Project Working on my first addon

[Shadow Addict]

So in the past few days, I've decided to try my hand at actually creating an addon. I picked up Blender yesterday and after following a tutorial to get the basics I created this:

Not much but I'm rather proud of how it turned out. I have no idea how to texture it, and I'm not going to worry about that for a while. However I've hit sort of a mental block about what to do with it now. Any suggestions/feedback on things I could add/change?

 

[Bj]

So in the past few days, I've decided to try my hand at actually creating an addon. I picked up Blender yesterday and after following a tutorial to get the basics I created this:



Not much but I'm rather proud of how it turned out. I have no idea how to texture it, and I'm not going to worry about that for a while. However I've hit sort of a mental block about what to do with it now. Any suggestions/feedback on things I could add/change?

You could add some fins (4) by the bottom and small fins (3) near the top, would look more stable during launch.

Nice mesh at any rate.

 

[Woo482]

Looks nice :thumbup: now the next step is to get it in orbiter

 

[Kaito]

Nice job!
For practice, try modeling some RCS thrusters. Other then that, it's good! Much better then my first model >_>

 

[dumbo2007]

looks like a torpedo !!......add in some propellors too !!

 

[Shadow Addict]

Thanks for the feedback, right now I'm planning on giving it a few more details, MAYBE figuring out how to give it a simple texture, then putting it into Orbiter, I guess using spacecraft3.dll? I've never used it but it seems like the place to start (though if I stick with addon-making, I plan on writing my own .dlls as soon as I'm able).

 

[Woo482]

for a simple spacecraft, Spacecraft3.dll is fine, though if you want to do anything advance you'd need to learn how to write your own .dll's

 

[Shadow Addict]

Yeah, it'll be a while before I can do anything advanced in any case (just started with C++ yesterday and my only programming experience beforehand is with Python so I have a loooooong way to go). I'd sorta like to start coding my own .dlls right away but I know that isn't realistic, and there's no point in wasting spacecraft3.dll to get some experience before I can make my own.

 

[Sar]

In my experience the SDK documentation and the example codes in it are very good in orbiter. I only have C++ experience for about a year and a half of on/off coding for console and I still managed to make a simple dll for a station module, nothing fancy like animations yet though. If I only had no work to do and family I'd have time to make addons, but as of now it's a no go.

 

[Notebook]

Yeah, it'll be a while before I can do anything advanced in any case (just started with C++ yesterday and my only programming experience beforehand is with Python so I have a loooooong way to go). I'd sorta like to start coding my own .dlls right away but I know that isn't realistic, and there's no point in wasting spacecraft3.dll to get some experience before I can make my own.

Shadow Addict, SC3 is a great bit of software, nice thing about it is its .ini file looks like the paramaters you need for a .dll. So you can get a taste of what they do.
I'm working on a project with SC3, tried the .dll route, but that was too difficult for my level of C++(nill)! I'll go back to it when I finish the SC3 project.

This is what I'm working on at the moment:
http://www.orbiter-forum.com/showthread.php?t=10567
Its getting a bit long..., but it has got a lot of useful replies to problems I've had. Still trying to get some of the animations to work smoothly, but I think thats just tweaking.

N.

 

[Shadow Addict]

Yeah, I'll start with SC3. Right now I'm working on a basic embellishments (I'm sort of at a loss to things to add) and trying to figure out how to texture this thing. Is there a good resource for learning to texture rockets?

 

[Notebook]

I did a search on "Blender Texturing" and get this:
http://orbiter-forum.com/search.php?searchid=619890

Of course, you get a lot more on a Google search, but they may be too generic. I guess you will have to look through that lot. Afraid I don't use Blender, and can't help there, but hopefully others can.

I'm sure Dan Steph did a tutorial on optimising meshes, and using textures, but I can't find it. Thought I'd seen it recently when I was looking through his UCGO documentation, but it must have been a mirage!

N.

 

[kevinvr]

I did a search on "Blender Texturing" and get this:
http://orbiter-forum.com/search.php?searchid=619890

Of course, you get a lot more on a Google search, but they may be too generic. I guess you will have to look through that lot. Afraid I don't use Blender, and can't help there, but hopefully others can.

I'm sure Dan Steph did a tutorial on optimising meshes, and using textures, but I can't find it. Thought I'd seen it recently when I was looking through his UCGO documentation, but it must have been a mirage!

N.

Yes, I think it is in his UCGO documentation under the SDK stuff. I think you click on "developer" documents.

 

[Notebook]

Thanks kevinr, I thought it was just me!

On another thing, I must be doing something wrong with the "new posts" tab, I had to go looking for your reply. It didn't come up as it used to do.

N.

 

[kevinvr]

, I must be doing something wrong with the "new posts" tab, I had to go looking for your reply. It didn't come up as it used to do.

N.

You're Welcome.
Try using "Today's Posts" I think it works a little better.
Look forward to seeing your addon when it's ready!:thumbup:

 

[Notebook]

Yes, I think "Today's Posts" are the way to go, I think I'm getting confused because there are so many posts at the moment, and I forget which posts I'm looking at! Or I'm just permanently confused...

Edit:This is the document:
http://www.dansteph.com/publie/tutorial/Texturing.html



Re: my project, added a bit more info/requests on the page:
http://www.orbiter-forum.com/showthread.php?p=148317#post148317

N.

 

[Shadow Addict]

I've been hitting quite a few problems in my experimentation, and as a result my rocket hasn't progressed at all past the first post. I tried a few things such as adding a Redstone-like box to go over the engine bell and a feed line that would start on the upper body of the rocket and follow the contours down to the engine, but my knowledge of Blender is simply too limited. I'm fairly committed to learning at this point, however, and before I jump into the hugely non-specific community of Blender artists on the Internet, I was hoping there would be a member of the O-F community that uses Blender who could answer some rocket-specific modeling questions. I think cjp uses Blender, and I've messaged him about it. Are there any other people on O-F who use Blender?

 

[orb]

Are there any other people on O-F who use Blender?

I'm using Blender, but not for Orbiter actually. I was modeling a new layout of furniture for my home lately.

And all my models for Orbiter with Blender's help I've made in Notepad, only with assistance of Blender for reading vertex coordinates, because they were very simple (less than 200 vertices, and 100 faces).

 

[Kelpie]

Have been looking at Blender and Wings3d myself over the last few months, I found Wings3d easier to use initially but persevered with blender and once you get used to it's interface you realise how powerful a program it is.

Here are some of the resources I have been using.

http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Main_Page
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Doc:Manual/Textures/UV
http://www.blendercourse.com/English.aspx
http://tutlinks.tripod.com/novice.html

Hope this helps

 

[Shadow Addict]

I'm using Blender, but not for Orbiter actually. I was modeling a new layout of furniture for my home lately.

And all my models for Orbiter with Blender's help I've made in Notepad, only with assistance of Blender for reading vertex coordinates, because they were very simple (less than 200 vertices, and 100 faces).

Could I ask you some questions anyway? I have quite a few, and I can provide screenshots of my problems. The more I think about it, I realize that some of them are sort of generic problems.

Have been looking at Blender and Wings3d myself over the last few months, I found Wings3d easier to use initially but persevered with blender and once you get used to it's interface you realise how powerful a program it is.

Here are some of the resources I have been using.

http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Main_Page
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Doc:Manual/Textures/UV
http://www.blendercourse.com/English.aspx
http://tutlinks.tripod.com/novice.html

Hope this helps

Thanks for the resources! That's why I want to stick with Blender; people say it's hard to start with, but it's powerful when you get used to it.