COLLADA

For the new model conversion tool I am working on at the moment, I took a closer look at the COLLADA format this weekend. COLLADA is an open standard Digital Asset
schema for interactive 3D applications. It can for example be used as an exchange format to share models between different tools. That is also the role in which I want to use it in my tool. There are for example COLLADA plugins for tools like 3DSMax and Maya, but also Blender can work with it.

I think that it would be useful to have the ability to convert COLLADA files to FsX MDL files, so that more models can be used with FsX. And also the reverse conversion might be useful if that allows you to edit your models easier (but I have not looked deep into that yet).

So a COLLADA importer/exporter is certainly on the todo list for my new tool. But it does not have the highest priority at the moment. The first features I want to have working is importing old API macros and being able to save them again as MDL obect. As that is the main purpose of this tool. After that I’ll see what other cool features can be added to it.

5555

Ever since starting the FsDeveloper.com website (or SceneryDesign.org as it was called before), I seem to have been the top poster on the site. And each time I think that I have now reached a huge amount of posts, that sound really like quite a lot. This for example happened when I got my 500th post, then with the 1000th, 2000th, etc.

And just after my last post of today I noticed that I had reached the amount of 5555 posts today. I found this a nice looking number, worth of a little blog post. So let the post count grow as more knowledge is collected on the forums, my next “goal” would probably be 10000 or so.

Library Creator XML 2.0.1 released

Finally I have been able to officially release the new version of Library Creator XML that I have been talking about a lot lately. Check this thread in the forum for all the details.

This new tool is the first tool that I have written in C#, before I mainly used VB6. Although Library Creator XML is not a very complex tool of course, I think it was a nice project to get more used to the new language. I feel that I am more comfortable with C# now, so that allows me to move on to more complex tools.

And of course I do already have some ideas. I think the first tool I will work on now is the object conversion tool that I have mentioned a few times before. I hope to post some more details once I have started working on it, but at the moment it is the intention that this tool will allow you to convert your old objects (for example API or SCM macros) into MDL objects with the FsX format. This will allow you to reuse these objects with XML code. But that is only the idea I have now, so keep an eye on this blog as I will keep you up-to-date once my idea progresses into the real tool.

Strange maps

 A few days ago I came across this very cool blog that has a collection of all sorts of interesting maps. For example I found a blog post their about some Dutch annexation plans  after the second  World War. But there are is also a nice post about the presidential elections in France from last weekend.

I am not sure if more scenery designs are such “map idiots” like me, but have a look at this blog if you are.
 

While I was away…

While I was away to Cologne this week to attend a exhibition for my work, it seems quite a few interesting things happened in the FS world. Here is a quick summary of all the things I seem to have missed:

  •  The software of the community server this blog is on has been updated, all seems running fine now but you might have noticed in the process.
  • The ACES team updated their FsInsider site, I think the new version is a lot easier to use and find the information you want. And besides that it also just looks better, so check it out.
  • The FsArchitect scenery design tool has become freely available now.
  • On the forums some interesting tools have been announced by Sean (theisomizer).

Did you say manual?

I know some time has passed since I said that I would make a manual for Library Creator XML 2.0. But the good news is that I actually started doing so today. So once that is ready, you can expect a non beta release of this new version, as it seems quite stable at the moment.

I just also mention that this weekend I found a bug in the tool, sometimes the new GUIDs for Fs2004 MDL files are not determined correctly. This results in compilation error, but has been fixed now. So with the next release you will get this fix.

As a little teaser, here is a screenshot of the new manual option, that allows you to read the manual from within the tool. It automatically gets the latest version of the manual for you from the Wiki.


 

Spammers be gone!

You might know that I have blogged a few times already about the spammers that annoy me daily. Ever way you have on your website to let the users interact with you, seems to be misused by spammers as well. Let me name a few examples.

On this blog you can leave a comment, but about 99% of the comments I receive are spam. That is also the reason that the comments don’t appear right away. I have to approve them first, so that the spam will not flood you.

A few months ago I already mentioned that the talk page on the Wiki was also used to post spam to. And the last week it seems they have also found out that the connect form on the forums can be used to send stuff. So I get some spam on it daily now.

It is quite annoying to get all those useless messages. I always wonder why they send out that stuff anyway, all you do when you get it is press the Delete button and be annoyed. I always wonder how stupid the people are that really respond to it and make those spammers continue doing it as they can earn money with it.

Let’s hope the amount of spam does not increase future, as that might mean that the way to interact with the community members has to be restricted even further, which is not something I would like to do.

 

Some Wiki maintenance

Yesterday I performance some maintenance on the FsDeveloper Wiki. Just some common tasks like assigned uncategorized articles to a category, so that they can be found more easily. While doing that I also noticed that some user(s) have been working hard to get some basic information about mission design onto the Wiki. So if you are into mission design as well, check it out and add your own knowledge.

Another new category on the Wiki is called File Formats, it contains information about the different file formats used in FS. At the oment the focus is mainly on the MDL format, but if you know some good details about other formats, don’t be shy to add them as well.

 

April 1st joke?

Yesterday I found an email message from MS in my inbox. Although the date might make you a little suspicious, this email was certainly no joke. My MVP award has been extended for another year, so that is great news.

Time has gone quite fast the last year, it does not seem like a year ago that I got my award. Hopefully this next year will also bring good interaction with the ACES team, to the benefit of FS and the developer community.