Question Mesh making with Anim8or

[misha.physics]

I've just seen the Starfury Aurora and other your vessels require VB (they use VB module). Maybe they only use the basic VB functions without animations, etc.

 

[misha.physics]

I found how to look at vertex coordinates of different meshes in a global reference frame in Anim8or. Just selected all meshes and then the command "Build->Join Solids" made one mesh from several ones.

 

[misha.physics]

I'm wondering what's a good/simple way to render both sides of a mesh face. For example, I made a test cube with a transparent window, and it looks:



I've seen notes in 3DMode.pdf document:



But I have no idea and I need an advice how I could do this. Namely make transparent windows for buildings to see through them the internal walls, make a glass cabin for a plane to see through it the interior of the aircraft, etc.

 

[Blake]

In Orbiter, the interior needs to be a separate object from the exterior (the object with the window). For example, if you want to see the pilot through the canopy window, the pilot is a separate object from the canopy, and must be sorted so that it comes before the canopy window in the mesh file. Then it will render, followed by the canopy.

 

[misha.physics]

Thanks. It sounds difficult. So, I can't even make a building with double walls (using some faces extruding) to get only one mesh for walls, and it still won't make the interior to be visible through the transparent window?

 

[misha.physics]

Sorry, what do you mean by separate objects? Is it separate meshes or separate groups of a single mesh?

Could the two separate objects be enough? The first object will be the double walls and the double roof of a building, and the second object will be the transparent window (with two sides as well).

 

[Blake]

A mesh file is comprised of 'objects' or 'groups' that are defined in the mesh. The order they exist in the file is the order they will render in Orbiter. Also, a 'triangle' only has one side that will ever be visible to the renderer, a two-sided triangle is just two triangles.

So, if you wanted a box that you can see inside, you would model the outside of the box as an object (I'm not familiar with how Animator handles separate objects.) The 'inside' would need to be a separate object that you model 'inside-out'. This is sort of what you do with a virtual cockpit, you model the inside of the cockpit (or building in your case) with the visible side of the triangles pointed in. Your 'inside' group would then need to come in the mesh file before the 'outside' group.

 

[misha.physics]

I've made a box with an interior which is visible through a transparent window:



I'm using the glass texture:



I've added an alpha channel with 50% Grey to it using Photoshop, but in the game the window looks very transparent. I've tried to change the alpha channel intensity in Photoshop and change the opacity parameter in the *.msh file, but it doesn't affect the glass appearance in the game. So, is it possible to make the glass less transparent? Editing the *.msh file I can only give the window a different colour:



And if I understand correctly there's no way for now to make the DGs shadow to be not visible inside the box (see the 1st picture), yes?

 

[Buck Rogers]

the window looks very transparent

There are 2 ways to control transparency, Material- open a .msh in notepad, at the bottom are the materials, with 4 values for each aspect (ambient, diffuse, emission, and specular which has extra power values), these are RGBA, A is a for alpha, drop the 4th value to 0 and the object becomes invisible.
You can also do this on a texture level but you need to save the .dds in DXT.5 and not DXT.1 format

Your box isn't casting shadows? Is it flagged?

 

[misha.physics]

Your box isn't casting shadows? Is it flagged?

I've found that's because I haven't added the SHADOW command into my base *.cfg file. With this command my box casts shadows. Thanks.

I've tried different (0, 1, 0.5) values for those 4 variables (<da>, <aa>, <sa>, <ea>), and it doesn't affect the window appearance in the game at all. The only changing a transparency on a texture level gives a difference in the game.

But if no texture is used, then those 4 variables affects the transparency in the game:

 

[Buck Rogers]

SHADOW command into my base *.cfg

Ah it's a base object, they're a little different.

no texture is used, then those 4 variables affects the transparency

I think textures override the material settings (I'll be honest I'm having to relearn a lot, when I'm further on with the Thunder Fighter VC I'll be dealing with transparencies)