Referencing textures AND mesh?

I've started working on new "fake" staircases. I was repositoring the textures of my clone of Altitude Attitude when I started wondering if I could also reference the mesh. So I started afresh, and referenced the mesh rather than importing it into the new package... but I'm now unable to reference the materials and the textures to the master object, as the GMND node is, obviously, missing. In fact the slaved object isn't even designable.

I suspect it's not possible, but if it is... it would be intellectually gratifying to create a package slaved both to the mesh and the materials of the master object. Hence shrinking down the size to a friendly 1 or 2 kb. Is it doable?

If a new object would reference not only the textures of an existing object, but *also* its mesh, then it would simply become the same object as the one that already exists. So then what would be the point of the exercise, if I may ask? It would probably be much simpler to just use the already existing object that you are now trying to reference.

It *might* be possible - though highly unlikely, I presume - that referencing the mesh implies that the textures will automatically be available to it, in which case they would not *need* to be referenced as well.... But then still, the new object would simply be and exact copy of the existing one...

Unless you were trying to reference the mesh of one object and the textures of a different model... In which case I would simply make recolors for the existing mesh. And maybe those recolors could be repositoried to another object... I don't know...

Anyway, I don't think that anyone ever envisioned the thing that - as far as I understand it - you're trying to achieve here.

But in all fairness, I *must* also admit that - except for one tiny little thing - I've never done anything with meshes, textures and the like. I'm not a creative person on *that* level. The one tiny thing that I *did* do, was a new cover for my Reward Catalog. But that was easy.

(22-02-2017 11:39 AM)BoilingOil Wrote:  If a new object would reference not only the textures of an existing object, but *also* its mesh, then it would simply become the same object as the one that already exists. So then what would be the point of the exercise, if I may ask?

Ah, quite so, and a good question! Basically what I'm doing is cloning Maxis' original staircases (the non-modular ones) and turning them into rugs, so that they can be used as step-covers (to be placed over modular stairs). I'm not touching the mesh or the textures.

For my first stairs, I cloned the mesh and slaved the textures. In an ideal world, I'd be able to reference the mesh and also pull the textures -- but I have a feeling it's going to be one or the other.

Thanks for the explanation. As I said in my second paragraph, it might be that if you already have the mesh referenced, the textures are automatically available and need not be referenced separately. You could at least try *that* first. If it doesn't work then I think that what you want cannot be done... unless someone else knows of a way, of course!

I cannot think of anything that does that exactly. I do know you can "call" an object so that you can change shape (insimenator and simblender both for instance do that) while retaining the bhavs for your own object. But you can't recolor said called object. So again it is limited. You are probably better off just doing what you are doing with the first one. Even things like curtains just use the same mesh turned diagonally for the diagonal curtains even as those are repositoried to the straight ones. But they still have the mesh separately in their own package.

Gaaah but it would be so nice! But yes, I tried it, and it just gives me an object that isn't redesignable. Not fit for purpose!

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it can't be done. Recolors find their object by guid, and as you know the guid on your object has to be different from the original or they conflict. A bit counterintuitive because slaving works and we don't need guid for that, but the way it's accessing recolors is different.

You can test it for yourself if you want. Change the guid on Simblender to the same one as one of the objects it's shape shifting to, and you'll see you can access the recolors of that object, but not the recolors of any of the other objects.

These windows by Nysha reference the mesh and texture of the original object. Cracking these open might help you figure out how to do it with the stairs

Gummilutt, I see what you mean. Slaving works easily when you actually have *something to slave*, a bit more difficult when it's just a reference.

Klaartje: oooooh! Downloading now!

Just want to clarify that what I said you can't do is call mesh shape by texture list and also access it's recolors. Nysha's still contain some mesh-related resources like GMND, SHPE, CRES and TXMTs. I haven't looked at Nysha's but I imagine she's doing some kind of slaving just with less parts (which is really cool, who'd have thought you wouldn't need to do everything to make slaving work?).