Samples of 3D coasters, & what to look for in Big Thunder Mountain recreation

[NowInc]

Re: Actually

Originally posted by cac2889
Thanks. For a first attempt I guess it is pretty good. That was actually done in max. I'm not savy enough yet in maya (completely new to me) to do that. I'll see what I can do with the twist modifier, but I tried that once before and it applied the twist modifier to the entire loft. Maybe it will work if I add a "convert to editable mesh" modifier?

Ah..Max...well..in Maya you can re-size the modifer so that it only effects a certain area...im not 100% on this..but I am pretty sure you can do the same thing in MAX..of course you can also try rotating the points on the curve that you used for the loft and see if that works too

 

[CrashNet]

Second Attempt

Here's my second crack at it. I figured out a way to make the loft bend by turning it into an editable mesh and rotating the vertices. Its still a little choppy because the original spline needs more vertices in it, but I think it looks better. What about you?

 

[NowInc]

I need a life...so I sat down today and started thinking:: "I wonder if I can simplify the process of making a coaster in 3D"...

...well..its a start..but after 20 minutes or so of coding..I have now begun a project which is sure to make me lose my hair

Its crude at the moment (as you can see from the interface)..but it sorta works. Im going to work out automatic routines for different coaster parts as well as integrate the physics engine I have been working on for the past year or so..so that all you have to do to animate is attach a "car" and give some basic mass and friction values...and iit will do the rest...

...tell me,...am I wasting my time?

 

[CrashNet]

Wow

You are DEFINETLY not wasting your time. That is excellent work. But if you would indulge me, does Maya have its own special script code, or can you use other programing languages (Remember I don't know ANYTHING about maya just yet). Did you learn how to code on your own?

Great work!!!

 

[disney2b]

looking good nowinc. keep it up man. that is not wasting you time.

 

[Coasterking1]

NowINC, Keep doing what you are doing...we need to talk. I am glad you have the scripting knowledge that I don't. If you could, please come up with a way to space the crossties and not have to rotate each one to fit the rails and spine. cac2889, you did a good job for ten minutes, but don't listen to anyone about adding more vertices. Yes, it will make it smoother, but it will also make it messier(trust me). use as little vertices as possible. You must place vertices and then change them to Bezier vertices(in max you right click and choose bezier) this will give you handles to edit the bending of the path a la no limits simulator. once you have done this then you need to modify your loft to smooth it out via Shape Steps like I had posted before. I don't know what maya has like that but maybe now inc might. for "bending" the track as you say use a modifier call "twist deform" which is for your loft, and you can set angles/banking for the coaster. I hope this helps somewhat. Keep trying, that is always the best thing to do. good luck!

 

[Coasterking1]

Chris, if you would either give me your e-mail address or preferrably an aol im screename I will contact you and send you a sample file since you are using max, and a memo to let you know step by step how to put a nice yet small piece of track together.

 

[CrashNet]

Hey

Wow, thanks alot!. I'll send you a pm with my email and my aol im screen name. You should have it by the time you read this post.

-Chris

 

[NowInc]

Maya uses an embedded language (as most 3D programs now do) called MEL (Maya Embedded Language....nifty eh?). It is VERY similar to C++, but not quite as complex. Its good for doing some complex things..but its sorta slow. I decided tonight that I am going to instead use the Maya API and write an external plug in using REAL C++ that will be more stable and run faster.

The problem I have is that I do WAY too many things at once..I have about 5 individual side projects that are all about 50% done...so who knows how dedicated I will be to this.

I'll post updates as time goes on...already worked out a new interface in C that is a LOT more efficiant...now to insert code

 

[Rider]

Wanna simplify making coasters? **cough*nolimits*cough*

Thats about as good as I can do :lookaroun

 

[The_CEO]

Hey thats pretty good Rider.. Thats the kind of stuff i do also.. I cant do any of these fancy 3D stuff... If you have any really neat Custom Designs.. and want to trade.. Just let me know... email me at : " coasterboy_14@yahoo.com " ...

~ Justin...

 

[CrashNet]

Rider

Thats a cool coaster! We are all familiar with No Limits Coaster. Who do you know that is a rollercoaster fan that doesn't have it!? What we are doing is using 3D programs to create rollercoasters that we can put in our own custom landscapes. Coasterking1 is using it to recreate BTM. No Limits Coaster would be to hard to try to import a model of a landscape and then fit it around a coaster you built in that program. Instead, we'll just do it all in one program. Along with that, we can put a camera on a path that follows the coaster track, like a first person view, using real physics just like no limits uses. With that in mind, we also like doing it for fun!

 

[disney2b]

hello rider i though i knew that name from somewhere. the coasterforum.com right.

 

[blm07]

Well i thought it was the Hulk coaster from IOA but I guess not

 

[NowInc]

Progress report::

So i moved to code over to C++...runs a TON faster now..I also added 2 coaster building options:

1.) peice based - similar to roller coaster tycoon where you put one peice at a time...

2.) Spline based - You draw the laytout of the track with bezier splines and then add the track automatically (this still needs TONS of work...

..now...i also am working on adding the different coaster types..so far i only have a basic "steel" and a basic "wood" (dont worry..i'll add all types eventually...these 2 are only temporary to get the base code done)...with the wood one..I wanted the wood planks to have the option to appear uneven,,so i added a polygon randomizer..which you can see in the screenshot below (its mid process)...

...tommorow Im going to add a basic "vehicle" code to it..see how well it works..wish me luck

 

[CrashNet]

Hi

Hi, my name is Chris and I have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA HOW YOU KNOW HOW TO DO THAT!!!!!!!:lol: :lol: :lol: I have to ask, how much C++ knowledge do you have to know to do that, because I am a computer science major and as of now, I pretty much know all of the basics in coding, including interfaces. As an update for myself, I'm currently reading up on everything about maya. Boy its a lot of stuff! I'm doing so in preparation to start recreating Illuminations 2000: Reflections of Earth. What I will do is split the show up into four sections, following the layout of the show of course:

1) Chaos
2) Pace, Life, Adventure, Home
3) Celebration (my favorite part)
4) Moving On

I split Act Two, "Order", into two parts because Celebration is such a graphic intensive and very busy part of the show. Keep in mind though that what I'm doing will take me a LONG time, and come to think of it, I'm probably getting in over my head. Its something I have been wanting to do for a while, so I'm going to press on and see what I get!

Now, keep up the good work! I might need you to do some scripting for me later on. Coaster, can't wait to see another one of your master pieces! Goodnight everyone!

-Chris

 

[NowInc]

LoL...oook...where to start...

Before I got into the 3D Graphics stuff..I was a programmer. Started at age 11 with basic and pascal..worked my way up to C and ASM...when i DID get started with 3D graphics..EVERYTHING was code based in a language very similar to C++...so i got to know the "lingo" over time...

...when I finally went full blow head first into 3D graphics, things started to change..interfaces started popping up, and before i knew it..windows NT had emerged (which i still have and occasionally use to this day) and all my favorite DOS and unix based 3d apps were now available in a windows enviornment...with INTERFACES.....this was cool..but i still found it difficult to do "complex" things, even with a cool interface. So..this lead me to learn the custom languages invented for the 3D apps.

Skip ahead a few years...

MAYA beta comes out, and one of its key features is this new languaged called MEL scripting. Very similar to C, but easy enough that anyone can learn it. Digging deeper into what MEL script can do...i fell in love. Once Maya FINAL came out, I discovered they were nice enough to make a Maya API (Programmer lingo for a "open source" program). This enabled me to use the C++ I have known for years, combine it with the new easy to use MEL script..and make these massive plugins.

Things just blew up from there. I started studying advanced mathmatics and physics, ya know..things i could apply to 3D Graphics...and before I knew it...it became 2nd nature to me. Now because I learned the MEL language, I have been able to learn XSI Script, LWScript, MAXScript....all custom languages for different 3D apps..similar to C++.

...now...my suggestion? Practice Maya has FULL documentation on its MEL and API functions (providing of course you BUY it..hehe) and its really easy to follow if you know basic C++. Dont worry about the math/physics stuff...unless you plan on doing simulation software (which is sorta what I do from time to time)..it really isnt needed.

As for YOUR project....nothing is EVER too big...its all practice...if you dont get it right the first time..try again! My first "big" project was a half snake half human character that had to be done completly in code...crazy? yes....did i finish it? no...did i LEARN from it...you betcha!

Dont be afraid...save multiple copies..and remember..undo is your friend

 

[tenchu]

All hail the master! Here was me thinking i was clever changing the name on a couple of pictures.

Being serious here, how powerful a computer do you need to have to be able to run all these programs?

 

[CrashNet]

Tenchu

I have gotten MAYA and 3D Studio Max to work.....slowly....on a Pentium II, 350 mhz, 128 Meg of RAM computer with a very low end graphics card (we're talking five years old). The computer I use now is a Pentium III, 850 mhz, 256 Meg of RAM computer with a 8 Meg AGP Graphics card. Both programs run very well and with no slow downs. Rendering is now very stable, but its speed depends on the number of objects/polygons you have in your scene at a time. If I could change something about my computer so I could use Maya and Max better, I would double my RAM to 512 Meg and change my graphics card to at least a 32 Meg Graphics card. I currently have both programs installed on my computer and I can actually (though I rarely need to) run both programs at the same time. I hope this helps!

-Chris

 

[NowInc]

Well..since this is technically "my career"..i have a few systems with a lot of horse power behind them. My MAIN workstation is a dual P3 Xeon 800 with 2 gigs of ram and a quadro 4 under the hood (its a total beast)...it takes a beating and keeps coming back for more. This doesnt mean that it is REQUIRED to have that kind of power to do 3d stuff...as mentioned above..these things will run (sometimes slowly) on almost all types of machines..the key factor is Windows NT,2k, or XP...most of these wont run on 9x. Personally I do all my modeling in 2k and then switch over to linux (my server is linux based) to do all my rendering.

...just a side note...your 3D card has NO effect on render speeds...that all comes from your processor (or processors depending on how crazy you are) and your amount of RAM.

....and oh...MOST 3D animators stay far far away from AMD (myself included)...a few "render glitches" that were around a couple of years ago left a bad taste in our mouths...sure AMD is cheaper..and maybe they FIXED the problem..but we animators dont easily forget...INTEL ALL THE WAY!