Trouble getting Noncars to even do anything

[starbuck]

Some of this was discussed on the CWA board years ago and I also have links , etc from the many tutorials on the net from the sights as well but for some reason I cant get anything to work.

I KNOW that this has been posted by me and answered before in the CWA forum (luckily under the same name) but here is the problem.

A year ago I suffered a stroke and my comprehension skill are shot now. I am not dying but I am very weak most of the time. Kind of a forced retirement. I was able to find my dukes of hazzard map and am slowly getting into adding more to it just to help keep my mind busy. Trying to do that stuff I could never do before.

As I mentioned I know that some threads have had this answered and I have gone thru them AND the tutorial files and pages about how to do them. But something is not working. I am getting a sense of DejaVu but that sense includes the mistakes I made before and I feel they used to work before :)

Problem is something I am missing. Can anyone tell me in baby steps how to add even one noncar to the map. C2 Scientists suggestion of adding multiple objects would also work. I have a boulder SDF file and a map SDF file but when I try adding the file and dragging etc. nothing seems to be working. I can only use the original PT2 since it is the only PT2 version that still works in Windows 8. Every time I try it with a object in it called "03boulder.ACT" PT crashes upon compilation of the map.

BTW I am using PT2 original, asc2ase and max for the editing. PT2 just for stuff like the noncars. (cant get any modded versions of PT2 to work in windows 8.

Please anything in baby steps would really help out. Thanks a TON for any of your patience in this matter. As I mention I know its been posted before but I am at a loss in understanding.

And hello to the people in the upcoming Carma series that are here.

UPDATE Change that I must have done SOMETHING right cause i added it to say "&03boulder01.ACT" and it compiled without a problem. Now to find it in the game :) Anyone know how to get me dummy object to be a boulder, I would appreciate it.

Trying to figure out what I am doing wrong with C2Scis suggestion from the CWA forum in "how do you make water". The object now shows up but its hard as a rock and doesnt move. Also I noticed that others maps have the (example) &65rock.dat file listed in their processed DAT files but all I go is "1_1, 10_10" and so forth. Wonder if its some kind of compiling issue. Anyone want to help, thanks.

So why isnt my object not even making it into the games as a noncar and is instead just an object ?

[coffeycup]

Sorry to hear about your health issues.

So it sounds like you were able to import the noncar boulder but it doesn't move?
You must add the TXT file name (03boulder.txt) to the maps's TXT in the NONCAR section or it will be rock solid.



/// Full Instructions How I do it ///
First put a copy of the TIFF(s) that the NONCAR uses into the map's TIFFRGB

In PT2 OPEN the map
Now go to FILE > IMPORT > BRender ACT File... and grab the NONCAR you're trying to add.

that will dump the NONCAR dead center 0,0,0 of the map
it also dumps it outside the map hierarchy

DO NOT SAVE YET (it will completely FU original map)

in the view windows drag the NONCAR where you want it appear on the map.

DO NOT SAVE YET

Now go the hierarchy Overview pane and click on the map's root node

Go to OBJECT > NEW
Give it a name, click the 'Empty' button then OK
You should see a new node in the hierachy

Drag the new NONCAR into this new 'folder' node

You should have everything under one node that you can collapse down.

NOW YOU CAN SAVE.

you must also add the TXT file name to the maps's TXT in the NONCAR section or it will be rock solid.

C2 Scientist and Econobrick more detailed explanation

[starbuck]

Whoa I really didnt think anyone would reply.
Thanks.

I will read it later and get back to you.

One good thing about my health is my wife stands behind me so its like an early retirement She has been my best friend for 20 years and my wife for the last 5, so at least there I have it made.

PS cant wait for reincarnation.



Get back to you in an hour or two. I have to reread everything twice And that tutorial you linked I dont think I ever downloaded that one. It looks different and better. Cool. I didnt think polygonized existed anymore. Now I can add more stuff to the 4 DVDs worth of junk I have

[coffeycup]

I think you might only have to make a minor text edit per the image posted above.

[starbuck]

OK thanks for the re-reply. C2 Sci already said this and it didnt work before , sadly. That was years ago.

I have included before dragging into the heirarchy and after dragging into the heirarchy complete files for you to see.

I have always had the name correct in the races test.txt file so I dont think that is it.

What I HAVE seen is when I make the empty object in the dialog box
it is a child of the track object (Box001)
it is an empty object
model none
Data Type = No data
I call the new Object "name"

Now the problem I think it is , is when dragging to any heirarchy. When I try to drag &64rock into "name" nothing at all happens, The heirarchy stays with &64rock outside the map heirarchy and I cannot select anything in that heirarchy window.

So what seems like I am forced to do is to close PT2 and redo all the steps up to dragging and THIS time drag the &64rock into the track . At this point I then also cannot choose anything in the heirarchy window. Because the blue box thingy jumps to only one object no matter which one I try to select. So at this point I am forced to save again.

Then I re-open it and have to drag &64rock into "name" then save it.

So I think that is where the problem is. If the program would let me do just the ONE drag then the thing wouldnt get corrupted in the saving. This seemed to be the problem before but I never thought of mentioning it until now.

So you think the dragging/saving is the issue ?

Only other problem is when I saved the file the 64rock.txt file said the mass was 1.0 and I forgot to change it before saving but I dont thin THAT is the issue.

I tried exactly what you said, except for those variations I mentioned so if you could help figure out why that would be great. Hopefully you got PT2 so you can check it out

All files are attached for you to see if you wish. Please feel free to critique

[starbuck]

Update

When I drag &64rock into "name" the only thing I can select is "name" . If I select anything else after dragging, the blue box jumps back to "name".

This even happens when just importing the ASC files without saving the map.

To refresh it I can open a dialog box then close it and I can select whatever I want again. But for the life of me I can seem to drag it into "name" directly.

This has happened on every version of Windows since Win98.

Even tried dragging it into the main track object, NOT saving, then trying to drag it into name.

Maybe something is wrong with the type of "name" object ?

Change that. I COULD make a new empty object , drag it into the main object, THEN veiw the registry, THEN drag it into the empty object. Get back to you. Something like that, just cant repeat it.

MAJOR UPDATE

Was able to trick PT2 into letting me drag it directly into the empty object but the rock was still unmovable and I died repeatedly. So looks like I am back to square 1.

Saw this "

0 // bend angle before snapping
0 // torque (KN m) needed to move object

It WAS at 1.0 but that didnt change anything when I readjusted the numbers.

[starbuck]

Hope you dont mind when I post single updates. Its getting kind of hairy in here.

In the 64rock.txt file I noticed the noncar number was "00" so I changed it to "64" and at least NOW I can drive thru it. Hmmmm.

I will try playing around with the 64rock.txt file and get back to you. I also changed the model size from around 7.0 to around 2.0. That may be why I drove thru it.

[starbuck]

Final Update.

IT WORKS !!!!!!!

Saving the file multiple times did NOT matter. It still saved fine and compiled fine.

Stupid thing was I was copying text from other files and stupidly forgot that PT2 can generate its own noncars.txt file of the object. I would say I fell stupid and blame it on the stroke but sometime I never CAN see the problem right in front of me. Creating a PT2 generate noncar file solved the problem.

Funny thing was when the noncar object was a 32 polygon object Carma 2 said to me "Owl shape (something) having 45 points is silly "

VERY HAPPY NOW ! Thanks for the help coffeecup.

If you like you can keep this for other people that cant get it figured out.

[starbuck]

Now if you got some ideas how to get a bunch of the same noncars throughout the map that would help Or at least some kind of shortcut to save time.

One thing I might try later is placing the actual Rock in Max and exporting only that one. That might make the noncar object show up in the correct location. Moving objects in PT2 are a pain.

I tried different ways and when I did only my Dummies from 3dsmax showed up and all of them fell thru the ground all at the same time.

I re-tried C2Scis post about how to do it with triangles but for some odd reason that got confusing.

And if you have 5 noncars of the same object I am assuming you need 5 empty objects ?

Thanks again.

[coffeycup]

I only know how to do it one way which I already explained.

You don't need an empty object for each. They could all go in one.

[starbuck]

I will probably figure out some shortcuts soon to save time. Oh well.

Thanks for the info.

BTW I tried to do it one way and I started driving on invisible ground with the map hundreds of feet above me. That looked cool :)