Billboards and Collada exports?

#1 The collada loader does look for the BB:: prefix, the only issue might be the billboard settings, which are obviously not part of the collada spec and are therefore up to the 3d app to export correctly. I know we had it working with MAX in the past. Could you post the part of the .dae file that contains the billboard info?

Alternatively, you can use TSShapeConstructor to add autobillboards to both Collada and DTS shapes when they are loaded into Torque. See the Artist Section of docs.garagegames.com/torque-3d/official.

#2 I'm pretty confused about how ColladaMax is being developed and distributed, but I have found that the version of the ColladaMax NextGen exporter available at OpenCollada does export User Properties. From the Collada file I exported this morning:

<node id="node-BB__detail2" name="BB__detail2">
          <extra>
            <technique profile="OpenCOLLADA">
              <user_properties>DIM=100
EQUATOR_STEPS=3
POLAR_STEPS=0
POLAR_ANGLE=45
INCLUDE_POLES=0
DL=1</user_properties>
            </technique>
          </extra>
        </node>

The exported mesh shows correct autobillboarding in Torque 3D.

I exported from Max 2009, but the installer did give the option for a Max 2010 install, and the version I got was update on 2009-09-25... well after 2010's release. So I'm assuming it will work there, too.

Very pleased. I just need to double-check that this version of ColladaMax exports vertex coloring correctly (I seem to remember previous version of ColladaMax NOT exporting it correctly), and I've found my new Collada exporter. :)

Edit: You must check "Export user defined properties" upon export, by the way.

#3 I am having problems with COLLADA bilboards too. I add a prefix "BB::" to my shape and export. When loaded in T3D it behaves like a bolboard but appears black.
How to get bilboards working with collada?
By the way if I export the shape with "BB::" prefix the COLLADA loader creates in the same folder these two files, that I don't need at all:
myshape.dae.imposter.dds
myshape.dae.imposter_normals.dds

#4

Quote:I add a prefix "BB::" to my shape and export. When loaded in T3D it behaves like a bolboard but appears black.

To my knowledge, you are not supposed to add a "BB::" prefix to your shape (at least for autobillboarding). You are supposed to create a detail marker with "BB::" in the name, just as you would create an LOD detail marker.

So, for instance, in the hierarchy, next to a dummy node named "detail200" you would have one named "BB::detail30". No additional mesh is needed.

#5 @Russell

Sorry I am confused are you saying thats the expected functionality for billboards in Collada or Billboards for DTSs in general?

If its for DTSs in general I know I have never setup a billboard that way. AFAIK for normal DTSs, it expect the prefix before the mesh name (since you can have Billboards be a part of a LOD level). But I wouldnt be surprised if this changed for Collada DAE, lots of other scene markup conventions got changed with it.

#6 Russell,
thanks for that information , but even doing that I couldn't manage to get the bilboard working. T3D still shows it black and it still generates these two useless DDS files.

The hierarchy is pretty simple itself. I've exported many things so far from items to complex characters via the old classic DTS exporter.
So I must be doing everything fine.

I can't find a documentation about that. Nowhere is an explanation how to do bilboards with COLLADA. Also...there is no documentation about doing simple stuff with COLLADA (items , characters , etc.) I have no problems using the old DTS exporter to do these things but what about the new users? Somebody who is very new will spend several weeks before exporting a simple character.
Do I have to throw dices every time I am trying to export something? :)

#7 Logan, you may be right. I might be confusing it with the autobillboarding we set up for the Forest Kit. My apologies.

#8 So how did you setup the billboards? Did you export them via COLLADA?

#9 Yes, please, how do you setup real billboard (not auto-billboard) in Max ?

#10

Quote:Yes, please, how do you setup real billboard (not auto-billboard) in Max ?

1. Apply the bugfix here (or wait for the next build of T3D which will include it).

2. Prefix your mesh name in MAX with BB:: or BB_ for a normal billboard (always face the camera) or BBZ:: or BBZ_ for a Z billboard (always face camera, but only rotate in the Z axis).

#11 Thanks. I will try it.

#12 Hi Chris,

sorry but this method doesn't seems to work for me : the mesh whose name is prefixed with BB:: doesn't behave like a billboard : I can turn around and see all its faces. It doesn't always face the camera.

Nicolas Buquet
www.buquet-net.com/cv/

#13 My bad - that should have read "Prefix the name of the node that instantiates the mesh", rather than the mesh name itself. I just did that here (by manually editing a collada file) and both BB:: and BBZ:: worked fine.