XSI DTS Exporter Beta Download
by Matt Summers · in Artist Corner · 01/31/2007 (11:24 am) · 181 replies
We are still working on a few things in the core XSI DTS exporter but I wanted to at least get something out into the hands of current XSI owners so they can begin the process of exporting their content from XSI to Torque.
This is last beta version that was sent out to our small group of beta testers. Its relatively stable, and has almost full DTS feature support. Its still missing: material properties, dsq export and a few other miscellaneous things. Also no UI is included in this build as it is still a bit in flux.
Scene setup needs to be done manually, which involves creating a DTS shape using nulls, a bounds mesh, detail markers, and a mesh object with a detail number at the end of its name, etc, in an almost identical way to how the Max, GameSpace and Maya exporters work.
Basic Setup:
create two null objects named "start01" and "base01" parent them so that "start01" is the parent node and "base01" is the child node. Parent the root node of your mesh object to "base01" and then add a bounding box around your object and name it "bounds" the bounds mesh should be either at the scene root or parented to your mesh object as needed. You then need to add a detail marker to the scene named "detail(x)" where (x) = the pixel size value that this detail level should be displayed. The detail maker is just a named null object that is parented to the "start01" node. You will also need to make sure your mesh objects have a detail size at the end of their name. You can then go to file menu / export and choose export DTS.
Example scene setup:
Note: make sure to freeze the transforms on your bounds and mesh objects before exporting. Because the exporter supports scale animation object scale is read by the exporter as a result if there are scale transforms on the exported shape when the object is loaded as a static shape it will appear at its un-scaled state and If it is loaded as an animated shape it would shrink down to its scaled size.
This build is compiled using the XSI 4.2 SDK, the next round of builds will also be compiled using the XSI 5.x-6 SDKs, the performance optimizations in the new SDK will equal faster export speeds than the 4.2 version. Something to note for complex shapes.
Download The Exporter
or
Download the updated exporter
This is last beta version that was sent out to our small group of beta testers. Its relatively stable, and has almost full DTS feature support. Its still missing: material properties, dsq export and a few other miscellaneous things. Also no UI is included in this build as it is still a bit in flux.
Scene setup needs to be done manually, which involves creating a DTS shape using nulls, a bounds mesh, detail markers, and a mesh object with a detail number at the end of its name, etc, in an almost identical way to how the Max, GameSpace and Maya exporters work.
Basic Setup:
create two null objects named "start01" and "base01" parent them so that "start01" is the parent node and "base01" is the child node. Parent the root node of your mesh object to "base01" and then add a bounding box around your object and name it "bounds" the bounds mesh should be either at the scene root or parented to your mesh object as needed. You then need to add a detail marker to the scene named "detail(x)" where (x) = the pixel size value that this detail level should be displayed. The detail maker is just a named null object that is parented to the "start01" node. You will also need to make sure your mesh objects have a detail size at the end of their name. You can then go to file menu / export and choose export DTS.
Example scene setup:
Scene Root
|
+ -bounds (mesh)
|
+ -Start01 (null)
|
+ -Base01 (null)
| |
| + -mesh2 (mesh)(detail size 2)
|
+ -detail2 (null)(detail marker for size 2)Note: make sure to freeze the transforms on your bounds and mesh objects before exporting. Because the exporter supports scale animation object scale is read by the exporter as a result if there are scale transforms on the exported shape when the object is loaded as a static shape it will appear at its un-scaled state and If it is loaded as an animated shape it would shrink down to its scaled size.
This build is compiled using the XSI 4.2 SDK, the next round of builds will also be compiled using the XSI 5.x-6 SDKs, the performance optimizations in the new SDK will equal faster export speeds than the 4.2 version. Something to note for complex shapes.
Download The Exporter
or
Download the updated exporter
About the author
#42
09/06/2007 (12:17 pm)
I just purchased XSI 6.5 and will be working on testing the plugin. Hopefully I can be of assistance in getting this xsi to TGE working. 
#43
09/06/2007 (12:47 pm)
THANK GOD!
#44
Thanks!
09/06/2007 (12:52 pm)
James, I will try to shadow rig and see what I get. I think the key may be plotting the animation to the contraints and not the mesh. I will give it a shot!Thanks!
#45
09/06/2007 (5:40 pm)
@stephen. I look forward to hearing your report.
#46
Neither of them crash xsi 6.02 which is the version I have till they send me a lic for the upgrade.
Need to work on it some more.
09/08/2007 (2:30 am)
Just was messing around with the orc and dwarfNeither of them crash xsi 6.02 which is the version I have till they send me a lic for the upgrade.
Need to work on it some more.
#47
The fact that there now is the XSI mod tool that works directly with XNA is def. gona push XSI forward for game developers.
09/16/2007 (11:17 pm)
Great news for XSI users.The fact that there now is the XSI mod tool that works directly with XNA is def. gona push XSI forward for game developers.
#48
Does anyone know if scale is allowed on the nulls that are used in the envelope? It reads translation and rotation just fine, but if I try to scale the nulls in my rig for some cartoony squash and stretch, it won't show up in ShowTool Pro. Does Torque simply not allow this? Or is there some way to pull it off?
09/17/2007 (3:30 pm)
I am now getting everthing to export correctly with the beta exporter, and I've found that a null shadow rig is the only way to go for exporting skeletal animation. Torque simply does not like XSI bones. You just have to make sure the export hierarchy is setup correctly and it works great for static or animated models. The hierarchy is slightly different for a static mesh as opposed to an animated mesh.Does anyone know if scale is allowed on the nulls that are used in the envelope? It reads translation and rotation just fine, but if I try to scale the nulls in my rig for some cartoony squash and stretch, it won't show up in ShowTool Pro. Does Torque simply not allow this? Or is there some way to pull it off?
#49
09/17/2007 (6:27 pm)
I think only Rotations are baked. At least in maya and max anyway. I'm pretty sure that it is a issue with DTS more than anything.
#50
09/25/2007 (3:12 pm)
Does anyone know a workaround for material transparency?
#51
11/02/2007 (1:44 pm)
Could we get an update on the plug-in status?
#53
11/19/2007 (3:47 pm)
Yup im waiting for the 6.x build aswell
#54
I'm pretty sure that material transparency has nothing to do with the exporter but how the material is defined in the materials.cs file. The exporter should have nothing to do with this.
@CDK:
ModTool is for non comercial use only.
11/26/2007 (7:50 am)
@stephen:I'm pretty sure that material transparency has nothing to do with the exporter but how the material is defined in the materials.cs file. The exporter should have nothing to do with this.
@CDK:
ModTool is for non comercial use only.
#55
Great tool :) I have a question, I'm kind of new to Torque.. I'm moving from another game engine.. our levels are composed entirely out of polymeshes which run in the engine with the equivalent of polysoup.
What I want to do is use this Softimage DTS exporter to do this.
It looks to me like I can have several meshes in a single DTS, while retaining their names. Can Torque "talk to" any of these "sub meshes" (eg apply actions or transformations to them) individually? Or must I create a single DTS file for each one, then somehow reconstruct the scene as a DIF?
Does my question make sense? I want to make an entire scene out of DTS meshes, no BSP geometry. If necessary, to create a DIF which contains all the DTS's in the same positions, if I cannot just do it all in one DTS. Any advice is appreciated :)
Thanks!
12/11/2007 (11:51 am)
Hi,Great tool :) I have a question, I'm kind of new to Torque.. I'm moving from another game engine.. our levels are composed entirely out of polymeshes which run in the engine with the equivalent of polysoup.
What I want to do is use this Softimage DTS exporter to do this.
It looks to me like I can have several meshes in a single DTS, while retaining their names. Can Torque "talk to" any of these "sub meshes" (eg apply actions or transformations to them) individually? Or must I create a single DTS file for each one, then somehow reconstruct the scene as a DIF?
Does my question make sense? I want to make an entire scene out of DTS meshes, no BSP geometry. If necessary, to create a DIF which contains all the DTS's in the same positions, if I cannot just do it all in one DTS. Any advice is appreciated :)
Thanks!
#56
Rather, it would be best in your situation to implement the polysoup collision resource, export the individual DTS's (there is not a way to look at submeshes), and then figure out a portaling solution for culling your view. You could use invisible DIF's. to control zoning, though.
Edit:
I should explain what I mean about reconstructing. I meant converting to DIF. You will not be going through a process to get your DTS files to DIF files.
12/11/2007 (2:53 pm)
You wouldn't be reconstructing anything as a DIF.Rather, it would be best in your situation to implement the polysoup collision resource, export the individual DTS's (there is not a way to look at submeshes), and then figure out a portaling solution for culling your view. You could use invisible DIF's. to control zoning, though.
Edit:
I should explain what I mean about reconstructing. I meant converting to DIF. You will not be going through a process to get your DTS files to DIF files.
#57
THANKS!
12/14/2007 (4:45 am)
Thanks, David.. in terms of the actual level that Torque loads, would it be technically loading a DIF which contains the positions of the individual DTS files, but no BSP geometry? Is that right? So I would need to recreate the scene in terms of DTS positions in a DIF file (but no bsp) and that would run in the engine + polysoup?4THANKS!
#58
You would be loading DTS models and placing them in the world editor. You wouldn't be using DIF's at all.
12/14/2007 (7:57 am)
Actually, with the polysoup resource, polygons are your collision scheme. If you have a complex object or area, the collision will be based upon the polygon that you are touching. There is no view culling, however, so LOD would be extremely important. Using DIF's with null surfaces could also help with zoning and portaling.You would be loading DTS models and placing them in the world editor. You wouldn't be using DIF's at all.
#59
Thanks a lot for your advice and insight. I realized that about polysoup -- I thought DIF were not only for bsp geometry files but also contained the data for the world editor, like the positions of which models (dts) go where (in space). :)
What if I wanted to write a script in XSI which did the following:
1. For each object in the scene, export it as an individual DTS, so I have a folder of multiple DTS's
2. Imagine I have special attributes to each model in XSI, that are used in the game. For each object, these attributes are written to a text file.
3. A "world editor file" (are there specifications of this format around?) is created by the script, which has the positions of each DTS object. The script also assigns the special attributes.
This way, I could re-create my XSI scene in the world editor without having to manually assemble it each time I changed things. My goal is to have a simple but powerful art path without the world editor: I build a scene in XSI with individual, non-animated meshes that have attributes, click a shelf button in XSI to run a script which does steps 1-3 above, then see it running in the game engine immediately.
Any suggestions or thoughts on how I could do this? It seems to me that the big three questions are 1. Is there a way to export multiple -individual- DTS objects out of one scene with this dts exporter, and 2. How one would go about recreating a world editor format file without the world editor (e.g. file format!) and 3. how to run this in the game engine without having to open the world editor and run it from there.
Any advice is welcome! Thanks David & everybody :)
12/14/2007 (9:52 am)
Hi David,Thanks a lot for your advice and insight. I realized that about polysoup -- I thought DIF were not only for bsp geometry files but also contained the data for the world editor, like the positions of which models (dts) go where (in space). :)
What if I wanted to write a script in XSI which did the following:
1. For each object in the scene, export it as an individual DTS, so I have a folder of multiple DTS's
2. Imagine I have special attributes to each model in XSI, that are used in the game. For each object, these attributes are written to a text file.
3. A "world editor file" (are there specifications of this format around?) is created by the script, which has the positions of each DTS object. The script also assigns the special attributes.
This way, I could re-create my XSI scene in the world editor without having to manually assemble it each time I changed things. My goal is to have a simple but powerful art path without the world editor: I build a scene in XSI with individual, non-animated meshes that have attributes, click a shelf button in XSI to run a script which does steps 1-3 above, then see it running in the game engine immediately.
Any suggestions or thoughts on how I could do this? It seems to me that the big three questions are 1. Is there a way to export multiple -individual- DTS objects out of one scene with this dts exporter, and 2. How one would go about recreating a world editor format file without the world editor (e.g. file format!) and 3. how to run this in the game engine without having to open the world editor and run it from there.
Any advice is welcome! Thanks David & everybody :)
#60
I don't know if the exporter supports multiple DTS export. My thought it "probably not" since most do not support this feature. I'm not sure, but can XSI call importers/exporters through its scripting interface? If so, you could move each object to a new layer (or XSI's equivalent) and then call the exporter on each layer until it was finished. It could be quite problematic with animated objects, though, depending on the complexity of exporting animations from XSI. Perhaps anything that is animated should be tagged and exported separately to ensure it goes smoothly.
The world editor uses text files, so creating mission files would be simple as long as you go through them, figure out the settings, and then make use of that knowledge to write them out on export.
You don't have to open the world editor. The missions load. You can open the world editor if you like to tweak changes or line up things after export by pressing F11. But you don't have to.
12/14/2007 (10:05 am)
With what you want, you would need to look into the mission files to see all of the different mission attributes that you would want to add via the XSI export process. You would also want to look at creating datablocks for each DTS object and its associated data. Then you would need to make sure to code the appropriate functionality for them in TorqueScript so that the datablocks could be used.I don't know if the exporter supports multiple DTS export. My thought it "probably not" since most do not support this feature. I'm not sure, but can XSI call importers/exporters through its scripting interface? If so, you could move each object to a new layer (or XSI's equivalent) and then call the exporter on each layer until it was finished. It could be quite problematic with animated objects, though, depending on the complexity of exporting animations from XSI. Perhaps anything that is animated should be tagged and exported separately to ensure it goes smoothly.
The world editor uses text files, so creating mission files would be simple as long as you go through them, figure out the settings, and then make use of that knowledge to write them out on export.
You don't have to open the world editor. The missions load. You can open the world editor if you like to tweak changes or line up things after export by pressing F11. But you don't have to.
Torque Owner Simon Chow