More SVG Cards, Accessible Deck of Cards?

[Alan Horkan <horkana maths tcd ie>]

[change topic from Handhelds to new cards sets but still part of the same
thread]

On Thu, 7 Apr 2005, David Bellot wrote:

> Date: Thu, 07 Apr 2005 19:11:04 -0700
> From: David Bellot <david bellot gmail com>
> To: Alan Horkan <horkana maths tcd ie>
> Subject: Re: Handheld Gnome Games
>
>
> >Maybe an a call for help to the Inkscape/OpenClipart.org projects would be
> >a good idea?  Unless of course you have in mind to add a whole lot more
> >infrastructure first .

> I'm working on a new version of SVG cards (the first has been included
> in gnome-games-extra).

Presumably that was after Gnome 2.10 because I think I installed the
extras but I'm not seeing any other cards.

> This new version has been made with computer's
> screens in mind and it is definitively lighter than the first version
> (<900kb as the first version was >4.4Mb and I hope to finish it with
> less than 500Kb).

With careful use of SVG clones or defs and using SVG text instead of
converting to curves I imagine you could get a very small file even with
using SVGZ.

> But I have no experience with small screen. Even my Sony Clie has a
> 240x640 (yes 640 not 320) screen's resolution.

Dont quote me out of context but that is suprisingly long.

> Do you have particular things in mind :

> - number of colors,

My preference in this case would be to use only 3 colours, white, black
and red.

> - max resolution,

I'm hoping for cards that will work at really small sizes, and in my minds
eye I expect them to be just as usable on a cinema display although
they would look fairly plain by necessity.

> - size and complexity...

I looked around and found some pics of mini size or high resolution decks
of cards and although I dont think the artwork is brilliant the first two
pictures (different decks) do give you a pretty good idea of how one might
design a deck to work on a very small display.

http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~horkana/playing-cards/

It is ridiculously simplistic but I do like how this deck looks and it is
probably about as good as a deck can look with those kinds of proportions
http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~horkana/playing-cards/1602.jpg

> - anything else ?

To go a little offtopic for moment, if you were to put together a set of
template cards with blank image placeholders in the middle I can think of
people making their own custom card sets.  Although someone recently
pointed out Barbie Linux Distribution (serioulsly) I'm suprised no one has
rebranded GPL software and sold it with custom artwork.  I mean you can
get all kinds of board games branded with Star Wars, and I've seen branded
flash games put together as high end advertising so I think it is almost
an inevitability that someone will do the same with open source software
and games are likely to be an early target.  I have been able to see it
coming for a few years now, if only I had a business plan and franchising
rights or a movie tie in.

Sincerely

Alan Horkan

Inkscape http://inkscape.org
Abiword http://www.abisource.com
Dia http://gnome.org/projects/dia/
Open Clip Art http://OpenClipArt.org

Alan's Diary http://advogato.org/person/AlanHorkan/