[PREVIEW] Juju's TweakedUI v1.1 interface enhancement mod

[para]

Para, This is about the best I can do with such a tiny file. For some reason it totally resembles the original. Only this time you can be sure it's a gen-you-wine SMG wielding US paratrooper.

Any better? (You can use 'ctrl-wheel up' in your browser to get a bigger view, if you need to. 'ctrl-0' to reset)

For me, that looks much better. thank you very much. Thanks for the mouse viewing tip too.

[theFightingSeabee]

Oh my Lord! I can't wait to get this in my z folder! I'm so sick of the glowing green night vision silhouettes.

[xian]

JuJu - fantastic job! Of the high quality we have come to know and love about all your mods.

Why BFC haven't snapped you up and put you on the payroll I really don't know.

....I'm still not sure about that colour sequence though :-)

[LIGHT GREEN - DARK GREEN - YELLOW - ORANGE - RED] - can't quite get my head around it, but thanks to you I have a little fix don't I?!

[Chek]

That looks so pretty-me want.

[JM Stuff]

In details I love it very useful and beautiful !

[Juju]

Small progress update: apart from the vehicle and artillery silhouettes it's pretty much all done. In the past few days I added some stuff that should have been included in v1.0, but wasn't for various reasons.

Strangely enough one of the toughest nuts to crack in all these files turned out to be the new binocular icon, since the actual texture for it is only 21x14 pixels. I'm quite happy with the result.

The update log so far:

- Added full Commonwealth module compatibility.

- Added optional subdued colored command buttons.

- Added new artillery/air support access buttons.

- Added new interrupt buttons.

- Added new command & control icons.

- Added new binocular icon.

- Minor tweaks and fixes.

Preview pics on page 1 have been updated. Also, here's another preview shot of a British airborne platoon HQ with optional subdued colored command buttons installed:

[Barkhorn1x]

Great stuff - cannot wait for completion.

[Erwin]

Your mod is as important to the UI as Aris' vehicles and guns are to the look. Thanks for all your work.

[A Canadian Cat]

Preview pics on page 1 have been updated. Also, here's another preview shot of a British airborne platoon HQ with optional subdued colored command buttons installed:

Those buttons look just like the ones in the preview images in your first post. Are those really the "subdued" colours? Just checking...

BTW I can hardly wait for this - thanks

[Gen Von Television]

Excellent work Juju, as usual!

I just happened to notice one thing, if I may: the background for the US striped NCOs ranks look like dark blue instead of being black. Is that so?

If I remember correctly they should be khaki/light khaki on black. Have a look:

http://usarmyinsigniahomepage.110mb.com/wwii_era.html

http://www.antiquerecon.com/wwiiusarmysargentrankstripes-chainstitch.aspx

http://www.epicmilitaria.com/search.php?xSearch=&xPriceFrom=0&xPriceTo=0&xSort=code&xPage=14

Cheerio!

[xian]

JuJu - may I just make a quick suggestion that perhaps the colour palette could be more like:

i.e have a more washed out green rather than a dark green as the second colour down.

[Juju]

@ ian.leslie - Yep, those are the subdued colors optional buttons. The standard scheme for this mod will be the uniform dark ones.

@ Gen von Television - Funny thing, that always worried me too. Since no one has complained about it from v1.0 on, I always assumed they were correct after all. If you gentlemen can all agree on what's really correct, I'll do it like that. I'd prefer black/dark myself anyway, but that's just for aesthetic reasons.

@ xian - Wot? You again, eh? I'll try it out and see if I like it. If I change it, I'll even update that unique little patch I made just for you.

[A Canadian Cat]

Thanks for the clarification. I have been using the "CMBN_Wolfe_Colored_Command_Buttons_1-3" mod on top of yours for so long I forgot that your default was the shades of gray pallet for the command buttons. I assume Wolfe's mod will still work with your new version. But I will start by trying your new colours first.

Thanks for all the hard work.

[Fuser]

Awesome job, once and again, thanks a lot Juju.

[Rambler]

Blue is correct for the ranks. At least it's what's on my grandfather's uniform and the ranks I've collected so far.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_enlisted_rank_insignia_of_World_War_II

[Rocky Balboa]

Blue is correct for the ranks. At least it's what's on my grandfather's uniform and the ranks I've collected so far.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_enlisted_rank_insignia_of_World_War_II

It's possible that they had a different color for dress uni and field uni. OD I think would be more appropriate for field uni.

Currently I use JuJu's v1.0 UI and then change the rank icons with another mod to OD. My vote would be in favor of changing the color from blue to OD ...

[Rambler]

That's cool if you prefer OD backgrounds, but it's still incorrect. Check out GvT's first link. Those are all dark blue at the top. Scroll down to the Chevron Types of the Second World War Era – "These are examples of the many different manufactured chevrons that existed during this time period. The War Dept attempted to regulate by approving ( for wear on OD blouses and jackets and © for wear on the khaki shirt beneath... The attempt was abandoned. Type © became the nearest to universal."

Description for (: Embroidered olive drab on dark blue twill

Description for ©: Embroidered khaki on dark blue twill

[Gen Von Television]

All the WWII US chevrons I saw on hundreds of articles on Militaria Magazine regarding all original combat uniforms were indeed as I wrote: Khaki (sometime faded or light Khaki) on black (absolutely no OD).

The only blue background ranks I ever saw are from the Navy, Marines dress uniforms, Civil War or from the 60ties... Wikipedia is wrong!

On the links I gave they also describe the back as 'black woolen'.

For reference you can also stop-frame Band Of Brothers and check them out: a faultless reconstruction of uniforms and insignias...

[Rambler]

Dude, check out your first link . The ranks at the top all have dark blue backgrounds. Scroll down and read the Chevron Types of the Second World War Era section. I quoted it above.

[Gen Von Television]

Yep, I did read that: actually I never ever saw chevrons sewed on twill tissue, but always on a woolen one; from thousands of pictures I saw in this magazine (and I'm regularly receiving it since issue #1) of all of the original combat uniforms depicted that have chevrons none of those look to me as with a blue background, but certainly so dark that it's black! especially you can clearly compare it when it is worn on below the shoulder patch of the Screaming Eagles, unless you like to say that the Eagle head is in front of the blue sky...

Check also the other links I gave and tell me you see the blue twill somewhere: even on the one that seemingly with authority is defining those Army rules they depicted the ranks on a black background. Or is it blue?

Ah yes, it is blue, so dark it looks black. That's final.

[Juju]

Hurray, we have closure!

[Gen Von Television]

PS: this one is given as the twill 'blue backdrop'

while these are given as khaki stripes on black and khaki on tan

and finally http://reviews.ebay.com/Identifying-Army-Chevrons-World-War-II-Part-11?ugid=10000000073120496

[Juju]

I suppose I could darken the blue color a bit and it'd still be historically correct, right. How about that?

[Gen Von Television]

I suppose I could darken the blue color a bit

Yep, to the point it looks like black!

And no silver chevrons, please...

[Rambler]

We could probably go around and around on variations out in the wild, which there undoubtedly are. It was wartime after all. However, the regs state dark blue background. I tried to find the actual circulars to establish this, but the closest I could find was the history of enlisted rank on The Institute of Heraldry, Headquarters, Department of the Army's website. Here's the link. Scroll down to 1920 and 1942: http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/UniformedServices/Insignia_Rank/enlisted_history.aspx

Here's that section quoted:

1920. The number of insignia was reduced to seven and six pay grades were established. War Department Circular No. 303, dated 5 August 1920, stated the chevrons would be worn on the left sleeve, point up, and to be made of olive drab material on a background of dark blue. The designs and titles were as follows:

Master Sergeant (First Grade)

Three chevrons, and an arc of three bars, the upper bar of arc forming a tie to the lower chevron.

Technical Sergeant (Second Grade)

Three chevrons, and an arc of two bars, the upper bar of arc forming a tie to the lower chevron.

First Sergeant (Second Grade)

Three chevrons, and an arc of two bars, the upper bar of arc forming a tie to the lower chevron. In the angle between lower chevron and upper bar a lozenge.

Staff Sergeant (Third Grade)

Three chevrons and an arc of one bar, forming a tie to the lower chevron.

Sergeant (Fourth Grade)

Three chevrons.

Corporal (Fifth Grade)

Two chevrons.

Privates First Class (Sixth Grade)

One chevron.

1942. The grades of Technician in the third, fourth and fifth grades were added by War Department Circular No. 5, dated 8 January 1942. Change 1 to AR 600-35, dated 4 September 1942, added a letter "T" to the formerly prescribed chevrons for grades three, four and five.

The first sergeant was moved from the second grade to the first grade per Change 3, AR 600-35, dated 22 September 1942. This change described the first sergeant’s chevron as - - Three chevrons and arc of three bars, the upper bar of arc forming a tie to the lower chevron. In the angel between lower chevrons and upper bar, a hollow lozenge. This change also included the material as khaki chevrons, arcs, T, and lozenge on dark blue cotton background or olive-drab wool chevrons, arcs, T, and lozenge on dark blue wool backgrounds.

Juju - Yeah, definitely. The blue in the mod is a little brighter that what it looks like in real life anyway. Probably should have mentioned it when I helped you with the US rank in your first version, but I really didn't think it would be worth the hassle or become an issue. My apologies.