WIP - Dijon "Turn #4" Surface Rebuild Test.

[BerScott]

@Hawk_UK It could take really long, so patience. If you only want to test in game, don't check supersampling shadows in the exporter, it will take excesively long, but relax, it will finish soon or later, depending of your core power.

[Hawk]

@Hawk_UK It could take really long, so patience. If you only want to test in game, don't check super-sampling shadows in the exporter, it will take excessively long, but relax, it will finish soon or later, depending of your core power.

Hi BerScott.
Thanks for that. At least now I know.... Thanks mate.

I just got windows box appear on screen telling me that 3DS Max has had an AppHangB1 event, whatever that is? Below is the crash log entry. Hope it will be helpful to Piboso?

Problem signature:
  Problem Event Name:   AppHangB1
  Application Name:   3dsmax.exe
  Application Version:   12.0.0.106
  Application Timestamp:   49b98f6f
  Hang Signature:   d125
  Hang Type:   256
  OS Version:   6.1.7601.2.1.0.256.1
  Locale ID:   2057
  Additional Hang Signature 1:   d125a02e135597f63b295e86355f133b
  Additional Hang Signature 2:   db86
  Additional Hang Signature 3:   db863679704758770145b4ab59a86bf2
  Additional Hang Signature 4:   d125
  Additional Hang Signature 5:   d125a02e135597f63b295e86355f133b
  Additional Hang Signature 6:   db86
  Additional Hang Signature 7:   db863679704758770145b4ab59a86bf2


How soul destroying is that, after over an hour now and it does this... Phuufff!!!

[BerScott]

@Hawk_UK As I've readed that was caused by a Core/RAM limitations. So I can only suggest to try minimizing resources. Close all apps like chrome or skype which take lot of resources and try again. Just in cause try performing an anti-malware search. Also I strongly recommend to use Windows 7, but judging by your appcrash error seems that you've already it installed.

[Hawk]

OMG!!! This is going to be a VERY strange day indeed!!. Hehe 

You won't believe this, but I'd left Max running the exporter after the supposed crash while I posted my entry above, and then when I looked at it again afterwards this was what I saw:



But Krieky!! Over ONE HOUR!!! for creating a .map file and that's without checking the boxes for super sampling or shadow mapping to be included!!!

I think I'd better leave the final full export, after and if these tests are successful, to an overnight session, as this looks like that could well take at least a couple of hours or more with all the exporter settings set on??

Anyway.... I'M HAPPY NOW!!
It's successfully exported the .map file..... Now for exporting the .trp file... Hmm, wonder how long that will take? It's usually quicker than the .map file, but with this track file I'm not at all confident. LOL

[BerScott]

I told you! My last project did take about 408mb just for the *.map file, but I've optimized it to 300mb and I left it packing for a entirely night. The .TRP will take not so long and will not force the hardware.

Could you please answer to my question in my first post?

[Hawk]

@Hawk_UK As I've readed that was caused by a Core/RAM limitations. So I can only suggest to try minimizing resources. Close all apps like chrome or skype which take lot of resources and try again. Just in cause try performing an anti-malware search. Also I strongly recommend to use Windows 7, but judging by your appcrash error seems that you've already it installed.

Thank you for telling me what the AppHang problem is: I will certainly take your advice and shut down any superfluous applications to give Max and the exporter more resources as I can in future.

As you realised, I already have Windows 7,  64bit Ultimate running as my OS. 

[Hawk]

I told you! My last project did take about 408mb just for the *.map file, but I've optimized it to 300mb and I left it packing for a entirely night. The .TRP will take not so long and will not force the hardware.

Could you please answer to my question in my first post?

Hi BerScott .... Sorry for the delay in answering your 1st post: Here's a quick overview of what I do. I posted this in my "WIP Mallory Park Track Surface Rebuild" thread.

I don't smooth or subdivide at all.
I have observed that when you smooth a section of track surface it will do the job up to a point, but it still leaves very tiny ridges in the surface(Probably won't notice unless you look in perspective view(at the correct angle) when modelling).

I only use Maya 2011 and then export a .fbx file to 3ds Max for export to .map and .trp files for GP BIkes.

I use curves with the "make object live" feature of Maya to rebuild the track surface or just a section of track.
Anyway, thought I'd do a quick tutorial for you and others who may want to use the same techniques.

1: First you make the original track object live(best to isolate the track surface from the rest of the circuit using layers), then use an EP curve(Set to 3 cubic and uniform. Don't use it set to linear), to trace the outline of the original track, the live track object will snap the curve to the edge of the original track.

2: Then use the "Rebuild Curve" feature to rebuild that curve with uniformly spaced number of edit points(Enough edit points so as not to distort the curve upon rebuild).

3: Check every edit point to make sure that it is snapped cleanly onto the edge of the live original track surface.

4: Once your happy with your work. Then offset that curve by a minus track width factor, or a plus track width factor depending on if you are offsetting to outer track edge or inner track edge.

5: Now this is were you've got to be careful. Each edit point in the offset curve is laterally aligned to an edit point of the original curve. Now what you need to do now is snap each edit point of the offset curve onto the other edge of the live original track surface object, but you must make sure not to move any edit point off it's y axis line from the original curve or you'll get distorted quads in the end result.

6: Once your happy with your work, it's time to create the track surface using the "Loft" function set to uniform and quad output. Using curves with plenty of edit points ensures you will get a sliky smooth track surface that follows the line of the curves, even on tight bends, but the tighter the bend the more quads you build into the lofted quad surface(Test for best results).

7: Delete the old track surface. The track surface or section of track surface is now finished. If you wish to alter the track surface for camber or undulations at this time, then the curves are still connected to the newly created track surface, so you can adjust the curves for height, camber using the control points of the curves to do so.

8: Then you have to go around every vert of the surrounding terrain trackside edging, and again using the make live feature, make the new track surface is set to "live" and then snap every terrain surface trackside vert onto the edge of the new track surface to seal the trackside edges to the track.
You can use the same technique to seal any holes accurately, especially between objects you wish to keep separate but which must be aligned properly.

9: If your just creating a new section of track, say a new rebuild for a hairpin, then make sure you marry up  the join of the new section of track to the old one by using the "live object" feature to make the original track live and snapping the verts to alignment at the fresh joint. The join probably won't be noticeably out of line by your eye, but they will be very slightly out of line and you need to do this or you'll have a slight ripple in the track surface were they join. Either that or you can try merging, but usually there is a greater number of quads in the hairpin section than on the straight section of track your planning on merging to, so my advice in this circumstance is to keep any tight hi quad corner sections as a separate object from the rest of the track surface unless it's a gentler corner with the same quad topology as the straights, in that case it's better to keep the track as much in one object as possible. In the Mallory track surface rebuild there is only the hairpin section that is a separate object, all the other corners are part of the same track surface object.

10: Then it's just a case of creating your track texture/s, uv mapping to make sure your texture/s fit nicely onto the track surface without any blurring or distortions.



I hope this quick guide helps.

If you need any further help or explanation  then just let me know, I'll help all I can. 

[HornetMaX]

OMG!!! This is going to be a VERY strange day indeed!!. Hehe 

You won't believe this, but I'd left Max running the exporter after the supposed crash while I posted my entry above, and then when I looked at it again afterwards this was what I saw:

Hmmm ... I wouldn't bet my money on the fact the exporter completed the job for real. But I do hope it did !

MaX.

[BerScott]

Wow, I expected to be more easy. Thanks for share that mini tutorial

[Hawk]

Wow, I expected to be more easy. Thanks for share that mini tutorial

If fact in a lot of ways, so long as you already had the peripheral track model objects like the grand stands and buildings, etc, then it would be a whole lot simpler to just build the track from scratch. 

[HornetMaX]

Wow, I expected to be more easy. Thanks for share that mini tutorial

If fact in a lot of ways, so long as you already had the peripheral track model objects like the grand stands and buildings, etc, then it would be a whole lot simpler to just build the track from scratch. 

Which I think is the proper way to go.

MaX.

[Hawk]

Wow, I expected to be more easy. Thanks for share that mini tutorial

If fact in a lot of ways, so long as you already had the peripheral track model objects like the grand stands and buildings, etc, then it would be a whole lot simpler to just build the track from scratch. 

Which I think is the proper way to go.

MaX.

+1 

[Hawk]

The .trp file exported in approx. 3 seconds. 


All is well so far now.... Fingers crossed!

[Hawk]

Hi Guys....

Here's the download link for the "Turn #4 Track Surface test" on the Dijon Prenois Circuit.

Test Track download Link: https://mega.co.nz/#!HBFC2RDK!gNBh0luIi5fp7w0QPxatRUMBwt19D13gKxt5ftG2f9Q

I've informed Dibu, so later today we will be able to test online also.

Again... Please post your feedback and comments here. Thank You.


Hawk.

[HornetMaX]

Did you resurface only turn 4 or the entire track ? I've done only 2 laps but I'm under the impression you've done the entire track. Placebo effect or ... ?

MaX.