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☖ Forums → Cog Forum → A Special Conveyor Cog
A Special Conveyor Cog
2005-10-29, 7:02 PM #1
Hello, I was wondering if it was possible to have a conveyor belt cog that scrolls all mat's of the same type at the same velocity and speed? Just like the unviersal animation of a mat, only this time a conveyor cog for a certain mat.

If this is possible, I would appreicate it very much. You will receive credit! :)
My JK Level Design | 2005 JK Hub Level Pack (Plexus) | Massassi Levels
2005-10-30, 2:55 AM #2
Try this:
Code: 
flags=0x240

symbols

material	surf_mat

surface		surf			local

vector		dir_vec

flex		speed=1

int		i			local
int		j			local

message		startup

end

code

startup:
	// Wait a short while for level initialisation
	Sleep(1);
	// Normalize the direction vector
	dir_vec = VectorNorm(dir_vec);
	// Loop through all sectors
	for(i = 0; i < GetSectorCount(); i = i + 1)
	{
		// Loop through all surfaces of current sector
		for(j = 0; j < GetNumSectorSurfaces(i); j = j + 1)
		{
			// Get a direct reference to current surface
			surf = GetSectorSurfaceRef(i, j);
			// Check if material is of desired type
			if(GetSurfaceMat(surf) == surf_mat)
			{
				// Start conveyor animation for this surface
				SlideSurface(surf, dir_vec, speed);
			}
		}
	}
	Return;

end

I tested it. Doesn't work with dflt.mat (this issue cost me 20 minutes...damn JK quirks).
"Häb Pfrässe, süsch chlepfts!" - The coolest language in the world (besides Cherokee)
2005-10-30, 6:10 AM #3
Thanks zagibu! I'll try it out now. :)
My JK Level Design | 2005 JK Hub Level Pack (Plexus) | Massassi Levels
2005-10-30, 6:22 AM #4
Yay, it works! Thank you again, this will be a real time-saver. I'm surprised nobody has suggested this before. Maybe you or I should submit it to the HUB.
My JK Level Design | 2005 JK Hub Level Pack (Plexus) | Massassi Levels
2005-10-30, 6:36 AM #5
Already done.
"Häb Pfrässe, süsch chlepfts!" - The coolest language in the world (besides Cherokee)
2005-10-30, 12:15 PM #6
Very cool. :)

May I ask, with this cog, do we still need to provide vectors?
ORJ / My Level: ORJ Temple Tournament I
2005-10-30, 12:33 PM #7
Sure, or how else would you specify the direction of the conveyor?
"Häb Pfrässe, süsch chlepfts!" - The coolest language in the world (besides Cherokee)
2005-10-30, 3:45 PM #8
Right.... will this mean all mats with the same name will scroll in the same direction?

Because if you want your conveyorbelt/flowing water (or whatever) to go around a corner, you'd have to use a different texture.
ORJ / My Level: ORJ Temple Tournament I
2005-10-30, 4:04 PM #9
Well, you see, in my level all of the conveyed surfaces move at a vector of (0.00/0.00/1.00) or, in other words, straight up. Hence I don't need to worry about a river cog where the vectors change. So yes, I see this cog might not work for everyone. For me, however, it saves a great deal of time. :)
My JK Level Design | 2005 JK Hub Level Pack (Plexus) | Massassi Levels
2005-10-30, 5:05 PM #10
There's a minor problem with this. Doing this same for all mats, in that manner, will mean that they'll be sliding at different speeds. The speed is relative to the provided vector. The vector determines movement relative to the surfaces orientation, and therefore the speed is relative, based on the direction the surface is facing. I've modified my general vector conveyor cog to work on a specific mat file.
Attachment: 8132/vectormatconveyor.zip (1,128 bytes)
_ _ _____________ _ _
Wolf Moon
Cast Your Spell On Me
Beware
The Woods At Night
The Wolf Has Come
2005-10-30, 11:42 PM #11
Isn't this only a problem when the vector is not in the plane of the surface? Also, at times, this "problem" might even be the wanted effect. Maybe an option to toggle the calculation method?
"Häb Pfrässe, süsch chlepfts!" - The coolest language in the world (besides Cherokee)
2005-11-01, 8:16 PM #12
Yes, but for something that works on materials, and not linked surfaces, it really is a problem. Even for what Daft originally stated: all the same velocity, for a material, like an animation. This only works with a directly vertical vector being applied to only vertical surfaces, or a horizontal vector to only horizontal surfaces. However, think from an editors point of view. If you're going to apply this to all surfaces with a material, are you going to want to have to try and figure out how it will translate to a particular surface depending on that surfaces orientation, and calculate it for every surface? I can't think of a case where one would want that 'problem', as it doesn't provide any sort of consistency between surfaces, and wouldn't look good. Take the simple example of a cube sector. Say you want the walls to scroll horizontally. To do it your way, you'd have to use two seperate mats, even if you want all the walls to look the same. If you just put one around the four walls, and used a directly horizontal vector for one of the walls, then two would move the same, and the other two wouldn't move at all. This isn't to say your code is bad zagibu, however, it's just not very useful in most practical applications. It's ok for Daft, because he's doing one of the two cases mentioned above; a vertical vector on only vertical surfaces. However, sliding all with the same 3d vector is more usable when you can individually select the surfaces, which isn't the case with a mat based surface scroller. I didn't mean to write this much, but I wanted to explain why it is a problem.
_ _ _____________ _ _
Wolf Moon
Cast Your Spell On Me
Beware
The Woods At Night
The Wolf Has Come
2005-11-01, 11:57 PM #13
Errr...thanks for the explanation? I'm not that stupid, you know. That's why I proposed to have an option that toggles absolute and relative vector calculation...heck, I'll just show you:
Code: 
flags=0x240

symbols

material	surf_mat

surface		surf			local

vector		dir_vec

flex		speed=1

int		mode=1
int		i			local
int		j			local

message		startup

end

code

startup:
	// Wait a short while for level initialisation
	Sleep(1);
	// Normalize the direction vector
	dir_vec = VectorNorm(dir_vec);
	// Loop through all sectors
	for(i = 0; i < GetSectorCount(); i = i + 1)
	{
		// Loop through all surfaces of current sector
		for(j = 0; j < GetNumSectorSurfaces(i); j = j + 1)
		{
			// Get a direct reference to current surface
			surf = GetSectorSurfaceRef(i, j);
			// Check if material is of desired type
			if(GetSurfaceMat(surf) == surf_mat)
			{
				// Check which mode is active (absolute or relative vector offset
				if(mode)
				{
					// Start conveyor animation for this surface (absolute mode)
					SlideSurface(surf, dir_vec, speed);
				}
				else
				{
					// Start conveyor animation for this surface (relative mode)
					SlideSurface(surf, fancycalc(dir_vec, GetSurfaceNormal(surf), speed);
				}
			}
		}
	}
	Return;

end

I can't work out the calculation at the moment (work is pressing), but I'll complete it later. The idea is to base the vector on the surface's normal vector, so that it will nullify the problem you posted. And I can still think of examples where this "problem" could be the desired effect, e.g. when you try to simulate a thick liquid flowing down an uneven wall. It will obviously move slower on less slanted walls, but move down with the general (0/0/-1) vector. An absolute calculation is the solution here.
"Häb Pfrässe, süsch chlepfts!" - The coolest language in the world (besides Cherokee)
2005-11-02, 8:02 AM #14
If you note the cog I posted in the zip, it does the problem 'nullification' as you put it, calculating surface-relative slide vectors. It is based off of the surface normal, if I remember correctly.

As for your current code, there's no need to do sector/sector in surface loops, and then get a reference. Just use GetSurfaceCount(), and use one for loop to go through all surfaces. The reference then would just be i. Also you can detect for DFLT, but you have to be told the mat is dflt (I used another var, isDFLT to handle this). (Straight comparison won't work...) GetSurfaceMat() returns negative values if the mat = dflt.

I have attached a modified version of my previous cog which includes a toggle. As for the case you present, while that would seem logical, in the case of JK and sliding straight textures, it would not be visually appealing.
Attachment: 8179/vectormatconveyortoggle.zip (1,187 bytes)
_ _ _____________ _ _
Wolf Moon
Cast Your Spell On Me
Beware
The Woods At Night
The Wolf Has Come

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