My tools contribution

david_bernard_31 · February 23, 2016, 8:55pm

Hi,

In this topic I’ll list tools, I work on for jme3.
But before, I will describe my POV and rules about tools for jme.

manual content should be made with existing tools for artist, content creator (like Blender, AwesomeBump, Gimp,… )
procedural generated content is generated
at build/design time by tools or plugins for existing tools (see 1.)
at runtime by dedicated lib for jme and debugged in jme target environment
asset pipeline (conversion, optimization) should be
runnable from the build tools (eg gradle, ant, …) for automate build time
runnable from interactive tools/debugger in app for quicker design time
debug/viewer tools should run in app or in game

plug-able in any jme3 app
activable via action (keyboard, button,…)
extensible if possible

Open source as much as possible and provide stuff to build, open to contribution,…

I try to follow those rules for :

xbuf pipeline a way to connect your 3D tools (blender) to your app/game.
lib to create jme3, eg the model viewer of xbuf
- some binary to download
- a source
an extensible spatial explorer
some gradle task to convert model or texture (old), example below
setup a bintray repository to host or to link contributor jar

github.com

davidB/jme3_ext_assettools/blob/master/assets_publisher0/build.gradle#L71


		into {unarchiveDir}
	}
	task convertToLowercase(type : Copy) {
		from unarchiveDir
		exclude { it.getName().toLowerCase() == it.getName() }
		rename { it.toLowerCase()	}
		into unarchiveDir
	}
	task convertToDDS(type : Copy) {
		from unarchiveDir
		into unarchiveDir
		include('**/*.TGA', '**/*.tga')
		//include('**/*.PNG', '**/*.png')
		eachFile { FileCopyDetails fcd ->
			println "convert to dds ${fcd}"
			//on windows:
			//commandLine 'cmd', '/c', 'nvcompress'
			def cmd = ["nvcompress"]
			if (fcd.name.indexOf("_ddn.") > 0) cmd += "-normal"

Now I guess, I should document, and link the project into a central catalog (a wiki page ?)

my github repositories for jme3

david_bernard_31 · February 23, 2016, 10:14pm

I forgot a gradle plugin to package app with jre (or not) + native “launcher” (I need to provide the macosx)

net.alchim31.getdown

Tips: to create tools for in app/in game :

use AppState, and attach them via code like

app.enqueue(() -> {
  app.getStateManager().attach(new MyToolApps());
  return true;
})

use external window for your toolset UI, instead of trying to embeded the jme window into your tool window (via swing, javafx). that will allow to attach swing based tools, with javafx based tool, and to attach tool that are not made to work together.
make small and simple isolated tools instead of a cathedral, RCP framework

nehon · February 23, 2016, 10:29pm

This is rather clever.

Ogli · February 23, 2016, 11:29pm

I will add this contrib - Maven - Bintray
To here http://wiki.jmonkeyengine.org/doku.php/jme3:contributions
Scream “No!” if you want me to undo this… :chimpanzee_closedlaugh:

david_bernard_31 · February 23, 2016, 11:45pm

“Yes”

Ogli · February 24, 2016, 12:14am

Can currently not log in to Wiki anymore. Don’t know why. Contacted @jayfella for this issue.
As soon as I can access the Wiki again, I will post your contrib collection there. Promised.

delt0r · February 24, 2016, 3:28am

Ok this is super cool. I would be very interested in not only using it, but contributing things i may need in it. In particular some good bone and animation debug for direct blender imports.

thetoucher · February 24, 2016, 6:39am

Dunno if it would be any use to your project, I was working on a basic Swing filter parameter editor (and saver and loader for pre-sets) a while back, if’s something that can help out, lemme know, I feel like you are onto something quite special here =) keep up the good work btw!

david_bernard_31 · February 24, 2016, 8:12am

Debugging animation is not an easy task ;-). For debugging xbuf animation (blender export, assimp export, jme import) I used the following tools :

a .blend with simple unit-testable animation (where I can understand the value)
the jme3_ext_spatial_explorer where I add some actions :
- show skeleton
- list animation
- play/stop animation

(on xbuf.org you should see some video that show the tools in action)

jme3_ext_spatial_explorer is far to be perfect but it help me a lot. Contributions (code, doc, feedback) are welcomes.

I’ll probably change the groupId and the repo of jme3_ext_spatial later this month (to use jitpack.io)

nehon · February 24, 2016, 8:34am

I’m wondering about those two things…
I know you intend to use blender as scene editor… but the problem IMO is that you have to ressort to “dummy” objects that will weirdly translate into JME concepts…
Also material has never been 1:1 from blender to JME and that will be worst with PBR.

So a in house scene editor, material editor seems mandatory to me.

Aside of this… I was thinking if it wouldn’t be better to make some kind of CLI over the scene…
Paul already made a groovy scripting app, that basically allows you to do anything live in a scene. that, with an appropriate DSL, could be the basis for any scene editor/model viewer/terrain editor/animation debugger/material editor/add your own editor here. Implement features over it.
If something is not implemented… user can still just script it.
It would even allow to use newer versions of JME with new features.

jayfella · February 24, 2016, 4:10pm

Sorry @Ogli - you can login to the wiki now.

Ogli · February 24, 2016, 4:59pm

Okay, done - it’s now in the Wiki as well…

david_bernard_31 · February 25, 2016, 8:29am

Currently, I’m experimenting several ways to use blender as level editor (proxy, link, I expect a lot from the future asset library). And I’m using some empty objects to group, to define trigger area,… and they seems to be usable. The tricks is that I don’t use the blender => xbuf as a direct level to display, but as a source of data : translation, kind, maybe model. And use those data to setup the “entities” and to initialize a part of the jme scenegraph.

I’ll write more about my flow or maybe make a small video, when I’ll have time and finish some of my experiment.

Yes. I have some secrets plans based on blender node, but need motivation and some exploration.

So I agree for “in house” material editor, but not for scene/level editor. Level editor is often linked to entity management, and the way to define/load data.

I hope to see the emergance of a toolkit to create tool from the community.

PS: I’m not a fan of DSL, often cause lot of frustration.