Commented 4 years ago2020-05-08 20:06:45 UTC
in journal: #142Comment #102706
When you gotta go you gotta go.
I wish I knew about this when I picked a nickname all those years ago, but oh well. That's what happens when your first name starts with a P and English isn't your native language. Fun fact: the place where I live used to be part of a separate kingdom, hundreds of years ago, and it still has its own anthem. The most popular parody on that anthem (the only version I can remember) is - indeed - about having to pee. So there's a connection after all, huh.
Render mode Color , or Pure Color in cs hex fgd , must be used with an "visible" texture. If an "invisible" texture is used like null, bevel, or even aaatrigger, the compiler will make it drawn invisible. aaatriger for example works in the oldest tool set and maybe in zoner tools 3.4 but definitely not in vhlt tools as it removes these entities visually. Best to keep it a non special texture for it to work properly.
Commented 4 years ago2020-04-28 22:08:42 UTC
in vault item: HECU HouseComment #102693
Thank you so much for reviewing my map! I'll take the feedback to improve my later maps that i'm going to make.
The map does actually have an ending, you just have to walk up to barney, but the ending is nothing special, it just shows a message saying "you saved barney, thanks for playing" and kicks you out into the menu.
The "glass" block made of meat in the back of the truck in the beginning of level 2 was actually supposed to be a body bag, i couldn't find a suitable texture for a bodybag so i just resorted to a glass texture.
The guard near the prison cells says that line because i just wanted to use that unused voice line somewhere in the map.
This is a really solid little gruntfest map pack, it has to be said. I loved how it started out with the player largely having the upper hand, with the first handful of grunts being caught unawares. This is the best way to handle gruntfest maps while your loadout is a little light. Too often you see the player taking on large squads with only a crowbar and pistol. As the maps progress you start to take on larger and larger squads in more open areas, with smaller groups appearing in claustrophobic hallways towards the end. I played on hard and for the most part I was sitting around 25 HP and 20 armour. This meant that later engagements had to be approached carefully and executed flawlessly in order to survive. Finally, the map doesn't appear to end. I found barney but from that point was given no sign as to whether I needed to backtrack or the map simply ended there? In the end, I just closed the game. If there is a genuine end point to the map, it needs to be signposted better.
The architecture throughout is basic, but in a classic sense that fits the Half-Life theme really well. There are only a few parts where the brushwork is a little obscure, making it hard to discern what a particular object is supposed to be. There are a few instances of what I assume a prefabs that have been flipped and don't behave correctly.
A vending machine full of cockroaches that appeared to pull me towards it where I assume it was intended to push the roaches out.
A toilet with a flush handle that rotates in the wrong direction, away from the cistern...
Another vending machine where the buttons jump outwards towards the player when pressed.
Texturing as again fairly basic which fits the bill nicely given the simplicity of a lot of the environments. It also has a few of the same pitfalls, with one object in particular that looked like a glass block in the back of a truck which was supposedly made of meat??? No idea what that was meant to be.
Ambience is good throughout with plenty of ambient noise in the background and no area comes to mind that was completely silent. One odd moment concerns a mortally wounded guard near the prison sells who simply and calmly says he had a long night and is going to wait where he is, only to die moments later...
Lighting is probably the lowest scoring factor in the pack for me. The outdoor sections are fine, with the start of the map being dimly lit and brightening up as the sun rises in the later maps, but the interiors lack variety, often using a sickly yellow light and nothing else. This looks terrible in my opinion. For the interior spaces in future, consider putting smaller coloured highlights up towards the ceilings, under grates in the floor or in shadowy corners just to add a little variation in the colours on display.
This comment was made on an article that has been deleted.
This comment was made on an article that has been deleted.
The problem with having a general page for some attributes like this is that different entities are affected by them fairly differently. Besides, who is ever navigating here rather than to the entity they're interested in?
This comment was made on an article that has been deleted.
I am sorry. No one knows the future, but we can spend the present moment the best way we can. Make it meaningful; connect with one another; be kind to everyone.
Thank you all for your messages. I cared him, but not as much as my friends and close relatives, but his dead really surprising for me. life is fragile and ephemeral, now you are living and soon its over
Commented 4 years ago2020-04-08 16:30:38 UTC
in journal: My grandfather diedComment #102659
My condolences, I'm not sure what else to say and etc. I wished I had the chance to talk and ask my grandfather more but back then I was immature as crap and didn't realize how life can just go like that.
Guess how old he was when he wrote the one about vectors. 14, you can find it in the Web Archive copy of the "Vectors: An introduction" page, in the comments
That's not the point though. It was a sort of a revolutionary time for HL modding IMO. People were discovering vertex and pixel shaders, some were already integrating Cg into their Half-Life mods, people were learning about new graphics techniques and concepts which new games were about to take advantage of (e.g. normal mapping), some folks were experimenting with integrating physics engines into HL, Paranoia started development, HL SDK 2.3 got released with a certain change that I really like about it, and so on.
His articles are a living documentation of that time period and every time I read "Vertex and pixel shaders", I'd imagine how it used to be back in 2003 when a lot of that was an alien concept among us modders. Now, a lot of people know about shaders and physics engines, for example. In fact, the Blinn-Phong shading model is old news by now. We got Physically Based Rendering.
The early 2000s also saw the development of vehicles for HL mods, such as this beautiful example:
But why didn't we see any of that? Why didn't we get to play any of that, even? God knows. And that's what I wanna change.
I want to bring back some golden times, to carry one of the torches of HL modding. Don't get me wrong, HL modding is amazing, especially in this day and age where we can compile maps in minutes and people are still interested. But, I got a vision that HL modding can be far better than it is now. Which is why I started the Advanced Development Mod project.
"I wish I had done as much as you do at your age."
There are countless things I wish I had done earlier too, to be honest. 5 years ago, I made the mistake of starting to make a total conversion mod instead of deciding to learn the skills first and whatnot. Though, I gotta say, it was a good mistake. I wouldn't be doing these projects otherwise. I wish I started doing C++ stuff at least 2 years earlier, you know. But, when you think about it, maybe it's a good thing that I started it 2 years ago than 4 years ago. Cuz' those 2 years in between helped me improve my mapping skills, as well as texturing and music skills.
I think everything has its reason, even though when we think something should've been better done earlier. Sometimes, it's true, we SHOULD have done some things earlier, but at other times, maybe it was for the better, because something else happened and it was a good thing. You get what I'm trying to say.
"the world won't stop and knowledge keeps passing on."
Always gotta carry that torch. It's one of the reasons why I write tutorials.
I wish I knew about this when I picked a nickname all those years ago, but oh well. That's what happens when your first name starts with a P and English isn't your native language. Fun fact: the place where I live used to be part of a separate kingdom, hundreds of years ago, and it still has its own anthem. The most popular parody on that anthem (the only version I can remember) is - indeed - about having to pee. So there's a connection after all, huh.
At least it isnt 'User posted image'
Best to keep it a non special texture for it to work properly.
Texturing — 8
Ambience — 7
Lighting — 6
Gameplay — 8
The architecture throughout is basic, but in a classic sense that fits the Half-Life theme really well. There are only a few parts where the brushwork is a little obscure, making it hard to discern what a particular object is supposed to be. There are a few instances of what I assume a prefabs that have been flipped and don't behave correctly.
- A vending machine full of cockroaches that appeared to pull me towards it where I assume it was intended to push the roaches out.
- A toilet with a flush handle that rotates in the wrong direction, away from the cistern...
- Another vending machine where the buttons jump outwards towards the player when pressed.
Texturing as again fairly basic which fits the bill nicely given the simplicity of a lot of the environments. It also has a few of the same pitfalls, with one object in particular that looked like a glass block in the back of a truck which was supposedly made of meat??? No idea what that was meant to be.Ambience is good throughout with plenty of ambient noise in the background and no area comes to mind that was completely silent. One odd moment concerns a mortally wounded guard near the prison sells who simply and calmly says he had a long night and is going to wait where he is, only to die moments later...
Lighting is probably the lowest scoring factor in the pack for me. The outdoor sections are fine, with the start of the map being dimly lit and brightening up as the sun rises in the later maps, but the interiors lack variety, often using a sickly yellow light and nothing else. This looks terrible in my opinion. For the interior spaces in future, consider putting smaller coloured highlights up towards the ceilings, under grates in the floor or in shadowy corners just to add a little variation in the colours on display.
Did he live alone? It's a difficult time to die because traditional funerals are not allowed at this time.
Stay safe and healthy.
https://www.moddb.com/mods/half-life-rebuilt
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-wLTUUFX5a/?igshid=3utacbfw96cx
Sorry for the derail.
He used to write some really nice articles on VERC before that place went down.
Bump mapping in Half-Life (2004)
Vertex and pixel shaders (2003)
Vectors: An introduction (2002)
Guess how old he was when he wrote the one about vectors.
14, you can find it in the Web Archive copy of the "Vectors: An introduction" page, in the comments
That's not the point though. It was a sort of a revolutionary time for HL modding IMO. People were discovering vertex and pixel shaders, some were already integrating Cg into their Half-Life mods, people were learning about new graphics techniques and concepts which new games were about to take advantage of (e.g. normal mapping), some folks were experimenting with integrating physics engines into HL, Paranoia started development, HL SDK 2.3 got released with a certain change that I really like about it, and so on.
His articles are a living documentation of that time period and every time I read "Vertex and pixel shaders", I'd imagine how it used to be back in 2003 when a lot of that was an alien concept among us modders. Now, a lot of people know about shaders and physics engines, for example. In fact, the Blinn-Phong shading model is old news by now. We got Physically Based Rendering.
The early 2000s also saw the development of vehicles for HL mods, such as this beautiful example:
And that's what I wanna change.
I want to bring back some golden times, to carry one of the torches of HL modding. Don't get me wrong, HL modding is amazing, especially in this day and age where we can compile maps in minutes and people are still interested. But, I got a vision that HL modding can be far better than it is now. Which is why I started the Advanced Development Mod project. There are countless things I wish I had done earlier too, to be honest.
5 years ago, I made the mistake of starting to make a total conversion mod instead of deciding to learn the skills first and whatnot. Though, I gotta say, it was a good mistake. I wouldn't be doing these projects otherwise.
I wish I started doing C++ stuff at least 2 years earlier, you know. But, when you think about it, maybe it's a good thing that I started it 2 years ago than 4 years ago. Cuz' those 2 years in between helped me improve my mapping skills, as well as texturing and music skills.
I think everything has its reason, even though when we think something should've been better done earlier. Sometimes, it's true, we SHOULD have done some things earlier, but at other times, maybe it was for the better, because something else happened and it was a good thing.
You get what I'm trying to say. Always gotta carry that torch. It's one of the reasons why I write tutorials.