[Kazan]

ok, the time is almost here that i will be writing the frills into my COB -> POF compiler, the BSP output is almost correct and im working with Knudson to fix it.  So makes your requests here:

[only on-compile stuff, no loading up POF data from other files on recompiles.. that is conversion code, and it is planned]


My ideas:
may use lights to define: gunpoints, missile points, engineglows, subsystems

Turret autogen: usage of light+subobjects a non rotating turret would be named "TurretNN" and it's firpoints are "TurretNN-FP" like object "Turret01" with lights "Turret01-01" and "Turret01-02" for firepoints.
rotating turrets with be "TurretNN-Base" paired with the child object "TurretNN-Arm" ([] denote optional chars) with the same firepoint naming convention
Normals will be the only thing not done in both cases.


------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Nico]

hem, could you name the turrets "turNN" and so on? Why? Because I have TS1 (like many other peoples it seems) and it doesn't allow more than 8 char for names... same things for maps, but you can't do anything about that I suppose, exepted if you make that maps named "thrust" are remplaced by thruster01 when recompiled, that would be great- I know I can rename all that with others progs but for some reasons, that doesn't work)

------------------
venom2506
Member of the Robotech mod for FS2

and of Hidden Terror, the Shivan campaign

and My own page

[Kazan]

TS1's save files will prolly break my COB/SCN parser, you have to have TS3 or better

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FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Shrike]

How comes?  Not that I use either, I'm just curious.

[Kazan]

TS3/4/5 use the same save files and the reference i have is for that version

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Shrike]

Ahh....and TS1 uses an older version.

[Warlock]

 

Originally posted by venom2506:
hem, could you name the turrets "turNN" and so on? Why? Because I have TS1 (like many other peoples it seems) and it doesn't allow more than 8 char for names.

easy

The new version of Modelview has a built in POF edittor that will allow you to change the sub-objects name.  


And sad to hear it'll only support ts3+. of the guys making mods right now don't have to luxery of purchasing a higher version TS.

------------------
Warlock
 
DeathAngel Squadron
CO

Do or Do Not,..There Is No Spoon
Ghosts of the Past Forum
Ghosts of the Past WebSite
To Fly Exotic Ships, Meet Exotic People, and Kill Them.


We may rise and fall, but in the end
 We meet our fate together

[Kazan]

well.. actually im not 100% sure it doesn't if they use the file format specified by scncob3.doc then they'll work

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Bobboau]

so it will be like

  hull
  |   |
  |   |
  |   turret01
  |   |  |
  |   |  turret01-01[loclight](firing point)
  |   |
  |   named whatever[turret geometry]
  |
  |
  |
  turret02
   |    |
   | named whatever[turret geometry]
   |    
   barrel [abstract, could be named anything]
     |  |
     |  turret02-01[loclight](firing point)
     |
     named whatever[barrel geometry]


it woud probly be better if we didn't need to name everything perfictly, if it just looked for an object named turret## if it is just an object with a light(s) glued to it then it uses the single part turret algarithm that uses the loclight(s) (named whatever, all you need to kow is it's a light) and the light(s) relitive position to detrmine the fireing point(s) and the average relitive position as the normal (though maybe there could be an optional light named normal if you want to specify a normal other than the auto generated normal).
if turret## has an object glued to another abstract groupe (the barrel), wich in turrn is an object glued to a light then it would use the multipart turret algarithm wich would work sort of like the single part one as far as the lights relitive position to the base.

if you want I could make an example of a cob and the POF I would like it to generate.
 


------------------
Bobboau, bringing you products that work.............. in theory

[morris13]

What version of TS save file does 3dExplorer use? I only have TS1 but if 3DExplorer saves using the newer format would that work?

[Kazan]

no bob.. the lights don't _HAVE_ to be children of their parent turrets, they just have to be in the .scn/.cob

[for a .cob they have to be attached to the object somehow for saving obviously]

G: = Group
P: = Polys
L: = Lights

G: HullGroup
|- P: HullObjects
|- G: Turret01
|  |- P: Polys
|- G: Turret02-Base
|  |- P: Polys
|  |- G: Turret02-Arms
|     |- Polys
|- L: Turret01-01
|- L: Turret02-01
|- L: Turret02-02

that should work just fine.. but if you want to do it for organiziation you can bind the lights to their parent turret

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Bobboau]

well you can't have a group, or any kind of higherarcy without things being glued together, lights have been used mostly for this, so if they have to be glued to there parent for that reason they might as well be used like I was saying.

------------------
Bobboau, bringing you products that work.............. in theory

[Kazan]

yes - but your hierarchy wasn't correct

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Bobboau]

how so.

------------------
Bobboau, bringing you products that work.............. in theory

[Kazan]

nevermind.. the html whitespace removal ruined it.  the html tab equiv char does work on ubbs even with html off

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Kazan]

bump it's time i use your ideas

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Alliance Productions
http://alliance.sourceforge.net
Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Bobboau]

you know what would be nice, a TBL like file that defined the nameing convenetions.

ok hears how I would do it

Code: [Select]


* denotes something in the nameing convention

[abstract grupes]

[main abstract grupe]{named whatever}
| | | |  |
| | | |  [LOD 0]*
| | | |   |
| | | |  [turret01]*{give it a default properties section of $special=subsystem $fov=180 $name=Turret maybe have a loclight that for its name can be a FOV number}
| | | |   |  |
| | | |   |  (turret geometry)
| | | |  [barrel]*{if this was a single part turret there would be a loclight were this abstract groupe is}
| | | |   |  |
| | | |   | (loclight)(s)(denoting firing point(s)){use there relative position to the [barrel] axis and the slope and line formulas to make vectors, and maybe paths}
| | | |   (barrel geometry)
| | | |
| | | [LOD1-5]{done just like above but make sure it doesn't do the stuff it will on LOD0}
| | [subsystems]*
| |   | | | |
| |   | | | (weapons)*{a loclight}
| |   | | (engines)*{a loclight}
| |   | (navigation)*{a loclight}
| |   (comunication)*{a loclight}
| [gun points]* {or [missle point]}
|   | | |
|   | | (loclight)
|   | (loclight)
|   (loclight)
|
[thrusters]
  |  |  
  |  [thruster01]
  |   |   |
  |   |   (loclight)
  |   (loclight)
  |
  [thruster02]
    |    |
    |   (loclight)
    (loclight)


it would also be nice if the textures would retane there autofaceting,

------------------
Bobboau, bringing you products that work.............. in theory

[Kazan]

i can provide example models of the full hierarchy

i just use the UV space TS gives me

------------------
FreeSpace 2: The Babylon Project Effects Nerd and Programmer.
http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon

Alliance Productions
http://alliance.sourceforge.net
Did you say you wanted your head used as a soccer ball?

[Bobboau]

no I mean the smoothing thingy as it is now we can only have smooth or not smooth, some FS ships, actualy quite a lot of them, are sort of smooth, you can see sharp edges, this is called auto faciting by TS. it's unrelated to UV space.

------------------
Bobboau, bringing you products that work.............. in theory

[wEvil]

.3DS support!

or plugin interopability with more major 3D packages like 3dsmax or lightwave

I'm sure even truespace can be "integrated"

and i even know some people who could help you code it all  

how about that ?