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Instructor
#126 Old 28th Jan 2005 at 8:34 PM
Quote: Originally posted by wes_h
I think THOSE refer to the 'action spots', as opposed to the 'bones' that would be used for IK animation ...


I found accessories when looking around with SimPE that looks at some point there were earings planed in the game ... I wonder exactly if those are just trash data or Maxis is going to "update" the game with earings and other things at some point in the future.
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Test Subject
#127 Old 28th Jan 2005 at 9:20 PM
please helppppppppp

anybody cam please give me links to all the theards that i need to see if i want to edit a objects mesh... pleaseeee
Lab Assistant
#128 Old 28th Jan 2005 at 11:40 PM
I would suggest looking at threads where wes_h has posted. Thats what I did, lol.
Forum Resident
#129 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 4:56 PM
Cool When Is This For Download? Is This A Stand Alone Program Or What To I need Or Will Need?
Thanks
Guest
#130 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 6:38 PM
Default A free program to export and import .objs
First of all :clap: thankyou to the trio; Delphy, Miche and Wes: we will always be on debt for your efforts. I clap you with my ears! :elephant: and kiss the soil you walk on :bow:

Then I want to recommend a program no one talks about which I find easy to use, imports and exports .objs and most important is absolutely free. It is made by Daz3D, the creators of Victoria and Mike, the poser figures. They run a very good commercial site which has been growing during these last years earning money selling the figures but they are giving free this wonderful program. Really is not free, is 'taleware' which means you should talk about it if you like it.

Thats what I'm doing now because, even though my praise could be mistaken, my sole relation with them is that of a satisfied customer.

It is called DAZStudio, http://www.daz3d.com/studio/ , is in a beta form but very advanced in its development.

I am not sure if it works for the purpose of this thread as I don't know yet how to use the objects part of SimPE but it certainly exports and imports .obj as you can see attached with this import from Poser5 without textures.

The other attachment is a render of the same oject imported to Maya directly from Poser5 by the means of p2go and p2m (poser to maya) that you can find very cheap in Renderosity.

¡Bravo otra vez!
Screenshots
Nearly alive
Original Poster
#131 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 6:46 PM
While Daz3d studio looks a good program (I haven`t tried it though), it doesn`t look like it will be much use for the purpose of creating objects for the game.

As it seems to me from reading the website, that it only allows existing objects to be loaded into and moved around , to make a "scene". Not for new objects to be made or those existing objects to be modified.
Guest
#132 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 6:48 PM Last edited by jerife : 29th Jan 2005 at 6:53 PM. Reason: adding
Maybe the right combination is then Poser5, p2m and Maya, but they are not free

Nevertheless you can change textures too in Daz3dStudio
Nearly alive
Original Poster
#133 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 7:02 PM
Quote: Originally posted by jerife
Maybe the right combination is then Poser5, p2m and Maya, but they are not free

Nevertheless you can change textures too in Daz3dStudio



I don`t think poser is going to be much use, not to start with anyway, you can`t import the meshes (body meshes) from that into the game, as they don`t included the need animation data. When changing the meshes of the sims themselves and their clothes, you currently will be only to make some changes to the existing meshes.
Alchemist
#134 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 9:46 PM
Quote: Originally posted by LaserArcSims
Making the meshes isn't the problem there. But getting them into the game is definately the trick. You definately cannot use the Milkshape 3D plugin to turn them back into Sims 2 file format. You lose all the animation abilities that way. My teens looked really scary, as in arms perm stuck out like a scarecrow dummy! EEK!


I prefaced my posting with that fact!
While there is a ways to go yet, we understand a lot more about how the skeleton and animation points are constructed and placed in the GMDC. Te animations themselves are else where.
I have extracted the skeleton data and placed it with a model, together with the bone assignments. I am still working on reversing that process.
I believe I have enough information to allow an object like the 'Alienware Computer' to be imported, heavily modified and exported again, retaining it's functionality.
I still have a ways to go for body meshes, though. There are several data sections that remain a mystery. Body meshes also take advantage of bone weighting, where a vertex is assigned to more than one bone and then each point is assigned a weighting for it's influence. You see this especially around joints, and it makes for a more natural animation appearance.
Unfortunately, MilkShape does not support multiple bone assignments or bone weighting. It appears unlikely that it will be a tool that can be used to make nice body meshes.
Those programs that do support bone weighting are pretty expensive. I personally refuse to spend that much money on a program (maya and 3DS run about $2,000 and $1,000 U.S.) in order to make something that will be given away.
<* Wes *>

If you like to say what you think, be sure you know which to do first.
Field Researcher
#135 Old 29th Jan 2005 at 11:07 PM
This is the closed beta program right?
Nearly alive
Original Poster
#136 Old 30th Jan 2005 at 12:53 AM Last edited by Miche : 30th Jan 2005 at 1:12 AM.
Quote: Originally posted by EternalxLove26
This is the closed beta program right?


Not any long, has been released now.
Test Subject
#137 Old 30th Jan 2005 at 6:01 AM
wher can a get it (the program)
Administrator of Loverat's Tea and Underpants
#138 Old 30th Jan 2005 at 6:24 AM
madsim2254, go to the front page of the site. There is an announcement with a link.
Forum Resident
#139 Old 30th Jan 2005 at 8:32 PM
Quote: Originally posted by RGiles
madsim2254, go to the front page of the site. There is an announcement with a link.


Where is this link I can not find it at all. Thank you!

"This too shall pass, I shall walk and not become weary, I shall run and not faint, I shall mount up with wings like and eagle and fly."
Test Subject
#140 Old 30th Jan 2005 at 8:46 PM
In the news article, there is a link to the mesh tool website. On that site, there is a link to downloads. It is there.
Field Researcher
#141 Old 31st Jan 2005 at 1:44 PM
Hi. Thank you, first of all, to the team that made the Sims 2 Mesh Tool. It does look like, once I understand it properly, I'll be able to make my own meshes. I downloaded it last night, and copied the tutorial that came with it, and followed it to the letter. I tried 3 objects without success. My process was to:

extract the file with the wizard
convert the file to a 3ds with 3d Explorer
import it into gmax
modify it*
export it as a .md3 file using a plugin I found online (it's very difficult finding plugins for gmax that will allow the user to export anything that another program can use. Quake seems to have motivated more people, than any other game, to make plugins and 3d Explorer can convert these files into .obj files - then let's see if I remember)
export the new mesh as a .md3
convert it back into .obj with 3d explorer
follow the tutorial using both the Mesh Tool and SimPE (very latest version I could find - 14h)
put the finished and saved package file into the downloads folder.

Right. I have questions and anomalies and maybe someone can help/explain.

The first object I tried was an armchair using the blue suede chair as a base. I thought that would be easy as it has only one texture component! I did this one before I found the plugin for exporting .md3 from gmax and what I used was a thing called a listener window in gmax with a script that I'd found that allowed you to, laboriously, copy the text of the file onto a text document and save it with the extension .obj.

I got an error message at the wizard's import stage that said there were no 'normals' but I ploughed on with the process. That object didn't show up, in game, in any shape or form. Not in the catalogue. Not anywhere. So I found the export .md3 plugin and tried with the chair again.

This time I got it into the game but it looked horrendous. It showed in the catalogue. I placed it on a lot (took a picture of it incase anyone was interested). It had the texture on it that I'd applied in the last stages of the SimPE step but it looked transparent and 'gritty'. So I opened the .obj file in 3d explorer and it did look awful there too and that's where I twigged that (with gmax at least)

you have to attach your object to the maxis original and take the texture information from the maxis original before deleting the original and saving. It sould look matt grey in gmax.

I tried with an armoire next. I thought I'd just do a tiny bit of alteration (small steps to start with you know). An armoire was maybe a bad choice because there are so many components and I have a question about that (later in this post). I followed all the steps and, although it showed in the catalogue, it didn't appear when I clicked on it.

The third thing I tried was a very basic table using the exploding dragon table as a base and the result of that, in game, was the shadow of a table with a little bit of the recolouring on the ground.


Ok.,

The additional components that export and import with the objects using the Mesh Tool.

Shadows
Reflections
Handles (in some cases)
Clothes (in some cases)
The east walls and west walls and whatever

What do we do with these? Are we supposed to delete any of the extraneous parts at the object editing stage? Are we supposed to rename any of this stuff or not? Do we have to get GUIDs for all of these bits and pieces? Should we ignore any reference to an item that isn't the actual object itself?

GUIDs
Do we have to be online everytime we try to make or modify a mesh to get a GUID? I know they're something to do with not overwriting another object but that's about it. Should we register new object with every object and every component of an object? Am I as thick as two short planks?

I'm not holding out for a miracle here but if someone can just say 'Stupid girl. THIS is what you're doing wrong.' I'd be very grateful. And I'm probably in the wrong forum again and yes - I'm off now to jump from forum to forum looking for the idiot's guide to the Mesh Tool with my limping sluggish internet connection. See below for the ugly armchair.
Screenshots
Test Subject
#142 Old 7th Feb 2005 at 10:02 PM
There is a free 3d tool available called Wings3d. It does a decent job and is easier to use than Milkshape. It is a modleing tool so you can make meshes. The one on DAZ is simply a tool for putting scenes together, like Bryce. Although Bryce will let you export some of the geometries.
Lab Assistant
#143 Old 9th Feb 2005 at 4:15 PM
TSR2 Mesh Tool.....WHERE!!!
There are to much talk about the MTS2 Mesh tool like everyone has it! But I can not even find the program to download it! THis is frustrating cause I am a designer and need a tool like that! Then they do comersials here about it but there is no way to find the program to download so I can fix some great objects! Or is it just I who is useless to search for it! Can someone help me please!


Annica (Sims 1 and 2 designer from Finland) :confused:
Nearly alive
Original Poster
#144 Old 9th Feb 2005 at 4:22 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Babe77
There are to much talk about the MTS2 Mesh tool like everyone has it! But I can not even find the program to download it! THis is frustrating cause I am a designer and need a tool like that! Then they do comersials here about it but there is no way to find the program to download so I can fix some great objects! Or is it just I who is useless to search for it! Can someone help me please!


Annica (Sims 1 and 2 designer from Finland) :confused:


http://meshtool.modthesims2.com
Guest
#145 Old 2nd Apr 2005 at 3:43 PM
What i know about poser and all..............poser is a program true for composition and animation. But you can loas and export objects as well.If you load them in a 3d format and then add a texture to it, it can be exported as a wavefont OBJ file with all inside. What i understand is that mTS2 Mesh tools use the Wavefont OBJ format.

So that meens, yes you can export from Poser to OBJ and no you can not create thing inside Poser, that you still have to do with other programs, like ... well you have so many, from free up to Houdini.

I have seen alot of those and some are not cheap, and sure non is easy to learn. If i look to quality, with all respect who juse them, then milkshape is not the best, oke it has many export and import formats but he do not set all that what has to be in that format, only that what is absolute needed and UVW settings he throws away. The same he do with unit settings, for this he has one standard and use that one. Blender is better that is my opinion. Oke then we get max and maya..............they are expensieve thru and if you look wel they are not that different in result, maya is jused more for special effect and tv/movie.. because there are so many paint set inside which can not be exported, thats the same with fur&hair. Max is more game orientated and has his own interface. It's which one you like best and fit's best. I know who can not work with Maya others who can not work with max...... i can not work with Houdine :kami:

Anyway... i'm now bussy for some time to get thoose crazey damned textures on a object, but the UVW points don stay right. I have tried from maya, poser and max al to OBJ files and always the same problem............the uvw point are running away...........maybe some here know how i can handle that. in the files they stay oke and with a reload to programs to...........even from 3ds to obj........( i like mor ethe FBX format) the textures tay on the place. But when it come in PE it is screwed up after ussing the mesh tool.If i have solved this problem i can start creating more of my stuff ( oke 3d&2d is my work as well, but i like the sims ) lets hope some can help me .......... :howdy:
Guest
#146 Old 2nd Apr 2005 at 7:22 PM
whear can i find the downlode for the mesh tool and what is sim pe
Test Subject
#147 Old 9th May 2005 at 3:57 AM
Can u download the mesh tool if so how can u?
Field Researcher
#148 Old 9th May 2005 at 8:59 AM
From another thread concerning the mesh tool:

Quote:
Please see the Optional download on the meshtool download page and READ the first post in that thread. http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=32166


I've got a problem...everytime I try to go to the thread here I get a page saying I don't have sufficient access. I never saw anything in the tutorials or threads stating that special access is needed, and I haven't found any alternative links that would allow me to dl the extractor. If anyone can shed some light on the subject, I'd be grateful. I've downloaded everything else but I'm waiting to get my hands on the extractor before I start working on the hair meshes.
Instructor
#149 Old 9th May 2005 at 2:17 PM
Same thing here, but you don't need to go to that thread : the extractor is included in the last versions of Simpe.
Lab Assistant
#150 Old 21st Dec 2005 at 7:53 PM
I'm trying to understand this, having worked with Poser for many years now...

It is possible to IMPORT Sims 2 figures into Poser or Daz Studio, but it is NOT possible to animate the figures inside either of these programmes, am I correct?

What I'm looking for is an animation "work-around" for my machinema films. If the game doesn't contain an animation I would like to use, I'm wondering is there is a way to import the Sims characters into some kind of animation programme and just create a "frame-by-frame" animation the old-fashioned way (not a perfect solution, but the best I can think of at the moment), which can be spliced into the game footage with a film editor (i-Movie, Final Cut or other).

Does this make sense? Is it possible? (sorry, I'm not really all that tech-minded...)
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