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Feature Wishlist

Hi Jeffrey,
I was wondering if SODE can be used with FSX material ground poly. If it possible to have this thing visible only when it rains. Since this type of ground poly still cause problem. The light from the airplane does not illuminate on it. Object that can be visible only when it rains would be nice.

Thanks.

 
jtanabodee said:
Hi Jeffrey,
I was wondering if SODE can be used with FSX material ground poly. If it possible to have this thing visible only when it rains. Since this type of ground poly still cause problem. The light from the airplane does not illuminate on it. Object that can be visible only when it rains would be nice.
Click to expand...

I accomplished this with a series of various size and shapes puddles that display under these conditions:
<ConditionalVisibility LogicExpression="A$B">
<Condition ID="A" Variable="DayOfYear" Value="75-330"/>
<Condition ID="B" Variable="MetPrecipitation" Value="RAIN"/>
</ConditionalVisibility>

The models are just flat planes and one more drawcall to the texture sheet with the various puddle shapes. I like the flexibility of placing the water where I want instead of having every surface look flooded.
I used the day of year variable since the other days it's winter where the airport is so the model places patches of snow instead.
 
Hi Jeffrey,

I was wondering if it was possible to add a simple "year" option to the day and month visibility options?

The reason that I ask is because I have an airport set in three different periods, when it was used by three different operators, who had different runway control "caravans" in use. At present, I am using SODE to selectively make visible one caravan appropriately for the runway in use, but it would also be useful to be able to change the model appropriately for the operator, depending on the scenery file in use.

Thanks very much indeed for your efforts.

Cheers,

Ian P.
 
I've been experimenting with using SODE as a way of placing stationary fully functional aircraft carriers.
Changing the Category to Boat in sim.cfg makes the optical landing system and catapults work, leaving just the platforms and the associated arresting gear non-functional. This limitation can be relatively easily overcome by placing the platforms and arresting gear as conventional scenery.
Platform functionality may be useful in other applications, so you may wish to include it in future. For my purposes it would make things easier.

Anyway, thanks for developing SODE, very promising indeed.
 
Essex said:
I've been experimenting with using SODE as a way of placing stationary fully functional aircraft carriers.
Changing the Category to Boat in sim.cfg makes the optical landing system and catapults work, leaving just the platforms and the associated arresting gear non-functional. This limitation can be relatively easily overcome by placing the platforms and arresting gear as conventional scenery.
Platform functionality may be useful in other applications, so you may wish to include it in future. For my purposes it would make things easier.
Click to expand...

Aircraft carriers were actually one of my test cases for SimDisplay (http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/simdisplay.430167/), a utility that allows for creation of SimObjects via SimConnect via an XML schema (similar to SODE). I had it set up so I could actually send waypoints as well. If you're interested in carrier stuff, you may want to take a look.
 
If I may suggest a couple of other options, similar to my "year" suggestion above, would it be difficult to add "Day of Week", "Day of Month" and/or "Month of Year" to the variables?

This would allow, for instance, a grass area of an airfield to be mowed every Sunday, or a banner to be displayed specifically on a certain date (birthday? National day?) regardless of whether it is a leap year or not, which will affect the "dayofyear" option.

Everything I'm seeing with this tool is making me appreciate it more and more. Thanks very much again for your efforts!

Ian P.
 
ollyau said:
Aircraft carriers were actually one of my test cases for SimDisplay (http://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/simdisplay.430167/), a utility that allows for creation of SimObjects via SimConnect via an XML schema (similar to SODE). I had it set up so I could actually send waypoints as well. If you're interested in carrier stuff, you may want to take a look.
Click to expand...

Yes that would be ideal, thanks. Unfortunately it's nothing like as stable as SODE on my system (FSX-SE).
 
Essex said:
Yes that would be ideal, thanks. Unfortunately it's nothing like as stable as SODE on my system (FSX-SE).
Click to expand...

Any particular problems you're having? I could look into them when I get some time. Let's take this discussion to the SimDisplay thread, though, so we don't derail Jeff's topic too much.
 
May be what I ask is not your guys' problem at all.
But for the user like me. I found it is very difficult to use XML by editing it.
If it has a graphic user interface to fill in the blank, what to place with SODE, where to place, boolean condition, etc and it generate XML for user would be great.
 
jtanabodee said:
May be what I ask is not your guys' problem at all.
But for the user like me. I found it is very difficult to use XML by editing it.
If it has a graphic user interface to fill in the blank, what to place with SODE, where to place, boolean condition, etc and it generate XML for user would be great.
Click to expand...
I don't want to reinvent the wheel, but what would be nice is an integration into Airport Design Editor. So you can place a SODE SimObject and edit the attributes and everything, then you can save it to a SODE xml.
But I have no time at the moment to do this, but in the long-term, this is a desirable solution.
 
I was actually thinking exactly the same thing earlier this week, Jeffrey, while I was getting positions from ADE to type into the SODE XML file for wind direction specific objects.

Someone commented on the article that I wrote a short while ago for simFlight that they wouldn't touch SODE while it didn't have a graphical interface, as well. Personally, the one thing I'd strongly suggest is not trying to use Notepad to edit; if you use something that does an automatic part error check for you, such as Notepad++ or one of the many equivalents, I find that makes a big difference.

Cheers,

ian P.
 
I think if you are done with all development such as jetway,VGDS etc. It would be nice to integrate it into ADE.
 
Ian P said:
If I may suggest a couple of other options, similar to my "year" suggestion above, would it be difficult to add "Day of Week", "Day of Month" and/or "Month of Year" to the variables?

This would allow, for instance, a grass area of an airfield to be mowed every Sunday, or a banner to be displayed specifically on a certain date (birthday? National day?) regardless of whether it is a leap year or not, which will affect the "dayofyear" option.

Everything I'm seeing with this tool is making me appreciate it more and more. Thanks very much again for your efforts!

Ian P.
Click to expand...

Ian, the requested variables are now included in the upcoming V1.3.
 
Brilliant, thanks Jeffery. Now I have to start making an animated tractor to mow lawns, a'la Fritz's at Emma Field, I suppose!

Ian P.
 
I have placed 3 windsocks on Antwerp Airport. This is the code, and it is working.
-----------------------------------
<SODE>
<SimObject Name="EBAW">
<Placement Lat="51.190" Lon="4.460" Alt="40" Hdg="0.0"/>
<Model SimTitle="Environmental Data Probe">
<EnvironmentalDataProbe ClientList="WindSock1;WindSock2;WindSock3"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>

<SimObject Name="WindSock1">
<Placement Lat="51.187838428" Lon="4.456454962" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Low">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="0-5"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Medium">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="6-25"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock High">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="26-90"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>

<SimObject Name="WindSock2">
<Placement Lat="51.187938675" Lon="4.470493197" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Low">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="0-5"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Medium">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="6-25"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock High">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="26-90"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>

<SimObject Name="WindSock3">
<Placement Lat="51.192103811" Lon="4.455208182" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Low">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="0-5"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Medium">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="6-25"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock High">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="26-90"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>
</SODE>
----------------------------------------------------
It's a lot of code for 3 identical obects. Can't it be reduced for almost a third?

example (not working)
----------------------------------------------------
<SODE>
<SimObject Name="EBAW">
<Placement Lat="51.190" Lon="4.460" Alt="40" Hdg="0.0"/>
<Model SimTitle="Environmental Data Probe">
<EnvironmentalDataProbe ClientList="WindSock1"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>

<SimObject Name="WindSock1">
<Placement>
< Lat="51.187838428" Lon="4.456454962" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
< Lat="51.187938675" Lon="4.470493197" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
< Lat="51.192103811" Lon="4.455208182" Alt="0#AGL" Hdg="000"/>
</Placement>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Low">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="0-5"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock Medium">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="6-25"/>
</Model>
<Model SimTitle="Windsock High">
<VariableDrivenRotation Variable="WindDirection" Axis="HEADING" Animated="No"/>
<ConditionalVisibility Variable="WindSpeed" Value="26-90"/>
</Model>
</SimObject>
</SODE>
--------------------------------------------------------------
 
jaers said:
It's a lot of code for 3 identical obects. Can't it be reduced for almost a third?
Click to expand...

Thank you for your proposal. Yes, for identical objects, this would be a nice short-hand notation! The only thing would be the naming, but I'd just automatically append "_1", "_2", ..., "_X" to the common SimObject name.
I'll try to include this in V1.3.3.
 
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