Mini-Tutorial: A broken glass for your windows

11 May 2005: How to apply the tutorial to other windows (LINK)

07 May 2005: Further simplifications: steps 12 and 13 were removed.

16 Mar 2005: Since the various versions of SimPE may look different, I've prepared a ready-to-use package; this makes the tutorial even easier to follow. As a consequence, the Tutorial was updated.

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I've created a window with a broken glass to go along with the "Trashed" set, and many users asked me how did I managed to do so.
Since the subject is interesting, and some technical info are involved, here it is a basic tutorial about it.

You need SimPE (I used v 0.35b for this tutorial) and CEP installed.
I assume that you have an average familiarity with SimPE and the usual recolouring procedure.
Probably you already know it, but let me repeat once more: commit and save as often as you can!

Part 1: Preparing the package.

1) Extract the package included in the attached zip in a work folder; you can freely rename the package. If you are going to create a glass for a window different than the cheap one depicted below, you need to modify the tutorial package as described in this post.
2) Open it with SimPE.
3) Choose the menu Tools / Hash generator
4) Click on the "GUID" radio button: a long number (hash) will appear in the lower part of the window; select and copy it.

5) Choose the menu "Plugins" / "Fix Integrity".
6a) Select the first line and click again on it (slowly): now you can rename the existing filename; place the cursor at the end of the word "clear" and paste the hash.

6b) Do the same with the second line, then click OK (*don't* click "Update").

7) Select the Material Override and replace the value in the "Family" field.

Commit and Save.


Part 2: Modifying the texture.
8) Select the TXTR in the upper panel, right click on the image in the lower panel and choose "Export Alpha Channel"
9) Now open your favourite painting program and load the alpha image you have just saved (it should look like the first picture at the bottom of this post: almost plain black).
10) Modify the picture following your taste. Using a light grey colour and the "spray" tool, add some dirt to the window, then use a white pencil to drow the breaks in the glass. Afterwards, paint in full black some sections of the glass (look at the second picture to have an idea about what the final result should look like). Remember that the more "black" is a pixel in the Alpha picture, the more "transparent" will look that pixel in the actual texture. Save the picture and close the painting program.
11) Go back to SimPE and right-click again on the texture; this time choose "Import Alpha Channel" (*not* simply "Import", but actually "Import Alpha Channel"!). Choose your modified image file and import it.
12) Right-click again on the texture and choose "Update all sizes"; commit and save.


You're done! Copy your newly created recolour package into the download folder and enjoy you broken window!




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Tutorials:Broken_glass_for_your_windows^wiki

Numenor - I've been working my way through this tutorial with the window you suggested first (not much problem). I wanted to try it out on the Independent Expressions Showcase Shop Window as well (i.e. the 2 tile in the same set).

When I'm cloning it - I can't find any of the window TXTR or LIFO files...
(Just the TXTR files:
windowtwotilewidedisplay-window-aluminum_txtr
reflectionkitchenhighcontrast-envcube_txtr
genericsquaresharpguob-alpha_txtr

and the LIFO
windowtwotilewidedisplay-window-aluminum0_lifo)

How do I attach the window glass texture to the window? I want to use a specific one just for it?

Kiri

Don't mind me - I need to read better...

Kiri

Moved to Tutorials for safe-keeping :D

OK - I've now read better...



Is the result of said tutorial. Thanks Numenor - it did make my head spin a bit but finally got the sense of it.

Just to confirm that I did...

If I hold onto the files created in steps 1-3 of Part 1, I don't need to repeat them because I can use these files for any window that I want to change that doesn't have a TXTR file. Is that right?

The other thing I wanted to check -

Although I did not save the clone at all, I find that the original object has the 2 lifo files attached to the TXTR images. Is that ok?

Kiri

Celebkiriedhel, you really have silver eyes! Your glasses are fabulous! I'm glad that this tutorial led you to such a good result.

Yes, if you hold the extracted textures (and the MATD, as well), you can reuse them. Actually, you can reuse your modified glass with other windows as well: simply, each window will adapt the glass to its frame (thus altering the ratio, maybe).

The LIFO you've found in the clone become part of the TXTR file in point 2 ("Import local LIFO"), so the stand-alone LIFOs are not needed anymore.


RGILES: thanks for the new displacement of this tutorial and for watching over us
Hey, what's that green "S" at the end of your nick?
You should use a "2", instead: RGiles Squared! :D

Great! That makes sense! Thanks Numenor.
And thanks for moving this up here RGiles - it's so much easier to find now :D

Kiri

celebkiriedhel,
Really beautiful work on those windows. Wow. I love it.

numenor,
The S is for "Supermoderator"... as in "It's a bird! It's a plane!" :D

thank you !!!!

WOW... tyvm numenor for showing me the way to put a textur to the glass...
i'm full of inspiration now

@celebkiriedhel
wonderful work.... do you make more?


that's my way to realise that tuto:



let me thank you guys again :wave:

Chriko - your windows are gorgeous!

Yeah - I'll be making more windows now that I've got the hang of it.

I'm working my way through every object that I can.

Kiri

Ok the only part I don't get is the import local lifo :confused: can someone shed some light on this for me do i click on import and browse to the lifo?

CHRIKO:
Wow! I should have written this tutorial before...!

MERV1976:
Select the texture and it will appear in the lower-right panel. Now look in the lower-left panel and click on the entry whose name ends with "1_lifo"; then right-click on the chequered square on the right; from the menu, choose "Import Local LIFO".
Do the same with the texture entry whose name ends with "0_lifo".
Commit and save.

In this way, you actually *merge* the LIFOs into the textures, and so you don't need the LIFOs any more.

Wow that was a quick response thanx (skips off to make some windows) :D

Anyone interested in windows and glass may find interesting as well my latest addition to the MATD encyclopedia: take a look at this post.

numenor: I have followed every step of your tutorial(really great) to try to mod the independent inc. nonreflective window. But the game seemed could not find the glass texture for the modded window glass (showed with red cross:confused.

never mind. my bad. now all the things were fixed and ok.

Nice work, Iamcoming! Not suitable for a church, maybe...

Ok another problem when I'm in paint shop pro I draw my design in white and save it then when I import it (selecting import alpha channel) it shows up black and I can't see the design in the game am I missing something here? please help it's getting frustrating :weep:

Merv1976, you mean that when you import the alpha in the texture, the texture itself looks plain black?
You should see something like this:

Sorry numenor, this is off topic. Who is that in your avitar? Is it the Colossus of Rhodes?

Nice tutorial! Thanks for the LIFO information. Also I see you use 'fix TGI'. Can you explain what that is for?

fleabey, look here:
http://forums.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=36619

The pic is exactly how it looks but when I'm in the game its just a non-seethru dark blue. Maybe I missed something when I was renaming everything. Did make a window and it was fine I'll have to check it to see where i went wrong in the new one. Thanx for your help by the way. :D

Mmmmh... A non-seethru dark blue makes me think of a "flashing blue texture". Check the filenames and the internal references, and remember that the packages can't be renamed: once you choose a filename in Object Workshop, you can't change it any more.

Numenor,

I'm having a recent problem, with the SimPe, I downloaded yesterday. A lot of the glasses for the windows are coming up with the message:

"Object reference is not set to an instance of an object."

This message occurs when I select the glass subset of a lot of windows. I've tried it out on all the Independent Expression windows and the only one that allows me to create a recolour, is the shopwindow that already has a glass attached.

I've got Version 0.14.1853.6909 of SimPe.

What am I doing wrong?

Kiri