setCharacterDrawMode to be extended

[Trumgottist]

I've started looking at Erwin's request to expand on the functionality of setCharacterDrawMode. The most obvious way to do that is to simply add a third (optional) parameter to the function, so that you can say:

setCharacterDrawMode (char, TRANSPARENT, 128);

That would be equivalent to saying simply setCharacterDrawMode (char, TRANSPARENT); 255 would be completely solid and 1 would be equivalent to INVISIBLE. (INVISIBLE is 1 and not 0 so that the mouse still will react to the character.)

It's easy to use and easy to implement, and the DARK, SHADOW, FOGGY and GLOW modes could be handled the same way. But implementing it like that has one downside: The draw modes are still mutually exclusive, so you can't make something FOGGY and TRANSPARENT.

An alternative is to expose the internal workings of the engine through three new functions, but that would be a bit more complicated:

setCharacterDrawOpacity (char, value);
setCharacterDrawLight (char, value);
setCharacterDrawGlow (char, red, green, blue);

Thoughts?

[Erwin_Br]

I have no need to combine effects. Generally I'm all for flexibility, but I wouldn't blame you if you go for a solution that's easier to implement.

[BigMc]

I would go with the three functions. It's more obvious and natural than having predefined modes and then changing them again.

EDIT: Maybe put all modes except transparent into one function?
setCharacterDrawGlow (char, red, green, blue, value);

[Trumgottist]

I have no need to combine effects. Generally I'm all for flexibility, but I wouldn't blame you if you go for a solution that's easier to implement.

It's not so much a question of how hard it is to implement. (I know exactly how to do both solutions. The difference is mostly adding a few more variables to each character.) The main reason I'm hesitant to do it the second way is that it'd add complexity for the SLUDGE programmer.

I would go with the three functions. It's more obvious and natural than having predefined modes and then changing them again.

You think the three functions way is more natural? More powerful, yes, but more complicated to use. The equivalent of

setCharacterDrawMode (char, GLOW1);

would be

setCharacterDrawLight (char, 192);
setCharacterDrawGlow (char, 64, 64, 64);

instead of

setCharacterDrawMode (char, GLOW, 64);

and instead of

setCharacterDrawMode (char, SHADOW, 128);

we have

setCharacterDrawOpacity (char, 128);
setCharacterDrawLight (char, 0);

[BigMc]

If you have predefined modes, you have to look up or know what they mean. Also the value parameter changes it's meaning depending on which mode you use, which is bad.

I'm not shure if I understood what setCharacterDrawLight would do. I thought it's the transparency value of the overlay color, is that right? That's why I proposed to put that into the glow function.

I think it's quite natural to specify the overall transparency and the color and transparency of the overlay. Isn't that all what is needed?

[Trumgottist]

I'm not shure if I understood what setCharacterDrawLight would do.

It sets the lighting of the character. (Same as the DARK mode.)

[BigMc]

Isn't that the same as GLOW and FOGGY just with a black overlay instead of white or grey?

[Trumgottist]

No, but I see what you mean. The end result actually is the same. Maybe I'm thinking too much in terms of how it's implemented under the hood. Now I understand why you keep talking about an overlay and why you thought the separate functions to be natural.

It's a new angle to think about it from, but you may be on to something good here... I'll have to do some more thinking.

[Trumgottist]

Having thought about it, I think BigMc's idea is good. Here's the current plan:

setCharacterTransparency (char, value);

Sets the opacity of the character.

A value of 0 = solid.
A value of 255 = INVISIBLE

setCharacterColourise (char, red, green, blue, value);

Blends the character with the given colour.
A value of 0 draws the character normally.
A value of 255 replaces all colour with the given colour. (Alpha values are unaffected.)

Thoughts?

[Erwin_Br]

Yes, this will work great. 

[Trumgottist]

Now I've added the functions. They're in SVN, so they'll be in the next build.