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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#1 Old 25th May 2019 at 10:38 AM Last edited by VirtualAlex : 25th May 2019 at 11:05 AM.
Default Bodyshop crashing but only on new project not create a sim
I have made a hat into an accessory for an adult female and it all works fine. I have tried to repeat the process for a child female, and when I create a sim and put the hat on it's fine. But if I try to create a new project to recolour the hat, Bodyshop crashes. Where is the problem located?

(I'm following this tutorial Scorpicus_BeginnerAccessoryMeshingTutorial.pdf)
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Mad Poster
#2 Old 25th May 2019 at 6:31 PM Last edited by simmer22 : 25th May 2019 at 6:41 PM.
Haven't seen that tutorial, but here's another one that may work better if you're making accessories for several ages and want fewer files to recolor: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/moo...rial-t1979.html (a bit more work to make the mesh, but you can use the same recolor file for all ages and both genders).

I'm guessing something's wrong with one of the files, but it can be a few different things in both the mesh and the recolor file. Can you upload the files (mesh/recolor package files + milkshape file?)

For the mesh, it can be a double skeleton, missing/wrong comments or wrong group names (and you need both a frame and lens, sometimes also rin Group, even if you only use one of them, because otherwise the accessory flashes blue). Occasionally, the skeleton can sometimes get borked and disappear from the file (I've seen that a few times - but you usually get a warning about the Cres).

For the recolor, it can be a wrongly linked mesh part (3DIR), a mismatch between the texture sizes (texture and alpha must be the same size), and a couple other things.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#3 Old 27th May 2019 at 10:01 AM Last edited by VirtualAlex : 27th May 2019 at 11:35 AM.
Thanks for the link to the tutorial. It's way complicated! I am only making one age group, but once that works and I understand a bit more, I might follow it and do more agegroups.

So, I gave up and started again, and again several more times. I never repeated the crash so I didnt get to the bottom of it, but it did take me a long time to get something that worked. I have had a lot of problems with the comments on the groups, and I still havent got it right, I think. Here is a picture of my bonnet so far:



Two issues: one is the transparency, the inside is showing through, although it does look like it is the scalp part of the mesh (it was originally a hair) which I deleted. (On second thoughts I think it is just the head showing through)

The other is the "seam" as indicated by the arrows. It is a problem on the mesh itself (I didnt make it, I just edited it) and I can't get rid of it! It is not present the other side of the mesh. i guess i could redo the mesh and duplicate the good side?

Also, the bonnet had 4 groups, and the glasses mesh I used had only two. All the comments values on the bonnet were different. So how do you get a 4-group mesh to substitute for a 2-group mesh???

Thanks
Mad Poster
#4 Old 27th May 2019 at 12:58 PM Last edited by simmer22 : 27th May 2019 at 1:13 PM.
The tutorial I linked has a "troubleshooting" part - click the second "spoiler" for potential fixes to the transparency issue
You can use the tutorial to make accessories for just one age/gender, too. It's meant to be a tutorial that works for whichever age/gender combination you want.

The seam may be fixable by choosing the mesh parts you want to be smooth and choose "align normals". Be aware that if you choose the entire mesh, this may cause issues elsewhere, so be careful when selecting faces. One item at a time is best (first the blob at the back, then the half-circle to the left).

On Groups:
The Frame group is the safest to use. If there's a Rim group you can use this too (but don't make one if there isn't one to start with). If the bonnet needs only one group to look good and only has one texture, combine all the groups into the Frame group.

Only use the Lens group for the glass inside glasses or other transparent, non-texture parts. If you don't use it, make sure there's at least one face named lens (I usually snap it together into one vertex and hide it inside the head). Same if there's an unused Rim group (don't add if there isn't one). This is so the mesh won't flash blue ingame, because the recolor file seems to be dependent on having the belonging mesh groups.

Are you using Milkshape? If so, select the groups you want to combine (Groups tab), and choose "Regroup". Check the comments, and make sure there's just one set (regrouping adds all comments into one). Then use the Rename button to name the new group "frame". You should check to see if the texture still applies fine to the mesh.

Comments for the frame group should look like this:
ModelName: frame
Opacity: -1
HasTangentArray:
NumSkinWgts: 3


The lens group should look like this:
ModelName: lens
Opacity: 0
HasTangentArray:
NumSkinWgts: 3
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#5 Old 27th May 2019 at 1:59 PM
Thanks again for replying! I didnt notice the trouble shooting spoilers but they did cause me to fix a few things. Yes, I did the grouping as you said, but I wasnt happy grouping the different parts of the bonnet mesh because they had different comments. But I did eventually and used the comment you said, and that certainly made things better.
I did try aligning normals but it didnt improve things. There is actually a seam in the mesh because the UV map isnt continuous along that edge, if you know what I mean??

I'm off to check the edited mesh in game now.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#6 Old 27th May 2019 at 2:18 PM
No different, even though I changed the TXMT values and a couple of other things as per the troubleshooter.

The seam is more obvious with this pattern:

Mad Poster
#7 Old 27th May 2019 at 5:23 PM
Could you maybe upload the files so I can have a look? It's easier to troubleshoot that way.

You do have the inside-out issue, so double-check all the Frame TXMTs again. And make sure you delete the cache files before going ingame to test, because this kind of issue do stick around if you don't.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#8 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:47 AM
Here are the files - the mesh file and the recolour file. Thanks for taking a look! Much appreciated!
Attached files:
File Type: 7z  child prairie bonnet.7z (102.3 KB, 6 downloads) - View custom content
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#9 Old 28th May 2019 at 3:08 AM
This is what it looks like in Milkshape:

Mad Poster
#10 Old 28th May 2019 at 12:06 PM
I couldn't see anything wrong in the files, so I'm not sure what it could be.

I did do a little bit of normal fixing on the hat so it's smooth, and removed all but one face from the lens group (one is enough - I usually just select a face from anywhere on the mesh, duplicate it, snap together into one vertex, and fix it so it matches the lens group), but I don't think this will make a difference. I added the edited files and the Milkshape file below.

Remove the 2-4 cache files before you start your game, so you don't get any problems from all the previous hats bleeding over to the new one.

Just out of curiosity, did you just make a recolor of the child glasses and got those resources, or did you delete the resources you didn't want from the file? Just asking, because deleting resources can sometimes make accessories and hairs behave strange.
Attached files:
File Type: rar  BonnetTEST.rar (146.4 KB, 4 downloads) - View custom content
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#11 Old 28th May 2019 at 12:25 PM
Oh thank you so much for tinkering with the file! I'll check it out in a minute. I made a recolour of one of the child glasses but I think I still had to delete other age groups. Is that what you mean?
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#12 Old 28th May 2019 at 12:35 PM
That's absolutely perfect! No transparency issues at all. I don't understand if you didnt edit the mesh files?! I am fairly certain I deleted the cache files each time I reloaded the game (I have startup problems if I don't) so I would have got new hats each time.
Is it one of those times when you are just grateful it's ok even if you don't know why??
I am still annoyed about the seam in the mesh though, where the pattern doesn't flow properly. I don't know enough about creating meshes at the moment to either remove faces from that one and replace them (if that would fix it) or to make my own. Although I am currently working through some blender tutes on youtube to learn!

Thank you so much again. If you aren't able to identify the "seam" problem, no worries. It's more than a normal fixing issue, I think.
Mad Poster
#13 Old 28th May 2019 at 12:51 PM
Well, the seam in the pattern can only be fixed by remapping it, or by making sure those ends of the pattern tiles. Choosing patterns that don't show the seam as much also helps.

The UVmap shows that a tiny part of the grey area (the folds) is sticking out onto the brighter area, so you get a tiny, brighter stripe. This can be fixed by making sure you cover it up when texturing. I added the UVmap below so you can use it as an overlay on the texture while working on it.

A couple other things I did was to fix the mesh name so it matched the rest of the file (not sure if it matters, because a lot of body meshes have mismatching names for the GMDC), import the fixed mesh, and relink in the 3DIR (it looked to be linked properly, but I did it just in case). Sometimes the file just fixes itself for no apparent reason while you're tinkering about, and other times it just needs a relinking to work properly, even if nothing seems to have changed.
Screenshots
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#14 Old 28th May 2019 at 1:15 PM
I don't think it's a mapping issue though. On the mesh you can clearly see a line that shouldnt be there (in milkshape). And a seamless pattern still has a break in it along that line:
Mad Poster
#15 Old 28th May 2019 at 1:41 PM Last edited by simmer22 : 28th May 2019 at 2:38 PM.
It's an UVmapping issue. That part of the map looks like it's almost twisted around a bit, and doesn't make much sense. Are you only going to use patterns on it? If so, I did some remapping on it to put the seams in more logical and less visible places, so see if it works now. I added the UVmap so you can see what I did (Original textures may not work if they're elaborate).

The bit at the back (green in your last pic) is mapped as a straight line, probably to simulate ruffles or make it easier to texture ruffles. You should be able to edit the shadow so that the line on this one goes away. It does look like the seam ends on the side, so patterns may be a problem. I remapped this so the seam is at the bottom.

I often use Blender for remapping, because the mapping tools in Milkshape are not good for anything but simple edits. Blender is nice for meshing and UVmapping, but I prefer Milkshape when making meshes with bone assignments.
Attached files:
File Type: rar  Bonnet-RemapAll.rar (282.7 KB, 6 downloads) - View custom content
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#16 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:35 PM
Ok well since I'm learning Blender I might give the mapping a shot in that. I do want to use patterns because, you know, sprigged calico!

That UV map looks completely different. Does that come from your edited mesh?
Mad Poster
#17 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:44 PM
Yes. I did a few more edits and replaced the file below my last post about 5 minutes ago, so you may want to redownload. It should be easy to texture the way it is now, and it does work quite well with the dotted texture. You may want to add a little bit of shadows to the inside, though.

There were some really weird things going on in this map, so I did a little bit of moving around and fixing, plus put the seams in more logical places. It's a bit complicated to explain the steps of how to do it, so I suggest you find some video tutorials on UVmapping. I'm comfortable enough with UVmapping to do it in a few minutes, but explaining it would probably take hours to write down, so it's best shown in a tutorial video. There are a lot of nice ones at Youtube for Blender. I've had to go through a lot of them myself, because while I have experience with meshing and UVmapping, Blender is kinda backwards from all the shortcuts and tools in the program I used way back when, so I've had to relearn a lot of things.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#18 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:48 PM
You mean you replaced the UV map file? Will that work on the new mesh file you did, because it isnt working on the mesh I now have in my dl folder???
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#19 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:53 PM
Oh hang on I just fired up body shop again and the hat is perfect. Wow!! You have no idea how happy this makes me. I have spent 3 days solid on this awful project and have a dreadful neck cramp from it. And you fixed it in just a few moments. I am so very grateful for your time, simmer22. Thank you so much !!!
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#20 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:56 PM
It even works with the original UV map. So I really don't understand UV maps at all!
Mad Poster
#21 Old 28th May 2019 at 2:56 PM
There isn't an UVmap file. The UVmap is basically a map of where the faces of the mesh are supposed to take their texture from, and it's baked into the finished mesh. The PNG file in the folder is a 2D representation of where the texture fits on the 3D model, and you can use it as an overlay to be more precise in where you put the various texture bits or shadows.

Think of UVmapping as having a 3D origami model of the Earth. The faces/polygons on the mesh would be made up of the longitude and latitude lines. If you folded it out to a flat world map, the UVs would basically show where the longitude and latitude lines would be on this flat map.

I just remapped the mesh and replaced the GMDC in the mesh file. I added both the new mesh, the Milkshape file and the UVmap. You should be able to switch out the mesh file in your Download folder with the one I added, and use the recolor file I added in the first zip (bonnet01-EDIT).
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#22 Old 28th May 2019 at 3:03 PM
Laura says thank you too!



Perfect!
Except the hair bleed through but I dont care about that. She has a hole in her bonnet...
Mad Poster
#23 Old 28th May 2019 at 3:06 PM
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