ColorOscillate

[Josh]

Here's an example of a script that will make the entity's color oscillate over time:

function actor:Start()
self.speed = 1
self.color = Vec4(1)
end

function actor:Draw()
local luminance = (math.sin(Millisecs()*self.speed) / 2 + 0.5)
self.entity:SetColor(self.color * luminance)
end

Basically, I am thinking in terms of what Michael Betke could use. Not to pick on him, but programming is not his area of discipline, nor should it be. With scripts he can attach behaviors to entities and watch it go.

 

Add a couple of these scripts with different speeds set, and you get a random but smooth change in brightness.

[Josh]

This version blends between two colors. I actually have it working in the render loop now:

function actor:Start()
self.speed = 1
self.color = {}
self.color[0] = Vec4(1,0.5,0.5,1)
self.color[1] = Vec4(0.25,1,1,1)
end

function actor:Draw()
local luminance = (math.sin(Millisecs()*self.speed*0.001) / 2 + 0.5)
local color = (self.color[0] * luminance) + (self.color[1] * (1-luminance))
self.entity:SetColor(color)
end

[Canardia]

Don't you need to multiply motion values with AppSpeed(). Most hardcore gamers have vsync forced off in the nvidia control panel (John Carmack told us not to use vsync ever, it's evil and bad), so Flip(1) won't do anything for them.

[Josh]

You'd actually want to use AppTime() instead of Millisecs(), and everything would be fine. If you were gradually adding to a value, you would want to modulate it by AppSpeed().

[Josh]

Now it's getting cool:

	teapot = LoadModel("models/teapot.mdl");
Actor* actor;

actor = teapot->AttachScript("ColorOscillate.lua");
actor->SetFloat("speed",4.0);

actor = teapot->AttachScript("Mover.lua");
actor->SetVec3("turnspeed",Vec3(0,1,0));
actor->SetBool("global",true);