Theory

The problem with the usual replacement bitmaps you can find on VGA Planets websites, no matter how beautiful they are, is distortion. This is because quite logically most bitmaps currently available on the net are based on the size of Tim's original bitmaps, which are in the case of starships somewhere around 115*97 pixels.

When using Winplan full screen the pictures are ofcourse much larger, and more importantly the height/width ratio changes considerably. And Winplan does not do a great job at resizing pictures. However, when you use pictures that already have the proper size for Winplan at fullscreen, they stay perfectly clear. To cut a long story somewhat short: it's a matter of finding some nice pictures out there on the web and then resizing them with a graphics program that was designed to do this kind of stuff, like Paint Shop or Photoshop. So for those of you who'd like to make their own pictures, here are the sizes to go for:

Some pictures are always the same size, no matter which resolution you use or how you use Winplan:

• Message-pictures are always displayed in 105*97 pixels.
• Planetary structures (factories, mines and defenseposts) are always 113*97.
• Natives on the planet should also be 105*97. Larger is possible, but causes the picture to overlap the text.
• Starbase fighters can have a maximum size of 160*110 pixels.

All other pictures depend on your screenresolution and the way you use Winplan. Below a table with sizes for the different options. All sizes are measured with the Windows task bar hidden ('autohide' option enabled). With the taskbar in your screen, the pictures are smaller.