Annoucement: RADIONE texture looking for UI mod

[SkyBaron]

Hi Gabriele,

Thanks for the info. I was able to import the radio and made the buttons work in SH5:



The only dial control available for the radio indicator (DIAL_RADIO_RANDOM_INDICATOR) randomizes the needle position making it oscillate from left to right until it finds a station. So you can't corelate a station frequency with the needle position. It behaves more like a decibel indicator. I'll make the need oscillate just a short interval, otherwise it'll look too odd.

Maybe for the R3 model if you could come up with a circular texture for the frequencies that could be places behind a mask for the indicator window, something like this:




... so that when the rotation is randomized, it would look more realistic than just a little needle oscillating.

I'll also add the actual static sound of the Radione R2 to this mod, edited from this video:



I can do two mods for the R2 and R3. The hardest part are the textures!

[Sartoris]

Looks really good! It would be even cooler if you could make a functioning 3D model of it and include it in the game!

[gap]

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

Hi Gabriele,

Thanks for the info. I was able to import the radio and made the buttons work in SH5:

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

The only dial control available for the radio indicator (DIAL_RADIO_RANDOM_INDICATOR) randomizes the needle position making it oscillate from left to right until it finds a station. So you can't corelate a station frequency with the needle position. It behaves more like a decibel indicator. I'll make the need oscillate just a short interval, otherwise it'll look too odd.

That's a shame. In view of a possible relation between the tuned station and the position of the needle, I had calculated a formula for converting frequencies into angular offsets, and I was planning to create a zoomed-in version of the dial tha woul have popped up while mousing over the tuning knob.

Adding a knob for band selection and limiting the frequency range that can be tuned to the currently selected band was anothe idea I had, but I am not really sure if implementing it in game is possible or not.

About knobs, do you think controlling them via mousewheel is a feasible idea?

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

Maybe for the R3 model if you could come up with a circular texture for the frequencies that could be places behind a mask for the indicator window...

... so that when the rotation is randomized, it would look more realistic than just a little needle oscillating.

Yes, this is another idea I had. I will work on the texture as soon as possible.

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

I'll also add the actual static sound of the Radione R2 to this mod, edited from this video:

Cool!

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

I can do two mods for the R2 and R3. The hardest part are the textures!

Textures are not a problem. I think we should reduced a bit their size, in order to make them to fit better the rest of TDW's UI. I can also reduce the x mark, as suggested by you. Let me know if you think there is any other improvement I should apply to the current textures

Originally Posted by Sartoris

Looks really good! It would be even cooler if you could make a functioning 3D model of it and include it in the game!

I agree, but I am not really sure that it is going to be feasible as it would require a set of 3d object controllers which are probably missing from game. What maybe can be done, is adding the radio as an object that, if clicked, would open the normal radio receiver interface

[SkyBaron]

Originally Posted by gap

That's a shame. In view of a possible relation between the tuned station and the position of the needle, I had calculated a formula for converting frequencies into angular offsets, and I was planning to create a zoomed-in version of the dial tha woul have popped up while mousing over the tuning knob.

Adding a knob for band selection and limiting the frequency range that can be tuned to the currently selected band was anothe idea I had, but I am not really sure if implementing it in game is possible or not.

Maybe changing the program's code itself like TDW is doing with his patch, but that's a little beyond my knowledge right now.

About knobs, do you think controlling them via mousewheel is a feasible idea?

The two buttons associated with the stations tuning are Next and Previous station only. A mouse wheel control would work better if you could rotate the button and stop the needle whenever you stopped rotating the wheel like a real tuner. This may be possible through code modification like the above idea.
The way I'm doing it, the button will rotate to the right or left when you click it , using the 7 rotation state pictures form your texture.

Let me know if you think there is any other improvement I should apply to the current textures

Maybe just a resized picture like you said. Also what about the second small switch above the speaker. Did it have any function? I'm using the middle one as on/off switch.

[gap]

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

Maybe changing the program's code itself like TDW is doing with his patch, but that's a little beyond my knowledge right now.


The two buttons associated with the stations tuning are Next and Previous station only. A mouse wheel control would work better if you could rotate the button and stop the needle whenever you stopped rotating the wheel like a real tuner. This may be possible through code modification like the above idea.

I see, evidently there is too limited code support for the features I wanted to implement

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

The way I'm doing it, the button will rotate to the right or left when you click it , using the 7 rotation state pictures form your texture.

Okay, I hope you have managed to get the same knob to control the tuning. My idea was to divide it in two halves (next and previous), making its state (7 steps rotation) to change according to the half clicked: anticlockwise rotation / tuning down when the left half is clicked, clockwise rotation / tuning up, when the right half is clicked.

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

Maybe just a resized picture like you said.

No problem

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

Also what about the second small switch above the speaker. Did it have any function? I'm using the middle one as on/off switch.

my idea was using the left knob for tuning, and the right knob for switching the radio on/off and for changing volume. Your idea of using the central top switch for switching the radio on off is also good (notice that there are two different dial overlays for radio switched on/off). I have no idea on what the second switch was actually used for, but with the limited functionalities we must deal with, I doubt it will be of any use, unless you get an idea for it

[SkyBaron]

Originally Posted by gap

Okay, I hope you have managed to get the same knob to control the tuning. My idea was to divide it in two halves (next and previous), making its state (7 steps rotation) to change according to the half clicked: anticlockwise rotation / tuning down when the left half is clicked, clockwise rotation / tuning up, when the right half is clicked.

That's exactly how I made it work.

my idea was using the left knob for tuning, and the right knob for switching the radio on/off and for changing volume.

That's easy to change. But like I said there's no volume control for the radio. The volume knob image will have two positions.

Once you send me the resized textures I can put together the mod and send it to you for testing.

[LemonA]

Radione in a VII C. Right next the hatch to the command centre.

[gap]

Originally Posted by SkyBaron

That's exactly how I made it work.

That's easy to change. But like I said there's no volume control for the radio. The volume knob image will have two positions.

Once you send me the resized textures I can put together the mod and send it to you for testing.

Originally Posted by LemonA

Radione in a VII C. Right next the hatch to the command centre.

Thank you for sharing LemonA, it seems an R3, but is the image you have posted an historical picture, a paint, a frame from a movie, an edited screenshot from SH, or what else?