SMD file explained

Maelstrom · Post by **Maelstrom** » 20 Sep 2005, 11:12

There is no good source of information on what all the different things in the SMD do. Sure, there is the wiki, but that has hardly any information in it, and does not properly show how to implement the information shown. You could browse through the different SMD's in the maps you already have, but they dont always explain whats happening properly, and sometimes they dont include all the tags there are. Basicly, the information, if its there, is not organised well enough, and half of it is missing.

If someone who knows all the little handy bits about the SMD would be good enough to compile a list either in the forums or in the wiki, that would be handy. What would be REALLY good, is if I get enough information, I will make a scripting program that will spit out an SMD for you. But thats only if enough information is presented. And I mean everything: all the tags, correct syntax, layout, how it should look, required/non-required tags, and all the juicy bits no one knows about.

Im sure that this, if its done well, will help the map makers, and even the community at large.

mufdvr222 · Post by **mufdvr222** » 20 Sep 2005, 13:18

Brilliant idea

aGorm · Post by **aGorm** » 20 Sep 2005, 14:16

I was gonna right one myself but I know I wont have time. Tell you what, I'll make a whole new page for it in the Wiki tonight and get it all filled in with Everything I can think of. Then you can make one!
Bare in mind though.. I may not know everything... (fat chance)
aGorm

Gnomre · Post by **Gnomre** » 21 Sep 2005, 01:10

Not to scoop aGorm, but you guys can use this as a base... it's not fully up to date (I wrote it a few versions ago... NMF, just doesn't have some of the newer tags), and it may not have the info completely accurate, but it's as good as place as any to start. The wiki is rather picky about HTML though, so if you use it keep that in mind.

http://wormhole.tauniverse.com/spring/g ... l/smd.html

FizWizz · Post by **FizWizz** » 21 Sep 2005, 04:27

you can add:
WaterDamage=20; //Amount of damage water does
to your template. Otherwise it looks like it's got the goods!

mother · Post by **mother** » 21 Sep 2005, 05:11

Additions...

[Atmosphere]
Skybox

[Light]
SpecularSunColor - the color of the reflected light off of stuff (otherwise will be UnitSunColor)

[Map]
DetailTex - replaces that dirt look with a bmp of your choice
AutoShowMetal - LSD mode when placing mexxes

[Water]
WaterTexture - replaces the default ocean texture
WaterSurfaceColor - changes the surface color of the water (I think this is an XOR kinda thing... The first is for non-reflective water and the second only for reflective water)

WaterPlaneColor - the color of the 'water plane' outside the map's bounds.

All I can think of right now...

Gnomre · Post by **Gnomre** » 21 Sep 2005, 05:46

Yeah, see, told you it's missing tags. Someone go add the info to the wiki and correct it as necessary

Maelstrom · Post by **Maelstrom** » 21 Sep 2005, 08:33

Well I have updated the wiki to include the page mentioned somewhere here, but I cant be bothered adding the new tags yet. Could someone else do that bit?

Wiki Page: http://taspring.clan-sy.com/wiki/Maps:SMD

Gnomre · Post by **Gnomre** » 21 Sep 2005, 09:32

http://taspring.clan-sy.com/wiki/Maps:SMD again, added those newer tags with descriptions I tried to expand a bit on. Someone needs to make a skybox creation page, and if there is one already, link to it. The descriptions might also need clarified or adjusted for those new ones I added (the ones in FizWizz and mother's posts), so feel free. Also wasn't sure where FizWizz's tag went, so I put it in [WATER] since that seemed logical.

[edit] Also, on a slightly unrelated topic: http://taspring.clan-sy.com/wiki/Top_5_Maps <-- whoever maintains this page... I did not create any of those maps. The ones with my name on the "uploaded by" field are just ones that had to be manually uploaded through the FTP and added through the admin panel on FU. I put credit to the real creators in the description of all maps I add to FU that way.

FizWizz · Post by **FizWizz** » 21 Sep 2005, 16:45

hehe, I just hope no one infers that "waterdamage=20" is the default... because that high of a value will eat your units up.

aGorm · Post by **aGorm** » 21 Sep 2005, 22:59

Guess i dont need to worry then!

aGorm

Maelstrom · Post by **Maelstrom** » 28 Sep 2005, 10:13

K this is just an update on whats happening. I finally sat down with enough time to really put some work into this, and I must say its going well. Not every setting is included yet, but im wokring on it.

Things I have implemented:

An awsome interactive shadow system

Almost all the settings

A basic Save action

An interactive colour chooser

Things I have yet to implement

A propper save function. The current save only saves the [MAP] information

A complete list of settings

A good looking design

Tooltips/Help function.

Go get it and try it out! http://fileuniverse.com/?p=showitem&ID=1551

NOiZE · Post by **NOiZE** » 28 Sep 2005, 10:21

Great stuff!!

already love it

Maelstrom · Post by **Maelstrom** » 28 Sep 2005, 10:24

Just another few thing (im to lazy to use edit):

Is this setting still needed: MapHardness=100;, as the hardness is set in the terrain type section now.
Can some one make me an Icon for the program? Im not to good at at work myself.
Do you like the way it looks right now, or does it need some seriuos work?

Happy you like it NOiZE, and its only going to get better!

Gnomre · Post by **Gnomre** » 28 Sep 2005, 10:49

Liking the looks of it. Stop me if this sounds like too much work, but perhaps the interactive sun display could go a step further by factoring in the colors and shadow hardnesses as well? That's make it very nice for previewing. Same with the water... somehow. Just if that's possible, of course.

That's VB, right? No complaints about that as long as it's solid (unlike 3dobuilder), just wondering, since it's incredibly simple to create open/save dialogs with it. You could make the skybox choosing thing loadable from an Open dialog easily, same with the detailtex and watertex. Save dialogs (for saving the file itself) are also insanely easy.

Perhaps once this is finished, we could find a way to integrate Napalm's work into it, and then put in support to automatically compile the end result into a nicely packaged SD7 (since the 7zip stuff is free)... that'd be more than well on the way towards a full-fledged map editor :D

NOiZE · Post by **NOiZE** » 28 Sep 2005, 12:25

Wind settings are missing

[K.B.] Napalm Cobra · Post by **[K.B.] Napalm Cobra** » 28 Sep 2005, 12:34

Gnome wrote:Perhaps once this is finished, we could find a way to integrate Napalm's work into it, and then put in support to automatically compile the end result into a nicely packaged SD7 (since the 7zip stuff is free)... that'd be more than well on the way towards a full-fledged map editor :D

Well mines c++ so don't hold your breath unless he's a fan of it becaues I'm sure as hell not switching to VB.

Maybe I'll try to make one myself. A little competition never hurt.

Maelstrom · Post by **Maelstrom** » 28 Sep 2005, 13:50

@Gnome: I was thinking of doing that eventually, I just have better things to do right now. Like getting it to work. But I will hopefully be ble to implement stuff like that in the near future. Yes its VB, as I dont know C++. I am wanting to learn, but have never found a good place to learn it. I might learn it in school in the next year or two, we will see. Unless you know of a good online tutorial for C++, im stuck with VB. I will be putting in open/save dialogues soon, and other things like that. Im just putting in the essentials first. I was also thinking of making something like Napalm's thing, I just thought there was more need for this program first. We can both make a complete thing, and people can choose.

@NOiZE: I know things are missing. ALOT of things are missing. Im going to put them all in soon. I just had to finish up for a while, so I posted the current version for all to see. Plus I wanted to show off the Shadow thing.

@Napalm: As said earlier, I dont know C++. I want to learn, but I wont be able to make anthing like this in C++ any time soon. If you could point me out to any helpfull C++ site it would be much aprecited though.

And I put the source in there cause Im releasing it for free and stuff like that. It can only get gbetter if I do. Under the GPU license or whatever, same as spring.

keep the suggestions coming people!

[K.B.] Napalm Cobra · Post by **[K.B.] Napalm Cobra** » 28 Sep 2005, 14:04

Well I can't think of any sites off the top of my head, but googles always a good place to start. However I'd suggest C++ for dummies as a book, its brilliant.

SinbadEV · Post by **SinbadEV** » 28 Sep 2005, 15:40

MapHardness=100; is still needed unless your tool is providing a terrain map generator... terrain types will be ignored and the MapHardness will be used if there is no terrain map.

Spring RTS Engine

SMD file explained

SMD file explained