Pioneer dev forum

I tried out Sketchfab for showing off models.

It's renderer is quite nice, especially the skybox reflection. Which is mostly visible on the cockpit, and more subtly on the faded/weathered parts of the model.
How difficult would be to implement such thing for Pioneer? How much impact it would have on performance?

A static one reflecting the skybox would be dead easy, maybe do it in an evening, but it would only really work from space.
A dynamic one would take a little bit longer, a week or two due to doing it whenever I can in the evenings, but isn't actually much work.

I did start something already but I'd have to pick over it's bones and redo it for the current renderer. It's how I originally saved out the galaxy background when starting the skybox support so the engines quite capable of it :)

I'd like to raise two issues:

• - How often will the player see a ship that close in space? I guess only when using external view on the players own ship?
  
  - What is the reflective index of a cockpit? I doubt you'd get much reflection from faint stars, only from the system's main star. For instance, those who watch too much Disney movies might be disappointed in learning that star light can not be reflected on water surface.

impaktor wrote:I'd like to raise two issues:

• How often will the player see a ship that close in space? I guess only when using external view on the players own ship?
• What is the reflective index of a cockpit? I doubt you'd get much reflection from faint stars, only from the system's main star. For instance, those who watch too much Disney movies might be disappointed in learning that star light can not be reflected on water surface.

• In space it might only show up on the cockpit, though the sun might be visible on the body. In space stations and on planets (during daylight) it could add some colour/light everywhere.
• You can treat it as just a contribution or do something in the shader to darken it etc.

My main justification is that it adds some surface fidelity without using stupidly faux-detailed textures. Like cars today get most of their surface look from reflections of the surrounding.
Sure a milky way would look strange while you are docked to an orbital, or landed on the surface.

Well if it's surface detail you want we could implement detail textures for ship too. Not using the ground/grass detail texture of course :)

I've created an issue on my own issues list to remind me to do it.

No, I'm more like against that kind of greebley/meaningless texture detail, and I'm thinking of ways to avoid them without sacrifizing fidelity/interest. (I might be a bit obsessive about it though :) )

I just read your issue, and I'd think a separate multiplying AO texture slot with it's own UV would add more possibility for proper detailing, especially on things that reuse textures a lot (stations, big ships for example).

I think that when I start on this I'll do it in parts anyway so each can be discussed as we go :)

If full reflections are going to be impractical, maybe we could consider adding glares just for major static light sources and/or updating the reflection less often?

Also, I think opaque yellow cockpits are beyond fugly - any reason they aren't dark or transparent (we could have even low res reusable pilot+seat model resource for that, it's not like anyone would look up close and the pilot would wear suit and helmet anyway)?

And BTW:
Sorry for my long period of inactivity, RL can be absorbing.