Map Troubleshooting

[Sythes]

So yeah, I made a map, all the stuff was working fine when I tried making a moving platform. I set it up just as it said in the tutorial on the wiki, only modifying it to rise. I tryed running it and it gave me this message when it tryed to start up the map. [45/Lift1 - func_movelinear: UTIL_SetModel: not precached: models/props/light_rail_platform.mdl] I thought by reading the cache file that runs before the map would help. It discovered an error at said location, but this wasn't even related to it. In fact, nothing was there. (So I'm ignoring that.) I ended up deleting all rail platforms, and any triggers related to it. I than constructed a simple grated platform from a cube, not using any models. It still gives the error. Can anyone help? (I already searched the wiki and forums)

[msleeper]

If you can, paste the exact lines or a screenshot of it. If this is what I think it is, you can ignore it.

[Sythes]

I ended up fixing it somehow. I started filling all the leaks, and then it worked. The leaks weren't the problem before though.

[msleeper]

[Sythes]

Seriously though. The map was able to run in portal with leaks before this. That's why I hadn't bothered to fill them yet.

[msleeper]

Just because you weren't getting the error before doesn't mean the leaks weren't the problem. In fact, the fact that you said this only happened after you added the lift, and worked fine after you fixed your leaks, implies that the leaks WERE the problem.

Leaks are a problem. Fix them always. Better yet, don't make them in the first place.

[rellikpd]

NEVER EVER play a map with leaks, the only time its ok to have an open area to the "void" is when you really don't give a shit (ie: you're just testing a mechanic or something) if you have any plans on actually playing a map, or even just really learning/playing-around-with mapping, then fix leaks first. cuz it can often prevent many things from working.

[Remmiz]

I really don't get why new mappers don't give a shit about leaks. Hammer needs to NOT COMPILE the map when there is a leak imo. Teach these newbies that leaks are something that should never appear it the map, AT ALL, NEVER, EVEN DURING DEVELOPMENT.

[rellikpd]

(mostly) i agree.

i've made open-to-the-void maps before. but usually only cuz i was hammering out a prefab. it was NEVER going to be played.

aside from that, if there are leaks. FIX THEM. this is not an option, or an opinion, IF YOU HAVE LEAKS your map is broke.

[Ricotez]

It's something all new mappers need to learn, to work leak-free. I had quite a few in the old days, but nowadays, I somehow manage to work nearly completely leak-free. It's other stuff that I mess up.

[Remmiz]

[rellikpd]

well it would have to let you compile as the way the bsp program works it wouldn't know there was a leak until there was one. just like it can't test for leaks unless you have an info_player_start (atleast older versions of World Craft was this way) but it could error out and refuse to continue if you had aleak
but basically we are talking about nothing: cuz we all agree that NO MAP should proceed with a leak.

case closed.

[appunxintator]

[Sythes]

I decided to post another question in this topic, instead of creating another. I made some indicator signs in a map, that work and everything, East's indicators work and look fine. It's just that west's checkmark textures are reversed. I tried flipping the func_brush they were attached to, but it didn't work. Any ideas? (If there's a tool for flipping textures tell me.)

[NocturnalGhost]

In the face edit dialog, you can invert a texture by using a negative number in the "texture scale" x/y settings.