Hmm interesting... UI zoom (Pinco's UI) vs ingame zoom...

[Dermott of LS]

...

I'm not exactly sure why this is (or why it shouldn't be able to be ported to ingame by the devs), but I found out a little something odd thanks to Pinco's UI.

I raised the texture scale as high as it would go for a container (my backpack in this case) and noticed that the objects zoomed in as well, but did NOT distort or get noticeably fuzzier either.

So then I took a couple of the same item types and dropped them to the ground and matched the scale of the items as well as I could.

The comparison in the image are of the gold ingot(s) and the Bulk Order Deed(s) The result I thought was interesting comparing the pixelation and distortion in the ingame zoom vs the smoothness of the UI scaling.

Could the algorithms used be different in each, and could they be matched up to bring back clear, crisp scaling graphics? I think that if it could it would go a LONG way in solving the low resolution issue.

Edit: Here's the image zoomed in 300% in Gimp better showing the difference in how the two system handle the scaling effect:

 

[Metalstorm]

Whoa! If I wasn't seeing it I wouldn't believe it.
I think you're onto something.

Oh, and... HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

 

[Pinco]

You keep the zoom too high...

look at this screen from my settings:

no pixel and all is fine
How?
http://vboards.stratics.com/uo-enha...ter-picture-quality-post-26-march-2010-a.html

 

[Dermott of LS]

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Well I zoom in and out depending on what I'm doing and where I am. At my house I usually zoom in quite a bit while if I'm runnning around I'll zoom out. My zoom level is NEVER constant.

For that pic, I purposefully zoomed in such a way to get the comparison items to be close to the same size once i saw how smooth the images remained when I raised the scale of the backpack up as far as it would go.

 

[Pinco]

there is a difference between the container and the game window:
When you scale the container the scale will be applied to all the items, when you zoom the game not change the scale of anything, just zoom like you can do with a magnify.
That's why you see better pictures in your container

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Couple more images, this time comparing the BOD book and the picnic basket... Pic 1 is actual size, pic 2 is 300% zoom:

 

[Cloak&Dagger]

there is a difference between the container and the game window:
When you scale the container the scale will be applied to all the items, when you zoom the game not change the scale of anything, just zoom like you can do with a magnify.
That's why you see better pictures in your container

I think Dermott was trying to point out exactly this. I think his goal was for a developer to see this and make a similar change to the client itself. Of course everything pixelates when you zoom in, They could use a simple math formula to try to limit the pixelation, but for true "non-pixelated" they would need multiple drawings of each item in the game, at least 3. 1 for max zoom in and max zoom out and 1 for the 1:1 zoom setting, and then use a more complex formula to figure out what drawing to use in what situations and then modify the pixels based on that drawing to fit the current zoom level.

Currently I am not sure but it would seem to me like they do not use anything to limit the pixelation of things in game, they just let the graphics card do the work which ends up with how it is.


Edit: Dermott in the first screen shot of the bod book the one on the floor still looks pixelated compared to the one in the backpack, are you sure that is the 1:1 zoom setting? just an observation.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

The zoom setting is rough, but within a couple of pixels.

Basically it's done as the following:

Scale up/zoom a container in Pinco's UI as far as it will go, then place two items, one in the container and one ingame, then use the zoom ingame to match (as much as possible) the sizes of the two objects.

The second, larger image was simply zooming in the first image 300% in a grqaphics program (Gimp in my case) just to show a closer look at the differences.

 

[Cloak&Dagger]

...

The zoom setting is rough, but within a couple of pixels.

Basically it's done as the following:

Scale up/zoom a container in Pinco's UI as far as it will go, then place two items, one in the container and one ingame, then use the zoom ingame to match (as much as possible) the sizes of the two objects.

The second, larger image was simply zooming in the first image 300% in a grqaphics program (Gimp in my case) just to show a closer look at the differences.

Oh that makes more sense then haha.