Archangel35757

Just uploaded the 3dsMax 2013 x64 plugin to the Utilities section... I will upload the 32-bit version after @@AshuraDX verifies the 32-bit plugin is working properly.

Does this mean you're coming back to JK model creation?

I'm looking for one more 3dsMax 2013 32-bit beta tester... any takers?

@@DT85 -- Sent the fixed 64-bit exporter to you, Hiro, and @@Psyk0Sith... I also sent the latest 32-bit Max2013 version to @@AshuraDX to beta test... I compiled this new 32-bit version against a very old version of the XSIFTK that embeds the XSICore.lib and XSIFtk.lib directly into the plugin and thus no need for an XSIFtk.dll. I hope it works... Please post your results!

Hiro found a flaw in the 2013 exporter... I failed to catch scene nodes (objects) that have spaces in their name... it's an easy fix. Also @@AshuraDX said the2013 32-bit version causes Max to error & close after export. I think the reason is again incompatability with the older version of visual studio used to compile the XSIFTK.lib DLL. I think I have a solution in mind...

If you mean animating something like a cutscene then you will need to learn ICARUS scripting.

@@DT85 -- Thanks! I will try and compile a 32-bit version using the old Softimage XSIFTK (it has worked for all the previous versions-- maybe it will work for Max2013 as well). UPDATE: ( @@AshuraDX ) Ok... with a little setup, I was able to get the Max 2013 source code to compile against the legacy Softimage Win32 XSIFTK. I will email this to a couple of folks to beta test.

The dotXSI 3.0 exporter for 3dsMax 2013 is now fixed... exporting morph animations work. Filenames with spaces now are acceptable. Also, batch export has also been fixed. It should be good to go... will send to @@DT85 so he can check it out in 3ds Max 2014 and then I'll upload a beta version to the File > Utilities section. The only downside is that it won't be possible to compile a 32-bit version for 3ds Max 2013 and up. The last 32-bit version will be for 3dsMax 2012 (when I go back and recompile all the others). The problem is that the Crosswalk 2013 SDK was compiled using an earlier version of Visual Studio... whereas 3ds Max 2013 was compiled with VS 2010 SP1 and that was part of the reason for my crashes... and Crosswalk 2014 is only for 64-bit. I will try to compile a 2015 version soon. But that's the end of the road I'm afraid... Autodesk has told me that Crosswalk will likely cease to be after v2015. We'll need @@Xycaleth to get his FBX converter fully functional for animations, etc. after that.

@@DT85 -- Standby...

I'm close to having it fixed. Single file export now appears to work properly... deleting the xsiparser object. However, I've broken batch export-- rather nastily. It appears to go thru all the "motions" and the log says everything was a success-- but no dotXSI files are actually written out... further it corrupts the Max files (greatly incteasing their size) and they will no longer open.

It would be nice to have a feature in the vehicle file that tells it what rider animations to play-- then you could make custom riding anims for custom vehicles... then these new rider animations should be added to the GLA-- not replace existing anims.

Well, it's not too brilliant-- rather a frustrated hack to stop the crashing-- but my bandaid fix (setting the pointer to NULL) results in a memory leak. So I need to keep looking for the root cause of the crashing...

Ok... I finally got it to stop crashing. So I'm sending the 3ds Max 2013 x64 dotXSI exporter for @@DT85 to test out... (I only verified it quickly with his SaberSlamDown animation). Anyone else who has 3ds Max 2013 x64 and wants to beta test it-- just send me a PM.

@@eezstreet / @@DT85 -- do you concur that we need to make a MOUTH group of bones-- so that lipsync viseme animations play on the MOUTH group while the facial expression animations play on the FACE group? Also, @@eezstreet, will your coding automatically blend between the changing visemes and facial expressions?

Update: Well, I have resolved the function that was causing the initial crashing. And the Max2013 exporter is now writing out the dotXSI 3.0 file... and the file seems complete (compared to Max2011) and the file does play in the XSI Viewer. However, it is now crashing somewhere in the code-- post-writing of the dotXSI file... so I still need to do more debugging.

I see your point, but I'm just thinking beyond your JK:Enhanced... This could be useful for future endeavors involving other species that used the humanoid skeleton: Malastarians, Ongree, Ithorians, etc.

If you're speaking in general terms of aliens versus humanoids... I would think yes. But I think we'd need to have a unique alienXX_lipsync.gla for each race. If you're meaning variations within a single species (human or aliens)-- I believe that could quickly get out of hand...

Do the base aliens blink their eyes (e.g., Malastare characters?), etc. If you're going for better facial animations, and Hi-Def, then you should allow this method to work for alien creatures as well-- IMHO.

In 3dsMax it'd be the JK2 skeleton(?) But it might be better to keep lipsync facial skeletons as separate 3dsMax files and only reference in the lipsync head/face you need based on a selection menu of head types (I.e., humanoid or alien races...) Maybe @@Psyk0Sith will let me rig his custom Ongree head to better show what I mean in my WIP thread.

But I believe we would need the head bone to be included in the lipsync.gla because the outer vertices on the face need to be weighted 100% to the head bone. So the head bone would be common to both the lipsync.GLA and legacy _humanoid.GLA (but you would not be touching/modifying it-- only getting head bone transform matrix to drive the lipsync.GLA. ...and you could do similarly for a cloak.GLA.

In my last suggestion you wouldn't touch or merge anything with the _humanoid.gla. You'd only need the transform matrix of the _humanoid head bone from the _humanoid.gla.. to put the lipsync.gla in the proper model space. Inside 3dsMax however this could still be one rigged skeleton file. You would simply do an "Export-Selected" and export out only the head and face helper bone and all of the facial bones (with prefix on bone name so as not to conflict with legacy face bones). Then compile these 84+ animations (combinations of 14 visemes and 6 facial expressions) into its own GLA. So then you would be using the legacy _humanoid.gla for the body and the new lipsync.gla for new facial animations, no? In like manner you could have a separate cloak.GLA for capes, cloaks, robes...

@@eezstreet -- one attractive benifit of having a separate facial GLA would be the ability to make better alien facial animations-- since many aliens don't conform well to the _humanoid facial bones... but I believe we'd still have to have independent MOUTH and FACE groups for the reason I already stated above. Not to mention that most aliens will likely have different visemes/expressions. Pursuing your original idea... you could use the face helper bone, that is co-located with the _humanoid head bone, as the main root node for a separate facial skeleton/GLA. Then, in simple terms, I believe all you would need to do is multiply the face helper bone transform matrix by the head bone transform matrix (so face follows the head/body).

I think I can handle it as well... I will begin working on my facial rig and GUI in 3dsMax and start a WIP thread for it. It will include a pose library for existing FACE_*** animations (for backwards compatibility) and at least the 14 primary visemes. It will also include a pose library for the 6 primary facial expressions: joy, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, surprise. Hmmm... @@eezstreet, to blend the different visemes and facial expressions-- may need to create a MOUTH group to play the new Visemes on top of the expressions targeting the FACE group. Legacy animations would play on the FACE group. Otherwise, we'd have to make anims for all mouth/facial expression combinations...

... the SoF2 facial bones are already in the root.xsi file... it's just that nothing is weighted to them... so it is like DT said-- create all the new Viseme animations ( even add more bones if necessary) and recompile the GLA.

TORSO anims only play on the bones in the TORSO group, while LEGS animations play on the LEGS group-- this is how they do strafing and other TORSO/LEGS combinations, if I'm not mistaken ...meanwhile the FACE group can be playing facial animations... I could be wrong, but I thought there's a lot of setup for this in/via Assimilate. IMO the additional SoF2 bones should be sufficient... I will start on my facial rig so you can see what it can achieve... but it seems your plan can work on a new GLA that has all the current bones & perhaps a few more. I guess I'm not grasping your need for a second facial GLA when it can reside in the one current /expanded GLA with new facial bones & facial anims (the extra SoF2 facial bones are already in the root model).