Yes, the last part is the scaling (as mentioned in the Javadocs btw.). If you see a black screen, it's most likely caused by the model's position in object space. Not all models are located around (0,0,0). Plus, the fps-example allies gravity, so if you are not located inside the model after loading you just fall down into infinity and can't see the model anymore. That's why i suggested to use a modified HelloWorld instead which doesn't do all this application logic. That makes it much easier to understand the basics.
OBJ can be loaded with the new beta version. Have a look in the News-section for a download link.