I'm a newbie... be gentle with me!

[Big Frank]

Hi chaps,

I've popped in here and notice it's a lot quieter than the XaraX forum!

Anyway, after following the 2D/3D rant in XaraX, I was thought I'd play with 3D and see what i could produce. i used to be an avid fan of Simply3D about 3 years ago but really haven't touched 3D since then. I found a site which was giving away a free copy of Truespace 1, so I downloaded it and have been playing today. Interesting interface, but lots of fun! I attach my first effort...

Anyway, is there a way I can convert my Xara files (saved as WMF or AI or some such thing) to COB, 3DS or DXF forma?

Gotta go now, but will check back later.

TTFN

--
Big Frank

[Big Frank]

Hi chaps,

I've popped in here and notice it's a lot quieter than the XaraX forum!

Anyway, after following the 2D/3D rant in XaraX, I was thought I'd play with 3D and see what i could produce. i used to be an avid fan of Simply3D about 3 years ago but really haven't touched 3D since then. I found a site which was giving away a free copy of Truespace 1, so I downloaded it and have been playing today. Interesting interface, but lots of fun! I attach my first effort...

Anyway, is there a way I can convert my Xara files (saved as WMF or AI or some such thing) to COB, 3DS or DXF forma?

Gotta go now, but will check back later.

TTFN

--
Big Frank

[Earl]

Hi Frank!

I'm glad to see another person frequent this forum, as I'm hoping it'll take off as a popular place for 3d art. trueSpace 1 eh? Wow, that must be an early version of it. I purchased trueSpace 2 nearly 6 years ago, when I first got into 3D. I had played around with it at a friends place, and got hooked immediately. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

I haven't used trueSpace for a long time though (and never have seen version 1), so I am unable to say whether or not it will import 2d vectors. If you'd like, you can export your vectors to Adobe Illustrator (AI) format and I can import them into LightWave - then export them to DXF or 3DS.

Though, I'm not sure how much you're expecting to survive the transfer. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] I mostly use vectors from Draw to come up with logos or curve shapes that are just easier to create in Draw. Then I import them in, bevel or extrude or any other manner of adding dimmensions to it. All coloring and texturing has to be done in the 3d program, of course.

Your image reminds me of a cereal box with marshmellow shape £, €, and @'s! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] What's that you used as a texture? It almost looks like a website...

[Big Frank]

Hi Earl,

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> I haven't used trueSpace for a long time though (and never have seen version 1), so I am unable to say whether or not it will import 2d vectors. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes, it's got a most attractive Win3.1 look to it and, of course, doesn't want to know about anything other than 8.3 filenames! Takes me back a few years, I must say! It doesn't look like it will import any 2D formats which is why I was looking for a conversion tool. Otherwise I'll have to use its own internal path editor which seems a shame since life is so much easier in XaraX.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> Though, I'm not sure how much you're expecting to survive the transfer. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Nothing other than the vector path. For example, I have the Xara logo saved as a WMF. I'd like to import it into trueSpace but can't figure out a way to do it.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> Your image reminds me of a cereal box with marshmellow shape £, €, and @'s! What's that you used as a texture? It almost looks like a website... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah, I'm doing a website for a client who need a boxshot of their product when the product doesn't ship in a box! I've already done the image in Photoshop, but thought it's be an interesting exercise to do it in a 3D app. I especially like the way you get true-to-life texture-mapped shadows, but there is virtually no control over the type of shadow, feathering, fade, etc, but I'm sure that's a limitation of the version I am using and not the medium. The picture on the box is indeed a screenshot of a website... The marshmallow shapes are actually supposed ot be marble... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Anyway, I attach the Xara logo in AI and if you could output it to DXF that'd be great. However, in the long run that is obviously going to be inconvenient. Is there a converter out there that'll do this or am I simply holding myself back using version 1 of a product that is now, I think, up to version 6?!

(However, version 1 did an OK job of my cereal box!) [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

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Big Frank

[Earl]

Hi Frank,

Well, importing the AI file into LightWave was as easy as ever. I used a "fine" setting for the curves - which controls how many points are generated and basically how smooth the curve is. SuperFine tends to make it too complicated - which can lead to problems when beveling, etc. Anyhow, pleased that it was going without problems, I go to export to DXF and - error. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif[/img] Apparently the LightWave DXF exportor does not allow polygons that have more than 4 vertices. The 3DS exportor doesn't even allow polygons with more than 3 vertices. I'm assuming this is a limitation with LightWave's exporting capabilities (they've never been great). So, I don't know how much use a triagulated polygon version of it will be to you, but I went ahead and zipped it up for ya. I also included the LightWave object file in case you happen to have a working version of 3D Exporation (a nice 3d converter). Unfortunately, my trail version has expired. I think I'm going to have to purchase a license key, as that tool really seems to be great at converting between 3d file formats.

You may want to try downloading the demo and converting the LWO file to DXF.

As far as future converting of AI files to 3d formats, I'd suggestion you upgrade to the latest version of trueSpace. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] It's pretty nice from what I've heard/seen (on their site).

Hmmm, now that I think about it, even version 2 of trueSpace had a wee bit of an obsession with 8.3 file names! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

[Big Frank]

OK, I imported the dxf into truespace without any proeblems, although the fact that it is a triangulated polygon and a 2 path is giving me headaches but I'm sure this is more my unfamiliarity with the product than anything else.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> As far as future converting of AI files to 3d formats, I'd suggestion you upgrade to the latest version of trueSpace. It's pretty nice from what I've heard/seen (on their site).<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Considering this is an experiment, I think spending that kind of money is wholly unwarranted! The point of the exercise is to see whether truespace could replace XaraX or Photoshop for certain types if images I have to create. The primitive boxshot I did yesterday tells me there is a lot of potential but I'll have to get to grips with it some more... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

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Big Frank was<br><a href="http://wognum.co.uk"><img src="http://www.wognum.org/files/madewithxarax.gif" width=87 height=41 alt="Made with XaraX" border=0></a>

[Earl]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>although the fact that it is a triangulated polygon and a 2 path is giving me headaches but I'm sure this is more my unfamiliarity with the product than anything else.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Oh I don't know, triangulated polygons are less than fun to work with when you're dealing with a flat surface - especially one that was meant to be a single polygon. So I wouldn't blame yourself. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] I'd suggest copying the points, pasting just the points elsewhere, and then creating a new polygon from them. That way you're back to the single poly face. I don't know how easy this is to do in trueSpace though...

[Peter Clifton]

Frank

Hi, I was away this weekend so missed all the posts that sprang up in the Xara Gel 2 thread. I was only trying to show how the refraction of the background lines went and where the highlight ended up to produce the shadow length. I even apologised for the poor shadow, knowing it should have been more diffuse.

Funnily enough when I raytraced the pill, I was using TrueSpace 3.1

The renderer for Truespace 1 thru 3 did not change very much it was not until version 4 that they bought in an industrial strength renderer that is far more flexible in its lighting effects.

The interface to TrueSpace is a little esoteric to say the least, even after a few years I always forget where the options are and have to go hunting for them, apparently Version 5 has a revamped interface.

Last year, several magazines in the UK were giving away TrueSpace 3 Special Edition, it may be worth trying to hunt down a copy as it is quite good and should import AI outlines just fine.

I like your image, far better than my first attempts.

I've used the scanline renderer, rather than the Raytrace render to quite good effect, the modelling tools in TrueSpace 1 thru 3 are quite limited you can only create using polygons, it was not until V4 and greater that Nurbs and other modelling constructs were added. I have had some good results creating mechanical brackets that were not available at the time for use in Technical Manuals. I also mocked up some machine pedestals that we produce to place in 'real world' installation situations that I could not photograph and was quite pleased with the results.

Peter

[Big Frank]

Hi Earl,

I fixed the polygon importing issue. I installed a copy of CorelDraw10 which I have had sitting here since Christmas collecting dust and used it to export my drawings as polygons in DXF. No problem and no triangulation! trueSpace even imports the colours of the various polygons which is kind of neat.

trueSpace handles AI or EPS import like I handle Unix Administration (don't ask... disaster area [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] ) so I won't bother going down that route again!


Hi Peter,

Thanks for the tip about the tS3 give-away
just after I spent $195 on it! Anyway, It's money well spent as I am having great fun with it.

I love Xara and the Xara forums, but some of them in there are a little touchy [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif[/img] if you try to criticise or point people in another direction. I tried to stay out of the thread, but some people's comments were just too stupid for words. My post in this forum, My first attempt at glass, proves the point. I consider myself to be better than average with Xara, but I couldn't have accomplished that beer glass, ashtray and the shadows and reflections in Xara. With Xara I could have made a different job of it, but not as photorealistic in just 4 hours - I don't care what the anal-retentives say! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

I look forward to posting more of my 3D experiments hereabouts!

[Peter Clifton]

Frank

The package given away was the 3.0 Special Edition, read lite version, so no money wasted.

I personally started out using TrueSpace 2, of which the full version was given away, but it was three years after the initial product release.

You also have a nice upgrade path should you choose to go to TrueSpace 5, which looks like being a winner if you are already using Caligari products.

Peter