Ah, sir?
What's step 3?
Heh, funny. Sorry about that. This is a rough draft and a work in progress after all. Thanks for that correction, but is there anything else we can add to this guide to help people troubleshoot and fix their binds?
Level 50s:
BlackSpectre, Dark Defender (Guardian)
Thorin, Invul/Axe Tank (Justice)
Volcano Juice, Fire/Stone Tank
Professor ?, Mind/FF Controller
Stone Forge, Stone/Fire Tank
Yeah.
1. Using /bindsavefile lets you have a look at currently active binds. Something might have gone wrong without your knowing.
2. If all else fails, use the 'reset binds' button in the Options window before reapplying all your custom binds.
3. You could also manually unbind all keys instead of using the reset button. This is actually a cleaner solution except that even the game's default binds will be gone. Do this only if you know what you're doing or you'd just end up frustrating yourself.
Okey dokey. Here's my revised version with all of the suggestions people have made, plus a few others. If I've missed anything, or if there's anything else I can add or a way to phrase things more clearly, or if you have a suggestion to make this guide easier for people to follow, please let me know. Thanks.
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TROUBLESHOOTING BINDS
Or
Why Isn't This Thing Working??!!!
Troubleshooting binds is not necessarily an easy task. It often takes work, determination, and a relentless tenacity that would put the Terminator to shame. This entire Advanced Bind Guide can be viewed as one big troubleshooting manual, and that is indeed one of its intended purposes. That said, there are several standard things you can do to figure out why your bind doesn't work. Try the following steps one at a time and see if any one or all of them work for you. Your goal is to eliminate as many of these causes as possible and eventually narrow down the options to a single culprit. Remember, there might not be only one cause for an inoperable bind, but there might be many causes. Binds are finicky. If they're not perfect, they simply won't work.
Step 1: Save Your Current Binds
Before you start, it's a good idea to save all of the binds you currently have on your toon. You do this by using the "bind_save_file" command to save your binds in a text file, and you save that text file somewhere on your computer with the name of your choice. For example, /bind_save_file C:\mybinds\toon1.txt Later, if you like, you can even edit your binds in the text file itself using Notepad in Windows, save it, and then load the whole text file with all of your binds back onto your toon by using the "bind_load_file" command (e.g., /bind_load_file c:\mybinds\toon1.txt). This way, if you end up mucking things up, you can simply load your old binds back onto your toon without much hassle. Also, this might help you figure out if there is a bind conflict or some other error by looking at all your binds in the single file.
Step 2: Check The Bind's Syntax
"Syntax" is a general computing term that means how the bind is written. This is the most common binding error. For possible syntax errors, you want to check:
1. spellings (the "POWexec_name" command is often misspelled as "powERexec_name")
2. spaces (remove unnecessary spaces and make sure there's none at the end of the bind string)
3. format (are you using proper binding format; $$ separators between each command; correct tags, arguments, and variables for commands; the commands string is between quotes; etc.)
4. make sure the bind string is no longer than 255 characters including spaces (between the quotes)
Step 3: Check the Key Name
You may be using an incorrect key name. Some keys have 2 names, and perhaps one has been disabled by a game update. Check the name of the key you're using and make sure it's the "primary name" of the key, or just try another name for it.
Step 4: Check the Parsing
Parsing is the order in which the commands occur in the bind string. Some commands won't work if placed out of sequence with (either before or after) other commands.
Step 5: Is The Command "Over-Bound"?
Many commands can not be bound to more than 2 keys. It's a game restriction. Click on Menu, Options, Keymapping tab and review the list of commands. If the command you're using is assigned to 2 keys there, then it's possible that your bind won't work for this reason. The solution is to clear the conflicting command from one or both of the keys it's residing on. See the Clearing Binds section above.
Step 6: Reset The Key
Sometimes things just get mucked up. Use the /unbind <key> command to erase what you've done and reset the key to its default key binding, then try again. Sometimes you'll need to /unbind both the secondary and primary names of the key to fully reset it. The /unbind command is a great command to use when making or troubleshooting binds. It allows you to erase what you did, and put the key back to the way it was when you first created your toon.
Step 7: Try It On A Different Key
Sometimes certain binds don't work on certain keys. Don't ask me why. I don't know. Just try binding it to a different key and see if it works.
Step 8: Reset All Your Binds
It is sometimes a good idea to erase all of your binds on your toon to the default settings and start fresh. This will more often than not eliminate any bind conflicts that might be occurring. It also allows you to start fresh with a clean slate. Now try to create your bind again. See if it works. If it does, there is probably a bind conflict. Now recreate each of your toon's binds one at a time. When suddenly a bind doesn't work, it's probably the one that was conflicting with your other bind. Studying them will give you an idea of what to do next. Don't worry about erasing all of your binds because you've already saved them all in a text fileĀ
right? Right??? It's an easy thing just to load the whole text file with all of your binds back onto your toon.
TROUBLESHOOTING TEXT BINDS:
"Bind_load_file" is the single most important command for creating and using text binds. There are several potential things that might go wrong while using this command, and I'll list them below:
1. Make sure your text file is saved as a text (.txt) document with ANSI encoding (Notepad in Windows usually defaults to this, but check it anyway -- if you're using a different program to make the text file, try using Notepad... Start, Programs, Accessories, Notepad). Do not save it with formatting.
2. Make sure your path for the bindloadfile command (e.g., c:\mybinds\bindtest.txt) doesn't have any spaces in it. The game supports long file names but not spaces between file names or directories. Or, if you prefer to save your files in a directory with spaces in its name, then convert the name into the MS DOS 8.3 standard naming convention to translate the long directory/file names into a form the game can understand. Instructions are in this Guide. Oh, and make sure you have the correct path to the text file in you bind string. Eh, it happens.
3. Make sure there are no spaces or carriage returns before the first bind string or after the last bind string in the document. The bind will generate an error if there are blank spaces or carriage returns after the last bind string in the text file (or before the first one). Make sure there are no extra blank spaces or unnecessary carriage returns in the text file.
4. Make sure you've loaded your text bind by using the /bindloadfile command in the chat box (e.g., /bindloadfile c:\mybinds\bindtest1.txt). The text bind won't work unless you load it into the game
Level 50s:
BlackSpectre, Dark Defender (Guardian)
Thorin, Invul/Axe Tank (Justice)
Volcano Juice, Fire/Stone Tank
Professor ?, Mind/FF Controller
Stone Forge, Stone/Fire Tank
I wanted to get some input from you guys on this bit about troubleshooting binds. If there's anything you think I should add, please let me know. And also, I'd luv to hear whether or not you think this guide would be useful to people. I'm intending to tack it on at the end of my Advanced Bind Guide, but I don't necessarily have to do so. Just give me your thoughts, guys (forms the Vulcan hand grip)...
---------------------------------------------------------------------
TROUBLESHOOTING BINDS
Or
Why Isn't This Thing Working??!!!
Troubleshooting binds is not necessarily an easy task. It often takes work, determination, and a relentless tenacity that would put the Terminator to shame. This entire Advanced Bind Guide can be viewed as one big troubleshooting manual, and that is indeed one of its intended purposes. That said, there are several standard things you can do to figure out why your bind doesn't work. Try the following steps one at a time and see if any one or all of them work for you. Your goal is to eliminate as many of these causes as possible and eventually narrow down the options to a single culprit. Remember, there might not be only one cause for an inoperable bind, but there might be many causes. Binds are finicky. If they're not perfect, they simply won't work.
Step 1: Check The Bind's Syntax
"Syntax" is a general computing term that means how the bind is written. This is the most common binding error. For possible syntax errors, you want to check:
1. spellings (the "powexec_name" command is often misspelled as "powERexec_name")
2. spaces (remove unnecessary spaces and make sure there's none at the end of the bind string)
3. format (are you using proper binding format, $$ separators between each command, correct tags and variables for commands, the commands string is between quotes, etc.)
4. make sure the bind string is no longer than 255 characters including spaces (in between the quotes)
Step 2: Try It On A Different Key
Sometimes certain binds don't work on certain keys. Don't ask me why. I don't know. Just try binding it to a different key and see if it works.
Step 3: The Key Is "Over-Bound"
Many commands can not be bound to more than 2 keys. It's a game restriction. Click on Menu, Options, Keymapping tab and review the list of commands. If the command you're using is assigned to 2 keys there, then it's likely that your bind won't work for this reason. The solution is to clear the conflicting command from one or both of the keys it's residing on.
Step 4: Check the Key Name
You may be using an incorrect key name. Some keys have 2 names, and perhaps one has been disabled by a game update. Check the name of the key you're using and make sure it's the "primary name" of the key, or just try another name for it.
Step 5: Check the Parsing
Parsing is the order in which the commands occur in the bind string. Some commands won't work if placed out of sequence with (either before or after) other commands.
TROUBLESHOOTING TEXT BINDS:
"Bind_load_file" is the single most important command for creating and using text binds. There are several potential things that might go wrong while using this command, and I'll list them below:
1. Make sure your text file is saved as a text (.txt) document with ANSI encoding (Notepad in Windows usually defaults to this, but check it anyway -- if you're using a different program to make the text file, try using Notepad... Start, Programs, Accessories, Notepad). Do not save it with formatting. Make sure there are no spaces or carriage returns before or after the bind string.
2. Make sure your path for the bindloadfile command (e.g., c:\mybinds\bindtest.txt) doesn't have any spaces in it. The game supports long file names but not spaces between file names or directories. Or, if you prefer to save your files in a directory with spaces in its name, then convert the name into the MS DOS 8.3 standard naming convention to translate the long directory/file names into a form the game can understand. Instructions are in this Guide. Oh, and make sure you have the correct path to the text file in you bind string. Eh, it happens.
3. Make sure there are no blank spaces or carriage returns before or after the bind string in the text files. The bind will generate and error if there are blank spaces or carriage returns in the file.
4. Make sure you've loaded your text bind by using the /bindloadfile command (e.g., /bindloadfile c:\mybinds\bindtest1.txt). The text bind won't work unless you load it into the game.
Level 50s:
BlackSpectre, Dark Defender (Guardian)
Thorin, Invul/Axe Tank (Justice)
Volcano Juice, Fire/Stone Tank
Professor ?, Mind/FF Controller
Stone Forge, Stone/Fire Tank