MF0 Unit Cards

[neoaez]

Code: Select all

card field:
   type: text
   name: unitmodelbarcode
   multi line: false
   show statistics: false
   editable: false
   script:
      if card.unitmodelnumber = "" then ""
      else card.unitmodelnumber

Thanks! I've incorporated that script into the latest version.
Also included are the new split weapon system icons.

The link to the Code39 font in my original release post has been edited. It should be correct now. Sorry about the confusion.

The current release is in the same place, just grab the zip ending in 2012-08-11.

[Mercutio]

Awesome. Thanks.

Below are two sample cards I made with this. I picked a few slightly different fonts due to personal tastes. Like I said, I added other accents, which you can see in these images as well, but you did all the hard work, for which I'm very much appreciative.

(edited to remove images - updated ones published below)

[neoaez]

Thanks.

I've been playing with ways to keep the proper Z-order and still allow different accents. I may have to break-up the accent image into smaller pieces to achieve this without having to resort to different styles for each.

*EDIT* Nevermind. I'm being dense about this. I just created an image mask for the accents. Now the accent image isn't eating the click events on the frame's image. Wish I had thought of this a couple hours ago.

[Mercutio]

I hadn't thought about that. I just kludged* through the layers and set them at z -2 like the background, since that doesn't change (yet - although I see you included another background option). The image mask is probably the better long-term solution anyway.

*Frankly, kludging is how I've always done the templating in MSE. Black Plauge did all the coding when he and I did our 4E D&D cards. I just did the design, but it certainly didn't come out anywhere near half as cool as this one.

[neoaez]

I've been toying with the "white" background as an option to save ink when printing.

The confusing bit is if I allow the accent and the background to be changed it is not as obvious where to click to get the correction option. If you allow only one it is pretty straight forward. I think the best direction is to keep it simple and only allow the accents to be changed.


MF0 - Unit Card - Accent Color Options by neoaez76, on Flickr
*(Daisuke frame was created by FerrelFerret)

As you can see above, with the image mask in place the layers work properly so the unit image isn't hiding parts of the accent image.

One annoying bug I've noticed -- and it is present in your minimalist view: when using an image with a transparent background it sometimes jacks the image up and changes the transparent areas to black. When you add the image, change the size to "Custom" and reduce the height by one pixel. This has solved the issue for me everytime.


*EDIT* One last edit - the 2012-08-12 version with additional accents and proper z-ordering is released.

[neoaez]

MF0 - Unit Cards - New hi-res version with more options by neoaez76, on Flickr

I've updated the first post with the latest release info.

I've gone back and redone much of the art in 300dpi. I've also included higher-res versions of Soren's latest icons.
The card template itself has been set to 200dpi for printing. This makes for much cleaner prints than the original 100 dpi version.

With a little MSE scripting magic I've also adding styling options so you can choose a different card background. Currently included are the orignal dark-gray, a new version of dark-gray with white background elements and finally a white card background.

As always, let me know if there are any issues with the template. Enjoy!

[Mercutio]

Yes. That looks much better. I was going to ask if you had higher resolution art. I printed a test page for use, and it was okay, but looked better onscreen. I'm glad you resized the art to make cleaner print. The color options and accents are excellent. I'm glad you posted the image with how to change the background. I was clicking all over the place trying to change it, and then looked at the picture again and saw where that option was. I think my favorite background is the dark-gray with the white elements. The white just seems a bit too washed-out to me, but I'm sure it will look better when printed.

Edit: I tweaked the fonts again (personal preference) but here's the two samples updated.

[neoaez]

Edit: I tweaked the fonts again (personal preference) but here's the two samples updated.

What fonts are you using? I'd like to see if I can add styling options that just allow you select those fonts and maybe a few others...

[Mercutio]

http://www.dafont.com/vorpal.font

Regular Vorpal for the Name and Number, and Vorpal Condensed for the flavor text.

[neoaez]

Thanks.

I've added the option to set the font and color for Font01 (the unit name and model #). You can also change the font for Font02 (the flavor text box).

If you dig into the template's code you will see I've cleaned up the style sheets and moved the scripts to their own file. This should make future enhancements a bit easier and changes/updates less time consuming.


*EDIT* I've pulled the release for a bit. I may have a way of allowing you to just type in the name of the font you want and if it is installed on your system it will use it, else it will fallback to Arial.

*EDIT #2* =) ...and it has been released again. I've included a few font and color options in a drop down. I've also included text fields (font01 override, fontcolor01 override, etc...).
You can type the name of a font in the font01 or 02 overrides and if the name matches a font installed on your system it will use it.
You can type a color in rgb format (example 0,0,0 for black, 128,128,128 for gray, 255,255,255 for white, etc...). Values must be from 0-255.

Hopefully this makes sense.

[neoaez]

So I've spent the last day thinking about how to best allow template users some freedom in look and feel of their cards without having them dig into the code of the template.

After experimenting and failing miserably for several hours, I have figured out how to use some of the awesome scripting features in MSE to allow custom colored accents and fonts without having to dig into the template code or supply new artwork. Little did I know you could call a color picker dialog from MSE or recolor images based on their rgb values.

Now to see how I can apply this best...

...like maybe this:

MFZ Unit Cards -New Style Options Preview by neoaez76, on Flickr

[Mercutio]

Now that? Is very, very hutchin' cool.

[neoaez]

:o Now that? Is very, very hutchin' cool.

Thanks!

I took it a step further and split the background into 2 layers: background and overlay. The overlay is the darker transparent area behind the text, symbols and unit image. This can now be styled with a color separate from the background. Now the overlay is transparent so if you set the background to red and the overlay to blue, the overlay will appear purple.

Other than that caveat, it seems to work really well. Play with it and let me know what you think. The only other tweak I could think to make is to add the option to choose different overlay images with varying transparency. I may have to experiment and see.


MF0 - Unit Cards - New Feature Preview #2 by neoaez76, on Flickr

That said, I think I'm nearly done with the template. Are there any other features, data fields or alternative layouts to add?

*EDIT* I found the script function to set the alpha on an image. I added a style field to adjust the overlay's transparency. The latest version 2012-08-19a is ready for download.

[Mercutio]

Looks pretty good. Downloaded all the fonts and the files, and I'm impressed. It works pretty simply and is highly customizable and fairly user-friendly.

[Bhikku]

My GF and I both downloaded your template, and we've been having fun making cards for our units. Wicked cool!

We were wondering about the serial number format, though. Is there some kind of standard that most players are using? I'm guessing the M stands for manufacturer code, and the # is presumably for the particular unit type or even the version number, but C? Is that for a class designation? Are there common designations, or should we just make up our own from scratch?

Also, since you asked about alternate layouts, have you considered one that eliminates the bar code and makes room for more flavor text? It could be a boon for fluff-junkies like me.

[neoaez]

Thanks! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying the template.

I'll see about an extended "fluff" version of the layout. It may not happen right away. I've got a fairly busy schedule this week.

I've been using the C part of the model number for class. Some common canon classes are LF (labor frame) and ST (standing tank). Not sure if there are others.

I use HS for 'hard suit'. Feel free to makeup your own.

[Shades_Corvid]

giving this a bump