MD2 Models

[Kuron]

Is there anybody here who is very experienced with MD2 models?

[bigsofty]

I have some knowledge, wrote an MD2 render for Delphi a few years back?

[Kuron]

I will send you a PM shortly.

[Hemlos]

I have years of experience building and using md2 models, with GLBasic and multiple game engines.
Feel free to post questions.

[Kuron]

I have some knowledge, wrote an MD2 render for Delphi a few years back?

Never mind.  I have several dozen models I was going to release to the community and I needed somebody to make sure they will convert and load properly in GLB.  However, due to recent events I will not be releasing them.

[Hemlos]

I have some knowledge, wrote an MD2 render for Delphi a few years back?

Never mind.  I have several dozen models I was going to release to the community and I needed somebody to make sure they will convert and load properly in GLB.  However, due to recent events I will not be releasing them.

If you meshed them, they should convert just fine.

[bigsofty]

I have some knowledge, wrote an MD2 render for Delphi a few years back?

Never mind.  I have several dozen models I was going to release to the community and I needed somebody to make sure they will convert and load properly in GLB.  However, due to recent events I will not be releasing them.

Sorry for the slow reply.

NP Kuron, if you change your mind your welcome to contact me in the future.

[Kuron]

If you meshed them, they should convert just fine.

I was replying to bigsofty, please don't answer for him 

[Kuron]

NP Kuron, if you change your mind your welcome to contact me in the future.

The main problem is they work fine in the original engine they were made for, but seem problematic with GLB's converter.  They are so old and low-poly that nobody would even use them even if I released them, although I do think they are still nice enough for many games.

On another note, I have contacted two people to ask for price quotes to write a B3D to DDD converter.  Only heard back from one so far and that is for $100.00  A bit steep for my budget, but if I could use all of my B3D models it could be worth it.

[bigsofty]

The main problem is they work fine in the original engine they were made for, but seem problematic with GLB's converter.  They are so old and low-poly that nobody would even use them even if I released them, although I do think they are still nice enough for many games.

I would post them to Gernot if the converter is the problem, is is usually very quick(and glad) to tweak out any conversion bugs in his util.

On another note, I have contacted two people to ask for price quotes to write a B3D to DDD converter.  Only heard back from one so far and that is for $100.00  A bit steep for my budget, but if I could use all of my B3D models it could be worth it.

I dont think the DDD format could handle them as B3D is a bones animated format? Any one tried an intermediate format, for example putting them into UltmateUnwrap and spitting out some .X files for the DDD converter?

BTW $100 is not too bad, the B3D format is supposed to a beast to getting working smoothly on anything else than Blitz3D...

[Kuron]

That is one aspect that makes GLB worse than B3D and DBP and that is the limitation of using a proprietary format for the models instead of using "standard" formats.  At least with B3D and DBP you can load MD2, X and 3DS natively.

[Hatonastick]

I don't think it makes it worse, although it is nice to be able to load various models using built in commands and not have to worry about a converter.  That was pretty much the only thing I ever liked about DBPro (I have all the Blitz products too, but I liked more about them than being able to load different models ).  It can be annoying to have to use a converter, but I think I have a few ideas as to why Gernot took that route.  So while I may empathize with you, I don't see it happening.

What I'd like to see is an option added for Windows projects to include an icon without the mucking about. 

[Ian Price]

Re: Windows icons - I asked for this a while back. IIRC Gernot agreed.

[Hemlos]

Re: Windows icons - I asked for this a while back. IIRC Gernot agreed.

I think this might be difficult with windows proprietary icons,due to GLB being multi platform now...
However, if you need to change your game icon and dont mind "mucking around",
2 types of functions have been written for changing the window icon for GLB games.

If you want to use a bmp to make an icon, use this:
http://www.glbasic.com/forum/index.php?topic=1364.0

If you want to dynamically embed your unique icon with GLB code use this:
http://www.glbasic.com/forum/index.php?topic=2332.0

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My 2 cents on md2, i would like to be able to use md2 natively myself, but i am sticking with DDD for a few reasons: Ive been modding games since, ms started thier open platform games, and lucasarts, and quake too. I think its a good thing we have a converter, because we can use it to build multiple, editable, framed, animated objects with it.

This is good, because, in a sense it protects your objects(for now); i dont think there is a way to convert a DDD file into md2. A thief would only be able to use the ddd in a project built with glb

[Hatonastick]

Depending on how Gernot has designed the editor, I would have said "No, not really".  It would require alteration of the Editor (which only runs under windows, or a Windows emulator - unless there is another version of GLB that I'm not familiar with) to add an option to include a file if (and only if) your game is set to compile for Win32 - otherwise it's blanked out or removed as an option.  Actually I use a (real hacked together kludge of a) tool to do this already:

1) Backup icon.o in GLBasic/Compiler/platform/Win32/bin by renaming it.  This is the icon that GLB automatically includes in any GLB programs you compile for windows.
2) Using a free resource compiler such as GoRC (There are others, such as one you can get for MinGW, I just happen to like GoRC), turn my icon into an object file.
3) Copy my icon.o into the directory in 1.
4) Compile my program.  The icon is now built-in and providing I created it correctly, it should work fine.
5) Remove my icon.o and copy the backup GLB icon back to icon.o

This is very similar to the method I use to add icons to my BlitzMax programs (Isn't GLB is based upon a cross-compiler version of MinGW? Or something along those lines) - except you use an include in your code with GM.  Is this method easier or harder?  Depends entirely on ones point of view.  I prefer this method as it doesn't involve adding any more code (just click on a couple of buttons) - but the other ways work just as well.

I'd just have preferred this built into the editor to make life a tiny bit easier, but really it doesn't matter.  If it doesn't get added, it doesn't get added.  I don't think any of us will lose any sleep over it.