Increase the maximum camera distance, from the default 30 yards/units to the absolute maximum possible - 50.
WARNING: This addon is OBSOLETE and no longer needed! Please remove it from your Interface > AddOns folder. The following two console commands, entered once only, achieves what we want:
/script SetCVar("cameraDistanceMax", 25)
/script SetCVar("cameraDistanceMaxFactor", 2)/script SetCVar("cameraDistanceMax", 25)
/script SetCVar("cameraDistanceMaxFactor", 2)
IMPORTANT: Make sure to remove ImprovedCamera first!
OR:
You can use version 2.5 of the ImprovedCamera addon - which does it for you, then disables itself (this is per-character, so you really should remove the addon manually).
The reason I updated this unnecessary addon for patch 3.0.2 is two-fold. People are still downloading the old version for some reason. Also, people are still having difficulties with the commands and sliders and basically not getting it to work. I've tested both methods extensively.
Note that with patch 3.0.2, these settings stick like never before - even if you wipe your WTF folder - since it (along with macros/bindings) is now stored on Blizzard's servers (unless you've chosen not to, by setting the CVar synchronizeSettings to 0).
HOWTO bypass the 50 limit:
WoW has a hardcoded zoom limit of 50, so trying to increase it further by adjusting the above values is utter pointless - don't waste your time on it.
However, there is a way to hack a temporary zoom beyond 50 - perhaps for the purposes of taking screenshots - with an important limitation. You can't change the zoom in-game, and you'll lose the extra distance if you try to change the zoom with the mouse wheel - it'll immediately snap back down to 50 as soon as you do, and you'll have to hack it all over again*.
In preparation, you'll need a text editor capable of editing unix linefeeds - I recommend Notepad++.
1) In WoW, do: /console synchronizeSettings 0
2) Exit WoW.
3) In your text editor, open: <WoW>\WTF\Account\<account>\<realm>\<character>\config-cache.wtf
4) Change the cameraSavedDistance setting to e.g. "250" and save the file.
*You can change the config-cache.wtf to Read-only, preventing WoW from losing your hack if you accidently change the zoom in-game. You can simple, /console reloadui or logout and back in again to go back.
Enjoy!
Installation Guide
- Exit "World of Warcraft" completely
- Download the mod you want to install
- Make a folder on your desktop called "My Mods"
- Save the .zip/.rar files to this folder.
- If, when you try to download the file, it automatically "opens" it... you need to RIGHT click on the link and "save as..." or "Save Target As".
- Extract the file - commonly known as 'unzipping'
Do this ONE FILE AT A TIME!
- Windows
- Windows XP has a built in ZIP extractor. Double click on the file to open it, inside should be the file or folders needed. Copy these outside to the "My Mods" folder.
- WinRAR: Right click the file, select "Extract Here"
- WinZip: You MUST make sure the option to "Use Folder Names" is CHECKED or it will just extract the files and not make the proper folders how the Authors designed
- Mac Users
- StuffitExpander: Double click the archive to extract it to a folder in the current directory.
- Verify your WoW Installation Path
That is where you are running WoW from and THAT is where you need to install your mods.
- Move to the Addon folder
- Open your World of Warcraft folder. (default is C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft\)
- Go into the "Interface" folder.
- Go into the "AddOns" folder.
- In a new window, open the "My Mods" folder.
- The "My Mods" folder should have the "Addonname" folder in it.
- Move the "Addonname" folder into the "AddOns" folder
- Start World of Warcraft
- Make sure AddOns are installed
- Log in
- At the Character Select screen, look in lower left corner for the "addons" button.
- If button is there: make sure all the mods you installed are listed and make sure "load out of date addons" is checked.
- If the button is NOT there: means you did not install the addons properly. Look at the above screenshots. Try repeating the steps or getting someone who knows more about computers than you do to help.
Translations
When you download a mod, please be sure that the mod is compatible with your translation of wow. Some mods only work on the US versions, while some only work on some of the various European versions. These variations are called "Localizations".
TOC Numbers (Out of Date Mods)
When Blizzard patches WoW, they change the Interface number. This means that all mods will be "out of date" unless or until the author releases a new version for that interface. Some people go into the .toc files and update the numbers themselves, but this is STRONGLY advised against as it will cause problems locating possible incompatibilities addons. When you log into WoW after a patch, you DO NOT have to delete your interface directory. All you have to do is simply tell WoW to ignore the interface numbers and load all the mods anyway. All you have to do is, while at the "character select" screen, look in the lower left corner and click on the "addons" button. A window will pop up listing all your installed mods.
If you look in the upper left corner of that window there should be a box that says "Load Out of Date AddOns". You want to CHECK this box. Now simply go into WoW normally and all your mods should load. As of the 1.9 patch, you will have to do this after EVERY patch/update that Blizzard posts! If you encounter any problems with a mod after a patch, please be sure to let the author of the mod know so they can fix it.
See also: About "Out Of Date AddOns"
Mac Support
WoW addons are not platformed based. As such, they can be used on either Mac or PC. You can extract both .zip and .rar files on a Mac using StuffitExpander.
Directory Structure
World of Warcraft
|_ Interface
|_AddOns
|_*AddonName*
|_ *AddonName*.toc
|_ *AddonName*.xml
|_ *AddonName*.lua
|_ (possibly others as well)...