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Reader UI of the Week: Jake's Larger UI
Each week WoW.com brings you a fresh look at reader submitted UIs. Have a screenshot of your UI you want to submit? Send your screenshots, along with info on what mods you're using, to readerui@wow.com. This week on Reader UI of the Week I've decided to focus on helping people in need of user interface tips for smaller screen resolutions or the need to have buttons larger, as you will see in just a short time. It's kind of like Dear Abby, except with more video games and less mouthy grandmas. The Community has been great in its response to sending in your user interfaces, so keep them coming! Without further ado, let's go a user interfacin'...
Gearing up for PvP: Gaming surfaces and keyboards
My wife recently won a Facebook contest run by those Razer guys to win a Sphex "gaming grade desktop skin", which is actually just a fancy name for a mousepad. That was great timing, too, because she'd been confined to using a ratty Manila envelope as her mouse surface for the past couple of months. She'd been able to raid just fine (apparently Manila paper works better than some conventional mousepads), although a new mousepad might help.Once you've gotten your mouse, you'll want to pair it off with a proper gaming surface. My wife, who doesn't PvP, uses a generic two button optical mouse which she bought simply "because it's pink". She did drool at SteelSeries' Iron Lady gear (also colored pink), but all the fancy tech and extra dollars would be lost on her. On the other hand, if you've splurged on a mouse for your PvP, make sure to get a mousepad that at least takes care of your mouse. At its most basic, a mousepad is easier to clean and keep clean than, say, your desk.
SOBEaR the robot panda bartender thinks you've had one too many
Robot bartenders are nothing new, but rarely does one shut down drunks as adorably as SOBEaR here. Built as a "robot friend for anyone who does not know their own limits, or has problems controlling themselves," the cuddly little bot dispenses drinks based on the user's blood-alcohol level -- you breathe into his face, and he pours the right ratio of cranberry to fun vodka into your glass. Of course, that implies that there's a pre-programmed max BAC in the code somewhere, so we're guessing some hardcore party panda mods are soon to come. Video after the break.
Essential addons for Patch 3.0.2 [Updated x6]
Let's take a look at what addons are working for patch 3.0.2. First a simple rule taken from the UI forums post done by Kaydeethree: "Any 'Wrath beta' compatible mod will work in 3.0.2." With that said, there is a long and comprehensive listing of 3.0.2 compatible addons over on WoWWiki. But the fun doesn't end there. The next step is obtaining all those new addons. I've compiled a large set of the essential addons and linked to at least one direct download source after the break. Each download source is either trusted beyond doubt – or tested and confirmed to be virus free. Finally, you'll want to combine the addons into a nice looking UI. Check out our special edition of Reader UI of the Week for a look at five complete 3.0.2 compatible UIs. We're posting this list now, and will continue to update it throughout the day. Begin your addon downloads as quickly as possible to avoid hangups later in the day when download servers become overloaded.
New UI woes
I have a confession: I've been mostly using the basic, vanilla UI for as long as I have been playing WoW. I do use mods, I'm not crazy, but the basic unit frames and action bars have served me pretty well.It's not that I dislike custom UIs, or even that I do like the basic UI. The base interface has done its job, from level 1 in Northshire Abbey to level 70 standing on top of Illidan's corpse. It took that Illidan kill to make me realize that I did it the entire way using a supposedly inferior UI. I could do so much more! I could streamline everything, I could open up space on my screen, remove unnecessary information, enhance the necessary stuff...Wow, this has turned out to be quite a task. My experience with these things is minimal, and I'm not always the most organized person in the world so I couldn't make myself a proper layout if I tried. Even worse is I need to redesign my UI on all of my characters because they all use different things. What's important to my Shadow Priest isn't important to my Protection Paladin, and what's important to her isn't important to my Rogue.
/silly: Where everybody knows your name
"Welcome, stranger. Pull up a stool and make yourself at home. Say, you look like you're a bit run down this morning. Tuesday gotchya down? I here ya. But I think I've got just the thing to perk you up. Nothing gets your blood pumping like a stiff shot of /silly. This ones on the house. I told ya last time, your money is no good here."Once again I have pulled from my epic stable of alts to fill a starring role in this week's comic. The legendary Banhammer, level 9 dwarf warrior extraordinaire, is here to get his drink on. Which is what he does best. And most often. Not that I'm insinuating that he has a drinking problem, but he often refuses to enter combat unless he is properly "buffed". And by "buffed", I mean "completely sloshed out of his gourd." It's a time honored dwarven tradition, I hear.It may be the lack of sleep talking, but I'm actually quite happy with the way this comic turned out. I employed a different technique of coloring that I had found in a digital art magazine a few months back, and the results are a lot more clean and professional then I had expected. Perhaps we will see more of this style in the near future - or perhaps I'll switch to drawing stick figures with sidewalk chalk, just to keep you guys on your toes. Expect the unexpected!
Reader UI of the Week: AareDub
Have you missed us? We're sorry for the extended break, but as you now know, we've been slammed under helping to get Massively off the ground. (Speaking of which, if you haven't been over there, you do know we're giving away a Murloc suit, right?) But we're back now with lots of Reader UIs to show you -- so on we go with this week's featured UI, courtesy of AareDub from the guild <Sonic Death Monkey> on Eitrigg.I have to give credit to Taeo for giving me the inspiration. I saw a very crisp UI and thought, "I can do that." I've always tried to re-arrange my UI to allow for the most viewing space possible, but Taeo's UI just made something click for me. It only took me a few days to complete, but it took a month or so for my server transfer cooldown to get me back in a raid for some screenshots.Curious? Join me after the break for more from AareDub!
WRUP: Japan gets sloshed edition
While us folk who reside in the states haven't got much in the way of new games to play this week, Japan is getting a "game" we've been dying to get our hands on: Bartender DS. Sure, we can do what we always do and go down to the store and drop a couple bucks on the cheapest, most foul-tasting beer and get plastered, but variety is the spice of life. We'd actually like to know how to prepare a drink or two, so we can avoid looking like a total scumbag in social situations. Oh well, looks like we won't be able to do that for some time. What are you planning on playing this weekend?
Get refreshed with Bartender DS
EA has released some screenshots of their mixological nongame, Bartender DS. And, in our opinion, it actually looks really neat! Each drink has a complete recipe as well as background information about its history and creation. You can search by ingredient or even by type of glass. And with over 850 different cocktails, you'll run out of money long before you run out of recipes.EA has truly done a brilliant job of catering to an expanded audience. This software could turn anyone with a DS (and advanced Japanese skills) into an ad hoc bartender instantly. And with its guided recipes, we could see this becoming more useful for the occasional mixologist than a book or even the cocktail tumbler with drink recipes printed on it.
Automated drink slinger takes orders via LCD
Sure, we've seen legions of automated bartenders and coffee machines that conjure up your preferred cup of joe each morning, but the Digital Beverages MyFountain takes things up a notch. Sporting a touchscreen LCD, an internet-linked Windows XP computer, and the ability to be "100-percent customizable," this mechanical drink slinger reportedly interfaces with a "dorm-style refrigerator" that holds a dozen types of alcohol and mixers along with a water line and carbon-dioxide cartridge. Furthermore, the grown-ups can even password protect the non-virgin beverages on tap, and while it would sure be nice to kiss tips goodbye and hold all of your parties in-house, this bad boy supposedly starts at a stiff $2,575. Click on for a couple snapshots of the interface.[Via CNET, image courtesy of PopSci]
Booze Training boxart (along with plenty of others) revealed
The NeoGAF forums have been flooded with a variety of boxarts for upcoming Japanese DS titles. Such titles include Chibi Robo Park Patrol, It's a Wonderful World and the above, EA's Bartender DS. Personally, we could use Bartender DS, as our mixed drinks are anything but, well ... drinkable. So, if boxart is your thing, be sure to hit up the NeoGAF thread.[Via Go Nintendo]
EA unveils Booze Training
EA is proving that they really are interested in Japanese audiences: not only are they designing MySims with Japanese gamers in mind, but they are making training games. Three of them!They're all about drinking, too: Bartender DS, about mixing drinks; Sakashou DS, about sake, and Sommelier DS, about wine. The software is designed to help you choose fine beverages and properly store your wines. Sim City DS producer Hiroshi Murakami said that it was his hope that people would spend the 2950 yen on Sommelier DS and then buy good wine instead of going directly to the cheap stuff.
Podsites put a bartender in your pocket
Slashfood has a note about a couple of iPod-based drink recipe databases suitable for using on your iPod. Using html-linked notes (some call them podsites), the databases are browsable and somewhat interactive. Drunkenbatman would be proud.The iPod bartender has a working demo on their site. So you can show it off to friends... It's also got a BoozeMix, which is like shuffle for your recipes. You pick your drinks based on a category, like Flaming or Eggnogs. I couldn't find plain ol' Flaming Eggnogs though.Apple nods to the drinking set with Podtender on their site. Although the pic of a 3G iPod at this point is a little comical. It boasts over 900 recipes, and can show each of them individually. They are pretty much sorted by name, which I think makes it more usable. You pay for the additional recipes though, as Podtender costs $10.Why do this on an iPod? Because nobody wants one of these, do they?
