[REL] quick fix to add SH3 style compass to interface

[TheDarkWraith]

Title says it all. A quick fix to add a workable SH3 style compass to your interface. At least you'll know which way you're heading and you can order up specific headings. It's not perfect, it was a quick fix to get something up. I'm still working on sorting this mess they call a supposed game out

http://www.filefront.com/15735863/Co...DarkWraith.7z/

unzip straight to mods folder (JSGME enabled!)

TheDarkWraith



SH3 style compass above

EDIT:

to change placement of the dial:

edit the 'Page layout.ini' (\data\Menu\Pages) file, to place it in a better location for you. You want to edit this:

[G3F I2]
Name=Group feedback
Type=1026;Menu group
ItemID=0x3F010000
ParentID=0x3F000000
Pos=512,-710,512,58
Zone= 512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1 0x3F010000 -1 1 0 0

The red line controls placement. The 0.3 value is what you want to change to move it horizontally (values < 0.3 move it left, > 0.3 move it right - use small increments as these are like %s of the total value! - values like 0.05 increments to start). The -1 value right after it you would change to change the vertical position (values < -1 will move it up - use small increments as these are like %s of the total value! - values like 0.05 increments to start). You can probably get it bigger by using a bigger TGA image of the dial.

Can someone completely decipher that Zone= line? I have a very basic understanding of it.

EDIT2:

This dial and the other SH3/4 dials (among other items) are already included in the Page layout.ini file in case anyone was wondering. Even the TGAs were where they were supposed to be. Hell, even the sliding shortcuts (SH3) exist but aren't functional (yet).

[ddrgn]

Awesome, can you show a pic?

[ddrgn]

Just awesome, thanks!

[TheDarkWraith]

I made this @ 1920 X 1200 res settings so I hope it scales correctly for lower (or higher) resolutions. The Zone= line in the .ini files still trips me up. Anyone got a definitive guide as to how to read that line and what everything means?

[ddrgn]

Tested 100%, best mod yet!!!!

Now can you figure out how to add the old spread dials to the periscope view or any view for that matter ;]

[UberMatz]

Dl'd... shall install it in the morning! Good God you guys are fast!!! Many thanks for these efforts, where would the SH series be without y'all!?!?!

Matz

[Highbury]

Thank you TheDarkWraith, nice way to start out on the forums! As a God!

[JScones]

Originally Posted by TheDarkWraith

It's not perfect, it was a quick hack to get something up.

Evolution has to start somewhere.

[karamazovnew]

Originally Posted by TheDarkWraith

Zone= 512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1 0x3F010000 -1 1 0 0

Can someone completely decipher that Zone= line? I have a very basic understanding of it.
.[/COLOR]

Why do you need the zone line? They've made a Menu Editor, it's easy to use. If I had that puppy in SH4...... Anyway, the Zone is the same as before and thank god for that. I'll start a new thread about the Menu Editor and how to use it (learning it myself now). I won't bother you with screenshots but here's the quick round up of how the zone line works:

Imagine that the screen is a 1024x768 box. The screen actually starts from the bottom left corner (0,0) and coordinates increase until the top right corner (1024,768). This is true on any resolution.

Zone = 512 58 ... This is the actual position of the top left corner of the item.
In other words, the TOP LEFT corner of your item sits exactly on the 512'th column from the left and the 58'th line from the bottom. But this is only informative. In SH4 you don't actually position items by changing these.

Zone = 512 58 512 58... This is the size of your item. Don't ask me why you made it 512 pixels wide by 58 pixels high, but you did.

Zone = 512 58 512 58 0 1... this is way to long to explain. Read here http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...28&postcount=7. So yeah, these 2 values tell the game how scale that 1024x768 box to fit the screen (for each item). This is very very powerful and I'm glad they kept it this way. You can place anything anywhere

Now on to the real positioning:

512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 This is the ID of the objects parent. The parents are usually transparent Menu groups but anything can be a parent. All children will sit ON TOP of the parent. Note that they don't actually need to be included in the parent's "box". But by default, any child is placed at the coordinates of the parent's TOP LEFT corner.


512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1: From the top left corner of the parent, you move the child to the RIGHT (positive value) by (0.3 * parent_width) pixels. Then DOWN(negative value) by (1*parent_height) pixels.

Zone= 512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1 0x3F010000: yes this is your item. Sometimes you can put a different item here but I see no reason to complicate matters.

[COLOR=red]Zone= 512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1 0x3F010000 -1 1: Same as before, you move the item LEFT (negative value) by (1*item_width) and then move it UP (positive value) by (1*item_height). Since our item was 512*58, we've just moved it left by 512 pixels and up by 58 pixels.

Zone= 512 58 512 58 0 1 0x3F000000 0.3 -1 0x3F010000 -1 1 0 0: this is just a simple offset in pixels. Useful to move the item a pixel or 2 without recalculating the ratios. Also useful to quickly move an item offscreen without deleting it. For example 2000 3000 will move the item well outside the screen (2000 pixels to the right and 3000 pixels up).

We still owe Zamboni a very big thanks btw:

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=111832