Originally posted by Sergiales
I'm afraid that the .x file probably cannot handle extra info (as the selections, which seems to be a Lightwave's native property). As Morgan said, perhaps that extra info has to be stored in a companion file, not in the .x file itself.
The .x file format allows custom format. If you have the .x file exporter plugin source, you can add new formats that only your custom reader will need. This means a companion file is not necessary.
The things you will need are the following in the exporter:
1. Set up a header for the custom format for registering that new template.
2. Generate the custom format data.
In the reader:
1. Register the new format.
2. Parse the new format.
From what I know, the hardest part is in the exporter. The data that Jim needs has to be generated to the exact specs that he asks for. That means the info he needs has to be extracted by the exporter plugin from LightWave, the same way other info are now being extracted.
I am working on the same problem that Jim has but using 3DS MAX as the source. The easy part is that the current .x file exporter for 3DS MAX already support the info so I won't need to rewrite that part. I am only rewriting the reader to handle the new data that is being exported.
Note: I haven't played with the current LightWave exporter that Jim and/or Prolific has so I don't know how to help Jim on it yet.