1

Translating Game Data

In This Section:

• Installing the MakeGame Plug-in 4
• Using the MakeGame Plug-in 7
• Using Translators from the Command Line 14
• Rebuilding/Creating Translators 16
• Customizing the MakeGame Interface 18

Installing the MakeGame
Plug-in

Installing MakeGame and the Direct Translators

The direct translators for games are installed as a standard part of the Alias software under ODS/Games/.

Directory Structure of Games

The plug-in translators and related files are stored in $ALIAS_LOCATION/ODS/Games in the following directories:

Dtplugins/

Direct translator DSO files.

bin/

Executables and scripts.

lib/

Shared DSO library files.

include/

Include files for the Dt API.

plugins/

Alias games plugins.

pst/

PST files required by some of the older Games utilities (such as RTG).

source/

Source code for the Dt API and translators.

Installing Platform Specific Libraries

To install game platform specific libraries, use the InstallGame script (/usr/aw/alias/ODS/Games/bin/InstallGame):

Options:

-h	print usage information
-e	assume files are not encrypted
-d	decrypt the library file only
-a AliasDir	look for Alias in AliasDir
-f Sourcedir	install from Sourcedir (must be an absolute path)
-t Destdir	install to Destdir (must be an absolute path)
-s System	install files for System

To unpack available libraries:

1

Log in as root and type /usr/aw/alias/ODS/Games/bin/InstallGame

2

InstallGame asks where Alias is installed:

========================================== Alias | Wavefront Game Export Tool 2.0 library installer

========================================== Enter your ALIAS_LOCATION (press enter to use /usr/aw/alias)

If the default location is correct, press Enter. Otherwise, type the full path to the Alias directory (for example,
/usr/aw/alias).

3

InstallGame prints a list of available game libraries (based on your encryption string):

The following games libraries are enabled by this encryption:

Code Description

---- -------------------------

N Game Library for Nintendo

...

Which game libraries would you like to install?

Enter the codes for the libraries separated by spaces or enter "none" or "exit" to exit the installer:

4

Type the letter for each library you want to install, separated by spaces. Make sure you match the case of the printed code (in the example above, you would have to type an upper-case N to install the Nintendo library).

If you don't want to install any libraries, type none.

Customizing the MakeGame environment

Set the following environment variables to change where MakeGame, DtExport, and translators look for files:

$GAMES_LOCATION

Directory containing the lib, Dtplugin, and include directories (usually $ALIAS_LOCATION/ODS/Games).

$DT_PLUGIN_LOCATION

List of directories containing Dt translators. Separate each directory with a colon(:).

$DT_EXPORT_DIR

Directory where exported files are saved.

Using the MakeGame Plug-in

Loading MakeGame in Alias

After you add the games plug-ins to the list of plug-ins in Alias, you still need to load the plug-ins to use them.

1

Choose Utilities > Plug-in Manager to display the list of all known plug-ins.

2

Find the plug-in called mgame.addin.

3

Click in the box next to the mgame.addin entry to load the plug-in.

Alias adds the plug-in to the Utilities menu.

Translating Data with MakeGame

1

Choose Utilities > MakeGame. The MGame Data Translator Manager window appears.

2

Choose an output translator (based on platform or output format) from the pop-up menu.

To use other Direct Translators (for example, custom written translators), choose Custom and type the name of the translator in the DSO Name field.

3

Set the various translation properties in the lower part of the window. (See Translation Properties below). These settings determine what geometry and animation data Alias gives to the translator.

4

Click Go.

MakeGame will run the appropriate translator. See the following chapters for how to use the individual Direct Translators.

Options

Translator

See Adding a Translator on page 18.

Pop-up menu of known translators. If you create a new translator you can add it to this list.

DSO name

The absolute path to the translator program you want to run.

If the translator you want is not in the Translator pop-up menu, choose Custom from the the pop-up menu, then enter the path to the translator in this text field.

Loaded

Check this box on to load the translator into memory. Uncheck this box to unload the translator from memory.

Translation Properties

General

Verbose

Displays information on the construction of the Dt database while translating the Alias model.

GUI

Uses the Direct Translator's graphical user interface.

Reload DSO

• ON - unloads the translator after each use.

• OFF - keeps the translator in memory for multiple runs.

Scene Name

Names the output file.

Options

Translator-specific command line options (usually not necessary when GUI is ON).

Export dir

Path of the output directory.

Geometry

Selection

• All - exports all visible geometry.

• Picked - exports picked objects only (not including geometry below the picked geometry on the node graph).

• Active - exports picked objects only (including geometry below the picked geometry on the node graph).

Hierarchy

• World - does not export hierarchy (all vertices use world space).

• Flat - has one level of hierarchy: transformations use world space, vertices use local space.

• Full - exports the full DAG tree hierarchy: transformations and vertices use local space.

Tessellation

• Tris - the tessellation creates triangles.

• Quads - the tessellation creates four-sided polygons (quads).

• None - the tessellation defaults to four-sided polygons.

World normals as Flat

• ON - always outputs normals in local space (flat hierarchy).

• OFF - outputs normals in world or local coordinates, depending on the Heirarchy setting.

Scale

Scaling factor for vertex coordinates (use to fit model inside a game box).

Textures

Sample Texture

• ON - allows texture to repeat over surface.

• OFF - does not repeat texture (force UV repeat to 1).

Inline Texture

• ON - evaluates texture to decide output format.

• OFF - uses the file texture as it is. Reads in directly and uses it as a RGBA image.

X Size and Y Size

Width and height of the images that the translator creates to replace procedural textures.

Max X Size and Max Y Size

Maximum width and height of the images the translators will create to replace file textures.

Animation

Use MetaCycle

The animation range uses the settings in the MetaCycle window (Animation > MetaCycle).

Use this option with GUI (in General properties) turned off, since animation settings in the translator's interface will override the Metacycle range.

View frames

Controls the update display of Alias when doing a viewFrame API call

Start frame and End frame

The first and last frame of the animation cycle to convert.

Frame step

The next frame that will be output (all frames in between will be skipped).

For example, a Frame step of 2 means that every other frame of the Alias animation will be used to create the output game animation.

Frames per sec

The proper playback speed of the output animation in frames per second.

Adjust this number to compensate when you are skipping frames of the original Alias animation. For example, if the Alias animation was created for playback at 60 fps, and you set Frame step to 2, set this field to 30. The animation will be half as fast, but since it has half as many frames it will appear to play at the same speed as the original.

Using Translators from the Command Line

DtExport

DtExport reads in an Alias wire file and uses the Direct Translators to output a platform-specific file. DtExport allows you to use the functionality of the MakeGame plug-in from the command-line, allowing batch processing.

Usage

DtExport -f <inputfile> -e <translator> [-dyzvhWwpSEFV] [-Tx n] [-Ty n]

Required
-f inputfile	file name of a valid Alias wire file for input.
-e translator	file name (with path, if necessary) of translator to use.
Optional
-d directory	output directory.
-y	output a Y-up world.
-z	output a Z-up world.
-v	verbose (print conversion information).
-h	help (describe command-line options).
-W	world space: no hierarchy, all vertices use world space).
-w	one level of hierarchy: transformations use world space, vertices use local space.
-p	no parent information.
-t	allow texture to repeat over surface.
-Tx n	width of the images the translators create to replace procedural textures.
-Ty n	height of the images the translators create to replace procedural textures
-Tmx n	Maximum width of the images the translators create to replace procedural textures.
-Tmy n	Maximum height of the images the translators create to replace procedural textures.
-S n	start frame of animation.
-E n	end frame of animation.
-F n	view frame of animation.
-V	open GUI interface.

To add or change the functionality of a translator, you can recompile the existing translators, or create new translators using the Dt API.

Alias|Wavefront provides source code for the translators, including Makefiles you can use to rebuild the translators.

To create or rebuild a translator, you should be familiar with C/C++ programming and Makefiles.

Setting Up Directories

Copy the source files from the Alias installation to your home directory to customize or rebuild the translators. This protects the originals and does not require root permission to modify the files.

1

In the shell, make sure the corresponding $ALIAS_LOCATION and $GAMES_LOCATION environment variables are set to the correct base (installed) locations.

2

Create a games subdirectory in your home directory, with a working area and a trial area to test the translator.

For example:

mkdir -p ~/games/getopenGL

mkdir -p ~/games/trial/Dtplugins

3

Copy the base source files from ODS/Games/source/GetOpenGL to your new working area:

cp $ALIAS_LOCATION/ODS/Games/source/ GetOpenGL ~/games/getopenGL

Making and Testing Translators

1

Use the MakeGame window to unload all translators (uncheck the Loaded checkbox). Do not try rebuild a translator while it is loaded in Alias.

2

In the Makefile, make sure the ALIAS_LOCATION and GAMES_LOCATION variables (found near the beginning of the Makefile) are set to the correct base (installed) locations.

3

In the directory containing the Makefile, type make.

For example, go to ~/games/getopenGL and type make to rebuild the GetOpenGL translator and create a new GetOpenGL DSO in the working directory.

4

Set the environment variable $DT_PLUGIN_LOCATION to the directory containing the new translator.

5

Reload the translator in the MakeGame window.

If you restart Alias, if the $DT_PLUGIN_LOCATION variable is set Alias will search that location for plug-ins before the base (shipped) location.

See Customizing the MakeGame Interface on page 18.

Once you have tested a new translator, you can add it to MakeGame's pop-up list of translators, and add translator-specific options to the MakeGame interface.

Customizing the MakeGame Interface

Adding a Translator

To add a new translator to the pop-up list of common translators in MakeGame:

1

In Alias, unload the mgame plug-in.

2

Open the file mgame.c++ in a text editor.

3

Change the MgNUM_OF_TRANSLATORS constant to the new number of translators that will appear in the pop-up list.

4

Change the MgCUSTOM_TRANS constant to the index of the new translator.

The index is the new translator's position in the list, starting at 0. The last position in the list is MgNUM_OF_TRANSLATORS-1.

5

Add an entry (translator name, DSO name) to the Mg_Translators structure declaration. The DSO name cannot contain spaces.

6

Recompile mgame.c++.

See Using the MakeGame Plug-in on page 7.

7

In Alias, reload the mgame plug-in.

Adding a Setting

If your translator needs a special setting in the MakeGame interface, you can add it by editing the MakeGame source code.

You can add variables of three types:

• String (text entry box)

• Integer (number entry box)

• Boolean (check box)

To add a translator-specific setting to MakeGame:

1

Open the file mgame.c++ in a text editor.

2

Search for the comment:

Initializing per-translator setting variables

After this comment is an array called Mg_Settings containing Name, Type, and VariableAddress fields for the settings variables.

3

Add a new entry in the array. Set the type to EmlSTRING, EmlINT, or EmlBOOLEAN. Set the variable address to a pointer to a memory variable of the appropriate type.

How MakeGame saves settings

When you clicks Save in the MakeGame window, MakeGame saves the settings of the new translator in $ALIAS_WORKENV/mgame.settings. MakeGame saves every variable for each translator, prefixed by the DSO name.

For example, HrcType (hierarchy type) for the Direct3D translator is saved in the settings file as GetD3DHrcType.