No GUI map making program yet?!
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No GUI map making program yet?!
What's up? I created SharpMap awhile ago, the format changed and I got really busy so I couldn't bring it up to date with the new format... I fully expected some young genius with more time to swoop in and create an updated map compiler by now...
What gives? You all are content with the command-line based version?
Maybe I SHOULD work with mother and create a new GUI program. Although isn't the format soon changing yet AGAIN??
And yes, if I do get around to updating SharpMap it would remain in C#.
:D
-Buggi
What gives? You all are content with the command-line based version?
Maybe I SHOULD work with mother and create a new GUI program. Although isn't the format soon changing yet AGAIN??
And yes, if I do get around to updating SharpMap it would remain in C#.
:D
-Buggi
Re: No GUI map making program yet?!
I assuming that this means the new GUI?Buggi wrote: Maybe I SHOULD work with mother and create a new GUI program.
YES
I've been trying to talk with the J man about the new map format, but he has no internet at his new house so it's tough to catch him online.
I've known about the new map format for about 6 months, even have a few of the early demos he did.
Maybe I could convert the maps mentioned in my other thread to the new format to show how much SMALLER the new format is going to be. :D
I've known about the new map format for about 6 months, even have a few of the early demos he did.

Maybe I could convert the maps mentioned in my other thread to the new format to show how much SMALLER the new format is going to be. :D
There is a new format that supports that alpha blend method known as alpha splattering. However, at this point in time the new format is not in. When it is we will have something similar. However at the moment all we have are the giant bmps that are run through a crude compression algorithm that breaks the texture into tilesVassago wrote:Not sure how Unreal's terrain system works.
I'm assuming it's going to be akin to something like Command & Conquer Generals? Where we can lay swatches of texture down, and then alpha blend them together?

_Smoth
- SwiftSpear
- Classic Community Lead
- Posts: 7287
- Joined: 12 Aug 2005, 09:29
Buggi wrote:I've known about this format for over 6 months... not sure how long it takes to get implimented though.
jcnossen wrote:Nah, not 6 months. I can't really give a date, but I hope to finish it this summer. Also, when I think the texturing specification is stable, I'll put it in spring even if there are some bugs (It won't affect any maps anyway). The current spring version already has the map abstraction, so including the new terrain renderer in it is really simple.
@buggi:
if you want suggestions from mappers as to how they want this tool to work I would suggest you ask us mappers for suggestions... because you making a tool that just continues to be awkward for us will make life better obviousely, but coulde be a lot better.
What Goals I would like you to address:
- ability to place and rotate and scale all features (arbitrary corpses, trees, grass and geos) anywhere on the map, with the option to filter out underwater trees, grass, and geos under a specific height (to prevent water from ending up underwater) or filter out geos placed on uneven ground.
- ability to see the texture in it's entirety overlayed with heightmap numbers, also the ability to manually import tiles (multiples of 8 dimentioned images) and import entire tilesets from other maps (would allow the creation of new maps from the tile sets of old maps... spring supports multiple source tile sets), also the ability to select groups of tiles and copy and paste them.
-Ability to export raw data but organized into the corect folder structure aka:
ready for quick "right click folder 7zip compression".
- ability to stick multiple textures and heightmaps together when creating maps on systems with low memory or with bits of textures exported from trial versions of LDT3D (or whatever it's called)...
I know this is a wish list, but I have thought about it and these are really essential to whatever final mapping tool (for the current format anyways) is produced.[/code]
EDIT: also, if you don't make it possible to open up and edit a current map file, I'll cry.
EDIT2: - Ability to manually set grass colour, or load an image and use it as a "grass map", using the images colour to assign the color of the grass.
if you want suggestions from mappers as to how they want this tool to work I would suggest you ask us mappers for suggestions... because you making a tool that just continues to be awkward for us will make life better obviousely, but coulde be a lot better.
What Goals I would like you to address:
- ability to place and rotate and scale all features (arbitrary corpses, trees, grass and geos) anywhere on the map, with the option to filter out underwater trees, grass, and geos under a specific height (to prevent water from ending up underwater) or filter out geos placed on uneven ground.
- - This should be available by point and click interface or read from an indexed colour map or metal or feature map.
- ability to see the texture in it's entirety overlayed with heightmap numbers, also the ability to manually import tiles (multiples of 8 dimentioned images) and import entire tilesets from other maps (would allow the creation of new maps from the tile sets of old maps... spring supports multiple source tile sets), also the ability to select groups of tiles and copy and paste them.
- -ability to import an indexed colour image and assign tiles to the indexes to build entire maps without having to acctually edit the 16000x16000 image you are starting with
-Ability to export raw data but organized into the corect folder structure aka:
Code: Select all
../BuggiSharpMap2/Mapname/maps/[correct folders]
- ability to stick multiple textures and heightmaps together when creating maps on systems with low memory or with bits of textures exported from trial versions of LDT3D (or whatever it's called)...
I know this is a wish list, but I have thought about it and these are really essential to whatever final mapping tool (for the current format anyways) is produced.[/code]
EDIT: also, if you don't make it possible to open up and edit a current map file, I'll cry.
EDIT2: - Ability to manually set grass colour, or load an image and use it as a "grass map", using the images colour to assign the color of the grass.