EasyRead for EverQuest II
=========================

Makes the text in game windows large and easy to read. It uses
Atkinson Hyperlegible, a font made by the Braille Institute so letters
like I, l and 1, or O and 0, are easy to tell apart, at about 40% bigger
than the game's normal text.

What changes: window text, window titles, chat and the chat input line.
What stays the same: floating combat numbers, big on-screen messages and
the death message, plus Russian and Asian-language text (the font does not
have those letters).

Also included: Quest Links, which makes quests in your Quest Helper
clickable so they open on the EQ2 Wiki in your web browser. It is
optional; see "QUEST LINKS" below.

Also included: Window Borders, which colors the border around your
game windows deep plum, forest green or navy blue. See "WINDOW BORDERS".


EASIEST WAY: THE INSTALLER (one file, nothing to unzip)
-------------------------------------------------------
1. Download "Install EasyRead.bat" (it may come as "EasyRead
   Installer.zip"; just open that zip).
2. Double-click "Install EasyRead.bat" right where it is: in your
   Downloads folder, or inside the opened zip. There is no need to
   unzip anything or copy anything into the UI folder first. The
   installer carries EasyRead inside itself.
   If Windows says "Windows protected your PC", click More info, then
   Run anyway. If your browser asks whether to keep the file, choose Keep.
3. It does everything by itself:
   - finds your EverQuest II folder (the normal Daybreak install or
     Steam; if it cannot find it, it asks you to pick the folder),
   - waits for you to close the game if it is open,
   - copies EasyRead into EverQuest II\UI\EasyRead,
   - turns on the large fonts (and makes EasyRead your default UI),
     Quest Links, plum window borders and the Link Helper,
   - ends with a Done / PROBLEM list.
4. Start the game. For clickable quests, type these in chat once, one
   at a time, pressing Enter after each:
       /joinchannel EasyReadLinks
       /log
   (If the game says logging stopped, type /log again.)

After a game patch, EasyRead updates itself: the Link Helper notices the
patch and re-applies the fonts, Quest Links and borders quietly. To
repair or update EasyRead, just double-click the installer again.
The sections below explain each part, and how to change or turn off
just one of them, using the files in EverQuest II\UI\EasyRead.


QUICK SETUP BY HAND (if you downloaded EasyRead.zip instead)
------------------------------------------------------------
1. Close EverQuest II.
2. Unzip, then copy the whole "EasyRead" folder into EverQuest II\UI
   (see step 2 of INSTALL below to find that folder). If you have an
   older EasyRead there, copy over it and say yes to replacing files.
3. Double-click "Set Up EasyRead.bat", then start the game.
4. For clickable quests, type these in game once, one at a time:
       /joinchannel EasyReadLinks
       /log
       /loadui EasyRead
   (If the game says logging stopped, type /log again.)

That does the same as the installer.


INSTALL BY HAND, ONE PART AT A TIME
-----------------------------------
1. Close EverQuest II.

2. Find your game folder. On Steam: right-click EverQuest II in your
   Library > Manage > Browse local files. Otherwise it is usually
   C:\Users\Public\Daybreak Game Company\Installed Games\EverQuest II

3. Copy this whole "EasyRead" folder into the "UI" folder there, so you have:
       EverQuest II\UI\EasyRead\EasyRead Fonts - On.bat
   If you had an older EasyRead, copy over it and say yes to replacing
   files. (Already using a custom UI such as DarqUI? See "USING ANOTHER
   UI" below.)

   IMPORTANT: copying the folder does NOT turn anything on. You have to
   open the EasyRead folder and double-click the files below yourself.

4. Open the folder EverQuest II\UI\EasyRead and, in its file list,
   double-click "EasyRead Fonts - On.bat".
   A small window says it worked. Press any key to close it.
   This also tells the game to load EasyRead, by setting these two
   lines in EverQuest II\eq2.ini (your old eq2.ini is kept as
   eq2.ini.before-easyread):
       cl_ui_subdir UI/
       cl_ui_skinname EasyRead
   To keep EasyRead as your UI every time, it also sets Windows to put
   those two lines back quietly each time you sign in, in case anything
   (like an add-on updater) changed them. Nothing else in eq2.ini is
   touched, and the game can still save its settings. If eq2_recent.ini
   (a file the game writes itself) names a UI, that is set to EasyRead
   too. "EasyRead Fonts - Off" turns the sign-in check off.
   If you had an older EasyRead, this also removes the EasyRead_Medium
   and EasyRead_Large folders and the Text Size window, which are no
   longer used.

5. For clickable quests (optional), follow "Turn on (one time)" in the
   QUEST LINKS section below: "Quest Links - On.bat", the Link Helper,
   and  /joinchannel EasyReadLinks  and  /log  in game.

6. Start the game.

Text missing from a window? Some windows have fixed-size text boxes,
and the game stops drawing letters that don't fit. Tell us which window
and we'll make its boxes taller. If a window just looks cramped, drag
its edge to make it bigger.


ADD EQ2MAP MAPS (optional)
--------------------------
EQ2MAP is a free map add-on with points of interest, made by the
EQ2Interface community. It is not included in this folder, because it
is someone else's work and its own updater keeps the maps current.
To use it together with EasyRead:

1. Finish the install steps above first.
2. Double-click "Get EQ2MAP Maps.bat". It opens the official EQ2MAP
   download page. Download and run EQ2MAP_Updater_Setup.exe.
   (It needs Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8, which most Windows PCs have.)
3. Start the EQ2MAP Updater. In its "UI Directory" list, pick EasyRead.
   This puts the maps inside your EasyRead folder. Let it finish
   downloading. You will now see a folder called "eq2map" inside
   EasyRead. Leave it as it is.
4. Double-click "EasyRead Fonts - On.bat" again, then start the game.
   This puts back the two eq2.ini lines from INSTALL in case the
   updater changed them.

EasyRead marks its font file read-only, so the EQ2MAP Updater skips it
and does not put the old font back.


QUEST LINKS (clickable quests in the Quest Helper)
--------------------------------------------------
Click a quest name in your Quest Helper (the tracked quests window) and
the quest's EQ2 Wiki page opens in your own web browser, where the
wiki's waypoint copy buttons work. The quest names look exactly as
before.

Which browser? Whichever one is your default in Windows: Chrome, Edge,
Firefox, Opera, Brave or any other. Nothing is set up for one browser
only. (To change it: Windows Settings > Apps > Default apps.)

The page opens in the background: the game stays in front, and the
page waits in your browser. Press Alt+Tab to look at it, and Alt+Tab
again to go back to the game.

The game does not let window buttons open your web browser, so a small
helper does it: clicking a quest posts its name to a private chat
channel, and the EasyRead Link Helper (running hidden on your PC, with
a small icon by the clock) sees it in your chat log and opens the page.
It only opens EQ2 Wiki pages, and only for lines you sent yourself.

Turn on (one time):
1. Do the INSTALL steps above, if you have not already.
2. In the EasyRead folder, double-click "Quest Links - On.bat".
3. Double-click "Link Helper - Start With Windows.bat", so the helper
   starts by itself from now on. (Or skip this and double-click
   "Start Link Helper.bat" before you play.)
4. Double-click "Start Link Helper.bat" once now. A small icon appears
   by the clock (you may need to click the ^ arrow to see it).
5. In game, type these in chat, one at a time:
       /joinchannel EasyReadLinks
       /log
       /loadui EasyRead
   /log turns chat logging on. If the game says logging stopped, type
   /log again.

Using it:
- Click a quest name, then Alt+Tab to your browser. The page opens
  behind the game, so it is waiting for you there, usually in a new
  tab. (Fullscreen-windowed mode makes Alt+Tab smoother.)
- Your chat window may not show the EasyReadLinks channel. That is fine;
  the helper still sees it.
- Stay joined to EasyReadLinks and leave /log on. Clicking a quest sends
  its name to that channel, and the helper reads it from your chat log,
  so leaving the channel or turning logging off stops the clicks working.
  You never need to watch the channel.
- If clicks stop working (after a restart, a patch or on a new
  character), type  /joinchannel EasyReadLinks  and  /log  again.
- To stop the helper, right-click its icon by the clock and choose
  "Stop the helper". To stop it starting with Windows, double-click
  "Link Helper - Stop Starting With Windows.bat".

Don't want the helper? Double-click "Quest Links - Press Enter Mode.bat"
instead of "Quest Links - On.bat". Then clicking a quest types the
command into your chat box, and you press Enter to open the page.

Turn off: double-click "Quest Links - Off.bat", then type /loadui EasyRead.

Good to know:
- If the wiki has a page with that exact quest name, it opens straight
  away. If not, you get the wiki's search results for that name.
- After a game patch, double-click "Quest Links - On.bat" again so the
  window picks up the game's latest changes.
- Using another UI? Copy the files in as described below; Quest Links
  builds on that UI's Quest Helper and "Quest Links - Off" puts it back.


WINDOW BORDERS (deep plum, forest green or navy blue)
-----------------------------------------------------
Colors the border around your game windows. Pick one:
    "Window Borders - Plum.bat"          deep plum purple
    "Window Borders - Forest Green.bat"  deep forest green
    "Window Borders - Navy Blue.bat"     navy blue
Double-click the one you like. A small window opens, works for a few
seconds and ends with "Done". Then type  /loadui EasyRead  in game (or restart
the game).
If it says PROBLEM instead, send us the file "Window Borders - log.txt"
from the EasyRead folder. To try another color, just double-click a different one.
The border keeps its own shine and shadow; only the color changes.
Buttons, scroll bars and window backgrounds stay as they are.
Chat windows and hotbars get the color too. Like the game's own border,
theirs may only show while your mouse is over them.

Turn off: double-click "Window Borders - Off.bat", then type /loadui EasyRead.

Good to know:
- EasyRead does not ship any game pictures. It makes a recolored copy of
  the game's own border picture on your PC, in EasyRead\images.
- After a game patch, double-click your color again so the border
  picks up the game's latest look.
- Using another UI? Its own border picture is saved with
  ".before-easyread" on the end and "Window Borders - Off" puts it back.


UNDO
----
Double-click "EasyRead Fonts - Off.bat", then restart the game.
This puts the game's own fonts back. To stop using EasyRead entirely,
also copy eq2.ini.before-easyread over eq2.ini (rename it to eq2.ini).

To undo the other parts:
- Quest Links: double-click "Quest Links - Off.bat", then type /loadui EasyRead.
  Stop the Link Helper (right-click its icon by the clock, "Stop the
  helper") and double-click "Link Helper - Stop Starting With
  Windows.bat". You can also type  /leavechannel EasyReadLinks  and
  /log  (to turn chat logging off) in game.
- Window borders: double-click "Window Borders - Off.bat", then /loadui EasyRead.


USING ANOTHER UI (DarqUI, ProfitUI and so on)
---------------------------------------------
Copy the files inside EasyRead (not the folder itself) into that UI's
folder, then double-click "EasyRead Fonts - On.bat" as usual.
If that UI has its own font file, EasyRead saves it as
eq2ui_textstyles.xml.before-easyread and builds on it, and
"EasyRead Fonts - Off" puts it back.


AFTER A GAME PATCH
------------------
EasyRead re-applies itself after a patch: while the Link Helper runs, it
checks every 10 minutes whether the game was patched, and if so
re-applies whichever parts you have on (fonts, Quest Links, borders).
What it did is written to "EasyRead auto-update log.txt" in the
EasyRead folder. To do it yourself instead:
Double-click "EasyRead Fonts - On.bat" again. It rebuilds from the
game's latest files, so new windows pick up the font too.
If you use Window Borders, double-click your color again too.


IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
-----------------------
- Windows says "Windows protected your PC": click More info > Run anyway.
  The .bat files only run the .ps1 scripts in this folder, which you can
  open in Notepad to read.
- The old font is back after a restart: double-click
  "EasyRead Fonts - On.bat" again. Its window lists the UI lines it
  found ("eq2.ini had: ..."), which shows what changed them.
- Text shows as boxes or the old font: make sure the "fonts" folder is
  inside EasyRead and the folder is directly inside EverQuest II\UI.
- /loadui does nothing: type the skin name too, /loadui EasyRead
  (plain /loadui does not reload EasyRead). If a change still does not
  show, restart the game; fonts and new border colors can need a restart.
- Chat window gone after typing /loadui EasyRead: press Enter to bring it back.


Font license: Atkinson Hyperlegible, (c) 2020 Braille Institute of
America, SIL Open Font License 1.1 (see fonts\OFL.txt). Free to use and
share with this mod.
