Tutorial: Adding a subset to an object (and making it recolorable)

[IgnorantBliss]

TUTORIAL: ADDING A SUBSET TO AN OBJECT (AND MAKING IT RECOLORABLE)

Credit to Numenor for providing most of this information


:deal: This tutorial is also provided in PDF format. To view it, we strongly suggest to download the Foxisoft PFD Viewer (http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php): it's free and small, less than 1Mb!

:deal: 11 NOV 2008 - Added German translation (by magicdawn)


What you need for this tutorial:

- SimPE (latest version)
- CEP (http://cep.modthesims2.com), latest version (if you add a recolorable subset to an object that originally has none)
- Basic knowledge of SimPE and creating a custom object


Reasons you may want to add a new subset to an object:

- Being able to have both solid and translucent parts in an object that originally only had one mesh subset without having the solid parts "bleed" through.
- Having subsets with different materials: one shiny and one matte, for example.
- Being able to recolor parts separately. (Note: You can only have a maximum of two recolorable subsets, with the exclusion of slave subsets which are not covered here, to an object, even though you can have more non-recolorable parts.)


This tutorial does not cover the routine steps of creating an object, but only adding a new subset. It also does not cover mesh editing for the new subset. You edit the mesh subset like any other mesh in your 3D editing program, and make sure the dimensions and placement of the new subset match the other subset(s).



STEP 1: IMPORTING THE MESH SUBSET

- Open your object package in SimPE. In Geometric Data Container, import your subset as a separate mesh subset the same way you import any mesh, but give it a new, informative name that separates it from the existing subsets in the package. Don't try to create another Geometric Data Container, but rather import the subset to an existing one.If you're adding a subset made of glass, for example, then name it "glass". Just make sure never to use the underscore when naming the mesh (so, no window_glass). For this tutorial, I'm adding a separate subset called "fabric" to a dining chair that previously has a subset called "wood". After you've imported the new subset, click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut1Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut1.jpg)

STEP 2: ADDING A TEXTURE IMAGE (OPTIONAL)

- This step is only necessary if your new subset needs its own, new texture. The other options are to either use an existing texture in the package (this will be explained later on), or to have no texture for the subset at all (as with untextured glass, for example).

- The easiest way of adding a new texture image is to clone a Texture Image file already in the package. (As an alternative, you can also Add one that's been extracted from another package.)

- To clone, right-click on an existing Texture Image file in the package (but not the shadow ones), and choose Clone. A new file will appear on the list.

- Rename the texture image file, but leave the txtr-extension untouched. Edit only the end of the filename (as highlighted in the screenshot) to fit your texture. In the example I changed the "cherry" of the original wood texture name to "lavender" for the fabric subset.

:here: Hint: If you clone the texture image from a solid subset to a subset that is partially transparent, you will have to change the Format to DXT3 from DXT1 upon importing a texture that uses alpha for transparency, because DXT1 doesn't support alphas.

- Import your new texture image and click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut2Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut2.jpg)

STEP 3: ADDING A MATERIAL DEFINITION

- Your new subset needs its own Material Definition. You can either clone a Material Definition file already in the package, or extract one from another package and add it to this one.

- To clone, right-click on an existing Material Definition in the package (but not the shadow ones), and choose Clone. A new file will appear at end of the list of Material Definitions.

- Click on the new Material Definition and rename it in the Filename box. The word after the first underscore should be the name of the new subset from step 1 ("fabric" in the example), and the word after that should be the name you gave to the texture in step 2 ("lavender" in the example). If your subset has no texture, you only need the subset name in the filename. If your subset uses the same texture as the subset whose Material Definition you cloned, you can leave it as it is and only change the subset name.

- If, instead of cloning, you Add a Material Definition extracted from another package, like you may want to do when you add a glass subset, for example, rename the whole filename to match the others in the package, and the last part of the name as explained above.

:here: Hint: Glass, and some other materials, often refer to a texture called "reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube". You can leave it as it is, it's an external texture that the package refers to, and it will work even though it's not included in the package itself.

- Then, if your subset has a new texture, in the Properties tab, click on the line called "stdMatBaseTextureName". This points to the Texture Image that you added for the subset, and you have to make the value match the Texture Image filename (plus the ##0x1C050000! prefix and minus the _txtr suffix). If you cloned a Material Definition, you will only need to change the end of the file name (from "cherry" to "lavender" in the example). Edit the name in the Value box on the right. Click Commit.

- If your subset uses the same texture as the one you cloned the Material Definition from, you can leave the texture references as they are. If your subset has no texture at all, then you can skip this part also.

:here: Hint: If you cloned the Material Definition from a completely solid subset to a new subset that's partially transparent, you will have to change the Properties value for the line called "stdMatAlphaBlendMode" to "blend" from "none", or the transparency is not going to work.

- Click on the File List tab.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut3Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut3.jpg)

- In the File List, the name on the list has to match the texture name reference in the "stdMatBaseTextureName" value in the properties (so, the Texture Image name plus the ##0x1C050000! prefix and minus the _txtr suffix). Click on the file name, edit it in the Filename box on the right and click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut4Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut4.jpg)

STEP 4: EDITING THE SHAPE

- Open the Shape, and the Parts tab under the Content tab.

- You will have to add a new entry for your subset and make it point to the right Material Definition. To do this, click Add, then click on the new line that appears on the list (with just a colon : at this point) to make it active.

- To the box called Subset Name, enter your subset's name ("fabric" in the example), and to the box called Material Definition file, enter the name of the Material Definition file name you created in the previous step, but without the _txmt suffix, and with the ##0x1C050000! prefix ("##0x1C050000!hs-tutorial-chair-[IgnorantBliss-12.11.2005-d303b]_fabric_lavender" in the example)

- IMPORTANT! Perform a "Fix Integrity" and save the package.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut5Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut5.jpg)


If you don't need your new subset to be recolorable, you're done. You can test your object in the game to make sure it works correctly. If you want to make it recolorable, continue with the tutorial to step 5 and forward.

(Note that an object can only have two recolorable subsets at most! If your object already has two, you can't add another one.)


STEP 5: EDITING THE GEOMETRIC NODE

- Open the Geometric Node and, on the pulldown list for the Blocklist, select the line called "tsDesignModeEnabled".

- In the cExtension tab, on the list called Items are listed the recolorable subsets of the object. (If there already are two, you can't add a third one.) To add another one, click on Add, then click on the new line on the list to make it active, and write the name of your new subset ("fabric" in the example) to the Name box, and click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut6Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut6.jpg)

STEP 6: ADDING A MATERIAL OVERRIDE

- Open the existing Material Override file, right-click on it and choose Clone. The new one will appear at the end of the list. Open the new one.

- Click on the line called "family" and open up the Hash Generator (under Tools -> Object Tools). Check the GUID option, then copy and paste the Hash Value to the Value box for the "family". Click Commit. Close Hash Generator.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut7Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut7.jpg)

- Click the line called "name" on the list, and edit the Value in the box on the right to match the Material Definition filename of your new subset (plus the ##0x1C050000! prefix and minus the _txmt suffix). Click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut8Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut8.jpg)

- Click on the line called "subsetName" on the list, and rename its value to be the name of your new subset. Click Commit.

http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut9Thumb.jpg (http://ignorantbliss.org/images/tutorial/SubsetTut9.jpg)

- IMPORTANT! Perform a "Fix Integrity" and save the package.

Now your new subset should also be recolorable! Try recoloring it with Object Workshop and put it into your game!



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OTHER USEFUL RESOURCES

Object Creation Workshop and Repair Center (http://db.modthesims2.com/forumdisplay.php?f=482)
Invisible and flashing blue custom objects: Check List (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=44997) - Beginner Level - by Numenor
Recolouring object with Object Workshop (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=86424) - Beginner Level - by Numenor
Enabling transparency on textures (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=220244) - Beginner level - by Mike190870
Understanding the TXTR and the MipMaps (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=86151) - Intermediate Level - by JWoods

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Tutorials:Adding_a_subset_to_an_object_and_making_it_recolorable

[Numenor]

Good job! After so many requests, I guess that this tutorial will be extremely useful for many users.

(Thread moved to the Tutorial forum)

[Little_Tx_Mama]

I just wanted to say thank you SOOOOOOO much for pulling all this info together in a tutorial - it's exactly what I needed!! (probably just my vision but I couldn't find the "thanks" button even though I can see you've been thanked??) Great Job!

[Numenor]

The "Thanks" button has been moved near the "Quote" one, in the Tutorial forum.

[Little_Tx_Mama]

And "thank you" Numenor for that info!! :wave: My screen doesn't fit the window right and I never would have seen the button without scrolling all the way over to the right. Alot of work goes into these tutorials and I always like to say thanks - to bad it won't let you say thanks more than once because I'm really, really, really thankful for most all of them. ;)

[IgnorantBliss]

And "thank you" Numenor for that info!! :wave: My screen doesn't fit the window right and I never would have seen the button without scrolling all the way over to the right. Alot of work goes into these tutorials and I always like to say thanks - to bad it won't let you say thanks more than once because I'm really, really, really thankful for most all of them. ;)

One thanks is enough, I appreciate it :D.

Yeah, I figured the large screenshots might be a problem for smaller screen resolutions. If people find the horizontal scrolling to be too annoying, I will have to remake the screenshots. Resizing the current ones doesn't work very well, the small text goes blurry.

[Numenor]

A suggestion: create a thumbnail version of each screenshot (reducing them by 50%) and edit the in-text links with the following syntax:
[_URL=http://.....MainImage.jpg_][_IMG_]http://....Thumbnail.jpg[_/IMG_][_/URL_]

(Obviously, remove the underscores when using this syntax :))

[IgnorantBliss]

Thanks for the tip, I did that, hopefully it's now more pleasant to view with smaller screen resolutions :).

[HChangeri]

Thank you so much! I'm starting to play with transparancies so this will definitely come in handy!

[simnuts101]

Thanks IgnorantBliss for the tutorial. This is what I was exactly looking for!!

And thanks for all your other hint's and tip's. They have come in very handy!!

Great JOB!

Regards
Simnuts

[simnuts101]

Hi IgnorantBliss!

Just wanted to let you know that I went through your tutorial. WORKS GREAT!!!! Easy to follow instructions, only went through it once, and my object worked perfectly!!

Thanks again!!

[IgnorantBliss]

Hi IgnorantBliss!

Just wanted to let you know that I went through your tutorial. WORKS GREAT!!!! Easy to follow instructions, only went through it once, and my object worked perfectly!!

Thanks again!!

That's great news! I'm glad to hear it's easy to follow, since it's only the second tutorial I've ever written :).

[linegud]

Thanks for this tutorial....I did it. My little project became a reality with help from this tutorial :salute:

(I wasent able to find the thanks button either...hmmm :banghead: )

Line

[Numenor]

In the Tutorial forum, the "Thanks" button is located at the ond of the Post #1, near the "Quote" one.

[krusty]

Just like to say thanks for the tutorial, you saved my computers life, as it was nearly going out the window! luckily my new meshed object finally works! ^.^

[IgnorantBliss]

Just like to say thanks for the tutorial, you saved my computers life, as it was nearly going out the window! luckily my new meshed object finally works! ^.^

:lol: Well, I'm certainly glad to hear I helped save a life! ;)

[XTS]

IgnorantBliss: You're a blessing!!! You've done a great job here. I've not followed it yet, plan to this week but I'm notoriously late, fair warning. I do however have my subscription set up with this thread as that will assist my memory and encouragement.
This is definitely something I hope to be able to do! I've needed it several times and just wound up picking through objects until I found one that seemed closest in ALL ways..
Of course you know what this means? More object repair lol. Maybe not. I try to work it out myself first. It also means maybe some nice new stuff :D I hope.

Thank you much!
xts

[Mage]

I do have a new (for me at least) question. But first, clicking that thanks button was just not enough. I am so pleased to be able to do this. I added some colored glass to a bed frame and I love the result. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
I was wondering if I added more than one material definition could my object have a choice of colors for the glass? Not the bed of course but objects that only have one other color choice.

[IgnorantBliss]

I do have a new (for me at least) question. But first, clicking that thanks button was just not enough. I am so pleased to be able to do this. I added some colored glass to a bed frame and I love the result. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
I was wondering if I added more than one material definition could my object have a choice of colors for the glass? Not the bed of course but objects that only have one other color choice.

Yes. If you add the glass subset like advised in the tutorial, but don't add any texture to it (you could copy the material definition from a glass part of another object, like a window), then go through the last part (last 2 steps) of the tutorial about making the subset recolorable, the glass should be recolorable without a texture. You will notice that the Material Override points to the Material Definition, not a texture, so it's the Material Definition that matters.

[Numenor]

Obviously, if the object (like the bed that Mage mentioned) already has two recolourable subsets, no colour options are allowed for a third subset.

[Mage]

Me again. I am having fun. But.
I made a dresser from the "Anti-Quaint-ed" Armoire. I didn't exactly add a subset
I changed the material definition of the "drawerhandle" subset so that it is now blue glass, no texture.
In the original the drawer handle uses the same texture as the main armoir, so it did not have a second color option.
I thought by following your steps 5 and 6 I could make this subset be recolorable, but after doing it three times without success I'm starting to suspect there is something wrong with that premise.
I could make the drawer handle back into the handle and add another subset for my recolorable glass, I guess?
Or could I delete the drawerhandle subset and add the glass. Or just rename it?
Ok, obviously I'm clueless and need expert advice. I'm including the object and the recolor I tried to make, in case you want to see it.
Thanks.

[IgnorantBliss]

Mage, I will take a look at your package as soon as I can, but it's going to be a few more hours since I'm doing a nightmarish 24-hour shift at work :lol:. Will report back to package fixing duty tomorrow :salute:

[Mage]

Oh boy, that sounds quite demanding. You'll need a long sleep when you get home. I am in no hurry. Thanks.

[IgnorantBliss]

Mage, I think the problem is an incorrect subset name both in GMND and MMAT. The name of the handle subset is armoirequaint_drawerhandle, not just drawerhandle. That subset name needs to go into the Design Mode Enabled list in GMND and also the subset name in the MMAT for the handle. Since that subset name by Maxis has the dreaded underscore in it, the other alternative is to change the subset names in the Geometric Data Container and Shape just drawerhandle and leave the aforementioned (GMND and MMAT) names as they are, since they would then match the GMDC and Shape again.

(I just tried the latter suggestion myself, and when I choose to recolor that armoire mesh now, it gives me the option for two subsets :).)

[Mage]

Did you get any sleep yet? The reason I ask is that it's 7:00 am here and I didn't expect to hear from you already.
I do kind of remember seeing the armoirequaint_drawerhandle.
I'll try your suggestion right away. Thanks.

[Mage]

Yes!!! Got it. Actually it didn't work the first time but then, by some miracle, it occured to me to run "fix integrity" after I changed the names.
Thank you so much. What a great wayto start the day.

[Mage]

Hi, it's me again. Is there any chance that I can change which material is recolorable? Today I',m making a bookcase and a chess table, both with glass pieces. Both already have two recolorable parts. But could I make the books and the chessboard be the parts that aren't recolorable instead of the glass?

[IgnorantBliss]

Hi, it's me again. Is there any chance that I can change which material is recolorable? Today I',m making a bookcase and a chess table, both with glass pieces. Both already have two recolorable parts. But could I make the books and the chessboard be the parts that aren't recolorable instead of the glass?

Yes. The two subsets listed in tsDesignModeEnabled in Geometric Node are the ones that will be recolorable. Remove the parts you don't want recolored off that list, and add the names of the subsets that you want recolorable (but always the maximum of two at a time, of course).

[Mage]

Thanks. That worked for the chess table, but I had to add a material override as well. I can't seem to get the bookcase right.

No wait. I had the name wrong (not glassgreen but bookcaseartnouveau_glassgreen).

I couldn't figure it out until I asked you though, lol.
Thanks. :wave:

[IgnorantBliss]

Ahh, yes, sorry, I forgot about the Material Override. Glad you got it working, anyway :).

[Mage]

I didn't realize that I never came back to thank you; your suggestion was all it took to get the dresser right. Thank you for that and for the several rooms full of new objects to which I have added subsets since then. I'm really happy to be able to do this.
But trouble in paradise. This morning I made a staircase. I combined the part called "wall" with the part called "stairs" and called the combined group "stairs". And I aded a new group "glass". I tried to do all the steps to get everything right but it crashes my game when I click on the staircase icon in the build mode catalogue. I have been through everything I have any idea how to got through several times and changed a few thing again - maybe for the worse. But the result keeps being the same.
You've been so generous, I thought maybe you'd take a look at it for me. Thanks

[IgnorantBliss]

I didn't realize that I never came back to thank you; your suggestion was all it took to get the dresser right. Thank you for that and for the several rooms full of new objects to which I have added subsets since then. I'm really happy to be able to do this.
But trouble in paradise. This morning I made a staircase. I combined the part called "wall" with the part called "stairs" and called the combined group "stairs". And I aded a new group "glass". I tried to do all the steps to get everything right but it crashes my game when I click on the staircase icon in the build mode catalogue. I have been through everything I have any idea how to got through several times and changed a few thing again - maybe for the worse. But the result keeps being the same.
You've been so generous, I thought maybe you'd take a look at it for me. Thanks

I have no idea what might have been wrong, but I opened the package in SimPE (version 0.52), saw nothing to fix, but performed Fix Integrity and saved just in case. Then I put the stairs into the game, and they worked just fine, no crashing or anything. Which version of SimPE are you using? I remember that with one version of SimPE there was a problem with beds crashing the game when you clicked on the in the catalog. Maybe something similar happened with stairs and your version of SimPE. It appears fixing integrity with 0.52 fixed it.

[Mage]

Thanks for anwsering so fast. I did just get .52 today after I made the stairs. But when I tried fixing integrity it still crashed the game the same way. So I downloaded the one you fixed and it also crashes the game... I don't know what to do next.
Since itworked in your game I thought it must be a conflict with something I have but I tried it with nothing else in the Downloads folder but CEP and it still crashed. But this time it did let me get to the stairs menu, then the thumbnail for my stairs was blank. When I placed it it was Maxis staircase, mesh and texture, and it crashed the game a moment after it was in the house.
This is so weird. I noticed that the recolor didn't entirely work on the diagonal of a door I made rightbefore thestaircase. So I fixed that and the for the heck of it I tried my stairs again and they were fine. ?They crashed the game when thedoor wasn't even present. I'm going totry to recolor them.

[IgnorantBliss]

Well, that is definitely strange. I have no idea what it could be! Have you made sure the door and the stairs don't share a GUID or anything?

[Mage]

Thanks to your suggestion in the other thread. I did get the doors working right. I can only change the wood with the design tool but I can place it with either wood and either glass, so I'm happy. Btw that thing about the sims walking through the hinges of the door also happens with the original door, and it is only one way through the diagonal, so I'm going to live with that too.
Now here's the weird thing. As soon as I got the doors working right I tried the stairs again. And they suddenly worked. (!?) So I made a recolor for them again and when I tried to buy stairs to try it out it froze and crashed my game again.
So I just started all over again with the stairs. And the new ones worked fine. So before I started making a re-color I just checked the Geometric Node to make sure I had added glass to the tdesignmodeenabled. And I had but then I noticed that wall was still listed as a tdesignmodeslavesubsets so I removed it. Then I clicked on the edit blocks tab and removed it from there. Then I tried it in the game again and it crashed while loading the neighborhood. I actually tried it twice in cse the first time wasa fluke. Guess not. So I went back to wall being gone from the slavesubsets and still in the block list. That works and I was able to make a recolor that works. So I am happy and grateful to you for all your help. And interested to know the explaination for everything or anything. :)

[IgnorantBliss]

To make the glass designable for the diagonal version, as well, add the glass subset to the tsMaterialsMeshName in Geometric Node where "surfaces" already is listed. I notice that is missing in at least the version of the diagonal door that I have. :)

[hexameter]

Thank you very much for this!!!
I could have economize sooo much time if I had found it earlier. At least you make sure with this tutorial that my last tries with much trial and error were not wrong done. I'll keep the download in case I forget the single steps how to do recolourable subsets.
I was such a fool to be so ignorant!
Thanks again.
hexameter

[Karlius]

hi i am having some problems.... i did your tutorial good and the new texture for the new subset dont appears in the view..... i think that i do all right, but if any people can help me i take you my file:
http://s37.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=316GD4JO97HXF0DWUH7NYRU0LP
it is a bathtub. (click on download now)
WARNING: I dont assign it a GUID!!!!
-the new section is metal and the name of the texture image is ''metal'' too. thanks.

[IgnorantBliss]

Karlius, your filenames and their references don't match. Your texture file name is sansebastian-Karlius-metal, but the TXMT texture reference points to SanSebastian-Karlius-bathtub-metal. The name of the TXMT file is sansebastian-karlius-bathtub_metal_metal but the Shape reference points to SanSebastian-Karlius-bathtub-metal. Fix those (be careful with the - and _), Fix Integrity, save, and try again.

[Karlius]

thanks IgnorantBliss but i dont understand you well....
what i have to do? this?:
1-rename the texture image to SanSebastian-Karlius-bathtub-metal
2- change the shape to SanSebastian-Karlius-bathtub-metal
it is right? it it isnt, can you show me it in images please??? because i read other time the tutorial and there is the same problem. bigest thanks and sorry....


can i contact you better in messenger ? if you say me yes i take you my mail by pm. thanks

[IgnorantBliss]

You can either change the filenames or their references, either would work. The easiest way is probably to

1. Change the texture filename to SanSebastian-Karlius-bathtub-metal
2. Change the TXMT reference in Shape for the metal subset to sansebastian-karlius-bathtub_metal_metal

Commit each change, Fix Integrity and save.

The idea is that where ever in the package you're referencing to a file, the reference must match the filename in question. So, when you're referencing the texture in the TXMT (in both the Properties and File List tabs), it has to refer to the correct texture name. When in Shape you refer to a TXMT, the name has to match also.

[Karlius]

ok now is correct, thank you very much!!!!

[IgnorantBliss]

karlius, please, don't post the same thing in multiple threads :).

[Karlius]

no, sorry, i post the problem here because i think that it is problem of the new subset and i would to ask you here because i think this problem is originated because the new subset has got a problem.

[SuperFly]

I'm trying to recolour a new TV- I've added in two new subsets, and I'm tryig to make them recolourable. However, I can't find the menu to check if I can recolour them or not- I've attached teh drop-down menu in the Geometric Node- any advice you could offer me?

Thanks,

Superfly

[IgnorantBliss]

Is the tsDesignModeEnabled part missing even if you scroll down on the list? Which TV have you cloned, and do you have the CEP installed? I'm not very familiar with the TVs, but I think that, with the CEP installed, they should all have at least one recolorable subset and therefore the tsDesignModeEnabled entry. It's possible to add one if it's not there, although it makes it easier if the clone already has that and the Material Override. The cheap floor TV should have 2 recolorable subsets already. That means that you will have to replace them with your new subsets since you can't have 4 recolorable subsets.

[SuperFly]

If I scroll down, tsDesignModEnabled doesn't appear. I have the CEP installed (Version 4.1), and I cloned the Trottco 27" MultiVid IV Television- the regular TV on the stand.

[IgnorantBliss]

When I clone the TV, the tsDesignModeEnabled is there. Do you have the CEP files selected in the SimPE File Table under Preferences?

[SuperFly]

I've selected all the boxes in preferences, reloaded and cloned a new TV- still no change.

[IgnorantBliss]

I know you're an experienced SimPE user and this question may sound stupid, but are you sure you're scrolling down on the list far enough? The tsDesignModeEnabled will probably be hidden until you scroll down on the list as pointed out in the attached screenshot.

[SuperFly]

I am very sure that I cannot scroll down further- I can't see any scroller, and when I try using the arrow keys to scroll down further, it stops at 0x7 screen

[IgnorantBliss]

Then it seems that SimPE is not finding the CEP files correctly for some reason. I'm not sure how to fix that. Does the package have any Material Overrides? I would try reinstalling CEP just in case. If that still doesn't help, then you will have to color-enable it manually. I can post instructions for doing that if the CEP reinstallation doesn't help.

[SuperFly]

I've cloned another TV, and it's come up- is it possible to clone the node, then place it in my existing TV?

Also, if an object already has subsets that can be recoloured, can they be deleted?

[IgnorantBliss]

I'm not sure how it would work to replace the GMND with one from another object. Might get a bit more complicated than it needs to. Probably easier in the end to add the missing line manually. I'll write the instructions for doing so. But we also may have to add the Material Overrides if they aren't there. Are they?

You can remove the recolorablity of the original subsets or delete the subsets altogether if you're not using them. If there is neither tsDesignModeEnabled nor Material Overrides included in the package, they are not recolorable to begin with and you don't need to do anything to disable them. If you want to delete those subsets altogether, delete the mesh subsets in GMDC, the Shape entries for them in the Parts tab, the Material Definitions related to them, and the textures if they have separate textures that remaining parts of your objects are not using.

To add the missing tsDesignModeEnabled, open the GMND, click the Edit Blocks tab, and from the drop down list select (cDataListExtension), then click Add and Commit. Then go back to the Content tab, and with the first entry on the Blocklist selected, go to cObjectGraphNode tab. On the right you see a section called Datalist Extension Reference. Click Add, then click on the new line, then change the last number of the Index number in the box to whatever comes next on the list (in your case, probably 8), and then the last number of the Enabled value to 1. Now your new line should look like the existing ones, click Commit. Then go back to the cGeometryNode tab, and select your new entry from the Blocklist (at the end of it). In the cExtension tab, into the Name field type tsDesignModeEnabled, then click Commit. Then from the dropdown list in the bottom right corner select Array and click Add. Then click on the new line in the Items box and into the Name field enter the name of your recolorable subset, then click Commit. Repeat adding the Array and naming it for the second recolorable subset and Commit again. Save your object.

If the package doesn't have any Material Overrides either, we'll have to add them, too, but I'll wait for your response first if they are missing or not.

[SuperFly]

I'm having real difficulty following those instructions IB- I think I may reload my mesh into the new package, and add in the subsets as needed, now that I can make them recolourable- thanks for all your help in this issue :)

[IgnorantBliss]

I'm sorry, I tried to make the instructions as detailed as possible :| . I hope you have better luck with your new clone.

[cosmikchyc]

I was having the same problem with the tsDesignModeEnabled not showing up but your instructions fixed it. Thanks very much! Great tutorial :)

[Karlius]

is it a simpe problem?? because when I export anyobject, it has not got tsdesing... and material overrides.... :alarm:

[IgnorantBliss]

Do you have the CEP installed? Which objects are you cloning? You may have to check the "stand-alone" option for some objects.

[Karlius]

yes, I've got it. also I've tried it with the ''stand alone'' option and hasn't the Material ower... and tsdesing...
I've cloned a plant. but I've tried it with all maxis plants models and doesn't works in any case...

[IgnorantBliss]

Do you have the CEP files included in the files that SimPE uses? Go to Extra -> SimPE Preferences -> File table and check that CEP is selected. Are they indoor plants that you're talking about, or outdoor?

[Karlius]

in door plants, IB. well, I am going to try it.
edit: yes, IB. CEP is activated. look at:
http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/6797/cep0je.png (http://imageshack.us)

[IgnorantBliss]

Hmm, the only thing I have left to suggest is to try to reinstall CEP. When I try to clone indoor plants, the MMATs show up just fine.

[Karlius]

I've tried it and doesnt works too...
IB, If your in door plants looks fine, could you send me a original maxis plant for edit?

[IgnorantBliss]

Which plant would you like it to be? A table, floor, or hanging plant, something more specific?

Also, let me know your email address, either here or in PM :).

[Karlius]

can be this IB?
http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/286/ib4lr.gif (http://imageshack.us)
thank you! :up: :)

edit1: yes of course, if you need my email for send here you have: [email protected]

edit: IB, have you got the plant?

[Saiz08]

Hi I have been creating objects for awhile but I'm having some trouble with my shower. In Simpe it lets me reskin the subset but then in game it only shows the shower and now glass subset or recolors.

[IgnorantBliss]

Saiz08, your subset names and numbers do not match. Remember that you can only have two recolorable subsets. In GMDC, you have subsets called showercommunal_surface, glass1, glass2, but in the tsDesignModeEnabled you have, instead, subsets called showercommunal_surface, glass1, glass. So, you have 3 subsets listed in the tsDesignModeEnabled instead of the allowed 2, and one of their names doesn't match the ones in GMDC. You have MMATs for subsets called showercommunal_surface and glass.

What I recommend you to do is to 1) combine the glass1 and glass2 subsets in GMDC to one subset called just glass, edit the subsets in the Parts tab in Shape to match the ones in GMDC after aforementioned changes and 3) remove the subset glass1 from the tsDesignModeEnabled list. And then fix integrity and save.

Karlius, I'm very sorry, I completely missed your updated post and have still not sent you the file! Do you still need it? Let me know and I'll send it if necessary. Make sure to PM me if I keep being forgetful :lol:.

[Saiz08]

Yeah Thanks, I fiqured I was just doing something stupid. I need to remember how to use simpe again its been awhile. And thanks for taking a look at it.

[Mage]

Bliss, I just successfully used this tutorial for the 1000th (or so) time and I wanted to thank you again for teaching me how to do this.

[IgnorantBliss]

You're welcome :)

[Paleoanth]

You know, at first this made no sense to me. Until I got into it and really started messing with it. I finally printed it out and it stays next to me at my computer. It is my minibible. Thank you.

[pacotacoplayer]

I cant find the Material Override in my package. What do I do?

[Numenor]

Ehm... what package? Have you cloned an object and in the clone there are no Material Overrides?
If so, this means that the original object doesn't have textures of its own, but it borrows the textures from an external object.
For instance, most loveseats take the textures from the corresponding sofa: if you clone the loveseat you won't find any MMAT in the package.

One solution (but it should be performed wisely) is to click the cloning option "Create as stand-alone": this will break all the connections to the external object, and the right MMATs will be included in the package.
But be careful: if you clone, for instance, a bed with that option active, your new bed will NOT use any more the Maxis beddings!

[TimSimser]

When I've taken all these steps I would make recolors but in my recource tree there are two material definitions and two material overrides but I have only one texture image. Where have I made my mistake?

[IgnorantBliss]

You need to be more specific. How many material overrides, material definitions and textures were there before you added the new ones? The one texture image, is it something you added, was there a texture original, or is the one you meant to add missing? It's impossible to know if there is something wrong or not, because sometimes a subset may have a material override and material definition but no texture at all (like glass for the most part), and sometimes two subsets with separate material definitions and material overrides might use the same texture image. So, necessarily there is nothing wrong.

You will need to explain in more detail what is there, what isn't, and what should be there.

[MissWendy]

I have a question that may have been answered by Numenor on page one...but just to make sure. When trying to add a glass subset to a bedframe, you cannot add a texture? Is that why mine turns out flashing blue? If I don't add the texture, can I still add the glass subset? Will you be able to tell there is glass?

[Khaibit]

When trying to add a glass subset to a bedframe, you cannot add a texture?Who said so? :D
You cannot recolour more than 2 subsets of the bed (trying to do so can cause flashing blue objects...) but you can add as many subsets as you want...
Glass: that's a TXMT thingy again, adjust it.
Flashing blue: try Numenor's checklist for flashing blue objects, maybe it's just a linking trouble...

[padre333]

Just wanted to let you know that I think your tutorial is great! I has success with adding a subset and linking it to its texture!
So thank you very much for taking the time to write this. Much appreciated.
p

[Sedna98]

hey, i was following yoru tutorial and

one of the objects i edited + mesh and all for a table, and only the alpha texture is there.

where can i get a texture image for the mesh?

[IgnorantBliss]

Sounds like you cloned an object that's originally a slave object. Either make a new clone of the same table and select the "stand-alone object" cloning option, or clone a different table that's not a slave object. On the main Object Creation & Texturing forum I have a downloadable list of objects that are good for cloning and which are not slave objects.

[Sedna98]

oh i c, well i will try anotehr table and use the same meshes, i used the two cell table becasue one of the meshes was glass and wanted to keep the 'glass' properties as it was with a different mesh

but thanks you ^_____^

[TimSimser]

Where can I create that last "Fix Integrity" (and maybe the first to?)

and when I've taken all the steps the part that I did all the thing with is grey whatever I do

[IgnorantBliss]

You perform Fix Integrity by going to Tools -> Object Tools -> Fix Integrity.

Your second question I don't quite understand. Can you be more specific about what is grey?

[cwin1024]

Ok, I know I keep jumping from one thing to another, but I've just been busy busy busy with creating objects for about a month. I trying to build a table with a glass top. It's a 1x1 tile table. I know of 2 choices so far, I can either clone the glass nightlife table with the yellow post, or any of the other 1x1 tile tables and add a glass subset. Clonging the nightlife table would be the easiest way to go if I could change the post from shiny to normal, but I don't know how to do that, so I went with a solid wood table and tried to add a glass subset as the table top, However it's not working. I'm sure I'm doing it wrong tho. I went to the nightlife table and exported the glass material def. and went back into my wooden table and added it. In your tutorial, you don't really explain how to do it, I think. I thought that it would be the same as the rest of the tutorial, but it's not, the only reason I did it was because I'm not very good at creating glass, so I figured it would be easier if it were already glass, but it didn't work. So, of course I tried cloning the original material which was the wood material. I followed your tutorial exactly, but I am confused about weather I should leave the name exactly as it is and just change "wood" to "glass" which is what I've named my subset. It didn't work tho. I have followed this tutorial before and it worked, but I can't remember what the difference was. Also, since it was glass, I didn't even bother with a texture, I hope that was right. This table is giving me a lot of grief, I'll be so glad when I figure it out.

By the way, if you can just tell me how to change the shiny to normal, you won't even have to bother with the rest of the question. That would be so much easier (for me, anyway)

[IgnorantBliss]

It would be easier to do if you posted your object to take a look at ;). My guess is that the material definition uses something like a reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube to create extra shininess. If that's the case, change the value of stdMatEnvCubeMode to none and delete the line for stdMatEnvCubeTextureName completely. If that doesn't work, please, post your object, since it's a lot easier to help when I know exactly what I'm dealing with :).

[cwin1024]

here is the table that was made from the nightlife table, with the glass top and the shiny post. I did what you said and it didn't make any difference. Pershaps you can look at it now, and find out what the problem is.

Your help is very appreciated. I love the way you explain things, so easy to understand. :)

[IgnorantBliss]

I changed the specularity value in the material definition lower, from 80 to 5, and, at least in my game, the post doesn't look very shiny anymore, take a look and see if it's closer to what you want it to be.

[cwin1024]

Thank you, it's exactly right. I'll make sure you get a link when I upload the whole set so you can see it.

[anemicrock]

please help. i have a speaker box that i want to make shinny only at the front. I only have 1 gmdc file that i open in simpe but have no clue what a subset is? how do i make a subset for just the front of the box?

Please help?

[IgnorantBliss]

You don't need to add more GMDCs, just a new subset. A subset is a part of the mesh that has its own material definition and texture. Say, a chair has subsets called "wood" and "fabric". So, if you want to have the front of the object as a separate subset, then in your mesh editing program, you will have two separate parts of the mesh, the original, whatever it's called, and then your new part as a separate group with its own name. You need to be more specific about what part about the tutorial you can't follow, otherwise it's very hard to help :). First, how experienced are you with object creation and meshing in general? Because it sounds like you're not familiar with meshes and subsets in the first place. This tutorial is aimed at creators who first understand the basics of object creation, and I recommend you gain more experience in that first if that's the problem :).

[anemicrock]

Cool. Thanks for the help. Got it working now. So excited. Only problem is I can't get the color of the shine right. The box is black so I want it to have a nice black shine to it i gues so could you suggest what option i should use. at the moment i have it

Reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube with the settings at 3.3,3.3,3.3

which is more of a silver shine. it also shines to bright so to take that down would i go up in numbers or down?

Anyway thanks so much for the help.

[Inge Jones]

'1' is the highest setting. It represents 100%, ie 255 on that colour. Not sure what a 3.3 would do! :) So if you did 0.5 for each of the three settings, or less, that might suit.

[anemicrock]

okay cool. I understand the brightness part but where do i enter 255 for the color? like i said i added a new line stdMatEnvCubeTextureName using Reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube so where di i add 255 for the color. Sorry little confused.
Thanks

[Inge Jones]

I am hopeless at explaining things. Where you put the 3.3's the highest should be 1, which means the same as if you put 255 for that colour. 0.5 would be like putting 128 for the colour.

Why don't you use the Categorised Properties tab in the TXMT editor, which presents the settings in a different way, including showing you the colours.

[Khaibit]

Inge, I know what you mean but I'm unsure if it's clear (maybe my fault, if so sorry for adding stuff)
The RGB color profile is "translated" into values from 0 to 1. This means anemicrock, if you want a certain color to be displayed you have to check the RGB values in your paint program and then divide each of the values (R, G, B) through 256 (255:2 would't be 0.5 :D). Entering these 0 to 1 values will help you to get the wanted color instead of your 3.3 which is just invalid.
As Inge said, try the Categorised Properties tab out :)

[anemicrock]

cool thanks alot for the help. so let me see if i have this straight.

stdmatenvcubecoef = 0.01171875,0.0,0.01171875
those are the numbers i did with the division. the rgb colors for black in photoshop were 3, 0 , 3

stdmatenvcubemode = reflection

new line stdmatenvcubetexturename = no idea what to put here cause nothing works.

[Khaibit]

stdMatEnvCubeTextureName = Reflection texture filename, without "_txtr" so reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube has to be entered here, also in the File List tab. Recently there was another thread discussing envcube-stuff Inge posted in... may help you to understand the envcube a bit better http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=208148&highlight=envcube

stdMatEnvCubeCoef - Use it to control how much the RGB values of the reflection map acts on the base texture; one can do monochromic recolouring with this - Reflection RGB (in conjunction with Reflection texture)

Copied from Niol's version of TXTR content, found in http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=35769
Maybe this helps you out. There is also some info about the envcubes, with a link to another thread (start at the end to find the stuff faster :D)

[anemicrock]

hey guys i'm back. Thanks for all the help. I got my head around it now and working in the game. Looks great. It's nice to find a foruma nd community that actually help people out. Appreciate it.

[Ben♣]

This tutorial is great ! Thanks again IBliss :)

that's not the 1st time I've been following it but this time I have a little problem at step5 : there's no line called "tsDesignModeEnabled" on the pulldown list for the Blocklist ! what does it mean ? I'm making a plant by the way. maybe I should clone another object and check if this line is available ?

[IgnorantBliss]

I didn't explain the procedure of adding the block since I assumed that the majority of objects (while having the CEP installed) would have it already. There are probably some that still don't, though. You can add it by 1) opening the Geometric Node 2) Clicking on Edit Blocks 3) selecting cDataListExtension from the dropdown list and clicking Add (and committing) 4) going back to the Content tab and selecting the newly added block from the Blocklist 5) typing tsDesignModeEnabled into the Name field (and committing) 6) then selecting the very first entry on the Blocklist and going to the cObjectGraphNode tab 7) clicking Add 8) clicking on the newly added line in the Datalist Extension Reference list and the changing the last zero of Index to what comes next (if you have 5 lines before, you type 6 (0x00000006) and change the last zero of Enabled 0x01 (and clicking Commit, and save the package). And you're done :).

[Ben♣]

(I'm surprised to see that you've not won an award for replying so fastly yet :D)

I followed your instructions but there was no lines in the "items" field. I suppose I should've add them but I didn't want to lose too much time (I'm not very brave *lol*) so I decided to clone another plant.

I followed the tut twice with that plant but the new subset is still not showing up in the game and I don't know what's wrong...

File&picture *link removed* - thanks in advance if you can find the problem.

[IgnorantBliss]

The problem seems to have something to do with your texture for the glass. Maybe it's too transparent or something, because when I import a solid black texture as a test, the subset shows in game just fine.

Yes, when you add a new tsDesignModeEnabled block, you add a new entry into the Items list the same way you add a second in the tutorial.

[Ben♣]

You're right, the texture was too transparent ! It's odd as I used the same one for other objects that show up fine.

Thanks for having run your game to make the test :)

[Spaik]

Thanks for the tutorial, Bliss. It is great, really useful and easy to follow...
and now the problem :P

I cloned a staircase and I created a new subset so that I can make separate recolors of the stairs and the railings. Until here everything worked fine.
The railings have a glass and a metal part and I made the metal part as a slave subset of the glass one (or at least I thought to) so that I could recolour both parts together, but when I create the recolor package, the TXMT of the metal part is not present.
Btw, there aren't any textures for the railing, since they aren't needed, and the slave texture of the stairs for the neighborhood view is correctly pulled.

Can anybody help me understanding what I'm doing wrong?

[Numenor]

Spaik, the stairs are weird objects that are not correctly managed by SimPE.
As you could see, the mesh is split into numerous subsets (railingglass1, railingglass2, etc), but it's just one of the Maxis' oddities...
I've cleaned up the mesh: all the metal parts are now named "railingmetal", and all the glass parts are "railingglass". I've fixed accordingly the GMND and the SHPE and deleted all the things that were useless (including the neighborhood textures: they are useless since SimPE didn't include in the clone the neighborhood mesh, too...).

Now the stairs work fine: the metal is slave to the glass and the recolour packages correctly contain all the needed files.
Please notice that both the metal and the glass are textureless, i.e. can be recoloured only by changing the "stdMatDiffCoeff" parameters within the TXMT).

This is the test recolour I've created:
http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/6616/01092007011237gt7.jpg

I take the chance to reveal a little hint:
if in the GMDC there are several mesh groups with the same name, they will be treated by the game as one. In this case, in fact, there are several "railingglass" meshes, that are treated as a single big subset named "railingglass" (they will use the same TXMT and MMAT); same for the "railingmetal".

I'm attaching a zip containing the fixed staircase and the test recolour shown in picture, so to let you examine it: you will notice that the "steps" have a texture (recoloured), and the reailingglass/railingmetal have only a TXMT, where the stdMatDiffCoeff has been altered.

[Spaik]

Thanks Numenor for your help.
I'm learning a lot from your package, since I'm usually afraid of deleting things, if I don't know exactly what they are for (and this apply to most of them :D ).
My intention was to change the railing aspect via TXMT (to match the Invisibarrier fences) and to link the steps to the original Maxis ones, so that the final package doesn't have any TXTR at all. This is not a problem, I've already tried it, but left as a final step.

My problem now is that the railings aren't removable anymore with the railing tool.
This is a feature of all the Maxis stairs, but I don't know how it is managed. I've cloned other staircases, and only this one (Stairway to Eleven) has a BHAV file called CT - Toggle Railings. I don't know if it's because of the glass part, or if the other staircases borrow the BHAV from this one.
I've tried to make another staircase with separate recolourable railings and it works fine, but they (only the railings) revert to an odd colour whenever I touch them with the Railing tool.

I've tried to modify your package to save both features (si direbbe salvare capra e cavoli), but it seams that when I re-add the "null" TXMT, Simpe refuses to pull in the recolours the TXMT for the metal part. I've assumed that the "null" TXMT is used when the railings are removed, but I'm not sure at all.

[Numenor]

Ooops, I didn't know of this special feature of the "Stairway to 11", and I overlooked the CT bhav... Let me check it...

[Spaik]

The railings can be removed from every Maxis staircase, non only the "11", even if the BHAV is not present in the others (and I too discovered this feature not long ago; I previously thought that only modular stairs had removable railings).

[Numenor]

Spaik, I'm having big troubles with keeping the "railing on/off" feature and making them recolourable. The stairs are a nightmare :P -
In all the other stairs, the railings are turned on and off by switching the mesh (just like in the modular stairs), but this particular staircase has only one mesh, and the railings are made invisible by applying an invisible texture over them. This causes problems with the recolours, and probably explains why Maxis didn't make the railings recolourable...

A solution might be to make the railings "always on", and create an "invisible" recolour for them; if the user doesn't want the railings, he will apply the invisible recolour to them. The only limitation is that you can't have only one railing: with this method, you can have both railings or no railings.

[Spaik]

Thanks again, Numenor. I've tried in many different ways and came up to nothing, but at first I thought it was just my fault and my ignorance.
Now I know that it's Maxis fault! :D
So I shall live with it and choose which feature I want and which I can do without.

Thanks again to Bliss too. Your tutorial is really useful, and in many ways.

[monkeybdb]

hello im from sims2carsource and im making a new car and i hav used your tut. for many things other than cars. you may hav answered this befor and i tried to look through as many posts as posible. but when i recolor my car the name of the subst shows up but not the thumbnail and when i click on OK it only shows the TXTR, MMAT, and the TXMT of the other subset.
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r254/compfrek2010/Image2.jpg

[IgnorantBliss]

Can you attach your package to take a look at?

[monkeybdb]

ok sure but it is a top secret car so im changing the name of the .rar and please dont tell anyone about it. also in the game the roof subset is blue ans flashing and it acted like it is unjointed but in milkshape it is jointed.

[IgnorantBliss]

The TXMT reference in your MMAT didn't match the actual name of the TXMT for the roof subset. I fixed that (changed the TXMT name), and now it seems to be working. As for the problem with the unjointed part, I'm not sure, I'm not terribly familiar with car meshing in particular.

[monkeybdb]

ooo thanx so much while you were looking i went back and redid it a little so i wont need to map the roof seperatly...lol so if i still cant figure out the joint thing it should work with this one.

[Numenor]

Whenever the material for a subset can't be found (i.e. the subset flashes blue), the joints are just ignored: the mesh seems unjointed, but it's not; it's just a side effect of the missing material.
With the material reference fixed by IgnorantBliss, also the joints should work fine.

[AuraDemolisher]

im trying to get some kinda glass texture, but i can't find any. How am i supposed to make it look like see threw glass if i cant even find texture? or is there another way?

[IgnorantBliss]

Most glass in the game doesn't have a texture image, only a material definition, which determines its transparency, color, and so on. You could clone an existing object that has a glass subset and take a look at the material definition of that.

[AuraDemolisher]

ok, well i need help. The tut isn't easy to follow for me. Im making a wooden table with a glass middle, and i don't know how to do everything, the tut you made is kinda hard to me. Any suggestions?

[IgnorantBliss]

What kind of a table is it? There are many tables in the game already that have a glass subset, and if you clone one of those, you won't even need to add a new subset.

[AuraDemolisher]

which ones have glass subset? can you describe them or give me the name of them?

[Numenor]

Unless I have missed some, the tables with glass parts are:

Coffee tables: ArtNouveau, Quaint and Designer
Dining table: Long Victorian and Loft
End tables: Loft

I have given the "Object Data" name, because the descriptive name changes regarding the language of your game.

[AuraDemolisher]

oh, ok. So if i just made a cube, could i make it into a glass cube? if so how? i was trying to follow her tut but it just doesnt make since to me

[IgnorantBliss]

AuraDemolisher, this tutorial is written for creators who are moderately experienced in object creation already. It may be that you need a little more practice, and maybe some beginner tutorials to learn the basics first. If you want me to help you with the tutorial, you need to be a lot more specific about what exactly doesn't make sense to you, otherwise it's very difficult to help.

Yes, you can make the glass subset into a cube, just like you can a solid object, it's the exact same thing in that regard.

[AuraDemolisher]

How about I'll upload the file of the table that i want turned into glass, and you can help me with making it into glass? is that ok?

[IgnorantBliss]

I would rather help you make the changes yourself than do it for you, since the purpose of the tutorial and the forum in general is to learn to make things yourself :). If I do it for you, you won't learn much, and won't know how to do it in the future.

Please, tell me which steps in particular do you find confusing, and what exactly can you not figure out, and I will try to explain.

The tables with glass already in them that Numenor listed, do they not work for your purpose? Because, like I said, if you clone one of them, there is already a glass subset, and you won't need to add any, then. Then modifying the mesh works like with any other mesh.

In short: Clone the table with glass that is the correct type and size for you. Clone it like any other object.
If you only want a glass subset for your table, only export the glass subset from the GMDC and do the editing in your mesh program like with any mesh, and continue as usual.
If you won't use the solid part of the mesh at all (the wooden, metallic etc), then delete that mesh subset in GMDC, and also delete that subset's Material Definition, texture file, Material Override and also the reference to that subset in the Shape.
If you use both the glass and solid parts for your object, then you won't need to delete anything.

[AuraDemolisher]

ok. I didin't want you to exactly make it glass, what i really ment was could you tell me how to make the table i made into glass. see i didin't understand inn the tutorial about the part of import the subset, i got threw that fine but when it got a little further on it got hard. But i actually think the main reason I can't make it is because i wanted to make the glass first, but i have to read the tut and stuff. I'll try one more time with it, and if it doesn't work then I'll try and upload it so you can see what I'm having problems with.

[IgnorantBliss]

You don't need to do anything special to the mesh to make it glass, the key is to import it into SimPE as the glass subset and not as the solid subset (if you clone a table that has both). You make the mesh the same way you'd make any mesh. (Now, when the mesh is see-through, there might be some things to consider about how it looks, but technically importing it as a glass subset is no different from importing a solid subset).

[AuraDemolisher]

OH! so im supposed to import my glass into http://sims.ambertation.de/!? well how do i make the glass subset before?

[AuraDemolisher]

lol, i see...Its just words. Well i know not to import the glass into the site. What i mean is i have to import the glass subset into simpe? and the tut with the material def and stuff is to just make it look good? if thats true how do I make the glass subset before i import it into SimPe?

[IgnorantBliss]

No, I didn't mean you import the glass into the website, the forum just automatically turns the word "SimPE" into a link to the website where you download it from. I meant you import the mesh into SimPE the program.

[IgnorantBliss]

Like I said before, if you clone a table that already has a glass subset, you won't need this tutorial at all. In that case, the subset with its material definitions and everything is already built into the package, and there is no need to add those anymore.

[AuraDemolisher]

yes, your right. But like you also said...

I would rather help you make the changes yourself than do it for you, since the purpose of the tutorial and the forum in general is to learn to make things yourself :). If I do it for you, you won't learn much, and won't know how to do it in the future.

[/list]

I do want to learn how to make a glass table, copying somthing thats already made isn't making anything new. but i just don't know how yet, (if you don't want to help thats fine) i need all the help i can get. And im making a table, which isnt a chair, the chair in the tut is just fabric, i could have done that myself. It's just the glass i dont know how to do. Is there a tut where its just strictly glass? and not a diffrent subset such as fabric? if so I'd like to know about it :!:

[IgnorantBliss]

I don't understand how cloning a table with a glass subset already in it is any different from cloning a wooden table to make a wooden mesh. When you want to make a solid object, you clone an object that already has a solid part, you don't make that subset from scratch (even if you make the mesh from scratch). So, why would the glass need to be made from scratch? You can still edit the glass mesh, you just don't need to go through the hassle of doing linking inside the package. The end result is no less original than doing it from scratch. This is the way most creators work, they clone an existing object that is closest to the kind of object they want to make. This tutorial is meant for cases when there is no object to clone that has the subsets you need. The simplest approach is usually the best. If I want to make a coffee table, I clone a coffee table, not an end table where I'd have to adjust its height to get it working as a coffee table.

Now, if you want the table of the type and size that doesn't come with glass in the game originally, then it makes sense to add a new subset. In that case, it's probably easiest to import the glass Material Definition from an object that has the kind of glass you want. So, clone that object that you want to get the TXMT (Material Definition) from. Right click on the Material Definition file you see in the Type window, and select Extract. Then import that file to your actual object by right-clicking on the Type window and select Add, then browse to the file you want to import. Commit. Instead of cloning the TXMT, like in the tutorial, you import one. Now you need to rename the imported TXMT so that it matches the others in the package, and make sure the extension (_glass or whatever) matches the name you have given your glass subset, and that this new TXMT is linked correctly inside the package just like the cloned TXMT would.

[AuraDemolisher]

ok, so if i clone from the glass mesh, i can import my other table right? will it still have the glass where i want?

[IgnorantBliss]

You can replace the glass mesh the same way you replace a solid mesh. You can make it a completely new shape like any other mesh.

[AuraDemolisher]

ok thanks, sorry for snapping at you...well im not sorry literaly but I use excuse me, instead of sorry because im not sorry, but excuse me for snapping at you if i did, and I'll try it, could you repeat the names of the glass meshes again please?

[IgnorantBliss]

They are listed in this (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?p=1567355#post1567355) post by Numenor.

Apart from those, there are some tables from expansion packs that also have glass subsets. If you clone one of those, then people are going to need that expansion pack to use your clone.

[AuraDemolisher]

oh yea, i dont have pets ep, and i dont see and glass dining tables from the names he listed, are those tables in ep? ok nvm i didint see the ones he listed, but i see more.

[AuraDemolisher]

oh ok thanks

[IgnorantBliss]

They are all from the base game, and they are listed by object data name, not descriptive name. To view object names, go to Extra -> Preferences -> SimPE Settings and select the "show OBJf filename", then restart SimPE.

[LaLunaRossa72]

I have been working on something for over a month now - with no success - until I found my way to this! Great tutorial, thanks so much!

[simple-design]

thanks for this great tutorial it helped me a lot but I sit down here for hours without knowing how to add the subset part into the GMND file (geometric node)
I use SimPE version 0.60b (alpha, 0.60.2.20832)
How can I add the subset into GMND file in this version?

[IgnorantBliss]

It should work exactly the same way is with the version this tutorial was written for. What specifically is the problem you're having?

[nelson_ts2fan_loco]

I have a question :D and its just for curiosity...why do you have to fix the integrity of an object every time you change something in the Geometrical Data Container? Is that why objects like wall hangings and wall lamps do not actually stick to the wall when you don't fix its integrity...? I always had a problem that whenever I made a new mesh of a wall hanging it always floated instead of sticking into the wall. :rolleyes:
And thanks for your subset tutorial, I will learn this as quick as I can:D

[IgnorantBliss]

I don't think Fixing Integrity has anything to do with how the mesh is positioned. If your wall hangings and lights are not parallel to the wall, you probably need to fix the position of the mesh in your mesh editor. It's helpful to use the original mesh as a reference on where the new mesh should be located. The game doesn't know what the back of the lamp or picture is supposed to be, you have to define its location yourself.

[momma"b"]

Hi IgnorantBliss,
I created a large clock for on the sides of community buildings and cloned it from the cheap alarm clock. I started it about 2 years ago and have been working on it off and on since I started my job, and I got the hands to work as they are suppose to and got it possitioned and everything, but the thing will not recolor no how. At first I recolored the cheap clock to see if it would recolor but it wouldn't and then I looked in the clock package and noticed it did not have the tsdesignmode included so just in experiencing with it, I added it to see if that would do it but it still didn't so I thought maybe it was just one that would not recolor. The I was looking at MTS2 and seen bobl created a school clock from the cheap alarm clock and it was recolorable and I messaged him and asked him how he did it. He said it always has been recolorable and that he didn't do anything to it but he did have numenor help him with the placing of it and that maybe he did something to it, so I asked numenor and he gave me a link to your tutorial on adding subsets to an item. Everything you have said in it I had already done except the hash generator which I did now and it still will not recolor. I have posted it up here and was wandering if you would look at it and tell me what I am missing in it or why it will not recolor. When I start a project it bugs me till it is completely finished and usable and right now it is workable but not colorable. Thank you.

Momma 'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

I found two problems with your file :).

First problem was that it didn't follow the recommended naming system exactly. The names for the material definitions are supposed to have an underline before and after the subset name. Your filenames were mjb-largetownclock052805-body-default_txmt while they should be mjb-largetownclock052805_body_default_txmt. I changed those and all references to them.

Secondly, when you added the tsDesignModeEnabled blocks you did not add an entry to the datalist extension reference list correctly (my tutorial for using Maxis textures with a repository technique explains how to correctly add a new entry there :) ). I fixed that.

After these two fixes, the clock now seems to be recolorable :).

[momma"b"]

Thank you so much IgnorantBliss. I am so glad numenor told me about you and that you were able to help me. I did have the name as you did with the underscores and it still wouldn't recolor so I changed it thinking that might help, but it still didn't. It must have been the entry to the datalist extension reference list that I missed. Thank you also for letting me know about your tutorial on Repository Textures From Maxis Objects. It will come in handy in the future.

Momma 'b'

[momma"b"]

Hi IgnorantBliss,
I'm sorry to bug you again, but I have been trying to finish up this clock and let it have a wall shadow instead of a groundshadow, but it will not change the angle to be on the wall instead of the ground. I changed it in MilkShape and put it back in the game and it still comes out in the game on the ground, so I changed the resources for it and still its on the ground. I even tried adding a background mesh in with the root_rot_gmdc and named it background instead of groundshadow and left the ground shadow alone. I added all the new info for the groundshadow like the mat def and so forth for it and still that new one and the groundshadow show it on the ground, one in front of the clock and one in the back. I have looked on the site for a tutorial that explains either working with shadows or adding a shadow to the object and I did not see anything that delt with it. I know bobl cloned his clock from the same one and it has the groundshadow displayed as the wallshadow but I can not figure out how to do it that way. Would you know how and if your not busy explain it to me or if you know of a tutorial that talks about it, let me know where it is. I'm sorry for always being a pain and I hope to not bug you so much in the future. I'm almost done with it except for making it have more floor tiles instead of 1, but I know of a tutorial for that so I should be fine. Thank you again for helping me.

momma 'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

Here's your clock with a working wallshadow :). I used the groundshadow, turned it 90 degrees, made it a lot bigger (both the mesh and texture) and remapped it. It seems to be working :)

It cracks me up every time when I open up the catalog that this clock is categorized under Small Electronics. It's anything but small! :lol:

[momma"b"]

Thanks a million IgnorantBliss,
How did you turn it 90 degrees to get it to be the wallshadow if you don't mind me asking? That way I will know for future references. I tried the Resource node for it and MilkShape but would not work for me. Kept being on the ground.

I know its funny about the size and the placement in the catalog...lol. When I was creating it and my husband seen it in the game he laughed at it to. I'm still working on it and I will be putting it into its rightful place when I get it all done. I just thought I would get the hardest and main parts b/f I go to the little parts to work on.

Thanks again for your help.

Momma 'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

I just turned the mesh 90 degrees in Milkshape, didn't need to do anything in CRES :) .

[RealGanacampo]

I feel very stupid, since no one else has asked this, but I am not sure how to understand the very first step in your tutorial. :blink:

Open your object package in SimPE. In Geometric Data Container, import your subset as a separate mesh subset the same way you import any mesh, but give it a new, informative name that separates it from the existing subsets in the package.

Do I have to create my mesh and then open it again in SimPe and add the subset?
For example if my object should have two parts (subsets) A and B, do I first create the entire mesh with A & B and then open it and import only the B part again, or do I have to create only part A then open it and create part B to import it?

I hope my question is understandable.

[IgnorantBliss]

No, you can import all subsets at the same time :)

[RealGanacampo]

Open your object package in SimPE. In Geometric Data Container, import your subset as a separate mesh subset the same way you import any mesh, but give it a new, informative name that separates it from the existing subsets in the package.

So that part I made bold in the quote only applies if you want to add a subset to an object that already exists?
Because that was what confused me a little bit.

[IgnorantBliss]

That part means that you need to have the new subset separate from the old ones. I didn't mean you have to import it separately as in at a different time, but rather it needs to be a different subset than the existing ones.

[momma"b"]

Hi IgnorantBliss,
Yes its pain again...lol. After I downloaded the clock you did and left you that message, I put it back into the game and guess what? The groundshadow is still on the ground instead of on the wall. Its doing the same thing that mine was doing. I don't understand what is going on with it so I think I am just going to leave it have the groundshadow instead of the wallshadow, that way it will finally be done. I even tried cloning the new moonstruck clock or whatever its called from Maxis and that one turned out good but it does not animate when you clone it but it animates with the original one. I even tried pulling the animations also, but nothing, it wouldn't animate. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, but I am doing everything as usual that I did before, unless its because they are new versions and maybe they changed stuff in the seasons or the new version of SimPe. If you have any other suggestions, I would like to hear them. Thanks again for all your help.
Momma 'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

momma"b", are you absolutely sure you just have my new version of the clock in your game and nothing else? Because the wallshadow definitely works in my game, I loaded it several times when I was adjusting the shadow size. Make sure you clean out your game of any previous versions of the clock. I don't think it's possible for there to be an indoor shadow on the floor. Outdoor shadows, on the other hand, and rendered in game based on the map, and those you can't edit.

[momma"b"]

Hi IgnorantBliss,
Yes I took the old one out and put the one you did the background in and its still showing it on the ground. I took some snapshots to show you what I mean about it. You can see in the one without a clock it has a groundshadow of the wall and then when I add the clock, it has the groundshadow of that too but no wallshadow. I move the clock one tile to show that the shadow shows better in the last place better than the one in the middle. I don't understand whats going on if yours is showing on the wall and mine is showing on the ground and its the same clock. If you come up with something, please let me know for future ref. I hate to be a pain to you all the time.
momma'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

momma"b", since you have the clock outside in that pic, also the shadow is an outdoor shadow and not an indoor one. As I mentioned in my previous post, generally the shadows that are editable are indoor shadows that are based on textures, and then the outdoor shadows are completely separate, rendered by the game "on the fly", and you can't edit them. The outdoor shadow is created based on which direction the sunlight is coming from. If you place the clock on an indoor wall (a closed space with 4 walls) you should be able to see the wallshadow properly.

[momma"b"]

IgnorantBliss,
I'm a dope...lol. I went into the game and seen what you were talking about. Yes it does have one and with walls around it. I was thinking it was something like the one bobl did, which I put a pic up to let you see and its outside with only 1 wall its attached to. I also created a home clock from bobl's and that's the other one I am showing and they both have the shadow behind them. Thats what I was thinking, but bobl must have used a different kind of shadow for it to be displayed behind it and outside. Thanks again IgnorantBliss for explaining it to me and for all the help.

momma 'b'

[IgnorantBliss]

I will look into this later on today, I may have a solution in mind :).

[IgnorantBliss]

OK, I think I figured it out, and the wallshadow now works outdoors, too :). I noticed the clock by Bob had a different BHAV than yours. I copied a part of the BHAV to replace the one in yours, and now the wallshadow works outside, too. But you need to test the clock a bit to see if it still otherwise works as it's meant to :).

(The shadow in Bob's clock is exactly the same as yours, it's just the BHAVs were different.)

[momma"b"]

IgnorantBliss,
That was it. I fixed the package with the background and it works fine now the way I wanted it with just 1 wall behind it. I uploaded a close-up pic to let you see it and one to let you see it with just the one wall. I even got some recolors done of it and I will upload them with the original if you want to see them. Thanks again so much.
momma 'b'

[moonbeam13]

I cloned an end table and then made some recolours of it, but it still uses the recolours from the original end table as well. How do I stop it from using those recolours and make it just use mine?

[IgnorantBliss]

moonbeam13, I don't think your question is related to this tutorial directly, but it sounds like you didn't update the MMATs with your new GUID. Check what the new main GUID for your table is (the Object Data with the shortest name, usually with no numbers or letters after it), and then copy and paste that into the Value field of objectGUID in the MMAT, commit and save.

[corvidophile2]

If i don't want to add a subset to an object and simply make it recolorable (enable design mode) what process must i follow?

I have resized some maxis meshes all have a tsdegidnedenabled block but the recolors don't show.

I would like to learn how to do that.Can i use this tutorial? Thank you.

[IgnorantBliss]

Does your object also have at least one MMAT? If so, then following this tutorial should work. If not, then the procedure is slightly more complicated but it's still possible to do. But, before you do anything else, make sure the objectGUID in the MMAT matches your new main GUID for the object. Incorrectly updated MMATs are one of the biggest reasons for recolors not working correctly.

[corvidophile2]

Ok i'll check that now IB and let you know , thank you!

[IgnorantBliss]

However, if your objects are using the same textures as the Maxis originals, then I'd recommend using the repository technique, which I have another tutorial for. It's unnecessary to include the textures if they are already in the game.

[corvidophile2]

Eeek...it has one MMAT, guid of mmat is the same with the fallback guid in object data. Can i fix this?

[IgnorantBliss]

Yes, just manually replace the objectGUID value in the MMAT with your new GUID, commit and save.

[corvidophile2]

All my 3 meshes had the same problem i changed guids now and i'll load game to see if the recolors show, thanks so much IB, i cant believe it was so easy to fix (well hopefully this fixed it) lol



edit:it doesn't work again, in the meantime i am in the create chat and stormwench is taking a look at it.I will let you know IB, thanks so much!

[IgnorantBliss]

By the way, you will have to make new recolors, OR fix the GUIDs in the recolors MMATs, too, before they will show up in game :).

[corvidophile2]

OH...duh , ok , thanks so much i'll do that xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

[Scoopey]

Just like to thank you for this tutorial.
At the beginning of the week I could just about mange to create a cloned vase using the tutorial here and elsewhere.
Last night I uploaded my first item and now I can finally include subsets of my own, rather than cloning an object with a subset of its own.
Word of warning to anyone attempting this tutorial.
READ IT THOROUGHLY!!
The information is all there and if you skip or accidentally shorten a texture name particularly where there are subset_material references together then you will not see a second texture you might have added!
I did this on the first and second attempt but on the third I was more methodical and found where I had gone wrong!
Thanks again
Steve C

[raffaele]

I wanted to ask you ca add a GMDC in the package or file?

[Echo]

You can, but it's a bit more complicated than adding a new subset, and it won't do anything unless you make a bunch of other changes as well. You have to actually have a good reason to do it. The main reason you'd want to add another GMDC is if you're trying to do BHAV-based mesh switching... What are you trying to do?

[Rainncandy]

1. I've made two new objects, and I'm having problems with both of them. They are both meshes that have an added subset. For each object, I only made one color, but once I look at them in the game, they come with recolors. I didn't make ANY recolors. Why are they showing up with recolors when I didn't make any recolors? I cloned the Maxis fruit basket to make my items and they are picking up recolors - from where, I don't know.


2. How can glass be recolorable WITHOUT a texture?? I want my glass to be pink, but how can I make it pink without including a texture? Where is the glass going to get the pink coloring from? That makes no sense to me at all.

[Numenor]

Raincandy, please edit your first message, instead of posting two messages in a row...

1) Cloned objects that automatically get other objects' recolours.
You probably cloned a "slave" object, i.e. a Maxis object that is designed to get external recolours: for example all the maxis bed take the sheets colour from the Colonial double bed. If you clone a bed, it will take automatically all the existing beddings recolours. How to prevent this? When you are about to clone your object, click the option "Make stand-alone object"; but remember that this feature might cause problems in some objects (for instance, kitchen counters). The CEP documentation lists all the "slave" objects, so that you can possibly choose to clone an object that is not enslaved to anything.

2) Textureless glass.
If an object part doesn't need to have a pattern or design over it, but requires only a uniform colour, usually there is no texture to edit. The colour is taken directly from the Material Definition, from the stdMatDiffCoef parameter: this is a triplet of R-G-B values, each ranging from 0.0 to 1.0 (0,0,0 means black; 1,1,1 means white, etc.)

[Rainncandy]

What if the R-G-B values are: 234, 102, and 159? How do they translate to numbers between 0.0 and 1.0??

[Echo]

Thats 0.914, 0.398 and 0.62. Divide decimal numbers by 256 to get the normalized (between 0 and 1) colour values. :)

[Rainncandy]

ok, thanks Echo and Numenor!


Raincandy, please edit your first message, instead of posting two messages in a row...

1) Cloned objects that automatically get other objects' recolours.
You probably cloned a "slave" object, i.e. a Maxis object that is designed to get external recolours: for example all the maxis bed take the sheets colour from the Colonial double bed. If you clone a bed, it will take automatically all the existing beddings recolours. How to prevent this? When you are about to clone your object, click the option "Make stand-alone object"; but remember that this feature might cause problems in some objects (for instance, kitchen counters). The CEP documentation lists all the "slave" objects, so that you can possibly choose to clone an object that is not enslaved to anything.


I usually clone the fruit basket, and I looked at the documentation, and it doesn't state that it picks up recolors. I've never seen any recolors of the fruit basket, so I don't see why when I clone it, that it picks up recolors. I guess I can still try the "stand alone" option to see if that works.

EDIT: I tried cloning the Sunflowers with the vase, but I deleted the vase. My object is a DVD rack with 3 DVD's. The main object is the rack with one DVD, and the subset are 2 extra DVD's. I cloned the sunflowers instead of the fruit basket this time, and I checked off "stand alone object" in Simpe, but there is STILL a recolor included when I looked at it in the game.

[Rainncandy]

I don't know what it is, but even if a Maxis object doesn't have a recolor, for some reason, if I clone it (sometimes) then it will pick up the color of the object I cloned. This makes absolutely no sense to me. I even looked in the CEP documentation, and it doesn't pick up recolors, so I don't know what else to do.

Is there a way to delete the other colors?

[Numenor]

Many objects that Maxis made not recolourable, are made recolourable by the CEP: SimPE by default detects the CEP and uses its resources in order to create a recolourable clone.

If you want to create a non-recolourable clone, then you should deactivate the CEP in the Extra -> Preferences -> File Table; if, on the other hand, you do want your clone to be recolourable, but you are only annoyed by the several recolours contained in the clone, be sure to select the option "Pull only default colour" before cloning.

[Rainncandy]

Ok thanks Numenor.

[TimSimser]

I created a subset that is recolorable and it worked fine the only thing is that the pictures ingame look weird, the subset is blue, how to fix this?

[MaryLou]

Make sure that in the shape is linked the right txmt, and in the txmt the right texture.
If you can't find the error, please attach your file here.

[TimSimser]

I fixed a part of it, the recolors look well now but the main picture still doesn't, so could you please take a look at the package(s), thanks a lot.

[MaryLou]

There is an error into the shape: the subset "left" this txmt ##0x1C050000!tgkitchen1cabinet3-[timgebraad-25.11.2007-152323]_left_show1
but yours really txmt is ##0x1C050000!tgkitchen1cabinet3-[timgebraad-27.11.2007-b192b]_left_show1
And, of course, all the recolours are wrong, they call the wrong cres into the MMATs

@Edit:
Here the files fixed.
Remember to refresh the Thumbnails.

[TimSimser]

thanks a lot :D

[rosaline_10]

Hi, I have gone over this tutorial to make all the items in a bedroom set all recolourable, everything has worked fine except one.
the bed does not seem to want to recolour, I go in to the object workshop, recolour the bed, it comes up with the supset, then once inside I import my texture.
then save.
i then go in to the game, and there is no recolour.
I have gone over everything in the main package and the recolour package to make sure everything seems to be linking, everything seems ok to me, But I might have missed something as I am only new to this.
I tried starting from scratch but I still get the same problem.

[MaryLou]

Well, this can't work, there are different errors inside your package.

1)The file "flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_tslocator_gmnd" in the tsDesignModeEnabled you have 3 subset, they can't work. You can only have two subset.
In your GMDC does NOT exist the subset texture
- You have to delete the inexistent subset "texture". commit and save
If you want a third subset to be recolorable you have to use an advanced mode: you have to make a subset slave, one subset must be slave of another and will be recolorable only with the master subset. But is not the case.

Look at, always in the file "flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_tslocator_gmnd", the tsMaterialsMeshName:the bed uses the bedding from the original Maxis bed.
This is normal, if you don't want this you have to make your bed totally autonomous.

2)The file "flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_frame_texture_txmt", pay attention, you have 2 txmt that refer to the same subset "frame"!
You have to change the name with the right subset "bedding"
- Rename the txmt in the filename and in the tab cMaterialDefinition (write bedding instead of frame), click Fix TGI, don't forget this, you have to get an unique instance for each txmt, commit and save
- Change the name of the texture: the string "stdMatBaseTextureName" change frame with bedding.
Change the name also in teh tab "File List". Commit and save

3)The file "flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_untagged0_shpe"
Again the same error: the subset "texture" does NOT exist.
- Delete the string of the texture
- Delete the string of the subset "beddoublecolonial_opacityplane" (you don't need this, it doesn't exist)
- change the Material Definition File (recall the orginal Maxis txmt) for the subset "bedding" with "##0x1C050000!flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_bedding_texture"

4)The MMAT ##0x1C050000!flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_frame_texture, recalls again the inexistent subset texture.
- Rename the MMAT, change frame with bedding in the string "name (dtString)
- Change the subset "texture" with "bedding" in the string (subsetName)
commit and save

5)The texture, the file "flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline-frame-texture_txtr"
-Again change frame with bedding and Fix TGI, then commit and save.

This should fix your package.
Now the bed will use your textures, delete the thumbs before run the game, in the catalog you'll see your bed with your texture but when you buy it the default recolor for the bedding will stay the original maxis. Select the recolor of your bedding and try the bed.
Your bed in this way borrow the texture for the bedding from the original Maxis bed. If you don't want this, but you want only your recolor for the bedding, you have to change the GMND, the shape, and also the TL: in this case attach again the new fixed file and I'll explain to you how change the bedding again.

[rosaline_10]

thank you Marylou,
but sadly I still can't get it to work.
I did everything in the instructions you gave and it still does not give me a recolour
prehaps I am still doing something incorrect

[MaryLou]

Well, you have forgot this in the shape
- change the Material Definition File (recall the orginal Maxis txmt) for the subset "bedding" with "##0x1C050000!flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_bedding_texture"
But, I'm sorry, I've forgot :rolleyes: to complete the instruction for the MMAT:
the MMAT of the subset bedding must recall the cres of the original bedding, recall the original GUID , set to false the defaultMaterial and use the right string of the TL
- defaultMaterial ->Value 0
- modelName -> beddoublecolonial_cres
- objectGUID -> 0x500FE191
- objectStateIndex -> 0x00000000

I have fixed the file, now it works, you have only to change your texture for the bedding subset to apply it fine.

[rosaline_10]

Yay it works :)
I downloaded yours to have a look at what changes you made to the shape.
I am sooo embarrassed but I though I was only ment to only add the words "bedding" in to the name of the "frame" part.
frame##0x1C050000!flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_bedding_texture
, but after looking at yours and reading over the instructions, that it was ment to have the changes made to the "bedding" part.
bedding##0x1C050000!flowerpink.mesh.bedbyrosaline_bedding_texture.
I am soooo sorry about that, I am still learning Simpe.
thank you so much for your help, you are very kind :)
I am very happy now, I can finally finish off all the new recolours I made for this set.

[EvoPrincess]

Slightly dumb question ahead

what tutorial should I read so that I understand this one? lol I read it and don't get everything so help is appreciated :)

[Numenor]

This is not a dumb question, on the contrary; but unfortunately, there is no answer...
The knowledge needed to follow this tutorial is usually acquired by creating objects and fiddling with files and SimPE. However, if you know how to create a new object, and you just need to know how to add a second recolourable part, you should be able to understand this tutorial. Another solution is to clone an object that already has two recolourable part, so that you don't have to add any new subset.

[jasonduskey]

I've always wondered how this was done. There are a couple of other tutorials for doing this, but they're hard to follow. This one is clear and the screenshots make it a lot easier. Thank you very much.

[wndy26]

Hey there! About a month or so ago I cloned a table lamp and borrowed the dragon mesh from the dragon statue, combined the dragon and the lamp mesh to make a dragon table lamp. It looks really cool in game but I can't seem to get the recolors to show up. My subsets are set up correctly as far as I can tell and when I recolor it I get both subsets to choose from. But when I place the item in the game, I only see the original color. In catalog it shows my recolors, but not when placed. Any ideas what could be causing this? I have attached my lamp and a couple of recolors for testing.

Thanks!

[Morague]

Thank you for this tutorial. It was very easy to follow.

I have a question. You caution to never use the underscore when importing the subset. Why is that? What happens if you do use the underscore? Many of the Maxis subsets use it & I was just curious as to what the problem is with using them :) I know, I am a real pain when it comes to stuff like this - I just like to know why I am or am not doing something.

Thanks!

Morague

[eletrodj]

Love it! Thanks so much.

[soloyo]

thanks for this tutorials is very good,

[rosaline_10]

great tutorial, thank you so much!
I just have one question, I cloned the blue hydangea shrub and created a new mesh,anyway I did the usually steps to make it recolourable but when I went to clone the existing material override file I was suprised to find that there was no material override file to clone, I was wondering is there a way to still make it recoulourable? or can't garden plants be recoloured?

I tried to just do everything else but the material override clone part but I found that the new image just overrides the original txtr and I can't recolour it.Please help

[magicdawn]

Thank you for this fantastic tutorial. It works :rofl: :bunny:

I just work on a translation into german.

[Numenor]

Do you work as a professional translator at the United Nations? :D -
Thank you, on behalf of all the German users!

[magicdawn]

No :lol:

The only reason why I translate the tutorials is...
My english is terrible...

This tutorial has some more details.

[Numenor]

Thanks :) Attachment moved to the first post.

[magicdawn]

Di nulla!

[leesester]

Hi, sorry if I am in the wrong place, but I am curious to know how slavesubsets work and can be used, and I am looking for a tutorial. I am working on a remesh of the apartment door and the doormats are slavesubsets - I cannot get to the textures to change the mats, so I wondered if there was a tutorial for slavesubsets?

[Inge Jones]

What were you planning to do to make the game recognise your new door as an apartment door? It needs something like my hack for booth seats. Should I try and make one, or has someone else already done it?

[leesester]

Hi

I have the new mesh for the door - it is to look more like an outside door - no kickplate, no peephole, no name plate, but it works just like an apartment door. This is operational and testing in my game. I want to change the doormats so they also look more outside like. Ideally I would love to add the " rent furnished" option to the pie menu but that is beyond my small skills.

[Inge Jones]

Well, what did you hack to make the game recognise it as an apartment door? Because as it stands in the original code, the game tests the GUID directly.

[leesester]

I don't know - I gave it a new GUID - I just cloned the original door, and then I added the new mesh for the door - I suspected that the doormat might be the secret as only apartment doors have the mat, and the mat HAS to be on the outside. I can post the door if you like, but it will be later as I am at work.......due home at 19.00 CET.

[Inge Jones]

You gave it just one new GUID? Not the usual three for a door?

[leesester]

No I gave it all 3 and a diagonal version too. It works, and I see both doors in the build catalogue - the original unique separator and my new " less unique separator".

[Inge Jones]

That's strange, and unexpected...

/me frowns

[leesester]

I am sorry, I did not mean to be strange.............but I was going to upload and now it seems it might not work for everyone - can I ask you to test the packet if I post it? I don't think it makes a difference, but it uses the colours from a maxis master repository object.

[Inge Jones]

Well I am amazed enough that it worked that yes I would be quite keen to see it, thanks :) If you like you can mail it to [email protected], or post it somewhere on here if you prefer

[leesester]

Ok, will do when I get home - meanwhile, back to the slavesubset - any ideas? I thought I would try Jasana's tutorial - but it seems more focussed on making neighbourhood objects.

Meanwhile, see small picture of door - it is not detailed but if you zoom in you will see those are apartment door handles, but with the other bits of mesh missing. I can rent apartment with these doors.

File is posted to mail address as given

[SolidGoldFunk84]

This is a great tutorial and it was hard for me to understand without the pictures so, I downloaded the .pdf and although it is much easier to understand, I am still getting a flashing blue mesh for the added subset. I am only doing up until the change shape portion. Can I PM my package file to you so that you can take a look at it? I would post it here but, it's for the secret santa on BPS and I don't want my "elf" to know what I'm making. :)

[HugeLunatic]

Oh! Secret stuff! :D You can pm with a link to the package and I will take a look at it.

But make sure to do the Fix Integrity, make sure your names in the GMND, GMDC, SHPE and GMND are all the same.

[SolidGoldFunk84]

I just fixed it! :D Thank you so much. I had the files named wrong.

[HugeLunatic]

Congrats! I will just have to wait till after Christmas to see now. :P

[SolidGoldFunk84]

I tried to do another one. I imported a Mesh with 3 subsets, one I called base, one is glass and the other is the original filename, tabledining. The glass and the tabledining are showing up correctly but, the texture for the base isn't showing up. I've gone through it many times and I can't figure out what I missed. Any help would be much appreciated.

here (http://www.simming-glimmerstyle.com/dimages/troubletable.bmp) is what I'm talking about and the file is attached just in case someone would be able to take a look for me. :)

[HugeLunatic]

Look in the xxx_base_chrome_TXMT. Your listing texture names xxx-base-chrome (or xxx_base_chrome) when the texture name is just chrome. Changing all the references to just the chrome should work.

[SolidGoldFunk84]

Yup, that fixed it. Thank you! I can see I have to be extra careful with this am going to have to do many more before I get the hang of it. :)

Should I delete the file now?

[amovitam]

Hello!
Can anyone help me please? I used this tutorial, but my subset is flashing blue. What am I doing wrong?

I fixed it! Yeah! Of course, I messed up with names:)))

Thank you very much for the tutorial!

[inu300988]

Sorry to revive this thread, but I need help.

I have seven different mesh groups, each with its corresponding texture.
Is it possible to create an object with all of these groups?

Here attached a picture to understand about what I'm talking:
http://i1162.photobucket.com/albums/q521/ZeusSims/meshgroups_zps12240cbc.png

[NixNivis]

You can have as many subsets (groups) as you like, so you can absolutely make an object with seven subsets. Just remember that only two of the subsets can be recolourable.

[inu300988]

Thank you very much for the answer Nix!!!