Call for XSI test models

Post by **sinbad** » Mon Apr 11, 2005 1:25 pm

You probably animated using IK and didn't set FK bone positions - the documentation mentions this and how to deal with it (and zartharg talks about it earlier in this thread). I haven't yet written an automatic IK->FK sampler because I figured it was easy enough to FK your bones and you have more control that way. Please try that.

Rixeh · Post by **Rixeh** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 10:18 am

Ok this might seem like a stupid question but.... uhm how do I get this thing to work?

Code: Select all

'ERROR : 2222 - A procedure couldn't be found in library: F:\Softimage\XSI_4.2_Foundation\Application\Plugins\OgreXSIExporter.dll. The library will not be loaded.
'ERROR : 2262 - This plug-in could not be loaded:
'<path: F:\Softimage\XSI_4.2_Foundation\Application\Plugins\OgreXSIExporter.dll>
'

That's what is printed in the script editor window when I load up XSI.... Do I maybe have to compile it from the source on cvs?

Post by **sinbad** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 11:06 am

No, it should just work by running the installer. Make sure that you have all the following DLLs:

in XSI_4.2_Foundation\Application\bin:
OgreMain.dll
devil.dll
ilu.dll
ilut.dll
zlib1.dll

in your c:\Windows\System32 (or whatever):
stlport_vc46.dll
msvcp70.dll
msvcr70.dll

All should have been installed for you.

Rixeh · Post by **Rixeh** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 11:18 am

Ok, I didn't think I could screw up an installation..

I did just check all the files, and everything seems to be in the correct place. One of the files in /system32 is STLport_VC746.dll - close enough i guess. Any other ideas? (I must have the worst luck.. meh.

)

Post by **sinbad** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 3:39 pm

Sorry, yeah it should have been stlport_vc746.dll, that was a typo.

The only other dependencies directly on OgreXSIExporter.dll are SICPPSDK.DLL and SICORESDK.DLL, both of which you should have in your XSI installation already.

I guess it could be a missing operating system file - I included all the direct dependencies but maybe you have something else missing. Can you try running Dependency Walker on OgreMain.dll in Application/bin? Do the precompiled OGRE demos work for you?

The only other thing I can think of is some difference between the version of XSI I'm using and the one you're using. I'm using XSI Advanced (because that's the version you get with the developer programme), but I don't think there's any reason why the plugin shouldn't work on Foundation (I'm counting on it, in fact). Has anyone else here used the plugin with Foundation?

Rixeh · Post by **Rixeh** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 12:35 am

Dependency walker is awesome. These 3 are missing (for me):

SICORESDK.DLL
SICPPSDK.DLL
MSJAVA.DLL

Those look like SDK files -- I didn't install the SDK, just the program itself. (Im reinstalling sdk right now to see if it helps)

Post by **sinbad** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 1:11 pm

Ah, that's interesting to know. I had assumed that the XSI SDK DLLs would be pre-installed with the standard version of XSI. Let me know how it goes.

Rixeh · Post by **Rixeh** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 10:51 pm

Hrm still no go, and the dependency files do exist for sure..

LOL I must be cursed!

Post by **sinbad** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 1:34 pm

I'll raise a support call with SoftImage to see if there's anything I need to do for Foundation.

litobyte · Post by **litobyte** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 7:16 pm

I installed the plugin on the 4.2 foundation trial, but it didn't work.

Sorry if I post this question here Sinbad:

I remeber you said something like: I am not a 3D artist but I got rigged my model in minutes.

Did you use some tutorial you can point out ?

I downloaded all the tutorial movies from the XSI website but they are quick advanced tips and just doesn't tell you how to bind bones to vertices.

I know is with envelopes but really I don't know what to press (Is my first day on XSI 4.2 foundation trial).

Any help or link resource would be appreciated.

zarthrag · Post by **zarthrag** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 7:18 pm

goto the education section and read the "beck" tutorials for an overview:

http://www.softimage.com/education/Xsi/ ... theme=1223

character modelling->beck's envelope

litobyte · Post by **litobyte** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 8:46 pm

Thanks mate! I saw a movie where the speaker was so fast in making action in XSI that I couldn't get what he was doing!

I also found this one, which doesn't load up images tho'

http://www.softimage.com/products/behav ... ninxsi.htm

But very useful, it seems I'm rigging!

No

It says pick Envelope_group under biped_null, but in the scene explorer I have no such elements :\

Post by **sinbad** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 8:47 pm

@Rixeh: Before I sumbit this to SI, are you using the trial too? I would not be surprised if the plugin did not work on the trial version.

Slicky · Post by **Slicky** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 9:48 pm

I think I read that plugins only work with full versions of the program. This is similar to them only allowing the game model tools for 3rd party games that are signed. I might be confusing 2 different things here but I think it works that way.

btw Sinbad I got my first animation (a flag) working quite well. I just need to work out how to copy a key from one frame to another so that looping is smoother - I manually tweaked the last frame to be really close to the first.

litobyte · Post by **litobyte** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 11:51 pm

Mmm and what does it mean that XSI4.2 foundation trial version has the Animate [Character] button disabled ??

Rixeh · Post by **Rixeh** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:52 am

Ah man, yeah this is a trial copy. I hope that isn't the problem!

Post by **sinbad** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 1:21 pm

I suspect it probably is, but I'll check.

smf · Post by **smf** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 2:17 pm

I'm using XSI 4.2 Foundation (not the trial) with OgreXSIExporter, and everything is working fine. So the problem might occurs only with the trial.

Post by **sinbad** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 8:07 pm

Thanks smf - yes the trial version is limited in that you can't use exporters. Just use the trial to figure out whether you like XSI, and trust we can export your models / animation when you buy the real thing

Post by **sinbad** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 12:04 am

@zartharg: remember that list of steps you kindly gave me to convert IK to FK? Well, I'm starting to try to implement this now, and I have hit some weird behaviour. Several of the models I've come across don't play nice at all in XSI once you start FK'ing them with the IK playing in the mixer. They look badly corrupted in XSI while FKing, and when you remove the IK from the mixer and add the FK back, it looks terrible. Twitchy mess. However, when I look in the animation editor, the curves looks pretty good. And when I export it to OGRE, hey presto it looks fine.

I'm thinking this is because the IK constraints are fighting with the FK animation. I've noticed if I start removing some of the contraints, the FK animation starts looking better in XSI. Any thoughts? I've noticed the various versions of the Scuttlepod you sent me either play well in XSI using IK, or play well using FK, but not both, so perhaps it's not just me.

I think this is all fine anyway, since the user doesn't need to see the FK actions I generate in XSI so long as they export fine to OGRE. Just wanted to throw it out there and see if anyone else had any thoughts.

zarthrag · Post by **zarthrag** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:24 am

With both enabled, they don't play nice at all, I've noticed. It's important to remove all constraints from the bones effectors once you save the animation to a clip (I think that was the cause of my initial problems.) There are tutorials about blending IK/FK - but I have yet to progress that far.

The intention of putting the IK in the mixer is to allow the keying of a "clean" model. (ie it must have animations removed and animation constraints cleared.) While keying, the animation isn't supposed to play correctly until the IK is removed from the mixer, since it would just lead to "fighting" - this is especially true when using curves as constraints.

Lee04 · Post by **Lee04** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 12:51 pm

Hi

I read Simbads blogg about converting IK to FK.

I am a 3dsmax user and as such I know it has a IK to FK converter.
That allows you to export any animated motion using IK as FK.
That is the exporter doesn't have to do this.

Discreet also offered IK source code that could be put into engines.
I know thats not good for OGre because of licensens.

But my sudgestion is:

1. Check if XSI or a XSI script or plug-in can't convert IK to FK keyframes first like 3dsamx can. That would save a boundle of work with the exporter.

2. Export the IK and have a OgreIKSolver for it that the exporter can connect to directlly.

IK in Ogre can be used to get heads / arms pointing at objects, but mainly getting the feet to realistically be planted on the ground.

Just some ideas I guess you all have thought of this.

Lee04

Post by **sinbad** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 4:32 pm

It's actually very simple to sample the bones in XSI using code, I just have to sit down and do it. I certainly don't intend to implement a separate IK solver at this stage - that requires joint types and constraints which are the kind of thing you can get from a physics engine if you want to use it.

And please, it's Sinbad

RoundSparrow · Post by **RoundSparrow** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:30 pm

Lee04 wrote: I am a 3dsmax user and as such I know it has a IK to FK converter.
That allows you to export any animated motion using IK as FK.
That is the exporter doesn't have to do this.

This is the first I have seen on this forum that Max had a automated way of doing this!

Can we start a new thread on this topic (3dMax IK to FX converter).... so we can get the steps to this in the Wiki?

Post by **sinbad** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 5:58 pm

Just a quick update, I'm fighting with a single remaining problem in my IK-to-FK converter (using scripted commands to control the PlayControl doesn't seem to properly propagate updates around the scene until the script is complete). Once I squash it I'll release the next version of the exporter.

As well as the IK sampler, there are quite a few bugfixes, a slightly reorganised interface, a helpful little progress bar, and material exporting is supported, although only standard GL and DirectX realtime materials (ie fixed function). I was going to implement Cg and HLSL exporting but to make it practical I have to alter some of the XSI Cg/HLSL plugins, since they're not set up to reference external script files (and thus promote re-use of shaders). I will come back to that later.

Ogre Forums

Call for XSI test models

Exporting IK

Re: Exporting IK