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Trial of a Tutorial for "Converting rFactor-cars to gtr² (or GTLegends")====================================================YOU may have the opinion: Converting a rFactor-car to gtr² is easy and quick-done.Following steps are necessary:- Make appropriate folders in gtr² under GameData/Sounds and /Teams- Copy files from rFactor (GameData/Vehicles) to these folders in the right manner

- In a temporary folder "TEMP" unpack the rFactors .MAS-files, select them als "objects" in 3DsimED, save these files in the OTHER .GMT-format of gtr² / GTLegends via "Save as Objects, ADD to GTR", making new "masfiles" with extension .GMT (NOT necessary for .DDS-grafic-files!)- RENAME the rFactor-textfiles .hdv, .ini, .sfx, .gen., .tbc, .pm to gtr2-name-extension .hdc, .eng., .grb, .aud, .cas, .tyr, .sp etc...- Accommodate file-names, references to extern files (STEX, TALENT, Cmaps..) in.hdc, .cas-textfiles easily with WINDOWS-Edit.exe- Paste parts of rFactor-textfiles ..Cockpitinfo.ini / ..Spinner.gen into a new.car-textfile for gtr2- Ready, done, all is running well, only a breakfast-pause needed...

Sorry, this is NOT my experience. I have - successfully - finished converting TRUCKs and - 2. work - of HistoricRallyCars/NSU-TT, but going this procedure described above I get very disappointed, I despaired nearly! Now I say: There are NUMEROS, MANY simple "errors" (typing errors! Firstly unknown naming-conventions, little differences between rFactor and gtr², other MASfile-names...), that it is TO HARD to go this way for a BEGINNER. You are working and working some time, making several steps at a single blow, and in the end - gtr² does NOT show the car orthe little "hand" for selection of cars is "flickering" (a certain symbol for some gone wrong!!!) or loading a short test-track ends with a CTD (C_rash T_o D_esktop), or - worst - you have to push the RESET-button on your computer, then waiting long on WINDOWs new starting (with HD-testing...)

Therefore I suggest another, long winded, but safer procedure: Take a good runin

g car on gtr² and substitute STEP-by-STEP single files or filenames and test, whether gtr² is still running or if you had made an error...For my 2. work (NSU-TT historic) I used "BASE4Car-Making", an upload acessable on www.nogripracing.com/downloads/gtr2/Misc or www.gtr4u.de/downloads/gtr2/Utilities, made by myself months ago: This is a basic-"car" of 4 - very poor - wheelsand a single, simple plank as "chassis" on base of a LOTUS-ELISE-standard-car, simply undressed" to the ultimative, absolute necessary parts of a running "car"in gtr² (o.k. Audio-file-reference is NOT necessary, but included as BASE.AUD). Most files are well commented, so you can take this "modell" as a base. It runs under gtr², surely!!!

First converting rFactors-GMT-files to gtr²-GMT-files is a good beginning. Identic

al extension .GMT means NOT the same fileformat!!! Unpacking rFactors-MAS-filesin a temporary folder "TEMP", loading these files as "objects" with 3DsimED, then saving these again as "GTR2-objects, ADD to .GTR" is a good sure way, not to get mysterios errors because of false GMT-format!

I have also expanded GMT-files of the general MAS-files of rFactor (Cmaps, rfHUD, ShowRoom, MultiCars) to gtr²-folders, even to new gtr²-MAS-files with extension .GTR. For NSU-TT I did also with an additonal "Cmaps_HRC.mas". I think, these files are equal to STEX.GTR in the mainfolder "GameData".

Recommended is naming the new gtr²-masfiles .GTR equal to the files for other gtr²-cars: xyz_cpit.gtr, xyz_tex.gtr, xyz_obj.gtr, xyz_wheels.gtr. I used first othernames, but I got severe problems with NOT-working analoge instruments: NO needle

 in speedometer / tachometer, NOTHING... I needed some time to find, that the already existing files speedo.tga / tac01.tga have to be in ..._cpit.gtr. Then they worked very well...!

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(xyz_cpit.gtr / .gtl is very important, especially for switching between gtr² GTL: This is the ONLY ONE masfile, whose extension has to be changed, and the reference in .CAS-file too, of course...)

For TRACKs-converting / creating I didn´t use mas-files at all, because I could simply store all files in special folders - without naming-problems (I created my

own conventions of foldernames with: _DDSs, _Objects, _Tracks!). So exchangingsingle files was very easy. I didn´t use packing or unpacking files. For CARs-converting I found NO similar way. May be, gtr² is stricter in handling car-files...?? It is rather awkward to change a single file, than as next step to pack this file again in a masfile, test it, seeing, that changing was not good, again change the file, pack it, test it...

RENAMING of all rFactor-textfiles to the proper gtr²-names is necessary. You can make it step-by-step with only single files. Rest of the files have still a namelike BASE.., if you use the BASE-4-Car-Making-Tool. After every renaming-step start gtr² to controll, whether the car is still running or there is a new mistake... De-activating most other cars and tracks make gtr² start faster in this circled-

prozesses:

.hdv -> .hdc (reference in .car-file also to change!)

..._damage.ini -> .dmg (reference in new .hdc-file has to be changed!)

.pm -> .sp (next reference in .hdc)

..._engine.ini -> .eng (2 nexe references in .hdc)

.._ratios.ini -> .grb (next and last reference of a changing filename in .hdc)I know NO method to controll the renamings (typing errors!), you have to be simply carefully.Sound-controlling textfile .sfx -> .aud.Sound is NOT essential necessary, but if you want hear anything, you have to activate sound-reference in the .car-file. I had problems with getting ANY sound for NSU-TT (Sound-files from rFactor already exactly copied from rFactor!...), so

I used sound-controlling-textfile from LOTUS-Elise (BASE-modell!) and changed only the lines for motor-sounds. I don´t know the reason, why this runs good......tbc -> .tyrAgain I had problems with NSU-TT-tyres. The tyre-file is VERY short and it has only ONE data-table. After changing "TireCompoundSetting" to "0" instead of "1" I had NO problems any more. Other counting-conventions in rFactor versus gtr² ???...HeadPhysics.ini I don´t used, so I didn´t changed anyhing. This is valid for _Upgrade.ini (a special rFactor-expansion?), for .._cam.cam and .._spinner.gen. Car runs in gtr² without these files..gen -> .casThe rather big and most CRITICAL grafic-controlling textfile! I did NOT use theoriginal rFactor-.gen-file, but instead changed my BASE.CAS-file step-by-step:

Copy the search path from another car. In BASE.CAS you have to change nothing.Show, which names your new masfiles with .GTR have, without proper names you get a failure. Do you have ALL needed masfiles (even STEX, TALENT, Cmaps, Cmaps_HRC...)? Is nothing missing?

First I changed the chassis-file, so a NSU-TT runs with LOTUS-Elise-wheels, butit would be the FIRST time, you can see an important, big part of your new car.Enjoy this moment!Now you can change the wheels according rFactors .gen-file. From extern-view the new car seems rather ready. But caution, many additional steps may follow!

Expand now BASE.CAS more and more, step-by-step. Do you have a SHADOW-file, a COLLISION-file? Is your new car displayed in the car-selecting-menu, in the showroom (NOT soooo... essential)?

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A "flickering" cursor-hand is a SERIOUS hint for a massive error! Don´t disobey this sign! For ALL selections this cursor-hand "flickers", if there is NO problem, flickering is VERY short, you may never have become aware of it, but it always happens. In this short moment gtr² searches for the appropriate files, GMT or - mostly, I think - DDS-grafic-files.

With HEADLIGHTs I had massive problems. I can do without it... (Many tracks flicker on night with headlights. An error in gtr²-grafic-"engine". RFactor is betterin this aspect.)

In the next steps regard the INTERIOR of your new car: What is with the COCKPIT-file, the steeringwheel...?

MOTEC in rFactor and in gtr² are two totally different things - my opinion. I have never seen a rFactor-MOTEC running in a gtr²-car! Don´t try it! There are enough tutorials for embedding a MOTEC in a gtr²-car! (I have written for www.nogripracing.com, with special themes: Colored MOTECs, MOTEC outside of cockpit on car-hood...)

Activating the analoge instruments caused problems (with NSU-TT). Loooonnnnggg experiments with following results: Give names to "materials" used in an alreadyrunning gtr²-car (BASE has NO instruments!): NO prefixes as in rFactor, use the SAME names! Put these files in a masfile named ..._cpit.GTR, otherwise needles can NOT be seen, do NOT work! If you regard this hint, values of rFactor´s ..._CockpitInfo.ini are a good choice.

If you have BASE.CAR in the subfolder "minimum-modell", you will got NO problems. But if you want renaming to another name, you should regard hints in this BASE.CAR-textfile. Essential is the "Manufactures Name", because this name is used for selecting the cars. The textfile .car uses this name in the form nnnnn_NAME.car, the tech-files similar, the TEX or Ultra_Tex too...

A special problem for me was displaying the different car-characteristics. I think, rFactor and gtr² are using DIFFERENT methodes for this. So I got every car (NSU-TT) with single-selection in his proper characteristic (more RED, blue, cyn,... outside and inside). But great surprise - and disappointment -, when I selected ONE car and had the other cars as AI-contrahents: ALL had the SAME characteristic, 6 red cars instead of 6 cars with Red, blue, green, cyan, orange, yellow paintwork! Gtr² uses a .DDS-graphic-file only ONCE, the FIRST car decides the painting. If he has a WCCarBody.DDS with RED, all other cars with a file named WCCarBody.DDS got only "links" to this first file with this name and so ALL have the SAME DDS-file.I didn´t find another method then using the "Genstring" in the .car-textfile and changing the wccarbody, wcextra0/1/2, wcwing, wcwindow-files for EACH characteristic. This blowes up _obj.GTR / _cpit.GTR to much bigger files, because every car-characteristic needs an own Chassis.GMT-file, where represents the FIRST character of the Genstring in .CAR. In the subfolder of characteristiced car Ihave a DDS-file with leading . In all Chassis.GMT /CockPitMax.GMT I had to change the wccarbody to wccarbody for the name of the material AND the name of the .DDS-file. This is valid for wcextra, wcwing, wcwindow too! Happy typing...! I don´t know, if there is a better method!

For GTLegends rename ONLY ..._cpit.GTR to ..._cpit.GTL and change the referenceto this file in the .CAS-file. This is ENOUGH! Car has to run under GTLegends too! STEX.GTR / TALENT.GTR (and others?) should reside in GTLegends/GameData too!

Due to RULES of internet-web-sides I can NOT publish the converted files here. Some hints, tutorials (Fight-for-AIW e.g.!) are uploaded to http:hosted.filefront.com/LkwFan, this side may help you furtherly.

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Your experience with modding, using 3DsimED and other computer-related skills are unknown for me and may be VERY different of all users of this tutorial-trial.So much things may be mistakable or - on the other side - boring for you.

My motherspeak is NOT english, I am a german at munich, Bayern. Excuse my "handmade" english. I hope, you may understand most parts of this tutorial-trial and i

t may really help you!

Greetings from LkwFan