Opening windows etc

[Inge Jones]

Is it possible yet with the currently available tools for me to animate an opening window or curtains instead of using material changes to change state? I don't necessarily need a sim to go up and do anything, just have an open frame and a closed frame. Only thing is, the object will need to remember and stay in that position until it's time to run the inverse animation.

[cevic]

I bet you know how to link an animation to an object. You need to create few new joints in resource node and then create new mesh that have the new joints accordingly then lastly you need to create new animations for it which included the only joints that have been created.

You may try or convert the door animation or even the joints for your test.

Good Luck

[Inge Jones]

Ah I just found the answer which is basically no, because at the moment you can only move and rotate an entire object, not parts of it. So I couldn't keep the window frame still while opening the panes.

[cevic]

Please, please don't stuck your mind with the Miche animation tool only. Quaxi have done his awesome tool. I already edited successfully Hunka door animation to Lamborghini Diablo style (just for my test). You may try the animation Importer/Exporter or edit in the SimPE itself.

[Inge Jones]

Thanks - is there somewhere I can read discussion about it? I don't remember seeing a forum for the subject on the SimPe site, I must say.

[cevic]

I'm sorry, currently I'm affraid not. You have to experiment it by yourself.

[Inge Jones]

Lol I can't even find the options in the menus. That would be the first rung. I'll ask Quaxi where it is.

[SnowStorm]

You need to clone with pulling animations, or manually export the animation from the objectsxx package and import into your package. Then you can import/export the animation as a milkshape ascii file. You can also manually edit the animation data right in Simpe. (You might need the advanced checkbox active, can't recall).

[Miche]

if you just want a basic animation with a window or curtain opening and closing, I think you will find it much easier to use the type of animations that the snowm an uses...where it has a number of meshes for different animation frames (so your window would have a open mesh and a closed mesh) then you can swap between these.

I posted a thread about these types of animations months ago here (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=42636&highlight=animations+snowman)


I hope that helps. If you want to use the other type of animation (rotations and translations) then the differrent parts of your object would need to be attached to different bones/joints.

[Inge Jones]

Miche, the history of the opening and closing curtains/windows is that we started trying to make them by mesh swapping that you describe but they would not display their design mode colours after swapping mesh. We then moved on to the more successful method of having both meshes permanently in the game and applying alternate materials onto them, one of the materials being an invisible one to make the unwanted mesh vanish. This was not however successful on windows.

I am now at the stage of hoping to be able to treat windows like doors, so I was hoping to understand how doors animate.

[Inge Jones]

Snowstorm: thanks that'll get me started :)

[jtravers88]

You need to clone with pulling animations, or manually export the animation from the objectsxx package and import into your package. Then you can import/export the animation as a milkshape ascii file. You can also manually edit the animation data right in Simpe. (You might need the advanced checkbox active, can't recall).

When attempting to export an anim from the Sims00 package, an error is returned about not finding the parent Cres file. This is due I guess to Simpe assuming a complete object is in Simpe at the time of export.

When attempting to export an anim from a cloned object, Simpe errors on 'subset model not found'.

Can anyone name an anim, and what is necessary to be present in simpe with this anim, that will export successfully from simpe?

[trezero]

Jtravers:

You need all the stuff to export animations: CRES, SHPE, GMND, and GMDC.

To export stuff out of cloned packages, you need to uncheck the "reference original mesh" option, so the clone has it's own mesh.


And a handy trick for exporting sim animations: extract the resource as a .5an, then import it into a clothing package, and export it there.

I'll warn you though, the results aren't perfect. Sims usually end up rather....messed up.

[jtravers88]

Thanks for your response. However I've cloned objects (tested objects) that include the geometry, etc.. as well as anims. And STILL get the 'parent CRES not found', which makes no sense since its right there in the package.

I'll try your trick about extraction to clothing item but if the anims are messed up then it sounds like this is not doable yet.

Anyone have a specific anim they were able to export and look at in Milkshape?

[Jasana_BugBreeder]

Anyone have a specific anim they were able to export and look at in Milkshape?Yes, for example - from microwave and toiletstall. So far, I had problems with overlay animations consisting of 1 timecode only (i.e. carry ones).

By the way, if you're getting 'parent CRES not found' - try to use Preview in GMDC. If you'll get the same, it'll mean that object may be cloned incorrectly. Some objects need manual correction after cloning. What exactly you are cloning?

[Jasana_BugBreeder]

2. 2-tile windows seem to have 1 of their tiles not set as an animatable object and give an error unless you click on a specific side.
For multitile object (ferrywheel :)), I had 'object not animatable' when clicking on a tile other then lead, until I put the following at top of corresponding bhav:
Expression (Stack Object ID 0x0000 Assign To: Stack Object's 0x0013 (lead tile object ID))
(opcodes: 00001300FF050A040000000000000000)
Similarly, if animation is called from Main, you need <My object lead tile object id>.
Perhaps it'll work with windows too?