User talk:JeffLane

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• Archive 1 -- October 10th, 2006

Designing stuff

Hey Jeff i was wondering how you obtained that effect in EP1 where at the end of the game against that stirder with the agressive behavior. While the player is in a cargo container the strider uses its cannon to shoot at the container leaving a dent in it. Also how do you make static props fall or are they dynamic? like when gordon leaves Alyx at Black Mesa East due to the rublle that falls and causes Gordon to venture into Ravenholm. Thanks--Gear 16:30, 11 Oct 2006 (PDT)

I did not work on that section of Episode One, but I'm guessing it was done with the SetCannonTarget input on the npc_strider and a simple model replacement by enabling and disabling two prop_dynamics.

Falling debris that blocks a route is usually done with prop_dynamics parented to a func_movelinear or func_door, with other effects triggered at the same time, such as func_breakable, env_ar2explosion, env explosion, ambient_generic, etc. --JeffLane 17:23, 11 Oct 2006 (PDT)

Something else i was wondering was the entity you use to make a brief cloud of smoke appear when the cannon of a strider hits something. And Thanks for the help on that one there.--Gear 20:05, 11 Oct 2006 (PDT)

Hey Jeff is there any way i can use the ep 1 content. I get the models and materials in hammer but in game the materials have the purple and black checkered box and the models have the huge "ERROR" model.--Gear 04:01, 30 Oct 2006 (PST)

Lump Files

I have read the article about patching levels with lump files and was wondering if you could make a tutorial or provide me with some more detailed info, especially how to check what lumps are modified when i change certain entity's properties? --Xoqolatl 05:52, 26 Nov 2006 (PST)

I'm not really sure what you are asking here. The entity data is an entire lump in the .bsp (lump 0), so when you extract the .lmp from a newly modified version of the map, all entities in the map will be included in the lump. When you make the new version of the map, you need to make sure to only change entity data (no brushes), just as if you were doing an -onlyents compile. --JeffLane 16:55, 28 Nov 2006 (PST)

Caution

If making User:mdurand a Sysop instead of User:Mdurand was a mistake, be sure to remove the mistaken clearance before somebody figures out that you can get Sysop privileges by making a user by the name of User:mdurand. --Andreasen 15:00, 15 Nov 2006 (PST)

There is no error, you cannot make a username "mdurand" if "Mdurand" already exists. Case-sensitivity is ignored for the usernames, except for pagelinks. --JeffLane 15:20, 15 Nov 2006 (PST)

Cinematic physics

Are cinematic physics possible to fake with the current SDK? Noclip 17:04, 11 Dec 2006 (PST)

Yes, by doing animated models using traditional methods and an entity such as prop_dynamic. There is no other method I am aware of. --JeffLane 17:10, 11 Dec 2006 (PST)

It may work out better to do a half-and-half scene if you can using phys_convert—ts2do 22:10, 11 Dec 2006 (PST)

You can try (that's one of the traditional methods to support animated elements), but if many props are converted to physics, there will be no performance savings and they may as well be physics from the beginning. However, phys_convert can definitely be used once the physics simulation is finished in order that (some of) the objects will interact properly with the environment. --JeffLane 12:16, 12 Dec 2006 (PST)

User scripts for the wiki

Could you enable user scripts for the VDC, so tools like the navigation popups can be used, making navigation more efficient? (User scripts are protected, so only the user can change which script he uses.) --Pizzahut 03:25, 1 Jan 2007 (PST)

It's possible. I'll add it to the list of things to look at after the next wiki upgrade, which should hopefully not be too far off. --JeffLane 09:41, 4 Jan 2007 (PST)

I was hoping this would be added too, for the same reason. There's also nice editing scripts currently on Wikipedia like WikEd. --AndrewNeo 10:08, 4 Jan 2007 (PST)

Combating spam

Assuming the spammers are bots, how about adding the spam blacklist and/or the FancyCaptcha plugin? Template:Mw --Pizzahut 10:06, 28 May 2007 (PDT)

Yes, I've seen these, and it is likely that one or both of these will be added after the next Mediawiki upgrade, which is still in the works. --JeffLane 15:07, 29 May 2007 (PDT)

Blocking npc_strider cannon

Hi Jeff. I've noticed that the strider cannon can't be blocked by geometry brushes or models. Is there any easy way to allow the player to cover behind them? Thanks,--uoz 13:23, 7 Jul 2007 (PDT)

It's been a little while since I've looked at this, but here's the basic rules:

• World geometry (brushes) blocks the attack if it's between the point of impact and the victim, unless the strider is aiming at an npc_bullseye, which it always hits.
• Heavier physics objects can absorb some of the damage, but do not block the attack. Generally, due to the size and shape of physics objects, they make unreliable cover from strider attacks.
• Brush entities, such as func_brushes, will usually block the damage, but the edges of these brushes can allow damage to be taken in some cases. Larger object = better coverage.
• Large invisible brushes can surround objects to provide more reliable cover.
• The code for the strider attack resides in CGameRules::RadiusDamage() in gamerules.cpp, for reference or changes.

In the future, I would suggest asking in the Steam SDK forums for a faster answer and one that can be seen by more people. --JeffLane 15:36, 17 Jul 2007 (PDT)

Thanks, I'll give these options a whirl. --uoz 14:15, 18 Jul 2007 (PDT)

Citadel Model

Hey there Jeff. Seemingly odd i cant get the Ep1 citadel card model to work properly. Apparently the cloud affects as well as the lightning arcs work correctly yet the citadel does not appear at all. Ive looked at fade distance and its not set nor is dx level fade. Mainly the model only really appears when i fly into the 3d skybox and get awfully close towards it. Thanks for your time and patience.--Gear 07:00, 20 Jul 2007 (PDT)

episode 2 SDK

I was just wondering, will the episode 2 SDK update hammer? There are several bugs that haven't been fixed for several years, and some are very serious. Solokiller 01:04, 31 Aug 2007 (PDT)

The Source SDK is an independent package. It will be updated to work with Orange Box content, like it was for Episode One. --JeffLane 07:39, 31 Aug 2007 (PDT)

Mikeblas

Is User:Mikeblas a Valve employee (like he claims he is on his user page)? Just checking. (Looks funny to not know about the Valve image.) --Andreasen 03:54, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)

Indeed it does, yet maybe theres a list of current staff somewhere like on the steam website or?--Gear 08:41, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)

Prior to asking I searched for "Jeff Lane" together with "Mike Blas" on Google, without finding any result, so either he's new, or he's not that well known. --Andreasen 10:53, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)

Yes, Mike works with Valve as a Steam Developer. Do not read too much into the lack of a logo on his user page. --JeffLane 14:58, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)

TF2 Beta?

Jeff can you share if the beta will still arive today or later today, or even tomorrow, you dont have to give the exact time but al least a little info, people are seeming to become crazy about it.--Gear 17:27, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)

• Jeff, go flip the switch for us please ;)--RP 20:10, 17 Sep 2007 (PDT)