Bikerdude: - questions

[Bikerdude]

Morning

 

Now that I have released my Fm im going back through the beginners guid to catch up on the stuff I missed.

Edited January 26, 2011 by Bikerdude

[SneaksieDave]

Did you try clicking the "Use Full Editor" button under the textbox? Not sure, but if that doesn't give you access to the title, it might be that forum members can't do it.

[Bikerdude]

Did you try clicking the "Use Full Editor" button under the textbox? Not sure, but if that doesn't give you access to the title, it might be that forum members can't do it.

Doesn't work, and I dont see why normal forum member cant have access to that feature -I have it on every other forum I use...

[SneaksieDave]

That sucks, and I concur. If possible, a user should be able to do so. Admins?

[greebo]

I had a brief look but didn't find that option in the admin cp. Then again, I'm not a IPB veteran in any way. Maybe modetwo can have a look if he's reading this.

[Tels]

I had a brief look but didn't find that option in the admin cp. Then again, I'm not a IPB veteran in any way. Maybe modetwo can have a look if he's reading this.

 

As far as I know I am not an admin, but I could edit a thread of mine. The trick is one has to use the full editor on the first post of the thread (or at least that is how I did it).

[Bikerdude]

As far as I know I am not an admin, but I could edit a thread of mine. The trick is one has to use the full editor on the first post of the thread (or at least that is how I did it).

I can edit the thread just fine, its the title I cant edit...

[Bikerdude]

# When I create a prefab, how do I lock down the position and origin, without turning the whole thing into a static?

 

- when I import them I get orphan brushes, object's and origin's all over the damn place... which is ****ing annoying - I just spent 2 hrs trying to figure out where a leak was coming from.

[Fidcal]

It's not importing but rotating multi-selections that I think is your problem even if not a prefab. This is a flaw in Dark Radiant at present. There is a button something like 'rotate around origins' or something but I think there are problems either way.

[Baddcog]

Make sure you have nothing else selected before saving (possible you had something in distance selected?)

 

And becareful when rotating, just make sure after rotate everything looks the same, if not cntrl-z right away.

 

It's also easy to deselect then not select everything when you move, leaving stuff behind.

 

I haven't even used them yet but I think layers would help you, don't know if they will save with a prefab, but when you import one, before you do anything save as a layer. All the grouped stuff should stay together now.

--------------

 

Just got to run around your FM for a few. I loved the start point, I think one of the best so far. Felt like home, going out for the night. Great touch.

Didn't get too far tonight, seems like lately I get more screwing around done than anything. I turned on portals to see how yours looked, read something in the thread about performance...

You have a ton of them, looked like one for every window but I didn't notice any I could open so looked in editor. Looks like they are all doors but not frobable. If they don't open you should deffinately make the glass worldspawn and big enough to seal the whole, get rid of the portal (that takes time to compute, and if it's not being used...). Then make the frames func_static.

Don't know if it would help alot but might some. Deffinately something to consider in future works. If you don't need a portal don't use one.

Also, once the frames are func_statics the extra polys against the walls will still render, so pull the frame and caulk the edges, that'll save polys here and there.

----------

Well, I'll play it more tommorrow and NOT use any console commands, they draw me out of the game and make me want to tinker.

[Bikerdude]

It's not importing but rotating multi-selections that I think is your problem even if not a prefab. This is a flaw in Dark Radiant at present.

Oh well, it would have been handy to build new building/s on a empty map then import them into the main map etc.. maybe the new version of DR 1.1.0 will have better results.

 

Another question:-

# Func_portal, How do I make it open and close a VP - a complete example with args:

 

- I haven't been able to find an example of how to get this working(went to the d3 wiki etc and googled), all I wnt to do is have it open the Vp when Ithe player is within say 5m. I've set the distcheck_period and the portal_dist, but it dosent open or close the VP.

Edited January 16, 2010 by Bikerdude

[Fidcal]

I think this is it:

portal_dist <distance in units>

distcheck_period <seconds>

start_on <0 or 1>

 

I did a long long street test some time ago with the func portals embedded in the visportals. If you can't get it to work I could upload it somewheres.

[Bikerdude]

• Make sure you have nothing else selected before saving (possible you had something in distance selected?)
• And becareful when rotating, just make sure after rotate everything looks the same, if not cntrl-z right away, It's also easy to deselect then not select everything when you move, leaving stuff behind.
• I haven't even used them yet but I think layers would help you, don't know if they will save with a prefab, but when you import one, before you do anything save as a layer. All the grouped stuff should stay together now.
• You have a ton of them, looked like one for every window but I didn't notice any I could open so looked in editor. Looks like they are all doors but not frobable. If they don't open you should definitely make the glass worldspawn and big enough to seal the whole, get rid of the portal.

• I had a blank map, the only in it was the new house I just created.
• thats THE problem, everything isnt rotating with everything else - other big complicated prefabs I in TDM rotate perfectly(no missing origins, or orphan brushes), which is whay I am trying to do.
• I dont know about layers, I will have to read up about them.
• I created the windows from scratch(every part of the frame and windows panes aligned and touching) and then tried turned the whole window into afull func_static, but they didnt seal the building space (so made them into func_door, locked and unfrobbable) Also the windows touched the inside of the building walls so why would the engine render the sides still?

So another question -

 

How do I make a window prefab that's been turned into a func_static thats capable of sealing a hole in the side of a building..

[Baddcog]

For layer (just saw this today myself )

Select what you want (the whole prefab), right click>make layer. Probably name it house or whatever. It should al rotate together.

 

func_statics don't seal. So a func_static in a window won't seal the hole. Unless you make it a door/vis portal.

So instead leave the window glass (doesn't work if it's transparent though) worldspawn and that will seal the hole, no need for portal then.

Just make the trim/frame a func_static to save on calculation time for pathfinding...

 

You have to caulk unseen faces of func_statics because ONLY worldspawn unseen faces are removed. If you turn on r_showtris 2 you will see polys for the edges of the func_static windows, so you render more then needed. So the sides of the glass will be cut during compile (because you leave them world spawn) but the sides of the func_static frame won't be cut.

 

Then you have a choice, make the inside of window trim/frame seperate from the outside or leave as one piece.

1 piece is easier for sure, takes fewer brushes and doesn't add up entity count as much. So it has benefits. Drawback being that the entire frame will be rendered on both sides of the wall. That obviously is usually better for the outside of a building.

2 pieces is just the opposite. Better because it will only render the indie or outside of frame depending on closed portals, but you double the entity count, have to do more work and it takes twice as many brushes.

In most cases I'd just do one piece frames. But if you have an area where you are pushing performance to the max you might want inside/outside frames there.

[Serpentine]

When I was testing out using woldspawn windows for your map I converted one of the static windows to brushes then made it back into a static, from there I made a new layer and replaced all the windows with the new static version, easier for dragging around etc. When it came time to save and test etc I just selected them all and reverted to worldspawn.

 

As for the issue with rotating etc, I found that usually comes in if your section that you have pasted or I assume imported from a prefab includes statics or other entities, since they reference the origin of the map, when you rotate they will leave their vertex in some strange place. If the entities are just brushes you can select them all and revert to worldspawn, more complex things will require more manual work.

[Bikerdude]

Question:

# if I have two end cap patch's, making up a ceiling of a tunnel for example and they both intersect at 90 degrees to each other, how do I merge them...?

 

Edited January 19, 2010 by Bikerdude

[Fidcal]

There are at least three things in that sentence I don't understand. I can only guess you mean align the edges so look at tasselation in Patch inspector.

[Nielsen74]

If it´s "just" the alignment of the edges you meen then hav a look at KomagTutTDM Arches

[Bikerdude]

There are at least three things in that sentence I don't understand. I can only guess you mean align the edges so look at tasselation in Patch inspector.

 

Sorry, tired. Too early in the morning - cant sleep.

 

From the 'patch menu' I selected 'create end cap' to creat a curved arched ceiling for a tunnel - but what I'd like to do is when teo tunnels meet, I dont have to do some square 'junction' room - I would like the two curved ceiling to merge and creat a smooth x shape as you look up...

[Nielsen74]

see my post above, that vidio tut explans now to doo that!

[Bikerdude]

see my post above, that vidio tut explans now to doo that!

I forgot about his tut, Komag is great for his tuts.. speaking of which are there any more of them..?

[Nielsen74]

Hav a look at the Keep , I think there is more tut´s on the way

[Bikerdude]

Question:-

 

I make - ' textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_lit ' brighter, as its far too dull for my intended use. I have found and downloaded Gimp and the dds plugin....

[Fidcal]

Question:-

 

I make - ' textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_lit ' brighter, as its far too dull for my intended use. I have found and downloaded Gimp and the dds plugin....

 

No, don't brighten the texture. Use textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_selflit instead. You do not need any other light in front of this as it is self illuminating. If it is not in Release 1 then it will be in the next update. But you can make it now and include it with your pk4. But rename the def path so there is no conflict in the future,eg:

 

 

textures/BikerDude/window/diamond_pattern01_selflit

{

glass

noselfshadow

qer_editorimage textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_lit_ed

diffusemap textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_self_lit

{

blend add

map textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_self_lit

rgb 1

}

specularmap textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_s

bumpmap textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_local

}

 

 

Note that the rgb 1 affects the brightness range 0 to 1 but you should find 1 is fine.

 

[EDIT] NOTE THERE IS NO SPACE IN THE PATH - THAT IS JUST CAUSED BY THE QUOTE IN THIS FORUM.

[Bikerdude]

No, don't brighten the texture. Use textures/darkmod/window/diamond_pattern01_selflit instead. You do not need any other light in front of this as it is self illuminating. If it is not in Release 1 then it will be in the next update. But you can make it now and include it with your pk4. But rename the def path so there is no conflict in the future

yeah, I don't have that texture in my version, but I'm running an update now and it seems to be replacing a handful of pk4's - so hopefully the new texture is there this update.

 

Regarding all that code - atm I have no idea how or what do do with it.....

Edited January 21, 2010 by Bikerdude