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Work in Progress / BlitzTerrain

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BMacZero
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Posted: 27th May 2010 03:11
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Yeah, that would make it even better!




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Oneka
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Posted: 27th May 2010 06:24 Edited at: 27th May 2010 06:26
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Meh brings the example of the seams issue I was talking about earlier, this is GDK version



The terrains are setup so that they all come from the same image, all are just spliced (to make individual images smaller) but no detail is lost, terrains are lined up based on size, all are 256x256 which came from a 768x768


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smaas
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Posted: 27th May 2010 13:15
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No I didn't notice that.

source can be found on the same site

http://www.edam1740.nl/landgen/download.html

I did notice that the dyke is not flat although on the bitmap it has the same height everywhere.
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Oneka
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Posted: 27th May 2010 14:23
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I also noticed that the Fog commands do not effect the terrains


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kaedroho
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Posted: 27th May 2010 17:38
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Oneka, Thanks for reporting that. I have just confirmed that bug.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 27th May 2010 18:17 Edited at: 27th May 2010 18:44
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Fog is now fixed. Along with lighting, Z read/write and culling.

EDIT: Just ran all GDK and DBPro tests and all are starting and running just fine. This means that I could have a release out shortly!

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Matty H
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Posted: 27th May 2010 18:57
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Quote: "EDIT: Just ran all GDK and DBPro tests and all are starting and running just fine. "


Good news, the loss of texture for GDK is a strange problem, hopefully it was something to do with the download or our settings.
Other GDK versions of BT have been fine and if it works for you then I'm sure we can get it to work.

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TuPP3
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Posted: 27th May 2010 19:35 Edited at: 27th May 2010 19:37
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I've been wondering one thing about BlitzTerrain default media files, is there reason why the files are especially .tga, .bmp and .jpeg?

I mean I prefer using .dds and .png files because I've found out that they have the best quality-size ratio.
In the default files I could save 950kt just by converting .tga -> .dds and .bmp -> .png.
And that would be significanlty more when using larger files.

So why use 192kt .bmp rather than 39kt .png? I found out that I can't use .dds as heightmap image, because it will cause memblock position outside range when building the terrain.

As those files are compressed, what differences they really have for a.)Terrain generation time b.)Rendering c.)Video memory?
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haliop
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Posted: 27th May 2010 22:32
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man i cant wait for the GDK update!
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kaedroho
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Posted: 27th May 2010 23:17
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Quote: "is there reason why the files are especially .tga, .bmp and .jpeg?"


Thats just how I found those files in the Advanced Terrain demos. But there are reasons.

.tga was used for detailmap because it can be made semitransparent.

.bmp was used for heightmap because it has no compression so no chance of bad quality terrain (jpeg sometimes adds white splodges which will create extra hills). You can replace this with PNG, if there is an 8 bit PNG format around.

.jpeg was used for texture because jpeg has the smallest compression method. So it takes up less space.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 27th May 2010 23:21
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Quote: "what differences they really have for a.)Terrain generation time b.)Rendering c.)Video memory?"


All those files except for DDS gets turned into an array of pixels. This is why DDS gives errors as DBPro cannot access the data. DDS stays compressed when it is sent to the GPU so it is alot metter on video memory. As they are all converted into the same format (except for DDS), they all generate and render at the same speed. DDS will render slightly faster but data cannot be accessed so its good for textures but not good for heightmap.

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TuPP3
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Posted: 28th May 2010 00:07 Edited at: 28th May 2010 00:08
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Thanks for the info, everything is clear now excpect the .tga semi-transparency, I'm not sure if that "semi" makes it different, but .png(interlaced) and .dds(DXT5 interpolated alpha) can both have transparency, .png as 300kt and .dds over 340kt(with mip-maps though).

The .dds detail without alpha looks identical to .png one, and 170kt with mipmaps seems to be a winner image to me...
The original .tga was 768kt.
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Oneka
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Posted: 28th May 2010 00:17
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@Sounds good Kaedroho

Cant wait till the next release, and yeah the Texture problem did not always exist in the GDK version, only with the recent release did that problem arise


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Red Eye
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Posted: 28th May 2010 20:28
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I am having loads of linking errors, while compiling one of the demo's.

And then it starts and i get this:

BT Error: Heightmap Size Invalid

Function: BT Build Terrain

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Matty H
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Posted: 28th May 2010 22:16
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Quote: "BT Error: Heightmap Size Invalid"


I got this because it could not find the media folder, change it to bin/media/etc...

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kaedroho
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Posted: 29th May 2010 00:39
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If you are using GDK, then this is usually a GDK problem. For some reason the dbImageWidth command returns strange values in some versions of GDK.

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Fredyssun
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Posted: 29th May 2010 12:18
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Hi,
Ive a problem with Blitz Terrain. If I compile one of your demos everything goes right, but when the prgramm starts windows says that there was a problem with the programm und it had to quit.

Does anone know how to fix that problem?

It's not a bug it's a feature
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smaas
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Posted: 29th May 2010 20:04
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Two small questions

1. can I dynamically change the environment map?

2. is the Realtime Terrain Modification System still included?
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kaedroho
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Posted: 29th May 2010 20:06
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1. Nope, not yet.

2. Nope, it was never included in the first place.

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smaas
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Posted: 30th May 2010 00:38
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Shame, saw the commands in the help file on the blitzwerks website. I just uploaded a demo how to change the texture runtime. Hoped for a big explosion putting craters in my terrain and burning everything around it!
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Serge Adjo
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Posted: 31st May 2010 11:00 Edited at: 31st May 2010 11:22
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Hi everyone, Hi Kaedroho ! @Kaedroho, I've tried your LOD plugin:
-'UT SetTerrainTextureMode terrain,0' -> Could not understand command at line #
-'BT SetTerrainLODDistances terrain,250,500,750' -> Could not understand command at line #
-'BT InitialiseTerrain Terrain' same thing, idem.
-'BT Update cameranumber' idem.
-the other functions seems to work. but I still can't see any terrain when I run the program.

I'm using Version 2.00 Beta 2, DBPro U7.4, win XP Media Center Edition.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 31st May 2010 14:54
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All those functions are version 1 functions. Look at the examples and ini files to get the new set of functions.

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Duffer
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Posted: 31st May 2010 20:16
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@ Kaedroho,

Thanks for the further updates. Could you post a sort of wishlist of priorities now for development of this damn-fine plugin?

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ChozoMufin
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Posted: 1st Jun 2010 02:26
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I had mentioned the collision objects before. I know it's supposed to be hidden; what I meant was that the object is inaccurate, so the player will fall through and float above the rendered terrain frequently, and hills are always jagged.

Somebody set up us the bomb.
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Oneka
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Posted: 7th Jun 2010 23:00
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Any new updates?


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haliop
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Posted: 10th Jun 2010 11:59
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kaedroho , does blitzz using ClipMapping?
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kaedroho
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Posted: 21st Jun 2010 18:40
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Sorry for recent lack of updates..

EXAMS ARE NOW OVER!!!!!!!!

Which means I can start spending time on working on this plugin again!

The plugin is acctually nearly finnished, just one more feature to add.

I've been working on the help files every now and then when I got time. They will be finnished soon.


Quote: "kaedroho , does blitzz using ClipMapping?"


I'm not sure what you mean. But if you mean clipping, yes it does.

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Duffer
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2010 00:23
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@ Kaedroho,

Sorry about that - didnt know you were in exam hell - glad you are out of it now..

Looking forward to the next update.

a long time dabbler with DBC and DBPro with no actual talent but lots of enthusiasm...
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Oneka
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2010 01:12
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Yes it will be good, did you by chance figure out the GDK texture issue?


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kaedroho
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2010 00:38 Edited at: 23rd Jun 2010 00:42
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I never got an issue with GDK textures. I'll email you the latest version so you can see if its fixed if you want.

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Oneka
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2010 04:06
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Sure if you can send it to Kikomanx@hotmail.com that would be great


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Oneka
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Posted: 27th Jun 2010 01:32
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The new version works great, the issue with the textures is definitely gone


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KISTech
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Posted: 7th Jul 2010 20:10
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How are things coming along?

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KISTech
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Posted: 8th Jul 2010 23:40
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I ran into an issue while beginning my journey into C++. I'm new to making all the right connections here and there in C++, so I'm sure I missed something somewhere.

When I got BlitzTerrain.h and BlitzTerrain.lib finally included correctly I get these errors when I try to compile.



Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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Matty H
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Posted: 9th Jul 2010 00:30
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I think you need GDK 7.4.
The thread is in the GDK forum, there is an update about half way down the first page I think, you may need that also.

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KISTech
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Posted: 9th Jul 2010 04:58 Edited at: 9th Jul 2010 05:00
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Ok, that made somewhat of a difference. Now I get these 7 warnings.



The EXE attempts to run, but gives a BlitzTerrain "Heightmap size invalid" error message.

If I go find the exe and run it myself it runs, but the ground texture doesn't show up. It's just a pale green. Is that the same texture issue that Oneka was mentioning?

By the way, has anyone noticed the BlitzTerrain forum is down?

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kaedroho
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Posted: 9th Jul 2010 22:13
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Quote: "Ok, that made somewhat of a difference. Now I get these 7 warnings."


This is just a general problem with the old version. It should be fixed now.


Quote: "The EXE attempts to run, but gives a BlitzTerrain "Heightmap size invalid" error message."


I got this problem too. I looked into it and found that DarkGDK was returning some very high number. I changed the data types and its fixed now.


Quote: "If I go find the exe and run it myself it runs, but the ground texture doesn't show up. It's just a pale green. Is that the same texture issue that Oneka was mentioning?"


I never got this bug. But I have sent the latest version of BlitzTerrain to Oneka and he/she has confirmed that the bug is gone.


Quote: "By the way, has anyone noticed the BlitzTerrain forum is down?"


Nope, it was up last week though. I will let the admin know about this. The host has said for the last few months that they were shutting down, but never said when. This could be it... Luckily, we have a database backup .

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KISTech
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Posted: 9th Jul 2010 22:53
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If you need a place to host your site, let me know. I used to run a full ISP/Webhost from here, and still have all of the equipment and a 25M/25M fiber connection.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 10th Jul 2010 20:40
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Thanks KISTech. Could you email me any info, prices, etc and I'll forward you to our web admin.

I just compiled what I think will be the final release. All major and most minor bugs squashed and all features I wanted to add are added.

I just need to finnish the help files. 1 page at a time...

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kaedroho
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Posted: 11th Jul 2010 03:26
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Well, I was just about to upload blitzterrain 2.00 but I accidentally typed my password wrong on the FTP server and now my webhost has blocked me.

Just a bit of advice to everyone, never use Lunarpages webhosting. It costs £90 a year to get blocked from your own site all the time, a barely working mysql server, has speeds alot lower than free hosting and the support take ages to respond and when they do, they barely know a thing.

I have decided that I am going to pack my bags and go from this webhost. Even though I ordered a year, I leaving after just a few months. This means that I am going to need to find temporary webhosting before I can upload BlitzTerrain 2.00.

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KISTech
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Posted: 11th Jul 2010 04:33
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No worries, I've got you covered.

If you got it, read my email, and email me back. I can have something put together for you tonight until we get everything set up properly.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 11th Jul 2010 14:23
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I got your email, thanks! Replying now...

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kaedroho
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 18:56
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Ok, I have a working webserver now. Special thanks to KISTech.

Theres just a few more things that need doing then the download will be up.

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KISTech
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 19:04
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Happy to help.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 19:30 Edited at: 12th Jul 2010 19:54
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Did you get my last email?

EDIT: I now have access to the server. Thanks!

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kaedroho
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 20:03
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None of my emails are getting to you anymore. It keeps complaining about a connection issue. Before, it took about 3 or 4 retrys and it eventually sent but now its not working at all.

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KISTech
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 20:28
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I thought I had whitelisted you, but it didn't take before. You're on it now.

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kaedroho
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 20:35
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Could you quickly install openssh? Webmin command console doesnt let you install packages, I'm trying to install postfix.

sudo apt-get install openssh-server

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Duffer
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Posted: 12th Jul 2010 22:39
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@ Kaedroho,

Good luck with post version 2 to the link! More strength to your arm.

Could you outline what's new in version two? (appreciate it if you would prefer to wait and make full announcement when download link up and running though)

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kaedroho
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Posted: 14th Jul 2010 17:47
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The DNS has updated now and is now pointing to a new server. The download section should be back online soon!

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