Legacy Multiple Layers per Part

[bold]

I would like to request the ability to have multiple layers per Avatar Part. This is needed for any big or long hair styles where the front of the hair may go over the avatar top while the back of the hair can fall behind the avatar. Also, other effects that wrap around the avatar need this feature as well (aura effects, cape or cloak, etc.)

 

[Fillip H.]

From what I know this is not possible. PHP image generation cannot use one source image and apply it to multiple layers like that - the second time you applied the source image (to give the "hair in front" effect you mentioned) it would also add the "hair in back" over your body, causing an incorrect image.

Sorry, you're going to have to split those into two items

 

[bold]

I'm sorry I didn't specify, but it's not one image source. It's two or more images. The front style would be an image and the back style would be another. Each layer is a separate image. However, when a user selects the hair style it would just be shown as a single hairstyle.

 

[Fillip H.]

Ah, that would require a significant rewrite of the mod, adding quite a bit of complexity. At the moment you can already have multiple items per layer, so your users can already achieve this if they use the two hair pieces separately

 

[bold]

You should work towards this. It's a pretty basic feature. The ability to put something in the foreground and background with one avatar item. Also, this would make the whole system neater without having a part for every layer. And this would help avoid charging for each layer when they're supposed to be one item.

 

[bold]

Oh, I just saw that someone else requested the same feature.

http://www.dragonbyte-tech.com/f142/two-layers-one-item-7918/

 

[Fillip H.]

You can halve the cost of each part

I disagree that it's a basic feature for the reasons mentioned in my previous post.

 

[Cosmic]

It's unlikely we will add this to the mod as it replicates existing functionality but requires a significant amount of coding work and time invested for something that will be of little to no benefit to the majority of users.

 

[bold]

I said this was a basic feature because if you look at every avatar community they all have this. You say workload isn't worth it, but the benefits of such a feature is like night and day. Like you said, maybe the majority of your users would not benefit from this feature, but for people like me who take your product as a serious feature for their community, will be needing/requesting this feature, I'm sure. It just gives so much more opportunities to avatar artists and the community members get a more complex and custom avatar. Hope you guys consider it sometime in the future.

 

[Fillip H.]

You might consider it basic, but I believe we've demonstrated that it isn't basic to implement.

We have to look at implementation time vs benefit when deciding what features to go with and if something would require (random number) 30 man-hours of work for one feature vs. 30 man-hours for 5 features, that one feature has to increase the value of the mod by the same or more than those 5 features.

I'm not going to make any assumptions regarding your education - for all I know, you have a degree in business management - but I do know that Cosmic is pretty damn awesome at determining what features will sell.

I know it wasn't intended, but saying "I said this was a basic feature" comes off to me as rude. I read it as "You guys don't know what you are talking about, I know for a fact that this feature would sell more than you believe it will!" which is obviously not something that people running a business likes to hear. Again, I know it wasn't intended to be rude, so please don't take this as me telling you off

All this being said, if enough people request it then we will of course reconsider