| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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Ok, so i have been told by a few people now that my old guide was very hard to read and understand. as such i have rewritten it to try and simplify things in the hope more people will want to upload some items.
The process to add a new item to the database is actually very fast. once you know what you are doing you can add a new item in less than 30 seconds. its really that simple.
BEFORE YOU START - Always make sure that you have pressed the add new item tab and that all fields are blank. if you do not press this button then you will overwrite the item you have just added!
First of all we need a screenshot of the item. before you take your first screenshot make sure that you have checked your EQ2 settings. The default for screenshots is 75% quality, please turn this up to 100% before you begin. you can make screenshots by looking at the item in game and pressing the "print screen" button on your keyboard. screenshots are stored in the "Screenshots" folder under your EQ2 directory on your hard drive.
Open the screenshot in a graphics program. At home i tend to use Photoshop CS2 as it almost does everything for you, however it is not essential, i actually use Paint when i am at work.
You do not need to shrink or increace any sizes. As long as you dont use a UI mod that alters item sizes then the size that items appear in any EQ2 screenshot is exactly what we want. All we need to do is crop the picture.
In paint this can be done easily by using the select tool to highlight round the edges of the item (not including any border or title bar) and then moving the selected area to the top left corner of the window. You can then click and drag the bottom right corner of the work area up to the exact size of the item.
Save the item you have edited as a .jpg and the screenshot is ready. just as some aditional guidance below are some examples of what we do and what we dont want for screenshots
we DO NOT want...
nasty colourful image backgrounds. black or dark blue as per standard ui only please
 X
red item text, make sure you can use the item and that it is white.
 X
Badly cut out screens, make sure you remove the borders and trim neatly to the bottom background.
 X
While maxing str and int to get the best possible stats or proc's on an item is prefered, cancel any proc increace and recast reduction spells you may have such as luck of the dirge before taking a screenshot.
 X
Here is an example of what we DO want
Cleanly cut out, correct background, white text item. perfect!
Now make your way to the "Items Database" link on the lft of the screen. Press the "Add new Items" tab. The form that opens can look a little daunting to begin with as there are a lot of text fields, checkboxes and options to look at, however it's actually a fairly straightforward process.
The first section of the form entitled "General Details" requires the item name (exactly as it is spelt/punctuated on the screenshot), level, rarity and an optional description of the item. It is fairly straight forward to input these. at present we are not using the optional descriptions, but may do at a later date.
Next up is the "Image" box. use the Browse button to find the image that you have cut out ready.
Next is the Xanadu logo box, this should be ok left as its default location, however if it is overlapping information on the picture then you can always go back to this box once the item is uploaded and reposition by changing the coordinates in the boxes (as long as the item has not been aproved, if it has an admin will do this for you), just remember to try and keep the logo at the top right of the item, just below the picture.
We can now move on to checking relevant boxes below so that the item appears in the correct categories and locations within the database. This is probably the most daunting section from an initial glance, however it is pretty straightforward to use.
for example lets use the item that was correctly cut out
We know this item dropped from Adkar Vyx in the Protector's realm, so in the targets box scroll down to find Rise of Kunark, then Rise of Kunark Instances, The Protector's Realm and finally Adkar Vyx. next to his name is a check box, put a tick in this and this entire section is done.
Next is Classes. we can see it can be used by any class, so put a tick in every class's box.
Under Item type we put a tick next to Jewelry.
And finally under Slots we check the box marked Ear.
the adornments section is left with no ticks of course as this isnt an adornment! this is only used instead of the targets box when uploading adornments to the database.
Finally once all this information has been filled in and we have checked to make sure we didn't miss anything we can save, or if you have the access rights save and approve the item. The difference between the 2 options are simply that save will place the item in a Queue for one of the database admins (Funguy, Lardy, Xanoth, Alkandr and Amnepoh) to approve for public display, whereas save and approve will put the item straight in to the database as viewable. Only Admins have access to the Save and Aprove button.
And thats it, you are done and ready to upload the next item!
[ Last modified by Lardy 2007-12-11 13:40 (Full Log)]
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Aion - Slacka 50 Chanter - Spotter 34 Ranger - Kaos 30 Gladiator
EQ2 - Slacka 80 Dirge - Koofi 80 Fury - Khaos 80 Necromancer - Overdrive 80 Brigand - Lardy 75 Guardian
PS3 - Lardy - Steam - Lardy |
| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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Ummm .. first image is fine? 
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| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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Thats what I thought when having a quick look at it, but its on a redish background and not on the standard UI like the text above requests 
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| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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all images above also aren't max qualty jpg's as thy have a pixilated fuzz to them 
Fuzz no Fuzz  
[ Modified by Xanoth 2007-11-28 15:21 ]
_____Xanadu.EQ2.Runnyeye_____
Co-Leader and Raid Leader
Xanoth 90 Shadowknight 250AA
Steam: Xanoth |
| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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all images above also aren't max qualty jpg's as thy have a pixilated fuzz to them |
Is it just me? or the weed? or does the fuzz look better?
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| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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It's profits stupid patter, i've removed profit's examin xml file
_____Xanadu.EQ2.Runnyeye_____
Co-Leader and Raid Leader
Xanoth 90 Shadowknight 250AA
Steam: Xanoth |
| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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yup, i prefer the fuzz too tbh. the Profit font is horrible.
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Aion - Slacka 50 Chanter - Spotter 34 Ranger - Kaos 30 Gladiator
EQ2 - Slacka 80 Dirge - Koofi 80 Fury - Khaos 80 Necromancer - Overdrive 80 Brigand - Lardy 75 Guardian
PS3 - Lardy - Steam - Lardy |
| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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You can seriously see a difference there FunGuy?
RGB is 15/10/10 on the one marked with an X and 10/10/20 (on the okay one .. that is practically the same. Had to use theGimp to be convinced that there is a difference, but even if I put both images next to each other I can't see the difference on any of my monitors...
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| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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get a better monitor 
one very clearly is tinted red, the other blue.
_____Xanadu.EQ2.Runnyeye_____
Co-Leader and Raid Leader
Xanoth 90 Shadowknight 250AA
Steam: Xanoth |
| Subject: The NEW Loot Database |
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Indeed 
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| de|mboard system |
Lardy