Image Designer Archive
Thread: Poll: What is Image Design?
Brief comments are invited, I want to get more of a feel for what you guys think. As I've said before, now and then opportunities might come up for me to lobby for an ID perk that might not have to do with what we currently do 
Do you see Image Design as:
1/ Something that should be limited to face, hair, and body modifications.
2/ A broad definition that could include modifying interiors or objects that a player might view as part of the overall image they portray to others.
As it is now, image design can only mean hair, makeup and the body. A tailor is also needed to complete a person's look. For example, when I only was playing a tailor I would often match a highlight or trim color to the person's eyes. I had no control over what their eye color was, though. It takes an image designer to do that. On the other hand, Eimi was doing some image design on someone last night and he asked whether it would better to have black horns instead of white ones. I told him that white looked better with his outfit. Momoko would have no trouble making an outfit that looks good with black horns, though.
I think I see what you are thinking as far as image and interiors. A few days ago someone ordered a set of robes of honor for the leaders of his guild. There was a lot of debate about what colors they should be. I asked him how his guild hall was decorated because these were ceremonial robes and you want the ceremonies to have a certain look and atmosphere about them. The guild leaders in their fancy ceremonial robes are part of the decoration. He did not understand what I was saying, but yes, interiors and howa person looks in them are also part of image. It is kind of useless to worry about IDing the interiors of buildings until we can actually move furniture up and down without staris, though.
to me, image design is about personal style, more than just make up. its about helping people to visually express what they envision their character to be. i think that definitely includes what a person is wearing, and giving a personal touch to any items that person owns. i probably wouldn't give an ID EXCLUSIVE rights to customization of items that other players make, but i think it definitely falls within the realm of what i envision image designers to do, and i would definitely support giving the ID some broader functionality in the game world.
I think I would be satisfied and happy with saying 1) if we had more content. However, we need more content. I'll see us as 2) if we can't get more content under 1) (but I'd prefer more content in modifications to the avatar over modifications to objects). I have mixed feelings about 2) because I feel that if we focus on modifications to external items, we lose focus on the thing that we really want, and we may never get the design ideas implemented that we have been lobbying for all these months. On the other hand, we may never get what we're lobbying for and we might be better off taking new content where we can get it.
Ultimately, though, I see us as customizing the face and body etc, and I am only in favor of changing external things because at this point ANY new content would be welcome.
That's my take as well.
Syzygy-Gorath wrote:
I have to go with 1. Any modification to a toon itself would fall under the auspices of ID, but not their clothing, housing, furniture, etc. All of these other things are very clearly other professions (tailor, armorsmith, architect, et cetera.)
I like to rephrase my answer,
I think ID should be limited to face, hair, and body modifications andif IDing gets half the stuff on the wish list we be in good shape. And non-toon stuff ONLY if it's based on having a second profession.
More Examples;
- ID/musician = Color instruments
- ID/Dancer = Body & hair glitter
1.
The profession that created the object is the profession with the skills to change the object. A house painter does not paint your car for you. Droid engineers can change a droid Chassis. So only Tailors should change clothing. Again- in the idea of "Schools" where a person learns a profession/trade they only know what is in that profession, not outside of it. Here: I can ride a horse. I can make that horse do barrel races, or sprints, or cross country... but I do not have the knowledge or understanding of that horse to know how to float it's teeth (file them) or clip it's hooves (ferrying) I can have a "Certificate of Horsmanship" that shows I can ride a variety of ways. But I have to attend another school to learn how to be a ferrier for their hooves. And I can't do it WELL until I earn that certificate and have learned how to adjust those hooves to compensate for a variety of leg ailments and to do it without injuring the animal. (even then, who knows.) Just because it's about horses does not mean that I can do it all. Let's worry about getting the hairstyles, skin colors, body markings added to our content before asking for something comepletely off the wall. And let the other professions have what is theirs.
1.
I definitely say 1. If an Image Designer also wants to do clothing or colouring droids or armor, etc.. then he/she should pick up that profession as well. The purpose of an Image Designer is to change how a person looks--not their armor, not their clothing, not their pets. Yes, it would be a neat little add-on. But the people who already have Artisan, Tailor, Droid Engineer, etc.can do these things just find without the help of an ID.
An example of something that has been suggested recently is allowing us to buff via massage.