[CF List] png images

[Jonathan Taporg]

Hello, all,

I'm guessing that by adding PNG support, we've
implicitly removed any color palette restrictions
for created images?  While I can see the argument
that some people may still run bitmap versions, I'd
have more difficulty believing that people running
CF in color would be restriced to 256 colors.  The
reason the color is significant is that the new
32x32 image size combined with unlimited color use
would make creating images orders of magnitude easier
for artists (like me :).

That said, I've just uploaded several new png images
to the incoming directory at ftp.ifi.uio.no.
Hopefully, they will be useful, as I did ignore any
existing palettes while creating them.

After having gone looked over the converted archs,
I also composed the list png_todo.txt of png files
which are as of yet in the ugly scaled up form.  In
cases where I wasn't sure, I left the image name
on the list.  I agree with another poster that
a number of the images would look good if simply
taken from their original xpm form, and converted
to png without scaling.

*whew*  Having done all of that, I figured it would
only be right to bring up all of the comments and
nitpicks I have.  Anyways...

... The image for a non-destructable earthwall has
somehow changed to a pillar, making it trivial to
tell apart from the destructable ones.

... With the isometric scheme that the newly drawn
tiles are using, it would make sense for a two-space
creature (for instance, a unicorn), to change shape
if it changes direction and starts walking downward.
Just wondering whether the server code would know
how to handle such events gracefully. :)

... Also regarding the isometric perspective - when
an isometrically drawn monster shown facing south
starts walking sideways, it looks slightly more
awkward that if a flat iconic version of the monster
starts walking sideways.  I think it's something to
consider ... redrawing monsters isometrically may
imply needing to draw the monster facing in other
directions as well.

... Please please please be sure to save the original
xpms somewhere, even with better pngs available, and
even if all of the xpms end up removed from the arch
directories.  There are a number of nice icons in
that image set, and drawing well at 24x24 isn't easy.

... Has anyone tried going into a room full of
kobolds, orcs, gnolls, ogres, madmen, and maybe
zombies as well under the png image set?  I haven't,
myself, but I bring it up because I wonder how easily
distinguishable the different monsters are.
Individually, they're well drawn, although their
color schemes are all so similar, that I think it's
worth checking to make sure that they do indeed
succeed in looking different.

And that's about it for now.

-j

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