New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Fri Feb 25, 2011 4:30 am

ShinobiWan wrote:Your doing wonders for the mod scene! Keep up the good work!

sixpakken wrote:thx man for doing this great tool :)

Thank you! I really enjoy the great responses and feedback I get on this. In my day-job I'm used to doing back-end things that no one ever really sees and/or understands. So I really get a boost from the positive reactions.

The plus side is that this tool is developing something I already love rather than having to get paid for motivation!

In regards to these most recent updates... the documentation on using them is really slim... but I will get around to it as I get time.

I'm also working on some other Max/Source tools. One I am calling the Wall Worm Sky Writer to render/compile cubemaps/2d sky textures out of Max. The other (as yet un-named) is for making hint brushes... but you'd have to be using Convexity to benefit from that tool.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Mon Mar 07, 2011 2:47 pm

I started getting emails a couple weeks ago about problems with using WWMT for Left 4 Dead. As they started to increase and people started to post about it in the WWMT forum, I decided to get L4D (never played it before) and see what the fuss was. As it turned out, L4D doesn't seem to use the system wide Steam game info setting... and this was causing the WWMT model and texure compiling to fail.

So I've updated the tool to work for L4D at version 0.999.

You have to set the new Game Info Dir in the settings floater to the path where your Left 4 Dead gameinfo.txt file is located. Doing this will let you compile for L4D.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Mon Apr 04, 2011 4:33 pm

There have been a couple updates to WWMT since the last post. The current version is 1.01 and fixes some MAXScript errors that could happen. Here's the full changelog.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby ShinobiWan on Mon Apr 04, 2011 5:58 pm

:smt023
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Tue Apr 05, 2011 4:14 pm

Another update this week... :)

Version 1.1 released 04-05-2011

• Finally Fixed the Use Local Origin as Origin function.
• Moved Use Local Origin as Origin and Alt Origin checkboxes from Lighting & Miscellaneous rollout to Model & Basic QC rollout.
• Fixed the output of $illumposition to accurate position. Previous versions only worked if model's pivot point (local origin) was located at the world origin [0,0,0].
• Fixed $masscenter to output to correct position. Previous versions only worked if model's pivot point (local origin) was located at the world origin [0,0,0].
• Fixed MAXScript error that happened when you deleted a $illumposition helper and then tried to export the model and/or add another $illumposition helper.
• Fixed MAXScript error that happened when you deleted a $masscenter helper and then tried to export the model and/or add another $masscenter helper.
• Changed name of "Sky" scale button to "1/16" and added another one for "1/32" for L4D.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby Carbon14 on Wed Apr 06, 2011 12:45 am

This is fantastic, also really looking forward to updates on the displacement tools. Feeling really lucky that I am a max user right now :D

Hammers displacement system is absolutely horrible. If one day you can for instance auto convert a plane mesh with the right number of polys into a displacement object and then export it would be a dream come true. The main thing that would be a life saver would be being able to use lofts to make things like bendy sloping roads with perfect texture alignment. I am sure that its already possible to some extent if I use your tools and then use snap to vertex to "plaster" your displacement objects onto the lofted mesh, but an easier method would obviously be nice :D
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Sat Apr 09, 2011 4:28 pm

Carbon14 wrote:This is fantastic, also really looking forward to updates on the displacement tools. Feeling really lucky that I am a max user right now :D

Hammers displacement system is absolutely horrible. If one day you can for instance auto convert a plane mesh with the right number of polys into a displacement object and then export it would be a dream come true. The main thing that would be a life saver would be being able to use lofts to make things like bendy sloping roads with perfect texture alignment. I am sure that its already possible to some extent if I use your tools and then use snap to vertex to "plaster" your displacement objects onto the lofted mesh, but an easier method would obviously be nice :D

I did release an update today for the displacement tool... but unfortunately I haven't made progress on the actual design tools of the new displacement tool. However, it will now export your WWMT models as entities into the VMF.

Also, I wanted to note that 3ds Max 2012 came out this week. I'm getting a lot of emails about when WWMT will work in 2012. WWMT itself should work since it is all MAXScript... but the SMD exporters are C++ and will need recompiled with the new SDK. When that happens is up to the inclination and time of Wunderboy and Cannonfodder. I know Wunderboy is working on an update.

Wunderboy might be more inclined to accomodate more quickly with some love on his donation link. Like me, he's providing his tools as a gift to the community. I certainly appreciate his and Cannonfodder's effort. (Cannonfodder doesn't accept donations...)

I personally don't have access to 2012 yet. I hope to have it by Monday but it depends on when Autodesk updates my license to 2012. When I do I'll have more concrete info on the state of WWMT and the SMD exporters.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:30 pm

If you are using the Wunderboy SMD Exporter for WWMT, you will be happy to hear that he's released version 1.6 today. It includes some new features that enhance how WWMT works.

Also, WWMT has had a couple small bug fixes since I last posted. Here's the changelog.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Thu Apr 21, 2011 2:47 pm

WWMT is at version 1.3 and now supports the export of $bodygroup. The docs may be a little vague but I'll make a video outlining the process next week.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Sun Apr 24, 2011 3:31 am

WWMT 1.31 added tonight that fixes export bugs when using Max 2012. If you don't use 2012, this update isn't necessary for you.

Next week I'm fleshing out the $bodygroup function.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Tue Apr 26, 2011 4:55 am

Version 1.4 is out.

•Enhanced the $bodygroup feature to allow multiple $bodygroups. This update changes the way $bodygroups are set... so you will have to relink them according to the new docs if you have already set some up since version 1.3.
•Renamed Texture Utilities Rollout to Utilities.
•Added Quick WWMT button to create WWMT helpers for all selected objects in the scene.
•Added Quick Compile button to export all selected WWMTs (and compile them if the auto compile is set in the tool settings).
•Added All Textures button to compile textures for all selected WWMT helpers.
•Updated the UI to let you choose a new WWMT with the Pick Model button even if there is already a WWMT filled into the UI. The UI will update for the new WWMT.



PS. For those of you already on 3ds Max 2012... WWMT now supports it. Cannonfodder has released his SMD Exporter for 2012; Wunderboy's is soon coming.
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby ShinobiWan on Tue Apr 26, 2011 10:01 pm

Shawn,.. your the best thing to happen to the source modding scene, since,.. ever. :-D
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby WhiteDevil on Tue Apr 26, 2011 10:38 pm

I don't know how or why but that youtube video makes my firefox crash every time I try to watch it :(
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Wed Apr 27, 2011 12:58 am

ShinobiWan wrote:Shawn,.. your the best thing to happen to the source modding scene, since,.. ever. :-D

Thanks Shinobi... though I'm sure such a statement is controversial. But I certainly feel good from the compliment!

WhiteDevil wrote:I don't know how or why but that youtube video makes my firefox crash every time I try to watch it :(

Interesting... I am not certain what it could be. It's just a normal Youtube embed as far as I know.

PS... I guess I should have linked to thenew $bodygroup docs in earlier post.

Also, since I get a large quantity of emails regarding confusion over the setup of the tool, I've added a detailed overview of the path setup of the tool along with an example of setting the right info for the tool to make a fictional model in TF2 at http://wallworm.com/projects/utilities/ ... s_set.html .

Hopefully this spells it out in the best terms for everyone, since I am not certain I can be any more clear on the paths that have to be set. It's kind of the same thing as the old days when you had to manually configure paths in Hammer (or was that Worldcraft back then?) and the same questions kept popping up. The same stuff goes on in the new Hammer too... but it's just automatically handled by Steam now... and unfortunately, in WWMT it is probably always going to require manual setup. It isn't really that hard once you understand... but it's sometimes hard to get across the difference between the SDK Content paths and the game paths, and what has to be done...

Anyway, that's why I added the path setup docs. Hope it helps some of ya'll. :P
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Re: New 3ds Model Tool to expedite Source Model Creation

Postby shawnolson on Mon May 09, 2011 10:09 pm

Version 1.41 released 05-09-2011

•Added more settings to the Quick WWMT tools in the Utilities Tab. You can now pre-assign most of the checkboxes from the Basic Model & QC and Collision Model & Physics rollouts to the Quick WWMT Selections.
•Added Clear From Sel button in Utilities Rollout that will remove all WWMT data and helpers from the selection.
•Updated the Pick Model function to properly clear every possible setting in the UI to the defaults if there is already a WWMT object filling the UI when a new WWMT helper is selected. The 1.4 addition of this feature sometimes left values in the UI if the first model had a property assigned that is, by default, undefined in the WWMT Struct and the second model did not have a value set.
•Caught some more possible exceptions (fringe cases that have been reported and due to pressing some buttons after scene objects have been deleted).
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