Online Table of Custom Map Data

Started by mopa42, May 18, 2012, 09:47:06 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

mopa42

I've been working on another Creeper World program: browsing custom maps with more control.
I'd like to present the web page I made that has a table of data for CW2 custom maps.
Be aware that the table on the page makes heavy use of javascript and there will be a slight delay as your browser renders the page initially.

The table has all sorts of information about each map such as title, downloads, number of emitters, whether it has a custom background, etc. You can sort and filter away to find maps that interest you, like maps with custom backgrounds, or maps with experimentals and only one emitter, or maps with the least number of scores.
The web page isn't quite finished yet - I'd like to add the ability to filter out maps you've already played. But I'm sharing it now because it is pretty usable as is.

My interest in this project was sparked by various comments in the forums about searching for custom maps. That sounded like a fun and useful problem to solve. Originally I was making another downloadable java app, but I was inspired to do something completely different. I really enjoyed working on this project because I got to explore new aspects of development, like databases, javascript, and web site design. And that's the fun part of programming - learning new stuff.

Anyway, I present the data in the hope that it's useful - so let me know if it works, if it's helpful, or if you have any comments about how it can be made better. In particular, I could add another bit of information for each map or make a new report to sort and filter the data in an interesting way - I'm open to suggestions.

Cavemaniac


Dude!

Epic effort!

You'll end up working for Knuckle Cracker at this rate!

Wonder if Virgil has picked his development team for CW4 yet...!
Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken.

Karsten75

It includes a certain Dax.  Just not Joven  :P

J

Great work! Only one suggestion: Can you make the author visible on all charts?

mopa42

Quote from: J on May 22, 2012, 11:35:00 AM
Great work! Only one suggestion: Can you make the author visible on all charts?
Sure thing. Now all the reports will show at least the map's ID and author (though the author column can still be hidden like any other column).

Fisherck

I like this a lot! This should be stickied! :)
My CW2 Maps
My CW1 Maps
Quote from: Sqaz on August 28, 2011, 02:49:35 PM
The comments are here to comment, dare to use them.

teknotiss

i second the sticky this thread request.
this table of map data is excellent
"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.... Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.... Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?.... Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?" --- Epicurus

mopa42

I'm working on improving my website but it will be a while before it's polished.
I added a column to the table for recording which maps you've played. If anyone wants to preview my half-working draft, check out http://aguakandra.com/mapdata2.php. Should be pretty cool once I get the bugs out - now you can filter out maps you've already played.

lurkily

Nice.  I notice there's no 'rating' format.  Think it'd be possible to sort by the result of up votes, minus down votes?

mopa42

I added a couple of fields: Rating, which is upvotes-downvotes, and Play Ratio, which is scores/downloads.

Anybody have suggestions on more data or statistics you'd like to view about the maps?

ea3401

Number of comments could be an indicator for interesting maps.

lurkily

Mmmmm, that's not always indicative . . . I like the rating metric, (of course, I suggested it,) but I like the play ratio even better.

mopa42

Wow, can't believe I missed including the number of comments. My script even reads it in, it just didn't save it.

Easy enough to add (back) in to the table.

mopa42

#13
Now with 40% more awesome! While I wait for CW3, I've been working some more on this web page and there's a couple of new features I'm excited to share with you all.

  • All data is automatically updated daily. The stats you see should never be more than 24 hours old.
  • You can open any row to see details about the map, like the tile images it uses
  • New ranking charts display graphically where the map ranks on each of the 14 numeric categories that the site tracks.
  • And a couple of minor features, like download links now open in a new tab and the categories have tool-tips for what they are.

This is still a work in progress, so if you have suggestions, feedback, or want to help, just let me know.
Go check it out at aguakandra.com/mapdata.php. Look up your favorite author or your own maps to see where they rank.

The screenshot below shows where Map #1 ranks in terms of downloads, # of emitters, map height, and play ratio (percent of downloads with a score).

Marley

This is amazing.  (Yes, I just found it now.)  Thank you!