[Programming] Bin Editing

[Drakiazuu]

I have searched and searched for a tutorial on how to edit the interface within Starcraft, but have been unable to find any. I have Binedit, and have worked with it for a while trying to understand it. What I'd like to do is reference information like what kinds of units you have and display it along the side of the screen, with a mouse over effect so it isn't always such a distraction. Hopefully I will understand things a lot more after this to be able to figure out things for myself from there, and won't need help for the rest of this.
I'm creating a mod and map that go together, and I'd like to display information regarding territories along the side of the screen. This information would have to come from the Map triggers though, and I was wondering if that's possible, or if I would have to do more extensive reprogramming of the game.
If this isn't possible, then the workaround I thought of would be to modify the chat/text output so it extends along the side of screen top to bottom, then have the triggers output information regarding the territories.
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!

[Lavarinth]

Editing Bin files will only take affect if using an MPQ, therefore if wont work out too well over Battle.net unless you make a Battle.net friendly MPQ that everyone is running to play the map itself.

While it is possible to inject information into the screen of the game, much like in STF, this would also require a plugin and/or MPQ, that is required to be ran by all players. To my understanding, the most you can really mod StarCraft within a map without requiring external files like an EXE or MPQ is whatever is only possible in the map itself via an advanced editor.

[Church]

Another alternative, I suppose, would to just have everybody run SCMloader, but I guess that would be like having a mod file.

[Pr0nogo]

To have something like that, you'd need to edit the user interface of StarCraft with a .bin editor (I recommend BinEdit2). While I'm not sure if what you're going for is possible, that's where I would start.

To have this work over Battle.net, as Lavarinth stated, you need to have everyone in the game running the modified files. An untested way around this, however, is to take your modified .bin files, make a folder in your main StarCraft directory called 'rez', and put the .bin files into there (similar to how you can edit portraits and sounds in StarCraft without modding the core game). Again, I don't know if this will work (hence 'untested').

[Lavarinth]

I don't believe the folder trick works with BIN files.

[Pr0nogo]

Yeah, me neither. It doesn't work with the finer game-changing modifications like arr/ and scripts/.

[Drakiazuu]

I am making this as a mod for starcraft, it will have a modified MPQ as well as EXE. I'm assuming what I want to do has to be achieved through a plugin. I have been experimenting with plugins, and I believe understanding the .bin files and getting started with the plugin is all I need help with. I have the first map about 30-40% complete, but not quite as far on the mod itself.
I don't intend to use this over b.net. I host large lan-parties, and we run everything off a network drive with all the game data on it. Having everyone run the same version of the game is no problem. I will still release it online when it becomes playable.

[Lavarinth]

This doesn't require a plugin, you can create an MPQ and (if you wish) convert it with an SEMPQ.

That is to say- Editing a BIN doesn't require this. However, roll over effects and so forth would require a plugin much like you can experience in a game of STF (visit the subforum for STF as an example). I'll direct this topic to Hercanic to see if he has any input.