Sounds like a good idea. If you're having trouble visualizing the planets, and stars, try using your 3d program and placing various spheres representing the different spacial objects (spobs). Then whe nyou have all your spobs placed, just write the co-ordinates of each one to the xml file
YES the DXSDK will come with the appropriate exporters for, 3ds, maya, and I believe XSI... HOWEVER, I've used it professionaly for maya for the past two years, and lemme tell you, the DX exporter can be quite tricky... if there is a 3rd party one, I advise you to use it! Also, at least for maya, it will export everythign in the scene, including cameras, and hidden meshes, so be sure you have a VERY clean scene when you export... NO ERRONEOUS MATERIALS! But I gotta say, it's
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