Light map export

D_Akuma,

The plugin does export the lighting straight from 3DC. The effect looks pretty nice in DarkBasic. They’re not lightmaps though, but real lights.

Right now it does a lot of things, including automatically generating static collision boxes and stuff like that. I put down most of the current features in the andquot;Plugin Problemandquot; thread over in the Scripting forum.

I’ll probably release it within a couple weeks, since I gotta make some levels and demos with it.

I also haven’t decided yet whether or not it’s going to be freeware or really low-priced shareware (under 10 bucks USD, that is). Of course, folks would probably hate me for it.

-Mel Ebbles

I didn’t know this, thanks.

However… exporting real lights I haven’t a use for. I can create all these fine in DB. Also, collision export, though I could program my own, is redundant in DBPro, since octree/quadtree collision can all be done automatically, and Pro is what I am developing for now.

Thanks anyway. andnbsp;

D_Akuma,

Yeah, you can create the lights yourself in DB, but what I’m saying is that you only have to set up the lighting in 3DC, and the lighting code in the plugin is meant to eliminate the hassle and busywork of making and placing lights inside DarkBasic.

So you don’t need to manually make the lights in DB, because the loader module already has the creation, positioning, orientation, umbra/penumbra, range, and color of all the lights in the scene coded into it.

The collision code…Yeah, you can roll your own or use the Pro automagic collision. The plugin just emits the code for creating all the static collision boxes because it’s tedious to hand edit that in DarkBasic 1.13.

I guess you think I’m writing a make_game() plugin, LOL…far from it. I’m just turning 3DC into an extremely compatible and helpful map editor, like a Worldcraft for DarkBasic. I mean, I hate jumping through all kinds of hoops instead of writing *game* code. So the plugin is also mostly for my convenience in making games with DB 1.13.

It doesn’t offer very much for Pro users though, you’re right.

I’m surprised at the sudden about face on the light issue though. A few posts ago, you expressed that you’d love having the 3DC lights exported to DarkBasic. Now all of a sudden you don’t need it? Hehheh andnbsp;

Anyway, being a Pro user, can you give me some pointers on what Pro users would want or need from a level editor?

-Mel Ebbles

No no no no…
You missunderstand me. There is no about face, I’d love light[b:39a3twga]MAPS[/b:39a3twga] exported. Meaning, I’d like to do the lighting in 3DC, and then export the spectral shadows that this would create. I doubt if this will ever happen though, thinking about it.

The [b:39a3twga]real[/b:39a3twga] light I’d rather do in Pro, because they are ever changing. I.E: A light flicker, moving lights, etc…

Thanks anyway. <!– s:) –><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!– s:) –>

But if you could export an animation of the lightmap moving and come up with a dynamic update routine, that could cover non interactive shadow creation, then you could really boost the frame rates while using a very cool shadow effect.

And the best part of it is that you don’t need very new hardware to run it.

Oh well, just a thought.

D_Akuma,

Ohhhh…now I get it, lol

It’s official, decaf is vastly overrated. Mea culpa.

I’ll look into lightmaps a bit further, then.

-Mel Ebbles

BHoltzman,

That’s a pretty good idea. However, serious programmers really don’t like using other people’s routines and stuff in their own code, so I think having the plugin export DB code for handling animated lightmaps would be stepping on the toes of the user.

My philosophy for this plugin is essentially to simply use pure DB functions to handle everything without forcing any andquot;proprietaryandquot; code onto the user. LOAD_MAP() and FLUSH_MAP() are really about as far as I want to go.

That’s also why I don’t export sliding polygonal collision or use my own re-implementation of any native DB feature. The user’s game engine is off limits as far as I’m concerned.

-Mel Ebbles

-That’s okay, Mel.

BHoltzman-
You mean save the map, then move the light, save another map, and re-assemble all the maps frame by frame in the game?

-What a radical idea! – I like it!

I wonder if that trick has ever been used before?
It would be very easy to do in Cshop- have a light source in the game flicker and have the relating Xfile light map in DB [b:14t6kd1d]show/hide[/b:14t6kd1d] at the same time – That would look excellent – like the maps were done in real time but running fast!

This is the kind of thinking that programmers love <!– s:D –><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!– s:D –>