Slenderman Monster

[Obliviator27]

So how did my original modeler create this ent?

Probably by using the Model Editor.

Is my model viewer crashing because my new version has no ent?

You should be able to load a .dae file into the model viewer, too, as far as I know. You can of course try to create an .ent first and see if you can load that. (Or is the Model Editor crashing too?)

Which makes me think - why do you need to have the model in the model viewer at all? I mean, it's just that - a VIEWER right? So can't you just create your .ent file with the model editor and throw that into your level without using the viewer at all?
(Or maybe I'm talking bullshit again because I don't know anything about the pipeline that comes after exporting from Maya. If that's the case, Statyk or whoever is still lurking in this thread, please just hit me in the face with a frying pan or something.)

The pipeline is as such.

Entities
Export the .dae from Maya.
Create a .mat file from your various textures.
Open the Model Editor.
File> Import Mesh > Select your mesh.
Do whatever it is you need to do to the model (add bodies, attach lights, change the User Defined Settings to make it whatever you need, be it swingdoor, lamp, whatever.)
Save the .ent
Open the Level Editor.
Open your map.
Go to Entities and find your model, then place it in game.

Static Objects.
Export the .dae from Maya
Create the .mat file from your textures.
Open the Level Editor.
Open your map.
Go to Static Objects and find your model, then place in game.

The Modelviewer is handy for if you're consistently making tweaks to your .dae file, as you can open the .dae in the modelviewer and just hit the reload button. That, or if you want to check out a Static Object you have made without opening the level editor.

If your modelviewer is crashing, you can easily check the Modelview.log file to find out what's wrong with your .dae file.