Any way to edit the meta.json inside the var?

[Eaglekun]

Lets say I made a var package and want to edit the meta.json file inside of it to get rid of some erroneus dependencies, is that possible? Im asking since I keep getting dependencies on my packages that make no sense as to why they are there and its very annoying.

 

[SlimerJSpud]

Unzip the var to a directory and edit away. 7zip works. Once done, rezip the contents of the directory and rename as a var file.

 

[MacGruber]

I would not recommend that, unless you know precisely what you are doing. Since you are asking, I would argue that you don't

Instead you should build a new version of your VAR where you fixed those dependencies. Best way to figure out where strange dependencies come from is to open the scene JSON (as well as potentially looks, presets, etc.) and search for the names of the offending VARs. That should point you to the cause of the issue, so you can fix it (in VaM). A common thing for example morphs that were not reset to their default value.

Note that dependencies might also be dependencies of your dependencies, it that case it might not be your fault and you would have to convince that original creator to fix their stuff.

 

[Eaglekun]

ok thanks for the answers guys, Ill try to see if theres something inside the scenes or presets leading to the dependencies. there are some that seem to point to things that are absolutely not in the var package and it stumps me.

 

[atani]

Yeah, better to fix the problems than to hide them. This learning process will also help you in future creations.
Packaging in a clean VaM folder with only the base + dependencies you know you need is also prefered, and you can test if all is working properly.

 

[Eaglekun]

dependencies might also be dependencies of your dependencies, it that case it might not be your fault and you would have to convince that original creator to fix their stuff.

I looked into the meta file and this seems to be the case, any tips on editing the meta file so these dont bloat my dependencies list?

 

[atani]

Added a few days ago a guide to what's inside a VAR, with focus on the meta.json file. See if it covers all your doubts.
But mind that the meta.json is the result of your packaged contents. Those are the ones that need to be corrected first and foremost.

 

[Eaglekun]

Added a few days ago a guide to what's inside a VAR, with focus on the meta.json file. See if it covers all your doubts.

thank you! will look at it.

 

[atani]

Just updated my answer, see the missing part too.

 

[RandomVAMUser]

Manually removing dependencies inside meta.json is just a placebo effect.
Sure, it makes your package look more "appealing" but it fixes nothing.

Anyone downloading your dependency still gonna needs to download "dependencies of your dependencies".
It's more effective to ask creators to fix their shity package (by removing garbage, removing demo scenes, etc), but that's too much to ask.

 

[SlimerJSpud]

In some cases, the dependency of a dependency thing is caused by using the copy of an asset that somebody else used in their scene. That means your scene or look depends on their whole scene. Vam shows duplicate entries for the same asset (clothing, hair, etc.). If you identify the original source of the asset and use that instead, then the dependency list shrinks a lot.

 

[cptfilp]

I know this is an old thread but would using the above extract .var file and editing the json method be fine for updating dependencies in a json? As in I've got a bunch of vars that require different versions of MacGruber.Life, Timeline, Postmagic, etc. If I updated the json to the most current version of those vars, would that be fine?
Along the same lines, have some scene vars where they require a dependency for a male look. Can I just delete these dependencies from the jsons? As I'd be using in POV/possession, I don't really care what the dude looks like.