'encrypted' mission.sqms

[Mikero]

Am currently working on tools that will supply 'encrypted', aka 'compressed', 'script' files. Lots of ' here so let me explain.

mission.sqm files sometimes, but not often, come in a compressed format that has nothing to do with compression aka zip style, nor even 'encrypted' in the sense that their isn't some some key or secret value to decrypt them. The word came about in early days of examining the various files making up some of the 'official' campaigns where it was assumed, reasonably, that bis didn't want us to know all the nut's 'n bolts.

Later work, especially by Bas, and especially by Amalfi decoded the nature of these unusual mission.sqms and wrote programs accordingly to turn them back into humanly readable text.

The programs that have more, rather than less, got it right are binview.exe from Bas, and the reverse tool, cpp2bin.exe from amalfi. DeSQM by I dunno.

There's some reasonable tutes on the contents of these files, one of them is mine here . Not that I'm any great shakes at it or had the last word, it's a jump of point.

Secondly, the nature of these so-called 'binary' files are simply hash tables of names and values that can occur in any given mission.sqm, config.cpp, or description.ext. All of these files have common characteristics, notably the use of classes and thus 'work well' as, again, so-called,  'binary' files.

So, to the meat in the sandwich.

Recently Thobson posted for suggestions on reducing engine load. Because I think that these 'binary' files are direct representations of internal engine workings, that alone would suggest some improvement in crunch speed (because it no longer has to compile text scripts)

I _am_ currently using Amalfi's cpp2bin utility, I _will_ be trying out Bis's binarize.exe, and I have started writing my own tool to do similar. All with the view that the end result *might* result in faster performing pbo files (both addon and missions)

So, I'm just throwing this topic up for discussion in the hope we can all get some useful information.