Oolite Bulletins

Hi everyone!

I've made a little webpage page that spins some classic ships around, all in software:
https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/QqobmO

And a super naive converter (it just scans for keywords, and stops at brackets) for VRML 2 to JavaScript ship declarations:
https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/yzZKWN
https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/pWYJKV


I've had a go at converting the Dat files in Oolite to Obj files, using Dat2ObjTex.py ((C) Giles Williams 2005)
The results so far are ok,
https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/PJvzRm?editors=0010

But that Python code only handles simple ships, and one texture... it fails for the more complex Dat files. =(

Are there Obj/Texture files out there for the standard Oolite ships?
Or does someone have a reverse version of Obj2DatTexNormal.py?

I was aiming of a sandboxed Chrome fullscreen instance, with the WebGL page showing the ships zooming in and out, as a screensaver for Windows. Saves me tackling SlickDX in Visual Studio!

Hi and welcome!

Are there Obj/Texture files out there for the standard Oolite ships?

Yes there are. Object files for all the new models can be found in the oolite-assets repository on github. Follow this link: https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite ... t-1.80-obj
The corresponding textures are the same ones that can be found in the Resources/Textures folder of your Oolite distribution.

As for a converter utility, I don't think that there is anything maintained today beyond Ob2DatTexNormal.py. But hopefully the object files will be sufficient to achieve what you want.

another_commander wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2017 9:00 am

Hi and welcome!

Hiyah!

Thanks for the link - perfect, just what I needed.

The Cobra - Mark 3 diffuse.png file seems to be multi layered... I open it in photoshop and there's just a very subtle black and white shading texture, with none of the hull's green and blue to be seen!

I think it's a special PNG because several programs can't handle it: https://imgur.com/a/QVNuC

Do you know anything about it? I may have got the wrong end of the stick.

SarahC wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2017 9:30 am

The Cobra - Mark 3 diffuse.png file seems to be multi layered... I open it in photoshop and there's just a very subtle black and white shading texture, with none of the hull's green and blue to be seen!

I think it's a special PNG because several programs can't handle it: https://imgur.com/a/QVNuC

Do you know anything about it? I may have got the wrong end of the stick.

All textures in the post-1.80 models look similar. The reason is that the emission map is embedded in the png's alpha channel. You will need an image processing program capable of separating a texture's individual channels in order to view it porperly.

another_commander wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2017 9:53 am

All textures in the post-1.80 models look similar. The reason is that the emission map is embedded in the png's alpha channel. You will need an image processing program capable of separating a texture's individual channels in order to view it porperly.

I see, thanks!

It's hidden away in Photoshop - selecting the "Channels" window shows the RGB channels AFTER the transparency has been applied, we want it BEFORE.

To do this:

Select the layer, then go to Layer menu -> Layer Mask -> From Transparency.

The alpha channel is extracted into a greyscale mask attached to the diffuse layer, which is now an opaque RGB layer.
To see the opaque layer on its own - disable the mask layer.

To see the mask as an "Emission" layer, holding left Alt key, and clicking the greyscale alpha mask layer that is linked to the diffuse layer will show only the alpha channel - the emissive parts in white.

Sorted!

Thanks for your help.

https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/PJvzRm

SarahC wrote: ↑Fri Oct 27, 2017 1:36 am

https://codepen.io/SarahC/pen/PJvzRm

Looks good! Took me a moment to realise it was mouse-interactive, though.

Next stop - online OOLite!

The source already has the ship AI in JavaScript too!

Hello and welcome! Grondilu started a WebGL effort as well, you might want to get in touch. Also, the “Porting to other platforms” forum is a better place for this.

Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

Topic moved to Porting to Other Platforms.

Just came across this: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4098763 by SarahC_ January 12, 2020

For making 3D models of Elite/Oolite ships

Cholmondely wrote: ↑Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:00 pm

Just came across this: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4098763 by SarahC_ January 12, 2020

For making 3D models of Elite/Oolite ships

Fixed that url for you: Ultimate Classic Elite Ship Maker.
Yes, cool idea. Is it becoming common to have a 3D printer with one's PCs too?

Old Murgh wrote: ↑Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:30 pm

Is it becoming common to have a 3D printer with one's PCs too?

Probably! Bet a 3D printer can't make one of these...



Other views here: http://www.ianlawrencemodels.com/cobramkIII.html

Cody wrote: ↑Mon Aug 08, 2022 11:24 am

Probably! Bet a 3D printer can't make one of these...

No, not with that level of tender craftsmanship..

Cody wrote: ↑Mon Aug 08, 2022 11:24 am

Bet a 3D printer can't make one of these...

I think they probably can...

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2860481

But you need a good model(ler)