exporting from 3ds max

[Guest heclak]

hi,i believe that it is possible to use 3ds max for creating sceneries and aircraft for fs. but how do you get your models in fs from 3ds max. I believe there's a number of scenery designers that use 3ds max or Cinema4D. Is there an sdk for this?

[Guest Firestriker]

Any program that can export to the *.3ds file format can be used to make FS8/9 objects. In the DirectX SDK from MS, there is a command line utility called conv3ds.exe. I surmise that MS uses this utility for the stock FS objects. This utility will convert a *.3ds file to a *.X file which can be converted to an FS *.bgl or *.mdl using the correct version of makemdl.exe for the sim you are working with. It is not for the faint of heart and objects must still meet the FS conventions and you must read and understand the readme file that comes with the utility. Also, don't confuse it with the conv3ds.exe utility from Kuju used for MSTS to make *.s shape files. If you are actually working with 3dsMax, then you can use the Panda X export script but be sure you get the version matched to your version of 3dsMax.Now, having said that, if you are unable to get your scene to convert properly and work the way you want it to, I would suggest using gMax and importing the *.3ds scene, make any necessary adjustments, then using the FS gamepack to export.Of course, if your modeling program can export directly to a *.X file that is even better.Lou

[Guest heclak]

Thanks. I'll give it a try.