What does this error mean?

[andylegate]

Upon trying to export my competition Age here for the first time, I ran into an error while exporting. Here is what the console says:

Code: Select all


Compiled with Python version 2.5.
Checking for installed Python... got it!
Exporting C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Comp Age\compage.age ...
Args are e_age_final
['e', 'age', 'final']
Exporting age compage
[AlcScript Parser]
{'DayLength': 24.0, 'LingerTime': 180, 'MaxCapacity': 10, 'StartDateTime': 0, 'S
equencePrefix': 5111}
{'AgeSDLHook': True}
{'DayLength': 24.0, 'LingerTime': 180, 'MaxCapacity': 10, 'StartDateTime': 0, 'S
equencePrefix': 5111}
#########################################
##
## => Exporting page Textures -1 <=
##
#########################################
#########################################
##
## => Exporting page BuiltIn -2 <=
##
#########################################
>>> Added AgeSDLHook scene object and python file mod
#########################################
##
## => Exporting page mainRoom 0 <=
##
#########################################

[Lamp Lamp]
 [Light Base]

  Diffuse Lighting Enabled
  Specular Lighting Enabled
  >>> !kLPCastShadows <<<
  >>> !kLPShadowOnly <<<
 [Coordinate Interface Lamp]

[SpawnPoint LinkInPointDefault]
 [Coordinate Interface LinkInPointDefault]
 [LogicHelper]
   No actions in list
None
   Exporting modifiers
   No modifiers
None

[Visual Object Mesh]
 [LogicHelper]
   No actions in list
None
   Exporting modifiers
   No modifiers
None
 [Draw Interface Mesh]
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "<string>", line 176, in open_file
  File "<string>", line 88, in export_age
  File "C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\alcresmanag
er.py", line 603, in export_all
    plDrawInterface.Export(self,obj,scnobj,name,SceneNodeRef,isdynamic)
  File "C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\alc_DrawCla
sses.py", line 1549, in _Export
    drawi.data.export_obj(obj,SceneNodeRef,isdynamic)
  File "C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender\.blender\scripts\alc_DrawCla
sses.py", line 1677, in export_obj
    v.color = RGBA(col_r,col_g,col_b,col_a)
UnboundLocalError: local variable 'col_r' referenced before assignment


I'm using the 1.2.1 version of the plug in.
There is not much to the Age right now. I've got a couple of cliff faces, the ground, and mesh that has an alpha blend for the ground and cliffs, a light, a spawn point, and that's it.

Have not seen this one before.

[andylegate]

Okay, I got the error to go away, but it was strange:

Turns out it was complaining about my mesh that is inbetween my beach, and the cliff faces. I had uv mapped it, and used vertex painting on it for blend of sand to the rock.

Then when I tried to export the Age, I kept getting the above error.

When I realized that it was complaining about that mesh, I removed the vertex painting, and tried to export again. This time it did with out a whimper.

So I then put my vertex painting back in, and exported one more time. Again, it exported without a complaint.

Soooooo......way I read this, is for some reason, you have to export your Age at least one time BEFORE you do any vertex painting.
That's just........weird.


EDIT: Later.....nope the problem is BACK...what the hell is going on?
I forgot to change the name of the vertex color to Alpha so when I linked in, it didn't look right of course. So I went back, removed it, and changed the name to Alpha and went and panted my edges.
Tried to export, and got the same damn error. This makes NO sense.

[andylegate]

Sorry about the triple post here, but I figured it out.

Okay, need to change the Alpha Blend using vertex painting tutorial. There is a step missing, and you'll get that error I got if you don't do it.

The mesh that you are going to blend, you need to set the vertex color to white. Check, got that, the tutorial says to do that.

Here is what it says:

Select the top decal object. Find the vertex color "col" in the Mesh settings and press "new". Rename the new color layer "Alpha". Click the buttons to the left of that color layer to ensure that is the layer you're working on. Take the object into Vertex Paint mode and set all the vertex colors to white. Then paint black around the edge as shown in the first picture. The areas that are black in this color layer will be drawn as transparent in Uru.

As you can see, this is kind of confusing. It has you take the new color that you made and rename it to Alpha. Well, what I ended up with was one vertex color called "Alpha" and the plugin gets very upset about that.

The correct way is to add a new vertex color and set it white.
Then go back and add a 2nd vertex color, and name it alpha, using IT to paint in your black Ages. So you end up with two vertex colors, one white, who's name a left as col, and a 2nd vertex color that you paint the edges black that I named Alpha.

Exported the Age, and it did so just fine. Linked in, and looks great!

[Zander]

Now, as it were, he tells us.

incidentally, I just tried the grass patch thing again (having finally managed to get the soil right) and I painted the edges in Alpha black. They did not in fact come up transparent, they came up black. My nice patch of grass was all dead round the edges, and I'd lost the soil blending as well.

I don't know if it's the tutorial or if it's me, but I'm sure this should be less fiendishly difficult than it seems.

[Nadnerb]

Select the top decal object. Find the vertex color "col" in the Mesh settings and press "new". Rename the new color layer "Alpha". Click the buttons to the left of that color layer to ensure that is the layer you're working on. Take the object into Vertex Paint mode and set all the vertex colors to white. Then paint black around the edge as shown in the first picture. The areas that are black in this color layer will be drawn as transparent in Uru.

As you can see, this is kind of confusing. It has you take the new color that you made and rename it to Alpha. Well, what I ended up with was one vertex color called "Alpha" and the plugin gets very upset about that.

Hmm... What exactly do you find confusing about that? I thought I was pretty clear about having to have a new (second) color layer by making you create the new layer in the procedure before telling you to start painting on it. (just asking )

So yes, you have to have a "col" color layer. If you just have an "Alpha" color layer you're only providing transparency info, which is 1/4th of the information the plugin needs to generate vertex colors for your mesh. You must have a "col" layer because it defines the other 3 colors. (alpha transparency in uru is just a fourth color, which is set to 1 (white/opaque) by default if there is no "Alpha" layer present)

[Zander]

What I found was that I had to create the "col" layer, *then* create the "Alpha" layer; do the creating twice in other words. There was no default layer provided.

[Nadnerb]

Oh. Well, I guess that's what I get for assuming. (I always set up vertex "col"s when I first create an object, and it didn't really occur to me that people would be starting on objects that didn't have any vertex colors already. ) Though, did I not say that you should find the "col" layer? Implying that there already was a "col" layer?

Off to update the tutorial!