Can Not Delete Internal Network Node - Parts shader within Obj Reader Node

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

Has anyone else noticed you can't delete a Parts shader node within an Obj object reader?  Is this normal?  Seems like a bug, since I was able to paste an alternate Parts shader node within the internal network, so now I have two Parts shader nodes in there, and can't delete either one.

I was trying to replace a Parts shader node with a different Parts shader node because I have a bunch of objects with duplicate Parts shaders.  I had to do some manual texture hook ups, and don't want to redo my work 20 times.

Any ideas?

-Derek

[digitalguru]

if this is what you mean - you can delete the redundant materials in the .mtl file that accompanies the .obj - see this post:

https://planetside.co.uk/forums/index.php/topic,26432.msg263354.html#msg263354

This will remove any redundant parts nodes when loading the obj.

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

No, thats not what I'm referring too.  Open the attached .tgd file, and disregard the missing textures.  Then try to delete the Parts shader in the Node Network view.  It won't delete.

Also if you go inside either of the City Block objects' internal network you can't delete the Parts shaders in there either.

-Derek

[digitalguru]

As far as I know, you can't delete the parts node in Terragen once they've been imported into a scene. I guess the one in the main node window is one you've pasted there as a test.

I just did a quick experiment and edited the .tgd in a text editor:

Renamed the nodes B46_Void shader and parts node by adding the text "TO_DELETE" in a Terragen scene first

Then searched for those in the .tgd file and deleted these strings :

<default_shader
            name = "B46_Void shader  TO_DELETE"
            (terragen parameter list in between these lines)
            >
         </default_shader>

and:

<object_part
            name = "B46_Void  TO_DELETE"
            gui_use_node_pos = "1"
            gui_node_pos = "400 180 0"
            gui_group = ""
            part = "B46_Void"
            shader = "B46_Void shader  TO_DELETE"
            >
         </object_part>

So basically the shader code for B46_Void bounded by <default_shader (...) </default_shader>

And the object part bounded by <object_part (...) </object_part>

Re-saved to a new .tgd  file and the part is gone, don't how that will affect the scene without seeing the geo though.

I get into the habit now of checking and editing the .mtl file before I  load it into Terragen

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

OK, thanks for the help digitalguru!  I hope in the future Terragen gets a better way of working with Materials.  By searching the forum it seems a lot of users would appreciate that.

-Derek

[Dune]

Select the parts you want to delete, click CTRL+D, then select all to be deleted parts (now double) and hit delete.

[digitalguru]

Select the parts you want to delete, click CTRL+D, then select all to be deleted parts (now double) and hit delete.

Good workaround!

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

Select the parts you want to delete, click CTRL+D, then select all to be deleted parts (now double) and hit delete.

Are you on a Mac?  This doesn't work on PC Terragen.

-Derek

[digitalguru]

This doesn't work on PC Terragen.

I tried it on your scene on a PC - it deleted the parts inside the obj node,, but didn't delete the parts shader in the top level of the node window - I suspect something went astray with the scene when that node got pasted there?

[Dune]

I work on Windows, and it works for me.

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

So you simply select a Parts shader and duplicate it (Ctrl-D), then select both the original Parts shader, and the new duplicate and hit the Del key and they both are removed?

If thats the case, what version of TG4 are you on? 

-Derek

[Dune]

Works on all versions.

[bobbystahr]

that's the oddest thing I've ever seen..neat work around.

[D.A. Bentley (SuddenPlanet)]

I'm not having difficulty with deleting individual parts within the Parts shader.  I'm referring to deleting the entire Parts shader (parent) itself.

If you have a work around for that even better.    Ideally this should be fixed, as it is not consistent behavior, and should be considered a bug.

-Derek

[sboerner]

Aside from being unable to delete the old Parts shader, does replacing it with a new one work?

Perhaps a Parts shader can't be deleted because its internal network is based on the mesh's shading groups (parts), which are fixed. It's not *meant* to be edited or replaced. (By doing so you could easily break the network.)

But . . . have you tried replacing the nodes by editing the .tgd file in a text editor, as a test?

Interesting thread.