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PippinL (5 posts)
Mar-02-02, 12:21 PM (EST) "Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed?" Is there anyone who knows, how I can convert 3D objects modeled
with Lightwave 6 to the Trainsim.
Everytime I try to convert an exported *.3ds file with CONV3DS
i get an Error Message like "no nodes, so the Mesh Count should be 1" or something.
I have uv-textured and named the surfaces correctly.
If I export the model to *.3ds-format Lightwave asks me to split the object ("Partition Mesh for UV-Texture capture?") and I have to accept, ´cause if i don´t CONV3DS posts another Error message
like "Untextured nodes/Shapes are not supported".Can anyone help? Alert Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
Table of Contents

Subject Author Message Date ID RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... NorfolkSouthern_37 Mar-02-02 1 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... PippinL Mar-02-02 2 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... CODY Mar-02-02 3 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... PippinL Mar-03-02 4 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... dyvach Mar-03-02 5 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... CODY Mar-03-02 6 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... dyvach Mar-03-02 7 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... PippinL Mar-04-02 8 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... dyvach Mar-04-02 9 RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Mo... PippinL Mar-04-02 10

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NorfolkSouthern_37 (129 posts)
Mar-02-02, 01:54 PM (EST) 1. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed?" hi, i make the majority of my models in lightwave before i use 3d exploration to export them to 3ds, but ive never not run them thru max before going to train sim. one theory i have tho is if you have lw 6 or better you make the poarts in seperate layers, that way when saved the layers are grouped under the first layer by priority, this may or may not work with the conv3ds but its worth a shot, i havnt tried it myself.-Justin Cornell
aka NorfolkSouthern_37

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PippinL (5 posts)
Mar-02-02, 04:50 PM (EST) 2. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" Hi Justin!Thanks for the Tip. I tried this and there seems to be a connection between the different layers and the error. First i had all parts in one layer, i exported it in *.3ds format and at the conversion the message "no nodes, so the Mesh ..." appeared.
Then i put the parts with the same surface in corresponding layers. The result was that i got one step ahead in the conversion process. Now I got a new error "Node has a scale or reflection in it,...", arrgh...Some ideas ... ?Greetings from Germany, sorry for the english,
PippinL aka KAI!
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CODY (31 posts)
Mar-02-02, 05:27 PM (EST) 3. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" There in lies the problem..LWO...I have freinds that model in LWO,And up until 5.5 things were pretty good...I use Max!!!
Now...They have to convert everthing to 3ds. and I have to re-texture it in Max!!!
So...try here...
http://www.lwg3d.org/LWG/index.php
If these guys cant' help...Well I doubt anyone can..Besides they'll enjoy seeing your work and helping!!!
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PippinL (5 posts)
Mar-03-02, 10:05 AM (EST) 4. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" LAST EDITED ON Mar-03-02 AT 10:38 AM (EST)Okay, thanks for the help so far.Hm, I have to say that I tried all that with really simple test-models without any animation or something. At the moment I´m working on detaild Switch/Point-shapes that match the Xtrack2-Sections by O.Ghia.
A way to go seems to be to convert the *.3ds-files with the real conv3ds.exe from the DirectX-files to an *.x-file and then import them to 3DCanvas (trialversion for free at amabilis.com).
Then, after some checks, you can convert them to the *.s-format of MSTS. I will try this.
But I´m still looking for a solution to export the files right from Lightwave.
So, Justin, how you texture your models in Lightwave? What special options you may use (the conv3d-Error says something about scale or reflection???)? I textured my objects with UV-texes, because normal Image-maps in LW are not accepted by the MSTS-Conv3d.exe.
And how you convert the files to the *.3ds-format? I would be happy, if you could give some answers.PippinL
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dyvach (75 posts)
Mar-03-02, 11:06 AM (EST) 5. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" >There in lies the problem..LWO...I have freinds that model in LWO,And up until 5.5 things were pretty good...I use Max!!! Now...They have to convert everthing to 3ds. and I have to re-texture it in Max!!! If any of you have access to 3d Exploration, use it to convert from .lwo to .3ds It'll preserve UV-maps and the rest of texturing information intact. Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
CODY (31 posts)
Mar-03-02, 11:26 AM (EST) 6. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" >>There in lies the problem..LWO...I have freinds that model in LWO,And up until 5.5 things were pretty good...I use Max!!! Now...They have to convert everthing to 3ds. and I have to re-texture it in Max!!!
>
>If any of you have access
>to 3d Exploration, use it
>to convert from .lwo to
>.3ds It'll preserve UV-maps
>and the rest of texturing
>information intact. Up to around 5.5 you could..
Well I was sent a file as LWO 6.0...3D Exploration kept looking for the object file?,So he sent it thru as a 3ds.,,,I dunno,LWO always did some weird things with meshes...Rhino 3D can read LWO,Bryce also...But things are upgrading at a pretty good clip..So conversion proggies have a hard time keeping up...Heck, I've even heard that a Max4 file wont' open in Max3..What's up with that???
Anyway, I hope he can get his problem fixed... Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
dyvach (75 posts)
Mar-03-02, 12:23 PM (EST) 7. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" >Up to around 5.5 you could.. I use Lightwave 7 for modeling, and can bring models from it to 3ds Max 4 through 3d Exploration 1.8 with no problem. (in 3ds Export dialog i have' Texture Coordinates', 'Save Smooth Groups Data' and 'Save Local Matrix' checked, everything else turned off)
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PippinL (5 posts)
Mar-04-02, 10:33 AM (EST) 8. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" Unfortunately I do not own 3D Exloration. And all other options I tried with Lightwave did not work. The import/export-thing by 3DCanvas works only if you purchase one of the registered versions...
So I guess, i will maybe purchase the TS Designer from Abacus (now available at the european market) and start my work from beginning. I hope that I have more luck with that.PippinL
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dyvach (75 posts)
Mar-04-02, 11:35 AM (EST) 9. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" Before you give up, have you tried Milkshape 3d? It's a free low-poly modeling program which can read and save both .lwo and .3ds Maybe it'd help you to produce file suitable for msTS converter...Milkshape can be found at http://www.swissquake.ch/chumbalum-soft/index.html Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
PippinL (5 posts)
Mar-04-02, 08:31 PM (EST) 10. "RE: Help on Exporting/Converting Models from Lightwave needed !!!" Nope, at the import to Milkshape all texture informations get lost. But finally i´ve found an excellent UV-texture programm
named "LithUnwrap". This can read my Lightwave 6-exported *.3ds files. All texture datas are there, only the xyz-axis are "mistaken" (<--- i don´t know if this is right in english ???). After some rotating and regrouping (LW6 splits my meshes at the export) i´m able to re-export them to the 3ds-format.
But then the conv3d.exe comes up with the same Error "Node has a scale o reflection in it, ..."). So what the hell this means.
I´ve got no reflection at my surfaces. Or what scale is meant,
scale of polygons, objects, UV-texes or what ...
Does anybody knows what is meant???
In the "lithUnwrap"-OpenGL-Preview all seems to be okay.
Besides a quite good tool for texturing 3DModels(Look at geocities.com/lithunwrap).PippinL Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top

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