PhysX/Bullet on multi-client environment?

[PacoMontanes]

Hi there!

PhysX or Bullet are intended to be used in a multi-client environment?

[JeffR]

What do you mean by 'multi-client', exactly?

A multiplayer environment, where players exist in a game that has physically enabled objects? Or some sort of distributed computing situation.

It can do the former.

[PacoMontanes]

To be more specific. If I switch from stock physics to PhysX, the physics calculations in vehicles in server will be done by PhysX? I have lots of vehicles in my application...

Thank you!

[JeffR]

Oh, yes.

If you switch to one of the physics libraries, rather than the stock torque physics, then I beleive the only thing that would still utilize the stock physics is the RigidBody class. Everything else will internally switch over to go through the physics abstraction api.

[Timmy]

The vehicles don't use the physics plugin for any calculations so it won't make any difference.

[chriscalef]

Which btw would be a great direction for R&D if anybody in the community happened to be at loose ends and was looking for a fun project to jump into. I hear Physx3 has all kinds of new vehicle code, covering things like suspension and drive trains, and it's all contained in a library which I've already linked to my build, but I haven't actually taken the time to learn how it works and plug it in to Torque yet. Probably pretty low hanging fruit, though.

[Azaezel]

Which btw would be a great direction for R&D if anybody in the community happened to be at loose ends and was looking for a fun project to jump into. I hear Physx3 has all kinds of new vehicle code, covering things like suspension and drive trains, and it's all contained in a library which I've already linked to my build, but I haven't actually taken the time to learn how it works and plug it in to Torque yet. Probably pretty low hanging fruit, though.

 

TODO/Known Issues regarding RnD and the physics subsystems (there's effectively 2):

1) conform stock physics closer to how plugin ones are called structurally

2) write proper interpolation code for the plugins.

2b) track down bullet issues with initial player spawn and polysoup collisions.

2c) I'm sure @Timmy has a list for the physX side.

2d) http://forums.torque3d.org/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=902#p7383

2z) should note the lack of plugin collision is why https://github.com/GarageGames/Torque3D/pull/960 hasn't been rolled in yet.

[Timmy]

Yeah chris the vehicle stuff in physx is pretty awesome, There is a fair bit to it but nothing that couldn't be done if anyone had the time, here are the docs for it http://docs.nvidia.com/gameworks/content/gameworkslibrary/physx/guide/Manual/Vehicles.html .. Handles n wheeled vehicles, tracked vehicles etc.