[Scooby_Doo]

I'm trying to get my models ready so I can give them out.   But one of the problems I've run across is the engine glows no longer appear.  The engines PCS report as:
Thruster Properties: $engine_subsystem=$engine01
Radius: 2
Location(3,-.7,-11.5) 
Normals (0,0,0)

the table entry is:
#Ship classes

; Raptor
$Name:                          Raptor
$Short name:         Raptor
$Species:                       Terran
+Type:                          XSTR("Heavy Assault", -1)
+Maneuverability:      XSTR("Low", -1)
+Armor:                         XSTR("Heavy", -1)
+Manufacturer:         XSTR("McDonald Douglas", -1)
+Description:         XSTR(" ", -1)
$end_multi_text
+Tech Description:      XSTR("", -1)
$end_multi_text

+Length:                35 m
+Gun Mounts:            8
+Missile Banks:         3

$POF file:                      raptor.pof
$Detail distance:      (0, 90, 180, 500)

$Show damage:         YES
$Density:                       1
$Damp:                          0.25
$Rotdamp:                       0.4
$Max Velocity:         0.0, 0.0, 85.0                  ;; in x/y/z -- z only specified forward.  use special tokens for backward movement
$Rotation time:         4.0, 4.4, 4.0

$Rear Velocity:         0.0
$Forward accel:         3.6
$Forward decel:         1.3

$Slide accel:         0.0
$Slide decel:         0.0

$Expl inner rad:      25.0
$Expl outer rad:      75.0
$Expl damage:         25.0
$Expl blast:         1000.0

$Expl Propagates:      NO
$Shockwave Speed:      0.0
$Allowed PBanks:      ( "Meson cannon" "Nova Cannon" ) ("Plasma Cannon") ("Tachyon Cannon")
$Allowed Dogfight PBanks:   ( "Meson Cannon" "Nova Cannon" ) ("Plasma Cannon") ("Tachyon Cannon")
$Default PBanks:      ( "Nova Cannon" "Plasma Cannon" "Tachyon Cannon")
$Allowed SBanks:      ( "Rockeye"  "Tempest" "Harpoon" "Trebuchet" "Infyrno" "Hornet" "Tornado" "Hornet#Weak" "EMP Adv." "TAG-A" "TAG-B" ) (

"Rockeye"  "Tempest" "Harpoon" "Infyrno" "Hornet" "Tornado" "Hornet#Weak" "EMP Adv." "TAG-A" "TAG-B" ) ("Stiletto II" )
$Allowed Dogfight SBanks:   ( "Rockeye"  "Tempest" "Harpoon" "Trebuchet" "Infyrno" "Hornet" "Tornado" "Hornet#Weak" "EMP Adv." "TAG-A" "TAG-B" ) (

"Rockeye"  "Tempest" "Harpoon" "Infyrno" "Hornet" "Tornado" "Hornet#Weak" "EMP Adv." "TAG-A" "TAG-B" ) ("Stiletto II" )
$Default SBanks:      ( "Trebuchet" "Hornet" "Stiletto II"  )
$SBank Capacity:      ( 25, 50, 75 )

$Shields:         620
$Shield Color:         100 100 255
$Power Output:         6

$Max Oclk Speed:      110.0
$Max Weapon Eng:      250.0

$Hitpoints:                     500

$Flags:                         ( "player_ship" "default_player_ship" "fighter"  "in tech database" "show ship")
$AI Class:                      Captain
$Afterburner:               YES
   +Aburn Max Vel:            0.0, 0.0, 130.0
   +Aburn For accel:         0.75
   +Aburn Fuel:            350.0
   +Aburn Burn Rate:         75.0
   +Aburn Rec Rate:         20.0

$Countermeasures:            45

$Scan time:                     2000

$EngineSnd:         126                   ;; Engine sound of ship

$Closeup_pos:         0.0, 0.0, -30
$Closeup_zoom:         0.5

$Shield_icon:         shieldft-04
$Ship_icon:                     iconfighter2t-04
$Ship_anim:                     ssfighter2t-04
$Ship_overhead:         loadfighter2t-04

$Score:            24

$Trail:
   +Offset:            3.07, -.74, -11.598 ;2.7 4.3 -9.45
   +Start Width:         0.25
   +End Width:            0.05
   +Start Alpha:         1.0
   +End Alpha:            0.0
   +Max Life:            1.0
   +Spew Time:            120
   +Bitmap:            Contrail01
$Trail:
   +Offset:             -3.07, -.74, -11.598 ; -2.7 4.3 -9.45
   +Start Width:         0.25
   +End Width:            0.05
   +Start Alpha:         1.0
   +End Alpha:            0.0
   +Max Life:            1.0
   +Spew Time:            120
   +Bitmap:            Contrail01

;$Subsystem:                     sensors,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     communications, 10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     weapons,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     navigation,                     10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     engine,                         35,0.0

#end

[Taristin]

No Longer appear, or never appeared at all? This may be a silly question, but does the model have an engine chunk? Meaning, in modelview, does the thruster button provide the purple emitter symbol where the engines are coded to be?

I've noticed you have made models before, so I'm not 100% sure what your level is.

It could be the FSO bug that used to remove it...

EDIT:

;$Subsystem:                     sensors,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     communications, 10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     weapons,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     navigation,                     10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     engine,                         35,0.0

#end

Why the ;'s?

[Scooby_Doo]

Hmm ModelView (Beta 5 build 28) reports Too many bounding boxes. Ugh, looks like they all have this problem... What is causing this?

[Taristin]

The modelview issue can be resolved with the newer, hacked, version that Vasudan Admiral made.

If HLP actually had links to it anywhere. However Karajorma has it in his FAQ... I'll dig for  link.

http://www.geocities.com/vasudanad/modv32b5.zip

Install this. It's better. And I ask again, why is there semicolons before the subsystem entries?

[Scooby_Doo]

Thanks, unforunately I was already using that ModelView version 
I did a quick rebuild using PCS 1.3.42, still producing that error and engine glows still don't appear.  I wonder if I'm accidently using a bug that got fixed in latter versions.

I had the subsystems commented out for some reason, which I don't remember, probably cause I don't have the actual subsystems on the model.  I re-enabled them, but didn't solve the problem.

[StratComm]

Try setting the engine glow normals to 0, 0, -1 instead of 0,0,0.  Don't know if that's the problem, but null normals can be a little unpredictable.

[Scooby_Doo]

THANK YOU StratComm!!!  That was the problem.
Apparently 0,0,0 used to work or I just got lucky with them being that way in the old builds.
I really like how the glow disappears when it's hidden by structures

Now I've just got to figure out DDS.  That is the preferred image formats right?

[Trivial Psychic]

The engines PCS report as:
Thruster Properties: $engine_subsystem=$engine01
...


...
;$Subsystem:                     sensors,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     communications, 10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     weapons,                                10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     navigation,                     10,0.0
;$Subsystem:                     engine,                         35,0.0

#end

Even when you've un-commented the subsystems, the fact remains that your engineglow is attatched to subsystem "engine01", but a quick check of your subsystems in the tables indicates that you have no "engine01" subsystem there.  Take a look at the model and make sure you've got the subsystem, the engine thuster, and the table subsystem entry, all with the same name.  You'll get error messages (particularly in debug mode) if these aren't the same.  Even if your on-model and in-table subsystem names match, but your thruster one doesn't, you may have instances of the ship being disabled, but still having an engine glow.

[StratComm]

I think all engine glows are disabled when the ship is disabled, regardless of the engine subsystem assignment in the FUEL chunk.  For compatibility with 95% of all models made before the engine-specific disabling code went in to effect.

[Scooby_Doo]

So is this correct then?

in POF engine:
$engine_subsystem=$engine01

in POF special:
name:$engine01
properties:$special=$subsystem

and in the table:
$Subsystem:                     engine01, 35, 0.0

[Vasudan Admiral]

The modelview issue can be resolved with the newer, hacked, version that Vasudan Admiral made.

If HLP actually had links to it anywhere. However Karajorma has it in his FAQ... I'll dig for link.

http://www.geocities.com/vasudanad/modv32b5.zip

Install this. It's better. And I ask again, why is there semicolons before the subsystem entries?

Actually, that's just the 05 version installer - not the big limits version.
The links are in the modview wiki entry btw if you need them at a later date.

Installer: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modv32b5.zip (same as that previously posted)

Upped limits EXE: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modviw32_high_limits.zip

[Trivial Psychic]

So is this correct then?

in POF engine:
$engine_subsystem=$engine01

in POF special:
name:$engine01
properties:$special=$subsystem

and in the table:
$Subsystem:                     engine01, 35, 0.0

That would work, or since your ship appears to only have one engine, change all the entries to "$engines" or "$engine".

[Taristin]

Actually, that's just the 05 version installer - not the big limits version.
The links are in the modview wiki entry btw if you need them at a later date.

Installer: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modv32b5.zip (same as that previously posted)

Upped limits EXE: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modviw32_high_limits.zip

haha. see? karajorma gave me that link from his FAQ.  In any case, the link I got from one of the wikis after googling for it led to a dead geocities link, IIRC.

[Scooby_Doo]

Thanks Admiral. That one does the trick. 
I wish search was working so I wouldn't need to ask a million questions.

[Taristin]

Not to rip off BSG or anything, but So say we all. :/

[Flipside]

Now I've just got to figure out DDS.  That is the preferred image formats right?

It's the preferred format as far as space is concerned, but you can simply use TGA or the like and give the player the option of adding the command line which converts everything to DDS iirc. That way the player can define whether quality or performance in the most important.

Having said that, I use natural DDS files most of the time anyway

[Taristin]

I've not observed any quality issues with DDS. I suppose if you have steep gradients it may pose a problem, but I've not experienced any with normal model maps.

[Turambar]

visually, for engine glows, i'd say go with uncompressed
its only a few files, and they show up , and theyre very likely to contain gradients.  its a small sacrifice in memory, and it makes it look a lot better

[Grug]

If you save the DDS in the right format you don't lose any detail even with steep gradients. Plus because they show up so often, they are going to take up more space ingame. Every byte counts.

Doom3 uses dds files for all its textures and D3 is hardly considered a low quality graphics game.

Personally I say dds all the way. Good Qual & Efficiency > lazy artists.

[karajorma]

Actually, that's just the 05 version installer - not the big limits version.
The links are in the modview wiki entry btw if you need them at a later date.

Installer: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modv32b5.zip (same as that previously posted)

Upped limits EXE: http://webzoom.freewebs.com/twisted-infinities-va/modviw32_high_limits.zip

Hmmm. Appears I need to update my links.