L4D2 Center HUD fix

[Delphium]

Ok, so we know its not the mod causing the issue then, and the mod does not write any changes to the registry.

Im unsure what resolution your running, however I shall hazzard a guess that your using 5040x1050?
I dont own a Matrox TH2G, soI am unfamilure with any of the settings required for it, however 1 thing you could try, is to add " -w 5040 -h 1050 " to the end of the l4d2 shortcut.

[MaxDarklighter]

I can't believe that! Yes I'll I need is to add my res to shortcut and that's it! :rockout
I really whant to know why I need to do it because I play L4D for 51 hours with no -w 5040 -h 1050 and all was OK! But I glad that I can play again in 5050x1050!!! :cheers

[MaxDarklighter]

Hmm... just now I am using this fix and have one issue. My icon is under Trener icon in lower left corner :D

[Delphium]

Can you take a screenshot?

[MaxDarklighter]

Here it is:
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/4062/graphic150.jpg

[Delphium]

hmmm, looks like HUDPlayerStats? is not updating, which mod pack did you use, so as i may check it out?
EDIT: - are you also really running a resolution of 10,500px × 2,218px ?? If so, what is the monitor configuration? 5or6x2 ?, this could be the problem, being that there may not be a mod pack for that setup yet.


EDIT: - I have now finished building my HUD editor (in my sig) that automaticly centeres a number of HUD items back onto the cnetral monitor, you may like to give this a try to resolve your problems.

[Delphium]

Here are some more complete step by step instructions on how to setup the HUD for L4D2.

1) Install:
a) GCFScape from http://nemesis.thewavelength.net/index.php?p=25

2) Extract Files:
a) Locate the file “SteamSteamAppscommonleft 4 dead 2left4dead2pak01_dir.vpk” and open it with GCFScape.

b) In GCFScape, navigate to the folder “rootscripts” and then extract “hudlayout.res” to “c:tmphudsl4d2scriptshudlayout.res”

c) Next, in GCFScape, navigate to “rootresourceui” and then extract “basechat.res” and “scoreboard.res” to “c:tmphudsl4d2resourceuibasechat.res” and “c:tmphudsl4d2resourceuiscoreboard.res”

EDIT:-
Alternatively you can use the .bat file I have made to automate the extraction of the .res files.
Download hllib230-001.zip.

This works by using the command line version of GCFScape called HLExtract, together with a .bat file this can automate the extration of files.
To use, simply download hllib230-001.zip and extract the contents to "c:hllib230", once extracted, open up l4d2.bat and edit the location of your steam games directory.
Save your changes, then run the automated extraction by typing l4d2.bat at the command line or simply double click on l4d2.bat.
This will dump all extracted files into "c:temphudsl4d2*"


/EDIT


3) Edit Files:
a) To edit these files for realignment back onto the central monitor, go to the HUD editor and fill in the details for the required fields (optional fields can be ignored).
Once the details have been entered, you can upload each of the .res files from “c:tmphudsl4d2*” to the editor.

b) You will be presented with a form which displays a list of items inside the .res file that can be modified by the editor, either select a profile for the game and file you are using form the menu at the top, or alternatively you may manually select which items you wish to modify.




c)When you are happy with the selected items that you wish to modify, click “submit for editing” to take you to the output page, where you can compare and download the edited file.




4) Apply Files:
a) When saving the edited files you will need to make sure to download them to the correct relevant location in the games folder.
Examples:
“SteamSteamAppscommonleft 4 dead 2left4dead2scriptshudlayout.res”
“SteamSteamAppscommonleft 4 dead 2left4dead2resourceuibasechat.res”
“SteamSteamAppscommonleft 4 dead 2left4dead2resourceuiscoreboard.res”

b) Last but not least, for these edited files to work you will need to either replace the file “SteamSteamAppscommonleft 4 dead 2left4dead2pak01_dir.vpk” with a pre patched one found here.
OR you will need to open it in a HEX editor, search for this string “hudlayout” and change it to “mudlayout”, save the .vpk and then you should be done.

[SEI]

can someone help me? im new to this and when i use the fov calc it is centered but not right. the sides go past the bezel and is partly blocked.

im running at 5292x1050 what do i put under bezel compensation on the fov calc? under New Resolution or Ratio do i put 5292x1050? thanks for the help!

[bowser koopa]

Wow, I just came across this thread while looking for a way to disable FOV on a computer with surround/3 monitors for L4D2. I'm glad I did! I've been wanting to center the HUD for the longest time (though I've gotten used to the way it was before with the life bars being on the far left and far right hand corners of the screen).

I have to say, first of all, THANK YOU for making this fix! Scripting and code are things that are way over my head, so for people to take the time out of their schedules to fix things like this for the community means a lot to people like me. I never would have been able to do this on my own.

I do have one question though, is there a way to get the chat box and displayed chat text centered on the screen? That's the last piece of the HUD that needs to be moved. I was just curious if you knew a way to get that centered? I may investigate the .res files and see what I can find, but I'm a little scared to mess with it too much for fear of breaking stuff left and right.

Also, getting back to the original reason I found this thread (this is unrelated), do you know if there's a way to totally disable FOV in L4D2? I love the fact that I can play Valve games with 3 monitors (@ 5040x1050), but they all seem to have relatively obnoxious FOVs. So, if I see characters like Ellis on my left screen, they appear to be REAL close to me. When I center Ellis on my middle screen, he's actually a good 100-200 feet away from me. Know what I mean? Everything just looks stretched on my side monitors.

I've gotten used to that, but I thought I'd ask. I've seen your FOV calculator, and I think I've tried it in the past, but I'd rather just disable FOV all together so that the CG characters appear at the same distance on all screens.

Great work on the scripts so far though. I'm VERY appreciative!! :cheers

[Delphium]

can someone help me? im new to this and when i use the fov calc it is centered but not right. the sides go past the bezel and is partly blocked.

im running at 5292x1050 what do i put under bezel compensation on the fov calc? under New Resolution or Ratio do i put 5292x1050? thanks for the help!

So if you where running 5040x1050, then ...
5292-5040 = 252
252/2 = 126 per bezel :)

So put 5040x1050 into the new resolution, then use 126 for the bezel compentation input field.
Give that a go and let us know :)

Hey there Delphium! I tried posting this to the forums, but it's not showing up. Thought I'd PM you just in case! Keep up the awesome work!

Thank you, I appreciate your kind comments. :)

I have to say, first of all, THANK YOU for making this fix! Scripting and code are things that are way over my head, so for people to take the time out of their schedules to fix things like this for the community means a lot to people like me. I never would have been able to do this on my own.

Would you beleive that in 2009 I only knew very very little in scripting and programing, it was in January of 2010 that I was so determined to make a fix for the community, that I spent 6months of my time learning how to code, with the main aim of producing an easy to use fix, which could be customized and future proofed when Valve release updates to the huds.

Of cause this has given me the ability to lead onto other things, but the motivation to learn was this fix!!

I do have one question though, is there a way to get the chat box and displayed chat text centered on the screen? That's the last piece of the HUD that needs to be moved. I was just curious if you knew a way to get that centered? I may investigate the .res files and see what I can find, but I'm a little scared to mess with it too much for fear of breaking stuff left and right.

Yes! :)
basechat.res and you need to HEX edit the pak01_dir.vpk file, you need to search for the string basechat.res?
and change the name to something like masechat.res for example.

Unfortunately my mobo died this week, so I have no PC at home with l4d2 installed to double check.

As my pc is not wokring, if you wanted to send me your pak file I dont mind HEX editing it for you.

Also, getting back to the original reason I found this thread (this is unrelated), do you know if there's a way to totally disable FOV in L4D2? I love the fact that I can play Valve games with 3 monitors (@ 5040x1050), but they all seem to have relatively obnoxious FOVs. So, if I see characters like Ellis on my left screen, they appear to be REAL close to me. When I center Ellis on my middle screen, he's actually a good 100-200 feet away from me. Know what I mean? Everything just looks stretched on my side monitors.

Yes... bring the in game console up and type in "fov 200" (wider, more fisheye) or "fov 100"(not as wide, but less fisheye effect) or of cause use what ever value works best for you. :)
Note that you may still get some form of "fisheye" as its called, I dont think you can completely get rid of it.

[GeneralAdmission]

but I'd rather just disable FOV all together so that the CG characters appear at the same distance on all screens.

One point of elaboration...it is not possible to disable field of view like other features that can just be turned on/off. The 3D space of a gameworld must present some field of view to the camera for you to see anything at all; without it, your screen would be blank. Tweaking the FOV value higher/lower can help some, depending on the engine, but it can also lead to other problems like clipping, non-rendered space at the edges of your screen, or even image stretching.

The fisheye effect is something that affects the vast majority of 3D games, regardless of how much FOV you are seeing. Take a look at the video HERE.

Bottom line for multi-mon displays is that the side screens aren't good for direct visual attention. The peripheral view they offer, though, is a great enhancement for 'being in' the gameworld.

Also,
:welcome

[bowser koopa]

Thanks for all the feedback so far, guys! Sucks that I can't disable the fisheye effect, but like General Admission stated, it would basically be pointless to do that, since you'd get all sorts of problems with rendering, etc.

Yes! :)
basechat.res and you need to HEX edit the pak01_dir.vpk file, you need to search for the string basechat.res?
and change the name to something like masechat.res for example.

Unfortunately my mobo died this week, so I have no PC at home with l4d2 installed to double check.

As my pc is not wokring, if you wanted to send me your pak file I dont mind HEX editing it for you.

Yeah, I tried downloading a hex editor and taking a crack at the .res file. Man, I had nooooo idea what I was looking for! It looks like a jumbled mess to me. I tried editing the basechat.res file myself (without the hex editor adjustments), that didn't seem to do anything. I figured it wouldn't, but...why not try it, right? I'll rar up the three files (hudlayout.res, basechat.res, and scoreboard.res) just in case you need any of the others. I'll also throw in the pak01_dir.vpk file to be safe.

I thought there was a way to attach files through the forums, but I couldn't find a way. Instead, I uploaded the rar to my website. Here ya go: http://www.bmoussavi.com/L4D2/L4D2_hud.rar

Thanks in advance for the help!

Oh, and thanks for the warm welcome, General. :cheers

[Delphium]

Download the fixed pak01_dir.vpk file from here http://www.filedropper.com/pak01dir
This fixes hudlayout.res, basechat.res and scoreboard.res
I will host this on my own server when i'm back online, but use filedropper for now.

As for the 3 .res files, they look unedited for multi mon, I recommend you run them though my calc and editor.

[bowser koopa]

Download the fixed pak01_dir.vpk file from here http://www.filedropper.com/pak01dir
This fixes hudlayout.res, basechat.res and scoreboard.res
I will host this on my own server when i'm back online, but use filedropper for now.

As for the 3 .res files, they look unedited for multi mon, I recommend you run them though my calc and editor.

Hmm...strange, I thought I sent the modified files to you. I went ahead and re-modified the three .res files through your HUD editor, took those edited files and placed them in their appropriate folder locations/paths. I'm not sure if there's something more I need to do on my end (like you alluded to, opening a file, the .vpk I believe, with a HEX editor and changing a setting there). Regardless, I re-edited the .res files, applied your tweaked .vpk from filedropper. All the HUD looks perfect and centered, as before, but the chat box and dialogue still appears on my far right monitor. Am I doing something wrong? I assume since your mobo is currently on the fritz, you didn't have a chance to do any HEX editing for me. :) No worries though, take your time. There's no major rush. I'm just glad the rest of the hud is nice and centered!

If there's anything else a noob like me can do on my end, just say the word. Well, anything but HEX editing. I'm completely lost there!

[Delphium]

This...

applied your tweaked .vpk from filedropper.

WAS this HEX edit. So I did get round to it :)

I assume since your mobo is currently on the fritz, you didn't have a chance to do any HEX editing for me. :)

If that did not work, then I will have to wait for a pc fix.

[RED-FROG]

Oh my god... can't Valve fix this themselves? Should be a snap to do this.

[GeneralAdmission]

Oh my god... can't Valve fix this themselves? Should be a snap to do this.

I conducted an extended email conversation with Valve on that very point. After repeatedly not understanding my questions, their ultimate answer was "sorry, we can't help with that. Try to find some assistance on the forums." :? :roll: Wish I had a channel to the actual developers rather than customer support....

[CY:G]

So i applied the fix and it works fine but is there a fix for the Crosshair, its huge and its affecting my performance in the game as the crosshair doesnt meet in the middle...

Any solutions?

THanks

[Delphium]

Give this a try...

As for the Crosshair try out
cl_crosshair_thickness 1 (def: 2)
cl_crosshair_dynamic 0 (def: 1)
in surround to see if that makes it any better.

Source

[CY:G]

Give this a try...

[quote]As for the Crosshair try out
cl_crosshair_thickness 1 (def: 2)
cl_crosshair_dynamic 0 (def: 1)
in surround to see if that makes it any better.

Source

That helps a little, it is still way bigger than the crosshair in single screen but it will do.

BTW thank you so much for your work on the HUD editors :D, you are awesome