Alpha Centauri 2

Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri & Alien Crossfire => The Theory of Everything => Topic started by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 06, 2020, 08:32:45 PM

Title: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 06, 2020, 08:32:45 PM

Fellow players,
Anyone has a knowledge about where in the game files the social effect icons graphics is stored? I mean the one displayed for each effect in social engineering screen.
Optionally, I am looking for help in extracting and modifying them for my mod. Will appreciate this a lot.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 06, 2020, 11:35:19 PM

That's one of those things I've seen a million times, but would have to do an hour or so's poking around through .pcxs to give you a filename.

Easy to mod, I reckon.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 06, 2020, 11:44:42 PM

Pity. I seriously hoped your expertise can replace me poking around files. Well, anything you can help with or share will be appreciated.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 06, 2020, 11:55:57 PM

Oh, I'll probably get around to it this evening.  Just running behind so far, today...

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 07, 2020, 12:31:20 AM

Looks to be socwin.pcx

(http://alphacentauri2.info/MGalleryItem.php?id=7747)

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 07, 2020, 04:33:02 AM

Awesome! Thanks.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 07, 2020, 05:50:31 PM

What are you looking to change?

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 07, 2020, 06:53:49 PM

Adding TALENT icon to SE screen.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 07, 2020, 07:05:48 PM

What would that look like?  Getting the game to address/display a new row would take some .exe coding, of course...

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 07, 2020, 11:09:42 PM

Undecided. I leave it to graphic designers which we have a lot at this place starting with you. 😛

Exe modding for that I am doing right now.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Tayta Malikai on November 08, 2020, 03:16:23 AM

My initial thoughts for a TALENT symbol are a gold star (yes, you are special!) or a lightbulb (intellectual elites).

Since the role of TALENT is to either add talents (when positive) or add drones (when negative), something like that would probably get the point across.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 08, 2020, 03:43:15 AM

Makes sense.
I also thought about Psych in some form or image if anyone can depict it. Since TALENT is actually just Psych bonus/penalty.

Anyway. I am done with exe modification and now can accept an icon design. It should be placed in socwin.pcx at second and third column in MORALE row. I.e. these two MORALE icons should be replaced with red and green TALENT icons.

BUncle,
Will you broadcast this request to all graphics designers on this site, please? I am sure you know the best way to do it. We can also compare and pick the most matching one among many design ideas.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 08, 2020, 04:58:27 AM

I think while we are on a topic it would be also better to fit all other icons into uniform size. The POLICE being a best square size template. If all other icons can be sized like that I can place them more densely in SE window. Thus allowing 5 effect per model instead of 4 now.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Bearu on November 09, 2020, 04:34:58 AM

Quote from: Alpha Centauri Bear on November 08, 2020, 03:43:15 AM

Makes sense.
I also thought about Psych in some form or image if anyone can depict it. Since TALENT is actually just Psych bonus/penalty.

Anyway. I am done with exe modification and now can accept an icon design. It should be placed in socwin.pcx at second and third column in MORALE row. I.e. these two MORALE icons should be replaced with red and green TALENT icons.

The harp seen inside the paradise garden facility (fac012.pcx) or underneath the old talent icon in the center of newicons.pcx represents talents in various existing resources for SMAC. This harp symbol might work for the TALENT icon.

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: EmpathCrawler on November 18, 2020, 01:05:09 PM

I like that harp!

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on March 31, 2021, 10:25:21 PM

Returning to the discussion. Anyone of our multiple awesome designers created thousands of new graphics so far would be interested in SE icons redesign?

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Buster's Uncle on April 01, 2021, 12:12:00 AM

Whaddayaneed?

Title: Re: Social effect icons graphics
Post by: Alpha Centauri Bear on April 01, 2021, 12:41:53 AM

• Talent icon design. It should be placed in socwin.pcx at second and third column in MORALE row. I.e. these two MORALE icons should be replaced with red and green TALENT icons.
• Redesign all other icons to reframe them in the 19x19 area in the middle of the pink square. Similar to ECONOMY shape. That is to make vertical and horizontal between them, indexes, and window dialog elements more uniform and neat. Also to enable compact mode with 5 icons in a row.