Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Community, Project, and Forum Suggestions

Moderator: OpenUru.org Moderators

User avatar
Marten
Member
Posts: 180
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 1:19 am

Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Marten »

So that it is not lost to obscurity, this was a well thought-out approach with considerable discussion already attached.

http://www.mystonline.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=7947
StarLion wrote:General Overview:
This post is a work in progress so bear with me. What I'm attempting to do is redesign the user interface of URU to be more usable, yet keep it in character. Some of these screenshots I've used in other threads, but I've accumulated enough changes that rely on one another that I think it warrants a new thread.

The current interface, to me, seems too compact and limited, so what I'm doing is taking each basic function, finding a way to implement it completely separately from all other functions, then blending it back into an all inclusive GUI (All in concept, I'm not actually going to be editing the game).

This first post will be slowly updated as I make changes to the layout, so if you're interested keep an eye on it.



Headings:
1. Personal Messages
2. The Player List
3. New and Visiting Players in an Alternate Color
4. Built in Translator
5. Hide the KI Independently
6. Name Tags (AKA KiDar)
7. Nametag Shortcuts
8. Optional Chat Bubbles
9. Primary KI Interface (Under Construction)



1. Personal Messages:
Current Interface:
All messages appear at the top of the screen, and a PM cannot be sent to multiple avatars simultaneously, and you can not block PM's.

Redesigned Interface:
While age chat and neighborhood messages still appear at the top of the screen, PM's use their own windows so that individual conversations could be established and easily kept track of.

A button on the primary KI interface to toggle between "Accept all PM's", "Do not distrub", and "Accept PM's from Buddies only" modes should also be added to block PM's at the users descression.

Avatars on your "ignore" list will not be able to send you PM requests at any time, and you will be warned when asked to join somone elses PM when a user on your ignores list is also participateing in that PM.

Practical Usage Example:
You click a name from your Age Player/Neighborhood/Buddy List (or their actual avitar, or their name from the age chat scrolling by at the top of the screen), and from the drop down menu that appears, select the Private Message option. A window like the one in the following screenshot would appear on both of your screens after the recipient of the PM accepts it. At this point you can both gab it up in this window with both text and private voice chat wherever you both are.

Building on this, the next time you select the "Private Message" option on another avitar (or their name in the player list), you would get you a dialog box that asks if you would like to either create another PM, or add this person to an existing PM (and if so, what one).

List other PM's (far left "<"), Chat Participants (left), Chat text (middle), scroll chat history arrows (right "/\ \/"), text entry box (bottom), and remove self from current PM button (bottom right "X").

List of other active PM's closed (Click image for full size):
Image

List of other active PM's open (Click image for full size):
Image



2. The Player List:
Current Interface:
There is currently no control over the display of the list containing Age Players, Neighborhood Members, and Buddies that show up along the left hand side of the screen while the KI is open.

Redesigned Interface:
Allow the Player List to be retracted into the KI. I don't know about you guys, but I don't need it on my screen while I'm chatting most of the time.

Practical Usage Example:
A new button (not neccisarly as shown in the following screenshot), allowing the ability to show / hide the Player List that is usualy displayed along the side of the screen
Image



3. New and Visiting Players in an Alternate Color:
Current Interface:
No matter how long a player has been a member of URU Live, their nickname (that appears in the scrolling age chat at the top of the screen) appears the same color.

(There are no "visiting" trial players, but a text color change would also apply to them)

Redesigned Interface:
Visiting players name in age chat is changed, showing you that they are just visiting (I suggest yellow)

Players that have been members for less than a (insert user defined amount of time) will have the color of their name in age chat altered (I suggest green)

Practical Usage Example:
Just like it says, new players name text is green; trial player’s names are yellow.

A slider to select the cut-off time for "new players" would be a nice touch, that way users can select weather they just want to see players that have joined in the past week, month, 3 months, 6 months, or year.



4. Built in Translator:
Current Interface:
Text appears as it was typed

Redesigned Interface:
A translator can be activated that translates text (as best it can) in the background, transparently to the user.

Practical Usage Example:
You type in Spanish on your computer, it comes out roughly translated into English to everyone else...simple as that :roll:



5. Hide the KI Independently:
Current Interface:
When you minimise (hide) the KI, the chat text at the top of the screen goes with it.

Redesigned Interface:
One way to fix this would be to split the KI and the chat text into two different objects that could be hidden and draged around independently of one another.

Practical Usage Example:
So, that would mean the addition of one last button (next to the Relto Book and KI icons found at the bottom of your screen) to hide/show the chat text that normally appears next to the KI.

As a side effect of these two things now being seperate objects, this would allow for us to drag around each sepeartly of one another, instead of the KI dragging the chat text around with it.



6. Name Tags (AKA KiDar):
Current Interface:
You must hover your mouse over another avatar to show their name.

Redesigned Interface:
Give the ability to force nametags to always be shown, preferably through a button on the primary KI interface to make changeing between options easy.

Practical Usage Example:
A button added to the KI interface that causes every avatars name to always be shown, floating over the corresponding avatar.

Your first click on the new button would show all names in the age, and that includes through walls so the engine doesent need to do unneeded colision detection:
(Click image for full size)
Image

Your second click would narrow it down to only those nearest to your avitar, to reduce visual clutter in a crowded age:
(Click image for full size)
Image



7. Nametag Shortcuts:
Current Interface:
No Current Equivalent.

Redesigned Interface:
A drop down menu that would appear when you click on another avatar or select their name from the Player list or Select their name from the public age chat at teh top of the screen. This menu would contain a list of useful shortcuts such as "Send PM", "Add to Buddy List", "Share Relto", "Ignore", Etc.

Practical Usage Example:
Simply a usefull list of shortcuts that will show up when you click on another avitar, or click on their name on your KI's Player/Buddy List:
(Click image for full size)
Image



8. Optional Chat Bubbles
Current Interface:
All messages are diplayed at the top of the screen with the rest of the age chat.

Redesigned Interface:
All avatars within 12 feet of your avatar display chat bubbles, in addition to their chat text appearing at the top of the screen.

Side note 1: PM's will NOT show up in chat bubbles
Side note 2: THIS IS OPTIONAL, you would have the option of turning chat bubbles off.

Some technical specifications:
1) Bubbles are square (they stack better that way), transparent, and KI themed.
2) Bubbles have a fixed size and text scrolls through them (note the "..." as text scrolls off the top).
3) All bubbles sit at the same height on the screen (standing and sitting get different heights).
4) Bubbles stay centered on the screen.
5) Bubbles always stay side by side on the screen (the never eclipse one another)
6) A line is drawn to a bubbles respective avatar.
7) Once a person is to far away (about 12 feet) their bubble is no longer visible.

Practical Usage Example:
(Click for full size)
Image



9. Primary KI Interface (Under Construction):
Current Interface:
Not much to say here...it can be confusing, a pain to work with, clunky, and just plain not user friendly.

Redesigned Interface:
Each task gets its own tab, instead of just throwing as much as possible onto the screen at once. Sending and reciving messages (KiMail Tab), manageing files like text and pictures (Files Tab), Your current coordinates, avitar name, your hood, KI ID # (Info Tab), etc.

Practical Usage Example:
So, here's the first section, of the first tab, of the primary KI interface.The buddy list will have to drop down if its not already open, but I dont think thats such a big deal.

Take note that the KI and Player List are solid, the chat text at the top of the screen just floats there (no hologram backing like the curent KI when its open), and that the only thing that is a hologram is the tabbed box coming off of the buddy list:

(Click image for full size)
Image

Info Tab (Image Above):
- Current avatar name.
- KI ID Number.
- Currently assigned neighborhood.
- Access to public player ID options through the "Edit Information" button for personal information that you want to make public. This corresponds to the "View Player ID" option seen in the Nametag Shortcuts screenshot.
- Real word date and time.
- D'ni date and time.
- Current location ("<name>'s Eder Gira")
- Current GZ coordinates. r, ?, and z.
- Map of current location.
- Example Images: | Tab 1 | Button 1 | Button 2 |

Ki Mail Tab:
- Manage received KiMail.
- Send KiMail (Includes sending text files and images from the "files" tab).
- Send an invite to one of your private ages.
- Example Images: | Tab 1 | Tab 2 |

Files tab:
- Manage text files you have written.
- Move text files and images from "Received KiMail" to other folders on the KI for permanent storage.
- Sort files by Name, Age Created In, Author, Date, etc.
- Manage picture files that you've taken (Ki Shots).
- Manage audio clips you've recorded and music files you've recived.

People tab:
- Manage Buddies
- Manage Ignores
- List of neighbors
- (Invite feature moved to Ki Mail)

Games Tab:
- Manage the creation of marker games.
- Control whatever other games Cyan implements.

Browser Tab:
- Wait and see :wink:

Settings Tab:
- General KI settings such as chat fade time, text size, etc.
Last edited by Mac_Fife on Fri Dec 17, 2010 8:03 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Changed legacy phpBB2 font size attributes to phpBB3 style
The music is reversible, but time is not.
DarK
Member
Posts: 49
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:04 pm

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by DarK »

Thanks for digging this out!

I can say for certain a lot of this is possible, I've worked with the KI a lot in terms of changing the interface and a lot of it would be relatively easy to do.

One thing I would like to see is the KI code broken down so that it is easier to manage, some of the original KI’s from UU had well over 8000 Lines of code in, that’s before adding additional code. Not only does this make the KI a pain to write anything for, a lot of code is executed that is not actually needed.In many cases the KI Plods through many condition statements, before it does anything actually useful.

Below is a suggested outline for a redesign:

Test and report on features that are possible, build a feasible feature guide and remove features that are not possible from the design

Check BlenderPRP/Age creation tools are able to compile GUI objects/animated GUI objects

Plan code and break down code into manageable files.

Develop new/re-develop vault structures where required for better performance.

Remove many none related procedures and requirements from existing KI code (removing things like BBar/options menu control out of the KI and into its own files)

Implement new code and GUI changes, documenting changes and the testing that is preformed as needed.

Release and maintain as required.
Grogyan
Member
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 8:18 am

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Grogyan »

I didn't even know this topic was here.

We've been discussing possible ideas to revamp the KI at the GoW
http://forum.guildofwriters.com/viewtop ... &sk=t&sd=a

It was already well known that if MOUL had got into a second season that the KI was in line for a major overhaul

We've thrown out ideas around for changing the GUI and chat interface.

I like some of the ideas, and I think i'll mock something up to get an idea of what it could look like in game, just my idea, nothing else

Edit: As promised a mock up of how the chat window could look
Image

That little arrow between the Mini Ki and chat window, pointing left and clicking will close the chat box, but still record the conversation
Pointing right will open the chat window
The 1st tab is the Age that you are in having the conversation
the 2nd tab is the hood you belong to
the 3rd tab is a group that you are joined with
the 4th tab is a group that you are joined with
the 5th tab is a PM conversation that you are having with someone

The chat box has an alpha texture so even in this example you can play with it with different backgrounds and the background will show through

I havn't included the far left hand drop down arrow as that I suspect will still be there, but will be persistent to the place on the list (a much needed fix)
It will also from discussions possibly handle the mouse wheel scroll to scroll up and down in both the chat window and the player list drop down menu

You probably not6iced some other changes in this mock up, i'll go through these, again these are ONLY ideas, nothing has been formalized and i'm not working on the code or interface, i'm not that talented
As you can see the GPS coordinates will display in Real time like they used to in Prologue, except they will appear on the actual KI device its self
The top right button opens and closes the Big KI
The middle right button opens and closes an extended tab, like that of Jalak
The bottom right button is my proposed location of the Marker game, right from Calibration to making player made marker games
Last edited by Grogyan on Mon Dec 29, 2008 3:28 am, edited 1 time in total.
DarK
Member
Posts: 49
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:04 pm

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by DarK »

Could you tell me if there is anything available that handles GUI items in terms of editing/creating?

If not I'm going to need to figure out what is needed and create a tool or something :)
Chacal
Member
Posts: 29
Joined: Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:41 am
Location: Quebec City, Canada

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Chacal »

It is essential that the GUI be modeled using a 3D editor and exported into prp-compatible objects. So far that means Blender with PyPRP. Paradox at GoW has done some work on GUI compatibility with PyPRP and has posted some screenshots, but integration is far from complete.

The mechanisms for integrating the GUI objects with the Python code are well known, Dustin has successfully reattached the Jalak GUI into the POTS userKI. Jalak works flawlessly now.
Grogyan
Member
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 8:18 am

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Grogyan »

I suspect that the GUI will be done as Chacal says in the modelling program, using mesh planes, overlapped to give it its appearance with a Camera in the Blender Scene to show the perspective of the GUI
DarK
Member
Posts: 49
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:04 pm

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by DarK »

Seems a bit OT for something that is 2D, its not that hard to render 2D items over a viewport.

But if its how its got to be done, then that way it is.

Do you guys have any webby links at hand that can be passed on so I can see the work, and maybe lend a hand where needed?
User avatar
Marten
Member
Posts: 180
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 1:19 am

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Marten »

A quick note about the KI, and instancing.

Every other MMO that I know of with instances determines who can enter an instance together based upon who they are "partied" with. Although I'd like to separate instancing behaviors from the KI and Nexus, the "party" concept is simply too common and well known to ignore. I'd be a fool not to suggest that the KI be the place where a person can manage their current "party." It could be a way to let people into your instance without sending invites.
The music is reversible, but time is not.
Grogyan
Member
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2008 8:18 am

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Grogyan »

Marten wrote:A quick note about the KI, and instancing.

Every other MMO that I know of with instances determines who can enter an instance together based upon who they are "partied" with. Although I'd like to separate instancing behaviors from the KI and Nexus, the "party" concept is simply too common and well known to ignore. I'd be a fool not to suggest that the KI be the place where a person can manage their current "party." It could be a way to let people into your instance without sending invites.
Can you elaborate more?

As far as I can tell breaking the conversation up into parties, is still by far the best way to communicate
Even with proximity detection on, ie 10 yards away and the conversation from someone else doesn't get confused with the one your having.

What I do like about StarLion's idea, more specifically, in the Age that you are in, by hovering the mouse over the avatar, it shows a small drop down menu for invites and PM's, but I feel this needs to be in addition to the current method of invites
Though I don't like the idea of changing how the Relto book is shared, this method for sharing Relto though as said before could be an alternative to the way we do it now

Image

I don't like the idea of Chat bubbles, makes the game uncomfortable to me, too toony

The idea of Auto translation is hard, unless there is a runtime engine that is free that we can use, but by far the biggest problem is foreign characters or if you want to type "/" as the first character, the way out of that is if you want to type / as the first character type "//" instead

Keyboard type can be done in the settings window, not in the KI,
User avatar
Marten
Member
Posts: 180
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 1:19 am

Re: Client: StarLion's KI Overhaul

Post by Marten »

Elaboration, as requested. :)

One of the big problems with Uru's chat is that if you've added someone to your friends list, and you say something to all of your friends, any one person replying to their friends won't necessary reply to the same people that saw your message. It's also possible that people on your friends list haven't added you as their own friend. It is a pretty broken system.

A much better solution is to give players the ability to create communication channels, to which one can subscribe, and then anyone in that channel can be assured that all subscribers in the channel can reply and see each others' replies.

In World of Warcraft, a party is an ad-hoc grouping of players who've banded together to accomplish a specific goal. Party chat works as a channel automatically created for the party, and only members of the party can talk on that channel. If you enter an area that is instanced, then anyone else in your party entering that same area will enter the same instance. If you aren't in a party, then you get a private instance - you are a party of 1.

(Guilds also have their own automatically created chat channels in WoW. Again, only guild members can talk on the channel created for the guild.)

So what I think Uru needs is the ability to allow players to form channels (for chatting) and parties (for instance exploring). For purposes of extending private instances to groups, the instance used would be that of the party "leader."
The music is reversible, but time is not.
Post Reply

Return to “Suggestions”