Hi,

I have created a set of archives that contain Q3A skyboxes collected from various WEB sites. Following is the 'readme' of the archive set:

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Disclaimer:
These skyboxes have not been produced by me, I take no credit whatsoever
for them. I have put them together in these archives for convenience and
made a few slight modifications / improvements.

This archive contains a lot of (actually 79) different skyboxes
collected from various WEB sites all around the world. This is the
result of my frustration as a mapper (due to the lack of good skyboxes
in the standard distros of Q3A, Openarena and Nexuiz).

As far as I could determine, these skyboxes are all free to use
non-commercially. Some of them may even be released under the GPL. You
have to check the individual 'readme' files included in the separate
skybox folders. If in doubt, connect the original author, provided that
the e-mail is still valid which is not very likely

Each skybox has a working Q3A shader script, these are stored in the folders
'0_scripts'. Some of these scripts were made by me because the corresponding
original works did not include any.

I have checked the sun's direction & elevation values in every single
skybox in the archive. I used a simple test map for this. The MAP file and
textures necessary to build this test map are in the archive Q3SKYINF.ZIP
(see below). I also included a text file containing instructions on how to
use the map.

The archive is split to several sub-archives because the full lot is
about 128 MB compressed. This would be too large for someone who wants to
download just one specific skybox. On the other hand, if each box would
be a separate archive the whole thing would be a PITA to manage. The archives
are named Q3SKY01.ZIP, Q3SKY02.ZIP, etc.

There is an additonal small archive called Q3SKYINF.ZIP, this contains a
galery of the available skyboxes (one representative image for each box)
as well as a table of the location of the boxes in the different archives.
It also contains the special test map I mentioned above. You should download
this archive first.

I hope that these packs are going to be useful for mappers all around. If
you have a nice skybox (made by you or downloaded) which is not yet in these
archives, just let me know and I will include it if you wish.

Enjoy!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

A couple of teasers





Right now the files are kept on my personal WEB page, but I will try to submit them to LvL for wider accessibility. Download locations:

http://menczel.extra.hu/q3sky.html

mod edit removed dead links

Woah these are awesome, nice one dude, I'd love to use one in a map im making.
I've been playing around with blender making skyboxes for a while but nothing like this.
What apps are you using?
I made a few in pshop also but that's kinda limited.
When rendering from blender i had many problem with pixelated skybox textures, they just looked awful in game.
Are you on irc?
nexuiz.editing has quite a few nexuiz mappers in it. Erm... most of them actually , pls stop by and visit

Hi,

I am glad you like the skyboxes. But there must have been a slight misunderstanding: these were not made by me (as it is clearly stated in the README). I just collected them in an archive for easier access. You are free to use them in your maps (but see the remarks about TerraGen below).

AFAIK the boxes were made using the TerraGen utility (see http://www.planetside.co.uk/terragen/). This is a commercial program, but there is a free version you can download and use for non-commercial applications. So unfortunately unless you buy a license you may not put your work produced by TerraGen under the GPL

license type ?

You know what licensing is ... riiiiight ??

Whats with the negative attitude lately GreEn`mArine?
He wrote in his first post that you have to look in the individual readme files for information on the license.

Hey great work ! if i get some time i will go through them all and see which ones are gpl keepers and post which ones to throw away .

Grasshopper wrote:Hey great work ! if i get some time i will go through them all and see which ones are gpl keepers and post which ones to throw away .

Thanks. And it would be a great help if you could really sort out the GPL compatible ones for Nexuiz mappers. But please, don't throw away the rest. They are useful as long as you don't want to get your map in the official Nexuiz release.

When you post the list of GPL compatible boxes, I will include it somewhere in the README for everyone to see.

Ok . I took some time to sift through all the readme's in each skybox folder .
here are the results

these have no definate yes or no for free to use . although they give directions on how to install the skybox , they have no real permission or denial of use for any licensing . you may want to contact the author just to be sure its ok and get written consent with email.

darkgloom
sb_devilpunch
sb_desert
oasisnight
nec_night
nec_hell
mp_whirlpool
mp_velcor
mp_titan
mp_sandcastle
mp_rainforest
mp_perdicus
mp_northlight
mp_majestic
mp_hexagon
mp_goldrush
mp_drakeq
mp_di
mp_cybtech
mp_blood
mp_aft
mp_5dim
mnight
lmcity
sor_sea
sor_mars
sor_land
sor_lake2
sor_lake1
sor_hills
sor_cwd
sor_borg
sor_beach
sor_alien
siege
sb_strato
sb_nightball
sb_mars
sb_iceflow
sb_graveyard
sb_frozendusk
sb_frozen
sb_emerald

these next few have specifically stated that you must contact them and let them know you will be using the skybox . after that it is ok to use

elbrus
nec_city
mudskipper
morose
misty

These would be a good idea to find the original post and get permissions for use as well because it is stated , quote"Don't distribute my zips, If you want the originals go back to the Wadfather and download a fresh set. end quote" unless these are where you originally got them . the email and sites are included for contacts info . i really ddnt know what to do with these so i felt it best to post these to make absolutely sure to check into .

mp_toh
mp_sorbin
mp_moonwaw


Other than that the rest of the files seem to be in order and free to use as long as you include the readme file. Plus its a good idea to contact all authors no matter what to let them know you are using thier work .

Speaker:
this is what i found from the individual readme files . I know some sites you got these from probably had a " free to use " paragraph somewhere close to the downloads , but wasnt included in the pk3's . so i hope this list helps for the specific ones needed to follow up on . and thanx for your work for the extended readme's and for finding all of these

Hmm, interesting stuff. I looked through them all, and there are a few great ones, a couple good ones, and a lot of really bad ones . Luckily, most of the ones I feel are great are GPL

For anyone interested, I separated the ones I think are the cream of the crop into their own pack, which you can get here:

http://torus.mkzelda.net/q3Skyset.zip

I've removed ones that just look bad in my eyes, for whatever reason (low-res artifacts, ugly colors, ugly geometry, etc), but your taste might be different than mine

@Grashopper:

Thanks for the lists, I knew that this should be done but just hated the idea. I have already spent far too much time with this damned sky box archive.

FYI: The boxes prefixed by 'mp_' were made by a guy who calls himself 'Mighty Pete'. They (and a lot more, altogether 150 from him!) can be found on the WEB site http://wadfather.planethalflife.gamespy.com. His license says 'in the public domain but only non-commercial use' (which seems to be a contradiction although IANAL). Anyway, I wrote him a letter asking permission to distribute under the GPL. If he agrees, it will be a real boon for the mapping community here.

@torus:

Thanks. I agree that many of the boxes are not so great, but I lacked the energy to properly sort them out. I also considered that someone may like the ones I hate. It's a matter of taste as you said yourself.

Hi!

I have good news. Mighty Pete replied to my request and granted permission to distribute his sky boxes under the GPL. See his e-mail at the end of this post. If you use any of his boxes, please, give him proper credit in your README. I may not give you his e-mail as contact info (he prefers that it is not disclosed), but you may specify the URL of his WEB site:

http://www.petes-oasis.com

The boxes can be downloaded from the following place:

http://wadfather.planethalflife.gamespy.com

Most of these boxes do not have a Q3A shader. I will download the whole bunch and make appropriate shaders (using my test map I mentioned above). When ready, the boxes will be packed into a set of archives (maybe sorted according to theme) and uploaded somewhere for access. I will let you know...

------------------- copy of Pete's e-mail follows ------------------------

Well there is no source files for the skyboxes I didn't use that
program to make them in the first place. If you want to use them in
your game that's fine with me provided I get credit where credit is
do. Try to keep my e-mail address out of it. If people want to find me
they will find me.

If you want to put them under the gpl that's fine. They're older boxes
I have many more new ones. It's not like I'm running out of them or
anything.

I think the way we did it with World Of Padman is fine too. It works,
people play it. It was alot of work making that game. It's still worth
giving it a spin. There is a lot to that game. There is also in game
video's that you might want to check of the in game action.

Your Pal

The Mighty Pete

awesome . now all we have to do is sort the best and gpl'ed ones into one or a few downloads . plus i think i have a couple i can add to the list . lemme get back to ya's

I have these here are some screenies
http://www.zfight.com/misc/images/textu ... _large.jpg
http://www.zfight.com/misc/images/textu ... _large.jpg
http://www.zfight.com/misc/images/textu ... _large.jpg
http://www.zfight.com/misc/images/textu ... _large.jpg
http://www.zfight.com/misc/images/textu ... _large.jpg

get them here . Hipshots readmes say to credit him or link to his site .
http://www.quake3world.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9242

he did not include a shader file so i will upload one here . i left it in txt format so you can adjust its parameters
http://nexuiz.kicks-ass.org/~blub/nexfi ... 733d9530d4

@Grashopper:

Thanks for the links, got the stuff. They look great, but aren't they actually variations to the same theme? And only clouds, no terrain (kind of limits their usefulness). Anyway, I will add them, some people may need this kind of boxes.

Hi,

I have finished putting together the final version of my sky box archive. Actually, it is not a single archive any more. Each sky box has its own ZIP archive that contains the textures, the shader and readme/license info. The collection at present has 220 individual sky boxes. I would appreciate receiving feedback, i.e. if you find any of the boxes defective, please, let me know so that I can correct it or remove it from the collection.

There is an info archive called 'q3skyinf.zip' that contains a gallery and license information in tabular format. This file can be downloaded here:

http://menczel.extra.hu/q3skyinf.zip

Here is the README of this info archive:

-----------------------------------------------------------

Q3SKYINF.ZIP
************

Created by: Laszlo Menczel aka Speaker (menczel AT invitel DOT hu)
Date: 12/28/2008

This archive contains information on the sky boxes that I have collected
from the net. The boxes are available for download at the following link:

http://menczel.extra.hu/q3sky.html

I hope that these sky boxes are going to be useful for mappers all around.
If you have a nice skybox (made by you or downloaded) which is not yet in
the collection, just let me know and I will include it if you wish.

The folder 'gallery' contains a representative image for each sky box in
the collection, The text file 'license.txt' contains a table in which the
sky boxes together with their license type are listed in alphabetical order.

DISCLAIMER
**********

These skyboxes have not been produced by me, I take no credit whatsoever
for them. I have collected them together for convenience and made a few
slight modifications / improvements.

LICENSING
*********

I tried to determine the licensing terms for each sky box (by checking the
accompanying READMEs and the authors' WEB sites). I have contacted some of
the authors to ascertain the license terms. The boxes are divided into the
following groups according to licenses:

ambiquous ----> no clear license terms, but probably safe to use in
non-commercial projects

noncomm ------> free to use in non-commercial projects

gpl ----------> may be freely used in any project and may be distributed
under the GNU General Public License version 2

unrestricted -> free to use in any way you can think of (just give proper
credit to the author)

You can check the individual 'readme' files included in the separate
skybox archives. If in doubt, connect the original author, provided that
the e-mail is still valid which is not very likely

SHADER SUPPORT
**************

Each skybox has a working Q3A shader script. Some of these scripts were made
by me because the corresponding original works did not include any. I have
checked the sun's direction & elevation values in every single skybox in the
archive and added the appropriate values to the shaders. I have not adjusted
the color and intensity of the sun, you have to do it yourself.

In a few cases it was impossible to identify an unambiquous light source (sun)
in the skybox. in these cases I left the direction/elevation values at 0/90,
you will have to set them to your preferences.

I used a simple test map for checking the sun's settings. The MAP file and
textures necessary to build this test map are in the folder 'skytest'. I also
included a text file containing instructions on how to use the map.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
****************

Thanks to Grasshopper (member of the Nexuiz message board at 'alientrap.org')
for helping me in determining the licensing terms of the boxes.

-------------------------------------------------

I will try to move this stuff to LvL, but I am not sure if they are willing to handle this kind of artwork. I will let you know.

Grasshopper , those skies are awesome

thank you both . just trying to help the community out a bit . i have posted a link @ Nexuizninjaz for those who dont know about alientrap . here is the link . http://www.nexuizninjaz.com/forum/showt ... hp?tid=441 . it is a rescources site for mapping and the like . this post is within the alientrap version of editing called mapjutsu .

thanks speaker for your hard work . i know it took some time to put all this together .

Hi,

The sky box archive has finally been added to the LvL collection:

http://lvlworld.com/#c=m3&i=2023&d=25%20Jan%202009&m=All&p=review

It is over 450 MB in size and contains 240 freely distributable sky boxes. About 1/3 of these may also be distributed under the GPL (expressly permitted by the authors upon my request).

The LvL archive is a single big file. If anyone wishes to get just a few individual boxes, they can be downloaded from my WEB site as separate, small ZIP files. For details see the README on LvL.

Enjoy!

I have gone through all the skybox zips and shaders . I created an easy way to add all skies to nexuiz . What i have done is take all the shader files and place them in a folder and wrote a .shaderlist.txt file . this is for adding all skies and the shaders to shaderlist.txt easily .

of course place the shaders in scripts and copy and paste the shaderlist.txt to your shaderlist.txt file .


get easyaddskies.zip here http://grasshopper.nexuizninjaz.com/easyaddskies.zip
hopefully i did not make any mistakes . this took a while to do

happy mappings

hopefully i did not make any mistakes . this took a while to do

Don't worry Grasshopper. You've done it really well.
I'm grateful for your the link you support

SPAMBOT

wish you luck you'll do great.
SPAMBOT

BUMP!

USE THIS PPL!

he made an offer you cant refuse