I�m already working with a custom engine - fuck the limits :) 

Thanks for those MechTech - thats a highly comprehensive set of models to a high quality as well.

Very nice model pack. 

My world is shattered - the sync/random flag on models doesn't do anything... 

Isn't it only broken in fitzquake engines? 

I've got a model where it's really easy to see that all of the animations are synchronised, and the flag does nothing in glquake or winquake. Has any engine ever added the feature back? Given the poor showing among original engines that could possibly be a breaking change! 

Did it work in software quake? (I can't run that engine)
Because I do seem to remember suddenly realizing it was broken later. 

just reading that quakeone thread about the open source quake...

it would be pretty cool to see a real fast moving dog. 

Winquake is a software renderer and doesn't work. I don't know about DOSQuake because that doesn't run on my computer. I might just add a couple of extra framegroups with the same animation loop starting from different points. 

Run it in Dosbox then. 

I've been tinkering with the Q3 Orb for converting it to Quake1.
I did it earlier with Skeleton, but then I broke the skinfile and had to make my own.

I used Q3map2Toolz to extract the three md3 files upper, legs and head.Then I use Noesis to convert to md3.
From there I used Gmax and the combine tool to get the model into one with a skinfile of 512x512.

I had some rigging as I could only export one frame out of Gmax, not the whole framegroup.
I think I missed the keyframe setting, but I was already glad I had the model in one piece in QMLE with the right UVskinfile.

Now I want to add the grenadelauncher, but everytime I merge it into the qmle model my skinfile splits to a size of 782x240.
Also it wrenches up the model itself so I tried a launcher of myself but it breaks up.

Then I tried again in Gmax to import the model with grenadelauncher and use the uvwrapper but it won't add the skinfile in the proper way.

Is there a way to add a skinfile to a 512x512 one, as far as I can see I still have a corner left. 

Then I tried again in Gmax to import the model with grenadelauncher and use the uvwrapper but it won't add the skinfile in the proper way.

Can you elaborate on this, it's the way to go. QMe doesn't understand the kind of skinmap you create from MD3 well enough to edit them. 

That sounds like the right method, but how doesn't it add the skin file?

As much as I'd like to leave Qme behind and move to IQM, it's still practically a requirement for tweaking the last details of MDL. 

There's alot of good models in that mapmdl.pak. I noticed some bugs in the jetfighter (z fighting), helecopter (half a wing blade stuck in - gaps), and the garbled texture parts in pilaar.mdl. So I tried Qme for the first time and was able to fix these things. Some one must of swung the texture map vertices around in pilaar for the fun of it!

I tried the missle model tut and that went ok as well, except for the skin. Qme put some of the texture mapped faces on the shaft where no texture exists(top and bottom). So I guess I got to move the vertices manualy to make them look like how it was done for the pilaar one? Still haven't worked that one out yet but the rest is ok. 

A little off topic, but i'd like to know for when I get a chance to get back to work on my model editor thingy...

Which features do you need the most in QME and which the least?

I'm not planning on putting any vertex manipulation stuff in my editor and was planning on keeping it purely for skin mapping and moving frames around (copying, deleting, naming...). 

I'd add;

editing model flags (blood etc)
skin import + export (for convenience)
direct fbx import
Not fucking the verticies on resave
asset library (see all models in folder)(wishlist)

Not limited to qme features... What I've just written there will most likely destroy your sanity if done, but I make no apologies :) 

...to clarify - uv import.... 

Adding/replacing skins
- I often have multiple skins on objects
- Noesis does not support multiple skins which is frustrating
Setting up animation groups
- extremely useful for debugging models afterward
Adding frames - via CAD files!

I would love to be able to import frames easily. At the moment I export to FBX from LW, use Noesis to convert to MDL, open in QME and export the model to CAD and then open my base MDL and import all the CAD frames together. I would use preach importer but it does not work with the files exported from LW.

I am stuck with : FBX->MDL->CAD->MDL process. 

Hey Sock, is the breakdown that you can export to MD3 from LW but the converter refuses to handle it? If so, e-mail me an example MD3 and I'll try to fix the converter. 

Have you told the Noesis author about the multiple skins issue? He is nice and often super quick to fix things. 

I keep forgetting to ask for error messages.

It just fails silently, which is a kick in the balls.

And yeah, I do the same exporter dance to get something into the engine.

Haven't tried your exporter Preach, will give it a go. 

The LW MD3 exporter is not up to date and I can't load it with the version I am using. This is the biggest problem with any modelling package, once a new version comes out all the user made exporters break. The MD3 format is so old that no one is supporting it anymore.

I use FBX because LW maintains the exporter and it works flawlessly and even all the skin UV co-ordinates are correct. If I could merge a series of FBX files into a MDL it would be pure heaven for me!

I would need to check if the FBX format keeps the triangle/verts the same but in theory it should. I also don't need to keep triangulating my model every time I export but if I could merge FBX files together I would gladly triangulate my exported files.

@preach, I know you use MD3 format but I can't get all my frames to merge into one MD3 files. This is why I have a huge directory of CAD files and luckily QME does directory frame loading, another cool feature. I know why you use MD3 format but I can't use it, hence my crazy conversion process.

@preach, I would still need to go into QME because of the multiple skins, your converter program only supports one skin and in a strange PCX format that even PS has trouble exporting too. Don't get me wrong, the converter you wrote is cool, but it can't help at the moment.

@spirit, there are tons of user interface issues with Noesis, but I doubt the creator is going to do much with the interface.

* Can't select/display multiple skins on models
* Can't goto certain animation frames, only got fast forward and reverse.
* Each time I export the interface resets, it should remember each export file settings or allow a template/default to be setup.
* I would love to export a batch of files but the command lines dialogue box does not work for me. When I specify parameters it ignores some of them, eventually I gave up trying because it did not make any sense.

Sadly the model format/process for Quake is still a nightmare and is top of my list of things that drive me nuts about modding for Quake. I sometimes wonder why I fight so much to get models into Quake, but when I finally do get them loading in Quake it feels awesome! 

@spirit, One other thing, if the author of Noesis had a donate button on his site I would gladly give him money! His convertor program is amazing, I would have not had created so many models for my MOD if Noesis did not exist.

@ijed, also big thank you for letting me know about Noesis in the first place, it did make a big difference to the creation of my MOD.

Noesis goodness:
FBX->MDL (perfect for static models)
MDL->OBJ (How I import into LW)

FBX details: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FBX
Supported by Max, Blender, LW, Maya 

I use FBX as well, it's about as close to a universal format as you can get, apart from .obj of course. 

Hey sock, I've managed to convert a FBX to MDL via MD3 using NOESIS. Can you send me a FBX which won't convert so I can take a look? 

Noesis will convert all of my FBX files to MD3 but how would I merge several MD3 files into one MDL file? I thinking about animations, I store all frames separately at the moment. I remember you used GMAX to export a MD3 with multiple frames, I am missing that stage at the moment.

Does your convertor cope with multiple skins in BMP/PCX format? If I can avoid using QME for skins and model parameters that would be awesome.

Also I don't mind using dos command line stuff to use your convertor, I can create batch files to supply parameters if necessary.