Planetside Software Forums

General => Terragen Discussion => Topic started by: rcallicotte on June 10, 2008, 03:23:19 PM

Title: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 10, 2008, 03:23:19 PM
I took the TGC from the following site and added it to a Default scene.  No matter what I do with the instructions given here http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=753.0 , the ice / snow edge stays vertical.  Anyone get this to work and, if so, how?

Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: peejay on June 11, 2008, 01:25:04 AM
just guessing, but the instructions do mention a 'lateral only' function - this would mean you would also have to have a compute normal in their somewhere?

I don't think he showed us the whole node network, just the bit he felt was relevant
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 08:46:44 AM
If that's the case, no one has said this and that was a year ago.  If we're going to share stuff, then let's really share it.  Don't tell me that "you just have to experiment".  I can experiment without someone telling me they have a solution that doesn't work.

So...if anyone has made this work with the instructions as is and the TGC as is, let me know how.  Otherwise, this solution doesn't exist.  Don't show me examples of scenes.  Let me know how it works.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: Mandrake on June 11, 2008, 11:17:32 AM
I remember playing with this and had some crazy problem too.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 11:49:01 AM
Mandrake, I saw a couple of others ask about this before, when I was looking for a solution, and I found the same general misunderstanding. 

It would be great if we were given the understanding of how this works so we could implement.  Too much of this stuff in TG2 is the Twilight Zone.  I'm looking for general understanding most of the time. 

I think the general consensus is that some people who visit (or lurk) on the Planetside forums are scared to share what they know, but fortunately not everyone.

"...with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: Mandrake on June 11, 2008, 12:06:49 PM
I think the problem I had was that I could only get it to work as a stand alone. If I did layers below it then it just melt into the terrain, so I probably just did not displace it right. Sorry, it did work though. I have it at home, I'll take a look later..

Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 12:13:45 PM
If you or someone can show me this works as is, I'll crap my pants.   ;D

Quote from: Mandrake on June 11, 2008, 12:06:49 PM
I think the problem I had was that I could only get it to work as a stand alone. If I did layers below it then it just melt into the terrain, so I probably just did not displace it right. Sorry, it did work though. I have it at home, I'll take a look later..


Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: j meyer on June 11, 2008, 12:28:11 PM
I've had just a quick try with that one last year and don't know
if it will be of any help to you.Since i don't remember what i've
done exactly i attach the tgd so you can have a look yourself. ;)
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: RArcher on June 11, 2008, 12:34:26 PM
Over a year ago there was an Ashundar image of the week contest using this file.  It worked fine then, but now opening up the same .tgd I created back then, now gives the same problem you are having.  I believe this is being caused by the major changes Matt made to the intersect underlying functions in the newer builds of the software.  To fix the problem I would try modifying the values under the effects tab on the Snow_Base layer.  Or I could be totally grasping at straws and you may be better off waiting and hoping Lucio has a better answer.

Edit:  Increasing the value for - intersection zone has fixed the vertical problem for my old .tgd file.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 12:45:30 PM
Thanks, jmeyer.  This is a render from your file, without any changes by me.

This is what I found, when doing what I did from the TGC as given, following the instructions, etc.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: j meyer on June 11, 2008, 01:02:04 PM
Strange!
That's how my render of it looks.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 01:03:56 PM
RArcher, this is great.  Thank you.  I upped the default TGC's value of the Snow Vertical Emboss's Displacement offset to .75 and upped the Snow Base's Intersection Zone to .03906.  I changed nothing else.

THANKS EVERYONE.  You have restored my confidence even more in the helpfulness of this forum and its gracious users.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 11, 2008, 01:04:46 PM
Jmeyer, my camera height was lower than yours in my render, but I changed nothing else. 

Anyway, it's working now...
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: j meyer on June 11, 2008, 01:12:59 PM
"Anyway, it's working now..."

Fine! ;D
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: mogn on June 11, 2008, 11:43:23 PM
There is a minor trouble in the UI, when incorperating a an tgc as the last shader. I miss an assign shader, in the add layer menu.
It can be done in the following way:
1. Add any shader
2. In the node view, connect the the Base colours to the input of the "Snow base"
3. Connect the output of the "Snow base" to the input of the added shader
4. Delete the added shader.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 12, 2008, 07:24:56 AM
@mogn, I haven't had that problem.  That last step is really unnecessary.  In this particular case, all you need to do to use this TGC (not counting the adjustments I described above) is connect the Base Colour output to the last input on this node tree (at the bottom).  Then, connect the bottom shader's input into the Planet.  Done.
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: mogn on June 12, 2008, 09:09:53 AM
Thats the problem, the planet is usual not in the same wiev as the "Snow Base"
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 12, 2008, 10:23:35 AM
Not in the same wiev?  Not sure what you mean.

Quote from: mogn on June 12, 2008, 09:09:53 AM
Thats the problem, the planet is usual not in the same wiev as the "Snow Base"
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: mogn on June 12, 2008, 11:35:21 PM
This:
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: red_planet on June 13, 2008, 05:30:43 AM
just a guess... wiev = view ??  ;)  ;D

Pesky keyboards !!

Rgds

Chris
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 13, 2008, 06:36:04 AM
Oh...view.   ;D

When you are tugging on a string to attach to a node you can't see in the window, right click and you can choose where it goes from the right-click menu.  "Go To Group". 

Is this what you wanted to know?
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: moodflow on June 13, 2008, 05:47:41 PM
Well I wanted to extend my thanks to Calico (for bringing this up) and Lucio (for creating it).

I never really "went through" what was going on in this clip file, and finally did today.  It answered a bunch of questions I had.

Many thanks guys...
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 13, 2008, 11:05:01 PM
I agree.  Thanks to Lucio, who went to the trouble to create this tutorial, especially when TG2 was in its suckling infancy.   8)
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: Lucio on June 14, 2008, 04:53:06 PM
Avantgarde  ;D

Well rewatching the work I can say that the .tgc has a lot of unuseful things in it, like lateral displacement... TG2 was pretty new and the first results I got have a pretty relevant "messing around" component :)

Hi calico and moodflow, been missing this board from a while.. I'm in very deep work now, but you'll see the results very soon. I'll be back :)
Title: Re: Embossed Snow Chunks
Post by: rcallicotte on June 14, 2008, 07:45:55 PM
@Lucio - You're "messing around" was light-years above what I understood then.  The problem was that the newer changes made it a defunct TGC, until a few others figured out what was going on.  You sure don't need to work even harder on this tutorial, as far as I'm concerned.  It rocks now as is.   ;D

Quote from: Lucio on June 14, 2008, 04:53:06 PM
TG2 was pretty new and the first results I got have a pretty relevant "messing around" component :)