Oolite Bulletins

Disembodied wrote:

I think you're definitely getting somewhere with the station textures, Simon.

Yes, the other images did look better, however, I still believe it's far from the pagroove stations. Maybe it would be better trying to enhance those?

Screet

Simon B wrote:

There are two barrels in that oxp - do you guys like cylindrical barrels?

The whole cargo handling was explained in the original manuals - everything packaged in standardised cargo containers (not unlike what we do IRL) to facilitate automated cargo-handling machinery.

So I'm personally leaning towards leaving the core-game with a single standardised cargo container, and leave special containers to OXPs.

My own game-install does use a large variety of ships/containers/stations/asteroids etc so I'm not against a variety - I just feel it might be more the place of an OXP to add that variety. Perhaps that concept could be expanded on in that you need special machinery to handle non-standard cargo containers?

... continuing the work on Aegidean's ships.

Here is a mod on one of the neolite models - in case some folk are scared off by the model complexity. To get this, I had to remove extraneous edges and loop-cut the entire engine. The boxy aft-section is a seperate model.

Also get to try one of my new textures - as if part of the asp hull got redone in brushed steel.

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Stations: the dark stations do look good. I do not want a dark Coriolis for the reasons already specified: just try finding the griff coriolis without the advanced compass.

The new texture looks promising - the zip file it comes in also has a greyscale thing which can double as a height-map, so I get to make a normal-map off that and I can either apply the supplied diffuse texture or just put the oolite metal over the top.

Thing it, it seems to be better for city-sized structures - the stations are only half-a click across. I figure to use it in the square of the coriolis and, maybe, sphere-map the others and run it all over them.


Barrels: I hear-ye on the barrels, and agree with the sentiment. Thus - no translation needed on the aegidean non-ships. That's less work. Good.

... replace the legacy engines with a power plant then starp on a pair of BMF-class engine pods ...

Screet wrote:

Disembodied wrote:

I think you're definitely getting somewhere with the station textures, Simon.

Yes, the other images did look better, however, I still believe it's far from the pagroove stations. Maybe it would be better trying to enhance those?

Screet

???

... P. A. Groove station skins tend to be heavy on the neon, but make the station look smaller.

It would be easier to stick with how I'm going.

Simon B wrote:

Screet wrote:

Disembodied wrote:

I think you're definitely getting somewhere with the station textures, Simon.

Yes, the other images did look better, however, I still believe it's far from the pagroove stations. Maybe it would be better trying to enhance those?

Screet

???
... P. A. Groove station skins tend to be heavy on the neon, but make the station look smaller.

It would be easier to stick with how I'm going.

Well, that was just my idea...and maybe it's influenced by my switch of graphics cards, as the stations suddenly becaming brightly shimmering in the sun. When I saw that, my jaw dropped As to your image...I've seen the same station and remember it looking quite differently concerning the metal?!?

It's not even that I like all pagroove stations, but the solartech is also much liked by me.

Screet

This is how this model (The Worldsun Ico looks now) The above texture was in an older Oolite when sharers weren't supported.

... last of the Aegidean X Ships. I suspect that the cut-away on top of the cabin is a bit much, otherwise it came out nice.

The blue and cabin panels glow, and the lines on the lower wingsurfaces are raised in the normalmap.

And now for what you've been waiting for:


... applying the alien-hull texture to the dodo - looks like we're on to something here! Now for the coriolis:


... on the approach - looking good.


... and around the side - the normal flipping is not so dramatic with this texture (still present). I think this is te winner.

Your stations are looking better but they still need more variation in detail.

CaptKev, what OXP is this version from?

Best wishes,
Oscar

CaptKev wrote:

Your stations are looking better but they still need more variation in detail.

Oh no they don't - the sort of complexity you've shown me is the sort of detail that goes in an OXP. If I'm gonna do that, I'm gonna remodel them.

I'm not trying to create a cick-ass station here. These are default stations - all I need is enough to stop them looking out of place. After that - a list of suggested oxps is appropriate.

However - if you mean to draw my attention to the fine-detailing on that model... the texture I used has a wider range of detail than in the illustration. Vis:


However, it takes quite a high resolution to make it like that... There's one normalmap (2048x2048), one effectsmap (1024x1024) and three textures (1024x1024). It does withstand quite extreme closeups though. I could make the variation more obvious with a greater height differential?

Having only one type of texture for the whole model does not bother me for the dodo and isoc stations - these are rare anyway. If I figure it out, I can add windows. But recall - early comments indicated that folk are quite happy with the classic (no detailing) stations. So far, that's actually the majority vote.

The only thing I can think of for the coriolis is to add rows of windows to the central raised circle (well - more windows in the triangles?) That would mean adding two more textures unless I put the windows on all sides.


... this shot probably shows the texture variation in the fine detail the best - click for full-size (warning: 1024x768).

Considering you've quite extensively remodelled all the ships, why the reticence remodelling the stations? Not saying you should, just curious.

@Oscar, the non bump-mapped version can be downloaded from here.

@SimonB, sorry if you've taken offense but it was only meant to be constructive criticism.

Like the alien texture on the dodo, but it doesn't look so good on the Cori'.

Thank-you for continuing to make such a great effort for the benefit of the rest of us (non-modellers).

I really like the x-sidewinder!