This is 2 separate issues: How to use the existing design, and whether to change the design.
Run old replay on new level in 0.9Run the replay with pointedTo. This ignores the level's copy inside the replay file. The replay will instead play against the level named in the line $FILENAME of the replay file.
Selecting "pointed to" seems to have no effect. IDK what I'm doing wrong. I've tried this several times on different levels and usually it hasn't worked
Define "has no effect"/"hasn't worked": You click pointedTo and the level browser stays open? You click pointedTo, the browser closes, a game opens and replays, but it's not the desired version of the level?
As Forestidia explained, examine $FILENAME in the replay. Does it point to the correct level?
Don't use Windows Notepad, it cannot
display text files with Unix line endings understand Unix line endings, which is a 30-year-old bug. Use a reasonable text editor, of which there are many.
In particular, in the standard Lix distribution, Clam's levels sit in
single/clam/, not in
single/ClamLix/. I remember getting replays from mobius that point to
single/ClamLix/. It's perfectly fine to have a separate working copy, merely don't get confused to where a replay points.
Why save copy into replay?Yes, it is redundant, but I accept it nonetheless for convenience of level authors.
When author A releases small pack on the forums, player B sends replays back to A, then, since copies of the levels are saved in the replay file, A can always watch the replays. It was not necessary for A and B to agree on where the levels should reside in the level tree.
Furthermore, A can be 100 % certain which version of a level B has played. The editor timestamps levels inside the file (line $BUILT), but the entire copy is even better.
Improve stuffThe pointed-to level is nowhere explained when you run replay with pointedTo. I should display the pointed-to level path somewhere. This might have already helped with your issue.
I'm open to discuss save-level-into-replay-yes/no after we've fixed your problem with pointedTo.
I'm open to discussion to improve Forestidia's hassle to manage replays inside the replay browser. See issues
#109 and
#102.
-- Simon