Universal Model Converter - beta testing

[DarkPikachu]

i tested the latest build on my comp, (not even sure if it is functional yet but was curious xD) but it seems to work fine for me on windows 8. i'm not 100% certain how to use it tho. i can see that you were able to import models, but i couldn't figure out how to do much more then open it at the time. i think i read somewhere as well in the last release it was not possible to export models yet?

anyway i was just checking in to see how progress was going. what can we epect in the next release?

eh, the latest release right now still uses the old scripting system...
that's the reason why I stated the only possible exports were not much more than OBJ worthy (could get bones, but not weights)

and I do have a README in the release with info on how to use it :P

sorry that build has a horrid GUI :P
I can't do too much to the GUI w/o maxing out one's CPU
(I can make a good GUI, but being a noob, I'm using the wrong interfaces)

this next release will still use the CPU as I'd have to completely rebuild GUI.py to make it run on the GPU...
(I'd rather rebuild UMC and THEN redo the GUI, when most of my work in the viewer will already use the GPU)

one problem with using the CPU like I'm doing is it's extremely slow and weak compaired to the GPU.
the only upside the CPU has is it's ability to handle more advanced data structures.

so while I'm still using the CPU, I'll do my best to optimize the draw-code and make it alot less tasking on the CPU.
just keep in mind, the more you have displayed in UMC's window, the higher the CPU usage will be.

this is the main problem with OpenGL's Fixed Function Pipeline.
UMC 3.0 will fully use the GPU, and if needed will wait for the CPU to process a few requests.
(this is how animation will be much more possible to display in 3.0)


let's not forget, Python is slow when compared to C++, though it's not the slowest language for being interpreted :)

what can we epect in the next release?

the only reason I'm still working on 3.0a is because 3.0 is going to take a heck of a while to develop (with me being the only one working on it)...
however, I've modified the SES format with NBT support (bump maps), so I'll probably push out a few more releases before officially scrapping it. :)

as of the next release, you can expect to write scripts using the functions supported in UMC 3.0:
http://tcll5850.proboards.com/thread/182/layout
^ I do intend to document these a little better

What this means is that any scripts you write for the next release of 3.0a will work in 3.0 whenever it's released. ;)


one problem that still persists in 3.0a though is library support is very lacking...
so try to keep things at script level, or contact me if you need help on an advanced interface with extended support.

a problem with the library support is that UMC's viewer uses the CPU to do it's work, however, the model displayed is stored in GPU RAM, so it's kinda hard to gain access to the data for modification.
(scripts are not allowed to have this kind of access as they're meant to be single file)

OpenGL does provide an interface to share data between the CPU and GPU, but doing so requires a shader to properly handle the data, which UMC 3.0a lacks.


This means something like my minecraft library will be pushed back to UMC 3.0.
I can still work on basic scripts for this, but you won't see any viewable features until 3.0.


the purpose of a library is to provide extended and shared support for scripts, thus meaning your scripts can be made smaller and contain less code, rather than contain duplicate codes.

the only library I have right now to test with is for Nintendo texture formats (RVL_IMG.py)
this is being used across my TEX0 and DAT scripts

[DarkPikachu]

may as well post an update :)

this is the kind of support you can expect to see by the next release: ;)

http://smashboards.com/threads/universal-model-converter-side-development-thread.334292/page-9#post-17926136

[DarkPikachu]

another update

so I've been working on completely overhauling and rebuilding the GUI, and this is currently how far I've come:


and oops, I messed up with the text and used the widget names... lol
that's a simple fix :P

soon enough this thing will be functional, and I can start working on the rest of the UI ;)

this rebuild uses a crap-load less CPU and is alot easier to work with.
this means I can add alot more with alot less hassle and alot more efficiency (more FPS).

I'm still a ways away from a release, but I'm slowly crawling there as I add more functionality and widgets :)
(I'm hoping to get script-GUIs working as well, now that I have an interface that can handle them) :D

[DarkPikachu]

figured I may as well post an update since the GUI has now come a long way since I got the dialog working :)


I'm still sorting out a few small issues with the select box functionality, but after this, I'll be working on the panels and perhaps a few options as well :)
or I might save the options for an update :P
either way, they'll be added ;D

since the UI is alot simpler to work with now, I might start updating a bit more often on here as well as other forums. ;)
but I think I'll save the updates for something major... heh

if you want the most up-to-date stuff, my most active location will be SmashBoards until my forum's activity picks up a bit better.
(not saying the inactivity is bad, I actually currently like it as it's less stress for me) :3

[DarkPikachu]

just thought I'd post another update :)

almost back in business :)

and even missing images:

ERROR: ugeSetImageData() image 'metal00' not found.
ACTION: Skipping

now I just gotta work on the export panel, which is roughly the same as the import panel,
and I think I'm just gonna restore the display panel to what I had before.

[pikazz]

question, what animation formats will it be able to export?

[DarkPikachu]

question, what animation formats will it be able to export?

well... when animation support is being focused on...
any formats you could write a script for. :)

here's a piece from COMMON showing planned support ;)

Code Select Expand



global _UGE_Scripts; _UGE_Scripts = {
    UGE_MODEL_SCRIPT: { 'Import':{},
                        'Export':{} },
    # I'll leave this... might update FORMAT later (SES can suport it w/o messing anything up)
    UGE_ANIMATION_SCRIPT: { 'Import':{},
                            'Export':{} },
    UGE_IMAGE_SCRIPT: { 'Import':{},
                        'Export':{} },
    UGE_PALLET_SCRIPT: { 'Import':{},
                         'Export':{} },
    UGE_COMPRESSION_SCRIPT: { 'Import':{},
                              'Export':{} }
    }


I should change "might" to "will" lol

also, that's SESv1 supported internally by 3.0a
VIEWER can't support animation w/o some huge framerate drawbacks.
but FORMAT can, which I can add later. ;)

back then I wasn't sure if this interface could handle it as it was only an idea... heh

I plan to have a release out soon after if not within the week ;)

script support is not planned because UMCSL cannot run properly in this build.
UMCSL will be supported by 3.0 (along with alot of other stuff 3.0a just can't do well, if at all)
Post Merge: February 12, 2015, 02:54:48 PM
well...
I hate to say it... but I'm not gonna be able to make the release...

it WILL be extremely soon, but I can't exactly say how soon

hey at least I'm not like the low-lifes at Ubisoft. XD
I want to clear up as many bugs as possible to have this thing as functional as needed by the release. ;)

[DarkPikachu]

Sorry but you are not allowed to view spoiler contents.

Post Merge: February 15, 2015, 08:28:49 PM
I AM NOW BETA TESTING! :happy:

for those who want to try it out, download a zip of my folder here:
https://copy.com/3Zg7S8HwFyVaXstm



Please understand, this is my active collaborative repository, which is updated as I edit the src.
alot of included scripts here don't work properly if at all and won't be in the release.

the official release will be hosted on GitHub ;)
Post Merge: February 15, 2015, 11:29:19 PM
just to notify, I know about the GL error on some model imports:

Code Select Expand

importing TyPichu.dat 100%
Converting from import format...
Verifying data...
Finalizing...
Updating Viewer


Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "Z:\home\tcll\sync\copy\UMC_v3.0a\API.py", line 40, in run
    VIEWER.Init()
  File "Z:\home\tcll\sync\copy\UMC_v3.0a\data\VIEWER.py", line 1039, in Init
    else: __Draw_Scene() #no 3D display
  File "Z:\home\tcll\sync\copy\UMC_v3.0a\data\VIEWER.py", line 565, in __Draw_Scene
    __GL.glCallList(__MODEL_DATA)
  File "Z:\home\tcll\sync\copy\UMC_v3.0a\data\Python\x86\lib\site-packages\OpenGL\error.py", line 208, in glCheckError
    baseOperation = baseOperation,
GLError: GLError(
err = 1281,
description = 'invalid value',
baseOperation = glCallList,
cArguments = (270L,)
)
this will eventually be found, I'm not sure what causes this, so please don't report these cases ;)

[DarkPikachu]

just wanted to announce a major update to a few things, see here: (too much to fix up and post on here)
http://smashboards.com/threads/universal-model-converter-side-development-thread.334292/page-11


it's still not exactly close to an actual release, but things are being worked on ;)

[DarkPikachu]

I think I'll just leave this here :3

[DSX8]

stages ehh? noice :vyse:

[DarkPikachu]

yeh, it seems my hype is cut short though as it's literally the only stage that has shown anything on import w/o an error out of what I've tried so far.

eventually though once I figure out these extra structures (Shuall is providing some amazing documentation) I should eventually have the stage displaying as well as in Melee :)

though still, UMC currently doesn't support lights other than it's own, so that's a bit of a drawback for the release...
I've still got a crap-ton of functions to port and more support to add to make it suitable enough to release.

EDIT:
idk why the smileys are misbehaving >.>

EDIT2:
and I just deleted the 2nd half of my post because this thing screwed up 9_9

I'm not retyping that

the smiley is in the middle of the post not here -->
Post Merge: April 05, 2015, 05:06:17 AM
more stuff here:
http://smashboards.com/threads/universal-model-converter-side-development-thread.334292/page-11#post-18908735

[DarkPikachu]

just wanted to make a mention :)



older:


I'm still working things out ;)

EDIT:
btw, I want to mention, during the next few updates before I officially scrap 3.0a, we may or may not see a dev6
and definitely not a dev7

the devs usually update with a major interface change.

by rights this current version should actually be called 4.1b (due to another (almost) major rebuild), but recent sub-standards and no releases have kept the version at 3.0a

for those who need an explanation as to why there's still no release yet:
the front-end interface is still far too shoddy and the data verification is still incomplete,
though it's being worked on with my best knowledge: ;)

Code Select Expand


def __VerifyBoneTree(BID,Data,children,wpbind,wptransform):
   BoneName, BDL, (l,r,s), Res, Bind, Inv_Bind, PBID, PrBID, CBID, NBID = Data
   
   default = __rr.Matrix44(DM) # default (same as identity)
   
   transform = __rr.Matrix44.from_scale(s) * __rr.Matrix44.from_eulers(r) * __rr.Matrix44.from_translation(l) # Local Transform
   bind = __rr.Matrix44(Bind) # Local Bind
   inverse = __rr.Matrix44(Inv_Bind) # World Inverse Bind
   
   wtransform = __rr.matrix44.multiply(transform,wptransform) # World Transform
   wbind = __rr.matrix44.multiply(bind,wpbind) # World Bind
   
   cinverse = __rr.matrix33.inverse(wbind)
   if (transform == bind).all():
       if (default == bind).all(): # possible problem (this may be the proper local location)
           if (default == inverse).all(): # this may not be the proper locations
               if (default != wpbind).all(): # assume identity to parent and recalculate the inverse bind.
                   inverse = __rr.matrix33.inverse(wpbind)
           else: # recalculate defaulted bind and LRS
               wbind = __rr.matrix33.inverse(inverse)
               pinverse = __rr.matrix33.inverse(wpbind)
               bind = wbind * pinverse
               transform = bind
               
       else: # make sure the bind matches the inverse
           if (default == inverse).all(): # this is obviousely wrong
               inverse = __rr.matrix33.inverse(wbind)
           elif (cinverse != inverse).all():
               inverse = cinverse
   
   elif (default == bind).all(): pass
   elif (default == transform).all(): pass
   else: # neither are default, but don't match
       pass
   
   # recalculate
   #wtmtx = __rr.matrix44.multiply(ltmtx,wptmtx)
   #wbmtx = __rr.matrix44.multiply(lbmtx,wpbmtx)
   
   if BID in children: # if this bone has any children
       for CID in children[BID]:
           __VerifyBoneTree(CID,Data,children,wbind,wtransform)
^ what does this do?

after everything has been imported, the data is still likely unstable, especially for bones.
what this does is gather the current bone's LRS, Bind, and Inverse coords (for each bone) and tests to make sure everything matches accordingly and even attempts to fix what doesn't match.

what this means is you only need to specify 1 of any:
- Loc,Rot,Sca
- Bind Matrix
- Inverse Matrix

and the verifier will calculate the rest.

if everything is defaulted and nothing is supplied, the verifier maps the Inverse to an inverted world-bind matrix at the parent's location.
(LRS and Bind don't need to be touched as they're locally defaulted)

so all in all, the verifier stabilizes the supplied data to make it display and export properly as needed.

[DSX8]

r those maps from kirby air ride?

[DarkPikachu]

r those maps from kirby air ride?

What else could they be :3