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[BenJeremy]

"MXM Launcher"

Based on the XDK Launcher menu:



Here's some video I created. I have the source files, so I'll be cleaning it up tomorrow, when I take a break from coding again (the crhomakey on the mesh is a bit assy).

I plan on also creating an intro video, a launch video, and an short "start" video for the manu layout (pieces coming in, assembling into menu screen)

It would be an interesting idea, I think for a skin... it just needs a layout, basically.

[jlm5151]

It looks great, just makes me kinda dizzy  

[BenJeremy]

Hey, if somebody wants to take a crack at this, please leave a message (I'd hate to have three or four people working on it at the same time.)


The loop takes 40 seconds to go halfway around. I could stretch it out a bit more, but it shouldn't make anybody dizzy  

[ub312g0d]

I would be interested into making this a skin. Although on the visual side, certain elements would have to slightly edited to accomadate a preview video of the app/game, but that wouldnt be that hard to manage. PM me if you're interested.

[vidgms4me]

BJ - nice idea.  preview vid looks great, just change the background, it makes me dizzy too.   .

Can't wait for this one.

EDIT: This would be great if someone did a colorvarient.  I'll see the capabilities of my video editing software.

[ub312g0d]

not sure if anybody saw the newest version of the render so I'll post it here aswell.  
Need alot of input on how to make this look better.  Yes, the background is just a sphere with a texture along every edge so I could make it spin for the actual skin.  Also, I will be needing a high quality, 512x512 should be good enough, of the lines that are on the left side of the loader.  Also, decent quality textures for an A, and a B.  to replace the old a,x,y that is in the original loader.  Well, here it is, again.  Also, would doing colour varients really be worth it?I could easily render this in red,blue, and green as 3 three variants.
befire when it was just planes:

after the image became 3d:

[whoknew]

great job, man

[ub312g0d]

I just felt like photoshopping the render I did to see 1 possible future for the skin.  I actually think that this will turn out to look VERY good when its complete. The font is kind'of hard to read sometimes because of the style, but I love it.
 Here it is, I hope the rest of the team likes the way it looks.  Of course a place to watch preview videos is still a must...i think.

[ub312g0d]

I dont believe it will float around, The only thing that will move will probably be the background.  Although I can't speak for everybody. Its the only thing that would make sense.

[ub312g0d]

I realise right now that there is NOWHERE on this render for a preview video to go.  I either have to make it overall smaller to allow a seperate box to be created on the right side, or make the entire menu larger and create a smaller box within the menu itself.  I think I am going to attempt the second idea tommorow because it would be much easier to implement while mainting a strong link to the original idea.

[BenJeremy]

I was thinking.... couldn't the preview appear in the lower portion of the menu, over the unselected items, obscuring them partially on the right side (a black, half-translucent box eleemnt could serve as a "shadow" to give the illusion of depth) and the top menu item would be given the full width of the menu block.

So many menus only show one selection, in this case, the other selections would be muted, but still present, and the video preview would have decent room on the display.

[ub312g0d]

BJ IS GOD! that idea is so crazy I think it just might work!Although I would still like the menu to atleast show 2 real selections, and if the right side of the names of apps/games was covered by the preview video and done properly(with a shadow like you said in the proper position) It could look really good.  I'll look into doing that aswell.  

Main thing that needs addressing though.INTRO and OUTRO of the skin.  

I'll do the next revision tommorow and hopefully allow coding to start.

[BenJeremy]

QUOTE (ub312g0d @ Jul 14 2003, 07:43 PM)

BJ IS GOD! that idea is so crazy I think it just might work!Although I would still like the menu to atleast show 2 real selections, and if the right side of the names of apps/games was covered by the preview video and done properly(with a shadow like you said in the proper position) It could look really good.  I'll look into doing that aswell.   Main thing that needs addressing though.INTRO and OUTRO of the skin.   I'll do the next revision tommorow and hopefully allow coding to start.

Well, since you've got it rendered in 3-D, the intro:

Display the background, and have the parts slide in from various points, assembling into the menu 'device'

For the outro, have the preview screen and menu block glow and (well, if possible, at least) dissolve as if eaten away by plasma (I don't know if that's visual enough.... kind of like the 'eaten' edges would glow as they start from the outer extremeties, continue to eat the parts, and eventually the part disappears in a small flash when the 'eaten' edges meet in the middles

?

[ub312g0d]

disolve away eh? I almost used a texture for this already that would fit the bill for that quite well.  It looks almost exactly like plasma as well, how convinient.  Now to figure out how to get a multi-texture ramp to work in maya...

[whoknew]

I am definetly up to the coding challenge! btw, I don't think it's humanly possible to make the text float around... just would require waayyy too much code, and bounce wouldnt work because its random... I lie the plasma dissolve idea maybe make it start to bubble and then dissolve