Changing Space

Does anyone know if there is a way to change the standard background of black space with stars in the game to something else, say, a different color? Is there a ppat or PICT somewhere for this, or this hard-coded?

------------------

i've seen it somewhere.... it has both pict and a mask. i don't remember which one exactly but i know for a fact taht it is not hard coded.

------------------
My parents died in Roswell incident.

Great! This opens doors to all sorts of modding possibilities!

Does anyboday know which resource and resource ID this is so I can find it? Thanks.

------------------

I thought the ppats in Nova Graphics 1 controlled the appearance of the stars.

The background color can be set system-by-system; there's a variable for it in the syst resource. It's used for Alphara in the stock Nova scenario. If you set murk to -1 (I think), it turns off the starfield for a particular system, giving you a pure single-color background.

Edit: Yup, it's murk = -1 to turn off the stars. That's how I & Jon B. produced this:

Posted Image

------------------
(url="http://"http://home.comcast.net/~drtrowel/")Dr. Trowel's E.S.W.P.(/url) -- Cold Fusion graphics for EVN Override, EVN:O bug fixes, 'n more.
Very Good Stuff: (url="http://"http://www.evula.com/escape_velocity/")EVula(/url) (url="http://"http://w00tware.ev-nova.net/")NovaTools(/url) (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")EVPlugSearcher(/url) Play FAQs: (url="http://"http://ev-nova.net/faq/")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Nova+FAQs&number;=30&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Override+FAQs&number;=53&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")O(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=Escape+Velocity+FAQs&number;=28&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")C(/url) Dev FAQs: (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Plug-in+Developer+FAQs&number;=29&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")A(/url) (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&number;=31&SUBMIT;=Go")B(/url)
For a Limited Time Only: (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/webboard/Forum26/HTML/018106.html#")The Silly Plug Contest!(/url)

(This message has been edited by Dr. Trowel (edited 08-16-2004).)

Quote

Originally posted by Dr. Trowel:
I thought the ppats in Nova Graphics 1 controlled the appearance of the stars.

Nope. It's a spïn and rlë8/D.

------------------
The programmer's code of entomology: there's always another bug.
There are 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who have friends.
Windows users: stop asking for plugins. (url="http://"http://www.aznt.com/EVN/EVNEW/")Make one yourself.(/url)
(url="http://"http://www.cwssoftware.com")Sephil Saga Website(/url) | (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")Add-ons Search Engine(/url)

dr towel - that's the funniest thign ever! can i get the plugin for it?

------------------
My parents died in Roswell incident.

It is übercute...

------------------
Drinking causes hangovers.
(url="http://"http://www.freewebs.com/rmx256/index.htm")Kemet T.C. Website(/url)

Quote

Originally posted by dorrus:
**dr towel - that's the funniest thign ever! can i get the plugin for it?

**

I'm holding the planet and the asteroid back to use 'em in something large, and the two-hulled ship is the EVO freighter remake in Cold Fusion for Nova. The other item in the scene, though, is currently available in the Silly Plugs Contest, and the link for that is in my sig. Voting and posting comments over there would be good ways to encourage those of us who dream of bringing greater wackiness to EVN.... 😉

On topic, though: which Nova file has the spďn and rlë8/D for the stars? Has anyone tried creating custom stars? And what are those ppats with dots on a black background for, then, anyway?

------------------
(url="http://"http://home.comcast.net/~drtrowel/")Dr. Trowel's E.S.W.P.(/url) -- Cold Fusion graphics for EVN Override, EVN:O bug fixes, 'n more.
Very Good Stuff: (url="http://"http://www.evula.com/escape_velocity/")EVula(/url) (url="http://"http://w00tware.ev-nova.net/")NovaTools(/url) (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")EVPlugSearcher(/url) Play FAQs: (url="http://"http://ev-nova.net/faq/")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Nova+FAQs&number;=30&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Override+FAQs&number;=53&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")O(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=Escape+Velocity+FAQs&number;=28&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")C(/url) Dev FAQs: (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Plug-in+Developer+FAQs&number;=29&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")A(/url) (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&number;=31&SUBMIT;=Go")B(/url)
For a Limited Time Only: (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/webboard/Forum26/HTML/018106.html#")The Silly Plug Contest!(/url)

(This message has been edited by Dr. Trowel (edited 08-17-2004).)

Quote

Originally posted by Dr. Trowel:
**On topic, though: which Nova file has the spďn and rlë8/D for the stars? Has anyone tried creating custom stars? And what are those ppats with dots on a black background for, then, anyway?

**

It's in Nova Graphics 2, ID 700. I believe the ppats are the radar interference pics.

------------------
We're going on a (url="http://"http://www.saunalahti.fi/hoge/")bear hunt(/url). They'll eat you if you misbehave. They live on an island out to sea. They will chew you up and spit out your bones. We live on the beach with all their (url="http://"http://www.evula.com")rubbish(/url). And people. Bears. Giant bears. They will eat me and you. Run back to the house before they catch us. Wee hee hee can't catch me.
Official Lektorian

Quote

Originally posted by Dr. Trowel:
**On topic, though: which Nova file has the spďn and rlë8/D for the stars? Has anyone tried creating custom stars? And what are those ppats with dots on a black background for, then, anyway?
**

If the ppat looks sorta like stars then it's probably the background for the planet comm.

------------------
"The Macintosh may only have 10% of the market, but it is clearly the top 10%." — Douglas Adams

Quote

Originally posted by Dr. Trowel:
**On topic, though: which Nova file has the spďn and rlë8/D for the stars? Has anyone tried creating custom stars? And what are those ppats with dots on a black background for, then, anyway?

**

At one point, I considered replacing the stars pattern with brush, rocks, and shrubberies, and using a tan or green background for a planet-based plugin. Of course, the problem was that they could never then go into space, unless they want to have said rocks and shrubberies floating around out there... It would have worked best with parallax starfield off, fyi.

~ SP

------------------
Fear the SpacePirate,
He made a (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")plug-in search page(/url)...
And he'll board your ship!
-mrxak
*** (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/")InfernoStudios(/url) was last updated 06 June, 2004. ***

Quote

Originally posted by SpacePirate:
**At one point, I considered replacing the stars pattern with brush, rocks, and shrubberies, and using a tan or green background for a planet-based plugin. Of course, the problem was that they could never then go into space, unless they want to have said rocks and shrubberies floating around out there... It would have worked best with parallax starfield off, fyi.

~ SP

**

Did you ever actually try it? I'd be interested to see how well it worked.

------------------
"The Macintosh may only have 10% of the market, but it is clearly the top 10%." — Douglas Adams

Yeah, but I didn't play with larger sprites, though. I kept them the exact same size. I don't know how well the engine would handle larger starfield sprites... Anyone up for a challenge?

------------------
Fear the SpacePirate,
He made a (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")plug-in search page(/url)...
And he'll board your ship!
-mrxak
*** (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/")InfernoStudios(/url) was last updated 06 June, 2004. ***

Quote

Originally posted by SpacePirate:
**Yeah, but I didn't play with larger sprites, though. I kept them the exact same size. I don't know how well the engine would handle larger starfield sprites... Anyone up for a challenge?

**

I just tried it. It works. Screenshot coming. Wait for it....

Edit: Here it is:

Posted Image

I took some steps that were probably unneeded; I think the only thing that I did that mattered was to replace the spin for the stars (ID 700) with one that pointed to the RLEs for the "huge" opal-bearing asteroid. Note that some of the RoidStars overlap each other. They aren't animated -- Nova picks one frame for each star, and it doesn't change.

(And yes, I am piloting a winged cheese, with a winged cheese for an escort. Guess where you can pick up one of your own. 🙂 )

Edit again: Some oddities. The StarRoids don't appear until their midpoints enter the screen -- in other words, they appear to pop into existence, rather than sliding into view. They exit the screen smoothly, however. They also seem to have some translucency when they cross each other in different planes of the parallax field (unless the mask for the asteroid is really sloppily made, so that black pixels within the roid are acting as holes).

These things would be less noticable with smaller star sprites.

------------------
(url="http://"http://home.comcast.net/~drtrowel/")Dr. Trowel's E.S.W.P.(/url) -- Cold Fusion graphics for EVN Override, EVN:O bug fixes, 'n more.
Very Good Stuff: (url="http://"http://www.evula.com/escape_velocity/")EVula(/url) (url="http://"http://w00tware.ev-nova.net/")NovaTools(/url) (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")EVPlugSearcher(/url) Play FAQs: (url="http://"http://ev-nova.net/faq/")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Nova+FAQs&number;=30&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")N(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Override+FAQs&number;=53&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")O(/url) (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=Escape+Velocity+FAQs&number;=28&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")C(/url) Dev FAQs: (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum;=EV+Plug-in+Developer+FAQs&number;=29&DaysPrune;=20&LastLogin;=")A(/url) (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/ubb/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&number;=31&SUBMIT;=Go")B(/url)
For a Limited Time Only: (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/webboard/Forum26/HTML/018106.html#")The Silly Plug Contest!(/url)

(This message has been edited by Dr. Trowel (edited 08-19-2004).)

(This message has been edited by Dr. Trowel (edited 08-19-2004).)

(This message has been edited by Dr. Trowel (edited 08-19-2004).)

Quote

Originally posted by Dr. Trowel:
I just tried it. It works. Screenshot coming. Wait for it....

Edit: Here it is:

Posted Image

I took some steps that were probably unneeded; I think the only thing that I did that mattered was to replace the spin for the stars (ID 700) with one that pointed to the RLEs for the "huge" opal-bearing asteroid. Note that some of the RoidStars overlap each other. They aren't animated -- Nova picks one frame for each star, and it doesn't change.

(And yes, I am piloting a winged cheese, with a winged cheese for an escort. Guess where you can pick up one of your own. 🙂 )

Edit again: Some oddities. The StarRoids don't appear until their midpoints enter the screen -- in other words, they appear to pop into existence, rather than sliding into view. They exit the screen smoothly, however. They also seem to have some translucency when they cross each other in different planes of the parallax field (unless the mask for the asteroid is really sloppily made, so that black pixels within the roid are acting as holes).

These things would be less noticable with smaller star sprites.

(/B)

As for the oddities, that's what I figured. I wish it could be modified so the stars don't overlap each other, but this is so obscure of a change that it could hardly be called a bug...

The translucency is actually there constantly- that's one of the effects of a parallax starfield. All of the objects are translucent to some degree or another, adding to the illusion of depth.

However, as I and Dr. Trowel said, it'd be much less noticeable with smaller sprites... I really can't think of a case where you would need sprites as large as an asteroid. 8x8 pixels per sprite was more than enough for small rocks and bushes, I'd assume you'd never go over 32.

~ SP

------------------
Fear the SpacePirate,
He made a (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/search.html")plug-in search page(/url)...
And he'll board your ship!
-mrxak
*** (url="http://"http://www.evula.org/infernostudios/")InfernoStudios(/url) was last updated 06 June, 2004. ***