[WIP] Almagest. Strict Import for SH5.

[Jeff-Groves]

If you read back through this thread?
i've already told you HOW to adjust file sizes!
Use the Loose import to grow or shrink things!

It's going to take some work to determine how big a file to import under the loose setting to shrink or grow but it does work!

[gap]

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

I'm not criticizing TDW's work. It's BRILLIANT!
And the whole thing is kind of complicated if one does not have a full understanding of both the GR2 file storage and how obj files can be manipulated to match the GR2 format.

I'll give you a quick example you can do.
Cut say half the Faces in any object file and paste them to the top of the faces section of any obj file.

So if you have 500 faces? Cut 250 and paste them at the top so you still have all 500.

Then copy and paste say half your verts at the bottom of the verts section.
Open the file in any 3D program.

To the best of my understanding of the obj format, face order within a mesh doesn't really matter (it matters in our case though), and the redundant vertices would be isolated vertices. The obj format doesn't support isolated vertices though. Depending on the program they might be ignored or the might show up, but they would be considered a topological error. Probably they wouldn't survive after a save/reload cycle.

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

If you read back through this thread?
i've already told you HOW to adjust file sizes!
Use the Loose import to grow or shrink things!

It's going to take some work to determine how big a file to import under the loose setting to shrink or grow but it does work!

Good to know! I had missd that piece of information, sorry

[Jeff-Groves]

Redundant information is ignored with most programs.
And you can see that by exporting from a GR2 and then saving again in a program if you have optimize on save.

Now how can you have 16150 faces but still have 25665 V, VT, VN?
That's because the GR2 files SKIP some garbage information!

It's simple math! 9515 lines are ignored.
And that is directly from the NAGC_C2Appalachian GR2!

I'm exploiting the way Granny works! I don't give a crap about Wings, Blender, nor 3D Max and how they may react once the files are run through Almagest.

[gap]

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

Redundant information is ignored with most programs.
And you can see that by exporting from a GR2 and then saving again in a program if you have optimize on save.

Now how can you have 16150 faces but still have 25665 V, VT, VN?
That's because the GR2 files SKIP some garbage information!

It's simple math! 9515 lines are ignored.
And that is directly from the NAGC_C2Appalachian GR2!

I'm exploiting the way Granny works! I don't give a crap about Wings, Blender, nor 3D Max and how they may react once the files are run through Almagest.

Okay, looking forward to your progress with the automagic, almighty Almagest

[Jeff-Groves]

Nice thing about the AO mapping is that it don't care about multiple textures for the main object file.
Now Almagest will determine WHICH faces structure it needs to use.
Does it use the AO faces structure or the Main Object faces structure?
It needs to scan the files, see if it's multi textured and choose the right way to sort things.

A single mapped main object? It may be better to use the AO face structure.
Multi mapped main object? Probably better to use that face structure THEN maybe fake some Faces.

It's kind of like the Street Game where you try to follow the balls under cups!
Everything has to be manipulated at just the right time, in the right order, to pass for magic!

[gap]

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

Nice thing about the AO mapping is that it don't care about multiple textures for the main object file.
Now Almagest will determine WHICH faces structure it needs to use.
Does it use the AO faces structure or the Main Object faces structure?
It needs to scan the files, see if it's multi textured and choose the right way to sort things.

A single mapped main object? It may be better to use the AO face structure.
Multi mapped main object? Probably better to use that face structure THEN maybe fake some Faces.

It's kind of like the Street Game where you try to follow the balls under cups!
Everything has to be manipulated at just the right time, in the right order, to pass for magic!

In the meanwhile I finished processing my AO model so that its texture vertices are sorted in the same way as in the main model.

First, I sorted AO faces so that they matched faces in the main obj file. For accomplishing this task I set my spreadsheet to compare vertex triplets in both files, as I knew that one triplet in one file corresponded with one triplet, and only one, in the other file.
Matching face order in both files gave me information on which UV2 vt corresponded with which vt in the main object (the second numbers in each triplet), so I updated vt's in the AO model according to the order used in the main model.

Now I need to copy the sorted AO vt's in main model's obj files, and I need to check in a 3D editor if I didn't make any mistake. If, as I hope, everything is in order I will send to you the new UV2 file so you can test your program on it too

[gap]

Originally Posted by gap

Now I need to copy the sorted AO vt's in main model's obj files, and I need to check in a 3D editor if I didn't make any mistake. If, as I hope, everything is in order I will send to you the new UV2 file so you can test your program on it too

It works!

There are only a few errors in the "new" UV2 map which I mostly know how to correct