I've started working on an implementation of these ideas! So far, I have functionality to handle reading mods from .zip files, installing them, and uninstalling them. No UI yet, though. The file structure I decided on is as follows: each mod consists of a .zip file containing 1. a JSON file called "info.json" and 2. a "data" folder containing the actual mod files in their proper paths, where they belong in the game install folder. The info.json file contains three fields (so far): name, author, and version. Author and version are optional. The file looks like this:
{
"name": "Test Mod",
"author": "Nobody",
"version": "1.0.0"
}
Obviously authors would change these fields to fit their mods. This metadata is associated with the mod for future reference. No checks are currently done for... well, much of anything, really; this is just the beginning of a usable tool. I would welcome any feedback or suggestions! Nothing is set in stone. If you're interested, you can find the (Python) code here: https://github.com/desophos/cox-mod-manager
Update: I think I'm approaching a usable 0.1.0 tool. I have a working command-line interface! I'll make a separate thread in the Tools forum when I think it's ready for distribution.