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Thread: Modelling Tools and 3DFA

  1. #1
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    Modelling Tools and 3DFA

    Wow ! Gee Whiz etc etc.

    Find the website for Wings3D and download the free software.
    Use Wings to create polygonal models (easy !)
    Then export to .3ds format

    Open 3dfa and create a 3d model and import the .3ds into 3DFA.

    Color the model while in the 3dfa model pane so it becomes visible and then close the pane.

    Back in the main movie pane, Add a 3D motion event and apply x,y,z rotation events.

    Result - 3D flash models in astonishingly short time - try it.

    Attached V4.4 3dfa movie and the source files from Wings


    [Edited: I have changed the lighting and added a starfield behind the satellite in the second version]
    Last edited by carnwath; 05-29-2003 at 09:29 PM.

  2. #2
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    new attachment
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  3. #3
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    Here is another sample using Wings/3dfa .

    The .3ds files are 200kb so I can't post the source or the movie. PM me if you want the movie or the .3ds files.

    BTW the site for Wings is www.wings3d.com
    and the 3D Canvas site iw www.amabilis.com
    Last edited by carnwath; 05-30-2003 at 09:05 PM.

  4. #4
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    Cant substitute an upload without destroying the post, here is the correct pic
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  5. #5
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    I also downloaded Blender.

    I can't believe that these programs are open source.

    I have been looking for software like this. Thanks for posting it.

    I can't imagine the power of combining these products together (3dfa and the others)

  6. #6
    KoolMoves Moderator blanius's Avatar
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    Lets not forget Anim8or It's what I use.

    http://www.anim8or.com/main/index.html

  7. #7
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    blender 3d

    hey and blender 3d is realy cool no but it dosent support 3dfas file types but you can make games with the program its came a long way since year 2001
    What is the internet?Its a place were anyone can be anything even if there not!!!

  8. #8
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    3d error

    I tried mapping a jpg as a texture onto a shape which had been saved as a child .model and re-imported.

    1. The resulting 3D image is awesome for very little extra work
    2. Looks like shapes exported and re-imported causes an error in the .swf
    3. Textured image becomes gray in the swf

    However this error seems only to occur when re-importing a shape, not if you import a .3ds

    I have sent an error report to support@3dfa
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  9. #9
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    and another texture map for Trekkies. The words should ideally be drawn on an arc so it maps onto the disc in a curve.
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    Last edited by carnwath; 06-01-2003 at 05:03 AM.

  10. #10
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    Here's one for SirN and his racecar buddies.
    As with the previous two, these models are in Wings and exported as .3ds for use in 3DFA.

    BTW the models took ridculously short times to develop, around 45 minutes each. The racecar being the most because I had to attach four wheels and axles and aerofoil surfaces. Note too that in the animation the axles break through the bodywork because they were added late to the design so they may be "higher" in the design hierarchy (dunno for sure)

    The wheels are colors and the bodywork is a texture with numbers tohelp identify the areas on the body
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  11. #11
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    About Blender's 3ds export capabilities...

    I've been using Blender for a long time- since it was version 1.2 or earlier. I know that you can export 3ds files from it, but you need to use an export script. You can download these python scripts if you go to this site.

    ~Morgon

  12. #12
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    car wireframes for roadster movies

    This is a single wireframe - unlike previous models which had wheels added as extra objects in Wings. There is a screenshot of the finished movie in the zip file.

    The texture map rc1.jpg overlays at a skew angle because of a setup error when I created the wireframe but you can rotate the imported .3ds by yourself and make a new overlay.

    I have included a bare .3ds of just the axles and wheels so you can add your own racecar body over it using 3D shapes. Just make an elaborate coffin shape and place it over the axles.
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  13. #13
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    I found it tiresome to map textures to the 3D objects and found a nice (FREE) tool at http://www.uvmapper.com/uvmapper.htm

    The Wings modeller has a UV mapper but it does not seem to be very elegant, so try this.

    1. Create a Wings 3D object.
    2. Export from Wings as a .obj and also as .3ds
    3. Import the .obj into UVMapper
    4. Create a planar map and save as .bmp and then convert to .gif using paint or any paint tool.
    5. Edit the map and save only the left half
    6. Color as required e.g. in Paint
    7. Import the .3ds into 3DFA as a model
    8. Import the texture from step 5 as planar, Z axis

    Done !

    The attached zip file has the components for a cube, extruded on one face then reduced, extruded some more and then bevelled (36 vertices, 30 faces)
    knubby.obj
    knubby.3ds
    knubby.gif (from UVmapper) which is converted from .bmp to save space here
    knubby1.gif (the left half, colored)
    knubby2.gif (colored more for some more faces)

    The finished result is 100x better than trying to guesstimate where to color by hand. Hope this info is of some use to the community.
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  14. #14
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    Following on from the post above, here is another sample.

    In this one the pair of axles, a single extrusion object, made in Wings, has a UV map created by UVMapper but such great detail is not required. However it does show where each mapped axle is so it was easy to color the map. It also looks like it shows the wheels as smaller reflected objects like mushrooms, but in fact thats not the wheels, which are actually bands along the top and bottom. I dont know what the mushrooms are but they dont show up in the 3D object anyway!

    The finished movie is more like a cartoon style set of wheels and the mapping image axles2a.gif only needs broad areas of color to produce the finished movie as shown in the snapshot movie.jpg

    axles2.gif Original map
    axles2a.gif Simplified map
    axles.movie 3dfa movie
    movie.jpg snapshot
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  15. #15
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    and here is a snapshot of the racecar (see rc-car.zip above) when mapped with UVmapper and painted
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  16. #16
    what is 3dfa?

  17. #17
    KoolMoves Moderator blanius's Avatar
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    What is 3dfa?
    The best choice for doing Flash!

    Check it out
    http://3dfa.com

  18. #18
    Senior Member zoranvedek's Avatar
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    a little late on this one.............

    but...............

    Originally posted by blanius
    Lets not forget Anim8or It's what I use.

    http://www.anim8or.com/main/index.html
    Ditto on the anim8or......................

    alot simpler to use than the rest, and best of all completely FREE..........

    and not too shabby in the results department either.....

    http://members.aol.com/lucky13thday/leaving_dock.jpg
    (a bit JPEG'd but you get the idea)

    (edit)A less JPEG'd and larger version I just posted at ArtSig...
    http://www.artsig.com/go/works/view?id=13988(/edit)

    -Jason
    Last edited by zoranvedek; 07-21-2003 at 06:47 AM.

  19. #19
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    CyberMotion's a great modeling tool as well...

    At an affordable price ($ 119 / $ 89 (Student)):

    http://www.3d-designer.biz/

    Easy to use / Easy to learn and VERY powerful for the price.

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