The Enhanced Description Box, also known as EDB, was the core around which HAM was built. EDB was completed in October 2008, and integrated into JA2 1.13 shortly thereafter by ChrisL. It is now an integral part of any JA2 1.13 version made after that date. Although it is not strictly a HAM feature (it was a separate project finished before HAM), this is widely considered the very first HAM feature.
History
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JA2 1.13 comes packaged with over 1100 different items. Each and every item in the game is unique, having its own effects and properties. This is especially true for weapons, which have so many different variables affecting their performance, that they required an entirely separate 340k XML file to hold all that information.
The only information we get about most items inside the game is their name and weight. Weapons show a little bit more than that, including Firing Speed and Damage. Other than this, if you can't glean information from the item's textual description, you're left to test the item or guess at its properties.
Many JA2 players seem to find this somewhat annoying, especially when there are so many items to choose from and so little space to carry them all. This is especially true for guns, because it can be exceptionally difficult to tell guns apart just by firing them, due to limited feedback from the game and the randomal aspects and myriad factors related to gun use. Choosing which gun to carry can be a true conundrum, which most players aren't willing to suffer.
The solution is very simple, because all of that data is stored in XML files which can be read with Notepad. If the player wants to find out some information about a specific item, all they have to do is learn to read the XML, which isn't particularly hard. So the information is available, but still requires the player to go through the annoying process of ALT-TABbing out of the game, examining the file, then going back into the game. It also makes comparing between items overly complicated.
EDB was born to solve this problem. It compiles all of the most relevant pieces of data, and shows them neatly arraged inside the game. EDB is all about making life easier.
Enhanced Description Box
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Enhanced Description Box:![]() |
Features
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INI Settings
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The Enhanced Description Box has only one INI setting. This is not used to turn EDB on and off, but rather to decide where/when EDB will appear in-game.
USE_ENHANCED_DESCRIPTION_BOX
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Effect | Controls when EDB is used instead of the Old Description Box (ODB) | |
Range | 0,1,2 | |
HAM Recommended Setting | 0 | EDB will be shown when right-clicking items in both Tactical and Strategic Screens |
Other Values | 1 | EDB is shown when right-clicking items in the Strategic Screen only. In the Tactical Screen, ODB is shown. |
2 | EDB is shown when right-clicking items in the Tactical Screen only. In the Strategic Screen, ODB is shown. | |
Note |
EDB can be turned on and off using your in-game Options Menu. |
See Also
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Enhanced Description Box Icons