Creating normal maps / specular maps

[Snake Man]

I personally use photoshop nvidia plugin and TexView2 filter to create normal/specular maps. Then there is the crazybump which apparently has some registration trial thingy. Also shadermap has been said to be good util without registrations.

What do you guys think which map generator/method is best one?

Sascha Henrichs nvidia plugin normal map tutorial.

[Gnat]

Since CrazyBump now only haves an expiring version ... I'm using this.
Now many if any options, but it works.

ATI NormalMapGenerator

[T_Rex]

This may also be useful, although I haven't had a chance to try it yet.

http://www.shadermap.renderingsystems.com/

[Snake Man]

Creating normal specular maps for me goes like this:

1) take source texture (from PanTool when merging textures) and save it to Filename_CO.tga
2) open Filename_CO.tga in photoshop, use Filter -> Nvidia Tools -> NormalMapFilter, settings; scale 5, wrap, 3x3, add height to nmap, animate light, average rgb and unchanged options ticked. Click ok.
3) File -> Save as... Filename_NOHQ.tga
4) Open Filename_CO.tga with TexView2, choose Edit -> Filter -> Load, choose specularMapFinish.bitfilt and let it run. Save as Filename_SMDI.paa.
5) Right mouse click Filename_CO.tga and choose Send to Pal2PacE which creates Filename_CO.paa.
6) Right mouse click Filename_NOHQ.tga and choose Send to Pal2PacE which creates Filename_NOHQ.paa
Done.

Now... is there any easier way to accomplish this?

How about just having 1 source texture "Filename_CO.tga" which you could right mouse click and have a send to for some cmd batch file to process normal map and specular map, then finally convert them to PAA files automatically?

I'm asking because I think the shadermap works on command line, which would allow us to build such cmd bat files, but did it also create proper specular map for ArmA usage? (I have no clue if TexView2 specularMapFinish.bitfilt is somehow ArmA specific value thingy).

Any help and ideas for this would be highly appreciated and it would speed up my VTE and other texture merging/creating a great deal

[Gnat]

.
......... would you believe is as simple as saving an existing texture as _AS
..... and TexView2 does the rest for you !!

Bzzzzztt ... your talkin Normal maps hehehe.

Only thing I've found since Crazybump is ATINormalMaker ...... not as good, but its very quick.

[Snake Man]

This topic was for how to create those normal/spec map textures the easiest, but its so close so I added Sascha Henrichs nvidia plugin normal map tutorial to the first post.