• Which the release of FS2020 we see an explosition of activity on the forun and of course we are very happy to see this. But having all questions about FS2020 in one forum becomes a bit messy. So therefore we would like to ask you all to use the following guidelines when posting your questions:

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Best program?

gmax is harder to get to grips with but it's free, whereas fsds is easier to use but you have to pay for it.

i'd say gmax has more advantages but then again i've only heard things about fsds so i can't really give you a full analysis.
 
THe BEST program to make FS-X airplanes is 3DSMax7/8

followed by gmax


and then FS-X 3.5.1


3DSMax7/8 and gmax are fully supported by Microsoft /ACES and can handle ALL of the FS-X eye candy.

FSDS3.5.1 is an "interim" version, which can support the FS-X animations and can compile models for both FSX and FS9, but is a less powerful modelling program (albeit a shallowed learning curve if you doin't have modelling experience) overall. FSDS has certain flight sim specific features that gmax/Max do not have, but they can rightfully be considered utilities that make the processing easier.
 
im trying to follow the P38 tutorial that comes with the FSX SDK but when i try to create the calibration box i cant get it to cover the background image the same as shown in the tutorial and i've followed it to the dot?

even the wing taper looks nothin like the tutorial
 
3DSMax is great & is what the pros use, but expensive for non-professionals. gmax is good too, but as it is now an unsupported product, it will become obsolete over time. Good today, but for MSTS2-WOR or FSXI? I'm not so sure.

Interestingly, Mike Porter in his blog comments of October 3rd (http://portergraphic.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!3030C8F1EE2555A9!327.entry#comment) mentions two more: Mod Tool and MayaPLE. To quote his comment:
"Mike Porter
I really do think that is going to be a very viable piece of software for the community. This is just my opinion, but I would like to see this become the tool that the community uses. We are eventually going to need to figure something out since Autodesk is no longer supporting GMax. Another tool to look at is the Maya PLE. Again, I am not endorsing either of these, and we don't have any answers yet, but we want to figure out something that the community can use.
Thanks for the message.
-Porter
p.s. downloading now.
October 04 1:19 PM"​
I've downloaded both & hope to try them out this weekend, If I can find a couple of free hours...:)
- regards, jed

PS: If you have not read Mike's blog before , I highly recommend it. It is an excellent resource for modellers.
 
A new kid on the block soon will be 3D canvas Pro. (www.amabilis.com - $70. The freeware/trial version will not export to FSX)

Used a lot by train simulator modellers and with the new MS Train Sim based on FSX, I am trying to get ahead of the game by writing an export for FSX.

The exporter generates GUIDs, X/XANIM files, and runs XtoMDL automatically.

By the time I've finished, it should support all the material options used by the Max/gMax exporters.
The model below was a direct export from 3D canvas Pro.

The model is mostly untextured except for the blurred prop.
 

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Jed said:
3DSMax is great & is what the pros use, but expensive for non-professionals. gmax is good too, but as it is now an unsupported product, it will become obsolete over time. Good today, but for MSTS2-WOR or FSXI? I'm not so sure.
Click to expand...

According to the last I heard from Autodesk, they are still weighing their options. They rescinded their earlier decision to simply "abandon" GMax altogether. They decided to wait and see how much - if any - work would be required to make it "Vista friendly."

Consider also that MS/ACES just paid a huge chunk of change to license the export API for use with FSX.
 
decapod said:
A new kid on the block soon will be 3D canvas Pro. (www.amabilis.com - $70. The freeware/trial version will not export to FSX)

Used a lot by train simulator modellers and with the new MS Train Sim based on FSX, I am trying to get ahead of the game by writing an export for FSX.

The exporter generates GUIDs, X/XANIM files, and runs XtoMDL automatically.

By the time I've finished, it should support all the material options used by the Max/gMax exporters.
The model below was a direct export from 3D canvas Pro.

The model is mostly untextured except for the blurred prop.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the heads up on this one. It looks well-designed and user friendly. ;)

As long as the X file written adheres 100% to the published API specs, that will be fantastic!

It's always better when there are alternatives from which to choose. :D
 
n4gix said:
According to the last I heard from Autodesk, they are still weighing their options. They rescinded their earlier decision to simply "abandon" GMax altogether. They decided to wait and see how much - if any - work would be required to make it "Vista friendly.".
Click to expand...

Ah - that is news to me. Thanks for pointing that out, Bill.

- regards, jed
 
homer09001 said:
im trying to follow the P38 tutorial that comes with the FSX SDK but when i try to create the calibration box i cant get it to cover the background image the same as shown in the tutorial and i've followed it to the dot?

even the wing taper looks nothin like the tutorial
Click to expand...

That method (ie the one using background images) is not the way to go. Create texture mapped planes, or a box that is the size of the object and invert the faces, as is outlined in numberous tutorials on the web. Background images tend to move around, be difficult to work with and inaccurate.
 
homer09001 said:
works fine on my laptop and im running Vista Home Premium?
Click to expand...

Ditto...Works fine on my desktop running Vista Home Premium.

I did encounter problems with Gmax when I first upgraded and I was using an Nvidia 7600 GS card, but since I upgraded to my new Nvidia 8800 GTS card it now works perfectly. :)
 
I didn't get GMax working on my Vista x64 Ultimate - but VMWare runs my old retail Windows XP + GMax reasonable for my use - textures do not display that well, but I have not tried to fix it so that might just be a setting somewhere.
 
Just for the record, GMax/Max is not hard to learn, it just takes doing the tutorials, and reading a bit of the manual. Best if after that you can watch some "pros" model (video tutorials), or go to a live training.

Once you have the "big picture", it really is pretty straight forward.

I've played with 3D canvas, and personally don't really see any advantage to it. I mean, it seems like a good program, but once you know Max or Maya, why bother? Might be good as a lower cost option I suppose, but that would depend on ACES.
 
Waugh said:
I've played with 3D canvas, and personally don't really see any advantage to it. I mean, it seems like a good program, but once you know Max or Maya, why bother? Might be good as a lower cost option I suppose, but that would depend on ACES.
Click to expand...

3D canvas is a cheaper option than max to the hobby modeler ($70)

It has mostly been used by Train Sim modelers in the past and with MSTS2 being based on FSX it seemed logical to add an FSX export option in preparation.

There is no dependancy on ACES. I have a working exporter for FSX which I have control over to add more options. Still a week or 2 away from the full version with bones and attachments but works OK for most models.
I have demo'd my work to several of the ACEs team.
 
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