Hard Light Productions Forums
Modding, Mission Design, and Coding => The Modding Workshop => Topic started by: Bobboau on February 02, 2003, 01:36:03 am
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I have made a new POF editor, it currently suports all normal POF data (exept INSGs, so don't use it with anything that has them)
I am calling it Aurora becase it was the first thing that came to mind
remember this is pre-Alpha, don't use it on anything important to you, without backing it up
Aurora and source (http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/blackwater/aurora_and_sorce.zip)
just relese Aurora (http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/blackwater/aurora.zip)
this editor is designed for FSO, though there has only been limited testing,
remember this is only to play with not to work with,
though you should be able to use it.
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Great work Bobboau. I`ll give it a try today. Does it/Will it support auto-turret etc?
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well it isn't a cob converter it is a dedicated POF editor, but if you have a POF it has the most usefullnes of any POF editor ever made, for example every data item has new, copy, and delete buttons, just think how much easier it will be to path a model if you can copy an exsisting path, as time goes on I will be implementing more and more stuff, but for now I have just gotten the basics working
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Originally posted by Bobboau
just think how much easier it will be to path a model if you can copy an exsisting path
Finally a POF editor that does this :yes:
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also thrusters, weapons, speacal points, all have this, over all it could cut data editing time in half, or better, and there are things that I am planing on adding that will blow away the others :nod:
hey, why don't you all make up a list of features you would want in a POF editor, remember this isn't a converter, only post conversion editing.
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where would this list be? and how are people gonna convert it when they throw away all there other POF stuff?
Things I want: do everything
there ya go....
oh and can you make a turret fire point auto calculator. as an option you coul select the turret subobject and the code would calculate fire points based on direction from main model, length and would plonk the FP at the 'end' of the gun it finds. This would not alwaays work but o some more obvious turrets it could work well:yes: Also you caould have texture fire point genoration.... based on extra dark areas of the texture or similar. You give a nice base if not perfect way to at least start putting fire points on;7.
(I hate fire points cos I STILL can get Autoturret it to work in PCS! AAAGGHHH!!)
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Autoturret I think would be so useful as to allow people to quickly produce test models very quickly. Even if the calculator puts the firing point not in exactly the right location the user can then do the fine tuned adjustments.
Very cool Bobboau.
I haven't looked but were you able to sort out any of that "moment of inertia" stuff?
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whats is moment of initia? I have never been able to figure it out and peopls post were obscuer at best.
Another feature could be to reposition parts? like a turret thats not quit the right size or position etc I know its getting into modeling aspect but I don't mind not having any 'adding models' stuff (wich some newbie will sujest).
Hmmm thats also brings in the question of merging diffrent pofs? and being able to rearange the heirarcy in the editor
(why don't you go write a replacment TreSpace too:rolleyes: :wink: )
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I'm not actually sure what moment of inertia is but I know what its effects are.
First take a standard FS2 ship. A GTF Perseus is a good example. When hit by a AAAf beam or a grazed by a TerSlash beam it gets knocked off course. In the case of the TerSlash beam, it actually saves the fighter from impending doom.
Now, take the average user created fighter for instance. Similar to the GTF Perseus is Venom's GTF Banshee. When it gets hit by a AAAf beam, it is not knocked off course. It takes the beam full on and continues moving. If hit by a Ter Slash....it is much more likely to be utterly vaporized by the hit.
In capital ships, we see problems with collisions from a bomber sized vessel pushing Orion sized vessels around.
Even with equivalent mass values, the moment of inertia seems to play a major role in determining what the mass value affects.
Thats what it is :)
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Make it so we can add glowpoints, similiar to what PCS does, but more graphically.
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BOB! I love you!
My requests: A visual interface like Model View so you can actually *see* what yer doing.
The ability to *add* complete turrets to a POF and place them where you need and give them the properties you need.
Can't wait can't wait can't wait!
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The ability to select turrets from other models (model and turretpaths) and glue them on your model.
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the thing with auto turret is that it is a converter option, you still have to position fireing points in TS, there is no way to just have a POF and figure out were the fireing points should go, but if you have a bunch of turrets that are very similar to each other you just have to make one then copy it and make the nesicary changes to it,
I am planing on makeing a chunk importer, going right down to the ability to load and save individual data chunks in there own seperate files. this would include subobject chuncks.
all chuncks have a visual representation of all data types
this editor already suports rearanging the hierarcy, and moveing subobjects, look at the parent object feilid and the offset feild in the subobjects tab
something I do need to do is make turrets generate the apropriate properties string in the apropriate subobject when they are created in the tgun tab
if you don't see, the renderer will render thrusters, thruster glows, and glow points like they would look (well sort of) like in game,
but you need to have that thruster glow bmp in the same folder as the exe, and have all the files (POF, it's textures, glow textures, thruster texture in pcx format) in the same folder
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I just updated both zips with a bug fix, when ever you hit enter the dialogs would disapear, they don't do that anymore,
there are also some added features here and there, mostly to do with the texture and glow point editor and dynamicly reloading textures when you change the texture names in the editors
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What glowpoint editor?
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top right tab
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major advancments have been made,
I recomend you DL the latest copy
no, the save chunk buttons don't do anything yet
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Originally posted by Bobboau
hey, why don't you all make up a list of features you would want in a POF editor, remember this isn't a converter, only post conversion editing.
How about instead of just copying, the path editor has a bulk path creator which names the paths $path01, $path02 and so on with all the parts the same excepts for the name and the parent. For the parent field how about getting the names of the subsystems and the subobjects with $special=subsystem.
Another useful feature would be a counter for paths, turrets, gunpoints, etc.
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Bob, you rule! this gonna be great stuff!
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Are you sure you updated the zips linked to from the first post? The one without the source seems to be dated 1/16/2003. The other one is 2/6/2003, but does still crash if run in 32-bit mode on a Voodoo 3. It's window is also seemingly wider then my computer's screen, and unresizable, so I can't see all the tabs. It also crashed when I tried selecting a tab I couldn't see (next to what I think is the shield tab, I tried selecting the next tab using keyboard controls and it didn't look like it worked) and hit enter.
Edit: Having run it in 1024x768, which makes text too small for me to use such a large resolution regularly, I can see all the tabs. It's not the tab that causes the problem, it's trying to change tabs using the keyboard keys rather then mouse clicks.
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I just updated again they both should be dated 2/8/03 (or something) don't rely on the zip's date, look at the exes,
also it requires DX8.1 or better, I am afraid I run under 1024X768 so I hadn't thought about people running under lower resolutions, and it won't be a trivial thing to fix
fixed a bug in the dock saveing, and preleminary draging of data items has been implemented, to move something with you're mouse, left click on the render window with the ctrl key down, to return to normal model rotation/zoom mode left click the render window with the ctrl key down again, it will move along the XY plane when you are moveing the mouse with the left button and along the Z axis when you move with the right button down
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Aurora doesn't work for me AT ALL! Upon starting the program (before the main window), the program gives me an error message box with title "dx initialisation failed" and with a body "!". When the program starts up after clicking "Ok", another dialog box reports that "An Unsupported Operation was Attempted!"? It gives me an option to click "Ok", but the dialog repeats itself recursively. It's probably my videocard. I have an obsolete NVIDIA RIVA 8 MB.
It runs PCS and Modelview fine! With all the new features out there for POFs and Aurora being the hottest thing to hit this community since FS OPEN, I'm afraid that I'll be left behind unless someone fixes this error. :sigh:
Rampage
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dx initialisation failed, means it isn't going to work at all
try running in 16 bit color depth
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I just updated, I think I know why you were getting a crash with the loading of a saved pof, the new version should work if I was right
I also have a diferent initalisation code, that, hopefully, will find a color depth that will be compatable with you're desktop,
or it might less compatable
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I am working on an auto path tool, it will alow you to generate semi decent paths with the push of a single button the turret paths are working out very nicely so far, but subsystems and docks (to a lesser extent) will almost certanly require some manual adgustment, I will also make an auto-setup tool that will fill out all paths for all turrets, docks, and subsystems
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Originally posted by Bobboau
I am working on an auto path tool, it will alow you to generate semi decent paths with the push of a single button the turret paths are working out very nicely so far, but subsystems and docks (to a lesser extent) will almost certanly require some manual adgustment, I will also make an auto-setup tool that will fill out all paths for all turrets, docks, and subsystems
Bah. Even if you only have to move a couple of points for each dock that's an improvement on having to create EVERY point :)
Look forwards to this feature.
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ok first revision of auto-path has been updated,
in the paths tab auto-set will set all paths to what Aurora thinks is the best place for them, this is for getting all turrets for a ship that has it's subsystems, docks, and turrets all done already and just needs paths, it will set defalts for all these.
auto-generate will let you generate one new path for the currently selected path for any of the ships turrets, or subsystems, or docks. this one is for if you have added something or screwed one up and want to start over.
you will have to do a little clean up but this should cut pathing by about a factor of 20 at least!
note I have made no codeing for fighter bays becase you will need to do so much manual editing for them an auto gen is practicly useless
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The auto-pathing does seem very useful but I'm pretty sure the radius of point 1 should be smaller than point 0. Being able to change the radii of the points from 10 and 100 would be helpful.
There's also a strange message on exit. What does "tabs is dieing" mean? :wtf:
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Originally posted by LAW ENFORCER
whats is moment of initia? I have never been able to figure it out and peopls post were obscuer at best.
M.O.I. seems to be a multiplicatory / division value applied in response to an 'impact' (any force) on the ships model... I think FS2 uses it to divide (so the small number would have a larger effect than if it was multiplying-[?]) the 'normal' of the impact based on the mass of the ship. I think the 3 xyz (I presume) values set for it correspond to +/-1,0,0, etc normals on the force source, and the mass is also used in the equation. If so, I think using a 0 value would either cause an divde by 0 error and the impact to be ignored, or a default value to be used. Something similar if it's multiplying.
Of course, the 3 xyz could be used to define some sort of axes from the center of the ship? (I'm thinking that 'maybe' it's to do with not using a central pivot point for the ship)
It's a *****, innit? I looked at the code a while ago for it, but never located anything - might try again sometime this week.
AFTERTHOUGHT;
'Note that the differential element of moment of inertia dI must always be defined
with respect to a specific rotation axis.'
'The concept of moment of inertia for
general objects about arbitrary axes is a much more complicated subject. The
moment of inertia in such cases takes the form of a mathematical tensor quantity
which requires nine components to completely define it. '
Maybe that is relevant to it? 9 components - 9 xyz values?
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you're getting that? :wtf:
you shouldn't be getting that...
...well, actualy you should be getting that, but there was a bug that was keeping the function from getting called that I have yet to resolve, so you shouldn't be getting that,
what OS are you useing?
note, you getting that mesage is not a bad thng, it means that you're machine, unlike mine, is closeing the program down preperly
that message was meant to tell me if the destructor for the tab controle was getting called, wich it wasn't, or actualy now that I think of it, it was but for some reason the MB wasn't getting called,
anyway it's a stupid debug mesage I left in acedently, just ignor it for now I have already disabled it so next build won't have it,
if anyone else is getting any odd mesages, particularly ones that say "call Bobboau" some were in them be sure to tell me.
you know what, I think I did the verts backwards, hehe oops, ahh, I better upload a new build,
it'll be up in about five minutes
it's up
moment of inertia has to do with how hard it is to rotate an object around any given axis, I don't remember much more than that, I should look into it, maybe I could make some sort of auto-inertia maker
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Originally posted by Bobboau
what OS are you useing?
Windows XP
And that is the only strange message I've been getting.
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XP is based on NT iirc, that is probly why you were getting it and I wasn't
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i know this is not a converter, and maybe its stupid, but about autogen paths, i was wondering if it would be useful/possible to use truespace lights while converting to pof, since they have both xyz position and a radius, for the situations where your autogen doesn't work
about the pof editor an hierachy editor may be useful sometimes, with maybe the possibility to cut/copy/past lods/pofs from a pof to another
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yess lights would be very usefull for converters trying to make paths,
but this is not a converter :)
there is some hierachy editing capabilities, it will eventualy alow for the copying of subobjects