Server shape file

Shapes are the 3d objects that users with graphical client see. The format of individual shapes is the same as that used for creating user avatars, defined in the Sim shape format guide. The shapes file simply contains a list of shapes, like :

type {
        attribute  value(s)
        attribute  value(s)
        ...
	}

type {
        attribute  value(s)
	...
	}

...

In addition to the attributes in the shape format guide, 3 others are supported by the server. They are :

name string
A unique name for this shape, usually associating that shape with an object or person of the same name. Note that this attribute is not mandatory for shapes that do not represent a person or object, such as walls and floors.
cmt string
A comment, useful for identifying nameless shapes. Because map data files are passed through the C pre-processor by the server before being read, any C-style comments like /* this one */ are lost when file is written out again. However, if you use the cmt attribute in your shapes, it will be correctly written out again by the server.
hidden number
If the value of this attribute is non-zero, then this shape is considered to be invisible, and is not sent to clients. When an object is picked up by a player the shape of the same name will have it's hidden attribute set automatically, to be cleared when the object is dropped. You should never need to set this attribute manually.

In addition to the standard shapes available for creating avatars, the server map file format also allows copy shapes, for easy duplication of already defined 3d objects. The format of the copy shape is

copy source {
	attribute  values(s)
	attribute  values(s)
	...
	}

Source is the name of an already defined shape to copy. The new shape has all the same attributes as the source with the exception of the name, which is not copied. New values for common attributes can be specified in the copied shape, so you can reposition, recolour or scale the new shape. However, you can't add new sub-shapes to a collection or change the radius of a sphere shape in a copy.

A shape with a name starting with _ is a definition shape only, and is not visible to clients. Definition shapes are mainly used for copying, allowing you to do something like :

coll { name _column
       box { corners 0 0 0  1 1 .1
             colour 250 200 150
             }
       box { corners 0 0 1.9  1 1 2
             colour 250 200 150
             }
       tube { centre .5 .5 1
              radius .4
              height 1.8
              colour 250 250 250
              }
       cmt "A stone column"
       }

copy _column { pos 5 0 0 }
copy _column { pos 5 5 0 }
copy _column { pos 5 10 0 }
copy _column { pos 5 15 0 }

Every server must have a shape called _player, which is the avatar that new players created on the server start with. This can be any shape, but should follow the avatar creation rules defined in the Shape format guide (centred around (0,0), facing along the x axis and roughly 2 meters high). There is no requirement that servers making up different parts of the same world have the same default avatar, as player's shapes are transferred from server to server when a server boundary is crossed.

Return to the [server guide] or to the [final report]