bigkahuna
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Posts posted by bigkahuna
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Hi all,
I'm trying to create a scene that has a small island (maybe a few miles in diameter). Creating this with the colors in map.bmp resulted in a very crude, very "chunky" looking island with a very steep coastline. Not what I want.
I thought I remembered reading somewhere on this forum that the solution to this dilemma is to create a 3D object. At any rate, this is what I did, and created a 64 x 64 face plane which I tweaked into a terrain. The resulting model looks much better than what map.bmp did and I'm happy with the effect so far. I created a dummy scene with this terrain object and started up VS. The first time I tried it, it seemed to work just fine, BUT...
The second time I tried to launch the scene, the island dissappeared! I've tried recreating the scene, moving the object, scaling the object, adding other objects... it just seems that nothing works. I added some land mass to map.bmp and objects to obj.bmp just to see it they worked, and they do. For some reason, VS stopped reading objects.txt?
Any ideas on how to fix this? Thanks!
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Take your computer to a repair shop. The problem is not your hard drive and it's not viruses, if it was you'd get error messages on your display. It could be any number of things, but you'll spend alot of $$ and time trying to figure it out if you don't know what you're doing.
While you're waiting, maybe take a few English classes. Your grammar is worse than most people who speak English as a -third- language. Not a single period or complete sentence or thought in your entire post. Inability to speak one's own native language is not something I'd be proud of.
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Now, this all started this evening when I attempted to return to a "last cruise" that was in the "Deep Sea" scenery, and upon loading it up when it was finished all I had was a flickering screen and it looked messed up like I was at the bottom of the hull or something. Only way to get it out of that was to exit the sim. Ths has happened each time I have attempted to return to the "Deep sea" by way of a saved cruise.
I've run into this bug numerous tijmes. You're running the latest Beta version, right? I have no idea what is causing this (and I hope Ilan knows about it already) but with certain scenes the simulator seems to lock-up in this flashing/wierd mess. Only fix I've found is, like yourself, to leave VS and start it up with a new scene, being sure not to re-load the last scene.
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And as for UUnwrap 3D, I did try the demo. It works on my PC, but lags like crazy. It would take me forever just to get one smokestack finished. :shock:
This really sounds like your 3D modeling app (3DS MAX?) saved multiple instances of your model, it's vertices or some combination of both. Pretty wierd, but when you start to work with larger models, wierd things happen.
If you have older versions, look at your file sizes. If your model slows down multiple applications, then there's definitely something wrong with the model. This should show up in your file size.
Two more suggestions:
Did you keep an older version of the model? One before this problem occurred? Perhaps go back to that version and import pieces one by one, saving to different files along the way until you've completed the project. You may find that one particular piece is triggering a bug in your app.
The other suggestion is a repeat from before, give VIZup a try. You'll have to save to a VRML file and then convert back, but it works. There's another app out there that works with .OBJ and .3DS files, but it costs $50 or so.
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Kugelfang's right, don't convert your model to an .X file until the last step.
BigKahuna-- Ah Ha! A Convert! WinkYup, I plunked down my 50 smackers. Well worth it. The "two sided planar" mapping tool and .X export in UUnwrap3d alone were worth $50 IMHO.
Couple other thoughts on the topic: UUnwrap3d only exports ASCII .X files, LithUnwrap exported .ASCII, binary and compressed. If you get UU, keep Lith just so you can compress your files if you need to.
If your model "mysteriously" grows in size, Blender has two tools to help fix this: "delete duplicates" (finds vertices with identical locations and deletes the extras) and "join" (attempts to join mesh vertices that are at indentical locations). I've used these alot when fixing meshes created by CAD apps.
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I have no idea why it would suddenly start giving you this problem and you're not likely to get much help from the developer since LithUnwrap has since been replaced by Ultimate Unwrap3d (well worth the $50 by the way).
Couple things to try:
If it's a problem with LithUnwrap, try un-installing and re-installing the app. Make sure you do it through the Windows control panel so hopefully any config files will be deleted as well.
It could be something in your .3DS file or the way LithUnwrap handles .3DS files. I'd try to save it as a .OBJ to see if you get the same error.
If you do, check your model, you may have many single triangles (each having 3 vertices) instead of large meshes (each sharing 3 vertices).
Looks like your model is all triangles, but double check to be sure. DirectX only works with triangular meshes.
If you still haven't nailed it down, get the Ultimate Unwrap3D demo and try it with that.
If you still get the error, maybe it's time to reduce the size of your meshes. There are a couple cool apps that will reduce your mesh size. I've used "Vizup" ( http://www.vizup.com ) for this and it works very nicely.
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Before you toss the old hard drive, see if you can get your hands on a copy of "Knoppix" on CD. Knoppix is a version of Linux that can boot from a CD drive and, if you drive is recoverable, can access the data on your HD. I've done this several times when the MBR (master boot record) gets buggered on my Windoze machines.
Knoppix is free BTW.
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Is the pilot already maped or did you have to map him? Because I saw no texture maps for him.
The character in that image is one of the animated characters from the Beta release package and Charlotte added a map to it.
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I think this is already a request to Ilan where the scenery designer can enter a value on each pixel in the scenery where the wave height should be multiplied with.
Great idea! It's got my vote :wink:
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Perhaps the problem is with your exporter BigK.
You got that right :cry:
Ok, so MAX with the Panda exporter works, anything else work that costs less than $3000? Seriously, I'm trying all sorts of apps and they all seem to produce a flavor of .X file that doesn't work with VS. No problems with static models, but animated .X files have been a pain.
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... VS didn't support animated meshes or texture maps, and so far that's what I've found also.
I'm not sure what you mean about the texture maps as all the animations I have made so far have textures:
Huh? Charlotte, what application(s) are you using to create your models? I haven't had any success getting texture mapping on animated .X files into VS yet. Texture map = bitmap applied to a mesh like your waving character in the first image.
Paul
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...I just searched my system for that particular DLL.
I found it on C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Flight Simulator 9 folder. So that's a specific.
Ahhh... that explains it. I don't have Flight Simulator (and I'm probably the only guy here who doesn't!).
Just for the record I also found several other versions at C:\WINDOWS\system32:msxml.dll, msxmlr.dll
msxml2.dll, msxml2r.dll
msxml3.dll, msxml3a.dll, msxml3r.dll
Yes, I think I found the same when I searched my system. Just to be sure, are you running Windows XP Pro? That's what I have.
Versions 4, 4a and 4r can only be found on the FS folder. Let me know and I'll send them to you if you wish.That would be great. My address is captpaul -at- flex -dot- com
Thanks!
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This may be slightly OT, but I've been trying to use GMAX to create .X files for VS. I found instructions on the net that explains how to install several plugins and files that allow you to do this. Problem is, even though I followed the instructions carefully, it doesn't work on my system. I get a "MSXML4.DLL missing" error and the export stops. I contacted one GMAX user (he's running XP Home) and think I've narrowed the problem down: apparently, one DLL (MSXML4.DLL) is not used by XP Pro, but it is used by XP Home, and the export plugin needs it.
So I'm kinda stuck with GMAX unless someone knows of a fix or workaround? Thanks!
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Hey Charlotte,
I don't know if you saw my earlier post to you, but there are at least 3 different .X file export scripts (and 2 import scripts). When you find the script, you need to also make sure you know what version of Blender it was written for (pre 2.3x, post 2.3x, 2.4beta, etc.) and then find out what version of Python it was written for. -Then- you can be fairly sure the script will run right. If my memory serves, the latest & best export script is on a site in Italy (address ends in .it). I posted a link in my earlier reply to you. If you can't find it, let me know and I'll post it again.
I have successfully used this script (with Blender 2.37 and 2.4beta) to create a bouncing box animation (I think you did the same). I didn't get any error messages, but I did get an option menu (mesh only or animation and mesh).
On a side topic, I think it was CigDriver that first discovered that VS didn't support animated meshes or texture maps, and so far that's what I've found also. I've emailed Ilan some sample .X files (in different formats) and hope to get some feedback on this from him.
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Hi Joao,
You can use almost any "polygonal modeler" to create boats, scenery and objects for VS. I've got Carrara, Truespace, Blender, GMAX, Wings, FREE!ship (and others) on my system, and use them all for one thing or the other. Of that list, all but Carrara can be had (legally) for free (check my post a few weeks ago for links).
For boat models in particular, I'd recommend FREE!ship (to model the hull) and Wings (to finish the exterior/interior).
Texture mapping, UV mapping and getting smoothing the way you want it in your final .X file can be a bit tricky. Many apps and converters don't support all the features of DirectX "perfectly", so your model -may- look different in VS than it does in your modeler. You will probably have to do some experimenting with several converters to get things right, for example, the 3DSconvert app on the VS website seems to do the best job "smoothing" models for VS (or so it seems to me). I'm using LithUnwrap, Tattoo, and Carrara for this.
As Charlotte said, finding the right app to create an animated .X file (for animated "pilots", etc.) seems to be a bit elusive at present. There are some very -expensive- (about $400) conversion apps that seem to do it right, but that's more than I want to spend. I've gotten some animated files into VS, but nothing I'm happy with yet.
I've spent the last 2 days working with FragMOTION (a $20 app) and really like it so far... only problem is that the animations don't play and it -crashes- VS! Ouch! So I'm trying to sort that out and will let the forum know if I'm successful.
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So... if you have an animation with 100 frames and it is a bridge that opens and you set the Prox value to 50, the animation will stop at frame 50 and the bridge will only be half open.
I really don't understand the purpose of this as one would normally want the whole animation to play each time anyway with a scenery object. It would be more useful to specify at what distance it should animate from.
If you look at the pilot*.cfg files you'll see that Ilan designed it so you can use one animated .X file for several animations. So the same file is used (for example) to steer the boat, then wave. I suppose the reason is to save time (keep the frame rate up) and overhead (not have to load two separate files).
Blender can import the following...As well as .X, .3DS and others by use of Python scripts. Like everything else about Blender, finding and using Python scripts can be a bit convoluted: you have to look around for a bit to find the one you want, then figure out how to install it, then make sure you're running the right version of Blender -and- Python, then use it.... jeesh... I'm using the latest Blender alpha version (2.4bCVS) of Blender right now and it has some very impressive features, but it can be a bugger to use :(
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If you look in the Agean scene files you'll find your "unknown" file. It's "radio.txt" (or something like that, I'm on a different computer right now). If you open up the file, you'll see Ilan's notes on how to use it).
From Ilan's description your only options are text or play a .wav file. I don't have "text to speech" activated on my computer, so I don't know how that works, but if you have it turned off it displays the text at the top of the screen.
That's about all I know about this, I've been too busy trying to get animated pilots working :?
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I have played around with Blender again and I am finding that the exported object is rotated so it appears to be placed on it's side.
I was able to apply a material (color) and also a texture in Blender, the color appeared in VS but not the Texture. Also the animation didn't work this time.
Yeah, I'm finding the same. A work around may be to export as a .OBJ file to some other app and then save as a .3DS. But keep in mind that most translators don't support animation, only the mesh and textures. I tried using Truescape, which supports the animation and colors, but not UV/texture maps :( I understand that GameScape (their game oriented app) has similar problems.
I really had my hopes up for fragMotion, but even a simple model crashes VS. Can't say I can recommend it yet.
I'm finding Blender confusing and hard to use. It is also very slow to use on my system, using menus is extremely slow, as if VS is runing in the background.That's why most folks, myself included, never get very far with it. It's workflow is very different from anything else I've ever used. A typical solution is to use Wings3D to model and Blender to animate.
Blender does not import or export 3ds files.Seek and ye shall find... http://67.22.114.230:8080/programming/bx.html#3DS
Back to the dungeoun....Yeah, welcome to my world. I've been putzing with the issue of creating .X files for weeks now. Still haven't found a -good- solution.
The closest I've come has been with Truescape. Version 3.2 is available for free (check my past post for a link). There are some high-end translation apps that might work, but I can't see plunking down $400 to translate files to .X.
BTW, I've got GMAX and tried the .X export plugin that I found on the net. When I run it, I get a "MSXML4.DLL missing" error. The only thing I can figure is that it's not working on my system because I've got XP PRO installed, and apparently XP PRO uses a different DLL. Anyone else using GMAX with XP PRO?
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No doubt, Blender is the best bang for the buck in the 3d world ;) I've been using it on and off for over a year, but never had a real reason to use it until now (my standard app is Carrara which doesn't support animated .X files, nor have I found a way to translate from Carrara to an animated .X file).
I played with the latest CVS build of Blender 2.40 today, very nice! Remember to export using the "DirectX" and not "DirectX8" option. The v8 exporter only saves keyframes, which isn't what you'll want.
I also spent the better part of the day experimenting with FragMotion (http://www.fragmosoft.com/), a $20 animation app designed for game development. It's surpisingly easy and well designed, and supposedly supports .X file import/export... but I wasn't able to get the files to work. So after spending all day creating a a very nice character and rigging it, I wasn't able to export a useable .X file, argh! :( Back to the drawing board...
I don't understand the issue that was brought up with .3DS files. Why would you want to use them? .OBJ files are probably better for most things (uv mapping for one) and is supported by most everything out there.
As for tutorials for Blender, there are literally -thousands- of them. Go to http://www.blender.org to get started.
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First thing, can anyone tell me where I may find a decent texturing program that's free, so that I may begin the finishing touches on my model?
I don't have the links handy, but a quick google should locate them. If you search my past posts you'll see a number of free apps I've listed over the last few months, but here's a quick shopping list:
Best free paint app (nearly as good as Photoshop) is "Gimp". You'll also need to create u/v coordinates if your 3D app doesn't do this. I've been using "Lithunwrap" for this. Other tools worth looking at include "Tattoo" and Right Hemisphere's "Deep Paint". All these are absolutely free.
Second, how the heck do I model in working instruments onto the bridge? like engine telegraphs and helm controls?Too much info for this post. My best advice is to check Ilan's explanations on his main site and look at other models. You'll see alot of folks have been "cutting and pasting" from one ship to the other.
Third, how do I convert the files to .X so that I can test the ship in VS?There are a couple of options, none (IMHO) work perfectly: one is the 3DSconvert app that is on the main VS website. This is a bit buggy, but seems to create about the best .x file. LithUnwrap, Wings, GMAX and Blender all have .x file exporters, but depending on what your model is, may have minor problems in the exported file (ie. LithUnwrap looses smoothing info in it's export).
With the advent of "animated pilots" in VS7beta2, finding tools that export -animated- .x files has become my "mission". There are also a number of very inexpensive apps out there that are geared for game development, but I haven't found one yet that does -exactly- what I want it to do.
If you find other interesting apps, don't forget to share with the rest of us ;)
Paul
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I would like to know how to make these crew's animations.
Me too. I took a quick look at the source files, and it looks like you need to produce an "animated .x file". (Not a sequence of .x files, but one file that holds animation info.) Unfortunately, I don't think any app I have supports that feature :( Anyone have any ideas?
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Big Kahuna informed me that he gave me the wrong configuration
Ahem... I think it was more a case of you misunderstanding my explanation :roll:
BTW, for future reference you may want to download a copy of the COLREGS which (in addition to alot of other things) does a better job of describing navigational lighting of vessels:
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Cigdriver/Mike, I emailed you regarding the Pilot boat's lights (there's a "boo-boo" :shock: ) did you receive it? Please contact me at paul -at- pmudesign -dot- com
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Unfortunately, I've found no perfect solutions for the task of creating 3D files, texture maps and then converting them to .X files. The solution I've been using has been to use a number of applications, including LithUnwrap, Wings3D, the 3DS to .X utility you're using, and a number of other 3D apps including Blender, Carrara, Tattoo3D, and others.
Sounds like the first task you need is to import files into an application that will allow you to export and edit the UV maps. For this I recommend LithUnwrap. Once you have the UV maps, edit them in your favorite paint app (I recommend GIMP because it's free). Then assemble your model in Wings3D or blender and then do a final check with LithUnwrap.
Finally, I've found the best results are going from 3DS to .X using the utility you already have. Problem is, it's kinda finicky what 3DS files you feed it. You also have to be certain that you set it up so it's outputing into a different folder. This little app has a number of little bugs, but once you've gotten it to work, it outputs the nicest .X files of all the apps I've tried.
I've posted links to most of the apps I've listed here in past posts. Do a search of this forum and use google to find these apps for yourself. I'm sorry if this explanation is kind of cryptic, but unfortunately, the solution is kinda cryptic too ;)
"Island" scene help?
in (Former Virtual Sailor Support Forum)
Posted
I'll have to try other objects. So far I've just used my one .x file of the island. I'm using the "scene object editor" to create the .txt files.
This is my first attempt at creating a scene, so I could be doing something wrong, I'm not sure. What's wierd is that my island object worked fine the first time I loaded the scene. I went back to tweak the height of the .x file and it stopped working. I re-loaded the original .x file and it still didn't work. I've been tinkering with it ever since...
So was I correct in believing this is the better way to do this?
Thanks!