Cool Tools 2 Program to help DMs by Keith Usher
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Cool Tools 2.0 Release Notes
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This document provides information about setting up, installing, and
using Cool Tools 2.0.
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1. Setting up and installing Cool Tools
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To set up and install Cool Tools, do the following:
1. Download, unzip, and install the latest Java JRE (from
http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.0/download.html, for example).
Cool Tools is only guaranteed to run against Java 1.5.0 or
higher.
2. Unzip CoolTools.zip, preserving the CoolTools directory structure.
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2. Running Cool Tools
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To run Cool Tools, double-click the CoolTools2.jar file.
NOTE: If the program fails to start, ensure that your PATH environment
variable includes the full pathname to the JRE bin directory.
Your actual JRE pathname may be different from the examples
shown below:
For Windows:
set path=C:\Program Files\Java\jre1.5.0\bin;%path%
For UNIX:
setenv $PATH /opt/usr/java/bin:$PATH
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3. Using Cool Tools
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Cool Tools contains the following tools:
* Domain Editor: This tool allows you to view all of the domains
in the 3.5 SRD and add, edit, and delete your own custom domains.
* Equipment Editor: This tool allows you to view all of the
equipment in the 3.5 SRD and add, edit, and delete your own
custom equipment.
* Monster Editor: This tool allows you to view all of the monsters
in the 3.5 SRD and add, edit, and delete your own custom monsters.
* Spell Editor: This tool allows you to view all of the spells in the
3.5 SRD and add, edit, and delete your own custom spells.
* Traps Editor: This tool allows you to view all of the example
traps in the 3.5 SRD and add, edit, and delete your own custom
traps.
All of the editors contain an export button that enables you to
write the content of an unlimited number of items to an HTML file
for easy viewing and printing.
* Dice Roller: This tool allows you roll from 1 to 100 4-sided,
6-side, 8-sided, 12-sided, or 20-sided dice. Optionally, you can
drop the lowest die roll and add any amount to the dice roll total.
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Using the editors
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To access one of the editors, run Cool Tools and click the
corresponding editor button.
Navigating the items
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To navigate the available items, either select a item from the
Select item drop-down list or use the First, Previous, Next, and
Last buttons.
Adding items
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To add a new custom item, do the following:
1. Click the New button.
2. Enter the required and appropriate information for the new item.
The following fields are required: Name, School, Level,
Components, Casting Time, Range, Target (or Area or Effect),
Duration, Short Description, Description, and Reference.
3. Click the Save button to save the new item. (Click Cancel to
abandon the new item.)
Deleting items
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To delete a custom item, do the following:
1. Display the item you want to delete.
2. Click the Delete button. (You cannot delete items contained in
the SRD.)
3. Confirm the deletion of the item when prompted.
Editing items
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To edit a custom item, do the following:
1. Display the item you want to edit.
2. Click the Edit button. (You cannot edit items contained in
the SRD.)
3. Make the appropriate changes to the item.
4. Click the Save button to save the edits. (Click Cancel to
abandon the edits.)
Exporting items
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To export one or more items to an HTML file, do the
following:
1. Click the Export button to access the Export
dialog box.
2. Enter a name for the item in the List Name field.
3. Using the < and > buttons, move the items that you want to
appear in the list from the All Items list to the
Items in List list. (You cannot create a list with
more than 100 items. On slower computers, the program may even
encounter problems creating a list with more than 50
itemss.)
4. Click the Export button to create the HTML file.
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Dice Roller
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To access the Dice Roller, run Cool Tools and click the Dice Roller
button.
To roll the dice, do the following:
1. Select the type of dice (4-, 6-, 8-, 12-, 20-, or 100-sided) from
the Dice Type drop-down list.
2. Select the number of dice from the Number of Dice drop-down list.
3. If you want to drop the value of the lowest die, check the Drop
Lowest Die checkbox.
4. If you want to add a value to the result, enter that value in the
Add to Result field.
5. Click the Roll button as many times as needed to roll the dice.
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Keyboard-only Access
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If you are using only the keyboard to use Cool Tools, use Ctrl-Tab
(rather than Tab) to navigate the fields and buttons. Use the
arrow keys to navigate tab panes on the Monster Editor dialog box.
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Warnings!
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XML Data Storage
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Cool Tools stores its data in xml files (contained in
the resources folder). You should never edit these files
directly because doing so can corrupt them and cause the program
to fail.
If you corrupt either the spells.xml, spells.dtd, monsters.xml, or
monsters.dtd, you should delete the corrupted file and replace it
with the original version on the ZIP file.
If you corrupt one of the custom files (customspells.xml or
custommonsters.xml), delete the corrupted file and Cool Tools will
generate a new version of this file for you. (Unfortunately,
any custom records in those files will be lost.)
Do NOT use embedded XML or HTML
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You must not use embedded XML or HTML when adding or editing
custom monsters or spells. Embedded XML or HTML can cause corruption
of the custom files or result in strange HTML output. Just don’t
do it.
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Copyright (c) 2005 Keith Uher. All rights reserved.
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This document is confidential and proprietary property of Keith Uher
and shall not be modified, transferred or otherwise used, in whole or
in part, without written permission or instruction from Keith Uher
([email protected]).
