It is possible to convert that file types. Big 3d objects like maps could cause many problems on some converterrs (its like copy pasting all 3d objects at once), so you must try yourself. Every file converting means information loss. Most time you loose every "group"/entity/texture/bone information, but the polygon surfaces and mayor objects wil always stay the same (as long as there is no floating-number converting (eg. x=0.0000054 -> x=0.0001) just <b>avoid floating numbers</b>.
The best 3d viewer and converter I know is <a href='http://www.righthemisphere.com/products/dexp/' target='_blank'>http://www.righthemisphere.com/products/dexp/</a> because its fast and flexible. (demo has disabled saving, so its just an universal viewer) It can do .dwg, .dxf -> .map but I never tried. It has some problems displaying bone-animations and such <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo-->
ok so can i make the walls, floors and ceilings and anything else that doesn't move in autocad, save as dxf, then convert to .map and i can open the .map in hammer?
search file converters and try it. <a href='http://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=convert+.dxf+to+.map&meta=' target='_blank'>http://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8...f+to+.map&meta=</a>
if you can live with a complete loss of most information, but the basic objects, think about: dxf -> vrml -> map you will find more converters this way
arrrrrgggghhhhh. I don't know how you guys do it. This silly little hammer program is like trying to make textures with mspaint. I guess I have alot of appreciation for ya. Well, I know theres a way out there to do it my way and I'm gonna find it. Hopefully you'll be downloadin my map soon. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin--Ollj+Jan 12 2003, 02:33 AM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Ollj @ Jan 12 2003, 02:33 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Hey its the hl engine. It only allows 4mb of textures, so its not that important. Make sure you have texture lock active and read the help.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> no no, the thing i said about textures was just a comparison, like "trying to make maps with hammer is like trying to cut stone with a pencil eraser"
Applying textures will be easy. I just can't manipulate 3D objects in hammer because the program is so limited, no command line, no direct dimensioning no coordinate system. Arrrggghh, the hunt continues.
Heh -- welcome to FPS editing... when creating complex shapes, I've had the most luck with using vertex manipulation and face splitting (Shift-V to enter vertex mode, Ctrl-F to split a face across 2 selected edges)... id Software's QERadiant has a 3 point planar clip option that I really miss in Hammer, which only clips along 2 points projected into an axial plane.
When mapping, I typically do 2D layout in AutoCAD and then remap in Hammer once all of the distances have been figured--you do get coordinate information in the status bar (location or size depending on current function) which you can use for confirming block edit results--it's just not something that's prevalent in the normal views... and I really miss the command line, too. It typically takes me 3 or 4 times as long to model something in Hammer vs. AutoCAD even after the (re)learning curve for Hammer, but that's the way it goes <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->.
As an aside, Monolith's Lithtech editor allows extrusion of connected line segments within a plane, which can be much faster than clipping and stretching to suit... but the last time I edited for a Lithtech game I remember being pretty frustrated the program--and the formats are completely different internally.
Each company has some of the features I'd like, but nobody has put them together. Since QERad is now open source, it's probably (IMO) the best FPS map editor to keep an eye on if you're looking for evolution to a full feature set--it currently locks texture projection to either world axial planes or brush face normals (and only one of those at a time, meaning an imperfect import of Hammer maps), which is why I'm not using it at the moment, but there is an effort being made to add full Half-Life support and it should eventually allow mixed projection formats.
I haven't tried Quark in a long, long time, but you might want to check it out as well.
hmm, dexp supports 3ds max, this could be good for complex objects <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
yes i just started to use quark and i like it much much better. But on another note, i found something that has a lot of potential. It's called HLmapexport. It's an application that runs in autocad (arx) and will export all usable objects in a drawing to a .map file. Once you have the .map file i assume you can open it in hammer or quark and add all the bells and whistles like texture and entities. theres a downside though. I have autocad 2002 and hlmapexport was made back in '99. My acad won't load the arx file. I may be able to get a copy of autocad 14 to see if it works in that but we'll see if my friend comes through. If anyone here has acad R14 and wants to try it for me (or themselves) be my guest.
heres the setup file: <a href='http://damagenetworks.gotdns.com/HLMapExport.exe' target='_blank'>http://damagenetworks.gotdns.com/HLMapExport.exe</a>
after installing it will tell you that you just have to type "hlmapexport" in the command line but if that doesn't work go to Tools -> Load application, navigate to where you installed HLmapexport, and choose "HLMapExport.arx". Then try typing "hlmapexport" again.
edit: Holy crap! before i posted the screen was light blue and white. Now it's black and blue! freaked me out for a second. Good job to whoever did this skin.
The power and flexibility of AutoCAD or 3D Studio will only make things worse for Half-Life mapping. Worldcraft/Quark/Etc make simple shapes rather easily, and that's what the HL engine likes to work with. You can very easily make shapes in AutoCAD and 3DSMax that the compiler and/or HL just doesn't like, yet it looks fine in the editor.
<!--QuoteBegin--Yamazaki+Jan 15 2003, 07:58 AM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Yamazaki @ Jan 15 2003, 07:58 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->The power and flexibility of AutoCAD or 3D Studio will only make things worse for Half-Life mapping. Worldcraft/Quark/Etc make simple shapes rather easily, and that's what the HL engine likes to work with. You can very easily make shapes in AutoCAD and 3DSMax that the compiler and/or HL just doesn't like, yet it looks fine in the editor.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> true, but the hlmapexport program specifically states that. It warns against using any other commands besides BOX, WEDGE, or SLICE. And i know you are probably thinking that hammer basically has those types of commands so why do I need autocad? I like autocad for it's interface. While making maps I wouldn't use all all the fancy features like boolean functions, meshes, layers, etc. But in autocad it is so easy to position objects and put them exactly where you want. And then later you can find the coordinates of any point very easily. Its object snap is very useful. It's got tons of options for manipulating your viewpoint. And the command line is ever so useful. for example, if i wanted to create a wall 100 units high, 10 units thick and 500 units long i just type: BOX "enter" 0,0,0 "enter" 500,10,100 "enter" so very easy. You should see me work floorplans. ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnnnggggg <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
Anyway the converter should work fine as long as I stay away from decimals, concave shapes, any other funky stuff. I'll let you all know when I get a chance to test it.
thanks for all this usefull info, folks! -Me finds a copy of AutoCad:o -$2000?!?! Doh!<!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo--> -Me has to stick with Hammer <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin--MayIPostNow?+Jan 15 2003, 04:19 PM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (MayIPostNow? @ Jan 15 2003, 04:19 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->thanks for all this usefull info, folks! -Me finds a copy of AutoCad:o -$2000?!?! Doh!<!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo--> -Me has to stick with Hammer <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo--><!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> I have never payed for any software in my life, and I probably never will. It's out there you just gotta know how to find it.
I, on the other hand, do pay for software.... old versions of AutoCAD LT are often available on EBay for under $100.
AutoCAD itself is pretty expensive... I actually won my copies of AutoCAD (R11, R12, 2 of LT) in high school drafting competitions many years ago.
<i>MayIPostNow?</i> -- I don't have 3DSMax for about the same reason that you don't have AutoCAD <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin--Ulatoh+Jan 16 2003, 10:28 AM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Ulatoh @ Jan 16 2003, 10:28 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->in reference to the beginning of this post:
im in the Autocad class at votech, if i could use it to make maps.... WoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoW
there could be some AWESOME stuff....
read my post and dump info PLEASE i need all i can get.
[EDIT] Yes, i have 2002 dunno ifthats 14 or not... hehe I allso have inventor, could be useful for prefab objects?<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> autocad 14 came out sometime around '97-'98 i think so its not the same thing as 2002. But you get what I mean right? About how autocad would be awesome for making maps? But like stated a few times in this post you couldn't really use any of the super advanced stuff in acad. But still! So easy!!
Comments
Big 3d objects like maps could cause many problems on some converterrs (its like copy pasting all 3d objects at once), so you must try yourself.
Every file converting means information loss.
Most time you loose every "group"/entity/texture/bone information, but the polygon surfaces and mayor objects wil always stay the same (as long as there is no floating-number converting (eg. x=0.0000054 -> x=0.0001) just <b>avoid floating numbers</b>.
The best 3d viewer and converter I know is <a href='http://www.righthemisphere.com/products/dexp/' target='_blank'>http://www.righthemisphere.com/products/dexp/</a> because its fast and flexible.
(demo has disabled saving, so its just an universal viewer)
It can do .dwg, .dxf -> .map but I never tried.
It has some problems displaying bone-animations and such <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo-->
<a href='http://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=convert+.dxf+to+.map&meta=' target='_blank'>http://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8...f+to+.map&meta=</a>
if you can live with a complete loss of most information, but the basic objects, think about:
dxf -> vrml -> map
you will find more converters this way
It only allows 4mb of textures, so its not that important.
Make sure you have texture lock active and read the help.
It only allows 4mb of textures, so its not that important.
Make sure you have texture lock active and read the help.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
no no, the thing i said about textures was just a comparison, like "trying to make maps with hammer is like trying to cut stone with a pencil eraser"
Applying textures will be easy. I just can't manipulate 3D objects in hammer because the program is so limited, no command line, no direct dimensioning no coordinate system. Arrrggghh, the hunt continues.
When mapping, I typically do 2D layout in AutoCAD and then remap in Hammer once all of the distances have been figured--you do get coordinate information in the status bar (location or size depending on current function) which you can use for confirming block edit results--it's just not something that's prevalent in the normal views... and I really miss the command line, too. It typically takes me 3 or 4 times as long to model something in Hammer vs. AutoCAD even after the (re)learning curve for Hammer, but that's the way it goes <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->.
As an aside, Monolith's Lithtech editor allows extrusion of connected line segments within a plane, which can be much faster than clipping and stretching to suit... but the last time I edited for a Lithtech game I remember being pretty frustrated the program--and the formats are completely different internally.
Each company has some of the features I'd like, but nobody has put them together. Since QERad is now open source, it's probably (IMO) the best FPS map editor to keep an eye on if you're looking for evolution to a full feature set--it currently locks texture projection to either world axial planes or brush face normals (and only one of those at a time, meaning an imperfect import of Hammer maps), which is why I'm not using it at the moment, but there is an effort being made to add full Half-Life support and it should eventually allow mixed projection formats.
I haven't tried Quark in a long, long time, but you might want to check it out as well.
Cheers,
XP-Cagey
heres the setup file:
<a href='http://damagenetworks.gotdns.com/HLMapExport.exe' target='_blank'>http://damagenetworks.gotdns.com/HLMapExport.exe</a>
after installing it will tell you that you just have to type "hlmapexport" in the command line but if that doesn't work go to Tools -> Load application, navigate to where you installed HLmapexport, and choose "HLMapExport.arx". Then try typing "hlmapexport" again.
edit: Holy crap! before i posted the screen was light blue and white. Now it's black and blue! freaked me out for a second. Good job to whoever did this skin.
true, but the hlmapexport program specifically states that. It warns against using any other commands besides BOX, WEDGE, or SLICE. And i know you are probably thinking that hammer basically has those types of commands so why do I need autocad? I like autocad for it's interface. While making maps I wouldn't use all all the fancy features like boolean functions, meshes, layers, etc. But in autocad it is so easy to position objects and put them exactly where you want. And then later you can find the coordinates of any point very easily. Its object snap is very useful. It's got tons of options for manipulating your viewpoint. And the command line is ever so useful. for example, if i wanted to create a wall 100 units high, 10 units thick and 500 units long i just type:
BOX "enter" 0,0,0 "enter" 500,10,100 "enter"
so very easy. You should see me work floorplans. ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnnnggggg <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
Anyway the converter should work fine as long as I stay away from decimals, concave shapes, any other funky stuff. I'll let you all know when I get a chance to test it.
-Me finds a copy of AutoCad:o
-$2000?!?! Doh!<!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
-Me has to stick with Hammer <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo-->
-Me finds a copy of AutoCad:o
-$2000?!?! Doh!<!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
-Me has to stick with Hammer <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo--><!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I have never payed for any software in my life, and I probably never will. It's out there you just gotta know how to find it.
AutoCAD itself is pretty expensive... I actually won my copies of AutoCAD (R11, R12, 2 of LT) in high school drafting competitions many years ago.
<i>MayIPostNow?</i> -- I don't have 3DSMax for about the same reason that you don't have AutoCAD <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
im in the Autocad class at votech, if i could use it to make maps.... WoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoW
there could be some AWESOME stuff....
read my post and dump info PLEASE i need all i can get.
[EDIT] Yes, i have 2002 dunno ifthats 14 or not... hehe I allso have inventor, could be useful for prefab objects?
im in the Autocad class at votech, if i could use it to make maps.... WoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoWoW
there could be some AWESOME stuff....
read my post and dump info PLEASE i need all i can get.
[EDIT] Yes, i have 2002 dunno ifthats 14 or not... hehe I allso have inventor, could be useful for prefab objects?<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
autocad 14 came out sometime around '97-'98 i think so its not the same thing as 2002. But you get what I mean right? About how autocad would be awesome for making maps? But like stated a few times in this post you couldn't really use any of the super advanced stuff in acad. But still! So easy!!
I have R14 and if I could get my hands on the files/information needed to test this, I would be glad to help.