Manual

[kosmo]

I started to make a LaTeX-template for a manual, a first mockup can be seen in the attachment.

What I want to know:

• Are the ressource-icons available in high resolution?
  
• Is the 0ad-Logo available as svg?
  
• Are the attack icons from here http://trac.wildfire...com/ticket/1785 available in high resolution? Actually they are very small
  

I'd also like to mask the unit portrait a bit, so its not a plain screenshot. I tried to do that in the mockup (i used http://www.bbc.co.uk...gallery.shtml?9 as model) but failed of course, since I never worked with that kind of graphic. I hope theres someone thats capable and willing to redo that, because atm its quite ugly

LaTeX can quite easily handle references, so I think it would be nice if there are known references for each profile/faction, if they are included.

Let me know what you think.

Main.pdf

Edited January 5, 2013 by kosmo

[zoot]

The resource icons are available in higher res here: http://trac.wildfiregames.com/browser/ps/trunk/binaries/data/mods/public/art/textures/ui/session/icons/resources

[kosmo]

I used them, but they seem still comparatively small, at least to me

[Jeru]

I like the format!

(I would replace the Gothic font, though. It is not very ancient-looking.)

[kosmo]

Done.

Main.pdf

[fabio]

It looks good, the tables should be automatically generated with a script reading xml files (and the pdf generated at release time), otherwise they'll soon be out of sync. You can start with this script: http://trac.wildfiregames.com/wiki/Unit_Summary_Table

Also resize the logo, it weights 4,5 MB.

[kosmo]

Thats why I would prefer to have it as a vectorgraphic. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to implement xml-reading^^

[historic_bruno]

Wow, nice work! Are you constructing this by hand or planning to script it?

Also I don't want to think too far ahead, but if we ever offered physical copies of 0 A.D. for sale, a manual like that professionally printed would be awesome.

[quantumstate]

I moved the thread since it isn't really art.

Having this manual is nice, one concern is that we will have too many manuals. So far we have one on the trac wiki, one on play0ad.com and now your (plus I am pretty sure other people have started similar things in the past). This seems like a massive duplication of effort and makes maintenance a pain since everything we add now needs documenting 3 times or something will get out of date. I would like to see online and offline versions from the same base, latex should be able to do that but it might take some effort working things out.

[feneur]

I moved the thread since it isn't really art.

Having this manual is nice, one concern is that we will have too many manuals. So far we have one on the trac wiki, one on play0ad.com and now your (plus I am pretty sure other people have started similar things in the past). This seems like a massive duplication of effort and makes maintenance a pain since everything we add now needs documenting 3 times or something will get out of date. I would like to see online and offline versions from the same base, latex should be able to do that but it might take some effort working things out.

I think this probably should be called unit/building reference or something rather than a manual. It would still be nice to have it available both offline/online and be generated from the same source of course though, so I'm not disagreeing with you Just saying there is place for something humanly created as well

[kosmo]

Actually I try to write a python script that generates .txts, that can be easily included in LaTeX. I think most parts of the unit description could be generated by that script. At the moment the script generates for each unit a Health, Armour, Speed, Cost, History, SpecificName, Generic Name .txt

Will need some time till this is ready though, since there are problems if theres a mistake in the xml or if the <Cost> in the unitprofile is not the complete cost, because the other half is stored in its parent.xml, and Attack/Range are missing completely

When this is done I'm going to implement the script via the python-package directly in LaTeX, so it should update all stats automatically while compiling.

Getting other information that is stored in the game as xmls should be quite easy, so it should be possible to add e.g. technologies and Information about the civs

What will of course always need manual adjustment are the sketches, since they are not included in the game afaik, but I guess they don't change that often, so it shouldn't be too much work.

Edited January 6, 2013 by kosmo

[memmaker650]

I think that a very important thing for the game, for starter and for have schemas of technologies and other game evolutions.

The format is good but we must take care in image size because nowadays manual size is 10.5Mb with only 10 pages almost in blank. I think the problem is the 0ad logo in the portrait.

I think this manual must be put in the subversion/version control to allow more user to deal with it. Start with the english version and allow other users start the translation to other languages like Spanish, Russian, German, etc.

Great work.

[Lion.Kanzen]

what program use to make it?.

[quantumstate]

what program use to make it?.

Latex.

[Jeru]

I agree with Erik, this should be a "0 A.D. Reference Book" or something similar.

[Lion.Kanzen]

Latex.

Thank you

[kosmo]

The script works (mostly thanks to leper), so most stuff is now autogenerated, including the stats for the advanced and elite units

What remains to be done manually is the text below the subsection header, where the unit can be trained, what it is useful and useless against, improvements and special characteristics.

any idea how to get that information? i think the improvement-stuff could be obtained via the technology-templates?

leper mentioned using the attack - bonused information to get the information for useful vs.

[feneur]

Where the unit can be trained should be possible to find out by parsing the building templates, right?

[leper]

Where the unit can be trained should be possible to find out by parsing the building templates, right?

Indeed, I already mentioned this on IRC but the templates should probably be cached by the script so that it doesn't slow down too much.

Technologies work on the classes found in the Identity element. This would work by caching the technology JSONs and finding all technolgies that apply to the classes present in the current unit.

[kosmo]

Is there a mistake in the xml for the Gallic Mercenary Swordsman in his Specific Name? Its called Seḫīr Ḥerev. The Libyan Spearman (Sǝḫīr Ḥanīt) and the Iberian Mercenary Skirmisher (Sǝḫīr Kidōn) are also called Sehir ... but their e is mirrored

[kosmo]

*Removed the 0ad-Logo for the moment to keep filesize down

*the tex-files/values of the units/structures are completely autogenerated

To be done:

*Research-section

*Improvements item for units/structures

I suggest to implement sometimes a new item in the .xml's, something along <Description>This is a short ingame Description of the unit. E.g.: The Extraordinarii are the champion, city-phase infantry unit of the Romans. While heavily armoured, they are able to decrease opponents armour for a short period of time if they throw their pila at them.</Description>

Or would that be too problematic? It surely would make a nice text directly under the units name.

*Thanks to leper

*According to the design document of the carthaginians, the Gallic Mercenary Swordsman should be called Sǝḫīr Ḥerev not Seḫīr Ḥerev.

*Theres a mistake in the history of the Triarii:

In many cases the Tirarii were left at the camp

Manual.pdf

Edited January 29, 2013 by kosmo

[historic_bruno]

Any chance you could create a Github repo or something for the script(s) you're using? Or post them here. Even if a work in progress, it would be interesting to see them and people would probably make suggestions or find bugs.

[kosmo]

Sure. The TeX-files also?

Rename .zip to .py

aua_test - Kopie.zip

[Lion.Kanzen]

Can Help you with some Art to Back ground like Age of Empires I Manual? i will optimizated that Images to work with your material, as unique basic standar .

[kosmo]

Some units/structures, that have errors in their xml's in alpha 12 are not included. Beside that, most works.

I'll implement the technology-part hopefully next week.

@Lion.Kanzen:

Actually, it is a bit too early to implement background-graphics, as the basic structure of the .tex-files should not change (or they will be replaced and manual adjustments will be lost).

Nevertheless, I'd prefer to have not really background-graphics as this will decrease readability, unless you mean something along "make the background look as if it was old paper". What could be done is making sketches or comparable pictures to that of the extraordinarius in the first .pdf i uploaded (see page 1 of this thread). As you can see, they should be quite higher than wide, so i don't know if this is easily possible for all units/structures. Edit: Ideally, the sketches et.c should be available as vectorgraphics (svg or pdf). Thanks for your help!

Another point thats quite visible in the .pdf is the short or missing history for many units/structures. I don't know if the <History> is used somewhere ingame (or if it's planned), but I guess there are some that could need some extension/rewrite -- this could be a task for someone that is willing to help, but not really skilled with graphical programms or programming

Manual.pdf

Edited February 3, 2013 by kosmo