#0 - Feb. 18, 2008, 4:32 p.m.
I think, no, I know anyone with a slight interest in addons will like this episode (See the interview now! GO!).
Mod subject of this week
Graphic Mods.
By now Schwick and I have gotten your UI ticking over on the inside but what is a UI that runs smoothly but doesn’t look good on the outside! You aren’t going to release that hunk of buttons and bars out to the public are you? Nah, you will want something to make it look visually appealing, aesthetics are important! It’s Pimping time.
Discord was gone, the world should have ended right then, but we got lucky because along came eePanels2. Although this addon doesn’t have as much options as the faithful Discord had, it still does the basics very well. You can import your custom artwork, resize it, change the transparency, etc. Or just make a nice coloured box and a nice border on it(See Caith’s UI for the best example). The choice is yours.
Link: http://www.wowace.com/files/eePanels/
Pic: http://home.comcast.net/~daelus/eePanels.jpg
Making your own art is soooo yesterday. These days the best things in life come in (a nice .zip file) small packages, and Sunn – Viewpoint Art doesn’t change that theory. It is a premade art package that will add your choice of art to the bottom of the screen. Easy to set up and looks nice. Remember to download what Art Pack you want also! Note: the picture is just a sample of what is available.
Link: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/5784/
Pic: http://media.curse-gaming.com/adjust_images/resize/750x500/22/965.jpg
The same can be said for this addon as was said about Sunn. CassArt is another simple addon with prepackaged art. You will need to have WinRAR installed in order to extract it though as it is in a .rar file instead of a .zip. Kinda ruined my alternative theory above then :D Note: Same as above, only a sample of the art available in the picture.
Link: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/9878/
Pic: http://media.curse-gaming.com/adjust_images/resize/750x500/102/31.jpg
I have been trying to find good information on the addon XArt for a while now but it doesn’t seem to have a wowace wiki page. The best I can tell you about it is “Provides a background texture at the bottom” Works on the basis of Viewpoints (I think optional) and also works similarly to eePanels2(the art side of it only, not the panels). Any information regarding this addon is greatly appreciated, as I heard good things about it. Either way the picture below is possible with it.
Link: http://files.wowace.com/sw-x.html
Pic: http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/full7894.jpg
Pretty art doesn’t always completely pimp your UI, you might need something more. Skinner is the answer. This will change the art on all your frames, character, talents, spellbook, etc. Read the info on how to skin addons and other stuff.
Info: http://www.wowace.com/wiki/Skinner
Link: http://files.wowace.com/sw-s.html
Pic: http://www.wowace.com/wiki/Image:Character.jpg
Bored with your frames just appearing? Make them, (how to describe this….hmmm) Pop? Look like they expand from the bottom left corner with VisualThemes. Frame Transition animation is what it is described as. A fairly good fps is recommended, as it looks bad at low fps.
Link: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/9532/
Pic: http://media.curse-gaming.com/adjust_images/resize/750x500/40/432.jpg
- Name and Realm, (US or EU?)
I play as Glenda on Cenarion Circle (US). Yes, I play female characters. Yes, it makes me feel pretty.
- How long have you been playing WoW / creating Addons?
Since February, 2006.
- How and why did you get involved in creating addons?
Well, I had a pretty shoddy computer back when I started, less than 512 MiB RAM and everything. Titan was a hog for memory as well as lacked some features I liked, so I decided that, after trying and failing to hack Titan, to make my own, which became FuBar.
- What addons have you created so far?
FuBar, Cartographer, PitBull, Parrot, CowTip, and Chinchilla. I also have quite a few FuBar plugins and lots of libraries I've done.
- How do you manage your time between playing WoW and programming your addons as you have many big addons to take care of, not including the Ace/2/3 Libraries?
I don't really play WoW all that often anymore, I prefer to code addons.
- What are your thoughts on the Lua programming language?
Overall, it's a relatively good language, but it lacks a lot of nice features that I've grown accustomed to with Python and Ruby and the like.
- How long does it take you to create an addon?
Well, I created my last addon, Chinchilla, a minimap addon, in just over two days, but that was a pretty small project. It can take anywhere from a few days to over a month. It should also be known that I have to support the addons ad nauseum, so there's no real "finish" date, since I like to continuously improve.
- What process is used to create an addon all the way to full public release?
I play WoW for a little while, become frustrated by something and decide to either find a better addon or write my own. Then I write it, do adequate testing, and release it to the public.
- How did you get involved in Ace?
My first addon (which became FuBar) was done in Ace1 because I noticed that the addons done in it were more efficient than alternatives, as well as there being a streamlined configuration interface (at that time, command line). I became involved with Ace2 and by the end of that, I had ended up coding between 80 and 90 percent of it by release.
- Ace3 is now emerging, what are the main differences between Ace2 and Ace3?
Ace3 focuses on minimalism to such a point whereas before Ace2 may have provided a feature, Ace3 can expect you to code it manually yourself. It also has the niceties of not relying on a centralized piece of code (besides the also minimalistic LibStub) and using more sophisticated algorithms in its code. I don't use Ace3, I instead use the Rock framework, mostly because of its maturity. Perhaps once Ace3 finally releases, I may write something using it.
- What is your next step in addon development?
Well, I've just released Chinchilla, which was a fun little project. I'm not sure what I'll work on next, but I'm currently working on getting my addons ready for the changes in 2.4. Who knows, perhaps my next addon will by an action bar addon or something else.
- Will patch 2.4 affect you in any way?
Yes, I have a few libraries and addons which use the old system, so they'll need to be updated.
- What changes would you like to see in the future concerning the Interface and Addons?
Well, if Blizzard had more community outreach and presence, it would be nice. Currently they don't listen to developers in a way I'm satisfied with, which I see is caused by lack of manpower coupled with legal concerns.
This week’s Interview comes to you from ckknight (as he is more commonly known as ckknight than Glenda :D) Author of many of the addons you probably have on your Interface at the moment, I know I am using at least three at the moment. His addons bring me so much joy I could hug him, /target Glenda[noharm] /cast superhug. (don’t bother correcting me people who know macros…. I am a lost cause at them)
Name: Sell That Junk!
Submitted by: K.l.i.s.h.u. (Grade 3 Hurrah!)
Macro:
Q u o t e:
/run for x=0,4 do for y=1,GetContainerNumSlots(x) do l=GetContainerItemLink(x,y) if (l) then _,_,q=GetItemInfo(l) if (q==0) then UseContainerItem(x,y) end end end end
Why have an addon for selling your junk (grey items) when you can use this macro instead? Open a vendor you can sell stuff to, and click the macro button, it is that simple.
http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=2844495293&sid=1
Post Your UI has reached it’s posting limit so Mithriel has kindly posted up a new one, with a snazzy V2.0 after it! Go let your UI be known to the world, or at least Europe and randomers who venture in from the outside.
http://www.wowace.com/forums/index.php?topic=11294.0
More Combat Log threads, this week from the wowace forums, this is a thread on “Undocumented COMBAT_LOG_EVENT arguments”.
If that wasn’t enough coding information for you then read the “New undocumented functions in 2.4” thread also on the wowace forums.
http://www.wowace.com/forums/index.php?topic=11302.0
- http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/info4569-SSPVP2.html
Version: r566
Change log:Q u o t e:
- All positions should now be saved so that changing ui scale doesn't reset positioning
r553- Players cached list of arena teams are now refreshed before showing personal rating, to help prevent inaccurate personal ratings being given
r537- Updated to use Ace3 trunk now
Name:ZMobDB Advanced4
Download mirrors: - All positions should now be saved so that changing ui scale doesn't reset positioning
- http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/5974/
Version: 4.5beta14
Change log:Q u o t e:
- FixBug:sometimes can’t load slider bar.
Name:BigWigs Bossmods
Download mirrors: - FixBug:sometimes can’t load slider bar.
- http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/3299/
- http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/info5086-BigWigsBossmods.html
Version: r61176
Change log:Q u o t e:
- add sunwell bosses, compatible with 2.3
- add sunwell bosses, compatible with 2.3
Name:SSPVP2
Download mirrors:
