Manual Triggers
Manual Triggers provide a means for a user running an Event to manually trigger an Action Sequence. Manual Triggers are displayed on the Event UI as buttons, the Label you provide shows up inside the button so the user has an idea what that buttons purpose is. For instance you might have a Manual Triggers labeled "Buoy Deployed", a user running the event (with perhaps a quick briefing) will most likely understand that when a buoy is deployed that button should be pressed.
Manual Triggers in the modern Event framework have many new features, all of which are optional. The only real requirement you need for a valid Manual Triggers is a Label and one or more Action Sequences you want the trigger to start.
The Property Pane for a Manual Triggers has many more options then most other components.
The Label is displayed inside the button, it's relative location is refined via the Label Position property.
An optional SubTitle property allows you to further clarify the Label. If provided it will be also be displayed inside the button, though at a smaller font than the Label.
An optional Description will set the tooltip of the button. If a user hovers their mouse over the button this is the test that will appear for them.
Optionally, should you have an external help system you may provide a link to any help documentation you want to provide for this button via the Help URL property.
The Allow Multiple Presses property determines whether the button is allowed to be pressed multiple times or not. If left unchecked then once a button is pressed it is disabled and may not be pressed again. If this is checked then a user can click the button over and over again.
Button Groups allow sets of related Manual Triggers to be grouped logically together. Details on this concept and functionality can be found below. To create a new group simply start typing a group name into the dropdown box, to join an existing group choose it from the dropdown.
Similar to Auto Triggers, Manual Triggers are simply a means to fire off one or more Action Sequences. Check all sequences you want the button to trigger when pressed.
Button Groups
The idea behind button groups is to take a set of buttons which have some connection or interdependence and put them in a logical container. For instance lets say you have 4 objects you want to deploy off the back of the ship and create a Manual Trigger representing each of them:
If these 4 objects can be deployed in whatever order you want then no group is needed. However, if they have to be deployed in order then this is where a Button Group becomes useful.
If you put all 4 of these triggers into the same Button Group and check the Forced Order checkbox for each of them then buttons 2,3 and 4 will be disabled upon startup. When button 1 is clicked, it will become disabled and button 2 will become enabled. When button 2 is clicked it will become disabled and button 3 will become enabled, etc. The currently enabled button continues to move on down the line until object 4 is deployed. At this point all 4 buttons will be disabled and no more objects can be deployed.
If you would like to have the sequence repeatable then you can click the Repeating Sequence checkbox for each of the buttons (and ensure Allow Multiple Presses is checked!). When the last button in the sequence is clicked the sequence starts back over (e.g. button 1 becomes enabled again).
To summarize the above, for all buttons in a group with the Forced Order flag set:
Forced Order: Entered into a press order, no button can be pressed out of order
Repeating Sequence: When the last button in the press order is pressed the order is reset and the first button (with the MultiPress flag set) is enabled, starting the press sequence over again.
If a Manual Trigger is part of a group but does not have the Forced Order flag set it can be clicked regardless of which button current is active in the press order.
If a Manual Trigger is part of a group but does not have the Allow Multiple Presses flag set then it cannot be clicked again, even if part of a Repeating Sequence
If a Manual Trigger is part of a group but does not have the Repeating Sequence flag set then it cannot be clicked again, even if Allow Multiple Presses is checked.
The combinations of Button Groups and which flags are set are critical to Manual Triggers operating correctly. It is highly advised you test any event you create prior to conducting a mission operation to ensure it works as expected!
Manual Trigger UI
A Manual Trigger shows up in the Event UI as a button. On the left side of the button you will notice icons (if any) which indicate which flags and attributes have been set for that button.
The Label, an optional SubTitle and optional ProgressBar can also be seen inside the button.
Right clicking on the button brings up a context menu which will provide additional details, a link to any optional help and a history of all the times the button was pressed during the run of that event.
