DDS icon issue

Hello, I'm having an issue with my mod when I try to save my icon artwork as dds it doesn't load up in the game, also when I open the saved dds files back it shows me this : http://i.imgur.com/KGP3m0H.png the original icon is this :http://i.imgur.com/s2MeoNf.png I created it as a png first
note: I'm working with photoshop and I recently installed a plugin that allows me to convert png/jpg files to dds extension but it doesn't seem to work

Click on the image's file in Modbuddy and set "Import to VFS" to 'true'.
That's probably the issue!

Hey! lshipp here in my alternative secret identity. There's nothing wrong with the files themselves.

When we were chating thru steam earlier I missed a simple oops. Not sure how, but there here it is (the line I've highlighted in blue):
Change it to the way I've shown. Everything worked OK in civilopedia after I made that change.

If you want further advice on changing the wonder to add some happiness or culture or what have you just drop a note in this thread. It's better that way since there'll be a permanent record you can refer back to when you impliment any changes to the XML for the wonder based on feedback you get here. Steam chats always tend to go *poof* after a short time.

[edit] I spoke too soon. There's still something not right with the wonder splash image. All I get is a blank in the image area for the wonder splash. The file is added correctly with VFS=true, and the reference to the dds image from the <Buildings> definition looks good, so it must be something within the art file itself.

Also, I didn't notice it before but he has an Icon file issue of some sort. The city production que selection menu is showing a black (or blank) square instead of an icon. As soon as the wonder is selected everything shows ok.

Photoshop? Uh!?

You want some real solutions to this weird problem? Really? Are you absolutely sure?
Get Gimp! Now.

It has a VERY solid plugin converter (of almost anything) from_to DDS that i use extensively (check my mods for proof!).

As for the technical stuff;

-- Your background layer is being borked up. This symptom is directly tied with an improperly defined Alpha channel within the "pre-conversion" PNG file. I do my editing within PSPro-X3, so it would be nearly impossible for me to indicate the correct process for PhotoShop.

-- In general terms, don't use Mips unless absolutely necessary... *AND* try to avoid compression ratios (DXT1 to DXT5) unless the stock default functions of CIV5 code requires specifically for a compressed file. There are a number of weird files in Vanilla that MUST be compressed sadly. As you can probably imagine by now -- Z-UI was a monster of analysis; 390 items, all verified, re-designed, colored, filed and converted. Trust me, i know.

Good luck.

Okay -- firstly... there is a SplashMosque.dds file in your XML folder which is borked up as well. This is possibly due to the JPG source image you used. Once the valid (DDS) one is re-created, it should be dropped in the ART folder and given a True status for the import field to *be* accessible by the VFS.

Icons seemed alright at first...but what went is wrong is extremely easy to fix.
You saved these as RGB when they *must* be RGBA8... that single -A8- declares the Alpha-Channel to the in-code routine.
I'd also recommend **No-MIPS** and a higher scale for DXT compression. Maybe 5 or 3 would reproduce your images with less pixelization loss. Of course the files would get bigger -- but quality, MUCH better.

Try these steps and let me know (HERE, only) if you get better results.

See ya...

You've got a typo issue that keeps creeping back into the Koutoubia.xml file. I'm pretty sure one of the files I sent you with corrections had this taken care of but you must have missed the correction somewhere along the line. You have:
but to make these two lines match properly (and it is necessary to have everything match up) with everything elsewhere in the file you need:

Plus the <IconAtlas> line needs to be:

I also changed these lines in the IconAtlas.xml file since you only have one image in each of the icon files.:
All these changes to the xml are in the attached version of the mod that I built on my end.

There was still something wrong with the wonder splash image, but I was able to fix that by opening the file in GIMP, saving it as GIMP's xcf format, and then exporting that into a dds file. I did the same with the Icon files. I had no idea what settings to make so I simply did a convert using GIMP's default values from one format to the other.

Everything seems to be getting inserted properly into the game, but the Icon Sizes are still a little big in that they're overlapping the surrounding areas a little.

I've attached the built version of the mod I made in modbuddy so you can copy the wonder image file into the mod, and look at what the icon files are giving in-game with the changes I made. I think your basic problem (besides the sizes aren't quite right yet) is a setting incorrect in photoshop when you convert to dds format. But don't ask me what the wrong setting is: I'm very much in unknown territory here and feel like the Priestess from one of those old-time Star Trek episodes who has no idea whatsoever why she is pressing the big red button, but that's what she's been told to do when the star men come looking for spock's brain.

You can copy these files into your modbuddy project but 1st delete the ones you have in the project. When I do this I start modbuddy, then open the 'project' for the mod, then I delete within modbuddy the file I want to replace. Then I do an "Add > Existing Item" as if there had never been a file with that name as part of the mod before. Other people may use slightly different methods, but this one has always worked for me for art files that I've, err...(borrowed ?) from other mod-makers.

I would make back-ups of your currrent versions of the dds files, though, in case you have trouble getting the version made by GIMP to open in photoshop.

Lees is right about your Icons being a little larger than the standard framework. It's the shadow that would overlap **very slightly** the framing. Small detail.

The zip below has everything you should need. In uncompressed DDS format for the icons. The splash was also altered at 972x568 (again, Wonders concept standard size) for good reasons; DDS compression ratios need multiple of 4s. So your initial file of 971x565 didn't match for a DXT3.

Test these to see if they work... i kept the MetXv93 description - rename these as need be.

Thank you guys, you both are geniuses, Zyx I replaced my things with your file and it has worked! I really apperciate your help guys, wouldn't make it without you, you owe me so much you'll be featured on this mod and guess what I can provide for both of you wonderful artworks and icons you anytime you need them, just contact me and give me the details. Thank you again! Problem solved.

Glad i could be of help. That's what CFC community is all about. Share the Civ experience with others and enjoy our customized games with personal Mods.
Take care buddy and, see ya!

EDIT; Just accepted your kind offer to declare me as a contributor. Thanks.

Bump! Meow, It's been a while since I requested my first icon conversion. I'm back again here, requesting the same thing (facepalm) Oh well.. didn't learn from my mistakes, I tried to use paint.net to avoid the complexity of PS and GIMP and ended up having problems with alpha channels, pixelated borders.. and much more the list is endless. whatever. Zyxpsilon or anyone who could offer help, here's the link http://i.imgur.com/LGMI4Os.png I need this icon to be converted and resized into 256,128,64,48 sizes and .dds

OK, you should find them here

The icon is beautiful, by the way. The DDS files were created with GIMP and I copied the GIMP version of the 256 file as well. I did not test them, but they should work fine. I don't know if it was in the process of uploading it, but the image was a little out of proportion so I had to skew it back to circular.

There you go, Nereyus... i'm not the only person that can help you out with solid and valid results.
calcul8or -- you're as good if not better than any of what i could reproduced for that very same file.

calcul8or said:

OK, you should find them here

The icon is beautiful, by the way. The DDS files were created with GIMP and I copied the GIMP version of the 256 file as well. I did not test them, but they should work fine. I don't know if it was in the process of uploading it, but the image was a little out of proportion so I had to skew it back to circular.

Click to expand...

There's something wrong with Nevsky48.dds or Nereyus48.dds in your file;

Problem is likely related to using 48 instead of 45. Either in the Icon File itself, if he didn't catch your oops upthread and realize you really needed 45, or in your <IconTextureAtlases> table if you are trying to specifiy 48 as an icon size for a wonder. Wonders of course also generally like a size of 80, but I've seen very skilled modders do world wonders both with and without the 80-size Icons, and so far as I can tell it doesn't seem to cause a problem when omitted.

And I didn't mention anything earlier about your 48/45 oops upthread because I simply didn't notice it.

Yep, I'll admit I didn't stop to consider what sizes were requested, I just built the ones that were asked for. Here

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ntb0w7fzl0gyaum/Nereyus45.dds?dl=0

is a 45-sized version