Re: Model Viewer Interface

[demagogue]

A quick note that the link to the "model viewer interface", whatever you want to show the public, isn't public and takes us to an "unauthorized" screen. (See how us interested outsiders are still somewhat useful around here?)

 

While I'm on the subject ... the swappable heads for AI models is a good idea. Also potential for hybrid creatures here too, fish-men and the like. Probably more importantly, it allows for singular identification of particular AI, so you can give them a backstory and it's good for in-game narrative. E.g., you have a better way of identifying a particular AI you have to deal with (by pertinent facial features) than the T2 approach of having to literally knock them out and pick up their body to see their names to be sure.

 

The third guy on the right in your screenshot looks a little sickly there. Don't mess with that guy.

Edited October 20, 2006 by demagogue

[New Horizon]

We will be fixing the link later today, but until then...here is the screenshot.

 

[Springheel]

While I'm on the subject ... the swappable heads for AI models is a good idea. Also potential for hybrid creatures here too, fish-men and the like.

 

Yep. We already have plenty of default zombie heads too, though we'd need to make some messed up textures to apply to the bodies if it were to really work. Not only that, but we've made helmets and headgear also swappable, so you can pick a body, a head, and headgear in any combination. Lots more variety that way. The helmet you choose will determine how easy or difficult it is to KO an AI, so the mapper has a lot of control over that.

[demagogue]

Thanks for posting the .jpg here.

 

I just read the TTLG thread on this and figured out you can open the link in a new window, and then hit refresh and then the .jpg comes up. Strange. (edit: is there a way to change the sub-title of this thread?) Anyway, it looks pretty cool if I'm understanding what's going on. Coming from a dromed background it's quite welcome.

 

Re: swappable. It's becoming obvious that one advantage of TDM over a commercial game with SDK, which isn't so obvious at first, is that you are tailoring it to a high level of author-freedom/flexibility. You aren't pidgeonholeing the assets and functionality to just what you need to scrape through one game. Although people have added assets and scripts, etc, to dromed over the years ... this is sort of a more radical take on it, since it has author freedom at the center from the very beginning. So I get the idea that working with it will feel much freer than what we're used to from past SDKs.

Edited October 20, 2006 by demagogue

[New Horizon]

Re: swappable. It's becoming obvious that one advantage of TDM over a commercial game with SDK, which isn't so obvious at first, is that you are tailoring it to a high level of author-freedom/flexibility. You aren't pidgeonholeing the assets and functionality to just what you need to scrape through one game. Although people have added assets and scripts, etc, to dromed over the years ... this is sort of a more radical take on it, since it has author freedom at the center from the very beginning. So I get the idea that working with it will feel much freer than what we're used to from past SDKs.

 

The other major advantage is cross platform compatability. Doom 3 runs natively on Mac, Linux and Windows. I just setup Doom 3 on Linux this morning and it runs better than my windows installation. Who knows whether Linux or Mac will end up taking the crown from windows, regardless...when the doom 3 code goes open source...it should be possible to make it work with any OS. The mod currently isn't working on linux yet, as we haven't prepared it to do so, but I hope to try it out in the not too distant future.

[OrbWeaver]

Man, Windows is ugly. Here is a better shot of the model selector with its bounding box display mode active:

 

[New Horizon]

Nice, that option wasn't there when I took the screen shot. Great work as always Orbweaver.

 

You've made a convert out of me, that's for sure. I'm installing Vmware as we speak, and I'm only going to run windows on a virtual machine if I absolutely need to. I really hate having to boot out of linux to do something silly in windows. I've found free vector art software, so I don't have to rely solely on Adobe Illustrator anymore. I feel like a great weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.

[OrbWeaver]

I've found free vector art software, so I don't have to rely solely on Adobe Illustrator anymore.

 

In case you haven't yet found both Xara X and Inkscape, they are both worth looking at.

 

You've probably already heard of GIMP for image editing and Blender for modelling. For audio editing there is Audacity or Rezound, MIDI sequencing is provided by Rosegarden4, office applications are OpenOffice, KOffice or the GNOME office programs (AbiWord, Gnumeric etc).

 

I feel like a great weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.

 

That's what proprietary software does to you. You get to use the software in the way that they tell you for as long as they tell you and subject to any restrictions they feel like placing on you. It is quite noticeable how many useful pieces of proprietary freeware (like the old PKZIP 2.04g) eventually become commercial and require payment, and there's nothing you can do about it other than finding Free alternatives.