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A new, more in-depth hud guide initiative
posted in Customization
1
#1
14 Frags +

Im not new to hud developing but by no means am I a good nor am I an experienced developer either.

It has been quite of a ride to get my hud out for public usage because eventhough there are guides out there (doodle's guide or Flame's guide, it didnt teach me or tell me much about the more detailed parts of hud editing.

For example, adding your own boxes or bgs for a hud was not stated anywhere. I had to sift throught other's huds to see how they did it and replicate how they did it. Turns out it was just a simple ImagePanel with fillcolor.

Or even how to create buttons where only the text is visible and not the background. For this I finally figured out that i could set the default,armed and depressed bg colors to 0 0 0 0.

And mvm too since it was fairly new when doodle's guide came out so there wasnt much info on mvm in it.

There are other stuff too but I dont want to make it a long list.

In my personal opinion, I just think that a more concise, more in-depth hud guide would benefit all current and future hud developers. Maybe the seasoned hud developers could share their expertise and knowledge about huds and collaborate on a guide?

Im not new to hud developing but by no means am I a good nor am I an experienced developer either.

It has been quite of a ride to get my hud out for public usage because eventhough there are guides out there ([url=http://doodlesstuff.com/?tutorial=tf2hud]doodle's guide[/url] or [url=https://code.google.com/p/flamehud/downloads/detail?name=FlameHUD.pdf]Flame's guide[/url], it didnt teach me or tell me much about the more detailed parts of hud editing.

For example, adding your own boxes or bgs for a hud was not stated anywhere. I had to sift throught other's huds to see how they did it and replicate how they did it. Turns out it was just a simple ImagePanel with fillcolor.

Or even how to create buttons where only the text is visible and not the background. For this I finally figured out that i could set the default,armed and depressed bg colors to 0 0 0 0.

And mvm too since it was fairly new when doodle's guide came out so there wasnt much info on mvm in it.

There are other stuff too but I dont want to make it a long list.

In my personal opinion, I just think that a more concise, more in-depth hud guide would benefit all current and future hud developers. Maybe the seasoned hud developers could share their expertise and knowledge about huds and collaborate on a guide?
2
#2
10 Frags +

Although I can't say I'm THAT seasoned, since my HUD is more obscure, I still have a lot for MvM.

For MvM:

hudmannvsmachinestatus.res - VERY IMPORTANT. Is the 'hudlayout.res' for MvM, use this file for definitions instead. This goes hand in hand with mvmscoreboard.res.

huditemeffectmeter_heavy.res - Edits the Heavy's rage bar. Two Cities update made this a copypaste with the Medic's energy bar.
huditemeffectmeter_sapper.res - Edits the Spy's sapper bar.
mvmcreditspendpanel.res
mvmcreditsubpanel.res - These two files are the second part of the scoreboard. http://i.imgur.com/adghM7y.jpg Here is a picture that I took with the scoreboard. I think everything else is outdated, but it's the second one down.
As you can see, the "1" and "4" are the bonus money waves.

wavecompletesummarypanel.res - Self explanatory.
wavestatuspanel.res - Changes the "WAVE 1/7" or "2/6" etc with waves. Also affects the SUPPORT panel. If you change the SUPPORT word, hud_reloadscheme doesn't show it unless you restart TF2.

enemycountpanel.res - Hand in hand with WaveStatusPanel.res, it's the actual numbers. Can change fonts and critical marker.

New things:
huditemeffectmeter_killstreak.res - Killstreak bar. Putting this here since a surprising amount of HUDs don't yet have this made.

Border tweaks: A lot of huds nowadays use boxes around ammo and health. I do, the default hud does. (Obviously, some huds still go for a minimalist style, which I'm fully fine with.)
Use "border" "BORDERHERE" in a certain panel, whichever you want it to be.
You can edit borders in clientscheme.res.
However, my minmode hud makes these boxes disappear with this little tweak with borders.

TFEmptyBorder
		{
			"bordertype"			"scalable_image"
			"backgroundtype"		"2"
			"image"					"../hud/tournament_panel_brown"
			"src_corner_height"		"0"				
			"src_corner_width"		"0"
			"draw_corner_width"		"13371337"				// more publicity for any non-hud editors looking at the hud's code
			"draw_corner_height" 	"90019001"	// who cares that this certain meme is around 7 years old
		}	

Hudlayout.res building tweak:
Thanks to something I said with the 'tall' value, omni found a nice tweak that lets the ypos of the buildings on Engie look fine on the spectator/deathcam. Doesn't work with MvM, but oh well.

Remember while using the tweak, hudlayout.res definition should have ypos on 0.
Also works with Spy's sapper. It IS a 'building', after all.

There are many ways to make a HUD, but I haven't found one that hasn't done one of 3 things with the ammo. Be careful, some HUD's fall into the Box-Squeezed problem.

Yes, it's possible to combine Box with Top-Down, but the box would only be an image.
Basically, Default is when the numbers seem to outline a wall, box is where the numbers use the outline of an image wall, and top down is when Reserve and In-Clip are in completely seperate boxes. Garm3n 7MF/4MP is a "Top-Down" even though the boxes are left-right.

http://i.imgur.com/DeauEXK.png

200 = Minigun
6/24 = Revolver
12/36 = Scout Pistol
40/100 = Syringe Gun with some expended
8/24 = Stickybomb Launcher.
4/20 = Rocket Launcher (it's a TOP DOWN, remember)
120/200 = Syringe Gun, max clip size and some Ammo Capacity

Inconsistently: It's inconsistent because even though the centering looks nice,
the ammo IN clip was centered to the left. Consistent type makes it look consistent, but it could also look subjectively ugly.

Another thing I'd like people to watch out for is number consistency. I'm saying to make the style identical but the colors the same. For example, there are a LOT of numbers and bars in a HUD.
So here are numbers:

(This kind of turned into a rant. I put a spoiler tag on it)

Show Content
Engie Metal
Demo Stickies
Demo Heads
Sniper Heads
Spy Crits
Pyro Crits
Engineer Crits
Killstreaks
Health
Ammo
Reserve Ammo

If I'm a Demoman with heads, a killstreak weapon, health, grenade launcher, and stickies,
it's annoying to keep track of which one it is if you're using an inconsistent HUD. It feels kind of minor, but still.
Although I can't say I'm THAT seasoned, since my HUD is more obscure, I still have a lot for MvM.

For MvM:

[size=16]hudmannvsmachinestatus.res[/size] - VERY IMPORTANT. Is the 'hudlayout.res' for MvM, use this file for definitions instead. This goes hand in hand with mvmscoreboard.res.

huditemeffectmeter_heavy.res - Edits the Heavy's rage bar. Two Cities update made this a copypaste with the Medic's energy bar.
huditemeffectmeter_sapper.res - Edits the Spy's sapper bar.
mvmcreditspendpanel.res
mvmcreditsubpanel.res - These two files are the second part of the scoreboard. http://i.imgur.com/adghM7y.jpg Here is a picture that I took with the scoreboard. I think everything else is outdated, but it's the second one down.
As you can see, the "1" and "4" are the bonus money waves.

wavecompletesummarypanel.res - Self explanatory.
wavestatuspanel.res - Changes the "WAVE 1/7" or "2/6" etc with waves. Also affects the SUPPORT panel. If you change the SUPPORT word, hud_reloadscheme doesn't show it unless you restart TF2.

enemycountpanel.res - Hand in hand with WaveStatusPanel.res, it's the actual numbers. Can change fonts and critical marker.


New things:
huditemeffectmeter_killstreak.res - Killstreak bar. Putting this here since a surprising amount of HUDs don't yet have this made.

Border tweaks: A lot of huds nowadays use boxes around ammo and health. I do, the default hud does. (Obviously, some huds still go for a minimalist style, which I'm fully fine with.)
Use "border" "BORDERHERE" in a certain panel, whichever you want it to be.
You can edit borders in clientscheme.res.
However, my minmode hud makes these boxes disappear with this little tweak with borders.

[code]
TFEmptyBorder
{
"bordertype" "scalable_image"
"backgroundtype" "2"
"image" "../hud/tournament_panel_brown"
"src_corner_height" "0"
"src_corner_width" "0"
"draw_corner_width" "13371337" // more publicity for any non-hud editors looking at the hud's code
"draw_corner_height" "90019001" // who cares that this certain meme is around 7 years old
} [/code]

Hudlayout.res building tweak:
Thanks to something I said with the 'tall' value, [url=http://teamfortress.tv/forum/thread/14917-engineer-building-status-position]omni found a nice tweak[/url] that lets the ypos of the buildings on Engie look fine on the spectator/deathcam. Doesn't work with MvM, but oh well.

Remember while using the tweak, hudlayout.res definition should have ypos on 0.
Also works with Spy's sapper. It IS a 'building', after all.

There are many ways to make a HUD, but I haven't found one that hasn't done one of 3 things with the ammo. Be careful, some HUD's fall into the Box-Squeezed problem.

Yes, it's possible to combine Box with Top-Down, but the box would only be an image.
Basically, Default is when the numbers seem to outline a wall, box is where the numbers use the outline of an image wall, and top down is when Reserve and In-Clip are in completely seperate boxes. Garm3n 7MF/4MP is a "Top-Down" even though the boxes are left-right.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/DeauEXK.png[/img]
200 = Minigun
6/24 = Revolver
12/36 = Scout Pistol
40/100 = Syringe Gun with some expended
8/24 = Stickybomb Launcher.
4/20 = Rocket Launcher (it's a TOP DOWN, remember)
120/200 = Syringe Gun, max clip size and some Ammo Capacity

Inconsistently: It's inconsistent because even though the centering looks nice,
the ammo IN clip was centered to the left. Consistent type makes it look consistent, but it could also look subjectively ugly.

Another thing I'd like people to watch out for is number consistency. I'm saying to make the style identical but the colors the same. For example, there are a LOT of numbers and bars in a HUD.
So here are numbers:

(This kind of turned into a rant. I put a spoiler tag on it)
[spoiler]Engie Metal
Demo Stickies
Demo Heads
Sniper Heads
Spy Crits
Pyro Crits
Engineer Crits
Killstreaks
Health
Ammo
Reserve Ammo

If I'm a Demoman with heads, a killstreak weapon, health, grenade launcher, and stickies,
it's annoying to keep track of which one it is if you're using an inconsistent HUD. It feels kind of minor, but still.[/spoiler]
3
#3
0 Frags +

Is the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?

Is the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?
4
#4
0 Frags +
SevinIs the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?

It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.

[quote=Sevin]Is the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?[/quote]
It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.
5
#5
0 Frags +
main_giSevinIs the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.

Hmm, that never worked for me. There was nothing I was supposed to add to it from the Two Cities update?

EDIT: I'm stupid, that worked. Don't know what I was doing earlier. But now the ping goes way out over my bounds so I need to shrink the distance between each element but I don't know how to do that either.

[quote=main_gi][quote=Sevin]Is the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?[/quote]
It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.[/quote]

Hmm, that never worked for me. There was nothing I was supposed to add to it from the Two Cities update?

EDIT: I'm stupid, that worked. Don't know what I was doing earlier. But now the ping goes way out over my bounds so I need to shrink the distance between each element but I don't know how to do that either.
6
#6
0 Frags +

thanks for the input, main_gj.

thanks for the input, main_gj.
7
#7
0 Frags +
Sevinmain_giSevinIs the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.
Hmm, that never worked for me. There was nothing I was supposed to add to it from the Two Cities update?

EDIT: I'm stupid, that worked. Don't know what I was doing earlier. But now the ping goes way out over my bounds so I need to shrink the distance between each element but I don't know how to do that either.

It's a fixed container. It can't be shrunk like the main scoreboard.

[quote=Sevin][quote=main_gi][quote=Sevin]Is the ping for the MVM scoreboard in mvmcreditsubpanel.res ?[/quote]
It comes from mvmscoreboard.res, and it's a fixed container. You can see the ping if you increase 'wide' enough in the MvMPlayerList.[/quote]

Hmm, that never worked for me. There was nothing I was supposed to add to it from the Two Cities update?

EDIT: I'm stupid, that worked. Don't know what I was doing earlier. But now the ping goes way out over my bounds so I need to shrink the distance between each element but I don't know how to do that either.[/quote]
It's a fixed container. It can't be shrunk like the main scoreboard.
8
#8
0 Frags +

So I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.

So I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.
9
#9
0 Frags +
SevinSo I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.

Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.

Also, I would like it if anyone knew how to change the font that appears while selecting menu voice commands?
It's Default ._.

[quote=Sevin]So I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.[/quote]
Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.

[s]Also, I would like it if anyone knew how to change the font that appears while selecting menu voice commands?[/s]
It's Default ._.
10
#10
0 Frags +
main_giSevinSo I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.

Your spacing looks a lot smaller than mine though. That's too bad that it won't work.

[quote=main_gi][quote=Sevin]So I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.[/quote]
Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.[/quote]

Your spacing looks a lot smaller than mine though. That's too bad that it won't work.
11
#11
0 Frags +
Sevinmain_giSevinSo I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.
Your spacing looks a lot smaller than mine though. That's too bad that it won't work.

The two cities patch specifically changed the wide spacing and the font. The picture is outdated; it was meant to show the creditsubpanel and creditspendpanel.

[quote=Sevin][quote=main_gi][quote=Sevin]So I can't change any of the player stats individually? That's ridiculous then my scoreboard is broken.[/quote]
Mine's broken too, even the fonts are screwed up. The image I cited was the one before the Two Cities patch that fixed the custom HUD crash.[/quote]

Your spacing looks a lot smaller than mine though. That's too bad that it won't work.[/quote]
The two cities patch specifically changed the wide spacing and the font. The picture is outdated; it was meant to show the creditsubpanel and creditspendpanel.
12
#12
1 Frags +
main_gi-snip-

For future reference, my text is not aligned to the west (and I am assuming you mean the ammoinclip label). Everything is center-aligned, and there is 0 clipping in normal gameplay. This may not be true for large ammo counts in MvM, but my HUD does not support MvM and likely never will.

[quote=main_gi]-snip-[/quote]
For future reference, my text is not aligned to the west (and I am assuming you mean the ammoinclip label). Everything is center-aligned, and there is 0 clipping in normal gameplay. This may not be true for large ammo counts in MvM, but my HUD does not support MvM and likely never will.
13
#13
0 Frags +
Ericmain_gi-snip-For future reference, my text is not aligned to the west (and I am assuming you mean the ammoinclip label). Everything is center-aligned, and there is 0 clipping in normal gameplay. This may not be true for large ammo counts in MvM, but my HUD does not support MvM and likely never will.

Oh, okay. I only have two screenshots, so I thought it was aligned leftwise because eastwise doesn't make sense. Your HUD looks great, keep it up. Does the AmmoNoClip bubble show as a centered number as well (inconsistently), or consistently?

[quote=Eric][quote=main_gi]-snip-[/quote]
For future reference, my text is not aligned to the west (and I am assuming you mean the ammoinclip label). Everything is center-aligned, and there is 0 clipping in normal gameplay. This may not be true for large ammo counts in MvM, but my HUD does not support MvM and likely never will.[/quote]
Oh, okay. I only have two screenshots, so I thought it was aligned leftwise because eastwise doesn't make sense. Your HUD looks great, keep it up. Does the AmmoNoClip bubble show as a centered number as well (inconsistently), or consistently?
14
#14
0 Frags +
main_giOh, okay. I only have two screenshots, so I thought it was aligned leftwise because eastwise doesn't make sense. Your HUD looks great, keep it up. Does the AmmoNoClip bubble show as a centered number as well (inconsistently), or consistently?

The AmmoNoClip label is centered. The HUD is also a dead project now.

[quote=main_gi]Oh, okay. I only have two screenshots, so I thought it was aligned leftwise because eastwise doesn't make sense. Your HUD looks great, keep it up. Does the AmmoNoClip bubble show as a centered number as well (inconsistently), or consistently?[/quote]
The AmmoNoClip label is centered. The HUD is also a dead project now.
15
#15
0 Frags +

That's sad. I think it would go well with the general public due to the 'rounded' style of the HUD.

I would also recommend that any future HUD developers plan out what style of HUD they are having if they want it for public release. Clean? Minimalistic? Nostalgic? Colorful? Bright? "High-Def"?
In my opinion, knowing the type of HUD you're making will help make things more consistent.

That's sad. I think it would go well with the general public due to the 'rounded' style of the HUD.

I would also recommend that any future HUD developers plan out what style of HUD they are having if they want it for public release. Clean? Minimalistic? Nostalgic? Colorful? Bright? "High-Def"?
In my opinion, knowing the type of HUD you're making will help make things more consistent.
16
#16
0 Frags +

main, what controls the players in each round box?

http://i.imgur.com/j7U10Ed.png

main, what controls the players in each round box?

[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/j7U10Ed.png[/IMG]
17
#17
-1 Frags +

err guys, is it fine if you guys don't post here if you're not contributing to the thread? Trying to keep the thread clean and concise, Thanks

err guys, is it fine if you guys don't post here if you're not contributing to the thread? Trying to keep the thread clean and concise, Thanks
18
#18
0 Frags +
Rawrerr guys, is it fine if you guys don't post here if you're not contributing to the thread? Trying to keep the thread clean and concise, Thanks

Sorry, main just seems so knowledgeable.

[quote=Rawr]err guys, is it fine if you guys don't post here if you're not contributing to the thread? Trying to keep the thread clean and concise, Thanks[/quote]

Sorry, main just seems so knowledgeable.
19
#19
0 Frags +

I think he was talking about my conversation with Eric.
Sorry for the delay, I was practicing TF2 in tr_walkway_rc2.
Anyway, it's a surprising one. hudtournament.res has what you're looking for.
Heh, doesn't seem like anything MvM'y.

I think he was talking about my conversation with Eric.
Sorry for the delay, I was practicing TF2 in tr_walkway_rc2.
Anyway, it's a surprising one. hudtournament.res has what you're looking for.
Heh, doesn't seem like anything MvM'y.
20
#20
2 Frags +

bump. me and four are still doing this alongside other stuff.

bump. me and four are still doing this alongside other stuff.
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