(Schatztruhe)[!][Oct 2000].iso/Aminet/game/shoot/Orbit_68k.lha/orbit/doc/OGL_sm.gif)
ORBIT -- A Freeware Space Combat Simulator
by Steve Belczyk (orbit@genesis.nred.ma.us)
Overview | System Requirements | Documentation | Contact Me | Credits
by Steve Belczyk (orbit@genesis.nred.ma.us)
- Multiplayer network support: Compete with other players over the Internet.
- Direct support for AC3D models: Easily add third-party object models to the game.
- Planetary orbits.
- Lots of other changes: Here's the complete list.
You know the story: You're the hottest space fighter pilot this side of Andromeda. An evil alien race threatens mankind's freedom to live, love, and play Quake 3. You've got a sleek ship with loads of weapons, but this time you're needed to defend our very own solar system. Go get 'em Sparky!
- Cheap: ORBIT is completely free!
- Portable: Available for Windows 95/98, Linux, and any UNIX system with an OpenGL library.
- Multiplayer action and single player, mission-oriented play.
- Pretty realistic: Newtonian physics and NASA images.
- Extensible: Easily design and add your own missions, campaigns, and object models. Create your own planets, moons and solar systems.
- Pretty fast: 30 fps on a Pentium 133/Voodoo 1. 90 fps on a Pentium 2/450/Voodoo 2.
- Open source: All source code is included in the distribution.
- 133 megahertz or better Windows, Linux, or UNIX system.
- Compatible OpenGL driver or library.
- 3D hardware acceleration strongly recommended.
- Joystick strongly recommended on supported systems.
- 32 megabytes of RAM.
- Ten megabytes of disk space.
- Internet connection for multiplayer play.
You can send e-mail regarding ORBIT to orbit@genesis.nred.ma.us. I'd be especially interested in any custom missions and models you create.
Many people contributed to orbit by providing bug fixes, contributing code, offering suggestions for improvement, or play testing the program. These generous people include Ian Belczyk, James Lockwood, Joey Hess, Rudy (rdmnsgtn), Daniel Beer, Andrew Roals, Russ Clarke, B. Douglas Hilton, Philipp Hahn, and Robert Morse. Sorry if I left anyone out!
Learn more about the OpenGL API (Application Programming Interface) at http://www.opengl.org.
ORBIT uses Mark J. Kilgard's excellent OpenGL Utility Toolkit (GLUT) library as a front-end to many platform-specific functions. Find GLUT at http://reality.sgi.com/mjk/glut3/glut3.html.
Most of the development work on ORBIT was done using Brian Paul's Mesa 3-D graphics library, a highly portable OpenGL work-alike available from http://www.mesa3d.org.
The 3dfx driver for Mesa was written by David Bucciarelli and is available at http://www-hmw.caribel.pisa.it/fxmesa/.
The spaceship models in ORBIT were designed using Andy Colebourne's AC3D modelling program, available at http://www.comp.lancs.ac.uk/computing/users/andy/ac3d.html.
The AC3D file loader is based on a program by Steve Baker (sjbaker1@airmail.net).
The TIE fighter model used in one of the screen shots was created by Harry H. Chang (doctor_harry@hotmail.com). It is available, along with many other great models, from the Avalon Public 3D Archive at http://avalon.viewpoint.com.
The data for the background stars is based on data from Raul Alonso's ssystem program: http://www1.las.es/~amil/ssystem.
Most of the images used for the realistic planetary textures came from these sites:
- Dave Seal's great maps site, http://maps.jpl.nasa.gov
- Consty's Planetary Maps Index: http://www.lancs.ac.uk/postgrad/thomasc1/render/maps.htm
- James Hastings-Trew's site: http://www.misterprint.com/planet/Planets.html
- Björn Jónsson's site: http://www.mmedia.is/~bjj/
The data used to generate the textures for the planetary rings came from images found on NASA's Planetary Rings Node: http://ringside.arc.nasa.gov