Hey guys, was wondering if it's possible to make the player setup page show more pictures? 
I want to show at least 4, though I'd prefer 8 if possible 

Correct, you only display 3 pictures but you can have the pictures tall enough to display 6 or even 9. For eight you would just have the last picture be blank or maybe a static picture for you mod.

If you go this route then you'll need to modify wherever the large picture is displayed in game to account for the extra height so you effectively hide the additional picture(s). I think myfist had an example of a 6 player picture set at one time in the forums. Mine displays up to 9 pictures with the full mod loaded.

Not at all.

Do note that you likely will have to mod the UI on the diplomacy screens, since the pictures of the "second" race will show up on these screens. Most of it is covered with the Vanilla UI but not all.

I doubt it can be done on a per Star Base basis. All you could do is make it a mutually exclusive research that would effect all Star Bases.

Unless of course, your said Starbase can only have one upgrade in the first place. But I assume you thought of that already.

Ok, guess I'll just have to limit points and do things that way then.

Anyone have an experience making a new intro cinematic? I know some mods do it, and I have a pretty good idea of how to do it. What I'm not sure on is what resolution should I make the video in. Sins minimum resolution is 1024x768, but it seems Youtube has videos of the Rebellion intro in a higher resolution than that.

Yes.  You need to use a legacy function put into Rebellion for when factions were chosen in game.

In the prerequisites, there is a RequiredFactionNameID "" you can set to require the starting faction to research Hull 2 and Shield 2, and then have them both change the faction ID to something else.

Prerequisites
    NumResearchPrerequisites 0
    RequiredFactionNameID ""
    RequiredCompletedResearchSubjects 0

researchBoolModifiers 1
researchModifier
    modifierType "SetFaction"
    factionNameID "IDS_PLAYERFACTIONNAME_NEUTRAL"

If you want to get more complicated than a single either or, it will require more imagination, and a great deal of planning, but for what you listed, it's simplistic.

Take your example, and branch it out, you want to pick between better shields and hull, but you also want to pick between better antimatter regen and movement speed, and better weapon range and damage.

You have three sets of decisions, but only one faction ID.  Once you pick one of them, you're no longer the starting faction and can't pick any of the others.

You have to make a tree, one branch point at a time.  You have to add a set of keys to the research list, and make the unlocked research require not the faction, but the particular key research, in order to be used.  Your keys are going to have to be unlocked in a specific order though, each stage changing the faction to the ID the next stage needs to be researched, which throws a real monkey wrench into the design of your research tree. 

For simplicity, you can put a set of research keys off by themselves, simple unlocks that open up the rest of the research field.  But the AI can be pretty special ed about research, so this has the potential to work quite poorly for everyone but the player.

Been tinkering a bit with the idea I asked about last night, and it's lead me to something else I want to ask about.

In the research menu, there's six tabs at the left hand side.  Offence, defence, civilian, diplomacy, fleet, and artifacts.  Is there a way to add more tabs there, or is the six hard coded in?

So the only way to get more research in would be to make the trees more tightly packed I'm assuming?

Or is it possible to create research that does different things at different levels?  Think of the way Starbase weapon upgrades work for the Vasari.  One adds those beam thing, two adds the missiles, three adds the extra damage.  Same slot, but three different effects.

This might just be a problem on my end, but is the Gamergate website not working for anyone else? everytime i try and load it, i just get a white screen.

It was not a free site, so it may no longer be available.