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Motocross Madness 2

Armadillo track editing tutorial
Sky Cubes
by Maui_cool
 

[This tutorial is for people who have some knowledge of photo editing programs such as Photoshop & Paint Shop Pro and the MCM 2 Track Editor "Armadillo".]

How to make and use a Sky Cube.


First, you need to have a photo or a graphic rendering of the sky you want to use. You can make a sky cube yourself, using Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro or you can find sample Sky Cubes OR go to Yahoo and type in "skies sunsets clouds" and find plenty of usable photos.

There are also a few programs that can assist in creating your custom sky.
  • 1. AMA_DirtTwister (Bruce Baatk) made a program, called
    "Sky Walker". It will take your custom sky 24bit TGA file and make all 6 files required for the sky cube. You start with either a 504x504, 1008x504, or 2016x504 TGA file and Sky Walker will do the rest.

  • 2. There is a Photoshop plugin from Rayflect called "Four Seasons". It's a filter that gives you everything you need to conjure up stormy skies, sunsets, and moonlit nights - even create rainbows and eclipses. RAYflect Four Seasons is based on an accurate physical model, making it great for simulating the Earth's atmosphere. Best of all, Four Seasons comes with a library of 150 skies.
    • 2. Making your Sky Cube file.

    [NOTE: To make a sky cube you'll need to download a copy of "Make Cub" from Rainbow Studios. The "Make Cub.exe" will make the "(yourprojectname).cub" file that goes in your project folder to render your sky.

    There are 6 files that make a "cube file":
  • a. north
  • b. west
  • c. south
  • d. east
  • e. top
  • f. bottom
    • The 6 images must be named as follows:
  • a. f0010001.tga - north side of sky
  • b. f0020001.tga - west side of sky
  • c. f0030001.tga - south side of sky
  • d. f0040001.tga - east side of sky
  • e. f0050001.tga - top - looking straight up
  • f. f0060001.tga - bottom - looking straight down
    (image should be black - you never look down)
    • Put these images inside the "Make Cub" folder along side of the "makecub.exe".
    3. Editing the .ini file.

    The tutorial that comes with "Make Cub" will say "Do not edit the "yourcubfile.ini" sample file.", but you can edit it.
  • a. You can change the name from "yourcubfile.ini" to the name of the project you are making it for, such as: "Red_Bud.ini" or
    "G-out.ini".
  • b. The .ini file's default settings only let you use half of your sky image, but you can change that by modifying the numbers inside of it.
    • The zero's, as in "Figure-1a", won't let it render more than 50%.

    Figure-1a

    Change the zero's to "128"'s, as in "Figure-1b", to make it render 100% of your image and save.



    [NOTE: Changing these numbers could possibly stretch or blur your sky. Use caution when modifying any file. ]

    4. Using your Cube file.

    The easiest way to include the cube file in your track is to download Twisted Dirt & Jeff Hamblin's (VRT_MCMnut) Armadillo Project Manager - "APM" and read the tutorial.

    OR, you can follow the process below.


    Copy the .CUB file to your track's project folder.

    Now go into your project's .SCN file and edit it, and change the Cube File Name to your .CUB file like this:

    [SceneInfo]
    SceneName="(yourprojectname)"
    NumberOfWaypointRaces=0
    LogProgress=F
    EventType=National
    DefaultStartPosition=3456.0,2.5,3456.0
    DefaultStartDirection=0.0,0.0,1.0
    [Environment]
    TerrainFile=tender-chicken-2.trn
    [Change the next line]
    CubeFile=yourcub.cub
    TerrainWidth=5

    Now go into your project's .INI file and edit it so it looks something like this:

    [ResourceFiles]
    [Change the next line to reflect the # of "FileSet's"]
    TotalFileSets=8
    RootPath=e:\tracks\(yourprojectname)
    FileSet_1=(yourprojectname).tdf
    FileSet_2=(yourprojectname).esb
    FileSet_3=(yourprojectname).scn
    FileSet_4=(yourprojectname).trn
    FileSet_5=(yourprojectname).seg
    FileSet_6=(yourprojectname).tga
    FileSet_7=(yourprojectname)S.tga
    [Add the next line so Armadillo will bundle your .cub file]
    FileSet_8=(yourcub).cub
    OutputFilename=e:\tracks\(yourprojectname)\(yourprojectname).env

    Now simply go into Armadillo, open your project, and bundle.


    [NOTE: Your new sky will not be visable in Armadillo. You must bundle and check it out in the game. ]
     

    'a'ohe mea hele hikiwale ma'alahi = Nothing comes easy.....

    Aloha, Maui_cool



    Copyright © 2001 Maui_cool All rights reserved.
     


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    Rayflect's "Four Seasons"
     
     
     
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