eytanz
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Beef Row recently posted that the graphic for ortho-squares is sub-optimal. Coppro then pointed out that anyone can make a mod, and Larry Murk suggested a contest.

So, here it is - the 1st unofficial "Come up with a better ortho square" contest. The rules are simple:

A - Make a new ortho square graphic.
B - Post it on the forum (see below)
C - Deadline is Jan 25th.
D - Then, there will be a poll.

If someone comes up with a graphic that's both aesthetically pleasing and functional, we can then lobby for it to be included in 3.0 (note - this decision is up to Mike who is not directly involved in the contest, and I can make no promises about it).

Notes about posting: please let me know if you are interested in participating. I don't anticipate too many entries, so I don't think there's much point in a submission topic, but I'd like a ballpark of how many people want to join in before deciding that.

Also, if you submit to the contest, you must release your submission to the public domain. If you wish to retain your rights to an ortho square mod, it will be ineligible for the contest.

It's ok to enter mods that have been previously posted on the board as long as you are their original author.

Prizes - winner gets +25 rank points. Runner-up gets +10 rank points. Everyone else who participates gets +3 rank points.

Technical specs:

- A Drod tile is 22x22 pixels large.
- The transparency color is 192,192,192
- Important! To ensure that transparency works correctly, at least one corner pixel *must* be the transparency color. This is an obvious limitation in the case of ortho squares.

Instructions on submissions:

- Psubmit your entries in one of two forms:

A - As a .bmp or .png file, which includes only the 22x22 tile - no borders or anything like that. No need to include a .tim file.

B - As one 66x22 .bmp or .png file, containing a version for each of the three styles. If you do multiple versions, please include them in the order Foundation - Deep Spaces - Iceworks.

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[Last edited by eytanz at 01-22-2007 10:24 PM]

larrymurk
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Signz miz ups! Ooh, maybe that was the other contest. In any case I'll come up w/ something for an ortho graphic.

Syntax
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Am I right in thinking the ortho square tile is on a layer above the standard squares in which case what colour should transparent be?

Also, would be nice to see the official dimensions of a tile at the top... I would guess 25x25 but don't know for sure.

I'll probably give this a go unless lots of people take part.

eytanz
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Good point - I've added the technical specs above. Pay special attention to the corner restriction.

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Watcher
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I've got two entries ready, so I'm definitely participating.

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Kevin_P86
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Just in ase anyone is not interested in reading the (in my opinion) highly complicated instructions on mods, here are some simple instructions on how to replace the ortho square graphic in JtRH:

1) Create a file in the \data\Bitmaps\ folder of DROD called <name>.tim, where <name> is any valid file name you like. The file should contain only the following three characters: 458

2) Create an image 22 x 22 pixels in your favourite graphics program. This is where you will draw the new ortho square. Remember, 192, 192, 192 is the colour used for transparency, and at least one corner pixel must be this colour for transparency to work.

3) After you are satisfied with your 22 x 22 pixel image, save it as <name>.png, also in the \data\Bitmaps\ folder. Note that this name must be the same as you named the .tim file in step 1.

4) Open the drod.ini file found in the \Data\ folder of the DROD directory. At the top of this file you should see the following lines:

[Graphics]
General=GeneralTiles
(... perhaps some other lines here ...)
Style1=Style1
Style2=Style2
Style3=Style3

Immediately before the line Style1=Style1, add the following on its own line:

General=<name>

where <name> is what you called the .tim and .png files in steps 1 and 3.

And that should be all. You can now start up DROD, and you should see your new ortho square graphics in place of the old graphic.

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eytanz
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Thanks, Kevin!

I should point out that for the purpose of this contest, I'd like the files handled a bit differently. I'll post instructions above.

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Rabscuttle
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I will enter my orthocross.

Assuming it works, because I still haven't actually looked at it in game yet.

Kevin_P86
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Ok - I figured it might be a good idea for the entrants to test their images to see how they look in the game, so I posted instructions on how to do that.

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Syntax
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I love the mysterious 458.

I will definitely take part now

[EDIT]

Oh... and I love this sentence in eytanz' first post:

1st unofficial "Come up with a better ortho square" contest

I can't wait til the 2nd one and the ones after that... After enough contests we'll really end up with truly the best ortho square ever!

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[Last edited by Syntax at 01-02-2007 10:59 PM]

eytanz
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Yeah, I figured - you post was very helpful, I just wanted to make it clear to people that not all these steps are strictly necessary for the contest.

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Elfstone
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eytanz, (taking a very deep breath here) I would like to try this!

(There! I said it!)

I don't know anything about pixels or transparency, but I'll find out. I like the visual aspect of DROD, almost as much as the puzzles.

Does anyone know if I can use an Appleworks Draw or Paint file for this?

Elf(being-very-daring)stone

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Niccus
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File: Orthogonal Template.hold (2.4 KB)
Downloaded 66 times.
License: Public Domain

You can use Paint, but a few pointers:

0) Image -> Attributes... -> Plug in 22 for width and height.
1) View -> Zoom -> Custom -> 800%... unless you have a very good eye and good fine motor skills.
2) View -> Zoom -> Show Grid, just to make things a bit easier.
3) You can always change the zoom to get an overall view to how it looks. You'll have to view it in DROD to check how it looks in-game though.
4) You can double-click any of the color boxes on the bottom to change it. When you do, I recommend that you click "Define Custom Colors >>". Tons of colors possible there!
5) The transparency color is already conveniently located as the light gray color box next to the white color box... at least for me (it's also conveniently located at the bottom row, 2nd from the left)
6) When you save the image for the first time, note the "Save as type:" dropdown box below where you put in the file name. Make sure it's a PNG file.

=====================

Attached is a nice testing hold for this contest. Hardly complete, but a good way to test your custom ortho mod.

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[Last edited by Niccus at 01-02-2007 11:57 PM]

schep
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File: blank2.png (170 bytes)
Downloaded 77 times.
License: Public Domain

Elfstone wrote:
Does anyone know if I can use an Appleworks Draw or Paint file for this?

Never used either myself, but you almost certainly can. And just to make it easier for anybody unsure about these pixel things, I've attached a 22x22 all-transparent PNG tile. Just draw on it and it will be suitable for submission. Or paste it into your GeneralTiles as described above to check it out.

Edit: Or, just listen to Niccus.

Edit again: Changed the attachment to one that doesn't bother with PNG's transparency settings.

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[Last edited by schep at 01-03-2007 02:45 AM]

schep
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File: blank.bmp (1.5 KB)
Downloaded 59 times.
License: Public Domain

PNG doesn't work? That's sad, but here's a BMP in the correct background color.

mrimer
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schep wrote:
PNG doesn't work? That's sad, but here's a BMP in the correct background color.

Eh? DROD should support PNGs fine, but it will not support transparency as a means to make the pixels transparent in-game. For that, you must always use the (192,192,192) color to indicate transparent pixels.

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schep
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mrimer wrote:
Eh? DROD should support PNGs fine

No, that rhetorical question was pointed at a hypothetical person with inferior graphics editing program, who wants to try this but can't work with the PNG attachment.

Thanks for the clarification anyway. I think the PNG I posted is 0xc0c0c0 behind the alpha filter, but now that I know that I'll replace it with a simpler one without PNG-style transparency.

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[Last edited by schep at 01-03-2007 02:46 AM]

Beef Row
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I'll give this a shot! One question that hasn't been addressed yet though: does DROD use 16 bit or 32 bit color?

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Tahnan
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Count me in. (Though man, I wish there were a way to get DROD to read three different ortho tiles for the three styles, though I gather that, since the various styles don't specify their ortho-appearances, that can't be done. Alas.)

coppro
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Beef Row wrote:
I'll give this a shot! One question that hasn't been addressed yet though: does DROD use 16 bit or 32 bit color?

32 bit.

And PNG is lossless.

Elfstone
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Niccus wrote:
You can use Paint, but a few pointers:

. . . . . .

Attached is a nice testing hold for this contest. Hardly complete, but a good way to test your custom ortho mod.

Many thanks for that Niccus. I hope to make a start later today.

Thanks also to Schep . I've downloaded both versions.

Elf.

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larrymurk
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File: ortho.hold (914 bytes)
Downloaded 58 times.
License: Public Domain

Folks, I made a hold that you might find helpful for testing your ortho squares.

I put an ortho on every background to see how it looks on each.
I put an ortho under several monsters to see if it shows.
I made an ortho field to see whether non-orthos stand out.

I made 3 copies of the room, one for each style.

You might want to use this hold to check how your orthos look or to judge others later. If you come up with any improvements just edit the hold and repost it.

You can even try defeating the room.

larrymurk
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I swear I've followed Kevin's instructions, but I can't get my ortho to show up.

I made an ortho1.png
I made an ortho1.tim with 458
I put General=ortho1 in drod.ini right where he said

Any ideas what I'm doing wrong?

michthro
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hmmm.. Kevin's instructions should work. The only thing I can think of is that DROD was maybe running while you changed the .ini. If so, close DROD and try again.

larrymurk
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Nope.
My transparent tar mod works, but not this ortho square.

Schik
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I imagine if you post your .ini, .tim, and .png someone can figure out what's going wrong.

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larrymurk
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File: ortho.rar (1.8 KB)
Downloaded 58 times.
License: Public Domain

ok, here they are.

drod.ini from data dir
others from data/bitmaps

michthro
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Works for me. Strange. Anything in drod.err? You don't maybe have some other file named ortho1.* in your data\bitmaps folder? You are using Windows, right? So it's not a matter of looking in the wrong place, like on other platforms. You definitely have closed and restarted? (Sorry, I'm trying to think of everything.)

Kevin_P86
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Hmm... I copy-and-pasted those three files into the appropriate directories in my drod installation, and your ortho square graphic shows up fine.

The only thing I noticed is there is a newline at the end of the .tim file, although it seems not to matter (because it works for me).

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larrymurk
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Thanks for checking guys. I must have a Gremlin in my computer.

I have restarted DROD several times. My drod.err was last modified 12/15/06. I only added the line return to the .tim when it wasn't working w/o it.

Thx for the help anyways..

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[Last edited by larrymurk at 01-03-2007 08:33 PM]