Print Page - 3D STUDIO MAX 6

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Lord Schtupp on January 19, 2004, 06:58:36 am

Its been my experience that 3d studio plugins do not migrate well to later versions of the program. We are pretty lucky that the version4 exporter even works in MAX5....

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: sandman69247 on January 19, 2004, 12:51:56 pm

You might need to check with Discreet. I just read an article in Computer Arts magazine about MAX6, and they said that while 6 is not an overwhelming advance over 5, the main thing is it's shipping with some of the more hard core plug=ins installed. Maybe one of those is incompatible with the MOD plugin. Just a thought.

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Heavens_Eagle on January 19, 2004, 11:03:08 pm

I think I saw something about Max 6 is compiled with a newer version of MS C++. IIRC the older compilation of the plugins isn't compatible with the newer software. If someone with a MAX 6 SDK, the source for the plugins, and the newer version of C++ could recompile the plugins I bet.

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 05, 2004, 05:04:24 am

In 3ds max 6 when I load the plugins I get error 127: the specified procedure could not be found... I looked over all the imported functions in the plugins and they all match 3ds max 6 dlls except for TBSetCount

...as called in SFCmodImp.dli and sfcmodexp.dle:

Code:

 ?TBSetCount@@YAXPAPAUTabHdr@@HH@Z

Undecorated C++ Function:
void __cdecl TBSetCount(struct TabHdr * *,int,int)

in the 3ds max 6 maxutil.dll:

Code:

 ?TBSetCount@@YAXPAPAUTabHdr@@HHH@Z

Undecorated C++ Function:
void __cdecl TBSetCount(struct TabHdr * *,int,int,int)

- notice the third integer required by the version 6 dll... perhaps this is the only change needed? I've tried using a hex editor to change the call but it messes up all the internal references in the dli... Is there any chance that this will be updated? (I'll keep trying to edit the compiled plugins...)

Could somebody send me a copy of the 3ds max 5 maxutil.dll to compare and test?

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Wolfsglen on April 05, 2004, 08:12:35 am

I sincerely hope someone gets the plugins working for Max 6 somewhen, asa i can get it for a couple of hundred instead of its full retail. Only reason i havent got it yet is due to lack of .MOD support...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 05, 2004, 03:53:13 pm

Me too, Im just working with the demo for now to see if I can get it to work but not much luck so far... (it is not due to the fact that it is a demo - other plugins load fine...) I can't seem to find a demo of version five to test it out.

What started as a desire to determine model sizes for my mod (and maybe try my hand at a few models) has now turned into full blown research on dll structure (or the Portable Executable format) which is kind of interesting and may come in handy and is piquing my interest in writing in assembly again - but is not exactly where I wanted to be right now...:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/02/02/PE/default.aspx
http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/02/03/PE2/default.aspx
http://my.execpc.com/CE/AC/geezer/osd/exec/pe.txt
http://mup.anticrack.de/perules.txt
http://rs1.szif.hu/~tomcat/win32/apj2.txt
http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=dll+RVA+relocations&meta=

Hopefully someone with the source for the original import and export plugins (dlls) ( Sean Dumas - Taldren, 1999?) and the 3ds max 6 SDK would be kind enough to take the time to create an updated version?

Even if I can succesfully edit the bad function call how will it react with the missing integer?

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Wolfsglen on April 05, 2004, 04:11:42 pm

I can send you the maxutil.dll from Max 5.1 if you need, just drop me a PM and ill get it sent to ya...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 05, 2004, 05:08:26 pm

The 5.1 maxutil.dll does confirm that the TBSetCount function in old version of the dll only had two integer arguements. So far it is the only difference I have found. So close but yet so far!

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: yakaspat on April 05, 2004, 06:08:43 pm

Yes, please, keep us updated on this! I have 3DS 6, the full version, and, I would love to be able to export 3ds files to MODS, that way, I can make my own models too, for SFC! ;-)

-Lance

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 07, 2004, 05:07:53 pm

Ok, I've run four different disassemblers on it, none of which gave me a complete enough disassembly to work with in a reasonable timeframe (demo...). So not much luck that route... however, with a hex editor and going by the PE file structure I have added the missing integer to the function call (but not to the code supplying it - it will remain empty - i'm hoping its optional in the new max...) and corrected the file offset created after the change all the way back to the export table; all that remains now is to correct is the portion of the import table affected by the change (location of 21 function names called from maxutil.dll, mesh.dll and MSVCRT.dll).

I'm sort of making progress, I guess. I'm not even sure this will work if I can readdress everything correctly in the dll (dli/dle) - the new TBSetCount function in maxutil.dll may not work with an integer arguement missing, or there may be further incompatibilities once all the functions imported by the plugin are found - chances are a bad function call will appear as the first error... but who knows, my hack just may work - I'll keep working on it for another week or two - after that its not much use to me because my max 6 demo will expire. Maybe Milkshape will do the job or perhaps I can get a deal on an old copy of max 5...

Edit: max reports a missing module (error 126) before it detects a missing procedure (error 127), of course, as I've just learned from testing the incompletely modified dli

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 07, 2004, 08:37:05 pm

Much to my amazement, I got it to find all the functions, no more error 127 - but now max 6 says:
"DLL <SFCmodImp.dli> is not made for this version of the program - not loading"

I wonder if it is detecting incompatibilty or just checking for a plugin version stamp of some kind that I can fake...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: yakaspat on April 07, 2004, 08:49:12 pm

Good luck!!!!

-Lance

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 07, 2004, 09:54:19 pm

I got the importer to load in max 6 by copying the version export function from a version 6 plugin, but it crashes max with an unhandled exception when loading the MOD file. Probably the missing integer? max 6 produces a nice error report on crash which I'll now analyse...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 10, 2004, 01:06:43 pm

I've got the exporter to load in max 6 as well, but it crashes max 6 with a similar error. What is frustrating is that from the disk activity when a mod file loaded/exported and the memory dumps I know it is almost there. I'm back at the disassembly to try and get the info necessary to edit the code section of the dll where maxutil.dll is called. I just need to push an extra integer on to the stack in the right place without disturbing the relocations significantly and then correct the relocations affected. The tricky part is to find out what this integer should be. I guess I'll download the max 6 VS7 SDK (...sigh why do SDK's and API's always gotta be for the latest most expensive ide that I never have...?

) and see if it will help with my disassembly and editing of the dll.

NOTE: I am making all these edits to the dli/dle files with a hex editor only! If you have the source for the max 4/5 plugin, VS7 and the max 6 SDK please take pity on me - this update should only take about three hours, not three weeks...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Wolfsglen on April 10, 2004, 01:10:17 pm

Best of luck, wish there was more i could do to help since i want this as bad as everyone else

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 15, 2004, 09:18:34 pm

Well, my max 6 demo will expire soon and I don't think I'll be able to update the dll completely with a hex editor alone in the time I have. I'll try the Milkshape demo since it has the conversion built in to see if I can get the model size info I need for my mod. I've got more productive (and waaay more fun) ways to spend my free time on SFC. Maybe someone else will update the max plugin eventually...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: 111wallace111 on April 16, 2004, 09:09:42 am

Thanks for trying
I wonder if compiling the original code with the max 6 sdk would work.

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 24, 2004, 12:14:04 am

A warning - I uninstalled my 3Dsmax6 demo and was quite displeased at the leftovers:

Safecast (well known spyware - formerly known as C-Dilla) under the guise of Autodesk liscencing. (I would have said no to Safecast or C-Dilla at install, I didn't know Autodesk contained it) It also left behind other software components with no uninstall. After much manual deletion and registry edits I think I have purged the beast from my machine. I also found and removed a WebGain installation at the same time though I'm not sure if it is related to 3dsmax6.

Hopefully the Milkshape demo will not report my activities to a central server and leave third party spyware installed on my machine like 3Dsmax6 did.

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: yakaspat on April 24, 2004, 11:58:13 am

Milkshape will leave a nugget somewhere in your registry that you will never find...

My 30 day trial expired, and, try as I might, I was never able to remove the registry entry.

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: jimkirk on April 28, 2004, 03:54:58 am

Any luck?? I am waiting if someone from Taldren will convert this stuff into MAX6. I haven't got Visual C++ 7 to do so. I ahve got MS Visual C++ 6. I am not willing to buy new MS Visual

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: jimkirk on April 28, 2004, 02:42:48 pm

I'll reply to myself

Any luck again ??

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Wolfsglen on April 28, 2004, 05:36:49 pm

Considering the massive popularity of modding for these games, i really am surprised Max 6 compatible importers/exporters havent been released, to be honest

Heres hoping still...

Title: Re: 3D STUDIO MAX 6
Post by: Bonk on April 28, 2004, 06:06:21 pm

Quote:

I'll reply to myself Any luck again ??

I already gave up - check my posts above. Sorry.

I'm playing with a Milkshape demo now instead.

Dynaverse.net

Taldrenites => Starfleet Command Models => Topic started by: 111wallace111 on December 31, 2003, 09:32:53 am