BAT - Troubleshooting & General Discussion

[Jasoncw 11,933]

Just to be 100% clear on the terminology (because this is all that I can think of), "the scene" is basically the file itself. So if you start a new scene/file, put something in it, save it (or even "save as" or "increment on save" it), close gmax and reopen gmax and one of those files, it's still the same scene. 

To get existing models into new scenes you should do what Matt described. 

I can't think of anything else unfortunately. 

[rsc204 21,836]

Looks like the textures appearing on them have conflicted with Maxis props/models... that's what the modelfix update deals with, so I'd have to assume it's not installed correctly. Perhaps the ID is still locked to the old one if you installed the fix after creating the files? In which case, creating a new file and merging in the objects should resolve it.

[Bombardiere 591]

Quote

I'm having the same maxis texture issue as many others have had on this thread, the only problem is that the texture fix ("Modelnames.ms" and "._Modelnames.ms") are installed in the gmax script folder and I haven't seen any change.  
 

By the way, just to be sure. In which folder you put the texture fix? It should be in C:\Gmax\gamepacks\BAT\scripts folder. Gmax has in the main folder a subfolder which is also called "scripts" but I believe that it is wrong folder.

[SimCoug 5,973]

5 hours ago, Bombardiere said:

By the way, just to be sure. In which folder you put the texture fix? It should be in C:\Gmax\gamepacks\BAT\scripts folder. Gmax has in the main folder a subfolder which is also called "scripts" but I believe that it is wrong folder.

Yes, I did have it installed in that directory... BUT... I was searching around and I realized that there was also a 'gamepacks' folder in my 'Program Files (x86)' folder which seemed to hold all my BAT stuff.  I replaced the modelnames file in that folder and things seem to work fine now.  

So, the question is, should I just move the entire 'gamepacks' folder over from where it is in 'program files' into the gmax folderd (root c directory)?  Or does it matter at this point?

Thanks for the help everybody - I know something wasn't right when I kept getting the maxis textures.  

[Bombardiere 591]

Interesting. May be you have a "double" installation. For me GMAX has always tried to install at C:\GMAX folder by default. Never in the Program Files. Sounds like your system is using the gamepacks scripts from Program File folder.

I don't thing it does matter at this point. BAT models can be save in any folder. It is gamepack by default. Off course it might be easier when everything is in one place.

 

[Krasner 1,062]

Hello dear fellow of Simtropolis,

I've experienced some small but exhausting issues in Gmax BAT recently  I never saw such things and it seems to curiously increase, and before attempting re-install, I'd like to have some advice.

It started with the right-click on objects (which allows to unroll a red list with some options) being completely ignored and never appearing in a small scene. I've tried to export the objects in  new scene but it appears to be the same in every new scene... And in the old ones as well °-° So I could'nt make a single mesh with the various boxes aimed to be the LODs. I did that several times before and it always worked.

But, you may say, it's possible to turn splines into meshes with the modifier list on the right as well. That's what I tried then, it worked, but then ALL the objects I wanted to make a single mesh with (to be the new LODs, still...) won't appear in the attach list °-° And OF COURSE, it's the same everywhere... Please help !!

[rsc204 21,836]

There is a bug in gMax, that still affects new versions of 3DS max, when you right-click something, the listings appear to be greyed-out, i.e. options are not selectable. However, this isn't the case, just click the option you want and see how it still works just fine.

If that isn't helping, I fear the simplest solution is uninstalling SC4BAT, gMax and then re-installing them both.

[Krasner 1,062]

5 hours ago, rsc204 said:

just click the option you want and see how it still works just fine.

what do you mean ? The listing doesn't appear at all, it's like broken

[CT14 2,486]

Does it work after pressing "w" key twice to reset 3d driver, etc?

[Krasner 1,062]

1 hour ago, CT14 said:

Does it work after pressing "w" key twice to reset 3d driver, etc?

No ;-;

I'll search further, I'd like to be able to go back to work finally...

[HOOK21 10]

i'm having trouble too, but mine is the 2 disc deluxe version

[rsc204 21,836]

In which case, the Origin issue doesn't apply to you, so something else must be going on. For starters, have you installed gMax successfully? Secondly, have you modified any of the SC4 files in any way, doing so can cause the installer to fail, the solution, re-install SC4 and don't modify anything before installing SC4BAT.

[HOOK21 10]

it worked!

[ReshiramLover 49]

I am having an issue where BAT will not import any 3ds models that has PNG texture files. Most of the time, converting them to jpg works, but this can cause some problems in the model if the model that I downloaded has transparency in those textures. Sometimes the model does not read the loss of transparency and I am fine, but sometimes I get an ugly white into the model.

This is all because BAT will not import 3ds models with PNG textures. If I try to import a model with PNG textures, nothing happens. Nothing is imported. No error message or anything, it just does not import.

I was wondering if there is a fix for this?

I Googled the problem but nothing about this came up. So there has to be a way to get it to read models with PNG textures.

[ReshiramLover 49]

I am having the same problem. it is only 10 tiles wide and 6 tiles up and I have 8 GB ram and BAT is not even using 1 GB when it fails.

I tried all the things in this thread:

but is still fails every single time.

Mod Edit: Reopening a thread from 2009 is really not the best way to get help. I've moved this to a new thread to keep the forums tidier.

[rsc204 21,836]

When you say you've tried everything in that thread, that is basically two things, one you say you have enough RAM, secondly you are saying you have the correct grid settings.

Well I'm sorry to tell you, but we can't really help much here, because "Code 6", literally means, "General/Unspecified Error", there is no way other than guessing at what the problem is.

What you need to check first, make a new model and export it, does that work? When I say a model, just create a cube or simple shape and check the export is actually working. Because if that doesn't work, clearly there is some problem that's not related to the model in use.

If however it does work, then that tells us there is something about the model you are using that is causing the problem.

• Is it a RAM issue? Well with 8GB I'd say it's unlikely, but you know what, gMax as a 32-Bit application can only use 2GB, so it doesn't matter that you have 8GB, 2GB is all you can utilise.
• Scale really could be a problem, you see when you import an object, you won't know the scale used by the person that created it. Due to the way the application works, a tiny model looks identical to a gigantic one, because of zooming in/out automatically. So, in gMax (not as exported) what are the dimensions of your model on the X, Y and Z planes? Check this, because it's VERY EASY to import a model that's gigantic, without realising. If it's bigger than 30-50m on any axis, expect gMax to fail to render it.
• Other than that, if you didn't make the model, we can't help you. You see all models are made using different techniques, but some may cause errors when exported. Since we don't know what's going wrong, it's practically impossible to locate the error. Usually we'd ask how it was made, i.e. using Extruded Splines, Polys etc. From this we might be able to suggest a common problem/issue. But if you don't know anything about the model, it's pretty much needle in a haystack time. In short, we need some information about it's creation to be able to help you.

 

[ReshiramLover 49]

Not sure why I never got a notification on reply but

 

I counted the grid squares in Gmax and I already told you what they are. Gmax does indeed say Grid=16.

 

In fact it fails in a matter of 480 seconds. which is EXTREMELY QUICK fail. I have had MUCH bigger models that took 15 minutes on the first view and an hour total, and this is failing in just over 5 minutes

 

Not sure on how to tell the axis distance so I do not know how many m it is

[rsc204 21,836]

Well now I know the grid size, I can calculate the size using the number of grid squares based on that (otherwise the information is useless).

This gives us 10 tiles x16m Wide and 6 tiles x 16m up or 160m x 96m. When you say Up do you mean actual Height, typically referred to as the Z Axis? Or do you mean the Depth of the model?

If we assume a square based on the absence of real data, i.e. 160mx160mx96m, i can confirm it's possible to export such an item using gMax, but using nothing more than a simple box as a test. But it's a pretty huge box, however that's not really the point, the real question; is that the correct or intended size of the model? If this is supposed to be a big building, perhaps that's right, but if this is meant to be a small office block, it's probably way out of proportion. Of course without the 3rd dimension, it's not possible to complete the calculations here either, so it's all very opaque. You know a screenshot from SC4BAT would probably help here.

This is the thing, Code 6 is meaningless, the only way we can help you is if you provide some data to work with. No data = No solution.

[ReshiramLover 49]

It is a giant statue of a Pokémon. a Reshiram from the 3d warehouse (sketchup) scaled up to the size of a tall building that Gmax does accept

 

When I mean 6 tiles up is how many tiles that lot editor should need if one box in gmax = 1 tile in lot editor like a 10x6 lot

[rsc204 21,836]

32 minutes ago, ReshiramLover said:

When I mean 6 tiles up is how many tiles that lot editor should need if one box in gmax = 1 tile in lot editor like a 10x6 lot

So then that's the depth of the model, working out the height is no harder than making a new object that starts at the ground and ends at the highest point. Using the Snaps function you can draw a line between the two and then see how tall it is.

Just because you can open it in gMax, does not mean it will be exportable and useable in SC4. gMax is a general 3D modelling application, but SC4 BAT is a special set of scripts that allows gMax to export models for use in SC4. So the application itself may do many things that you can't make work for SC4.

But if the model size isn't the issue, then I'm all out of suggestions at this point. Likely the geometry somewhere is broken in some way, hence it fails. But as to what, that's simply not something I can possibly even speculate upon, there are literally too many possibilities. You have to bear in mind that something that may work in the application used to make the model, may not work when rendering in gMax. It's one of the problems with reusing models made for different purposes, which is only made even more complicated if you don't really know how to make models in the first place.

[ReshiramLover 49]

It is working now. I turn my computer on after waking up and rendered it first thing after my computer boot and it did not fail. Not sure why is was failing all day yesterday but apparently my computer had to be off for awhile.

I did not even make changes to the model

[ReshiramLover 49]

No help?

[mattb325 28,880]

Gmax and BAT do handle .pngs without too many problems.

I have also had the BAT handle .pngs with transparency.

The main difference here is that I have made the models from scratch within the BAT (when I used it) and then applied the textures. It is almost impossible for anyone to provide advice on unknown models from various sources which - I am assuming - are offered to you free of charge and made in programs other than the BAT and then themselves converted into different formats, anything can happen to both the model and/textures during the conversion process which makes an extremely old program like GMax have difficulty in opening them.

 

[ReshiramLover 49]

I got these models off the Sketchup 3d warehouse and I exported them to .3ds myself using Sketchup.The 3d warehouse has skp sketchup files to be opened in Google Sketchup and the Pro version can export .3ds files.

And that is where I got the models.

[mattb325 28,880]

It would have been helpful to include that info in your original post. While the issue of transparency may not be covered, the way that models and textures are presented from sketchup to gmax is quite specific. You may be able to find the answer in one of the many threads archived on google:

sketchup models won't open in gmax simtropolis site:community.simtropolis.com

[ReshiramLover 49]

only spammy results showed up in that search. Just my post and a "sketchup to gmax 100% free" post showed up with nothing much else. there is NOTHING in that Google search that pertains to this whatsoever!!

[matias93 7,535]

I remember to see that 3DSmax only manages sketchup files from Sketchup 2008 or previous. Try using that when saving the files on sketchup

[mattb325 28,880]

2 hours ago, ReshiramLover said:

only spammy results showed up in that search. Just my post and a "sketchup to gmax 100% free" post showed up with nothing much else. there is NOTHING in that Google search that pertains to this whatsoever!!

It most certainly DOES NOT.

It draws from this site only where the words GMAX and sketchup appear, which is why your question appears there at the top.

Had you bothered yourself to look rather than churlishly post, you may have found the answer. 

[ReshiramLover 49]

I looked at all those. None of those explain my problem nor do they provide a fix

[matias93 7,535]

and you tried opening the skp files on sketchup and saving them as 'sketchup 2008' files? It's what works for 3DS, so it's worth a try...