MUSHclient documentation: CreateGUID

CreateGUID

CreateGUID
Script function world.CreateGUID Read about scripting Type Method Summary Creates a GUID - Global Unique Identifier Prototype `BSTR CreateGUID();` View list of data type meanings Description This generates a unique GUID (Global Unique Identifier). This is guaranteed to be unique throughout the world, and at any time (ie. completely and utterly unique) provided you have a network card in your PC, as part of the GUID is the MAC address of the network card, which are manufactured to be unique world-wide. If you do not have a network card, there is a small possibility that GUIDs generated by two PCs (both without network cards) might be the same. The GUID will look like this: 6B29FC40-CA47-1067-B31D-00DD010662DA The purpose of this is to give you a way of having a unique identifier (eg. for a variable). If you were to use it for that purpose you would have to add a letter to the front, as variables must start with a letter, not a number, and change hyphens to underscores. eg. dim uniqueid uniqueid = "X" & world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "_", true) These numbers may seem cumbersome, but at least if you use them you are guaranteed of a unique identifier. The last 12 characters are the hardware MAC address of your network card (in the example above, "00DD010662DA"), so if you wanted an identifier that was unique for your PC, but not necessarily around the world, you could trim off the last 13 characters (eg. "6B29FC40-CA47-1067-B31D" would be unique on this PC). eg. dim uniqueid uniqueid = "X" & left (world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "_", true), 23) (eg. X989B3DD0_7125_11D6_BBB7) To save a bit more space you could even get rid of the hyphens altogether. eg. dim uniqueid uniqueid = "X" & left (world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "", true), 20) (eg. X989B3DCD712511D6BBB7) In this case the identifier is only 21 characters (including the "X") and will be unique on this PC. Contrast this to "GetUniqueNumber" which only returns a unique number for this session of MUSHclient. Thus, the numbers (from "GetUniqueNumber") will not be unique over multiple sessions. See also the new script function world.GetUniqueID. Also, using random number generation for unique identifiers has a chance of returning the same number, depending on a) the seed given to the generator; and b) the way the generator must eventually recyle and regenerate the same sequence. VBscript example `world.Note world.CreateGUID` Jscript example `world.Note (world.CreateGUID ());` PerlScript example `$world->Note ($world->CreateGUID ());` Python example `world.Note (world.CreateGUID )` Lua example `Note (CreateGUID ())` Return value `A 36-character GUID.` See Also ... Topics Scripting Utilities Functions Base64Decode (Takes a base-64 encoded string and decodes it.) Base64Encode (Encodes a string using base-64 encoding.) ChangeDir (Changes the MUSHclient working directory) EditDistance (Returns the Levenshtein Edit Distance between two words) ErrorDesc (Converts a MUSHclient script error code into an human-readable description) ExportXML (Exports a world item in XML format) FixupEscapeSequences (Converts "escape sequences" like \t to their equivalent codes.) FixupHTML (Fixes up text for writing as HTML) GenerateName (Generates a random character name) GetClipboard (Gets the clipboard contents) GetScriptTime (Returns the amount of time spent in script routines) GetUniqueID (Creates a unique ID for general use, or for making Plugin IDs) GetUniqueNumber (Returns a unique number) Hash (Produces a hash (checksum) of a specified piece of text) Help (Shows help for a script function, or a list of functions) ImportXML (Imports configuration data in XML format) Metaphone (Returns the metaphone code for the supplied word) MtRand (Returns pseudo-random number using the Mersenne Twister algorithm) MtSrand (Seed the Mersenne Twister pseudo-random number generator) ReadNamesFile (Loads in a file for generating character names) Replace (Replaces one substring with another) SetClipboard (Sets the clipboard contents) SetStatus (Sets the status line text) Simulate (Simulate input from the MUD, for debugging purposes) Sound (Plays a sound) StripANSI (Strips ANSI colour sequences from a string) Trace (Trace mode property) TraceOut (Outputs the supplied message to the world Trace) TranslateGerman (Translate German umluat sequences) Transparency (Sets the transparency of the main MUSHclient window under Windows XP) Trim (Trims leading and trailing spaces from a string) (Help topic: function=CreateGUID) Documentation contents page

Script function

world.CreateGUID

Read about scripting

Type

Method

Summary

Creates a GUID - Global Unique Identifier

Prototype

BSTR CreateGUID();

View list of data type meanings

Description

This generates a unique GUID (Global Unique Identifier). This is guaranteed to be unique throughout the world, and at any time (ie. completely and utterly unique) provided you have a network card in your PC, as part of the GUID is the MAC address of the network card, which are manufactured to be unique world-wide. If you do not have a network card, there is a small possibility that GUIDs generated by two PCs (both without network cards) might be the same.



The GUID will look like this: 6B29FC40-CA47-1067-B31D-00DD010662DA



The purpose of this is to give you a way of having a unique identifier (eg. for a variable). If you were to use it for that purpose you would have to add a letter to the front, as variables must start with a letter, not a number, and change hyphens to underscores. eg.



   dim uniqueid

    uniqueid = "X" & world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "_", true)



These numbers may seem cumbersome, but at least if you use them you are guaranteed of a unique identifier. The last 12 characters are the hardware MAC address of your network card (in the example above, "00DD010662DA"), so if you wanted an identifier that was unique for your PC, but not necessarily around the world, you could trim off the last 13 characters (eg. "6B29FC40-CA47-1067-B31D" would be unique on this PC). eg.



   dim uniqueid

    uniqueid = "X" & left (world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "_", true), 23)



  (eg. X989B3DD0_7125_11D6_BBB7)



To save a bit more space you could even get rid of the hyphens altogether. eg.



   dim uniqueid

    uniqueid = "X" & left (world.replace (world.createguid, "-", "", true), 20)



   (eg. X989B3DCD712511D6BBB7)



In this case the identifier is only 21 characters (including the "X") and will be unique on this PC.



Contrast this to "GetUniqueNumber" which only returns a unique number for this session of MUSHclient. Thus, the numbers (from "GetUniqueNumber") will not be unique over multiple sessions.



See also the new script function world.GetUniqueID.



Also, using random number generation for unique identifiers has a chance of returning the same number, depending on a) the seed given to the generator; and b) the way the generator must eventually recyle and regenerate the same sequence.