Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

Just wondered

I am a bit of a hobby modeller, and fancied having a bash at making some ships etc. but I am curious as to the software you guys use.

Having studied the tutorials and links, it seems to be limited to Truespace.. BBBLllleeeeuuurch ... was my initial reaction! I got an old magazine CD with Truespace 3.2 on it, fired it up and had a play around, and I have never found such an awkward, yucky, unhelpful, obstructive and plain wierd piece of modelling software!!!

I use AC3D for most of my modelling ( good, cheap and excellent for low poly modelling ) and have dabbled with G-Max and a few others. All the final build tools use .COB for input, so is there a decent conversion program that will turn .OBJ or 3DS files into COB without messing the textures?

Failing that.... is there anything else free ( or cheap ) that can make COB files?

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

Just wondered

I am a bit of a hobby modeller, and fancied having a bash at making some ships etc. but I am curious as to the software you guys use.

Having studied the tutorials and links, it seems to be limited to Truespace.. BBBLllleeeeuuurch ... was my initial reaction! I got an old magazine CD with Truespace 3.2 on it, fired it up and had a play around, and I have never found such an awkward, yucky, unhelpful, obstructive and plain wierd piece of modelling software!!!

I use AC3D for most of my modelling ( good, cheap and excellent for low poly modelling ) and have dabbled with G-Max and a few others. All the final build tools use .COB for input, so is there a decent conversion program that will turn .OBJ or 3DS files into COB without messing the textures?

Failing that.... is there anything else free ( or cheap ) that can make COB files?

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Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Sheffield UK
Posts: 1913

your best bet is making the base model in a compatible program, and doing the UV in lithium unwrap if you hate truespace, still you might need to make corrections to the geometry in truespace and at the very least scale / and sort the order of the hierarchy in it

no way around it im afraid cob is "caligari object file" - the makers of TS

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[url=http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon]The Babylon Project[/url]: Currently designing nebula / planets and adding smoothing in all the right places ;)

[url=http://www.b5mods.com]Great Wars - Homeworld[/url]

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Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Sheffield UK
Posts: 1913

your best bet is making the base model in a compatible program, and doing the UV in lithium unwrap if you hate truespace, still you might need to make corrections to the geometry in truespace and at the very least scale / and sort the order of the hierarchy in it

no way around it im afraid cob is "caligari object file" - the makers of TS

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[url=http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon]The Babylon Project[/url]: Currently designing nebula / planets and adding smoothing in all the right places ;)

[url=http://www.b5mods.com]Great Wars - Homeworld[/url]

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: England
Posts: 2275

quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowPuppet
is there a decent conversion program that will turn .OBJ or 3DS files into COB without messing the textures?

---

Truespace 4 and above will happily import the 3DS files I make in Max, texture application and everything.
TS3 imports them okay, but not as solid meshes - though there is a "solidify" Truespace extension that should make TS3 work with them okay too. Mesh stabilisation (detriangulation) and heirarchy setup is the next step - and has to be done in TS.
I've heard rumours that the mesh stabilisation can mess up the uv mapping, but it's never happened to me (touch wood).
Every model I've done was made in Max, and everything I did after the Lintira (Nial version 482, Shn'Tan and Tishat) was textured in Max as well.

Lithunwrap's a good program. The second best UV tools I've used.

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: England
Posts: 2275

quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowPuppet
is there a decent conversion program that will turn .OBJ or 3DS files into COB without messing the textures?

---

Truespace 4 and above will happily import the 3DS files I make in Max, texture application and everything.
TS3 imports them okay, but not as solid meshes - though there is a "solidify" Truespace extension that should make TS3 work with them okay too. Mesh stabilisation (detriangulation) and heirarchy setup is the next step - and has to be done in TS.
I've heard rumours that the mesh stabilisation can mess up the uv mapping, but it's never happened to me (touch wood).
Every model I've done was made in Max, and everything I did after the Lintira (Nial version 482, Shn'Tan and Tishat) was textured in Max as well.

Lithunwrap's a good program. The second best UV tools I've used.

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Registered: Jul 2000
Location: The Cold Northland!
Posts: 8392

Word is that Caligar is or might be offering TS3 for free download (since its so very old).

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[url=http://www.volitionwatch.com]Volition Watch[/url], [url=http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/blackwater]BlackWater Operations[/url], [url=http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/babylon]The Babylon Project[/url], [url=http://terra.sourceforge.net]Machina Terra[/url], [url=http://www.3dap.com/hlp/hosted/ott/]Over The Top[/url]

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Registered: Apr 2001
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Posts: 1901

Word is that Caligar is or might be offering TS3 for free download (since its so very old).

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Registered: Feb 2001
Location: scotland
Posts: 1205

it was given away free on the cover of 3d world more than once too

but i got to agree with your centinments on truespace =) and i started modeling with it i remeber the days i liked it - i tried in oh afew months ago and damn its was horrible lightwave is teh way to go for nice poly modeling tools (personal opinion only though)

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Registered: Feb 2001
Location: scotland
Posts: 1205

it was given away free on the cover of 3d world more than once too

but i got to agree with your centinments on truespace =) and i started modeling with it i remeber the days i liked it - i tried in oh afew months ago and damn its was horrible lightwave is teh way to go for nice poly modeling tools (personal opinion only though)

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

Thanks guys ... I was afraid that might be that case

Just going to have to bite the bullet and come to grips with Truespace!

Icefire... I found a link for TS3.2 for free ... you get a reg. code from the Caligari website to activate it. I don't know if it is full featured, but the copy I got from a cover CD seems to be, and that is a few years old. I also got one with Truespace 3SE ... which is a trimmed version and doesn't seem to support plugins ... which rules it out!

I have got myself a copy of the older version if LithUnwrap and will get to grips with that.

My first attempts at 3DS import to TS3 ended up with the normals all the wrong way round .... and no sign of a 'flip normals' command on TS :S .... time to hunt out some good tutorials!

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

Thanks guys ... I was afraid that might be that case

Just going to have to bite the bullet and come to grips with Truespace!

Icefire... I found a link for TS3.2 for free ... you get a reg. code from the Caligari website to activate it. I don't know if it is full featured, but the copy I got from a cover CD seems to be, and that is a few years old. I also got one with Truespace 3SE ... which is a trimmed version and doesn't seem to support plugins ... which rules it out!

I have got myself a copy of the older version if LithUnwrap and will get to grips with that.

My first attempts at 3DS import to TS3 ended up with the normals all the wrong way round .... and no sign of a 'flip normals' command on TS :S .... time to hunt out some good tutorials!

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: England
Posts: 2275

quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowPuppet
My first attempts at 3DS import to TS3 ended up with the normals all the wrong way round .... and no sign of a 'flip normals' command on TS :S .... time to hunt out some good tutorials!

---

When you select "import" there's a scaling option, and beneath that, an option called "fix normals". Use it.

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: England
Posts: 2275

quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowPuppet
My first attempts at 3DS import to TS3 ended up with the normals all the wrong way round .... and no sign of a 'flip normals' command on TS :S .... time to hunt out some good tutorials!

---

When you select "import" there's a scaling option, and beneath that, an option called "fix normals". Use it.

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Forgive my stupidity.
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Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

Fix Normals WAS the problem ... my normals were good, and 'Fixing' had flipped them. I unchecked it, and the model imported just fine

On the plus side, the textures mapped to the model seem to have survived, and are showing up fine in TS3.2 ....

fingers crossed ... but I might have got this sorted ... so far

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Registered: Mar 2003
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Posts: 31

Fix Normals WAS the problem ... my normals were good, and 'Fixing' had flipped them. I unchecked it, and the model imported just fine

On the plus side, the textures mapped to the model seem to have survived, and are showing up fine in TS3.2 ....

fingers crossed ... but I might have got this sorted ... so far

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Registered: Aug 2000
Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States
Posts: 1016

now your next step is get the lastest version of POF CS from http://www.sf.net/projects/alliance

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location:
Posts: 31

It's a small victory, but they all count!!!

Today, I managed to successfully create an object in my favourite modelling program ( did I mention I hate Truespace ) import it into Ts3.2, apply rough UV mapping, texture map it properly in Lith Unwrap, load it into PCS, convert it into a POF, and actually have it show up, textured, in the modelviewer!!!

Next step is to stick it into the real game.... once I figure out FRED

Next job will be to build a spacecraft that doesn't look like a half mile long ice lolly

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Registered: Jul 2001
Location:
Posts: 1234

quote:

---

Originally posted by ShadowPuppet
Next step is to stick it into the real game.... once I figure out FRED

---

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Questions about FS3? Questions about Fred? Questions about missions? Questions about adding new ships to your games?

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Registered: Aug 2000
Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States
Posts: 1016

shadow.. you know how to edit the ships.tbl right? and you're using the latest (1.3.3 - March 31st, 2003) version of PCS

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