Improved Max2Dts Exporter
by Stefan Lundmark · 07/03/2007 (3:12 pm) · 31 comments
Improved Max2Dts Exporter
I'm working on a (unofficial) new version of Max2Dts which has some improvements over the older exporter. This one is very different from the Dark Industries exporters in that it does not supply you with any additional tools, it's just the old exporter but more stable and easier to work with.
Download
As of today (10th of July 2007) the improved exporter is no longer available for download. There has been far too many downloads of it compared to the feedback and we're just going to keep it internally instead of supporting a community version.
It's impossible and totally out of our ability to test it ourselves if we're going to support community needed functionallity, rather than the functionallity we need ourselves, and so this is the path that is going to be taken.
Thanks Tim Heldna for an honest try.
Features:
* Exceptionally faster, especially when exporting sequences.
* Less prone to crashes.
* Support for exporting skinned Editable Poly/Patch meshes.
* Detail levels should work again in Max7. Needs more testing.
* More user-friendly UI's.
What I'm looking at next:
* Billboard crashes.
* Blend references crashing when set to anything else than the first frame.
* Even more sanity checking.
Support
As my limited testing only can show as much, I've reached a point where I need testers to be able to nail more bugs. If you think you can help out with testing this beast, please download the exporter above and use it. If you run into any issues, you can send me a message and I'll take a look at it. There are still a ton of bugs that I haven't reproduced or that I know of yet, and if we can work together then this might turn into something even more useful.
Cheers!
About the author
#3
(send me an email, might have a few moments to spare to fix the max8 to 9 differences and compile it with the 9 sdk).
07/03/2007 (4:13 pm)
Yep. We need a max9 version.... =)(send me an email, might have a few moments to spare to fix the max8 to 9 differences and compile it with the 9 sdk).
#4
07/03/2007 (4:24 pm)
Ya no kidding. We've all moved onto Max 9 :)
#6
I'd love to do some export testing with the editable poly thing - but I also need a max9 version ;)
If you give me the source, I can recompile it with the max9 sdk.
(or at least try to =D )
edit: Giggsy@gmx.at
07/04/2007 (2:13 am)
Great!I'd love to do some export testing with the editable poly thing - but I also need a max9 version ;)
If you give me the source, I can recompile it with the max9 sdk.
(or at least try to =D )
edit: Giggsy@gmx.at
#7
07/04/2007 (5:53 am)
Well, some of us are still working in Max 8. ;) Will this work in 8?
#8
I'll see what I can do about Max 8 support.
Edit: Tried to find information about compatibility between versions of plugins, but couldn't find anything. I know Max 4/5 work together, and so does 6/7 and 9/10, but what about 8?
07/04/2007 (6:51 am)
Compiling for Max9/10 involves code changes because some methods have been deprecated in favour of new ones. I'm working on it, should be up in a few hours from now.I'll see what I can do about Max 8 support.
Edit: Tried to find information about compatibility between versions of plugins, but couldn't find anything. I know Max 4/5 work together, and so does 6/7 and 9/10, but what about 8?
#9
07/04/2007 (8:19 am)
At one point the Max 8 SDK was available for free download for development purposes from their site. I still have a copy around in my files I believe. if you need a copy I believe I can make it available to you.
#10
I use Max 8 and tried your exporter and it worked - except Torque crashes on level load. The DTS I exported is a little complicated (LOD, nodes, custom bones, skinning data and transform animations) however it exports and works just fine with the official Max plugins from this site.
I've yet to try a simple object like a primitive cube - I will do this soon so that I may determine whether the above problem is with your plugin or my scene.
07/04/2007 (8:22 am)
In most circumstances Max 7 plugins will work with Max 8, there's very little difference between Max 7 & 8. I use Max 8 and tried your exporter and it worked - except Torque crashes on level load. The DTS I exported is a little complicated (LOD, nodes, custom bones, skinning data and transform animations) however it exports and works just fine with the official Max plugins from this site.
I've yet to try a simple object like a primitive cube - I will do this soon so that I may determine whether the above problem is with your plugin or my scene.
#11
07/04/2007 (8:28 am)
I tried exporting a simple static shape with your exporter and Torque crashes when I drop it into the scene via the mission editor.
#12
So it has been available freely before? Ok. Please do send me anything you can to my public email and I'll make a binary available as soon as I get it.
I haven't tested the exporters with Max 8 and it could be the referencing stuff which was changed around there somewhere. The soldier pack and most weapon packs I've bought export perfectly with Max7 though.
Would you mind if I send you an altered build which you can use to tell me where it crashes?
07/04/2007 (8:51 am)
Quote:
David Dougher said:
At one point the Max 8 SDK was available for free download for development purposes from their site. I still have a copy around in my files I believe. if you need a copy I believe I can make it available to you.
So it has been available freely before? Ok. Please do send me anything you can to my public email and I'll make a binary available as soon as I get it.
Quote:
Tim Heldna said:
I use Max 8 and tried your exporter and it worked - except Torque crashes on level load. The DTS I exported is a little complicated (LOD, nodes, custom bones, skinning data and transform animations) however it exports and works just fine with the official Max plugins from this site.
I haven't tested the exporters with Max 8 and it could be the referencing stuff which was changed around there somewhere. The soldier pack and most weapon packs I've bought export perfectly with Max7 though.
Would you mind if I send you an altered build which you can use to tell me where it crashes?
#13
Max 4 and Max 5 - While you can load Max 4 plugins into 5 there are stability issues and other potential annoyances like incompatability with the Multires modifier.
Max 6, 7 and 8 - This group of three works fine together. No major SDK changes, no compiler changes.
Max 9 and ??? - New compiler and SDK changes mean a break from the compatability. No official word yet if the next Max release will do the same, though the public should know by Siggraph.
07/04/2007 (9:06 am)
The list is as follows:Max 4 and Max 5 - While you can load Max 4 plugins into 5 there are stability issues and other potential annoyances like incompatability with the Multires modifier.
Max 6, 7 and 8 - This group of three works fine together. No major SDK changes, no compiler changes.
Max 9 and ??? - New compiler and SDK changes mean a break from the compatability. No official word yet if the next Max release will do the same, though the public should know by Siggraph.
#14
Can anyone else confirm if they get the same crashes as Tim? Max 9 version has been uploaded.
Oh and Tim, since the exporter doesn't ask you where you want the file (I forgot to add that back in) you'll have to keep the .cfg file in the same directory as the .max file. Failure to do so can crash Torque if the node it wants does not exist in the scene.
07/04/2007 (9:12 am)
Thanks Logan!Can anyone else confirm if they get the same crashes as Tim? Max 9 version has been uploaded.
Oh and Tim, since the exporter doesn't ask you where you want the file (I forgot to add that back in) you'll have to keep the .cfg file in the same directory as the .max file. Failure to do so can crash Torque if the node it wants does not exist in the scene.
#15
I just tested the latest Max 8 plugin you provided, version 0.91, and am still experiencing a crash when loading the exported shape in Torque.
Show Tool shows this in the console:
07/05/2007 (1:21 am)
Quote:Sure, go for it. Although the exporter itself isn't crashing - Torque crashes when trying to load the exported shape.
Would you mind if I send you an altered build which you can use to tell me where it crashes?
I just tested the latest Max 8 plugin you provided, version 0.91, and am still experiencing a crash when loading the exported shape in Torque.
Show Tool shows this in the console:
Quote:
Error: attempt to load a version 78 dts-shape, can currently only load version 24 and before.
#16
Edit: I'll fix it, but I'm suprised you even got the error. Pre 24 shape reading shouldn't have been in Torque since forever.
07/05/2007 (5:35 am)
Woah, what version of Torque is that? 1.2?Edit: I'll fix it, but I'm suprised you even got the error. Pre 24 shape reading shouldn't have been in Torque since forever.
#17
Show Tool Pro, where the error is reported, was probably built from an older version of Torque as it was created a long time ago and doubt that it has been updated to the latest version of Torque.
07/05/2007 (6:07 am)
No, I'm using Torque version 1.4.0. Show Tool Pro, where the error is reported, was probably built from an older version of Torque as it was created a long time ago and doubt that it has been updated to the latest version of Torque.
#18
07/05/2007 (6:31 am)
@Tim: current version for ShowToolPro is 1.04 (build Jan 12 2007). But running echo(getVersionNumber()); in STP shows 1200, so it means that it's based on Torque 1.2... and yeah, it's "quite" old..
#19
That's what I suspected; the engine code that Show Tool Pro uses hasn't been updated. There may be circumstances where there are inaccuracies between models viewed in Show Tool Pro and current versions of Torque, not a good thing.
07/05/2007 (6:44 am)
Thanks Bank, I didn't know about the 'getVersionNumber' function. That's what I suspected; the engine code that Show Tool Pro uses hasn't been updated. There may be circumstances where there are inaccuracies between models viewed in Show Tool Pro and current versions of Torque, not a good thing.
#20
I can't reproduce it though. :/ Neither in TGEA nor TGE 1.4.2.
Are you sure that you have removed (as in, removed from the plugins directory) the official exporter before trying this one? Obvious, yes - but sometimes one forgets.
Additionally, I would really appreciate a DTS file (or even better a .max file) of that static mesh so I could try it out. I appreciate your help, Tim.
07/05/2007 (7:50 am)
Well, you still get a crash in Torque which is bad.. no matter what Show Tool says.I can't reproduce it though. :/ Neither in TGEA nor TGE 1.4.2.
Are you sure that you have removed (as in, removed from the plugins directory) the official exporter before trying this one? Obvious, yes - but sometimes one forgets.
Additionally, I would really appreciate a DTS file (or even better a .max file) of that static mesh so I could try it out. I appreciate your help, Tim.
Torque Owner Alienforce
SYS4096.net
Will test this one later on tonight :)