Greetings!  My name is Vice Admiral Iluvar, commanding officer of the USS Pandora and the Eighth "Horizon" Fleet's Task Force 22 "Pathfinders".  I would like to begin by thanking Kikmequik for his work in designing the 25th century uniforms and ranks which he has graciously made available for use by others in the greater simming community.

For those of you interested in making use of these uniforms and ranks with NOVA-based simulations, you will need to make a few modifications before uploading the files to your server.  This guide will help walk you through the process which will allow you to make the most of this new rank set.

Part I:  Obtaining the Rank Images

Obviously you will have to begin by obtaining the rank images designed by Kikmequik, which are available on the Kuro-RPG website.  These will need to be downloaded to your computer before you will be able to proceed with this tutorial.

Step 1:  Create a folder on your computer for your ranks and name it "kikmequik"
Step 2:  Download Kikmequik's rank set from the Kuro-RPG website
Step 3:  Open the folder containing your downloaded ranks and check to be sure all files are accounted for

Part II:  Proper Naming of Division Rank Files

If you haven't ever tried working with the rank catalogue on your simulation's website before, you will quickly realize NOVA-based operating systems are very specific about how files are named when it comes to rank images.  The basic DS9 Rank Set which comes default with NOVA operates on the following naming scheme:
	
Command, Flight Control, Strategic Ops 	(Red)			"r-o6.png"
Sec/Tac, Operations, Engineering		(Gold)			"y-o6.png"
Science, Medical, Counseling			(Teal)			"t-o6.png"
Intelligence					(Grey)			"s-o6.png"
Starfighters					(Blue)			"c-o6.png"
Marines					(Green)		"g-o6.png"
Diplomatic Corps				(Violet)		"v-o6.png"
Civilians					(White)		"w-blank.png"

Kikmequik's rank set requires a few modifications because it is created for ease of interpretation rather than compatability with NOVA-based operating systems.  As originally designed, the rank set operates on the following naming scheme:

Command, Sec/Tac, Strategic Ops	(Red)			"r-o6.png"
Flight Control, Starfighters		(Blue)			"b-o6.png"
Operations, Engineering		(Gold)			"y-o6.png"
Science, Medical, Counseling		(Teal)			"t-o6.png"
Medical {Variant}			(White/Teal)		"d-o6.png"
Intelligence				(Grey)			"g-o6.png"
Marines				(Green)		"m-o6.png"
Diplomatic Corps			(Purple)		"p-o6.png"
Civilians				(White)		"w-blank.png"

Because of this alternative naming scheme employed by the creator, NOVA-based users will need to rename several image files so as to conform with the NOVA system requirements.

Step 4:  Find the Flight Operations division ranks (blue) and rename them by replacing "b-" with "c-" on all image files (ex: b-a1.png becomes c-a1.png)
Step 5:  Find the Intelligence division ranks (grey/silver) and rename them by replacing "g-" with "s-" on all image files (ex: g-a1.png becomes s-a1.png)
Step 6:  Find the Marine division ranks (green) and rename them by replacing "m-" with "g-" on all image files (ex: m-a1.png becomes g-a1.png)  Please note this should be done only *after* the Intelligence ranks have been renamed.
Step 7:  Find the Diplomatic division ranks (purple) and rename them by replacing "p" with "v-" on all image files (ex: p-a1.png becomes v-a1.png)

Part III: Dealing With the Preview Images

The NOVA-based system also requires what are referred to here as "Preview Images" for use in the rank catalogue and site preferences menu.  One image based on the red captain rank is considered to be the overall preview for the rank set itself.  Each division is represented by the fleet admiral rank of the respective division color.  The third preview image is the blank rank image used for open positions on the simulation's manifest.  These images are considered to be part of the rank set by NOVA but are not included in the current set available at Kuro-RPG.  The following steps will help you to create the necessary preview images based upon images already present within Kikmequik's rank set.

Step 8:  Copy the image "s-blank.png" and rename it "blank.png"
Step 9:  Copy the image "r-o6.png" and rename it "preview.png"
Step 10:  Copy the image "?-a4.png" in each division and rename it  "?-a5.png"

Part IV: Uploading the Rank Set

Now that you have finished your modifications, it is time for you to upload the rank set to your simulation's website, which is a rather simple and straight-forward process.

Step 11:  Open your FTP program and establish a connection with your website's server
Step 12:  Locate the folder "...application\assets\common\ds9\ranks" in your website's NOVA files
Step 13:  Copy the entire folder "kikmequik" (not just the contents) into this location of your FTP server

Part V:  Adding the Rank Set

You have finally reached the step where you must convince your NOVA-system to recognize the Kikmequik rank images in order to be able to use them.  The following steps will help inform your simulation website where to locate this new rank set.

Step 14:  Log into your simulation's website
Step 15:  Navigate to the rank catalogue found under the Site Management portion of the Control Panel menus
Step 16:  Click "Add Rank Set"
Step 17:  Enter the name you will be using for this rank set (ie "25th Century Ranks" or "Kikmequik's Ranks"
Step 18:  Enter "kikmequik" into the Server Directory as the identifying folder
Step 19:  Enter some sort of credit to Kikmequik in the Credits area such as "All rank images created by Kikmequik in conjunction with non-canon uniforms."
Step 20:  Click "Submit" and your rank set should be ready to use.

Part VI:  Using the Rank Set

To have the Kikmequik ranks display on your ship's manifest after adding them to the system, you will need to update the site settings under either Site Management or User.  Remember...although you may choose to continue with the default coloring schemes of the post-First Contact uniforms, Kikmequik's rank set is originally designed to operate with the following color schemes (modified file designations included):

Command, Sec/Tac, Strategic Ops		(Red)			"r-o6.png"
Flight Control, Starfighters			(Blue)			"c-o6.png"
Operations, Engineering			(Gold)			"y-o6.png"
Science, Medical, Counseling			(Teal)			"t-o6.png"
Medical {Variant}				(White/Teal)		"d-o6.png"
Intelligence					(Grey)			"s-o6.png"
Marines					(Green)		"g-o6.png"
Diplomatic Corps				(Purple)		"v-o6.png"
Civilians					(White)		"w-blank.png"

Conclusion

If you have followed these directions, you should have successfully been able to modify, upload, and impliment the rank insignia designed by Kikmequik.  I would like to again thank Kikmequik for his work in designing the 25th century uniforms and ranks which he has graciously made available for use by others in the greater simming community.  Questions regarding the rank set or uniforms should be directed to forum user Kikmequik via Private Message or the forum thread at http://forums.horizonfleet.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=851.  Any questions relating to this guide may be directed to forum user Iluvar via Private Message or the same forum thread listed above.

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Vice Admiral Iluvar
Commanding Officer, USS Pandora
Task Force Commanding Officer, Task Force 22 "Pathfinders"
Eighth "Horizon" Fleet