New Features

• Better support for including alt-textures - Pack creators can now include an alt_items.txt and/or alt_terrain.txt file in their pack. These files are just a simple list of alternative files for terrain and item tiles within the zip. Place each file on it’s own line. See the ones in the included simpletech.zip for examples. 
• Generic Block mode preview for alt-textures - Since I cannot really know what tile is meant for what in an alt texture sheet, I just load them all on a basic block model. (Block in the sample.mdl file) This means that the tiles in an alt-terrain.png don’t have to be in any particular order to still get a preview. (Mind you it also means that multi-tile textures and objects don’t get a custom model.)

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Three new buttons were added at the top. They are in order: 

• Save Button - Saves your current mix.
• Terrain Button - Switches to editing the terrain.png
• Items Button - Switches to editing the gui/items.png

Pressing the ‘z’ key will now toggle zoom mode in which the current selected tile is zoomed to fill the picker.

Right clicking in the right hand picker will now preview tiles without doing the swap. 

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New version up.

New Features

• alt pack folder and alt terrain folder - Any pack (.zip) placed in the alts folder will be read by the pack regardless of the directory it is looking at. Additionally any .png in the alts/terrain folder will be read by 
  the pack as an alt of terrain.png. Packs in the alts folder will be prefixed with a * in the listing and files
  in the alts/terrain folder will be prefixed with a +.
• secondary model previewer tied to the right hand picker

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue with the side of the large chest model using one of the back tiles instead of the side tile.

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I have a new version up.  This one includes the ability to change packs from within the program as well as support for HD textures.  It can even mix tiles between different pack resolutions resizing as needed.

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I have the alpha version up and ready for it’s first public testing! *cheers*

Currently I only have a windows build done but it has been confirmed to run under Wine by my official test ferret.  A linux build will be coming.

To use, just download it, unzip wherever and then run texmix.exe.  It will default to using the default.zip pack I distributed with it and it will save to test.zip when you exit.  For more information (Including how to specify other packs on the command line) check out the README.txt file.

You can downlaod it here: http://thefool76.com/minecraft/texmix_bin/Texmix.zip

This shot shows the now Fully Operational Batt… er Texture mixer.  In this shot you can see how I’ve replaced the smooth stone half-block with the bookshelf textures.

I now have it loading all it’s data from files, opening texture packs that you specify on the command line, and saving the resulting mixed terrain.png in a .zip for use in the game. 

Stuff left to do before I release the very first Alpha version:

• Finish the sample.mdl file.  Currently I only have Grass, Dirt, Stone, Wood and StoneStep (Smooth halfblocks) defined
• Finish the texture_index.txt (This describes what model to use for the preview when a tile is selected on the left hand picker.)

The Alpha will only work on two packs at a time and will require specifying both source packs and the name of the pack you want to save to on the command line.  I’ll include more info about it when I release it.  

After a little bit of bug fixing, I got the preview display to play nice with my 2D GUI stuff.  (Depth buffer testing + drawing on a 2D plane = Why is only my first GUI element drawing?)

This is also probably not that far off what the initial alpha build is going to look like.  I’m picturing a scrolling ‘list’ of blocks across the top for previewing (just click on one to center it.) and then two textures open down below similar to how the web version works.  I have other ideas for what the final interface is going to be, but this setup will suffice while I get the core functionality worked out.

I have the model loader working now.  Those three blocks are being loaded off the sample file I linked in my last post.  I think the next step now is to finish defining just how I want the user interface to look and what data structures I’m going to need to support tracking the Texture pack specific data.

Spent some time working on the model file concept and I have an initial rough draft for what it might look like. 

http://thefool76.com/yummy/sample_mdl.txt

I’m going with the ‘tag’ based format because that would more easily convert over into a binary format later on.  That and not using XML means not having to add an XML parser which I think would be using a sledgehammer to kill a fly.  The rest of my logic and reasoning should be contained in my comments in the file.

If anyone has any suggestions or comments, let me know. I always appreciate constructive criticism.  :) 

After doing the preview and getting the small spinning block, I did some thinking about exactly how I wanted to define the blocks and other elements.  If the game consisted of just blocks it would be easy.  Just have a single block class and then put whatever textures on that I need.  However the game has more than a few non-block elements so I need a way of drawing those as well.

Additionally, I have the goal of re-using as much of this as possible. With that in mind I decided I needed a general purpose model definition file, preferably in plain text (at least to start with).  Unlike Notch, I like being able to easily add stuff without having to re-compile.  So when new stuff is added, all I would need to do to support it is edit a few text files.  (As opposed to recompiling the entire program.)  A side benefit to this is that it would also be easy to add support for any mods.

If I can get it to work like what is in my head, this model engine may turn out to be the single most useful thing I get out of this Texmix project, even more so than the GUI stuff.  Now to see if I can’t come up with a good design for the file…