[Artlav]

Orbiter Shipyard Project, alpha release 090927:
http://orbides.1gb.ru/orbf/osh-090927-win32-alpha.php
A bug fix up-front, unzip over:
http://orbides.1gb.ru/orbf/osh-09092...lpha-fix_2.zip

What is Orbiter Shipyard?
Orbiter Shipyard project aims at creating a graphical Orbiter vessel editor and creator.

One make the mesh in whatever mesh making program he likes, then fire up the Orbiter Shipyard program, that allows him to define vessel interactions in graphical drag&drop way.
Define animations, define docking ports and gears, define VC surfaces and panel structures, define UMMU ports and parameters, engine locations and exhausts, etc.
Then, the output from the program will be a vessel dll that makes it all work in Orbiter, no ini's or cfg's like spacecraft3, and no coding involved.
Hopefully, it will allow all the graphic artists that make great meshes but can't code a calculator to make add-ons with interactivity as good as the ones made by programmers who can't make a mesh of a cube.

Older discussion thread: http://www.orbiter-forum.com/showthread.php?t=5378

Relationships:
-Includes Kulch's Payload manager add-on, and uses it for payload manager in the generated vessels, if one is specified.
-Requires UMMU, if you define a crew for the vessel.

Install into Orbiter directory!

Controls:
-Mouse like in Orbiter
-Middle button pans the view
-F11 - OGLA keys menu
-The rest is click and drag interface

So far, the documentation is quite lacking, so the obviousness of the GUI will be put to the test.
Best way to find how something is done is to ask here or figure it out.


The project is still very much in development, so be prepared to grind your expectations with some reality.

The purpose of this alpha release is to show the progress so far to the public view and gather productive feedback.
Simply speaking, ideas and bug reports are welcome.
The flagship feature of the program is animation definition, which is obtrusively patchy (translation: unusable) in this release, ideas on how to do it best (or better) are most welcome.

The draft of the To-Do list:

###### Major done features list:
-Many vessel systems definitions in GUI
-Exporting to DLL, Add-on ZIP, txt file
-Importing from DLL (made by shipyard)
-Importing Spacecraft3.dll vessels

###### Beta plans:
-lights editor
-Help page
-Documentation

-Animations editor
--Animations tied into some functions.
--option to merge different animations into one
--all the visual controls for scaling, rotating and moving groups, combined with a "keyframe capture"
--a speed modifier where you can define how long it should take for the keyframe to be reached.
Editing may happen in two ways:
-direct manipulation, you move the time slider, move the objects and animation keys appear on the time line 
-indirect manipulation, separate lines for each axis (x,y,z) translation and rotation, keys can be manually inserted and moved
In both cases keys can be linear or bezier, with tangential angle, and indipenent derivative amplitude.
Also in modern 3d software, object bonding is widely used in order to esabilish kinetic limits and hierarchies.
I think the best way to customize animations would be to give people two points.

###### Release plans:
-Adding reentry effects
-deleting meshes (with confirm)
-locations menu and some locations
-Panels editor
-VC editor
-A set of pre-made templates to start working from. 

-exhausts editor
--customizable exhaust texture

-3D editor tools
--multiselect
--"snap the direction to axes" for preventing tiny mouse movement skill requirements
--"align RCS thrusters on opposing sides of action"

-Generate menu
--C++ code output
--more things to export to txt file

###### Future plans:
-A set of autopilots
-be able to jump into simulation with the ship within seconds directly from the shipyard.
-.obj and .3ds 
-Anim8or format .an8
-Attachment points
-life support or consumables like O2, CO2
-heating and cooling of the ship
-random failure generator
-better crew control
-Better touchdown points controls

A small FAQ:
-3D controls menu allows to directly input the position of the element moved
-To convert from SC3 vessel select spacecraft3 in the file type drop-down of load menu.
-To drag the objects press and drag the axes lines
-Changing the type in generate menu type drop-down does not change the extension of the file written, you should change it yourself

Screenshots:







---------- Post added at 10:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:33 PM ----------

A bug fix up-front:
http://orbides.1gb.ru/orbf/osh-09092...lpha-fix_2.zip
Unzip into Orbiter directory, over the shipyard alpha.

-Fixed mesh loading on acient GPU's
-Fixed negative number input
-Fixed some SC3 animations import

[Dig Gil]

First quick view:
No problem found yet.

Suggestions/Critics
-Missing copy/paste (or "clone" instead) for ease when there are editable properties that may need to be equal for certain elements.

-The menus where there are many selectable elements may get one lost because of different groups having different colours: a different selection of that element will only change it's colour leaving one to think it's just part of another group. I suggest that selected elements in a list have some symbol instead of just changing colour.

-How does one exit the VC view?

-Vertical Panning is too slow.

-Handles (at least for docking ports) are obstructing view of the centre of the (in this case; docking) port.

-Why two cubes for Docking Port handles?

-Manual should have 'in-Orbiter Performance Tips' Section (or something like that) to avoid people who had multiple airfoils for each wing idiotically, for example, as I admit being think about.

-When minimizing Orbiter Shipyard, then maximizing it back, all menus jump to the top left of the window being then unable to drag it back.

Questions
Does the Size in Main Data shows the in-Orbiter size? After opening one of my projects (a SC spacecraft) and opened Main Data menu it shows that the vessel has the Size of 1 meter. That's what's written in the INI file, but the real length (supposing that the height of UMMU's astronauts is 2 meters) is about 0.85 meters.

[Artlav]

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -Missing copy/paste (or "clone" instead)

To be added. It should work for input boxes now.

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -The menus where there are many selectable elements may get one lost because of different groups having different colours

Blinking color? Shift of the line in the menu? I'll think of something.

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -How does one exit the VC view?

Same as in Orbiter - F1.

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -Vertical Panning is too slow.

Vertical panning is not implemented. How did you do that?

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -Handles (at least for docking ports) are obstructing view of the centre of the (in this case; docking) port.

Hm. To be somehow fixed.

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -Why two cubes for Docking Port handles?

Direction and rotation.

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -Manual should have 'in-Orbiter Performance Tips' Section (or something like that) to avoid people who had multiple airfoils for each wing idiotically, for example, as I admit being think about.

To be added along the development.

EDIT:

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 -When minimizing Orbiter Shipyard, then maximizing it back, all menus jump to the top left of the window being then unable to drag it back.

To be fixed... Maybe,

Originally Posted by Dig Gil

 Does the Size in Main Data shows the in-Orbiter size? After opening one of my projects (a SC spacecraft) and opened Main Data menu it shows that the vessel has the Size of 1 meter. That's what's written in the INI file, but the real length (supposing that the height of UMMU's astronauts is 2 meters) is about 0.85 meters.

When loaded, the size, same as in Orbiter, is what was written in whatever was loaded. When adding a mesh, it's size is calculated and is put as Size if bigger than current.

[Dig Gil]

Originally Posted by Artlav

 Hm. To be somehow fixed.

I suggested a scroll that controls the handle's geometry size: If I want more precision I'll shrink the sphere! (and also zoom in if needed).

To the Panning Question:





I use the middle button of the mouse to do this.

[Dambuster]

Looking great so far!

Few little things:
- When I try and enter values into textboxes, it usually works well, however when I use my numberpad (or the "-" key on the main bit of my keyboard), it doesn't give the correct characters - e.g. the minus key on the keypad gives an 'm', the '9' gives an 'i' etc. Could this be because you're on a Russian keyboard (I guess ) whereas I'm on a British one?

-Is it possible for you to add a feature which allows you to click on an object and drag it to a new location, perhaps like the systems in 3ds max and Blender? (I may not have looked for this well enough though!)

-An undo button would be extremely useful as well.

I haven't gotten very far into this yet, but so far it's amazing!

[n72.75]

What made Xplane great from a deveompement point of view was the editor. it's nice to see in orbiter now.

Artlav is a god.

[Artlav]

Originally Posted by Dambuster

 when I use my numberpad (or the "-" key on the main bit of my keyboard), it doesn't give the correct characters

No, i just do not use it to the point of not even considering to implement support for it. On the list now.

Originally Posted by Dambuster

 -Is it possible for you to add a feature which allows you to click on an object and drag it to a new location, perhaps like the systems in 3ds max and Blender? (I may not have looked for this well enough though!)

You can drag them with the axes, so it's not too big a step. Will try.

Originally Posted by Dambuster

 -An undo button would be extremely useful as well.

On the list.

[Arthur Dent]

Sounds like a potential favourite orbiter tool. I'm glad to see that you have finally released an Alpha

Does/will it allow creating of rockets/vessels with multiple stages?

[Donamy]

Originally Posted by Arthur Dent

 Sounds like a potential favourite orbiter tool. I'm glad to see that you have finally released an Alpha

Does/will it allow creating of rockets/vessels with multiple stages?

...and rotating attachment points that add the attachments mass and thrust ?

[Artlav]

Originally Posted by Arthur Dent

 Does/will it allow creating of rockets/vessels with multiple stages?

It uses Kulch's payload manager, so what this can do, an OSH-generated vessel can do. And, KPM does support staging.

[gattispilot]

Didn't see a read-me on how to get started. I have unzipped both files and run but when I try to load a vessel I get a CTD

[Artlav]

Originally Posted by gattispilot

 Didn't see a read-me on how to get started. I have unzipped both files and run but when I try to load a vessel I get a CTD

Well, documentation is yet to be written.
First, make sure you installed into Orbiter's root directory.
Then, there are many things potentially to do.

A small FAQ:
-To convert from SC3 vessel select spacecraft3 in the file type drop-down of load menu.
-To drag the objects press and drag the axes lines
-3D controls menu allows to directly input the position of the element moved
-Changing the type in generate menu type drop-down does not change the extension of the file written, you should change it yourself

[Dig Gil]

I suggest a "Jump to the Start" and "Jump to the End" button in animations.
Also a new icon:

The actual one it's just like Orulex... I'm proposing this one, but at the end you choose.

Icon file:
NewOSHIcon.zip

[n72.75]

I like it.

[Dambuster]

Would it be possible to have some sort of elementary texturing system? I'm thinking along the lines of dragging and dropping colours onto the vessel mesh etc.