Hi, this is my first Minecraft post. I've been playing for 2 weeks, and I've been fiddling around with the artwork and skins in game. I've noticed not many people have messed with the kz.png file, and I had an idea while at work today. The idea is a success! I have not seen anyone do this before, so I apologize if this is reposting someone else's nifty idea.
Individual "paintings" in the kz.png file can also have transparent elements. This means you can do tons of stuff with them in artistic ways that are not necessarily meant to be used as paintings in themselves. Paintings can stick to glass. Paintings can also hang in mid-air with no support--but you have to remove the surface you stuck it to from behind or the side, and be very careful or the painting will pop off.
There are some caveats. If you look in the kz.png file, you'll see in the upper right hand corner the painting backgrounds. I discovered from testing that ALL of the backgrounds will tile with 1 tile, which is the upper left tile. No other tile is used for backgrounds. If you make that tile transparent, your paintings are completely transparent from behind. Otherwise, you will get whatever background that tile is. I chose transparent, because there's too much choice in art. Keep in mind that you can also put paintings on multiple sides of an object.
I just whipped up some images to play with, so please pardon my crappy temporary painting edits.
Also, view the images (right click/view) as something is resizing the width.
I put a semblance of wrought-iron work on some of the windows. The glass itself is unchanged.
Here is the opposite view of the window, at night. Where the white arrow is, I put the same painting on the window on the outside. Notice that the other windows are clear, because the back of the paintings are transparent.
Curtains! Nifty. This is one painting.
Same curtain image, that had blocks behind it. I removed the blocks, and voila, it's free standing.
Examples of things on different backgrounds. Pots and pans, crossed axes, a bookshelf, etc.
The red curtains are actually 3 image files. 2 of the same one that is 2x1 and one that is 1x1 in the center.
My family crest on the right, ha ha.
More random ideas... I had this really cool suit of armor, but I forgot to take a screenshot of it.
Just for kicks, this is my spawn point and first building I made. Well, second, as the first was to cower in terror from the bad things at night...
I rate this thread doubleplusgood++
Great idea + use of paintings, I love the lowered curtains on the windows.
The idea of mountable weapons + armor is good too, me likey!
Oh, there's other ideas I have. Since you can have images going one-way, you can have a completely blacked-out (or textured like stone/whatnot) free-standing "painting" covering an exit--but, since you can walk through paintings, it can be a sneaky way to hide entrances or exits. Or have some effect like text saying, "thank you, come again" as people leave, but they don't see the message upon entering. There's tons and tons of stuff you can do with these paintings.
I just wish you could stick them to tops and bottoms of blocks, and choose exactly which piece of art you want.
I also made a chandelier, but forgot to take a screenshot. Oh well, it's late for me. Maybe tomorrow.
i hope we can see a lot of people doing things like this and releasing them as painting/decoration packs (for those of us inept at doing this sort of thing ourselves ><)
I think I'll release a better version of the file, you don't really want this one as it's full of junk and I'm sure I can make the curtains look better. That was a 2 minute hack job.
What kinds of things would people like, if I make a general release? Besides curtains and maybe some weapons/armor. Any domestic things like pots and pans or fireplace pokers or anything?
Maybe I will do a 16x16 for the old RPG look and a 32x32 version that fits in with semi-realistic textures.
Hanging Rabbits,Ducks and any game animals or meat in general
Grandfather clock (altho it be a bit flat, could be placed on wooden block is guess)
Wallclock (allthough with these clocks, be a bit of a shame time doesnt move)
Totem faces (again placed on the face of blocks)
Headstones
Mounted rifles
Just a few ideas that hit me after seeing this thread. My pixel however isnt amazing, im sure someone else could do a brilliant job, id love to see some of my ideas used. But yeh nice find.
You, my fine genius, get a years supply of diamonds from Glimmar's vault. In one swishy idea you have expanded the range of possibilties for my theme to infinity!
I'd been thinking along the lines of using paintings to make objects and steampunk paraphanelia, other than paintings, for a while now - check out my thread - but I didn't realize it was possible to give paintings a transparent quality too! This is awesome indeed! Oh, the possibilities!
Many thanks for presenting this idea now and vastly expanding Minecrafts design possibilities - good job indeed!
Genius, genius! I'm sure we'll be seeing some painting edits now. I myself have been doing this for some time now, and I've always wondered why other people didn't do it.
Congratulations.
Would some clever modder be able to make an editable transfer sheet for us to use. To explain... I'm not talking about a painting pack editor, I mean a seperate set of block sized transfers (say 10 to start with, but would be amazing if more were possible) that can be applied to the surface of any block for say... carved stonework, etched metal, etc. The block underneath remains unchanged and, just like paintings, the transfer (or 'sticker/stamp') can be removed with a hit. It would need to be something that gives us more control than the way the paintings are selected randomly in game.
Ideally I would love the ability to be able to edit these transfers in game, even having a range of sizes, but realize this would probably require a significant change to Minecraft, so probably only do-able by Notch himself.
I know this is just wishful thinking, and probably not possible for memory limitations at any stage of development, so just ignore the ramblings of the weird grey haired guy in the corner... for he is just plain crazy! :Skeleton:.
On another thought... do all the paintings in the art file have to conform to set sizes, or is it possible to have a greater range of single block sized paintings? If this was possible, it would have significant implications for increasing the range of decorative walll items we could have in game. I reckon not, but would a modder be able to change how the paintings are addressed in the code?
Individual "paintings" in the kz.png file can also have transparent elements. This means you can do tons of stuff with them in artistic ways that are not necessarily meant to be used as paintings in themselves. Paintings can stick to glass. Paintings can also hang in mid-air with no support--but you have to remove the surface you stuck it to from behind or the side, and be very careful or the painting will pop off.
There are some caveats. If you look in the kz.png file, you'll see in the upper right hand corner the painting backgrounds. I discovered from testing that ALL of the backgrounds will tile with 1 tile, which is the upper left tile. No other tile is used for backgrounds. If you make that tile transparent, your paintings are completely transparent from behind. Otherwise, you will get whatever background that tile is. I chose transparent, because there's too much choice in art. Keep in mind that you can also put paintings on multiple sides of an object.
I just whipped up some images to play with, so please pardon my crappy temporary painting edits.
Also, view the images (right click/view) as something is resizing the width.
I put a semblance of wrought-iron work on some of the windows. The glass itself is unchanged.
Here is the opposite view of the window, at night. Where the white arrow is, I put the same painting on the window on the outside. Notice that the other windows are clear, because the back of the paintings are transparent.
Curtains! Nifty. This is one painting.
Same curtain image, that had blocks behind it. I removed the blocks, and voila, it's free standing.
Examples of things on different backgrounds. Pots and pans, crossed axes, a bookshelf, etc.
The red curtains are actually 3 image files. 2 of the same one that is 2x1 and one that is 1x1 in the center.
My family crest on the right, ha ha.
More random ideas... I had this really cool suit of armor, but I forgot to take a screenshot of it.
Just for kicks, this is my spawn point and first building I made. Well, second, as the first was to cower in terror from the bad things at night...
Skinpack: modified Brown and Bloom
Also, what texture pack are you using?
Great idea + use of paintings, I love the lowered curtains on the windows.
The idea of mountable weapons + armor is good too, me likey!
I just wish you could stick them to tops and bottoms of blocks, and choose exactly which piece of art you want.
I also made a chandelier, but forgot to take a screenshot. Oh well, it's late for me. Maybe tomorrow.
i hope we can see a lot of people doing things like this and releasing them as painting/decoration packs (for those of us inept at doing this sort of thing ourselves ><)
You sir get two gold stars and a Zoidburg!
Now if only paintings worked in SMP...
The one with the paintings in it?
I really want those curtains!!
I do stuff.
I think I'll release a better version of the file, you don't really want this one as it's full of junk and I'm sure I can make the curtains look better. That was a 2 minute hack job.
What kinds of things would people like, if I make a general release? Besides curtains and maybe some weapons/armor. Any domestic things like pots and pans or fireplace pokers or anything?
Maybe I will do a 16x16 for the old RPG look and a 32x32 version that fits in with semi-realistic textures.
I say stuff here and here
Grandfather clock (altho it be a bit flat, could be placed on wooden block is guess)
Wallclock (allthough with these clocks, be a bit of a shame time doesnt move)
Totem faces (again placed on the face of blocks)
Headstones
Mounted rifles
Just a few ideas that hit me after seeing this thread. My pixel however isnt amazing, im sure someone else could do a brilliant job, id love to see some of my ideas used. But yeh nice find.
I'd been thinking along the lines of using paintings to make objects and steampunk paraphanelia, other than paintings, for a while now - check out my thread - but I didn't realize it was possible to give paintings a transparent quality too! This is awesome indeed! Oh, the possibilities!
Many thanks for presenting this idea now and vastly expanding Minecrafts design possibilities - good job indeed!
I changed the [] [] sized paintings into arrows for directions
Congratulations.
Ideally I would love the ability to be able to edit these transfers in game, even having a range of sizes, but realize this would probably require a significant change to Minecraft, so probably only do-able by Notch himself.
I know this is just wishful thinking, and probably not possible for memory limitations at any stage of development, so just ignore the ramblings of the weird grey haired guy in the corner... for he is just plain crazy! :Skeleton:.
On another thought... do all the paintings in the art file have to conform to set sizes, or is it possible to have a greater range of single block sized paintings? If this was possible, it would have significant implications for increasing the range of decorative walll items we could have in game. I reckon not, but would a modder be able to change how the paintings are addressed in the code?