Mac Level Editor

[excaliber7388]

So, I'm working on an offline level editor for Mac (since the online ones suck).
Now that <most> Mac users can use an RC, we should be seeing more Mac developers. This is just a project I'm working on my spare time, so no promises on how long it may take. I will be asking for help from the community as well. Just some basic algorithms on things like displaying the level, certain npc placement. I plan to make it easier to use than the original, with features such as dragging a sign into place, or warps, random detail generating, and hopefully (if stefan is willing to help a bit) some syntax checking for gs2. I doubt I can make one where you can then 'play' the level. But this would be a lot better than what we have now!!

[Skyld]

While I appreciate you're trying, you really need to follow the Apple User Interface guidelines. The program doesn't look organised well.

[excaliber7388]

Originally Posted by Skyld

While I appreciate you're trying, you really need to follow the Apple User Interface guidelines. The program doesn't look organised well.

Said guidelines aren't exactly concrete.
Plus, I wanted this to look more like an upgrade of the original one.
What, specifically, should I move around?

[Skyld]

Originally Posted by excaliber7388

Said guidelines aren't exactly concrete.

Perhaps you should consider them more, then.

1. The inset borders aren't being used properly and you're just drawing over them. It looks awful.
2. Buttons such as New, Load, Save are all basic menubar operations which users expect to find in the menubar.
3. You've got an "About ..." box for a reason. You don't need to put things like "by excalibur" on the main window.
4. The Random Generate area should be it's own dialog box behind a button or menu entry. It looks cluttered where it is.
5. Use tabs instead of the radio buttons.

[excaliber7388]

Not everyone wants to go up into the menu bar for everything. I don't go up to the file menu to save a document (I just hit  S anyway).
But I will take some of these into consideration. As for tabs....well, this wasn't meant to be an easy project anyway!

[Skyld]

Originally Posted by excaliber7388

Not everyone wants to go up into the menu bar for everything. I don't go up to the file menu to save a document (I just hit ? S anyway).

It's where people expect to find such basic functions. Don't try to act like you know better than the basic principles, it just frustrates your users.

The reason that Mac OS X interface design works so well is because it's meant to work the same everywhere.

[Crono]

Looks good so far.

[excaliber7388]

Here's a rough design.
It's not perfect, but you can see the general layout.
Also, all of the button features will be in the menu. I just want a place for them out front as well for quicker access for some users. There will also be shortcut keys for pretty much everything.

[Crono]

Oh cali, you need to put more room for the actual level. On windows, with the same window size, you get more work room than that.

[Skyld]

Originally Posted by excaliber7388

Also, all of the button features will be in the menu. I just want a place for them out front as well for quicker access for some users.

You really should only have absolutely essential items immediately available so that it is less cluttered, especially considering it takes less than two seconds to click "File" and locate the option you want.

Also please stop linking these large images directly; attach them instead.

[Chompy]

Looks nice, and I agree with Skyld, you can have some buttons like where it is located now, but a menu bar would be nice, like
File, Edit, Level, Advanced, and Help? And also have tabs for levels

File:
New level
Open level
Save level
Save level as...

Edit:
Edit level as text
Edit signs
Edit links

Level:
Add new npc (would place at (0,0), default, or (32,32))
Add new predefined object
Add tileset (could edit TiledefsOffline.txt in tiledefs folder, or add a new script with text fitted for new tileset and mode)

Advaned:
Load all npcs (would make a gui whihc contain a gui list who list all npcs in that level, and when double clicking it would open that npc)

Help:
Could bring up a help gui showing functions and such, and explains what the buttons etc are for..

Just some ideas/suggestions, got bored

[Draenin]

What the hell is with the 'detail generator?' The only time details should be 'generated' is with terraingen or levelgen. Not the actual editor itself.

[Tyhm]

*shrugs* I like to make a 64x64 level, tile it with "Details" like flowers, tufts of grass, etc., make it an Object, then floodfill. 's how I did the water on Classic. It would have killed me to fill in that many levels with either Just Plain Water or 4096 Manually Placed Ripples Per Level. So I think it's a good feature.

Mind, things like mailboxes, fences, patches of dirt, hills, rivers, statues, etcetera, are all rather important in their own right - but such things ought to be added After you make the grass "interesting".

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by excaliber7388

Not everyone wants to go up into the menu bar for everything.

Not everyone wants a cluttered, unorganized, different interface. Just do tabs and menus - if you want "quick access" use hotkeys.

[excaliber7388]

Alright, you guys have seen Mac programs more than me. It's going to look empty though

As for the random detail generator, it would throw in things on top of grass tiles, like flowers, taller grass, rocks, etc. Just to make sure it's not plain.