Hi Rolin.

The program normally runs in a fraction of a second. If it does not close and produce an Output.3dz, one of two things will happen. Firstly, you might get a failed Output text file after a few seconds [3 or 4]. Or Second, the program will continue to run almost forever, and if you leave it running, you WILL fill up your HD with a massive text file!

The program automatically searches for the best starting element, so you don't need to worry about setting a particular element, for the model to start from.

I've tried it on models that Gurney's RS calculator hasn’t been able to solve, but it has never made a perfect RS as Gurney's does. I've tested all possible settings, but there has always been rendering problems with the models.

Cheers

Hi VonOben.

These models you are having problems with. Are they new ones or old ones you have rebuilt?

I cannot stress to highly the need for care in aligning elements, so you have clear lines across the model.

At these points, insert bulkhead elements to cut the model into smaller chunks.

Make sure all of your elements are flat, and not twisted. It's very common if you have a four of more node element, for one of the nodes to be out of line. Best results come from having only triangles,

These three things will improve your chances of getting a good RS result.

Is there some kind of an tutorial on how to create a working model?

In my eyes it leads to very blocky looking models.. I'll have to make some test but my very simple but natural build and tri-only mig-3 does not compile.

Is it importatnt to have Elements that cut the model along the x-y-z axis or isn't that the deal? just elements that cut the model into halfs

Some example models that where successfully compiled with rs_calculator would be helpful too

Hi rolin.

Here are a few of my models which I have created from scratch using Gurney's RS calc. These are all clean models, which worked straight off in game.











If you look at this model of the Hampden, I have marked in where exactly all the bulhead elements are in this model. You will see how the cut the model into smaller chunks, and therefore make it easier to create an RS.



When the model is finished, the last job is to remove these bulkhead elements, although some will remain as part of the cockpit and bomb aimer / gunners positions.



I hope this help you understand how this works.

The reason the Mig3 model will not work is because these bulkhead elements have been deleted and the landing gear has the inseert codes added to the nodes. You need to remove these codes, and reposition the gear in the fixed down position, and then it should work.

thx!! this is great info

- do you always build in these bulkhead elements .. i know it will help the calculation process.. but this eats up polys and you'r already very limited with 254 elements (i know of the possibility to spread a model over several files)

and I was referring to my own mig3 .. I'll see if i can change the geo of the mig to be rs_calc compatible

Hi Rolin.

If you convert your Mig3 model to text, you will see where the bulkhead elements were in the model.

In the text version, look foe elements section. You will see groups of elements, divided by an element which is simply 255 [Like E098 = 255].

These are the former bulkhead elements, which have been deleted from the model, but still retain a position in the RS and Normals.

I know you might think your wasting elements, but it's really the only way to do it. The good side is building with up to 6 3dz files, it's hard to run out out of elements, because you'll run out of Nodes, long before you'll run out of Elements.

no you still got me wrong.. I'm building the mig in 3ds max and exported it with my own exporter

so there are no bulkhead elements atm

BUT

this info is very important thx!
so a bulkhead element is what? you can define it in 3dz-studio ?! I've seen it in one of the original bf109 lod models I think.. so what does the game do with it? it does only exist of a normal, right? and the placement in the rs-tree ?

is this a piggyback element?

I'm not quite sure I understand this thing.. at which point will the bulkhead-geo (the polygones) replaces by simply the end-of-line-code 255 ?

Hi Rolin.

As your building in 3ds, I suspect your going to end up with one big model, which you can then Davide into several sections.

I normally break the model into the following:

Engine cowling B.3dz
Cockpit section F.3dz
Tail section A.3dz
Left Wing E.3dz
Right Wing G.3dz
Prop P.3dz

OK on to the bulkheads. If you have ever built a card model, you have an internal structure, and external structure. The bulkhead elements are like the internal formers of the model. They just Davide up the model internally. They have no other use than to Davide up the model, into compartments, if you like, in a ship. They just simplify the RS, because the RS calc does not have to try and find the one and only RS for all the elements in a model, it just calculates the RS for the sections.

As I've said before, once the model is finished we just remove the element and mapping, after adding the RS and Normals, by replacing the element information with just 255.

The Element number, RS and Normals for the 255'ed element must remain in the model, or else to RS sequence will be broken.

The Game does not use the element, other than to continue the Rendering Sequence.

Piggybacks, are an element which has a second elements which shares the RS and Normals of it's original element. In most cases it's used to improve an old model, without recalculating a new RS, or Normals.

One thing though, you need to remember to build in 1/48 scale.

I'll be interested to see how this works out.

no, one can build the complete model in pieces in max (wings, body, engine ...) and then select only what should go into the specifc 3dz and export only that part.. this makes aligning quite easy

ok and bulkheads.. so this sounds great... have to test it soon.. this could realy make the deal..thx.. you're realy a source of great information!
only drawback is, that I can not include this into the exporter cause you have to do it by hand after rs_calc..
great would be an rs_calc script within max but therefor I had to know how Gurney does his calculation