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3 makeover suggestions for WoW's default UI
The default World of Warcraft user interface has undergone some excellent changes over the last few months. After the Shattering and Cataclysm, loads of new UI features were implemented and improved upon. In the future, even more tweaks are being added, with the addition of enhanced dungeon maps and other goodies for lore buffs. I can honestly say that right out of the box, the WoW user interface is better today than ever. However, there are still improvements that could be made, most of them in areas that just haven't been updated in a good long while. I've got a list of three pieces of the UI that I believe could use a makeover.
The Daily Quest: Addon edition
Here at WoW.com we're on a Daily Quest (which we try to do every day, honest) to bring you interesting, informative and entertaining WoW-related links from around the blogosphere. Is there a story out there we ought to link or a blog we should be following? Just leave us a comment and you may see it here tomorrow! Today we're talking about your user interface with helpful addons and macros from across the web: The Hunter's Mark offers 6 addons to make your hunter's life easier. Blade Barrier presents some essential death knight macros. World of Matticus explains macros to make your healing life easier. Flow has addon suggestions for restoration shamans. No Stock UI has an addon recommendation for the Blood Queen Lana'thel fight. Cranky Healer offers a lesson on advanced Clique use. Hungry for more addon info? You might take a look at AddOn Spotlight or Reader UI of the Week.
Patch 3.3.3 PTR: User interface updates
Blizzard has added some major and minor improvements for the user interface in their minor content patch of 3.3.3. Some of these include the addition of a random battleground finder, a holiday boss random dungeon group, as well as others. It is still early in the patch process, so some of these things may undergo more changes as it works its way along. There are still a few rough edges on the interface for the moment. We don't have everything that's been changed thus far in the gallery, but we thought we'd give you as much as we could muster on short notice. Plus, we included the new Frozen Orb vendor in the gallery for you to drool at things you can do with all of those spare orbs from your daily rampaging of Northrend instances. Keep an eye on WoW.com for more updates on what patch 3.3.3 is bringing to you. %Gallery-86064%
Patch 3.2: UI changes coming to the PTR
Well wouldja look at that -- hidden in the just-released Patch 3.2 notes are a whole slew of UI changes to check out. Auto-completion for character names in mail, chat, and pop-up interfaces can now be enabled (and disabled) from the interface options. I believe auto-complete was already in there for mail, but now it'll be everywhere, and/or you'll be able to turn it off if you've sent things to the wrong place in the past. Names are getting a color option according to class, so if "Lolpaladins" is really a Death Knight, you'll know right away. Casting bars near a portrait's target will show whether the spell is interruptible or not. Some boss casts are not interruptible, so now you'll know with a glance. Druids will be able to see mana bars even while shape-shifted, which probably won't change gameplay much, but will be nice for bears and kitties. Item comparisons (like the ability to check other gear for slots while hovering over that gear) are now available everywhere -- hover over an item with Alt pressed to see what's currently equipped in that slot on your character. Macros and scripts can no longer target totems by name -- bye bye totem stompers. The quest log is getting a small revamp: it'll be "double-paned for more easily viewing quest information." We're not quite sure what that means (you'll be able to look at two quests at once? It'll break out the list of accepted quests into its own full-size window?), but we'll give you a look as soon as we see it on the PTR. Vendor prices will now be listed on items even if you're not at a vendor. This was a pretty common feature already, thanks to Auctioneer, but now it'll be built into the standard interface. Keep in mind that these notes are still subject to change -- what's listed here may never make it to the live realms at all. But it seems like there are quite a few changes due in Patch 3.2 are designed to streamline the interface and incorporate a number of elements from common addons. Patch 3.2 will bring about a new 5, 10, and 25 man instance to WoW, and usher in a new 40-man battleground called the Isle of Conquest. WoW.com will have you covered every step of the way, from extensive PTR coverage through the official live release. Check out WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.2 for all the latest!
A guide to shutting out the world (of Warcraft)
WoW is a very social game, and you might think that there is no getting around it. Fortunately for those who relish their alone time, there are several ways to minimize contact with other players and have some quiet time. While some people will argue that you should stop playing social games like MMORPGs, there are plenty of solo activities, and if that is what you want to do, more power to you.Today, I will be answering some reader mail from Heidi who desperately wants some peace and quiet.
Reader UI of the Week: Five Death Knight UIs
World of Warcraft allows all of us an unprecedented ability to modify our user interface to meet our needs. Each week WoW Insider will bring you a fresh and detailed look at reader submitted UIs. Have a screenshot of your UI you want to submit? Send it, along with your character name and server, to readerui@gmail.com.Last week we took a brief glance at three assorted UIs, but this week we're taking a look at five Death Knight specific UIs. (A closer look at four of them, though the fifth came without much background information. However, that fifth has a unique look that was worth showing off, and here's to hoping someone in the audience help identify some of the mods it's using.) I was curious what mods DKs might be using to keep an eye on their runes, and for those who don't want to read the whole thing to find out this crucial piece of information, the five UIs here include two users of Magic Runes, one user of X-Perl, one user of DKI Runes, and one unidentified rune interface.For UI details -- and your comments! -- read on.%Gallery-19902%
WoW Insider interviews Tom Chilton
A couple of days ago at the midnight release of Wrath of the Lich King in Anaheim, CA, our very own Dan O'Halloran had an opportunity speak with Tom Chilton (also known as Kalgan), Lead Game Designer of World of Warcraft. They spoke on a wide variety of topics, from raid philosophy to the growth of the game in North America and many things in between. Read on to see what Kalgan had to say!WoW Insider: What did Blizzard think was the most surprising class development of The Burning Crusade? Did you think Paladin tanks would be as popular as they were, did you anticipate the Druid supremacy in the arena?
World of Warcraft's Jeff Kaplan previews Lich King UI changes
Lead designer for World of Warcraft Jeff Kaplan is the man to talk to if you want the inside scoop on the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King. So MTV Multiplayer did, asking after some information on upcoming changes to the popular game's UI. Already well known for having one of the slickest interfaces in online gaming, it sounds as if there are going to be a lot of great improvements coming with the new expansion. Unsurprisingly, many of the upcoming improvements are going to be based on popular fan-made mods. Kaplan describes his own mod usage like 'candy', with stretches of gratuitous mod downloading interspersed with 'vanilla UI' cleansing.WoW Insider has been all over this stuff, noting plans for a token system that will replace badges and a set of tabs to allow easy access to mounts and vanity pets. They also reported on plans for a threat-meter style addition to the game, which Kaplan describes as more like an 'aura'. "We're going to display threat by a glowing unit frame. Like if you're glowing orange, you're really close to a 70% threat threshold, and then if you turn red it means you've pulled threat. Because that's really all people need in a raid is to be able to look and go, 'Hey the mage is orange.'" They also hope to put in some sort of coordinate system, and it even sounds like a form of QuestHelper-like functionality will find its way into the game. Kaplan notes that last will probably not see inclusion until the first post-expansion patch, but that's still some great news. One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
A new way to search for WoW mods
You know how it is. One of your favorite addons breaks down completely after a patch, so you go looking for the updated version, but then you realize you don't remember where you downloaded it. You check your favorite mods website, only to find that they only have the out-dated version. You end up having to check several different websites in order to find the update, and you wish there were a better way.KitKatsFTW over in Europe has developed a simple solution: a site called "WoW Mod Search," which uses Google's custom engine to search through the four main WoW mod sites: WoW UI, WoW Interface, Curse, and WoWAce. The site is simple, unobtrusive, and aside from some google text ads, there's absolutely nothing to get in your way.I use Inquisitor on Safari to quickly use shortcuts of any search engine without actually visiting the website itself first. If any of you out there are also using Inquisitor, or any similar search plugin, you should be able to just copy and paste this search url into your plugin preferences as a shortcut for quick access to WoW Mod Search later. (The "%@" in that link represents the space that will be replaced with your searched keywords when you use the plugin.)
