Guide on Writing Guides

[claudius 104]

Not sure we have this already we can merge later if we do (I checked very briefly and didn't find)...

 

Ok I would like to call from the community information about making guides. First I am going to post the things I think we need in general. The Roman Numerals so to speak of the guide on guides. Next I will invite the community to put across their thoughts on what topics should be in the guide for guides. Then I will fill in the information that I am able to on my own. And fourth ask the community to write sections that I am unable to eg. videos and also to add or subtract ie revise the sections that I did write on. And finally edit.

 

I definitely hope I get some help or else it will have some holes in it and I just sense that others have more to contribute than I can think of.

 

The final version will go right below this if its any good we can sticky it:

 

================================================================================

 

I. What is advised to go in each guide (not mandatory as this thread is not the soup nazi of guides)?

 

Attribute distribution; Skills, with at least mastery order if not complete distributions for certain levels; Combat Art modifications, with order; "necessary" equipment, if the build is gear-dependent.

 

A. Introductions

1. Brief punchy description of type of build

2. Assets needed to play (niob smith, gold for runes exchange, camp runner, for example)

3. Credits

4. Platform and Game version

5. What levels you tested the build

 

B. Attributes

1. Discuss Reasoning

 

C. Skills

1. With Mastery Order

2. Possibly show distribution at certain levels

3. Discuss Reasons

 

D. Combat Art Modification

1. Order of modification

2. Discuss reasoning

 

E. Combos used

 

F. Gear

1. Armor choices

2. Socketing

3. Perhaps varies depending on level

4. Reasoning

 

G. Battle Tactics

1. Mobs

2. Boss

 

H. Make it look nice

1. Imho formatting, fonts, sizes, spellchecking are not optional

Explanation: More people will read if it looks 'readable'

 

II. What are some optional elements? (in no certain order)

 

A. Advantages and Disadvantages of build

 

B. Clarifications to common questions (eg. why I took normally weak skill in build?)

 

C. Variants. What may be changed.

 

D. Table of contents

 

E. Hunting grounds

 

F. Compact handy printable cheat sheet of build

 

III. What makes a guide enjoyable to read?

 

see Myles guide, this hasn't changed since Sacred 1. http://darkmatters.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=4849

 

 

IV. How do you attach the cool links to the wiki with the graphics for the part of the wiki. Example a combat art name with the Ascaron graphics..

 

Type in the word exactly as it is in the wiki. You'll have to experiment with which things are linked. Examples: 'strength', 'skeletal fortification', 'exhalted warrior focus' (but not just exalted warrior iirc), 'combat discipline', and 'Denderan's Battle Plans' (think thats spelled right).. It has to be exactly as in the wiki. Now your in the reply text and you go up to the toolbar insert special item. If you go to 'icon' it puts a graphic. Another tactic is to go to 'sacred 2 wiki' in the same toolbar. That will put the more compact link to the wiki. ie its not a graphic but just a link.

 

V. Inserting a Screenshot

 

A. Taking a screen shot

 

Hit the print screen button. On mac keyboard that is F14.

 

B. Finding the folder containing the screen shot

 

For most windows users (xp) it will be My pictures/Ascaron/sacred 2...

note: if you use another operating system than windows xp could you please contribute and bump the thread with the information. I will then update the main post.

 

C. Reading and Converting .tga files

 

You can download a program called Irfanview. google 'Irfanview download' (no apostrophes) and look for a link to a download. The free version should satisfy the needs of a photo. I recommend making it your default program for photos at least. To convert the file to a jpg, which we need to go to photobucket, you should open it in irfanview and under file save it as...pick .jpg. You may also edit in tga which is a high graphic quality.

 

D. Creating a Photobucket account

 

google photobucket and follow the steps. Simple. Theres other programs but you are on you own for these steps if you want to go your own way. Dare you?

 

E. Uploading to Photobucket

 

Theres big upload button. Shouldn't be hard to figure out. Browse your pictures (see B. above).

 

F. Getting the code to place in your reply window to get the photo into Dark Matters posts

 

The picture should appear in an album. Open the album if you need to I'm not sure the default. Then click share on the picture. It will give some options like face book blah blah. Go to the tab something like 'get codes' (try all four tabs if its hard to find). The link to the code is the one with IMG. You can make it a thumbnail, but a big picture is probably better. Unless your putting tons that are kind of optional views. Cut and paste, its kind of hard to get it to scroll left and right but it is possible. There now its in your post. Test it out. You can always edit your post. Unless you like 'pristine' posts with no 'edited' footer haha!

 

VI. Inserting a Video

 

Examples of software for recording videos include WeGame, xfire, and fraps. The process of uploading and taking a link code should be similar to pictures. I don't know the exact details as due to my previous installation of steam none of those worked for me! If you know how it works and would like to contribute to this post please explain how you did your video.

 

================================================================================

 

 

Any other ideas ladies and gents? Oh by the way the reason I am doing this is I wanted to know all these things for writing (better) guides and I thought it would make a great sticky....

Edited November 10, 2010 by claudius

[essjayehm 58]

I. What is advised to go in each guide (not mandatory as this thread is not the soup nazi of guides)?

Attribute distribution; Skills, with at least mastery order if not complete distributions for certain levels; Combat Art modifications, with order; "necessary" equipment, if the build is gear-dependent.

 

II. What are some optional elements?

Pictures and/or videos. Combos. Playstyle (ie run&gun, tank, yadayada).

 

III. What makes a guide enjoyable to read?

Humour. Pictures of stats/overviews.

 

IV. How do you attach the cool links to the wiki with the graphics for the part of the wiki. Example a combat art name with the Ascaron graphics..

Insert Special Item drop-down at the top of the GUI. Highlight the term ie Dedicated Blow, then use the drop-down menu and select "Icon".

Dedicated Blow is the end result

 

V. How do you include a photo (I'll write this up unless someone else has some thoughts on this topic as its kind of tedious... I think most people know this but I didn't for awhile)

Sorry, IDK.

 

VI. How do you make a video and embed it in the guide?

Same, IDK 8(

 

Any other ideas ladies and gents? Oh by the way the reason I am doing this is I wanted to know all these things for writing (better) guides and I thought it would make a great sticky....

 

Yeah, I don't think I've seen anything like this around... good idea, Claudius!

Edited November 1, 2010 by essjayehm

[cider_steve 26]

Great idea for a thread.

[gogoblender 3,071]

Hey guys

 

Claudius, I saw this post go up a while back, and I bumped the other topic we had on guide making in the original Underworld Forum. It's actually a sticky there, and I will move it over to this new Sacred 2 Guides section so that others can look at different peeps' views of what could be a good guide.

 

http://darkmatters.org/forums/index.php?sh...p;#entry6907533

 

When you are finished with your work, I can then merge it with the first collection of Guide to guides so that this way peeps here on the forum will have a more tecnically detailed way of putting one together.

 

 

gogo

[claudius 104]

Sounds good gogo. I'm going to leave the thread up until next Monday the 8th and then I'll start filling in the blanks. We still need someone who knows how to make a video and embed it in a thread on the forum. We also need other view points on those roman numerals and if there is a new idea for a section to include that would be great!

 

I saw the sacred 1 thread it has a lot of what I wanted just update to Sacred 2 and a couple of "how to's" for the computer technical impaired (like me).

 

Thanks essjay great ideas/information

 

Skeletal Fortification

 

testing

 

Skeletal Fortification

Edited November 1, 2010 by claudius

[Dragon Brother 619]

Pics and videos, you need to upload to sites like youtube and photobucket and then link to them using the following tags:

Pictures:
[img= ]

Videos:
[youtubehd]"code after = in youtube link"[/youtubehd]

 

For both things you will need an account to upload media to.

[claudius 104]

Can you recommend any good software (available/free/effective) for taking the videos? It makes sense what you say about photobucket, I am familiar with that. Thanks!

[Dragon Brother 619]

Xfire seems to work well for taking the videos which can be opened in Windows Movie Maker (free install from microsoft) and edited for titles/background music/credits and other effects. Screenshots are saved as .tga types which photobucket doesnt take so they need to be converted first...GIMP or irfanview or any free image editor that can open/save .tga to other types will help you overcome this.

[claudius 104]

Updated the first post with some information to fill in. Let me know what you think.... not done yet but dinner is ready

[claudius 104]

Dragon Brother,

 

I have x-fire and I am pressing scroll lock + V which on a mac keyboard is F15 + V. I have videos enabled.. It doesn't record a video in x-fire. Am I missing a step?

[Dragon Brother 619]

Is x-fire recognising your install of Sacred 2? Do you get the little popup when you run the game saying x-fire ingame is enabled? Can you bring up the x-fire ingame toolbar?

[claudius 104]

No its not my steam version (US) is screwing things up. I actually click on the steam icon and it takes me to sacred gold. So I deleted both versions and am reinstalling.... bah!

[claudius 104]

I'm never installing anything by steam again. I am unable to remove steam from my computer. Even uninstalling steam version and UK version and reinstalling the UK.....still the xfire does not recognize the game because the directory with the exe file is in steam for some reason.

 

So no videos for claudius. Maybe someone else can write that section (I hope).

[claudius 104]

Any editing or feedback. I wonder if Dragon Brother if he has time can put an explanation thats pretty cookbook aside from common knowledge that someone who managed to install sacred would know.....if you could explain the video. I had US steam installed before UK gold digital download. I can't get xfire to recognize my game because I cannot find an .exe file for sacred. I have no idea but fortunately my shortcut works phew! But no videos for claudius Something I can cut and paste into the reply edit window.

 

I also welcome new ideas, additions, Corrections, and edits....etc..

[Dragon Brother 619]

Any editing or feedback. I wonder if Dragon Brother if he has time can put an explanation thats pretty cookbook aside from common knowledge that someone who managed to install sacred would know.....if you could explain the video. I had US steam installed before UK gold digital download. I can't get xfire to recognize my game because I cannot find an .exe file for sacred. I have no idea but fortunately my shortcut works phew! But no videos for claudius Something I can cut and paste into the reply edit window.

 

I also welcome new ideas, additions, Corrections, and edits....etc..

You could try using something like WeGame or Fraps. I believe for fraps you have to pay to unlock the full capabilities of the program. WeGame I just found on google, dont know much about it but it looks nice

 

If you right click on your shortcut for sacred 2 and select properties then under target it should tell you the location of your sacred 2.exe file.

[claudius 104]

Thanks DB for trying to lend a hand. I would love to take the video. Unfortunately the weBe will take a video but it always crashes when I open the documents folder for the videos though I can see my tests are inside

 

Additionally xfire even when I put the exe in gets the steam stuff mixed in. I think steam dug their claws deep into my computer and ripped its capability to interact with other software. At least in this case.

 

I think I'm just going to post it when gogo gives the ok and we'll see later if anyone will put a video guide in. I could just give suggestions for programs and your tips on photobucket. I think once someone goes through the steps of photos they will have learned a bit. And I shouldn't not have a video section just because 20-40% of the readership can't execute the instructions after all a majority can still benefit.

[gogoblender 3,071]

I should have done this earlier, my apologies Claudius. I've added a link to this guide on the sticky that's in this section so that more readers can get to your guide quicker.

 

http://darkmatters.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=4849&pid=6924236&st=0entry6924236

 

 

gogo