How To: Make new objects (signs)?

if you mean items icons there are lots of tutorials for this on digital brilliance, the starport archive and multiple downloads of them as pdf, maybe even in our downloadsection, too.

No I think he means a billboard, a readable sign, like the large advertising panels that we have by major roads.

I’ve not done one like that but I think it can be easily made, like a flat-panel LCD TV in a .3db file with just a texture on its surface. If the board and texture proportions are 1024x512 (2x1) or 512x512 (1x1) or 1024x1024 (2x2), any writing on it should be clear enough in the game. Don’t use odd proportions like 1024x768 or widescreen sizes because the texture will cause problems.

I have made a large block with raised letters on it as a .cmp and made a .mat and a .sur file for it, and that works fine.

The model
To do this you need MilkShape (I use 1.8.5), the .3db exporter, the .sur exporter v1.1, not v1.2, and the .mat exporter v1. If you want to make it a .cmp then you need the .cmp exporter v03.

If you want the display to be double-sided then you must make 2 separate display faces in MilkShape or the texture on the reverse face will be in reverse. To do this make two thin boxes and place them back to back. Don’t regroup them into one group.

If you want it to be one-sided you must cover the back of the panel with another framing box or the texture will show through in reverse as if the display face was made of glass.

The whole model can be simple or with a raised frame around it, or even more complex if you want to use your imagination. Go for whatever you want.

Save the model as an .ms3d file.

Sizing
Select the entire model. Use Move… and move it to Absolute 0, 0, 0 (the Origin).

Use Scale… at Origin and put in X, Y and Z values to resize the model to the size you want. Be sure to retain the X & Y proportions of 1x1 or 2x1.

You may want to import one of the standard ships using the cmp importer and size your panel to it. Or use 1 MilkShape unit as 1 metre and size your panel that way.

If you need to resize, undo the model import and then resize, save the model, and then import the ship again and compare.

Tip - if you import a ship you can select and Regroup all its components into one group, save the whole model as a new work .ms3d file, and delete the ship before saving your model as another new name. But that is a knack and takes a little care to learn to do it quickly!

You can press Ctl-Z to undo the previous step(s) including deletion of ship or other parts.

Rinse and repeat until you are happy.

Now save the model again without the ship model if you used one.

The Texture
Make your texture the same proportional size as the frame (1024x512x72 or 1024x1024x72) in PhotoShop, The GIMP, or Paint.Net and export it as a .dds - note that in my experience only the PhotoShop nVidia DDS Plugin has done a reliable job every time. And the size must be a power of 2, this is why 1025 x 512 and not 1024x768.

Create your text in a layer or separate layers, your preference. It’s fairly easy to lay the text out and add any images or colour effects on separate layers.

Export it as DDS DXT1, no alpha.

The Material
When the texture is exported make a new material in MilkShape, click the top one of the two wide buttons that display “<none>” and go find and select the .dds file as its source texture, then rename and apply the material to the panel surface. Ignore the second wide button, it’s not needed for this work.

If you want to have the same texture on both sides then use the same texture on the back face of the panel, or make another texture for the back face.

Save the model again.

Exporting the model
Ensure that the largest part of the model is at the top of the list in the Groups tab of MilkShape.

As .cmp

File… Export… go find the Freelancer CMP v0.3 plugin.

Select “Back to Front”.
Set Number of Groups to 1.
Set Scale Down to 1 and click SAVE SETTINGS!
If you don’t Save Settings the model will still be reduced to 1/92nd, there is a bug in the exporter and the slider is not sensed when it is moved, only when it is saved or reloaded!
Select New .cmp and give it a name.
Click Continue.
Observe the exporter window (you can’t change anything) and click Continue.
Done.

The .MAT file
Exporting the .mat file is easy, or you can put the material in a .cmp or .3db file, this is an option in the exporter.

File… Export… go find the Freelancer MAT v0.1 plugin
Click “Create new MAT File” if you want to put your materials in a separate .mat file, or “Update CMP or 3DB File” if you want to put your materials in the cmp file, or if you are changing the texture in your cmp file.

I prefer separate .mat files.

Give it the same name as your model cmp file when you are prompted.
You may also be prompted to search for your texture file, the window should have the texture name in the blue bar at the top but sometimes it’s not so clear. If so go find it and select it.
Observe the exporter window (you can’t change anything) and click Continue.
Done.

As .3db

File… Export… go find the Freelancer 3db plugin.

Click New 3db File and give it a name.
Select “Export Materials”
Select “Include in 3db file”
Select “Back to Front”
Set Scale to 1.
Save settings - just for convenience, this exporter is fine.
Click Continue.
You may be prompted to search for the material texture or you may not.
Observe the exporter window (you can’t change anything) and click Continue.
Done.

The .SUR file
The .sur file is used for collision detection so that ships don’t pass through it.

But you may want this to happen, it doesn’t matter, pretend it’s holographic!

If you want one:-

Make a single box to cover the panel, and other boxes to cover other parts if you have them. Make it blocky and simple, it doesn’t need to be contour-following or it will be difficult to make.

Be sure the sur part covering the model main part is also at the top of the Groups tab list.

When you have made enough sur parts to cover the model, save the file as a NEW ms3d file.

Delete the model parts leaving only the sur parts.

Delete the materials.

Save as another NEW ms3d file.

Click File… Export and go find the Freelancer SUR Exporter v1.1 plugin.
Select “Back to Front”
Select “Shrink Wrapped”
Set Scale Down Value to 1
Select “DirectX Mesh Reduction”
Set Ship Mass to 3000 or whatever you think.
Set Number of Groups to 1
Click Sur file Browse…
Give it the same name as your model file.
Click OK.

NOTE: The .sur file exporter is very hit or miss, it either produces a good file first or second time or it might never produce a good one! We have the same problems, maybe someone else has a sure-fire method?

In either case after making the .sur, you need to open the .cmp file and then the sur file in FL Model Tool, save the .cmp again immediately without any changes, re-open it again, resize the .sur to it as “scenery” and save it.

Done.

Using the model in the game.

I don’t want to put a full tute in here for that, here are some of the steps…

Ensure that all the panel’s files (.cmp and .mat, or .3db, .sur) all have the same name, e.g. MyPanel.3db, MyPanel.sur, MyPanel.mat and are in the same folder.

Copy the folder with all files to a new folder DATA\SOLAR\PANEL.

The model can be easily put into the game by copying one of the other non-dockable entries in DATA\SOLAR\solararch.ini and follow the method of defining the materials file etc.

You don’t need to name the .sur file anywhere, FL always looks for the sur with the same name as the model.

You then need to put it into the systems that you want. Open the system’s .ini file in DATA\UNIVERSE\SYSTEMS and look closely at other solar objects, copy one and change the settings to match your panel.

For perfection you need to make some info cards for your panel too.

Heheheh… here’s your new method!

Good luck. Ask questions if you hit problems you can’t handle. But we want to see some effort!

I am sure someone else has done a description for one and someone else described a method for making a scrolling one? But I couldn’t find either of them.</none>

Destroyerofworlds wrote:
Where can I find 3db exporter…the one i got from DB doesnt work (i put it in the right place…it just doesnt show in the export list)

When its not on the exporter list than u surly did not put it in the right place

make it a cmp and sur it the good old sur splice way. as it is only one single box you can even use the same shape and have not to create dummy groups as you can attach one box directly to the root.

There’s always Lancer’s sur builder, easy to use and yet to create a bad sur for me at least