neokio

When hovering over a mod in any mod list (e.g. https://rd.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/), the mod darkens, and "VIEW MOD" appears. This is suboptimal UX in that it doesn't reward selection, rather it punishes the user by obscuring the very thing they are interested in. My user experience is that the topic of my interest, that which I have just moused over, is now less visible (covered by text) and has gone dark. I know I can click because the cursor is now a pointer, I don't need something in the shape of a button that isn't a button thrown in my face. One of the things which Google got right in their Material Design guidelines is that people respond better to their mouseovers popping up/out of the page. One solution would be to have hoverable mod images at 0.9 opacity, and upon hover, do two things: (a) bring them to 1.0 opacity, and (b) add a dropshadow around the image box. Simplest short-term workaround would be to hide the "VIEW MOD" (.view-label class) entirely, and reduce the opacity MUCH less than you currently are. Doesn't take much to trigger the perception of interaction.

How about the meta-authors ... authors of frameworks and tools that empower so many other mods: - Ousnius and Caliente for Bodyslide and CBBE - Gambit77 and Valdacil for FO4's ubiquitous AWKCR / AE and VIS / DEF_UI - For Skyrim, sonogu's list pretty much nails it

Results are in! After 2 weeks of deliberation ... [settings] is our final suggested holotape prefix. Final tally of reponders: 11 for "[settings]", 3 for "(Settings)". I'll reiterate the holotape spec: Use the prefix [settings] ... capital S, lowercase ettings, followed by a single space. Use your mod name, without the words "Configuration", "Options", "Setup", or "Holotape"I'm still bringing mod authors to this conversation, but there are probably dozens of mods with holotapes I don't know about. If you see one, please PM me with their mod link and I'll inform them of the suggested change (or do so yourself). A few questions remain: What about mod authors who made AID settings scripts (potions with message boxes attached?) like WOTC, Journey, etc.? Valdacil, can these mods just add the [settings] prefix to merge nicely with MISC items? Or can we offer some guidance in migrating to a proper MISC holotape? Thanks everyone!

I'm still waiting for a few people to weigh in, at which point I'll update the first post, and then message most mods-with-settings authors (like yourself) with our suggestion. But the final suggested proposal will be either [settings] or (settings), with a few more votes on [settings] at the moment.

Seems to me that both MCM settings and holotapes are required, and are in fact very different things. There are mods with "set once and forget" settings (like DYNAVISION) and there are "gameplay enhancers" that require constant interaction (like Don't Call Me Settler). For "set once and forget" mods, the PipBoy is terribly inefficient ... it's a skeuomorph, not a good user interface. This is why we need MCM. For "gameplay enhancers", as RustyXXL says, it sucks being pulled out of the game ... holotapes do the trick. I guess our focus here is to create something that is both a placeholder for MCM settings mods and a guideline for gameplay enhancer mods.

Ok, exciting! I think we're almost ready. 1) Which prefix do you prefer? a) (Settings) <-- top sorted b) [settings] <-- bottom sorted 2) Should we suggest holotapes be set as quest items? a) yes b) no Please SEND ME A MESSAGE with your final vote on the above. In a few days, I'll modify the first post to reflect the results. Thanks everyone!

Someone please correct me if I'm mistaken, but I very much doubt Flash will be required for creating MCM settings. I can't really find any documentation for MCM Fallout New Vegas. However for SkyUI (whose MCM component was based on Pelinor's work), the examples show how easy it is for mod authors to create config menus.

a1a3a6a9 (maker of Don't Call Me Settler) says that after he switched from [] to (), which sorts closer to the top, people stopped complaining about not finding his holotapes. Personally, of all the things inside MISC, settings are what I access the most. Top-sorted seems more useful to me. But more mods use [], so perhaps there's a reason. Is there? Are there any reasons NOT to use (Settings) instead of [settings]?

So far I've only had positive response from the authors I've contacted, which is very exciting. My sense is that the need for this is already apparent to most, and that whatever we decide here could become the standard. (And again, hopefully, one that's obsoleted when an MCM-like solution emerges :) I'll continue pointing people to this forum to increase traction and momentum. @Valdacil: Edge of my seat for your [settings] verdict! @neotropic: Cogwheels, totally! Google images search on the word "settings" results in mostly cogwheels, so no doubt that's the best iconic meme. It does resemble the vault symbol, but that's really cool actually. And the only real alternative is hammer and wrench (yuck).

Awesome response! From a usability standpoint, I see a few benefits of [settings] over [Holotape] [Mod]: [Holotape] [Mod] is (in my opinion) slightly more ambiguous and misleading in a few ways: (1) The word MOD is used in-game for weapon/armor components. (2) All the other [Holotape]s are messages or mini-games. (3) It would be the only case I've seen of an inventory item starting with 2 bracketed words.[settings] is instructive and concise for non-VIS users (fools!), it describes itself precisely."Inventory > MISC" is easier to access (one fewer click to get to) than "Inventory > MISC > Holotapes". For me, so far, this has been nice, since VIS keeps the MISC top-level so clean ... but Inventory > MISC > Settings would be very efficient as well.Both with and without VIS, having settings grouped next to other holotapes is more demanding on the user (more reading and thought)If the current trend continues, there will be more and more mods with settings, enough to warrant special treatment in the DEF_INV_TAGS.xmlFrom a let's-get-sh*t-done standpoint, Valdacil, your involvement ensures a result. If you perceive [Holotape] [Mod] as the better choice, then hell yeah. How shall we proceed?

Two weeks ago, a group of mod authors, heroes all, got together and averted a disaster of biblical proportion. THE PROBLEM After the GECK was released last month, mods with configuration holotapes used very different naming methods. This made a mess of user inventories, making it increasingly difficult to find the mod they wanted to interact with. The problem was only getting worse as new mods emerged. For example ... AID"WOTC Spawn Configuration"-=JOURNEY=-MISC(MOD - Don't Call Me Settler) Setup HolotapeBeantown Interiors Options Holotape[MOD Settings] DYNAVISION[MOD] Outfit Auto-Swap THE SOLUTION We came up with and agreed upon a standard: [settings] Beantown Interiors[settings] Don't Call Me Settler[settings] DYNAVISION[settings] JOURNEY[settings] Outfit Auto-Swap[settings] War Of The Commonwealth The guidelines for the above are simple:Use the prefix [settings] ... capital S, lowercase ettings, followed by a single space. Use your mod name, without the words "Configuration", "Options", "Setup", or "Holotape"The latest version of Valdacil's "DEF_UI" and "VIS" already sorts and adds icons to [settings] beautifully, placing them into their own subcategory.At some point, the Fallout 4 Mod Configuration Menu (MCM) will be released. Until then, we encourage all mod authors creating holotapes to use to the above. It is recommended NOT to use AID items for settings. Stick to holotapes, which are categorized as MISC. Below are the conversations that led to this conclusion. Happy mod-making!

A minor UI suggestion. The notification you see in a mod's download tab: The file is currently being uploaded to our file servers and it will be ready to be downloaded soon. This is both inaccurate and WAY too long. The file was ~100k, it uploaded in milliseconds. So we're not waiting for the upload. It's enough to say: This file will be available in a moment. Or something else succinct. Cheers :smile:

There's also a "Burn" feature in Don't Call Me Settler that incinerates all dead bodies in a very cool way.

Craftable Collection Beacons

I agree, especially useful for scavenging in survival mode. There are a few mods for workbenches ... http://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/12603/? http://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/10555/? ... , but nothing yet for perks or on the road.