MilkShape Plugin : Cat's Normal Smoother - smooth selection only, correct seams

[CatOfEvilGenius]

Cat's Normal Smoother

PURPOSE

This MilkShape plugin adjusts normals in a user selected area to give the mesh a smooth appearance. It does not affect unselected areas. It handles mesh seams correctly. It will not weld vertices. It will not change or break your UV map. See example.

note Feb 19, 2009: Due to a dumb oversight on my part, this current version acts like demon's Align Normals (http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=139859). The next planned version of the Normal Smoother, not yet released, will have more features however. It will optionally preserve sharp creases and it will be aware of smoothing groups..

INSTALLATION

Unzip it and put it in your MilkShape folder. You will have a new option in the Vertex menu called Cat's Normal Smoother.

SHARP CREASES?

This plugin does not preserve sharp creases, it makes things look smooth. Another version is planned which will preserve sharp creases above a user specified feature angle and will be aware of smoothing groups. It'll be released whenever it's ready, don't ask. ;)

EXAMPLE

http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/6/8/5/1/2/7/MTS2_CatOfEvilGenius_814887_web_anim_4.gif

http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/6/8/5/1/2/7/MTS2_CatOfEvilGenius_814301_web0.jpg

http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/6/8/5/1/2/7/MTS2_CatOfEvilGenius_814302_web1.jpg

http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/6/8/5/1/2/7/MTS2_CatOfEvilGenius_814303_web2.jpg

In the thumbnails, you can see what happens with Smooth All and smoothing groups (but no welding because that breaks the UV map). I'm not criticizing it, just saying it has limitations which motivated the creation of this new tool.

Thanks
Thanks to Wes Howe for answering my questions about the MilkShape SDK.
Thanks to the creators of MilkShape and the MilkShape SDK.

[Menaceman44]

Thanks Cat! I can see this as being most useful. Would have been nice on past meshing projects of mine. At least I wont have to worry in the future.

[suceress]

I don't know why I didn't find this plugin before. Cat, you are my hero! Thank you!

[james123]

hi i downloaded this and copied all the files to the milk shape instalation folder but they wont show on the import menu in milkshape. im using milkshape v 1.7.0 if it matters please help.

[Menaceman44]

This isn't supposed to show under the Import menu option. You import yor mesh as regular and then use this plugin from the Vertex menu. Cat did point this out in her first post.

[Aligeth]

Is this different from my "Align Normals" option that I have in Milkshape?

[CatOfEvilGenius]

Is this different from my "Align Normals" option that I have in Milkshape?

Damn, oversight on my part, hadn't noticed Align Normals worked on regions, not just individual vertex pairs. The current version of the Normal Smoother works like demon's Align Normals. However, the next planned version will have features that Align Normals does not. It will optionally preserve sharp creases rather than smoothing them, and it will be aware of smoothing groups.

[Aligeth]

Awesome, looking forward to it!

[TheJim07]

You saved me, thank you ;)

[Beo]

Thanks!!!

[Inge Jones]

How come you guys have an "align normals" option in Milkshape? I can't find it!

[CatOfEvilGenius]

Inge - Align Normals is a plugin that demon made, it is in the Tools subforum (this subforum). He also made Extended Manual Edit, which I can't live without.

demon's plugins (http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=139859)

(if you have time and inclination, there's a thread (http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/smf/index.php/topic,16590.0.html) at MATY with a question about your AL mods)

[Inge Jones]

It's not a case of time or inclination, I can't even remember enough details to reply and I don't have sims2 installed any more. Whatever I wrote at the time would have been true though.

[whitewaterwood]

Ooooh! Thank you so much! I cannot tell you how useful this will be!

[telefen]

Thank you very much. I think this will help a lot.

[JosephTheSim2k5]

Thank you so much! This has proved useful today! THANKS :)

[KindGenius]

:) Thanks Cat!Now I don't need to worry about those horrible seams that appear on some models after smoothing!

[Resourceful]

this looks like One I could use
but when I tried it said I did not have permission on the mts site
to download from them