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Changing Null Value in SBuilderX inf File

falcon409

falcon409

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I am working on an Aerodrome currently and I'm down to attempting the seasonal ground textures. Winter is a problem because the white is resampled as red (forgot about the null value in the inf file). So I made the change in the photo01.inf file and went back to run the compiler. . .when I checked the inf file while it was running it had reverted back to the original null value (255,255,255). Why?
 
I would assume that when you select the map in SBuilder and press the compile button the app will generate a new .inf overwriting the one you modified so that's why your null value reverts. Once the .inf has been generated and you've made modifications to it you can compile the photoreal by just dropping the .inf on resample.exe, you don't even need Sbuilder running.

Jim
 
falcon409 said:
I just darkened the image slightly.
Click to expand...


Hi Ed:

IIUC, you resolved your issue via the suggestion in the SOH thread on this topic: :confused:

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php?82623-An-SbuilderX-INF-Question



BTW: The above method you used was also suggested by Luis Feliz-Tirado in this thread:

http://www.ptsim.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7495


...as an additional protocol to those discussed in his Tutorial "Make photo-real ground textures in Flight Simulator X"



FYI: In effect, setting the *.INF file NullValue parameter to numeric values of less than 255,255,255 is comparable to "darkening" a raster image so that it contains no pure "White" color 'areas' when rendered on screen in a graphics editor, except that the specified color is not included in the final aerial image output by FS SDK Resample.

255,255,255 = pure white 'color'

128,128,128 = mid-point in the gray scale of a 8-bit "color" RGB palette

0,0,0 = pure black 'color'


AFAIK, this method to deal with "missing color values in source data" is to be distinguished from using a Blend Mask as a sort of stand-alone "Alpha Channel" file with negative color values to specify the extent of transparency between one's aerial imagery superimposed onto the underlying default or 3rd party add-on land class textures (ex: FSX default land class or OrbX FTX Global land class), where:

255,255,255 = pure white 'color' (allows no transparency)

128,128,128 = mid-point in the gray scale of a 8-bit "color" RGB palette (allows variable transparency)

0,0,0 = pure black 'color' (allows full transparency)


http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?t=75338



Interestingly, this "Alpha" transparency control mechanism works in a somewhat similar manner when 3D modeling: :idea:

http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14394




Regarding the "Red" (...missing data ?) area associated with use of a "NullValue" *.INF file parameter to correct for certain colors in the aerial imagery source files, a review of that topic (and related considerations when "masking") ...can also be found via a link here:

http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/showpost.php?p=637481&postcount=2


...subject to the initial CAVEAT:

"Null Values and Blend Masks do not go together very well. If you are using a Blend Mask, do not use a Null Value in your source image. Let the Blend Mask handle the transparency"


PS: Indeed, as Jim states above, one needs to remove the *.INF file SBuilder generates for a given data set of background map aerial imagery tiles from the [SBuilderX install path]\Tools\Work\ sub-folder during each session if one wishes to save it as a work set.

IIRC, this is because SBuilder uses the same "Photo01.inf" file name each time a new background map aerial imagery tile work set is compiled. ;)

http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?t=424552



Jim also makes another very important point about working with NullValue (literally) at the other end of the (color / gray-scale) spectrum from the parameter values addressed above ...in this interesting thread on avoiding "Black" spots in ones aerial imagery source data to prevent "pop-through" of underlying default / 3rd party land class: < thanks again, Jim ! >:wizard:

http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?t=425290


Hope this helps ! :)

GaryGB
 
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