run old or low resource games and effectivley the whole thing has to go back and forth across the internet.
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JMich: No. It doesn't.
Dropbox (and most other similar solutions) have a folder that gets synchronized. So you have a local "dropbox" folder that will get uploaded to the cloud, and the other machines will also download it locally. When a file changes (and in games that should mean saves and/or settings, not game files), that file will be uploaded to the cloud and then distributed to the other machines. Should dropbox suddenly disappear, the local folders will still be there, though they will no longer be able to synchronize through dropbox.
There should be a couple of software that don't even need the cloud for syncing, like BTSync I had used back in the day, but those still require the files locally.
but that's still obviously DRM, though, because... reasons... and DRM!
Posted January 30, 2018
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nightcraw1er.488: Also, you will not be able to run old or low resource games and effectivley the whole thing has to go back and forth across the internet.
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JMich: No. It doesn't.
Dropbox (and most other similar solutions) have a folder that gets synchronized. So you have a local "dropbox" folder that will get uploaded to the cloud, and the other machines will also download it locally. When a file changes (and in games that should mean saves and/or settings, not game files), that file will be uploaded to the cloud and then distributed to the other machines. Should dropbox suddenly disappear, the local folders will still be there, though they will no longer be able to synchronize through dropbox.
There should be a couple of software that don't even need the cloud for syncing, like BTSync I had used back in the day, but those still require the files locally.
Ok, wasn't aware of that. Suppose it would assuming you could afford the cost and control the syncing. Still think pen drive is a better solution, not tracked, fixed cost, fully under your control, accessible without net connection. Dropbox solution, do t have to carry a tiny piece of plastic around....
Posted January 30, 2018
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nightcraw1er.488: do t have to carry a tiny piece of plastic around....
And internal drive speeds instead of usb speeds. Depending on your disk and pen drive, it could be that the pen drive would be the bottleneck, not the computer you're running the program on.
So you go with a non-centralized syncing solution and you get all the benefits without any of the problems.
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General discussionRunning games from the Dropbox folder(7 posts)(7 posts)
(7 posts)