X-Plane exporter for AC3D

[bsupnik]

Hi Y'all,

Just a quick status update on the AC3D export plugin for x-plane... this is a plugin that lets you load and save X-Plane objects (X-Plane's .OBJ format, but not the same format as Wavefront OBJ) directly from AC3D.

The 1.0 plugin is available for PC and should work with AC3D 4 or 5. A 1.1 plugin will be available for AC3D5 Mac and PC shortly. The 1.1 plugin adds support for building 3-d cockpits in x-plane.

(This plugin is not meant to be used to edit X-Plane aircraft (ACF) files, but you can model static aircraft for use in scenery.)

I'll post when the new builds are published. The web page is:

Windows plugins are here - http://www.xsquawkbox.net/tools/ac3d/
Mac OS X plugins are here - http://www.ac3d.org/ac3d/forumpics/xp_exporter_mac_121304.sit

*Cheers*
Ben

[ install the .p files in the AC3D 'plugins' folder]

[JoDuck]

Hi Ben,

i am using AC3D V5 since it came out. This is our main tool for scenery development (EDDM) for X-Plane, and we are very lucky to have it. Generally the version 1.1 B1 works great, but the import of X-Plane OBJ files failes with AC3D V5 while it works fine with version 4. The resulting files seem to be empty. Also content prior to the import seems to be lost. Currently I use AC3D V4 for the import.

Pls. have a look at this issue when you rework the Version 1.1 for AC3D.

Thanks

Jo

[coanda]

ben, I cannot import the objects that planemaker exports in version 4 or version 5, and this goes for importing other .obj (x-plane version 7 compliant formats) files. (beta for version 1.1)

otherwise ALL is good...and am looking forward to being able to model cockpit quads.

PLEASE PLEASE rush rush rush with ver8 object format so we can have smooth shading of cockpit objects.....I just cannot WAIT for this!

(could a plugin be made to use the new stl format to smooth shade within x-plane using open gl commands????)

[bsupnik]

ben, I cannot import the objects that planemaker exports in version 4 or version 5, and this goes for importing other .obj (x-plane version 7 compliant formats) files. (beta for version 1.1)


Was this a problem in the older plugin? Can you import any .objs at all? Is the WaveFront importer installed, or other plugins that might interfere? Are there any strange console messasges that appear in the DOS window?


(could a plugin be made to use the new stl format to smooth shade within x-plane using open gl commands????)
[/quote]

Not sure what you mean by the new 'stl' format...but yes - a plugin that draws using gl commands can draw smooth stuff. The X-Cockpit guys added a second file of normals to go with their OBJs and did their own code to get this effect.

*Cheers*
Ben

[coanda]

ben, thanks for the quick reply!!

for me, at least, the .obj import feature has never worked with files produced by x-plane.

all it produces is hashes (#)in the dim boxes.

I do have the standard package of plugins installed.

for ac3d 5 the stl format is supported, this format is quite simple and to my knowledge only contains geometry and normals. you may or may not know that this is a general manufacturing standard format used in machines such as rapid prototypers, mills etc......

coanda

[bsupnik]

Hi Guys,

First of all, the 1.1b2 plugin is now posted, Mac and Win:

http://www.xsquawkbox.net/tools/ac3d/

If you try this and still have a problem importing an object, please email the object to me! I have not had trouble importing any valid OBJ file.

You MUST remove the obj_import.p plugin from the default plugins that ship with OBJ -otherwise AC3D will try to import your x-plane OBJ as an alias wavefront object.

*Cheers*
Ben

[coanda]

ben, thanx very much,

import now works fine!

imported a model but i cant set smooth shading on surfaces......i wonder if its because the aircraft is recognised as one object and has in the region of 17000 surfaces?

nothing mentioned in the console.....

[bsupnik]

imported a model but i cant set smooth shading on surfaces......i wonder if its because the aircraft is recognised as one object and has in the region of 17000 surfaces?


Honestly I have no idea what's wrong with smooth shading, but it's not really suppose to work - the OBJ doesnt' have per normal information so I can't pass that to AC3D...you'd probably have to rebuild all normals. Smooth shading isn't going to work right until obj8 is done.

[coanda]

sorry ben, dont know whether we have crossed wires but for the previous versions of the importer shading within ac3d has been fine

my previous process for importing .obj files is as follows:

.obj > import into blender > export as .ac > open in ac3d > set smooth shading

so maybe this is a problem with ac3d?

[JoDuck]

Hi Ben,

I did not remove the the obj_import.p plugin from the default plugins. That was my problem.
Thanks for the help.