SYSTEM-X DESIGNER WANTED

[Emma.J]

Hi everyone, first of all I feel a bit embarrassed here  I've never done any cad work at all, the closest I've gotten is using paint program on windows to make up patterns. So I'm not sure how much help I'm going to be 

I've just had a look at Sir Pleamo's files he sent me and they are AMAZING  Hats off to a master. Brillant detail!

I think Cachalote is right about trying to keep all this together on one thread so it's easier to find. I don't really know about the technical things every ones writing about but I can still glance over it and later on when I've got a better understanding I'll at least know where to find it.

I will try to set some time aside at the weekend to work through the first few tutorials on sketch-up with the aim of creating my first part soon- fingers crossed. I might be a bit slow and not have much time but I will try to contribute to this amazing idea.

So well done and many thanks to all involved.

[Tiermann]

I think you will do great Emma. You have wonderful design sense. I'm going to need to learn how to use Sketchup properly myself. I am using MoI to make the parts because I am very familiar with it and it has some nifty tools - like curved corners on squares and the ability to mirror on a diagonal. Making that part I did I made one of the connection holes and then was able to mirror it to the other end of the piece, than mirror them both on the diagonal to put them on the next side over as well. Sketchup may well be able to do that also but I would spend more time trying to find the tool and figuring out how to use it than I did to make the whole part in the program I'm familiar with. Anyway for actually constructing buildings I would be best to learn Sketchup and then save them out as a different file format so I can put them in my preferred rendering program.
I think parts I make myself will end up being saved in 3 different file formats - .3dm .skp and .obj - it's a quick and easy thing to do and would make them useful to just about anyone.

[cachalote]

an organization proposal...
  o.k. guys let me know if you agree with this solution.
  silence will mean consent if you don't mind.
a) we mantain this thread for all the "general" issues.
b) i ask sylvia to create a sticky where all system-x parts can shown in a .gif or.jpg or.png files with a direct link to an external database where the actual sketchup files are kept.
this sticky would be used only for the publication of parts (no chit-chat) maybe with an introduction message repeated on all threads asking people not to insert anything else.


a confession ...
  although i am an architect (and like to think i know a thing or two about geometry) i was foolish to assume that you all had the same difficulties that i feared i would have with files and modelling strategies.
  it is clear that you are very comfortable around this problems (much, much more than i am) and that you can create whatever models you desire.
  the images you showed, tiermann, are superb.
  the same with you sir pleamo - and i was stunned with sketchup capabilities to create apparent curved surfaces (the sandy beach relly looks amazing). 
... and emma, the first thing you need to have to learn something new is the will to do it - and that you clearly already have. the rest just follows (i am also an university teacher and one of the few things i have learned for sure is this). 

a request ...
  as i am obviously the less skilled individual here maybe i could just take care of the organization of little things - like asking sylvia to do organize the threads and ask people to help with some things (the finding of a site to host the library would be the next "need").
i can also provide some knowledge of the playmo-pirate family if needed.
so, for everything else - the important stuff - i suggest that you can all speak to each-other with a "french revolution" spirit - liberty, equality, fraternity. 

[Tiermann]

It will depend on the final size of the files. The ones Sir Pleamo sent me take up about 45MB of space. I can offer up to 3-4 G of space at Animobil for the time being to host files.
I have some concerns about having the files be directly accessible from the forum. There are other possibilities we might take a look at. This is Sir Pleamo's project and it is up to him how he would like to deal with the files.

[sbblabotw]

I'm reading this thread with vicarious enjoyment and anticipation - vicarious because I know better than to jump into a whole new large project when I'm overdrawn on free time as it is!  But I'm willing to help in ways that won't suck me under completely.  I can host the model files, and link to them from the part pages at PlaymoDB. I've already got the part numbers and descriptions all set up, and all I'd need would be a cross-reference from part number to model filename. I can set it to be accessed from the site only, from the forum as well, or to the world at large, if you want.

In a win-win type of scenario, I see a couple of advantages to PlaymoDB from this:

I'd like to take advantage of the models to provide a search based on SIZE, if that's possible.  Too often there's a generic part that can only be described by its function, which is not obvious when it's isolated from its set; so if a searcher can specify that it's 30mm by 60mm by 15mm and is white, that's narrowing down the field a great deal, without have to guess keywords or categories.  There are some parts with measurements in the German description (taken from the German Ersatzteile pages) but not nearly enough to be useful, so I haven't incorporated them yet.

I'd like to host image files created from the models, both in the orientation shown in the plans and from other views, side- and back- for example, possibly more useful for identifying a part.

Colours, too, have to be specifically set in models, so if I can use your collective decisions to accurately name the colours (or at least use the same colour name for parts that are actually the same colour, and different for different) that will increase my accuracy as well.  Every new piece of data helps!
 
Other features like "number of sockets" would be relatively easy to retrieve from model data as well, I expect. What else would be useful to count? Handholds/rods? Clips? System X knobs, or round knobs? Steck ins and outs, if you're doing those?

Using the model data is all eventual as I get programming time!  But to write a new box on a part-page that takes a part number, checks for model existence, and gives back the model image and a link to the model data would be pretty swift.

[Tiermann]

That would certainly be great Heather. If we could find a way to record an animation of the part rotating that wouldn't be too bulky in file size it would be ideal.
There is a Ruby Script to export directly from Sketchup to a .obj file located at http://sites.google.com/site/jimfoltz02/ObjExporter.rb You install it by inserting it into the Plugins file in your Sketchup program folder. It works nicely.
Here is an image of Sir Pleamo's Lamp model exported to .obj and imported into Vue. I changed the material to brass and put it into an ocean scene for the render. (render means taking a picture of it in the 3D software)

[sbblabotw]

That would certainly be great Heather. If we could find a way to record an animation of the part rotating that wouldn't be too bulky in file size it would be ideal.

Sure: Animated GIF would be fine, maybe six or eight views around, or over the top, as was useful.  Probably something the quality of your white-column-comparison picture, to keep the size down... the full renders are lovely but would be rather large!

[cachalote]

ah, ah, we have another sailor on board.
  thank you for offering your help sbblabotw/heather - i think it will really be precious.
maybe we should wait for the weekend to see what sir pleamo has to say to all this.
as playmodb is a non-profitable organization i guess it would be o.k. (if you sell it to geobra don't forget to invite us for a lunch).
as you, i tend to not to put the cart in front of the oxes (a portuguese saying) but i see here a great opportunity to make geobra see what can be done with their products (i know they can be very short-sighted but let's not loose faith).
  as i see it, at the end of all this you and sir pleamo will be hired by geobra to put together the best 3-d database the toy industry has ever seen - and you will be pais generously.
... but, staying on topic, the "who (and how) will have access" remains a question unanswered. 
sir pleamo should be the one to answer it. 

[Sir Pleamo]

 

WOW, I have not read all details yet because I can't keep up my concentration just because such GREAT THINGS happened in only these two days while I had not the time to check up what's going on here...

WOW Heather is maybe with us! I can't believe it! 
tierman is doing a brilliant job!!! 
cachalote bring himself to the man of public relation of this project! 

I really love all of you!
Excuse my emotionality, but what has started on my computer just for my private use seems to get bigger than all my dreams! It's absolute unbelievable!

For short:
@Heather: yapp, animated gif I guess is a brilliant solution (see the picture). And sorry for only that short answer, but believe me your post is in my eyes so important, that I will answer in DETAIL soon.
@Emma: It looks that this project is not dead in a week, so you need time? Take all the time you want! I am so glad that you are  (even if it will be only mentally) with us! I love your creativity and your designs!
Okay, I will check all the posts and mails and all the stuff and answer as fast as possible! Promised!!!

[cachalote]

anxiously waiting...