Materials instead of textures

Miscellaneous Forums/Graphics Showcase/Materials instead of textures

Jeremy Paxman - Yeeeeeeeees
 #1
Has anyone experimented with materials instead of textures or experimented with the property of the material to affect the texture?
e.g. specular color,ambient color,emisssive color,shininess

wizzlefish
 #2
Doesn't a texture overwrite the material underneath?

Jeremy Paxman - Yeeeeeeeees
 #3
Not sure, I think the 'shininess' can still be seen,
and when you use 'EntityColor' that affects one of the materials colours(I think)

Actually I think I put this in the wrong forum, it should be in Blitz 3D programming or Beginners area - because I have nothing to showcase!

Rob Farley
 #4
It's still using a surface so you may as well use a texture.

Gabriel
 #5
e.g. specular color,ambient color,emisssive color,shininess



Well Blitz doesn't have any of those apart from shininess. It just has the standard ( diffuse ) color.

Doesn't a texture overwrite the material underneath?


No, because materials are not "underneath" textures. A texture is part of the material properties.

It's still using a surface so you may as well use a texture.


Indeed. Moreover, I've noticed performance is often *worse* without a texture. I use small ( 8x8 ) textures if I just want a flat color.

Ross C
 #6

Indeed. Moreover, I've noticed performance is often *worse* without a texture. I use small ( 8x8 ) textures if I just want a flat color.



That's interesting to know :o)

Mustang
 #7
Most cards are designed to draw textured polygon fast because that's the usual case. Polygon without a texture is not, so it might have to create "virtual texture" nased on the color value to be able to draw it at all... this is not a fact but rather gut-feeling or educated guess. But I would stay away from materials/surfaces that don't have texture/UVs.

Malice
 #8
Well in one of my projects, I use EntityColour to differentiate between Player 1 and Player 2 (one's 200,100,100 the other is 100,100,200 to make a pale blue & pale red mesh for the player crafts' main bodies)These are then Textured with the same, monochrome (well, black, grey and white) texture - kind of bumpmap thingy, really - the colour shows through giving the appearance of two different textures.

--------Actually cant remember if they are coloured/textured first, or if it makes a difference!

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Most cards are designed to draw textured polygon fast because that's the usual case. Polygon without a texture is not, so it might have to create "virtual texture" nased on the color value to be able to draw it at all... this is not a fact but rather gut-feeling or educated guess. But I would stay away from materials/surfaces that don't have texture/UVs.



Yeah I downloaded a free mesh that came without UV information. It caused lots of weird effects that even varied from time to time, and killed my PC (BSOD) if I tried wireframe mode. I have a 128M ATI Radeon card.

Matty
 #9
In my graverobber game I use bitmapped textures for the level but all the creatures use materials, and I have noticed no problems on the machines I've seen it run on.