Requesting Banner

[PaiD]

How do you request for the Banner that is shown on the client?

[iago]

If nothing's changed, they are automatically sent to you.

[PaiD]

what do you mean by "If nothing's changed". What would be changed?

[Soul Taker]

Send 0x15 every 15 seconds or so (that's how long I see BW doing it):

Code Select Expand


p.InsertNonNTString "68XI"
p.InsertNonNTString StrReverse(frmCfg.strGame)
p.InsertNonNTString frmCfg.verByte
p.InsertBYTE &H20
p.InsertWORD &H0
p.InsertDWORD Connection.LastAd
p.SendPacket sckBnet(Index), &H15

And when the server deems it time to show a new one, it will send a responding 0x15, which you should reply to with 0x21:

Code Select Expand


CopyMemory LastAd, ByVal Mid$(strData, 5, 4), 4
p.InsertNonNTString "68XI"
p.InsertNonNTString StrReverse(frmCfg.strGame)
p.InsertDWORD LastAd
p.InsertWORD 0
p.SendPacket frmMain.sckBnet(Index), &H21

In that 0x15 from the server is the ad banner filename, link to go to when you click the banner, and probably some FILETIME stuff.

[CrAz3D]

Would woul;d ya add it into a form...........hmm.

How to read a .pcx file

[Maddox]

[C->S] SID_CHECKAD
Packet id: 0x15 - &H15

Format:
(DWORD) Platform ID
(DWORD) Product ID
(DWORD) Ad token of the last ad sent
(DWORD) Ad token

Additional information:
This packet is used to request an ad be sent, it wont always be sent.

[sPlOrYgOn]

Would woul;d ya add it into a form...........hmm.

How to read a .pcx file

Aren't Bnet Ads in smacker files?

[iago]

They are either .pcx or .smk, it changes

[Camel]

Would woul;d ya add it into a form...........hmm.

How to read a .pcx file

I understand wanting to download the banner, but why on earth would you want to display it?

[DarkMinion]

I understand wanting to download the banner, but why on earth would you want to display it?

What's the point of downloading it without displaying it?

[Skywing]

They are either .pcx or .smk, it changes

War3/W3XP use .png and .mng for still and moveable graphics, respectively.

[Camel]

I understand wanting to download the banner, but why on earth would you want to display it?

What's the point of downloading it without displaying it?

Makes it harder for the server to detect that it's a bot JIC they ever decide to ban bots, which at this point seems extremely unlikely as one must have a valid key.

[dxoigmn]

Makes it harder for the server to detect that it's a bot JIC they ever decide to ban bots, which at this point seems extremely unlikely as one must have a valid key.

But why bother downloading it?  I'd think the requests for ads would be good enough.

[Camel]

Makes it harder for the server to detect that it's a bot JIC they ever decide to ban bots, which at this point seems extremely unlikely as one must have a valid key.

But why bother downloading it?  I'd think the requests for ads would be good enough.

Because they could, in theory, check to see if clients are downloading the banners. It would be rather effective because, AFAIK, very few bots even bother to send 0x15. I used to send it but decided that it was too much of a pain in the ass as I log packets on-screen. However, this post has inspired me to re-add it in final builds.

[Skywing]

Makes it harder for the server to detect that it's a bot JIC they ever decide to ban bots, which at this point seems extremely unlikely as one must have a valid key.

But why bother downloading it?  I'd think the requests for ads would be good enough.

Because they could, in theory, check to see if clients are downloading the banners. It would be rather effective because, AFAIK, very few bots even bother to send 0x15. I used to send it but decided that it was too much of a pain in the ass as I log packets on-screen. However, this post has inspired me to re-add it in final builds.

Actually the clients cache ad banners quite often.  This means that they don't really get downloaded all that much, just drawn from bncache.dat.