Civ 3 Dock Icon

[ejday]

Very nicely done ejday! can't wait to see how it looks once I get to my Mac at home.

Thanks! Glad you like it!

BTW, in OS X, do you still just paste the icon into the 'Get info' screen to change it?
JoAT

Normally, yes. For most objects - all folder and many applications - that will work. Civ3, however, is put together a bit different and I'm not sure how to do the "right" way. The closest thing I can come up with is to create an alias of the game, then do the "get info" copy and paste thing to the alias (which *will* accept it). Once your alias looks good, drag the alias to the dock instead of the original (and then tuck the alias somewhere out of the way in your Civ folder).

Good luck!

 

[AlanH]

Yes, I do it using an alias. Pasting it into Get Info, or putting it into the resource fork of CivIII itself, doesn't seem to work for some reason.

The alias technique serves a double purpose for me, as I can rename the alias to tell me it's for the GOTM modded or standard copy, or for a DyP mod version, without changing the name of each CivIII application.

 

[tao]

I'm not sure I understand the discussion going on here.

The icon in ejday's post (128x128) is on my computer shown as being part Civ III. And I can't recall replacing the original. What is going on? Please enlight my feeble mind.

 

[ejday]

I'm not sure I understand the discussion going on here.

The icon in ejday's post (128x128) is on my computer shown as being part Civ III. And I can't recall replacing the original. What is going on? Please enlight my feeble mind.

No need to worry, Tao. That is the original OSX icon. I put it up in .ico format for our PC brothers (who are otherwise laboring with a butt-ugly blue icon).

 

[tao]

I see. Enlightening those poor souls.

I still want to see a Windows dock as nice as the one in my spoiler above. Fat chance.

 

[ejday]

Okay, between actual bursts of work, I followed one suggestion to lighten the globe and saturate the pyramid a bit (I nudged it toward a more homage-like yellow) on the world icon. And, since I was going to post it for general Mac consumption, I figured I'd follow through on a couple of ideas I had. One is cutting out the tower to de-squareify it a tad (and a follow-up with a drop shadow). Another was capturing that dramatic moment when the jet does a fly-over of the tower in the intro movie.

Here's what they look like on a generic background. If you look at the fly-over icon, you can see the sky transparency. Click on the pic to download the set...

Thoughts? Suggestions?

EJ

 

[ainwood]

Thanks - that looks quite good! I think PC icons are limited to 48 x 48 - and they need to be in .ico format, but I have iconforge at work, so I'll import it tomorrow.

I didn't realise you'd actually put it in .ico format and attached it to the post!

I tried it, and it works, but unfortunately it reduces it to 32x32, and you lose a lot of detail. I think you also lose some colour depth (not sure exactly sure what colour depth are supported - 256 colours??)

ANyway - I set my desktop to "large icons", which are 48x48. Better, but still not as nice as the mac one.

 

[AlanH]

Sorry to hear XP is so graphically challenged. What a waste of all that lovely new graphics hardware

I like the new pyramid/globe one best, and that will adorn my dock for the foreseeable future. Well done EJ.

 

[ainwood]

I was actually trying that on Win 2000

 

[frunobulax]

Here's one I made earlier, which I use for my Civ3 DYP mod (using an alias, with copied/pasted new icon on...)

 

[frunobulax]

...plus shot of my dock/desktop with it 'in action'...

 

[ejday]

Here's one I made earlier...

Hey, that is snazzy!
*Great globe... I can't quite identify where it's at (a lotta water). Is it earth?
*Nice pyramid, too. I thought about borrowing a shot off an Egyptian site but went with the in-game pyramid for symmetry. Still, I like the vibrancy and texture.
...Would you mind if I made it a cutout and reposted it?

EJ

 

[frunobulax]

Hey, that is snazzy!
....Would you mind if I made it a cutout and reposted it?
EJ

Sure, something like this ? This is an earlier version, but I could never get it to work in the dock properly (always lost transparency, plus bottom edges of pyramid are all wrong/squared-off).

 

[AlanH]

Here's one I made earlier, which I use for my Civ3 DYP mod (using an alias, with copied/pasted new icon on...)

Lovely, Fruno That would get my vote! We definitely need that one uploaded as a .icns.

 

[ejday]

Sure, something like this ?

Somehow, I just got an image of Gene Wilder describing what he needs while Marty Feldman sketches... Then Igor flips the paper around and says: "...Something like this?"

This is an earlier version, but I could never get it to work in the dock properly (always lost transparency, plus bottom edges of pyramid are all wrong/squared-off).

It! Could! Work!
...Just change the poles from plus to minus and minus to plus...

The transparency issue is OS X being priggish about GIFs. I think it's offended by the heritage (CompuServe making a format to display on windows machines), so it'll only display the top cell of a multi-cell GIF (no animated GIFs for us), and it doesn't like recognizing transparency in formats it hasn't anointed.

If you have the original elements, I could size them and tip-toe around the transparency issue by turning them into resources & icns (post or email them to me). If not, no problem, I can work with what we've got (if that's okay with you).

EJ

 

[Chieftess]

ohhh.... that kind of dock (I still don't know what kind of dock you're talking about...). When I first saw this thread, I thought it was a dock as in the Civ3 harbor graphic.

 

[ejday]

ohhh.... that kind of dock (I still don't know what kind of dock you're talking about...). When I first saw this thread, I thought it was a dock as in the Civ3 harbor graphic.

Understandable... Check out Post #31 in the thread. That string of icons is a screengrab of a "dock" in OS X. A dock (in this case) is kinda like the task bar in Windows but it has the option to be a bit more reactive (flashier).
...Then there are us guys who make icons to go on the dock. We're known as "dock workers" and we're all tough guys that drive forklifts and wear knit watchcaps...

Okay, not entirely true, but I can use a fork. Usually.

Ow. Dang fork.

 

[frunobulax]

ohhh.... that kind of dock (I still don't know what kind of dock you're talking about...). When I first saw this thread, I thought it was a dock as in the Civ3 harbor graphic.

Well, as Otis Redding once sang...

"I'm clickin' on the dock of the bay
Watching the apps roll away
I'm just clickin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time"

 

[frunobulax]

Somehow, I just got an image of Gene Wilder describing what he needs while Marty Feldman sketches... Then Igor flips the paper around and says: "...Something like this?"
It! Could! Work!
...Just change the poles from plus to minus and minus to plus...

lol!

Talking of hilarious Gene Wilder moments, I was just thinking of The Producers, when Zero Mostel (Max Bialystock) and Gene Wilder (Leo Blum) are discussing their new buxom blonde Swedish secretary Ulla... "What will people say", Leo asks Max, "Have you gone mad? A receptionist who can't speak English? What will people say?" Max's reply is classic Brooks: "They'll say, "A wuma wa wa wa wa!"

If you have the original elements, I could size themJ

Sure, they're in Photoshop - I'll upload them to my site and pop a link on here as soon as I can.

 

[Chieftess]

*watches the Mac users laugh at the IBM user*
*runs away*

Nice dockbar though.