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Post by scarecrow on Mar 18, 2017 4:08:35 GMT -9
Hello folks. Some of you will be old enough to remember an old web page I made where you could make Star Trek paper miniatures by dragging the separate components on to a figure at the top of the page. That site has long since become defunct and I finally expunged it from existence a few weeks ago. Since then I have been working hard on a far superior replacement. I posted a link to the first draft in the Resources thread but conversation started derailing that thread so I thought I would then give it it's own. You can find the mini maker here: www.crowstuff.co.uk/MiniMaker/index.htmlFor those who have already seen it, it is now updated with alien races, TOS Pilot uniforms and a host of new hairstyles including facial hair and a Vulcan salute It currently works in Chrome and Firefox. Apparently IE doesn't support the unity web player, though Edge will. I've not tested it in Safari. There is about a 40-60 second delay whilst it loads in, in which you'll only see a blurred starfleet delta. So don't panic if nothing happens straight away upon loading the page. It's pretty self explanatory, I think. FAQ Q: Why does it look like ass? A: My focus at the moment is getting as much essential content in as possible. I'll make the interface look pretty when that's done. Q: Where are the Wrath of Khan uniforms? A: The rest of the eras are top of the to-do list. I've got the essentials in and I plan on mopping up the others over the next few weeks. Q: Are you going to include... A: YES! Eventually. Q: Where's the bloody print function!? A: I'm afraid that's a tad out of my league just yet but I definitely want to include a print function as well as a save/load one at some point. I'm afraid for now you'll have to use Print Screen or the Snips app in Windows and paste in to an art package of your choice. Q: Why can't I resize the screen? A: The resolution is fixed so that the images when screen-capped are around 32mm tall at 300 dpi. That means you will need a monitor resolution large enough to view the work area - which I think most folk will. I'll look into resizing options later on.
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Post by mproteau (Paper Realms) on Mar 18, 2017 4:41:44 GMT -9
Brilliant!
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shep
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Post by shep on Mar 18, 2017 7:20:26 GMT -9
That, sir, is a pretty nifty little app... However, there needs to be more space above the mini, because higher hair styles and antennae right now disappear out of the picture and are tgis way cut at the top.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 18, 2017 9:39:17 GMT -9
Oh really? Thanks for the heads up. Will fix asap.
- edit
I just had a quick look and the only one that comes close to the top of the workspace is the female bun hairstyle. Admittedly it touches the top of the workspace but doesn't overlap. Are you getting something different? If so can you show me a screenie?
Wayne
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Post by migibb on Mar 18, 2017 9:54:16 GMT -9
I'm getting the same issue (using Chrome on a Chromebook here) - I was just putting it down to one of the "I'll sort it out when I have time to make it pretty" issues.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 18, 2017 10:12:13 GMT -9
Are you running the browser at full screen? It's essentially that the app isn't fitting in to the window. You need a space of at least 1200x700 (ideally with a screen resolution of 1600x900 which I was hoping was more or less standard these days) The reason I do this is so that the characters are 300 dpi. I will try to maybe compact the space a little so it can be viewed on lower resolutions but that will need a major retooling of the UI and it's going to be tough to fit it in to say a 1024x768 screen
What you can do as a workaround in Chrome (but unfortunately not in Firefox) is use CTRL- to zoom out. This will shrink the app until it fits in the desired space. Of course this still means they clip off the top once you zoom back in again so I'll move the workspace down in the next build.
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Post by mproteau (Paper Realms) on Mar 18, 2017 10:44:57 GMT -9
In a real pinch, you can edit the page manually (in Chrome, right-click on the white space of the page and select Inspect). Expand the <body> element, then the first <div> element. You'll find the <canvas> element where the application is drawing itself. You can delete all of the elements under the canvas, which might shift the canvas down on the screen some. You can also edit the canvas's height/width properties. You'll lose a little quality, but you can set the size to 600x350, then just scale up the results x2 if you take a screenshot and paste it into an image editor... (feel free to scale it some other amount that is less destructive...) Sure, fixing the app to export a PNG would be GREAT though. But, as of right this second, those are a couple ideas to get to having fun.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 18, 2017 12:47:59 GMT -9
I've done a quick reshuffle of the buttons and the viewport and managed to make the app as shallow as the workspace. Hopefully it'll fit a lot better into your browser now. It's meant sacrificing the LCARS graphics but they were superfluous anyway.
Enjoy.
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shep
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Post by shep on Mar 18, 2017 12:56:07 GMT -9
Okay, I found the workaround for Firefox. You simply open the menu on the right side of the URL-bar, the button with the three lines. In that menu, you click on the < โ > sign, reducing the view by 10% per click, till you can see the entire app.
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Post by jeffgeorge on Mar 18, 2017 20:27:02 GMT -9
This is very damn cool. Will have to play with it in the next few days.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 19, 2017 0:08:04 GMT -9
I'm hoping you shouldn't need the workaround now. I've managed to compact the app so that most folk should be able to fit it in to their browser.
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shep
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Post by shep on Mar 19, 2017 3:13:44 GMT -9
Fits to my screen now. Do you plan to include alternate uinform styles or proposed styles in the final version of the app or just the canon styles from the series and movies? For example, in various episodes of TNG the uniform of "The Lost Era" ( = post first half of Star Trek Generations but prior to TNG ) is shown (ยปYesterday's Enterpriseยซ or ยปTapestryยซ, just two name two very good ones). And this picture shows a possible uniform style for the "Birth of the Federation"-era just after Star Trek Enterprise: I think, it would be quite nice to have those, too, just to fill in the gaps between the three main time periods of the prime universe (ENT, TOS & TNG).
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Post by cowboyleland on Mar 19, 2017 3:44:36 GMT -9
I tried this today but the only options for skin colour were shades of blue.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 19, 2017 4:37:55 GMT -9
cowboyleland - You were probably on Andorian or Bolian species. iirc I shut off other skin colour options for those two races. shep - Whilst I intend to eventually include most if not all seen-on-screen costumes )including Mirror Universe and Yesterdays Enterprise etc), it is unlikely that I'll do any EU or non-canon ones, I'm afraid.
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shep
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Post by shep on Mar 19, 2017 6:49:32 GMT -9
shep - Whilst I intend to eventually include most if not all seen-on-screen costumes )including Mirror Universe and Yesterdays Enterprise etc), it is unlikely that I'll do any EU or non-canon ones, I'm afraid. Boooo! It's your app, do as you please. For the BotF-style, I can always make me some ENT minis and re-colour them, no trouble...
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Post by jeffgeorge on Mar 19, 2017 17:08:11 GMT -9
Hey scarecrow, loving this so far. A few "wish list" items, that shouldn't add too much overhead: - Other items in hands, especially tricorders and communicators; extra points if options for the various eras are included!
- An option for rank insignia on the uniforms; right now, everyone is a lieutenant
- A button to flip the art left-to-right, to double the number of figures you can create without adding any extra artwork
Not that it isn't great as it is...these are just some ideas that might make it even better, if they aren't too difficult to implement.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 20, 2017 0:55:29 GMT -9
Other prop items are high on the priority list. Especially communicators and tricorders. I want to add options to have them and phasers shouldered or belted too.
Rank insignia is unlikely. I think you're referring to the cuff bands and to be honest if I were to add two or three more, they'd go half way up their arm. It's an abstraction. It suggests banding on the sleeve without being specific. I'm afraid you might have to just live with that for now. I'm not saying no, though.
A mirror button is a nice idea and shouldn't be too hard to implement. That said, the only wat to do it (without duplicating every single asset) is to literally mirror the image which means badges and assymetric uniform elements (like the TOS ladies neckline and Kirk's command wrap) would be on the wrong side.
Thanks for the suggestions.
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shep
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Post by shep on Mar 20, 2017 2:09:29 GMT -9
Hey, scarecrow, you mind, if I post a mod of a mini done with your app into this month's hoard?
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Post by cowboyleland on Mar 20, 2017 4:34:24 GMT -9
Good Job taking this to the next level.
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Post by scarecrow on Mar 20, 2017 6:03:24 GMT -9
Shep, I love it! Go right ahead, on one condition: you spell Scarecrow properly
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Post by cowboycentaur on Mar 20, 2017 7:08:58 GMT -9
Omg I love this and can't wait to start on a crew!!!
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shep
Eternal Member
Red Alert! Shields up! LENS FLARE!!!
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Post by shep on Mar 20, 2017 12:09:55 GMT -9
Shep, I love it! Go right ahead, on one condition: you spell Scarecrow properly Darn! Bloody typo...ยง##*%&"~ยฐ**!!!?! EDIT: Btw. I made a little pugilism scene, using the app. This tool is really marvellous! You'll find the action in the hoard...
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Post by jeffgeorge on Mar 20, 2017 16:30:34 GMT -9
Other prop items are high on the priority list. Especially communicators and tricorders. I want to add options to have them and phasers shouldered or belted too. Great to hear! Yes, the cuff bands for TOS, and the buttons/dots/whatever for the other series. I appreciate that they are awfully small at scale, which certainly reduces the return-on-investment for the effort of adding an option to vary them. Ouch! I forgot about the fact that the uniforms aren't symmetrical, because of the insignia. One option would be to take the insignia and other asymmetrical features off the base uniform art, save them separately, and position them differently for reversed figures. You could even do this with the women's necklines and the command wrap, by including a little bit of cloth color with the black edging. But in any case, because of the asymmetry, this is a much bigger job than a simple mirror button, so...yeah...not so easy. Thanks for listening, and replying so politely and patiently. These are definitely things for the "maybe someday" list, and not top priorities at all.
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Post by scarecrow on Apr 2, 2017 4:41:01 GMT -9
I was hoping to upload an update for the miniature maker today but sadly, Unity have 'fixed' their HTML5 compiler which means it no longer works. Again. And I am at the mercy of their incredibly unhelpful 'Help' forum. So, until then, you'll have to wait for Communicators, Tricorders, PADDs, Denobulans, Benzites and the JJ Verse duty uniforms.
Of course, if anyone is aufait with server programming/configuration and fancies helping me trying to figure it out...
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Post by scarecrow on Apr 2, 2017 9:22:11 GMT -9
Alright! I managed to revert to the old version of unity and it works. The Mini-Maker is updated. Now with Denobulans, Benzites, Communicators, Tricorders, PADDs and Kelvin Timeline duty uniforms. Enjoy! www.crowstuff.co.uk/MiniMaker/index.html
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Post by scarecrow on Apr 2, 2017 10:05:02 GMT -9
So, with each new addition to the app, the code and assets are mushrooming exponentially and it's getting more and more time consuming to test each and every itteration, so any bugs or errors you spot will be gratefully recieved. Known issues at the moment - the Kelvin PADDs at arms length overlap on to the buttons. Equally the butts of the Kelvin Phasers in the raised right hand overlap into the opposite frame. I need to widen the workspace ASAP but that's going to require a bit of work.
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Post by mproteau (Paper Realms) on Apr 2, 2017 16:34:35 GMT -9
I've been dusting off my GIMP Python-Fu and have a script that will (assuming you position the screen capture in the right spot) convert the image into a tabbed layout (using a 25mm tab). I'm still struggling to clean thing up a little - the black lines around the mini are ending up as kinda-transparent pixels as I go through building my tabbed version. My script puts a thick black border around the mini, but that's causing the tranparent bits to also get colored in... So, I'll try to get that cleaned up, and also I want to automatically blacken the area between the legs. I might just be crazy, but I will also try to automatically add attribution to the tab!
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Post by mproteau (Paper Realms) on Apr 2, 2017 17:45:48 GMT -9
Ok - I've tried this on a bunch of randomly generated minis, and I can now convert them in seconds! Here's the GIMP plugin, for those feeling brave: star_trek_minis_plugin.zip (2.91 KB) I have a readme in there that documents the burden on YOU the user to make this work right. Specifically, you have to line up your screenshot with some guides. I tried to make it as straight-forward as possible. If you have problems with the script, send me a PM and I'll try to help. There are still a few things I want to do to the script, but I don't want to spend too much time on it this evening. And yes - I know - I didn't bother cleaning up the code in the plug-in... If you decide to prove that you're clever by refactoring the code, just know I'll be eye-rolling and slow-clapping on my end of the internet. :-P
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Post by scarecrow on Apr 2, 2017 22:42:51 GMT -9
Oh wow! That's terrific. Thanks M.
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Post by scarecrow on Apr 21, 2017 7:42:42 GMT -9
Star Trek Mini-Maker is updated with: Motion Picture, Wrath of Khan and First Contact uniforms and props. Phasers, Tricorders, communicators and PADDs vary from movie to movie. For now I've chosen my favourites and will most likely add the others at a later date. I've also added TOS Andorian antennae for the TOS and TOS Pilot periods. I've tidied up the hand and arm positioning in places where it was a bit patchy. Wrist connections are still scrappy on bare arms. I'll look at that for the next build. I've also included a new loading screen. As ever the app can take several minutes to load depending on your connection. Please be patient. I may take a bit of a break before the next update as there are currently nearly 2500 seperate images in the app, the vast majority of which are arms and I'm really really sick of drawing arms! www.crowstuff.co.uk/MiniMaker/index.html
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