L3DT Users' Community

The URL will be virtually the same and it has its own domain which should be fairly memorable. It's http://www.texturesource.org/

A forum is not a bad idea at all. I will have to see which ones integrate well with Gallery 2. I will setup a good one based on what's available - hopefully SMF, since it's free and capable.

Oh yes, and Sunday is fine, I probably won't have time before then anyway.

- Oshyan

hey guys, looking good so far, I think the forum is a good idea, and the first sticky should be a how to, with info on such things as image formats, size limits, uploading and downloading and such.
I sometimes spend quite a bit of time trying to figure out how different sites work, and if I don't get back often I forget.
Also I have never uploaded textures for others to use, so I only "know" how to make them for myself for terragen, and it may not be the right way, if you know what I mean. Like if some one wanted to use a tex in a game, as it appears L3DT is pretty handy for several users who design their heightfields, what would I need to supply besides the tex image,,, format, associated files and so on.
Guess I had better get the camera out and get some more pics of the local sandstone before snow flies, again. SeerBlue

I don't think there's really a "right way". As long as you're uploading basic image files that can be used as textures in some way then it's fine. There will probably be special places for bump maps and other non-standard textures, and you'll probably want to bundle those together sometimes, but in general you just put whatever you have and are willing to share up there. It's up to others to make use of them if they can. Just the fact that you're sharing is good.

I do agree a brief overview of purpose, how-to, standards, etc. would be good. Not sure that should go in the forums or just on a main splash page though, like the front page. It's going to be pretty basic for a while anyway because I don't have time to do much more than that. But anyone who wants to pitch in with web design or other stuff is most welcome - just let me know.

- Oshyan

Hear hear that sounds good,

At least some kind of simple overview and a upload tut. Should have some thumbs as well, I will try and work on that here ij the next week. We have http://www.theatomizer.com back online, but not all the data bases are back up yet as we switched to a MSQL server from the old ODBC base. So we haven't gotten all the downloads and my place where I post stuff yet, so I need to get that running and the market we were working on before the atomizer screw up. We have also still been uploading files, so please bear with me haha, a bit longer as we are just about back to where we were before that company went belly up on us.

I will help on the tut's and front page some here, need a few more days though at least, Monday, Tues is good guess for me to mess with it in a couple of days. Ok back in a few lots to do to get my house in order here to get a good work flow back again so ta ta and have a good Sunday dudes.

DT

Good morning all,

I am just about back to level here. So in the next 2 days or so, I wanted to go head first into getting this website set up. If all goes well I should have it together or allot closer by the end of the weekend.

What I need:
JavaJones

What I think I need more then anything is a way to FTP in and out of the website. Would you set me up an area if you would and send me some login info so we can get a front page up? as I think this baby needs a Front page interface here before we open the doors.

So if you could just set up a basic index.htm file for me? and I will get to work on the rest. Oh yes and if you would just make a basic link to the Gallery 2 software? That would help me a huge amount and get the website up and running sometime next week at the latest. I can spent a few days on this, so ifen ya would send me a email we can get started. Unless your to busy to help atm, then let me know when you can /smiles..... I have a tom of stuff to upload myself, so all you tera nuts go get your textures ready to upload as we bout really soon I am thinking.

If you don't want to set up a forum for this website, I can later link to our http://www.theatomizer.com Forums and set up a area for this, no biggie. But I do need that front page if I may, and a way to get in and out now.

Unless I get run over on my bike that is /tongue in cheek> And sorry it took so long for me to get chits together, but I have been swamped up untill now. Haha, now I am just hella busy ROTFL.......

DT

For those interested work is proceeding behind the scenes. Announcement(s) soon...

- Oshyan

Hi DT,

DeathTwister wrote: What I think I need more then anything is a way to FTP in and out of the website. Would you set me up an area if you would and send me some login info so we can get a front page up? as I think this baby needs a Front page interface here before we open the doors.

I sincerely hope you're not talking about the FrontPage (from Microsoft). Please tell me it ain't so.

Cheers,
Aaron

Haha Hi guys,

No no no, not that ROTFL, just a good old basic .htm page rofl.....And I should have said I need it haha, but have the C panal now so almost as good, well the C panal is a bit over kill for what I had in miond, but I get my partner in on it and we good, give a bit while I get to know stuff there and we have some real website with Java's help,

KK back to working on IMS today, did a upgrade on http://www.takilmafm.com last few days and added a bunch of stuff/Pages, as we are getting ready to change the station to a different server that has a data base we can work with, the one it is on now has NO Data base we can make or use there, how dumb is that? so next month big web site lift we hopw for Hope Mountain Radio. For the most part now we are the webmasters of that website, along with a friend Jefry who is helping us as well on some stuff.

DT

-just a couple of suggestions folks for the texture site.

It would be very nice to have an alpha map resource on there- ideally a link from a colour map to its corresponding alpha. If that's too difficult, maybe another gallery for alphas- the user could browse for the them?

How about another gallery named 'Fantasy'?- ME-DEM could put a lot in there

monks

Hay guys,

Popping up for air for just a sec. Hum.....Monks

It would be very nice to have an alpha map resource on there- ideally a link from a colour map to its corresponding alpha. If that's too difficult, maybe another gallery for alphas- the user could browse for the them?

Maybe Javabones can field that one? I am still swamped, as I know Java is after he got back. That and I do not have a clue as to how to go about that. Also I just woke up so not sure what you mean by alpha?, feeling kinda stupid atm. Maybe not a good time to post /wry smiles. Need more coffeee.........

How about another gallery named 'Fantasy'?- ME-DEM could put a lot in there

I can probobly do that one pretty quick this morning, so it's an A can do there. Sorry I have been so busy, but the store went live, but the work didn't stop hahahah rotfl. Not to mention all the other stuff, but we are intending to we hope finish the site up good enough to go live the day before TG2 comes out (Dec.15th) so on the 14th if we have the site ready, we couldn't find a better time to anounce ourselves to the world, if we had planned it ourselves hahahahahaha, so I hope we can have our chit together on there by then.

OOh Monks are you still having trouble with those 3 folders? maybe ask Java take a look, I could not find a difference between those folders and any other I had set up???? Got me really buged to hahaha. OK, I go make a new area called Fantasy.

DeathTwister

Also I just woke up so not sure what you mean by alpha?, feeling kinda stupid atm. Maybe not a good time to post /wry smiles. Need more coffeee.........

you know- greyscales to use for bump maps, displacement maps, etc. People are usually left to their own devices which is understandable since alphas are used for all sorts of things, not just height info, but a height alpha is the most useful.

I can probobly do that one pretty quick this morning, so it's an A can do there.

Thanks DT- I accidentally nearly made a dragon skin texture -then I was wondering where I could put it-:?:

are you still having trouble with those 3 folders?

- yes still not working. OK so it's ask JavaJones Bag 'o bones

monks

the new Fantasy folder doesn't work for me either is there something about the way you set that folder up that could give a clue perhaps? I'll ask Oshyan- though I'm really not in a hurry- so either way it can wait.

monks

I don't know Monks, yes, it must be something I am doing and hope Java knows what I am doing wrong, sorry dudes. I need to know as well what I am doing wrong, there are stuff in there I don't understand, and am sure that is in part part of it. We get it fixed soon.
Chit what am I doing wrong? it looked simple enough ROTFL lololol Dumb artist that I am.

DT

Hi Monks,

monks wrote:

DeathTwister wrote:Also I just woke up so not sure what you mean by alpha?..

you know- greyscales to use for bump maps, displacement maps, etc.

Um...as ar as I know, the term "alpha" is used in computer graphics to represent transparency (it certainly does around these parts, anyhow.) Do you want the elevation map/bump data of a texture to be stored in the alpha layer? Note this would also restrict us to using 32-bit PNG images, as bitmap and JPEG don't have alpha layers. If you just want the elevation/bump data as a separate image file, then I see no reason why the uploader can't just upload the corresponding elevation image to the same folder at the same time. This would require no changes from DeathTwister / Oshyan.

Edit: Note also that having elevation data packed into the alpha channel of an image will make it look pretty weird.

Cheers,
Aaron.

Hay guys,

Hahah sometimes when I wake up I am not the sharpest tack in the box hahaha, yes I know what alpha ment, I just didn't know exactly how he ment it since i was half asleep. hahahaha, yes I like Aaron idea on that, and:

Edit: Note also that having elevation data packed into the alpha channel of an image will make it look pretty weird.

Hahaha I bet /smiles.....

I actually never thought of adding bump maps and alpha maps for each textures, but that is not a bad idea. I add the bump maps when I do a climate for L3DT, but never really thought to add the other stuff from the files. Good thinking Hoss, we will have to work on the whole idea, it gives me some ideas/features that could be very cool.

OK, the first light is just starting so I am off on my morning sunrise bike ride to the coast and maybe get some good redwood bark today to post on TS. But I am very busy on AWM till tomorrow, then have musicians coming from out of town to Jam for a couple of days in the studio. I ask Java for some help in the forums, something I am doping wrong, but don't know what it is yet. We will get it fixed. I will work on it later today (if I can get the time) and see if I can figure it out if Java does not get to it. He is very busy himself ATM.

Haha at least we are not bored hahahahaha..

DT