Attached Link: Den of the Damned

hey groin, you looking for a place to host it? you could just link to the download page of a freeware uvmapper on the net :)

Thanks drac.

Thanks GG, with all these little snippets of information I get from you there is no excuse for me not to go and create something wonderful. Cheers Catlin

You're welcome Catlin.

One thing i still cant figure out is which type of mapping to use that will work in bryce. Ive made models in wings3d which wil export to .obj. Ive loaded that into uvmapper and ive no idea what type of map to make? Planar, Box ,Cylindrical, cylindrical cap or spherical, please help....please.......:-)

"Parametric" This maps the texture to the object according to the mesh rather then in reference to xyz axis, either world or object.

Probable didnt explain myself properly. I knew the bryce setting was parametric what i need to know is which of the above settings within uvmapper do i have to perform on the .obj object to get it to create a uv map i can paint in photoshop then apply to object withing bryce.

Zanny, The type map you create in UV mapper depends on the model. For the most part planar is used for complicated shaped models. It gives a flat map template for the front and back sides. Sight stretching will occur on the sides, top & bottom. ( Poser people are mapped this way ). But say you wanted to map all 6 sides of a cube with a different texture, then box should be used.

The catch is, most likely you have to create a new map in UV mapper as Ray says, then save both the map and the model (saving the model is critical, 'cuz if you don't, the map you created is worthless. The UV mapper site has a fairly in-depth tutorial. What I'd really like to know is; what does "U" and "V" stand for? (Excuse the grammatical license)

Nukeboy I don't believe they ( UV ) represent any word. They are considered directions. These directions do not conform to world space directions like X Y. But are configured per individual model. They normally run perpendicular to each other like the lines on a grid. They are used in parametric mapping to align the texture with the vertices ( points ) of the model.

Zanny I have found planar to be the most useful, but cubic mapping and cylinder cap come in useful as well. The thing is to use uv mapper and experiment and see what you can do with it. The pro version has a texture checker feature where you bring up a grid and preview your map choice against the grid. This lets you check how the grid maps on your choice of mapping and you can try different map options and see how it affects your model. I know it seems like such a pain in the ass to have to do all this manual mapping when Bryce procedural mats are so much easier, but this way I can put a rivet or rust spot or squadron number right where I want it on my models. If you look at the map for the camera model on my website note that I used planar mapping for everything on the model, except for the hotshoe for which I used box mapping and polygon stacking. I know that I am no wizard or guru at this stuff, but I feel it lets me do more than I could without it and I hope I can help someone else who might be wondering if uv mapping could help them do what they want. The good thing about this is you do not have to use all uv mapping in Bryce. You can mix and match. You can use the procedurals and perhaps just add a uv map to get panel lines or rivets where you want. You are not confined to using only one or the other.

The thing is, how do you get a model made in Bryce into UV mapper, you can't can you. So with any models actually made with Bryce primatives you are stuck with the procedural mats. I wish I was a better modeller in Rhino, maybe one day I'll surprize myself........all I can do is dream and hope.

I hear you Catlin. Without Rhino I would be lost as I am not a Bryce modeler. The free version of Amapi comes in handy too, as does Amorphium Pro 2.0. If I could only work in free modelers I would have Amapi, Blender, and Wings.

The main problem I have with 3D modelling programs is that I have a terrible memory and even though I run through the tutorials, especially Rhino, again and again it always seems like the first time when I reopen it. On the other hand Bryce is an easy application because I've been using it forever but I realized recently that to get the model you want for a particular scene you just have to make it youself. That's why I got Rhino but I'm still on the learning curve, going downwards rather than up I think. Perhaps I should try something a bit easier to learn on, what would you suggest GG?

catlin_mc; there's a Rhino tutorial in the 3DWorld with Rochrs image on the cover. You might want to check your local bookstore and see if it contains anything new. The shape of the model they are making is quite complex, so it should give some good insight to modelling. I use amapi to model. I usually draw the polygons and weld them together to create a low-res mesh. Then I smooth the mesh using one of the 5(!) differnt smoothing methods. When I see something I should change I undo the smooth and drag some points of the low-res mesh and smooth again to see how it looks. Only a few tools are needed using that technique (so there's not zillions of things to remember) and it's a really powerfull way of modelling too. There's a free version of Amapi 5.15 with a couple of magazines lately. And if I'm correct there's also a free version on the cover disk of the 3DWorld issue I mentioned above. And since the mag is only 6 pounds in the UK (and that's where you live if I rember correctly) it can't be a really bad buy.

I suggest using Rhino more often. That is ultimately going to be what will reinforce it upon your memory like Bryce is. That is the way that uv mapping is too. Of course it is more work than Bryce because alot of Bryce has become second nature by now to us and picking up and trying to learn our way around a new technique in a new program is quite tedious in comparison. I ran across this when building my website. I had my choice of learning html or learning dreamweaver3 and chose dreamweaver3. It took a few days before my site started taking shape because I had to learn my way around the program. Any way stick to Rhino and you will learn it. Hang around the Rhino forum too.

I got the Amapi v5.1 with PC Format yesterday and it was only 6 pounds, a bargain really since it is the full program, oh I wish we had euro's too. Anyway I haven't installed it yet 'cos I also got a new hard drive, 40Gb, and I'm in the process of installing everything else. Do you know that the Murkysoft updates for Win XP Pro amount to over 29Mb. Thanks for your input guys I know that between my own stubborn nature and the great help I get from here that I'll get there in the end, and you're right GG I just don't use it often enough I sort of get disheartened when I fall flat on my face one more time. Cheers Catlin :)