Guild of Writers

Hello.
I would like to learn how 3D Studio Max 8 to use age and create a view in the Drizzle 3.1
So I installed the Plasma plugin as described in the Wiki.
Everything is going well.

I followed the two videos on the creation of an age and its visualization with Drizzle (Uru Modding - Your First Age - Part 1 and Part 2 on Youtube) .
Everything seems fine but when I convert my age in Drizzle, I have an error message in the log.
If I run Uru with Drizzle and I go into the Nexus, my age is present. I click on the linking book. Then I have a black screen. The game is blocked.

The text of the log in Drizzle during the convert:

Converting Age: TLCity
Converting Prp: TLCity_District_mainroom.prp
Process All was successful!
Error: unsure
Error: Unexpected error in GuiThread:
Console: stderr:shared.uncaughtexception: unsure
Console: stderr: at shared.m.throwUncaughtException(m.java:439)
Console: stderr: at prpobjects.Pageid.compile(Pageid.java:198)
Console: stderr: at prpobjects.prputils$Compiler.RecompilePrp(prputils.java:540)
Console: stderr: at prpobjects.prpfile.saveAsBytes(prpfile.java:425)
Console: stderr: at auto.conversion.convertPrp(conversion.java:205)
Console: stderr: at auto.conversion.convertFile(conversion.java:119)
Console: stderr: at auto.AllGames$GameConversionSub.ConvertFiles(AllGames.java:289)
Console: stderr: at auto.Max.convert3dsmaxToPots(Max.java:212)
Console: stderr: at auto.Max.convert3dsmaxToPots(Max.java:60)
Console: stderr: at gui.ThreadedTasks$2.run(ThreadedTasks.java:29)
Console: stderr: at shared.GuiThread$InvisibleThread.run(GuiThread.java:106)

Could you tell me how to fix these errors?
Thank you.

Well, this is an uncommon error, and Drizzle doesn't tell us a lot about what went wrong.
All I can think of would be an invalid sequence prefix or page number. In your .age file, make sure everything looks correct. Specifically, make sure the sequence prefix is above 100 and below 65000, and that the page number (next to "mainroom") is greater or equal to 0 and less than 120. I can't guarantee this will solve anything, but it sounds like a good starting point.

If that still doesn't work, you can upload a zip containing the files created (anything in the DAT folder starting with your Age name). Maybe we can find what's wrong by checking these files.

Thank you Sirius for that quick reply.

I can add this:
Dizzle create in the dat directory of Uru complete chronicles this files : TLCity.fni, TLCity.age and TLCity.sum but no PRP files !
I tried to past-copy it from 3dsMax 8. dat directory (created during the plasma export process). But the problem is the same Uru crash when I click on the book of TLCity in the Nexus.

The content of the TLCity.age (in text format inside the .dat directory of 3dsMax8 :

StartDateTime=0000000000
DayLength=24.000000
MaxCapacity=10
LingerTime=180
SequencePrefix=60000
ReleaseVersion=0
Page=mainroom,1

60000 is the number I reserved to Alcugs Project for TLCity age.

This is the TLCity.fni:

Graphics.Renderer.SetYon 10000
Graphics.Renderer.Fog.SetDefLinear 0 1200 2
Graphics.Renderer.Fog.SetDefColor 0 0 0
Graphics.Renderer.SetClearColor 0 0 0

and in attachment the mainroom.prp file and the scene.max file of my test age.

Hmmm...

Well, your .age file is correct. The .fni shouldn't cause any trouble either.
However, the PRP you posted looks weird: for some reason, when exporting Max didn't use the same sequence prefix and page number you set in your .age file, which as I guessed confuses Drizzle.

Since I don't own 3dsMax, I don't know why it's doing this, but maybe someone with a better knowledge of the plugin can help ?
Sequence prefix: should be 60000, but ends up as 5279.
Page number: should be 1, but ends up as -33 (which is what is confusing Drizzle, since it doesn't like negative numbers)
The PRP also has the "reserved" flag, I've never seen it used anywhere else, is that normal ?

Maybe Drizzle could be forced to accept these values, but still, it would be better to find what's causing these numbers to be wrong. Using incorrect sequence prefixes is usually a bad idea...

(also, as you might have guessed, copying the PRP from 3dsMax's folder to CC's won't work - they use different format, which will always crash Uru)

Hi Sirius.

Thank you for reply.
I've check internet and it seems that 3DS Max 8 doesn't works correctly with windows 8.1
Could someone tell me if there is a patch for Windows 8.1?
I will try on an old Windows XP to test.

thank you

EDIT:
It works good in Windows XP !
But I still have the same problem: I had to change manually with the program Plasmashop 60000 and 1 and uncheck the Flag reserved.

Good news.

I installed 3ds Max 2012 on my Windows PC 8.1
It works perfectly!
I installed the plugin of Branan (found here : http://forum.guildofwriters.org/viewtopic.php?f=114&t=5439 and I created my first test age.
It has been correctly imported by Drizzle and I could connect in Uru Complete chronicle.

However, it remains the same problem: I have to manually change the #ID (age and page) in PRP with Plasmashop and uncheck the flag "reserved".
I do not know why this is not done automatically by exporting with Plasma export in 3DS. (it was the same with 3DS 7 on XP).
is it possible that the number 60000 is too big for the conversion? I will try to place a smaller value to test.

If someone wants to know exactly how to proceed with the installation of 3DMAX 2012 under Windows 8.1, I can make a tutorial here.

Have a good day.

OK.....Is possible i can help with this.
THe folder "dat" is necessary are present befor to create a age. And into it you need to creat a file . AGE....

<<<from the Andy Tutorial>>>
Like making a "Book" or your .age file. We need to do this first. Each object that you create in Max will need to know that it has to be exported to your .prp files.
First, we need to create our .age file, so go to the directory that you set up in the PlasmaMAX2.ini file. I left mine as "PlasmaTest". Now go to the "dat" folder that you already created there. Now open up a new text document in Notepad here. Copy and paste this information into the text file:

StartDateTime=0000000000
DayLength=24
MaxCapacity=10
SequencePrefix=<your unique number>
ReleaseVersion=0
Page=mainroom,0

Change "<your unique number>" to your Age's SequencePrefix number that you got (like Camp Bravo's is 5102).
Now save the text file as "YourAgeName.age" (making sure of course that you've named the Age, like Zephyr_Cove.age or Mojojojo.age, or whatever). Make sure that you click on "Save As" and when you go to save you click in the drop down box and change "*.txt" to "Any File" If you do not, your afe file will have the .txt file extension automatically applied to it and Max will not read it.

Okay, NOW you can open up 3DS Max........
>>>finish<<<
Another thing is you need to change the destination of the file PlasmaMAX2 into the folder "3dsmax/plugcfg".
You need change the destination of the string named "Directory" in the destination were there is the folder "dat" were there is your :AGE file created.

For Ex: Directory =C:\Users\My Name\Desktop\Lonirvan\Plugin Portal

PS.---In this case the folder "dat" is into the folder "Plugin Portal". And in it there are again many folders you need to have for to work in order.

The files .FNI and .SUM are created by Drizzle in conversion, for a reason.
After you have export the age from Max, you have the complete collection of files who can work on MOULa. They cannot work in a Installation offline of Uru. For this you need use Drizzle for to convert the age in a PyPRP format readable for URU Offline....And this is the reason because this is a job obligate for to upload an age in Deep Island....Because DI is a version OnLine of Uru Offline, and not a copy of MOULa.
For all errors you can see in the export, are for some rules in the creation age.....The GUI are very complicate, and if you not Follow the rules about they, you can received all times this kind of errors. Again....remember to insert the lights in the scene, or Drizzle said you the age not have and you cannot see nothing. Remember to create a correct SpawPoint for to enter in a age, or Drizzle cannot convert the age because there is not a point of link for to start.
Last thing, check your Java version....In Win 8.1 is possible your version is too much recent...remember Uru is a game of 2004....you need search to install Java 7.
For a very nice tutorial about Max and Plasma, i give you this link for the tutorial created by Andy Legate, a true treasure for the developers in Max.

http://myst.dustbird.net/wiki/Andy%27s_Max_Tutorials

If i can help, ask free.
Only a thing who can is important......I the tutorial about the SDL bool respond of Andy, he said a thing who i have test and not work...The BoolRespond Python need have two responder for to work correctly. If you use a responder with 2 states, it not work with the SDL file, because it reset always the condition. For to save a condition you most use 2 Responders, one for the condition true and one for the condition False. But for this is possible you have again many things to do.

I hope this have help you.
Take care

Hello Jhon J. Jaguar.
I already apply everything you wrote.
I explain the small problem again:

Whenever I export with the "Plasma export" of 3DSmax and I open with Plasmashop PRP created, the values of the identification number of the age and the page number are not correct. In addition, the "reserved" flag is checked.
So I have to put manually with Plasmashop the right values 1 and 60000 and uncheck the Flag "reserved" before converting the PRP in Drizzle. If I do not this, Dizzle returns errors during the convertion.
Otherwise, everything works fine. I can connect to the established age and see my avatar and objects created with 3DSmax.

I do not know why the values 60000 and 1 are not taken into consideration when creating the PRP with 3DSMax.

Here is the .age file located in the folder dat:

Code: Select all

StartDateTime=0000000000
DayLength=24.000000
MaxCapacity=10
LingerTime=180
SequencePrefix=60000
ReleaseVersion=0
Page=mainroom,1

Have you an idea on how I can fix that ?

Thank you for the Tuto link.
Have a good day.

Is possible you have a safety automatic application who keep reserved your files for a not correct change. but this is hard.
Is more easy you need setting something in MAX, or in the configuration of Python into the Max project.
Is important you have saved the version of .Age file in a format who you can modify.
Moreover i dunno what i can said .....is very strange.
But with WIN 8 is not a news.....What numbers you have after the export, the numbers who you need to change in 1 and 60000......What numbers give you? always the same numbers or sometime they change?

Have you tried using prefix numbers lower then 60000?
The plasma plug-ins/Drizzle get a bit temperamental at times.

eliminate all the impossibilities first and what your left with must be the answer


Also the plug-ins where written for Max 7, the fact that they work with Max 8 is a bonus but apparently not with out its problems