Slice60

Slice60
(Terminal Reality)

Slice60 is TRI's own in-house texture slicer used to create the individual terrain textures for 4x4 Evolution and Monster Truck Madness 2.

Slice60 takes a single 24-bit, uncompressed TGA image that is divisible by 60 pixels in both height and width (hence the name "Slice60") and processes it to create the final 64x64 RAW textures along with their corresponding ACT color palettes. Note: The color depth of the image is reduced to 256 colors automatically during this process.

Compatibility: this is a DOS command line program that works on Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP only.

Download Slice60 here (32k)

Installation

Download the slice60 file and unzip it to the C:\Windows\Command folder. It will now be available from anywhere on your computer. Tip: Do NOT slice your graphic images in the windows\command folder. Just copy slice60 there and never look back.

Graphic Images

Use your favorite paint program to create the roads (and dirt, grass, snow, rocks, etc.) that you want to use for your track. The base of this image should be a tiling 60x60 texture. Once you've completed your graphic, you must save in 24 bit TGA format. You are now ready to slice your image into useable 64x64 pixel textures.

Basic parameters

At a DOS prompt, type slice60 to get the following parameter list:


Usage: SLICE60 inputFilename [baseSliceFilename] [startIndex] [/switches]

	inputFilename	name of the TGA to slice up. Default extension is TGA.
	baseSliceFilename	first part of the output RAW and ACT filename(s). The slice number and extension will be appended to this to give the filename for each RAW and ACT. This cannot contain more than 5 letters. The default is to use the inputFilename, without the extention.
	startIndex	index to use for the first slice number. If this parameter is specified, baseSliceFilename must be specified first. The default start index is 1.
	/I	Wrap interior edges
	/X	Wrap horizontal edges
	/Y	Wrap vertical edges

Switches may occur anywhere on the command line, and must be preceded by a '-' or '/' character. Multiple switches may be combined - i.e. /xy

Sample command lines

C:\>slice60 image dirt 065 /ixy

In this case, slice60 will read the tga file named "image" and create a set of sliced textures with the base name "dirt". The file counter will begin at 65 so the first file names will be "dirt065.raw" and "dirt065.act". Finally, this will process the two pixel overlap for the inside edges as well as the horizontal and vertical outer edges.

C:\>slice60 image dirt /ixy

Same as above but the counter will begin at 1. Example: "dirt001.raw" and "dirt001.act".

C:\>slice60 dirt

In this case, slice60 will read the tga file named "dirt" and create a set of sliced textures with the base name "dirt". The file counter will begin at 1 and will NOT process the two pixel overlap on any edges.

When the program has finished running, the screen will always look something like: this.

For more notes on the Switch options, please see here.

Some facts

- 24 bit tga at 60 pixel increments

- All output files will be 64x64 pixels

- baseSliceFilename must be unique

- Five letter target name (not six)

- Input and base file names cannot exceed 8 characters in total, including the 3 digit counter.

- The start number feature must have three digits or is ignored.

- Max output count is 999

- Take advantage of the startIndex option to conserve available baseSliceFilenames

- New baseSliceFilename will over-write old baseSliceFilename with the same name.

- $slice$.tga is a temp file used in the process.

- $slice$.raw is created as well but is either deleted or is the thing that gets sliced.

Troubleshooting

If, for some reason, the program does not work, Slice60 will not tell a lot about what's wrong. You will have to figure that one out yourself. Here are a few messages and their solution.

Message : Loading your.bmp... Can't open your.bmp
- Slice60 uses TGA only. JPG and GIF will not work either.

Message : Loading your.tga... Can't open your.tga
- Your file is not in the current folder. Copy it there, or in DOS move to where the image is located. Also, just as a reminder, be sure that you save in "uncompressed" format.

Message : Image is 192x192. Each dimension must be an even multiple of 60.
- The image is the wrong size. Remember, the image must be sized in multiples of 60.

Message : Base outfilename "yourfilename" is too long. Max length is 5.
- Keep the baseSliceFilename to five characters or less.

Message : Ending slice number #### is greater than 3-digit max of 999
- #### represents a number > 999. The input file is too large. Break it down into a more manageable size or re-think what you're doing. That's some big graphic. Also, it could be that the index counter is set too high. Lower it if you can, or it's time to find a new unique name.

Message : What is 'oo1' supposed to be because it sure ain't a valid start slice number?
- Only numbers are allowed in the index count. Also, you do not need to include the index when you are beginning at number 1.

Tip : To avoid problems, pay attention to detail when working.

Six Easy Steps

- Make a graphic image

- Open a DOS prompt

- Navigate to the folder containing your graphic

- Slice the image

- Exit back to windows

- Copy files to \art folder

Struggling with DOS?
Download turboSlice60 (64k)	This is a graphic interface for slice60.exe. Here's a support file if you need it.

This page was prepared with the assistance of:

Winterkill
EmceeMart
Oops;-)
NKA Street
Malibu350
MIYH

Special thanks to Gromit and the gang at TRI for sharing this with us.