Very very preliminary StG design stuff

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I love to share progress, no matter how small, so here is the very very beginning of the header for the content sub-pages for StG v6. (scroll down for more updated version)

Not sure if I mentioned this before, but Gobi, a longtime StG visitor and talented graphic designer, is helping me out with some design stuff for v6. He was working on this last night and I'm even more excited now :D

You can check out the sketch for roughly what this'll look like when finished in this thread.

Pay no attention to colours or details right now, it's just the first go at getting the angles and dimensions down.

The main area is going to narrow slightly and the sidebar on the right will widen. Also, the building(s) will fade out and not be in the background of the content.

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Bugs/feature requests? Let me know!



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Ooo cool.... Maybe source the photos from downtown SFO there for the upper part? dunno, but it looks like it'll be interesting.

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FMPhoenixHawk's picture
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Go Gobister! Get 'em, penguin boy!

(Explanation: Gobi and I are posters over on the IGN Sci-Fi Community Board. He has had a penguin icon for pretty much his entire posting time there.)

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Field Marshal Phoenix Hawk
41st Corsairs Regimental Combat Team
(The Black Hawks)
Federated Suns



StephTheGeek's picture
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Another update to the design

Yes I know it's freaking huge. It's got some extras in the graphic, but the actual page will be the same as the current StG width.

Still really rough, I was just tinkering with the graphic to get an idea of layout and stuff. Things that will change:
- windows will continue in the background
- thinking about doing the top menu as a banner being pulled behind an airplane
- building colours will be tweaked and more distinct from each other
- second building needs a roof
- menu items/fonts aren't final
- sidebar items are kinda made up but they should give you a sense of the type of content to expect
- still not sure exactly how to do the fade to/from background
- The Gazette (or similar) title will look like the building's sign

Again let me just say that Gobi seriously rocks for bringing this idea to life :)

Feedback welcome!

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Bugs/feature requests? Let me know!



cyrusthevirus's picture
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StephTheGeek wrote:
Feedback welcome!

Co♥♥♥♥♥♥ol !!!

Maybe some windows could be used for links, like on Jacques Tati site:
www.tativille.com/
(Flash, allow popups from it)

With SVG it would be possible to write on slanted lines and still to have the text indexed by Google (even if animated), but MSIE seems to have problems with it, as usual.
(SVG samples here)

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StephTheGeek's picture
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Thanks!

Erm, yeah, I have a feeling that slanted text might get a little annoying after a while ;)

For things like the windows, what I'd like is for people to be able to submit images, which will then go up on the site. As I've said before, I'd really like to make this a collaborative playground. The pixel art stuff is addictive... just about anyone can create something that looks good.

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Bugs/feature requests? Let me know!



Posts: 252
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Quote:
just about anyone can create something that looks good.

case in point

did some doodling a while back...

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StephTheGeek's picture
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Wow that's awesome!

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Bugs/feature requests? Let me know!



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thanks... i scrapped the pixel art tho... doing everything in SVG.. scalable baby... isometric SVG, that's the ticket...

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StephTheGeek's picture
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You left your front door open ;)

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StephTheGeek wrote:
You left your front door open ;)

must be a Canadian at heart

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*brainstorms*

*envisions pixel art self-portraits and portraits of steph doing entertaining things in front of the windows*

this could be fun...

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FMPhoenixHawk's picture
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Why is all the text in German? Or is that French? Either way, it's weird. Nice look, though. I will miss the old look, but life moves on.

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Field Marshal Phoenix Hawk
41st Corsairs Regimental Combat Team
(The Black Hawks)
Federated Suns



Posts: 1141
Joined: 2006-05-17

FMPhoenixHawk wrote:
Why is all the text in German? Or is that French? Either way, it's weird. Nice look, though. I will miss the old look, but life moves on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorem_ipsum

What I find interesting is this translation from the source material for Lorem Ipsum:

Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure.

Seems apropos for steph's site.

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Posts: 252
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StephTheGeek wrote:
You left your front door open ;)

open door to open minds

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Cuddlemonster's picture
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Ok, I've been holding this in, hoping I wouldn't have to ask. But I do, so here it is, the inane question of the day:

What program(s) are you/will you be using and/or do you use to do the pixel art drawings?

I ask because I want to draw too. :(

Marg

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I'm the cousin of this Geek called Steph...

~~ www.marula.ca ~~



StephTheGeek's picture
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Any graphics program that enables you to paint pixel-by-pixel, but MS Paint is actually the program of choice for many. Check out the tutorials I linked earlier.

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Cuddlemonster's picture
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K, thanks. Feeling a little more capable. I definitely have Paint on my computer, so that's a start... right?

I think I've been on the computer entirely too much lately, especially in the modeling program COMSOL (feel like I'm saying that word for the millionth time). I'm really starting to overcomplicate everything I think about. Must be an engineer thing. :wink: :roll:

Marg

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I'm the cousin of this Geek called Steph...

~~ www.marula.ca ~~



Posts: 996
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For cool blending effects like semi transparent lightbeams I use photoshop.. but for the basics I've been using paint...

Mostly because that's all I've got installed at my work computer :p

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StephTheGeek's picture
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Ooh, found some nifty pixelly icons.

http://ndesign-studio.com/resources/pixel_icons.htm

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Bugs/feature requests? Let me know!