[Solatar]

Okay, I found a neat picture of the Bastion Mainhall, and I was wondering. Is there any way to make it an active desktop, where I put my mouse over the teh room or something, and it plays the animation. I click, and I'm at my Documents. I click the Briefing room, and fs2 starts up.

[Fineus]

Novell idea! It isn't possible with 98 but it might with XP...

[Solatar]

I got XP, and a pretty fast computer. It might work.

[Goober5000]

It's possible with versions as early as 98.  (Cool idea - I never thought of that!)

The way to do this is to create an HTML file that you set as your desktop.  So make the main hall one big image map, with hyperlinks assigned to certain hot spots in the picture (the ones for starting programs will start with file:// and so forth).  Then save the page, test it, and away you go.

[Alikchi]

You could make it a DesktopX desktop, or LiteStep, or whatever. Just pick one of the thirty windows shell replacement programs out there.

[Galemp]

I think you'd need Flash to get the rollover animations to work, though.

[SSC-ADMRL]

it would be cool to have a freespace desktop theme:yes:

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by GalacticEmperor
I think you'd need Flash to get the rollover animations to work, though.

No...there's Dynamic HTML or something like that.... it's an (eek!) Frontpage option, forsure, although I don't know too much about the syntax for hand-wirting it.  There's also Javascript.

[Solatar]

I was thinking, can you use GIF files as icons? Then you could just have animated icons for the doors and such, they'd have to be positioned manually.

[Galemp]

Yeah, but GIFs loop constantly. You'd have the door opening, then the animation would start again as soon as they were fully opened.

[Hunter]

GIFs can be "configured" to loop once, twice or as many times as you want. They need not loop constantly. Depends what you use to piece the animation together. Only limitations with GIF is the 256 color. Rollover images with HTML are possible, there are around five different scripts, but they aren't as reliable as Flash. Though when Flash "didn't exist", this is what we used.

[Stealth]

or you could just have it an HTML file with Flash embedded, and then make it an 'active' desktop... cause flash works wonders

[Unknown Target]

I'd download it if you made it;)

[Solatar]

Unfortunately, I don't know how to use Flash, nor do I know HTML. I'd really like to make both mainhalls from both games, but I don't think this is going to happen. I know enough HTML to make so it when you click on a door or something, it will take you to Documents or something, but I'll have to figure out how to do animations.

[Stealth]

i could do it in flash and HTML... but i'd need all the elements, cause i don't have time to go searching for the background, then all the animations, then convert them, etc.

if someone could send me everything i need i'd "flash" it.  (all the animations, in whatever format, as well as the real background)

[Solatar]

I'll send you the Bastion mainhall, as well as all of the animations in .avi format. I don't think we should worry about the misc. anims ( i.e.-people working on the fighters, elevators, etc..). As long as I get part credit for the idea.

[Solatar]

Here ya go. Anyone who wants to use it can, just give me credit for extracting it, and for the desktop idea. Cheers!:D ]

[Stealth]

working on them right now, i'll let you know if i encounter any problems that will make it not possible, but otherwise everything might be good

[Stealth]

eck,first problem... Flash 5 doesn't like AVIs... can someone send in another format please?  and to make it easier (so i don't have to do it, i;'m not sure i know how) could they also send me a reverse of each animation?  like, when the user moves the mouse off the 'button'

[Goober5000]

I converted the animations to GIF files.  You can download them here.

That should get you started. I'll convert the rest of the animations tomorrow.