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Alabastor_Twob
So when we all meet face to face, how do names work? Would I be TJB or Thomas?
I somehow ended up leaving it this long to play Black Mesa which I have decided to remedy. Previously I had only gotten about five or ten minutes past the resonance cascade, but as of a few minutes ago I've just launched the rocket at the end of On A Rail.
So far I must say Black Mesa is absolutely stunning. It's faithful to Half-Life, yet different enough that I can't just run through it knowing how to solve every puzzle that is presented. It's also a lot more effective than the original Half-Life in making the player feel helpless against the aliens and the military. It kind of puts it in perspective how bad the situation really is, when you can't just run through killing things left right and centre. I very rarely had to take cover in the original Half-Life, or think ahead to plan out how best to tackle a situation. Conversely, in Black Mesa I found that I had to do both a lot more often.
There was one particularly memorable moment in Power Up where I had very low health and I kept being killed by some soldiers as I went up an elevator. That was fixed by sending up some explosive barrels and a satchel charge to take out the ones nearest to the elevator shaft, then bringing the lift back down, building a covering wall out of barrels, then riding it up. In the original game I probably would have just quicksaved then tried again and again until I survived, which isn't as fun.
Probably the only problem I have with the game is the voice acting for the HECU soldiers. It's like every one of them played too much Metal Gear Solid before they were sent in and now they think they're all Solid Snake or something.
So far I must say Black Mesa is absolutely stunning. It's faithful to Half-Life, yet different enough that I can't just run through it knowing how to solve every puzzle that is presented. It's also a lot more effective than the original Half-Life in making the player feel helpless against the aliens and the military. It kind of puts it in perspective how bad the situation really is, when you can't just run through killing things left right and centre. I very rarely had to take cover in the original Half-Life, or think ahead to plan out how best to tackle a situation. Conversely, in Black Mesa I found that I had to do both a lot more often.
There was one particularly memorable moment in Power Up where I had very low health and I kept being killed by some soldiers as I went up an elevator. That was fixed by sending up some explosive barrels and a satchel charge to take out the ones nearest to the elevator shaft, then bringing the lift back down, building a covering wall out of barrels, then riding it up. In the original game I probably would have just quicksaved then tried again and again until I survived, which isn't as fun.
Probably the only problem I have with the game is the voice acting for the HECU soldiers. It's like every one of them played too much Metal Gear Solid before they were sent in and now they think they're all Solid Snake or something.
Probably a render in Blender.
I've made flights like that a number of times Striker. It truly is uncomfortable, but long distance flights typically have screens with a selection of movies and tv shows on the headrest of the seat in front. Plus you can always sleep.
Money is definitely something I could see being an issue for people though. Maybe if you start walking now you could make it in time. I just hope you can swim.
Money is definitely something I could see being an issue for people though. Maybe if you start walking now you could make it in time. I just hope you can swim.
It's a bit too far in the future to make any serious plans, but if I have the money to get there at the time then I'd definitely be up for it.
We should get a TWHL tour bus to bring all of the TWHLers.
We should get a TWHL tour bus to bring all of the TWHLers.
That's called Pareidolia.
I compensated by just scaling up to around 104% and centering it. I had thought of a way to allow this while still scaling seamlessly, but I haven't gotten around to testing it.
Software mode might fix it, iirc it doesn't blend between pixels. If you move far away from it it might start blurring due to mipmapping though.
Also, four way (or even eight way) tiling should be possible, but for textures such as grass I don't have the skills needed to fix seams so I can't really use it. I could test a method later though to see if someone else wants to use it.
[Edit]
I tried picking one edge and duplicating it so it is the same for each edge so that it tiles even when rotated or reversed.
It does work in the sense that there is no discontinuity between the textures, but the edges are very visible if any rotation or reversal is done. Even if they're not, the corners are still noticeable.
Software mode might fix it, iirc it doesn't blend between pixels. If you move far away from it it might start blurring due to mipmapping though.
Also, four way (or even eight way) tiling should be possible, but for textures such as grass I don't have the skills needed to fix seams so I can't really use it. I could test a method later though to see if someone else wants to use it.
[Edit]
I tried picking one edge and duplicating it so it is the same for each edge so that it tiles even when rotated or reversed.
It probably would be PB if you were only doing this for one map, but I suppose if you ever wanted to build up a large texture library for multiple projects, like perhaps multiple maps across a mod, it might be easier to do it this way, and you could potentially end up with a smaller filesize if you were making large outdoor areas. Like if you had multiple large outdoor areas in the same kind of environment each prebaked texture would probably have to be split into 512x512 squares anyway. This has a set maximum of fourteen textures for any two blended textures, so it might end up being smaller.
In any case the only reason I actually did this was to see if it could be done. I doubt I'll ever actually end up using it in a map.
And the reason it is 14 in this case is because the texture only tiles on opposite edges. Rotation and negative scaling would reduce the number of textures, but it would leave a seam at the edges. You might get away with that depending on the texture though.
Tutorial for CT
The blending can be achieved in Paint.NET by putting each texture on a separate layer, then using the transparency mode of the gradient tool:
Set the primary colour to black, and the secondary to white. Clicking and dragging from left to right on the upper layer causes the left side to be opaque, and the right to be transparent, exposing the layer below.
Example
Lower Layer:
Upper Layer:
Gradient:
Use the cursor position to make sure this is correctly horizontal/vertical and consistent. If you really want to do this method you'll have to do this a few times.
End Result:
Make sure you have each of the textures shown below, then in the map just fit them together like jigsaw pieces:
In any case the only reason I actually did this was to see if it could be done. I doubt I'll ever actually end up using it in a map.
And the reason it is 14 in this case is because the texture only tiles on opposite edges. Rotation and negative scaling would reduce the number of textures, but it would leave a seam at the edges. You might get away with that depending on the texture though.
Tutorial for CT
The blending can be achieved in Paint.NET by putting each texture on a separate layer, then using the transparency mode of the gradient tool:
Example
Lower Layer:
End Result:
That's looking fairly sexy Lajron.
Some experimentation with texture 'blending' in GoldSrc:
It needs 14 separate textures, and it looks like the terrain in Age of Empires, but I think it actually looks alright. The amount of splitting needed to make it shouldn't really matter too much, as terrain will likely be split more than that anyway into tetrahedrons.
Some experimentation with texture 'blending' in GoldSrc:
Congratulations Jessie. I would imagine saying that publicly would take a lot of courage.
And Archie, if the option is open to you, why not try learning how to use more than one? I don't know how things work in your field, but if you're expected to use stuff supplied by the employer it might be a plus.
Plus I would imagine once you've learned one, it would be easier to learn a second.
And Archie, if the option is open to you, why not try learning how to use more than one? I don't know how things work in your field, but if you're expected to use stuff supplied by the employer it might be a plus.
Plus I would imagine once you've learned one, it would be easier to learn a second.
I've got €10 steam wallet funds reserved for a prize for the next event. If I can save any more money before it happens, it will probably be more than that.
I haven't been able to try taking any more photos recently so I spent far too long today making this infographic labelling craters and stuff.
I used a 5-second shutter, I couldn't figure out how to do mirror lockup though.
Photographing the Orion nebula was a hell of a lot harder than I had thought it would be. First of all, it's really diffuse, so with the tiny viewfinder on the camera it's very difficult to tell if it's in focus. Second of all, it's really dim, so long exposure shots are needed. I was outside for an hour and a half trying to take a good photo but they all came out either too dim, or too streaked. I eventually decided to leave it for another time, as my fingers were so numb from the cold I could barely operate the camera.
Anyway, here's the best of what I managed to take:
This one you can actually see a bit of the nebula, but the tracking mount wasn't on so the streaking you can see is from both the rotation of the earth over the exposure time, and the telescope moving from me pressing the shutter button.
Here's the sharpest image I could get:
The stars are fairly well focussed, but the exposure was too short so the nebula itself is only very slightly visible, even after some extreme editing.
Also, just after I decided to go in I noticed Jupiter was visible, so I took this:
Three of the moons are visible in the photo, but looking through the telescope it without the camera I could see four quite clearly. I was being lazy with that photo, I just took as many as I could in about a minute and picked the best.
Anyway, here's the best of what I managed to take:
Here's the sharpest image I could get:
Also, just after I decided to go in I noticed Jupiter was visible, so I took this:
If the sky is clear enough when it's in the right position I might see if I can take a photo of the Orion nebula, as I've finally (after having it for a year) managed to set the automatic tracking to just the right speed, which should make long exposure shots possible.
I will try those suggestions. Except the neighbour one. You'll understand if you've met him. 
I got an adapter for Christmas that allows me to combine my telescope with my brother's DSLR to form a DSLR with a ridiculous zoom lens.
Tonight was the first clear(ish) night since I got it, so I've been out taking photos of the moon.
This could be a lot better, but I didn't have much time to set it up so the telescope didn't have automatic tracking, plus it is my first ever photo through it.
I will probably have to invest in some kind of remote shutter operator, as pressing the shutter button causes the whole thing to vibrate a little.
I will probably have to invest in some kind of remote shutter operator, as pressing the shutter button causes the whole thing to vibrate a little.
That's probably the map I am most looking forward to seeing. And playing again, that map was fun.
I found this fun, so I made a few.
[Edit]
Bollocks, that was supposed to be 'Paulus Buyus'.
[Edit edit]
Actually no it wasn't. I don't know why I thought it was. Carry on.
Bollocks, that was supposed to be 'Paulus Buyus'.
[Edit edit]
Actually no it wasn't. I don't know why I thought it was. Carry on.
I'm currently in the middle of Christmas shopping, depending on whether I have any money left in my bank account by the end of the day I will put maybe €10-15 towards a late third prize if that's alright.
Hopefully the second video makes me look less bad. Every time you pressed tab to look at the scores in part 1 I died a little inside.
You were playing for pretty much the entire thing though.
It was only after being addressed directly after the whole thing ended that I realised my microphone apparently wasn't working the entire time.
The tournament was fun though, except for that one map in which I got 0 kills during the entire half-hour match.
The tournament was fun though, except for that one map in which I got 0 kills during the entire half-hour match.
Isn't it not supposed to start for an hour?
[Edit]
Also, I shouldn't have set up that surround sound system for my brother. The only place I can use my computer is in the same room as the TV. I was planning on joining the TeamSpeak server, but anything I say will probably be drowned out.
[Edit]
Also, I shouldn't have set up that surround sound system for my brother. The only place I can use my computer is in the same room as the TV. I was planning on joining the TeamSpeak server, but anything I say will probably be drowned out.
I had a look on the new server, and apart from one >500 spike, my ping was mostly sub-100. I'm pretty excited for this. I shall need to get some drinks and crisps for tomorrow or something.
I've had a look on the server twice. The first time, I had an average ping of around 275, although it went between around 100 to 500. The second time, it was averaging around 200.
I've joined twice, for a few minutes each. Nobody was on either time.
Maybe it's because I've never really played Terraria before, or because I've only played for such a short time, but I can't really see much to actually do. I'll certainly be on more, but for now I'll say don't let me hold you back.
Maybe it's because I've never really played Terraria before, or because I've only played for such a short time, but I can't really see much to actually do. I'll certainly be on more, but for now I'll say don't let me hold you back.
I'll probably get on the server tonight. I don't have access to a desk so I've had to use a gamepad, so the clunky Joy2Key bindings I've made combined with my complete lack of experience with Terraria means that I'll probably have to spend a while playing offline first.
It might be some kind of metallised plastic to save weight and fabrication cost.
I saw this little lizardy fellow the other week, so I decided to take a photo of him. I liked how the lighting turned out.
Also it is flipped 90 degrees to the left. I am currently on a mac so I don't know how to fix that.
Also, upon seeing this:
I am not a clever man.
I saw this little lizardy fellow the other week, so I decided to take a photo of him. I liked how the lighting turned out.
Also, upon seeing this:
my immediate thought was "When did Archie ever go to Sydney?"
I am not a clever man.
I'm only posting in this thread because it seems everyone else is.
Current Job
n/a
Previous Jobs
n/a
Unfortunately since I don't have many options for getting around until I pass my driving test, I don't have any real opportunity to get a part time job at the moment. I'm about halfway through third year of an aircraft engineering degree though, and the university is supposed to be one of the most highly regarded in the country when it comes to engineering, if not the most highly regarded, so hopefully my job prospects at the end of it all won't be too bad.
I'm looking into getting an internship at an engineering company over the summer though, so if I succeed at that then I should be alright when I graduate.
One thing that I did that apparently looks very good to employers was volunteer maths tutoring for secondary school students, for an hour a week. That was done through the university, so it might be worth seeing if your uni has a similar program.
Current Job
n/a
Previous Jobs
n/a
Unfortunately since I don't have many options for getting around until I pass my driving test, I don't have any real opportunity to get a part time job at the moment. I'm about halfway through third year of an aircraft engineering degree though, and the university is supposed to be one of the most highly regarded in the country when it comes to engineering, if not the most highly regarded, so hopefully my job prospects at the end of it all won't be too bad.
I'm looking into getting an internship at an engineering company over the summer though, so if I succeed at that then I should be alright when I graduate.
One thing that I did that apparently looks very good to employers was volunteer maths tutoring for secondary school students, for an hour a week. That was done through the university, so it might be worth seeing if your uni has a similar program.
If we don't have to be available for every match, I'm in. Unfortunately my internet at home isn't reliable enough to guarantee anything, but I will join if I can.
First: TJB
I made the mistake of playing GTA: San Andreas on the weekend, so I will probably not be available for any other games for the next six months. Shit's addictive, yo.
I'll try getting on the server on the weekend, although I've only ever played about five minutes of Terraria so don't expect to see any giant castles.
I'll try getting on the server on the weekend, although I've only ever played about five minutes of Terraria so don't expect to see any giant castles.
It's not the game, it's the time of the year.Same for me. Plus I tend to go through cycles of forgetting about and remembering the game. So I'll play it a lot for a while, then forget about it for a few weeks, then rinse and repeat.
Although I would be willing to give Terraria a try. I've got that but I've played very little of it.
Aw. Admittedly I haven't been on for a few months, but I never got the chance to make my proper house.
Probably for the best. I was planning on making a spaceship at the highest altitude I could and only having it accessible through a nether portal. Given how many problems I have had in the past with nether portals and lag, that idea probably wouldn't have worked too well.
Probably for the best. I was planning on making a spaceship at the highest altitude I could and only having it accessible through a nether portal. Given how many problems I have had in the past with nether portals and lag, that idea probably wouldn't have worked too well.
I think perhaps he meant a prize CT.
An entrance fee that goes towards the prize would be interesting, except for two things. One, the level of uptake isn't high enough for the prize to be very big. Either the entry fee is small, but the prize is small enough that people aren't interested, or the prize is large but the entry fee is large enough that it prevents people from joining.
Secondly, I don't have any money so I wouldn't be able to join.
Perhaps if it were a full compo with multiple judges and a deadline and a news post it might work, but for a minicompo it probably wouldn't.
Also, what limitations would there be on that map with regard to the original brushwork? Could the straights be made slightly curved, so long as they maintain the general layout? Could corners be made sharper? Could the different brushes be moved vertically so it isn't all on the same plane? Or is it more like you can do whatever you want so long as the shape of those original brushes is unchanged?
It's looking like I won't have any free time this week to finish my Haunted minicompo entry, but the assignment I'm working on is due on Friday so after that I will have free time for this one.
An entrance fee that goes towards the prize would be interesting, except for two things. One, the level of uptake isn't high enough for the prize to be very big. Either the entry fee is small, but the prize is small enough that people aren't interested, or the prize is large but the entry fee is large enough that it prevents people from joining.
Secondly, I don't have any money so I wouldn't be able to join.
Perhaps if it were a full compo with multiple judges and a deadline and a news post it might work, but for a minicompo it probably wouldn't.
Also, what limitations would there be on that map with regard to the original brushwork? Could the straights be made slightly curved, so long as they maintain the general layout? Could corners be made sharper? Could the different brushes be moved vertically so it isn't all on the same plane? Or is it more like you can do whatever you want so long as the shape of those original brushes is unchanged?
It's looking like I won't have any free time this week to finish my Haunted minicompo entry, but the assignment I'm working on is due on Friday so after that I will have free time for this one.
I will attempt to finish mine, but I have a thing due this week for college that may end up taking up all of my free time, so I can't guarantee anything.
I should probably mention that the skeleton model in the map is from vanilla HL, I didn't get mine finished. I hadn't wanted to use that one because neither of the animations fitted what I wanted to do. Part of mine is visible in the painting though.
I can't remember specifically how I worded the readme, but I may have accidentally implied that literally everything in the map is custom. I meant that the stuff in the map that is custom is made by me except where otherwise noted. I shall fix it later when I am at my computer.
I can't remember specifically how I worded the readme, but I may have accidentally implied that literally everything in the map is custom. I meant that the stuff in the map that is custom is made by me except where otherwise noted. I shall fix it later when I am at my computer.
I was going to make a serious entry, but what with what happened on Monday I wasn't able to finish.
Since I was left with a few finished resources, and a load more unfinished (including a new skeleton model - that pic I linked was a super high-poly one I was using for texture baking), I decided to make this with what I had finished.
Since I was left with a few finished resources, and a load more unfinished (including a new skeleton model - that pic I linked was a super high-poly one I was using for texture baking), I decided to make this with what I had finished.
Well, I've spent a long play-session getting a start on my house, at coords X:350-ish, Z:0. It's not yet finished, although technically speaking I haven't even started yet.
I logged into the server for the first time since before Minecraft updated, and spawned on top of a large tower, apparently with no way down. D:
I mentioned in the last thread though that I also received a message, although I had found it in the spam folder of my email address.
And I surely can't be the only one.
And I surely can't be the only one.
But that might arouse suspicion, unless somehow that user were to get the spammer to send an email to that address first.
Hi, my email address is james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com
I love that my email address is james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com, as it perfectly describes me as being a gamer, who is also a virgin, as you can see by my email address of james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com.
Unfortunately, one thing that james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com does not adequately describe is how rich I am.
I, James McAllen, of james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com, am very rich. I have lots and lots of money, as well as multiple credit cards. As I am a lonely gamer virgin, I of course will be completely willing to spend that money on a lovely lady over the internet. I would be so interested in a long and serious relationship with a friend who gives me lots of love, especially if she is willing to give me pics while forgetting to actually link them.
Email me at james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com!
Hi, my email address is james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com
I love that my email address is james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com, as it perfectly describes me as being a gamer, who is also a virgin, as you can see by my email address of james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com.
Unfortunately, one thing that james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com does not adequately describe is how rich I am.
I, James McAllen, of james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com, am very rich. I have lots and lots of money, as well as multiple credit cards. As I am a lonely gamer virgin, I of course will be completely willing to spend that money on a lovely lady over the internet. I would be so interested in a long and serious relationship with a friend who gives me lots of love, especially if she is willing to give me pics while forgetting to actually link them.
Email me at james.mcallen.gamervirgin@gmail.com!
I'm running Win7 too Urby, but about 3/4 of the time I run HLMV it maxes out my CPU and the process doesn't end when I close the window, I have to kill it in the task manager.
Also Badaluyah, that sounds pretty amazing, and extremely useful.
Also Badaluyah, that sounds pretty amazing, and extremely useful.
I was intending to enter this one but unfortunately I never even got around to even looking at the rmf due to college starting up again a few weeks ago.
I've never played CS so I can't comment on how the layout might work, but it's looking like a pretty sexy map so far.
As for more news on my model that I'm probably posting too much about, I'm happy with how these textures are coming along. I've just done the cylinder.
Apart from the wooden grip, and the two screws on the frame (lifted from the grip and recoloured as a temporary measure), this was made from scratch. It's still not done yet, but I was thinking that maybe if I have the patience I might try making a very-mini-mod where all of the textures and stuff were made by me. But first I need to figure out a way to make satisfactory wood chequering so I can say I made all of this model myself.
As for more news on my model that I'm probably posting too much about, I'm happy with how these textures are coming along. I've just done the cylinder.