HanoverFist Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 (edited) Introduction: I'm assuming you're reading this because you want to know how to build an ASCII art/alternate font or your own unique signature, and you're a complete beginner. If you're not, it's possible that you may still learn some new tricks here. This guide can be used for any design , blasters , ships , catch phrases , links, and almost everything you could want to do with a signature, except using actual picture display. There is a catch though you have a four line limit for a signature, and thats just for regular text. It is not indicative at all for the bigger characters such as this guy █████ . Those few blocks take more to compute for the forum server than this sentence does. So it may take a little time to get everything exactly how you want it while making it fit in the allotted space. First tip, Be patient , start simple and work your way up. I like start out by building the signature layout first, and color coding it second. These are built using Alt +number combos or uni-code characters referred to as ASCII art, a better explanation than I can give can be found here. If that looked a little daunting to you don't sweat it, I've placed a few below here that you can copy and paste. There should be a wide number of possible combinations with this group. You can also use regular keys like # //// ((( , and any of the forum smilies can also be used in your signature. There also is a full list of uni code characters linked as well in section 5. of this post that are not shown here. For demonstration purposes we will do a saber ,but remember the techniques are applicable to any signature design. ‖ ‗ ‡ • ‣ ※ ‼ ‽ ⁁ ⁂ ₪ € ℈ ℍ Ω ℧ ℶ ℸ←↑→↓↕↖↗↘↙↚↛↞↟↠ ↡↢↣↤↥↦↧↨↩↪↫↬↭↮↯↰↱↲↳↴↵↶↷↹↺↻↼↽↾↿⇀⇁⇂⇃⇄⇅⇆⇇⇈⇉⇊⇋ ⇌⇍⇎⇏⇐⇑⇒⇓⇔⇕⇖⇗⇘⇙⇚⇛⇜⇝⇞⇟⇠⇡ ⇢⇣⇤⇥⇦⇧⇨⇩⇪∃∅∇∈∉∋∌∎∏ ∐∑−∔∓∕∖∗∘∙∝∞∟∠∡∢∣∤∥∦∩∪∫∬∭∮∯∰∱∲∳∴ ∵ ∶ ∷∸∹∺∻∼∾∿ ≀≁≂≃≄≅≆≇≈≉≊≋≌≍≎≏≐≑≒≓≔≕≖≗≘≙≚≛≜≡≢Ξ≣≪≫≬≭≮≯≰≱≲ ≳≴≵≶≷≸≹≺≻≼≽⊀⊁⊂⊃⊄⊅⊆⊇⊈⊉⊊⊋⊌⊍⊎⊏⊐⊑⊒⊓⊔⊕⊖⊗⊘⊙⊚⊛⊜⊝⊞ ⊟⊠⊡⊢⊣⊤⊥⊦⊧⊨⊩⊪⊫⊬⊭⊮⊯⊰⊱⊲⊳⊴⊵⊶⊷⊸⊹⊺⊻⊼⊽⊾⊿⋂⋃⋄⋅⋆⋇⋈⋉⋊⋋ ⋌⋍⋐⋑⋒⋓⋔⋕⋖⋗⋘⋙⋛⋚⋜⋝⋞⋟⋠⋡⋢⋣⋤⋥⋦⋧⋨⋩⋪⋫⋬⋭⋮⋯⋰⋱⌂⌆⌈⌉⌊⌋ ⌠⌡⌢⌣␣─ │┄┆┈┊┌ ┐└ ┘├ ┤┬ ┴ ┼ ╌╎═║╒╓╔ ╕╖╗╘╙╚ ╛╜╝╞╟╠ ╡ ╢╣╤ ╥ ╦ ╧ ╨ ╩ ╪ ╫ ╬╭ ╮╯╰╱ ╲ ╳ ╴╵╶╷╸╹╺╻╼╽╾╿ ▀▂ ▃ ▄ ▅ ▇ █ ▉ ▊▋▌▍▎▏|▐ ░ ▒ ▓ ▔▕ ■□▢▣▤▥▦▧▨▩▪▫▬▭ ▮▯▰▱▲△▵▴▶▷▸▹►▻▼▽▾▿◀◁◂◃◄◅◆◇◈◉◊○◌◍◎●◑◒◓◔◕◖◗◘ ◙ ◚ ◛ ◜◝◞◟◠◡ ◘ ◊ ◙ ʭ ₦ ◢◣◤◥◦◧◨◩◫◬◭◮☺☻☼♀♂♫♭♮♯ ‗ _ ▬ ‾ ∑ ε э ¢ ç Ç δ þ Þ ≤ ≥ σ § Æ Œ€ ▀ ■ ▄ □Ø Φ Θ ๑ ۩ ۞× ¤ ∞ ● ° ♦ o ○ © ⌂ ∏ Γ ך ¬ ┌ Į ị Ŀ ŀ ∟┘ก ข ฃ ค ฅ ฆ ง จ ฉ ช ซ ฌ ญ ฏ ฐ ฑ ฒ ณ ด ต ถ ท ธ น บ ป ผ ฝ พ ฟ ภ ม ย ร ฤ ล ฦ ว ศ ษ ส ห ฬ อ ฮ ฯ ๏ ๐ ๑ ๒ ๓ ๔ ๕ ๖ ๗ ๘ ๙ ๚ ∆ˇ ˚ ΅ ΄ ♥ ♣ ♠ ♦ ☾ ऄ अ आ इ ई उ ऊ ऋ ऌ ऍ ऎ ए ऐ ऑ ऒ ओ औ क ख ग घ ङ च छ ज झ ञ ट ठ ड ढ ण त थ द ध न ऩ प फ ब भ म य र ऱ ल ळ ऴ व श ष स ह 1. For the hilt. You can do this in notepad or the sig panel. Arrange symbols/characters to your liking. If it looks good to you, that's all that matters. You should end up with something similar to this. █||||||||(•)█Ξ 2. For the blade. I prefer either █ or ▓ , and I like to finish with a ) , your mileage may vary, now you'll have a black and white version of your saber. █||||||(•)█Ξ██████████████████████████████) 3. Color coding your design. If you did design it in notepad, it's time to copy and paste it to your SIG panel located here. The sig panel toolbar can be used to color by highlighting the area to be colored and then selecting font color you desire. Or you can use the manual method below with hexadecimal colors. There is more control over color and appearance with this method so it's the one I use. You will have to place this tag [noparse] at the start of your colored area, and this tag at the end of the last character of the area to be colored, RED can be replaced with any valid BB color or valid hex color that you choose. A full color spectrum generator is linked in section 5. of this post. [/noparse] In this instance we'll color the blade. And we end up with something like this. [noparse]████████████████████████████████████████) Or with Hex coded colors. Note the slightly different syntax. There is a full list in the link at the bottom of the page. ████████████████████████████████████████)[/noparse] Both will yield this result. ████████████████████████████████████████) You will also need to repeat step three along with what ever colors you want for the various pieces of your signature design. For this one we'll color the whole hilt black. It should resemble something like this. [noparse] █||||||||(•)█Ξ████████████████████████████████████████) Or with Hex color. █||||||||(•)█Ξ████████████████████████████████████████) [/noparse] The end result. █||||||||(•)█Ξ████████████████████████████████████████) Start with two colors then work your way up until you run out of room for the 4 line limit. When you're satisfied with the preview and it all fits without error hit save, and there is your new ASCII sig. Keep in mind you can color each individual piece if you desire, but your length can interfere with the 4 line preview limit. They can be posted, but not saved to the sig panel if they are too long. 4. Other commonly used tools Underlining. Underlining is as simple as adding these[noparse] [/noparse] two switches around the area to be underlined. note if you place the[noparse] [/noparse]switch out side of your color switches the underline will remain white, the off switch does not affect this. If you insert it inside the color switch it will be that respective color. Examples below. The hilt from above █||||||||(•)█Ξ Added the underline switch outside , and the result [noparse]█||||||||(•)█Ξ[/noparse] █||||||||(•)█Ξ Added the underline switch inside , and the result [noparse]█||||||||(•)█Ξ[/noparse] █||||||||(•)█Ξ Adding links within the sig. We'll use the hilt from above again and add a link within it. This is done with [noparse] and and then using any URL of your choice, remember , it will always start with http:// .[/noparse] Here is how the code looks. [noparse]█||||||||(•)█Ξ[/noparse] And mouse over it below to see the result. Clicking will take you to whatever url you had entered. Also note that the linked area has a line under it, this can be hidden or colored with the use of the underline switches mentioned above. █||||||||(•)█Ξ Adding spaces This is especially important for most blaster and ship type designs. Since spaces don't work correctly you'll have to use any letter and then color it the same as the forum background. This forums background color is #101A2A or at least thats the closest I've found. Here is how the code looks. [noparse]example of making fake spaces.[/noparse] <<<<Example Highlite the space below or hit ctrl-a to see the example as it appears posted. example of making fake spaces. <<<<Example In closing I highly recommend you read the links below for much additional information about underlines, bold, italics, and linking ect, Additional color charts, and a full unicode character list . This guide and the links below contain all the tools needed to make any signature come alive. 5. Additional links. Full unicode chart, many not listed here Let the whole page load then hold ctrl button and scroll the mouse wheel to make viewing these easier. Standard colors and Fonts. Gradient fade generator. Use generic BBcode output. Full spectrum Hexadecimal color generator. ,Thanks to Wizzles for this link. SWTOR Forum/bbcode the full list 6. User Tips , Samples and Color Guide. I've got to give credit where it's due. This does indeed help, [noparse] and [/noparse] around the entire design if needed. BTW, if you set your size to 1, it should eliminate the color breaks. Worked for me anyways. And a good tip from Wizzles for saving space. When you want to use a color, but it has a long name (like DarkSlateGray), instead go to the hex code generator and pick the appropriate hex code. Replace DarkSlateGray with #433B3B (or whatever the number of your color is), and now you have more space for your actual lightsaber. Note: This only works if the name of the color is more than 7 characters, obviously... Here are some other examples I and others have made with a little extra time. Feel free to copy them if you like, But read about putting the underlines in manually or you won't get the desired result. The marked blaster rifle below was made by Fyurii, you'll need to contact him if you want to use his. But I do recommend building your own. ═════────────────────────── ──────────────────────══════ i¯i▀▀▀▀▀i¯i‾°δ‾‾Pך ¶█╬╬╬╬╬╬╣°¯°█|{ ị▔ịị◚◚◚◚◚ịị▔ịị≣ ∑ị▔ị▔▔▔▔ị[‾희 o█||||||(•)||█Ξ[\ ____▄▄▄Ç▄___ç █_______/_/_/_/█ΞΞΞΞΞΞΞΞΞÞ ═══ /__/═╝ ▀▀▀▀▀ The blaster below made by ReiFlexx ..._________Œ∏[◇۞]⋑_______¶ ..║▓▓▓▓▓╣╣╣╧╧╧╬╬ị°‼▤▤▤▰]⊟⊟⊟ ◙◙◙◙◙◙◙◙◙◙◙◙[█] -⇝⋘₦₦▻ ..‼▓▓╱▔▔▔▔/▓/╌╯‾‾‾‾|▒▒▒╱▔▔ /≎\ ../▓/....................................... ≓/.....\≒ The blaster below was made by Fyurii ________║≤o≥║___________ /__________________≡≡≡≡≡≡≡╡ \_/‾‾‾‾ // ╝‾‾╚▄▄▄▄▄/‾‾‾‾‾ If you would like a signature made for you, you can request it from Darth Skychanger in this thread. That link also contains many pre-made ones for you to copy and paste if you would like. 7. Author's request . If you've used this guide and found it helpful to make your signature, whether it's a saber or any other you have made, please post it here. This serves two purposes , one you get to show off your shiny new signature , and two it helps keep this post bumped for others to use and find more easily. Thank you. Edited March 11, 2013 by HanoverFist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoverFist Posted December 13, 2011 Author Share Posted December 13, 2011 Reserved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoverFist Posted December 13, 2011 Author Share Posted December 13, 2011 This is a repost of my original thread, hope it's helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Althire Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Loved the post and have made many sigs from it here they are. Double bladed Lightsaber Green (██████████████|█°¯°╬╬╬TcT╬╬╬°¯°█|██████████████) Double bladed Lightsaber Blue (██████████████|█°¯°╬╬╬TcT╬╬╬°¯°█|██████████████) Single Lightsaber Green ¶█╬╬╬╬╬╬╬╣°¯°█|█████████████████TcT█████████████████) Single Lightsaber Blue ¶█╬╬╬╬╬╬╬╣°¯°█|█████████████████TcT█████████████████) Blaster pistol ____▄▄▄Ç▄___ç █_______/_/_/_/█ΞΞΞΞΞΞΞÞ==TcT== /__/═╝ ▀▀▀▀▀ Blaster rifle ________║TcT║___________ /__________________≡≡≡≡≡≡≡╡------------- \_/‾‾‾‾ // ╝‾‾╚▄▄▄▄▄/‾‾‾‾‾ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokedalmond Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Thanks for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoverFist Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 Glad to be of service guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swtorjkcbr Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 (edited) OMG I wish I found this thread earlier. Lots of great easy to follow instructions. Edited January 25, 2012 by swtorjkcbr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swtorjkcbr Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Since I am leaving the game today I just wanted to bump this thread and contribute the code for my signature. Feel free to use it [noparse]Fun-o-meter ▲ ██ ị ██████████████████████████████ ★[/noparse] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reject-Code Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Excellent guide! Good work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_The_Pro Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 Thanks for the great guide. Just made this using it: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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