So after Googling "3d desktop", I've found that my dream doesn't so much mean anything. I'm fairly impressed with Sun's "Looking Glass". [ http://www.sun.com/software/looking_glass/ ]
Some of the 3d desktops didn't look like much, but nonetheless, they were 3d. After seeing those, I better understand the lack of appeal of the term "3d desktop". I asked myself, "Self, wtf?" Brad Wasson's 3-d Desktop [ http://desk3d.sourceforge.net/screenshots.php ] is written for Linux, and Linux appears to allow multiple "viewports" or "workspaces" (desktop environment). I don't yet understand all of it. His program allows for various objects to be created out of said viewports, but for simplicity, I'll use a cube for demonstration. The top and bottom sides, from what I saw, don't have faces. Thus there are four sides, each having a separate desktop. So you can zoom in and zoom out and rotate this cube, but it looks fairly dull. I suppose if you wanted to keep your desktop free from clutter, you could just have multiple desktops. Ctrl+Shift+Tab through them. But that wasn't exactly my goal.
ROOMS 3D [ http://www.rooms3d.com.sg/ ] kinda has the design I was thinking of. Well, at the extreme end that is. I realize that not many users would want their desktop to be scattered throughout a castle. However, their website looks haxorrible.
SphereXP [ http://www.hamar.sk/sphere/ ] has the more subtle office feel. No icons hiding on a tower waiting to be rescued. However, I think I'd be a bit disoriented with all the windows leaning at me. My preference would be for all the windows to be perpindicular to the xz plane (assuming that the xy plane is the same one would expect in a 2d environment and the z axis comes out of the monitor). I believe that orientation could be handled in SphereXP, but all the windows would have to be in a certain y range for them not to be bent in the z direction. But SphereXP is strictly spherical. I was more or less imagining a desktop shaped like the universe: elliptical (theoretically). The height is practically zero when compared to the length & width. So I wasn't really intending on going up and down so much. But SphereXP presented the basic functionality I was aiming for.
Sun's "Looking Glass" however ... [ http://www.sun.com/software/looking_glass/ ] ... now that is awesome! It's not precisely what I had in mind, but it appears to be what I was going for. I like the idea of having the title bar written across the depth of the window, like a book's spine. With the book metaphor, you could line your windows up like a bookshelf, and pull them out when needed. Granted, I don't know how often I'd use that functionality. Their DVD player apparently has levels of transparency. Their windows allow "sticky notes" to be added. I'm not sure if the notes are added into the file somewhere or if they just kinda stick there to the window. All I know is that I want it.
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School was cake today. On a 75 question test, I may have missed 5 of them. I could check my notes now to see what I missed, but I'm too lazy. I'm think I've got an A in 3dcc, but I could be wrong. I missed quite a bit on the last test. Crossing my fingers.
I had to rewrite my FAFSA because I made a lot of mistakes in pen. Unfortunately, the form needs my mom's signature and I had rewritten the entire form in the Financial Aide office. So I couldn't just say "... my mom's in the car; lemme get her signature ..." and then go forge her signature in the car. I should have tried though. I suppose I'll just turn in the form later when I pick up my new books. Looks like class is Tues-Sat 5pm - 1am. Social hours.
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I've got a few queries about City of Villains. Will they allow heroes to team with villains? I believe I read that somewhere. That'd be sweet. If not, will heroes be able to understand villains' text? Like "Curse you hero!" In WoW, the factions get garbled up so they can't understand each other.
posted at 6:58 PM
6 comments
6 Comments:
Well, I can kind of answer your CoV questions. We don't really know yet. Ok, I guess I didn't really answer the question.
They haven't decided on communication between CoH and CoV. The main reason they wouldn't is that griefing may be a problem between heroes and villians. This does assume that people are that immature, which isn't really that true for the majority, but the select few can ruin it for the rest of us. Then again, I don't think it'll get any worse than it is right now...griefers will be griefers. I say let us communicate and just petition and ban the griefers.
As for teaming between heroes and villians, I really can't see that happening...as least as the rule. It doesn't really make too much sense. Maybe as the exception to the rule, as there are reasons for villians and heroes to team, but not on regular occasions. There is supposedly going to be a way for a hero to "fall" or a villian to redeem himself and change sides, but not at release, so I wouldn't hold my breath.
Not on a regular basis, but they could certainly come up with story lines/missions to bring both heroes and villains together at times.
They try to mimic comics: Magneto has "switched sides" multiple times, back and forth. Doom has even worked with the FF, though never in a way that they could part amicably, of course.
I haven't seen Looking Glass, but I have heard a lot of good things about it. I may have gotten off the Sun workstation too soon, though may old one may not have had the power for Looking Glass.
Also, in the most recent Teen Titans (tv series) arc, Slade helped the Titans find Raven and defeat Trigun (Trigon? I dunno.) because it was in his own best interest as well.
I don't know what a griefer is, but I agree with Matt that jerks will be jerks and they should just open it up so we can more easily sort the jerks from the... non-jerks.
Even after looking at all those 3d desktops, I can't say that any of them appeal to me. Still seems like too much work to find what I want, or I'd be distracted/disoriented by the tilty windows.
I agree that they could right some cool story lines to bring the two sides together. The only problem would be doing it in the context of an online game. They could certainly do some short-lived events, where if you are doing the missions/objectives/whatever, you can team up. They could do it, but it would take a little more thought and effort as to how and why they team up.
And yep, I know they are trying to mimic comic books with switching sides. But they said they won't have it at release, and it would come in a future update. Whether that mean in the first one 3-4 months after release, or one that comes along in a year and a half, we don't know. So I just wouldn't count on it yet.
Kalen -
It's "Trigon".
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