Jmonkey Engine (JME) is a game engine written in java. It participates in GSoC, it uses OpenGL 2-3, It works inside of web browser (IE, Firefox, Chrome, Rekonq), windows, linux, Macintosh, Android and other platforms what support java. It’s OPEN-SOURCE software. It has its own SDK (JMEPlatform).
We (JME community) need blender scene importer improvements. JMEPlatform has got blender importer plugin, but it does not support bones, animation, empties. Please, help us blenderheads in better integration of blender into our work-flow!!!
Importer supports:
.blend files (2.49, 2.5) compressed or uncompressed.
Object meshes with location, rotation, scale.
Materials.
Texture Color map, Normal map, Specular map, Alpha map.
Importer does not support:
Layers (only first layer works)
Empty objects (import empty objects as empty nodes to JMEPlatform)
Bones/Armature
Animation
Right coordinate system (XYZ coordinates)
We need a volunteer who will be able to add all not supported features. That will be great help to open source game development and blender integration.
Knowledge: java, JMonkey engine (how it loads objects), Blender 2.5 API.
Oh, eherm, sorry for the confusion mifth. This is Erlend, from the jME team I forgot that I’m using my old “Sadr” nickname on this site, he he. I just wanted to list to that other job listing because of its simple summary of merits & benefits that prospective contributors might find interesting.
Helaas, the quality of the youtube demonstration is for my PC to low, to see really what is going on …
A big difficulty is to build a nice visual interface (as is done for Bl 2.49) for Bl 2.55; your 2.49 exporter script is rather sophisticated. Is the author for questions available?
(and the tutorials for beginners is for me, though worked with Java IDE’s, not easy enough,
got only the box and text to work …, probably a difficulty of using jMonkey not as administrator [Vista])
To be precise: From second (beginners) tutorial
and only new Node(“pivot”); does not work too (the original)
And this is NOT described how to solve …
EDIT: Sorry, … error from me, have (at this moment) to rebuild Java knowledge…
OK, I changed it totally and works now …
What do you mean? There is a 1080p resolution available.
A big difficulty is to build a nice visual interface (as is done for Bl 2.49) for Bl 2.55; your 2.49 exporter script is rather sophisticated.
Wen you say the “2.49 exporter script”, are you referring to the OgreXML export script for Blender? This script is not made by us, but by the Ogre3D team. We are not interested in making another exporter (an OgreXML exporter for Blender 2.5 is in progress already). What we want is an importer, to load Blender 2.5 .blend files directly in jME3. A jME3 Blender Loader was in development for a while, but it was abandoned. The code is very well structured though, so it should not be that difficult to continue working on it.
Is the author for questions available?
The original author is no longer available for support. Most questions however can be answered by users on the forum. For priority projects like the Blender Loader, the developers can be contacted directly (even by Jabber chat) if necessary.
Thanks for taking an interest! If you’re considering picking up this project, let me know and I’ll do what I can to bring you up to speed.
I don’t know anything about java, but reading your problem, i think that java would be enough(no 2.55 api knowledge needed).
You want an importer, so it’ll work inside jme, not in blender. What you need if to know how dataset are saved inside the .blend file, so you can access them with java and save them in your own file format. The .blend files’ structure is described in blender.org (maybe this could help http://www.blender.org/development/architecture/ ) and you can join the irc with the devs to ask for “professional” help. They should give you more tips than anyone that never faced the problem of saving all the informations into files(and load them)
Hope it helps…
Though I was to some degree familiar with Java (building applets for viewing mathematics …) and knowing the surface of Blender, I think that the combination of both is a little bit too difficult for me (though very much intreaging) …
all I can do to stimulate the blender importer for JMonkey is some donation by me. about 40-50 dollars. So if you will make some part of that work I’ll be ready to donate.
No no, no money, but maybe give me a link to the source of the abandoned first tests … it is namely very much intreaging (who knows, Java was a long time (last century) my favorite, before it was replaced by PHP and now Python, because of Blender)
Like I said, it’s pretty far ahead already. The only problem is that the core developers’ time is better spent adding features that they can quickly develop without learning a whole new architecture first.
Very interesting … now I need some help for two things:
How to get the source with a SVN client (either Tortoise SVN or Bazaar) <== was easy, solved, the SVN command was found on the website and worked on my PC ;-).
and after succeeding how to make a project using it (… remember it only ‘half’) and … ok was easy too.
Now I have a jm3blend project with… imported from a build.xml …
What I need now, an easy Main class, e.g. to import a .blend (e.g. with only the default Cube in it) to get
a feeling, how things work in jMonkey …
Okay. First thing you want to do now is have a look at the jME Wiki. Notice that we highly recommend using jMonkeyPlatform. This editor makes working with jME3 a lot easier. Among many other things, it comes preinstalled with the latest version of jME3, as well as providing automatic updates for it.
After you’ve installed jMonkeyPlatform and updated it to the latest version, do the following:
Tools -> Plugins -> Settings: {Make sure “jMonkeyPlatform User Contributions” is enabled}
Now go to “Available Plugins” and opt to “Reload Catalog”.
Find and install “Blender Support”
Now you can put the plugin to the test. For an example, check out mifth’s video tutorial: http://vimeo.com/17618770 (source).
mifth has some experience with using the blender loader, so hopefully he will be able to answer any usability questions you might have.
What is not clear at this moment is: how to test the plugin? (the Vimeo seems to make music and if I am
right, it eats to much PC power … and I am sorry though HD it is not super sharp …probably I have to use private help?)
And what I saw from the jme3blend (and friends) there is already a lot of knowledge built in which I have to understand and if it is valid in Blender 2.55 (for 2.49 I am sure not to do investments, maybe only as startup).
What about this? Looks usable to or in be for Blender:
MeshTools,
Collada
PKHG, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDHMWsu_PqA&feature=player_embedded - this video shows how JME works with blender. All you need is to install Blender Support plugin into JME. Then in JMonkeyPlatform press right click at blend file and select “convert to JMP binary”. You will see new created file (*.jmp) with the same name as blend file.
Today was “Oma und Opa Tag” … so we were busy to look at our granddaughter …
I will try now … sorry your advice is not clear to me … maybe use a private message?
You should be aware, that I am a newbie to jMonkey …
The blender support plugin is done (I think).
I have two projects in the projects window: BasicGame(3) where a square can be moved by the arrow-buttons. And jme3blend.
Both ‘libraries’ contents differ a lot … (the latter is used for yet for a normal Java …main, nothing from jMonkey )
… only class jme3blend.BlenderLoader
So to be precise: “in the jMonkeyPlatform press right click at a blend file” ???Where???
and if I should succeed, what and where can I use an *.jmp file?
Tomorrow I will look at the wiki (and I registerd as pkhg at the forum of jMonkey) …
I would like to get the T-Rex blend-file … ;-).
It shows Blender 2.49,
If I click on Models (of BasicGame) nothing happens … so I have to open my 2.49 Blender myself?
OK, doing it myself and using the Ogreexporter works
a j30 file is created, but trying View model, nothing happens.
Reason(Opening Screen viewer below in the window stays at 14%?!) how to solve?
Use window … (hi hi).
Got ‘Susanne’ … (in red) and now in my given color …
Reason: the exporter named it Scene.material, but Suzanne.material was not found, renaming solved
the problem
Ha: with 2.49 I can (it looks like) import models with material …
So, a part of nececessary startup has been done… (to maybe help with your wishes)
EDIT:
A .blend in the materials (of 2.55) works too …
I forgot that I’m using my old “Sadr” nickname on this site, he he. I just wanted to list to that other job listing because of its simple summary of merits & benefits that prospective contributors might find interesting.
