Maybe a small tutorial? Like how to put commodities in the list? There is also nothing listed in the dropdown boxes. I may not be doing something correctly.
I can do that for you since I'm not playing right now.
This all assumes you are using a windows machine not a Mac, and that you have a basic understanding of how to do simple file manipulation and text file editing using notepad. At the time of writing (version 1.3a) you need to download the most current .zip file (listed in the first message of this thread), and unzip it (I unzip it to desktop, you can put it wherever you like). You'll have a folder "Cmdr's Log" and inside it you'll see three files named Cmdr's Log.exe, commodity_data.txt, and station_data.txt. The app will also created a fourth file called system_data.txt which is where it records all the information you enter. The .exe file is the one you double click to make the program run, commodity_data.txt holds a list of all known commodities, and station_data.txt holds a list of three variables: economies, allegiances, and governments. You may add items to either of the .txt files as you see fit (while the app is NOT running) and they will appear in the app with two caveats: if you CHANGE EXISTING INFORMATION in the commodities_data.txt you must make THE SAME CHANGES in the system_data.txt file (assuming you've already entered one or more stations data), and you must follow THE SAME FORMAT as is already in the files.
To explain that, in the station data file you will see the following:
Station Data
{
Economies
{
"Item 1"
"Item 2"
"Item 3"
}
Allegiances
{
"Item 1"
"Item 2"
"Item 3"
}
Governments
{
"Item 1"
"Item 2"
"Item 3"
}
}
You may change any of the "items" or add any items to the list as long as they stay within the brackets { } but you may not add any new groups.
Similarly the commodity file looks like this:
Commodities
{
Group Name
{
"Item 1"
"Item 2"
"Item 3"
}
Another Group Name
{
"Item 1"
"Item 2"
"Item 3"
}
}
You may add groups, and add items to groups as you wish as long as you keep to this format, but CHANGING EXISTING ITEMS requires you to change the same items in the system data file. EG: If you rename "Slaves" to "ycats" in the commodity file you must find every instance of "Slaves" in the system file and change that to "ycats" as well.
To use it
The recommended method is to run ED in borderless mode and alt-tab to the cmdr's log app, or use a second computer, but whatever method works for you is fine. Double click the Cmdr's Log file to start the program, then start ED. You'll see the main window open but the System/Station list will be empty if this is the first time you've run it. In ED go to a station and open the commodity market, then alt-tab to the log. At the bottom of the list click "Add" and a new window will open asking for Star System and Station Name which you can enter here then press OK. (Note that if you're adding a second station at a previously visited system you can use the pulldown to select that system.) The Station you've entered should now appear on the list. You can also enter the station's Economy, Government, and Allegiance types and whether it has a black market, as well as your own notes by pressing the "Notes" button.
To enter commodities, left click the station name (and if you're not using a separate computer click "Data Entry Mode" below the middle column. This will open a window which will stay on top and allow you to see both ED and the window at the same time. Useful eh?). Now Look at the ED market window and if it says Animal Meat is in High Demand, right click Animal Meat on the log and select High Demand. If Biowaste is in Low Supply, copy that information to the log. (You can also use the radio buttons to set demand levels if you're not using the "data entry mode" window, this works well if you prefer keyboard entry instead of mouse). If you look at ED's system map and click on the station you'll find what items are prohibited there and you can enter these into the log as "Illegal!". You don't have to copy it all, you can copy as much or as little as you want. When you're finished press the "close" button if you're using the separate data entry window.
If you're returning to a previously visited station, quickly scan the market and the log to see if any items have changed. If so copy those changes across. It's a good idea to "refresh" all the items once you've checked them - to do this mark them all (clock the top one, then hold down shift and click the bottom one) and press "Mark Current", which will list them all as new entries. Again, only if you want.
Once you've entered a few stations it becomes usable. For simple trading runs highlight the station you're at in the left column. In the right column you can tell it to select High/Med/Low Supply/Demand products to trade - High to High gives the best profit generally. If it shows several commodities you can trade look in ED's market window and compare the "buy" and "galactic average" prices for those items - generally the item with the biggest difference will make you the best profit PER ITEM (but remember if you're short on money - it may be better to carry 10 cheaper items with a 200cr profit than one expensive one with a 500cr profit). If you want to go to a particular station (eg: you're at an industrial station and you get a mission to bring back fruit & veg, so you want an agricultural station but you don't want to go there empty) select it in the Pull Down in the right side. The window in the right will select goods that are sold in the station you're at and are bought in the station you wish to go to... and if you've selected to go to "anywhere" it will suggest the stations to go to for those trades. If you need a certain commodity (eg: for a mission) you can select that in your list and press "NEED" and it'll tell you stations which supply it. If you have a commodity you wish to get rid of, select it and press "HAVE" and it'll tell you who wants it.
That's pretty much it. You can set any items with no data in them to be "none" if you want, you can elect to hide items that are "not set" or have "none" if you wish. You can delete and rename stations (though I'm told there's some issues if you need to rename the system it's in if you put the wrong system - not done that myself). Oh and you can search through the station data and the notes you entered for a string in the top left corner.
Hope this helps. Have fun.
