Yet Another of Jim's Projects, a Crestar world map

JimP

Sometimes my mind has to percolate an idea for a long time before i realize what is needed to get something done.

I printed out each Worldall page, all 14 of them, so each page printed to one sheet of paper. I have scanned them in.

I'll take the scans, keeping them small, put each page together in Irfanview, then import and make a global map of them.

Hopefully I'll get it done this year.

Terraformer_Author

Hey Jim - you should do an Atlas type of thing printed out in PDF format, with each sector - or regional area - of the global map covered page to page - with a text page covering each regional area featured - and done "encyclopedia style" for each map - and you should have intermittant world maps in sphereical, conal, or Mercador projections - showing each specific regional map perhaps highlighted with a rectanglular frame? Just a suggestion. You could do it like a "Rand Mcnalley" Atlas book, or like some Atlases of Tolkien's Middle Earth that I've seen in the bookstores over the years from time to time. I would suggest using the free OPEN OFFICE application from Sun Microsystems and Java, and also CUTE WRITER PDF printer.

http://www.openoffice.org/

and

http://www.cutepdf.com/Products/CutePDF/writer.asp

If you still can't get them (which is practically inconcievable) - then I can send you some copies since they are freely distributable. If I ever start a blog or web page - These are going to be staple visitor downloads!

About Open Office: You can do everything, and a little more with the Open Office Suite that you can with Microsoft Word, and it can read and write in Microsoft Word, xml, and other document and spreadsheet formats. In many respects it's interchangable with Microsoft Word.
You get a complete desktop publishing suite and tool kit - and you can do everything from illustrated ebooks to magazines, brochures, booklets, text books, you name it! You get draw, spreadsheet, and you can download TONS of extensions - and the text tools are top notch.

Terraformer_Author

Another desktop application that you can use is SCRIBUS - which is also free. This - like Open Office - is a Pro qaulity app for desktop publishing. You can do books, magazines, newspapers, journals, anything that you can imagine (just like Open Office):

http://www.scribus.net/canvas/Scribus

If you need it, and for some weird reason you can't download it from the site - I have you covered there to.

I'm a poor bloke - so I make it my business to find all kinds of juicy, sweet, qaulity freebies - and I always make absolutely sure that they are clean, kosher, and legit!
If you need a free app that can do what the commercial stuff can do - then if I don't have it in my addy book, or inventory - I can find it!
I covet my freebies like a miser covets gold - and I always burn an updated back up disk for current versions as an insurance policy.

Terraformer_Author

Don't forget THE GIMP - a free image editor that is a must have!

http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/stable.html

With these three applications - you have no excuses for not creating awsome, mind blowing, brain frying, gut crunching yummy goodness!!!
Making brushes for the gimp is a snap, and it's functionality is akin to Photoshop 7 through CS1

Terraformer_Author

Here's some good solid font sources that are respectable - and that gives you info on licensing:

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/11/08/40-excellent-freefonts-for-professional-design/

http://www.abstractfonts.com/

http://tulrich.com/fonts/

http://www.openfontlibrary.org/

http://www.sil.org/computing/catalog/show_software_catalog.asp?by=cat&name=Font

http://www.1001fonts.com/

http://typodermicfonts.com/

http://www.dafont.com/

http://www.moorstation.org/typoasis/typoasis1.htm

Jay_NOLA

Thank you for the SCRIBUS link. I was involved in doing a Feng Shui RPG supplement PDF awhile back and this is something that may come in handy when ever the 2nd PDF gets finished.

Also, the new stable release version of Blender 7.57a came out on the 22nd.

http://www.blender.org/

Terraformer_Author

Thank you Jay - I almost forgot INKSCAPE - another freebie must have. This is a vector image editor that you can't do without also!

http://inkscape.org/

JimP

Well, I'm very old, but I'll see what I can do. How old ? I remember when only NBC had color tv shows in the US.

I have Open Office. I prefer CC3 as a drawing program. I'm just not skilled at drawing.

Besides, I work full time... which sometimes means more than 40 hours per week. Very tiring.

Terraformer_Author

Hey Jim - I'm with you buddy. I can remember when phones were permanently anchored to the living room, there was no caller I.D., and you were a snooty blue blood if you had the push button kind instead of a rotary dialer - and you also had an excuse to just let it ring or leave it off the hook.

I remember when a McDonalds Big Mac was three times larger - and came in a styrofoam box.

I remember when there were no microwave ovens - and Pop Tarts were the cutting edge in quick food preparation.

I remember when Gas was a $1.25 a gallon, and a family of five could get a whole week's worth of groceries for under $120.00 bucks.

I remember Saturday morning cartoons (Vintage Bugs Bunny and Road Runner fare - not the brain numbing, life sucking moron charmers of today - via "Dora The Explora", "Captain Planet", and "Pokemon"), and prime time T.V. wasn't either a talent show or a sing off.

On TV - the only time that you ever saw a bunch of dorks left out on their own in a jungle to fend for themselves - was when you were watching reruns of Gilligan's Island - which was infinitely more entertaining.

I remember Friday night / Saturday afternoon monster movies, Mad Magazine (before it got lame), Famous Monsters Of Filmland, Led Zeppelin, and those little tablets that you dissolved in water that made instant cola.

I remember Bachman HO Train Sets - and slot car tracks - and Chemistry Sets - and department stores with three full aisles dedicated to nothing but plastic model kits of anything that you could possibly imagine.

I remember nieghborhood hobby shops, and coin arcades, and shopping malls where none of the storefronts were empty and caged up.

I remember when Cracker Jack boxes had toys in them, and nobody cared if you got a toy in your happy meal or not (here's to you San Francisco - thanks for banning them, and while your at it - why not arrest Santa Claus for B&E?).

I remember Drive In Theaters.

I remember romance without blood tests or hazmat gear, sports figures without rehab or scandals, plane trips without x-rays or getting gropped, and normal weather.

I remember when you were a kid, your buddie's mom was in the PTA and baked brownies, and didn't have a tattoo of a chinese dragon on her right breast, wasn't always wearing a cheap tube top, and didn't have another tattoo of a thorny vine on her lower back - right above her backside - that spelled out "Bad Girl", and wasn't cheating on her boyfriend with her ex-husband (her third ex-husband).

I remember when liking the music of someone akin to Britney Spears, Justin Beiber, "Lady Ga Ga", or any boy band whatsoever in junior high school - would have earned you a sound beating - and a free swirly hair rinse - courtesy of a dip in the urinal - irregardless of your gender, income bracket, political affiliations, religeon, orientation, whether you were right or left handed, or your fashion tastes - no matter how bizarre .

I remember when you were never turned down at the cash register because "the computers went down", and you didn't have to hire either a NASA technician - or a Microsoft certified former pentagon hacker to fix your car. It didn't have a brain - and it was really really basic.

I remember when the only time anybody could, or would steal your identity - was after you were deceased, and only if THEY were on the run from something. In which case they would keep your identity, and probably end up making something useful out of themselves.

Credit cards were just things that rich people had, and the only time that anybody would even think about their credit score was if they were going to buy a house - or a brand new car.
Back then you didn't have a credit score anyway - just a credit report of what you already owed. If your job application was turned down - or you were fired because of your credit - then you wouldn't need a job anyway - because the winnings from the lawsuit alone would set you up for life.

I can remember when smoking was not feared more than either the Ebola virus, or a catastrophic meteor strike.

I can remember when most of the things that were made in China - WAS china (plates, teacups, etc.).

I can remember when typing was never, ever a major cause of traffic accidents.

Aaaahhhhhh - Memories.....

JoeyD473

I love how you added the Rockwell painting to the post

JimP

$1.50 gas is over-priced. No, really. We paid 25 cents a gallon when i was a kid. I have a Drive-in Movie theater site. http://www.drivein-jim.net/ <- site is gone.

Anyway.

I'll work on what I can in my spare time. I may or may not create an atlas of my game world.

Terraformer_Author

Ok Jim, whatever you come up with - I'm looking forward to it. If you need anything - let me know and I'll snoop around for ya bro.

JimP

He, I forgot. Most nations have a blurb about their history, or something about them, on the main page for that nation. Trillolara and Dank Forest has a King, etc. lineage page for the previous 500 game years. So somewhat of an atlas already exists. Some nations have basic geology, crops, and government pages.

I was going to post some links to examples, but it looks like my web host is doing maintenance.

Terraformer_Author

Yeah, earlier I was thinking about those hardbound books that you can find at the bookstore where on one side of the book they have a map of a country, or a territory, or region or something - and then on the opposite page - or on the same page they have a description of the region such as follows:

"The nation of Floopaldorp is situated between the Narthap Mountains to the North, and the Flimsy Mountains to the west. Due to it's position near the Gumblegoon sea - it enjoys brief, mild springs - followed by summers with an average temperature of 72 degrees F..The winters however can be harsh with frequent blizzards - and bone chilling cold. It is sometimes subject to tremors due to the nearby Krag faultline - extending from the Purple Hills region - to the Bay of Vordo. The Capitol City - "Ghrunblooga" - is a major exporter of spices, linen, silk, and Garfin Roots - used to make medicines of various types. The government is bi-monarchial - i.e. the duties of rulership are shared equally between the two eldest brothers of the royal family, one brother has executive authority over the financial ministries and the military, as well as foriegn relations - while the other tends to domestic issues, civil engineering, management of the state agricultural collective, and issues pertaining to law and order, and judicial processes - and their authority is mitigated by a parlamentary council and senate, blah blah blah blah, so and so."

And then you've got brief stats like population, gross national income, points of interest, historical battles, plagues, riots, philosophical movements, important personages born there,so and so. Pretty much structured like a Wiki article.

JimP

Here ya go, a listing from posts i made to my textpattern blog/cms of Crestar.

Terraformer_Author

Do you have an addy for that JIm? Love to take a gander at it bro.

JimP

You can see them from the menu at the top of my site, it shows on all pages.

http://crestofastar.drivein-jim.net/ updated link