| 1 | | == Using the OSG Exporter Plugin == |
| 2 | | [[TracNav(Community/OSGExpTOC)]] |
| 3 | | |
| 4 | | From within 3D Studio you can use several ways to start the plugin; |
| 5 | | |
| 6 | | 1. Select 'More...' on the 'Utility'-pane and choose the 'OSG Export toolbar'. The toolbar will appear and the export function are available through it |
| 7 | | 2. Choose 'Export...' from the 'File'-menu and choose *.IVE, *.OSG as file type (typing the extension specifies which one will be used). This will open a dialog box with the options; |
| 8 | | 3. The Helpers are available from the 'Helpers'-section on the 'Create'-pane. |
| 9 | | |
| 10 | | == The OSG Exporter Toolbar == |
| 11 | | |
| 12 | | [[Image(toolbar.png)]] |
| 13 | | |
| 14 | | [[Image(toolbar1.png)]] Export the whole scene and preview it in Max [[BR]] |
| 15 | | [[Image(toolbar2.png)]] Export the selected objects and preview in Max [[BR]] |
| 16 | | [[Image(toolbar3.png)]] Export the file as an .OSG-file (to default export-folder) [[BR]] |
| 17 | | [[Image(toolbar4.png)]] Export the file as an .IVE-file (to default export-folder) [[BR]] |
| 18 | | [[Image(toolbar5.png)]] Set the options for exporting [[BR]] |
| 19 | | [[Image(toolbar6.png)]] About the plugin |
| 20 | | |
| 21 | | == Exporting files == |
| 22 | | __'''Warning: When you work with Groups in MAX, make sure they are all closed before you export, otherwise these objects will not appear in the .OSG/.IVE-file!'''__ |
| 23 | | |
| 24 | | === .IVE vs. .OSG''' === |
| 25 | | You can export a 3D Studio file without changing anything by simply exporting it to OSG or IVE. IVE-files tend load quicker. They are however more prone to errors (this is a binary file format). The OSG-files will usually load up to 20 times slower than the IVE-files, but are more robust. |
| 26 | | |
| 27 | | === Limitations === |
| 28 | | Not everything modelled in 3D Studio can be exported flawlessly to an OSG-file. Below is a list of things that might prove impossible to export and some suggesting to make them work anyway. |
| 29 | | |
| 30 | | * Animated modifiers: use an OSG Sequence Helper to make this work. Otherwise the animation behaviour of the objects may be unpredictable. |
| 31 | | * Some Space Warps |
| 32 | | * Particle Systems?: only simple ones can be exported without a problem. For complex Particle Systems? the use of an [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGSequence OSG Sequence] could also be an option. |
| 33 | | * The AEC Exteneded geometrical object could pose a problem. So far it turns out that the Foliage-objects (trees, shrubs and other items) are not exported very well, supposedly due to the large number of very small objects which the viewer will cull. |
| 34 | | |
| 35 | | === Export options === |
| 36 | | When you've selected a file type you will be presented with a large dialog box: |
| 37 | | |
| 38 | | [[Image(dialogbox.png)]] |
| 39 | | |
| 40 | | Note: this dialog can be accessed directly form the OSG Exporter Toolbar |
| 41 | | |
| 42 | | 1. Output: |
| 43 | | * Save File: if you uncheck this option, no copy of your file will be saved to disk. This can be useful if you only want to Quick View your scene. |
| 44 | | * Save Texture Images: When exporting to a .ive-file the textures will be stored in the file. When exporting to .osg files, this should also be checked; the images will be saved in an “images” directory in the same directory as the exported file is saved. |
| 45 | | * Quick View Scene: This will create a small preview window within 3D Studio MAX. Take care when selecting these options, since it might cause some unstability and you might have to reset 3D Studio wink |
| 46 | | 2. Optimize: |
| 47 | | * Tri Strip Geometry: |
| 48 | | * Merge Geometry: |
| 49 | | * Flatten Static Transform: |
| 50 | | * Share Duplicate States: |
| 51 | | * Spatialize Groups: |
| 52 | | 3. Export to Scene: lets you select which part of your scene you wish to export. |
| 53 | | 4. Error reporting: turn this on the get some feedback about the conversion progress. |
| 54 | | 5. Node Mask: The Default Node Mask value lets you specify a certain Nodemask-value to all objects for which no value is specified (for instance in a [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGNodeMask OSG NodeMask] Helper. |
| 55 | | 6. Geometry State |
| 56 | | * Texture coordinates: |
| 57 | | * Vertex Normals: |
| 58 | | * Vertex Colors: |
| 59 | | * Use indices: |
| 60 | | * Normalize normals: |
| 61 | | * Turn off Lighting: |
| 62 | | 7. Material State |
| 63 | | * Diffuse Color: |
| 64 | | * Self-Illumination: |
| 65 | | 8. Texture State: |
| 66 | | * Texture Format: |
| 67 | | * Texture Compression: determines the file-format the textures will be saved in and which compression algorithm will be used. It's safe to leave these at the defaults. |
| 68 | | |
| 69 | | === Using the OSG Helpers === |
| 70 | | The OSG Exporter comes with 9 Helper-objects. |
| 71 | | |
| 72 | | 1. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGBillBoard OSG BillBoard] |
| 73 | | 2. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGLOD OSG LOD] |
| 74 | | 3. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGNodeMask OSGNodeMask] |
| 75 | | 4. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGImpostor OSGImpostor] |
| 76 | | 5. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGVisibilityGroup OSG Visibility Group] |
| 77 | | 6. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGStateSet OSG StateSet] |
| 78 | | 7. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGSequence OSG Sequence] |
| 79 | | 8. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGSwitch OSG Switch] |
| 80 | | 9. [wiki:Community/OSGExp/Documentation/OSGOccluder OSG Occluder] |
