Hi. I've been using Lightwave objects a lot in Bryce 5 but the booleaned Lightwave objects in Bryce was a very annoying persistent problem for me, especially the subtraction boolean operation WITH the application of surface colors on an object.

As you can see in the first image which I did in Lightwave, there are two similar objects the one on the left is a booleaned object with ONE surface color (the default color for example). The one on the right is a booleaned object with TWO surface colors (the external structure is default color and the internal structure is secondary color that is a slight different from the default color). Both were rendered with subtraction boolean operation successfully and which I save as a Lightwave .obj so I can export it to Bryce 5. Look at the next message please.

After launching Bryce 5, I exported the Lightwave object onto the scene....lo and behold! As you can see...the same 2 objects that I did previously in Lightwave garnered different result after I rendered 'em. The one on the left with one surface color was rendered successfully with subtraction boolean part perfectly intact (however, I'm limited to applying one texture on it).

The one on the right with two surface colors did not. This was the annoying persistent problem I've been having with the booleaned LW objects with few different surface colors (the reason for different surface colors in booleaned LW objects is because I wish to apply different textures on one booleaned LW object). I tried everything I could do to solve this with no good result. My last resort was to contact Corel customer service via email in letting the Bryce tech support people know about this annoying persistent problem (this is NOT Newtek's problem, it is simply a matter of Bryce programming's inability to recognize more than one surface color in a booleaned LW object and STAY booleaned all the way so I can apply different textures on it).

However, Corel responded that I should call the tech support with their phone numbers and explain this problem. I was angry as hell. How the hell should I explain this complex problem and not showing these images over the phone just to prove my point?! So does anybody know a direct email to Corel Bryce people so I can show them this? What about this program manager of Bryce 5 that Renderosity have spotlighted last year?

Does anybody who have Lightwave and experienced the same problems as I have with the booleaned LW objects in Bryce? Much thanks!

Rob

Save the light wave files individually, and do the boolean operation in Bryce. You can apply different mats to the different booleans in Bryce. I don't know if it's the specific solution you're looking for, but it will work.

I use FormZ and this happens to me all the time. Don't know about the mulit-surface color thing (except that Bryce doesn't support it) but one thing I do seem to see is convex facets - like the arch cut in the square front face. Bryce doesn't handle these well at all and the right object is typically of what the problem looks like. I'm amazed the left one loaded correctly at all! One simple fix is to triangulate the object(Bryce triangulates all imports anyway). I presume LW does this but it can also be done in UV mapper. Anyway, triangulation fixes this as well as some other common 3D types Bryce can't handle. HTH - Dan

to johnpenn: I've tried what you suggested in the past and it is a very tedious process to put all the LW objects ready to be booleaned in Bryce and sometimes the result didn't turn out the way it was supposed to be. I'll just keep trying... :o) to dan: I'll try that suggestion about triangulation. However about the one you mentioned (convex facets..arch cut comment). Like I say, both objects are the same, except the one on the left is one color and the other on the right is two colors. Which is why the left one rendered its booleaned object successfully. Perhaps it may be the reason that Bryce doesn't support multi-color surface materials on booleaned objects. Thanks!

Yeah, "triple" the objects - thats what I do when I have bryce/lightwave boolean problems.

Here's what happens with FormZ. Here's a wireframe of 2 objects like yours and a 3rd that has the 2 "problem" faces triangulated (don't have to do the whole object). See next post.

Here's what happens in Bryce. If a triangulate the 2 color object Bryce reads the geometry OK but only puts the first color it finds in the .MTL on the object. As I said above I was real surpised that your 1 color object loaded correctly. What I would do in FormZ would be to Seperate (or Split) each of the different colored facee into a seperate object for each color. This works well cause you can give each of the objects different Material Editor parameters.

dan_whiteside and Flak: the triangulation seem to work! I tested it by triangulated the 2-color booleaned object in Lightwave and exported in Bryce. It worked out successfully. Hmm...however, triangulation creates more polygons than the non-triangulated objects. Thank you! :o)

One more thing, Dan...I notice you have an triangulated object in ONE color. Try it with 2 or 3 colors on that and see how it'll come out in Bryce.

Same thing Rob - only one color and correct geometry. And triangulation does add to the file size but not when it's loaded into Bryce (or for that matter Poser) cause they both triangulate imports. They can load faster as well - bryce can directly load triangular faces.

I guess the triangulation thing is going to take care of my business with booleaned LW objects for now. This image was done in Bryce 2, way back in 1996! MetaCreations asked me to use this image on their annual report. Their words on this image: "Mind-blowing realism!" Must have inspired the programmers to create Bryce3D eventually. :o)