Hello:
Regardless of Lat-Lon geographic coordinates "requested" for
ex: terrain object placement, FS forcibly "aliases" and renders many object positions
to its internal 'multi-LOD' quad matrix 3D world grid (with "corner vertices" and 256 "Area Point" aka 'LOD cell' vertices per quad... that
do have known Lat-Lon geographic coordinates).
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http://www.microsoft.com/Products/Games/FSInsider/developers/Pages/GlobalTerrain.aspx
Since we are able to make
ex: sloped flatten vector polygon BGLs in ADE, IMHO,
it might be helpful to also have the ability to display a quad matrix grid at a specified Level Of Detail (aka "LOD") level and 'granularity' of 256 Area Point LOD cell subdivisions per quad / for the terrain mesh that we 'intend' for the airport to be used with in FS by the end user.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granularity
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This might be more convenient than having to compile one's vector BGL, then wait to inspect it in FS at run time in order to see how everything 'fits together' with our airport BGL content (since we are unable to open some pertinent "airport-related" XML based BGLs in TMFViewer along with our CVX vector content BGLs).
IIUC, the vertex positions we "assign" <...or rather '
request'
> for polygons created in ADE will ultimately be "aliased" to the nearest Area Point for a LOD quad 'cell' at run time in FS, and therefore
it is important to specify what terrain mesh internal resolution and/or terrain mesh slider settings should be used with a non-default (aka "not-stock") airport in FS.
IMHO, this is particularly important with custom airports that have complex "sloped flatten" CVX vector polygon BGLs created in ADE by the author.
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The granularity of aliasing to Area Points within a LOD quad cell at run time in
FS9 will be determined by:
1.) Terrain mesh internal elevation data point grid resolution in meters of the mesh BGL used
2.) Loading of that terrain mesh BGL used into the lowest layers of the FS9 scenery library stack of layers just above "default scenery" areas
NOTE: FS9 loads and displays terrain mesh in "reverse" order compared to other prior and subsequent FS versions
3.) As a function of the terrain mesh slider for complexity in percent
4.) At a terrain mesh resolution vertex density LOD setting allowed by the TERRAIN_MAX_VERTEX_LEVEL (aka "TMVL") parameter in one's active FS9.Cfg.
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The granularity of aliasing to Area Points within a LOD quad cell at run time in
FSX will be determined (regardless of the terrain mesh internal elevation data point grid resolution in meters of the mesh BGL used) solely as a function of the terrain mesh slider for complexity in percent, and resolution in meters.
Just another idea in favor of greater convenience and accuracy for the ADE user... to minimize "surprises" seen
after waiting for one's airport scenery to load up in FS.
Hope these ideas might merit consideration for the "long list" of features to be added in ADE in the future.
GaryGB