FSX SP2 breaks DXT1 transparent textures

[toprob]

Those who have got hold of Acceleration may have noticed that any pre-FSX material using DXT1 transparency has gone the way of DXT3 etc -- that is, it no longer works.
This is not a problem for those models which can be put back through the FSX gamepack, but it does mean that Rotate to User is no longer an option -- unless someone can come up with a solution.
Arno -- this unfortunately disables your very useful tree libraries.
I guess we can all redesign our trees the FSX way, but it does set me back a bit.

 

[GaryGB]

Hi Rob:

Is there a way to convert the mapped texture on scenery objects from DXT1 to a format that FSX SP2 accepts so that transparency will work again on custom stand-alone GMAX recompiled/re-exported objects (or FS library format objects)?

I read a post at AVSIM FSX forum stating that the gray mottle in certain older FS9 aircraft windscreens, and black textures on some aircraft could be converted to 32 bit to get them to display again in FSX SP2.

Is there a comparable procedure one might follow for scenery objects (and ground texture polys) to enable transparency again in FSX SP2?

Thanks for any help with this.

GaryGB

 

[toprob]

GaryGB --
yes, I saw that myself yesterday, and got quite excited, but so far I haven't made it work. The problem, anyway, seems to be different -- with aircraft windows, there's no visibility through the mask, whereas with the trees there's too much visibility -- you see through every other object, including clouds.

One interesting thing -- since I started my experiments with the wrong texture, and had to redo them (not quite finished, but tried the usual suspects) I deleted the texture completely to make sure I was finally working on the right one. The result was the same complete transparency over the whole object, removing all objects behind. I would have expected a gray or black texture. So it may be that the problem relates to something other than legacy alpha channel transparency. I'm confused.

 

[GaryGB]

Hi Rob:

Certainly I appreciated Phil's efforts to post something on his blog as soon as he did.

However, am I mistaken, or did Phil not answer specifically in regard to fixing alpha with scenery objects rather than "aircraft" objects.

Regarding the thread at:

http://forums.avsim.net/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=121&topic_id=419944&mode=full

I thought for sure we'd be seeing an answer from Phil Taylor about scenario #4; maybe he just needs more time to investigate this... or was he saying it's up to us "non-SDK compliant older content" end users to deal with?

My initial shocking discovery is that all of Richard Goldstein's beautiful trees and many of his (SCASM?) custom ground tiles at Emma Field (possibly also all his other FS2Kx GeoRender sceneries?) are respectively showing dark gray or black backgrounds in their bitmaps, and in the case of the ground tiles, they have either lost their transparency or are invisible.

Thanks again for your input on this!

GaryGB

 

[GaryGB]

No one has any further info on this yet?

I wonder if this is going to have to wait until we hear from more FSX users after the release of the free SP2 download...

GaryGB

 

[toprob]

I don't think there is a simple answer -- I've tried a lot of different things, with no luck so far.
I am looking at this now from a developer point of view -- I don't think there is any way to fix existing scenery without re-exporting.
I did think that the old hack of using an 'aircraft' texture might make a difference, but that didn't work when processed through the FS2004 gamepack -- I have yet to try the FS2002 gamepack.
I have pretty much come to the understanding that I'll have to replace all my trees with default FSX trees, but that doesn't help my airshow scenery, with the hundreds of spectators standing around They've all been done the same way -- transparent background DXT1 rotate-to-user. I can redo them with FSX gamepack so that they won't rotate, but that does give a card-board cutout look from an angle.

 

[Flugwerk]

Do you have a .X file of your scenery object? Post it or send it with email.

Regards,
Heinrich

 

[bob5568]

Toprob...in fsx, missing texture is now displayed as entirely transparent. That's nothing to do with the alpha.

Bob

 

[jdberg]

Toprob...in fsx, missing texture is now displayed as entirely transparent. That's nothing to do with the alpha.

Bob

No, it has nothing to do with the alpha. Actually the "rotate-to-user" tweak does not work any longer so you have to compile these objects again with FSX Gamepack and no rotation.
I made several tests and nothing seems to work

Jörg

 

[arno]

Hi Joerg,

No, it has nothing to do with the alpha. Actually the "rotate-to-user" tweak does not work any longer so you have to compile these objects again with FSX Gamepack and no rotation.
I made several tests and nothing seems to work

Are you sure that the rotate to user tweak on Fs2004 object is also broken now? I have not fully tested that myself, but that would be a pity. Time that I take a little deeper look in all this.

 

[jdberg]

Hi Joerg,
Are you sure that the rotate to user tweak on Fs2004 object is also broken now? I have not fully tested that myself, but that would be a pity. Time that I take a little deeper look in all this.

Hi Arno,
sorry that I was not precise enough in my statement. The rotate-to-user feature itself works in FSX (SP2) when exporting with the FS2004-gamepack. However I only use this feature in combination with transparency and that brings up the well known problems in FSX since SP2. So the rotate-to-user feature is no longer usable with trees or people which I included in many objects in our library
Jörg

 

[José Bourgoignie]

Hi,

Have just received an e-mail from a simmer about this problems after installing FSX SP2 and displaying my EBOS scenery..

...and in the case of the ground tiles, they have either lost their transparency or are invisible.

So wrote HarryB here.

But on a topview screenshot of the airport I see clearly a green grass area and this poly has been made with GMAX FS2002 gamepack... the main grass ground poly not (was made with FSSC). Maybe a point of interest ?

For what concerns trees: no way to make the tree with DXT1 and no rotate-to-user thing that will work with FSX SP2 ?
Another suggestion ?

Greetz. José.

 

[toprob]

Hi,


For what concerns trees: no way to make the tree with DXT1 and no rotate-to-user thing that will work with FSX SP2 ?
Another suggestion ?

Greetz. José.

DXT1 transparency works fine when processed through the FSX gamepack. However using the gamepack precludes the use of rotate-to-user.
For my Marlborough scenery, which was my main concern, I simply remodelled the trees as MS-standard cross-planes. I don't like these as much as rotate-to-user, but they work ok.

 

[José Bourgoignie]

Hi,

I sent to my correspondent a tree I made myself. He let know the transparency is OK but due to it's static behaviour (no ratation-to-user) some strange effects occur.
I find these cross-plane trees also horrible.

He uses also Claud9 XClass for Europe... perhaps this interferes with my scenery... I don't know.

I contacted meanwhile some simmers who installed FSX SP2 and one of them had uninstalled it due to the many problems.
They noticed also a drop of framerates.

Greetz. José.

 

[borisforero]

Transparent alpha channel FS9 to FSX

Hi, I am trying to do some trees textures, but I got strange effects in FSX SP2. See the attached images. What is it? Any ideas?
The textures are in DDS, DXT5 and made in imagetool SDK SP2.

 

[borisforero]

Double sided trees in FSX

Hi, I am trying to do some trees textures, but I got strange effects in FSX SP2. See the attached images. What is it? Any ideas?
The textures are in DDS, DXT5 and made in imagetool SDK SP2.

Problem solved!!...After trying some different issues, there is OK my FSX trees. Here are the images with all the settings I use. I still using DXT5 DDS textures made in imagetool from SDK FSX SP2. Hope it helps to anyone with this stuff.

Regards, Boris

PS. Be sure you select in "Alpha Test mode" the option "Greater". If you don´t maybe you will not see your textures.

 

[Timmo]

hmm- Im getting 'OK' results but I seem to be getting the same problem as you in your final shot where the alpha from one cross plane of the tree cuts through the other plane? (i.e. I just want it to be see through for one 'branch' of the tree)

Any ideas? I thought maybe just 1 bit alpha might get around it as it only appears to effect the areas that are in the 'middle part' of the alpha channel?

 

[borisforero]

hmm- Im getting 'OK' results but I seem to be getting the same problem as you in your final shot where the alpha from one cross plane of the tree cuts through the other plane? (i.e. I just want it to be see through for one 'branch' of the tree)

Any ideas? I thought maybe just 1 bit alpha might get around it as it only appears to effect the areas that are in the 'middle part' of the alpha channel?

Hi, i'm afraid I can´t understand you. You mean that around your branches there are small pixels that shows transparent?

 

[Timmo]

I mean that the transparent pixels on one face of the tree 'cut' through the pixels of the other face.

(This is just a rough test so ignore the bad alpha masking)

 

[borisforero]

I mean that the transparent pixels on one face of the tree 'cut' through the pixels of the other face.

(This is just a rough test so ignore the bad alpha masking)

Hi,

Be sure you select the Z-Test alpha boxes in the textures setup, like the example I have above.