P3D v4 How To for seasonal textures?

[Gerald Krutsch]

Hello guys,

I need a bit (or a lot) of help understanding how to implement seasonal textures in my work!
What I did so far:
- grabbed the sat img (SBX)
- modified the img to generate seasons (Gimp)
- applied texture to "ground" (SKU)
- inserted texture into the sim (MCX)
- hardened terrain below the sat GP img (ADE)

What works? Everything but only if I change the BGL by hand! If I want winter I activate that 1 out of 4 BGL's that calls "_WI.dds" textures (renaming the other to xxx.BGL.OFF).

Now the Q: Please tell me there is a way to automatically change the textures acc to the season in the sim....

Why this thread in MCX forum part? MCX has some checkmarks for "seasons" when using the GPW (but the checkmarks can be set only if I choose FSX). Selecting P3Dv4 the checkmarks can't be set anymore.

Nevertheless....can someone please advise me (if it's even possible) how to change the seasons automatically?

Thank you.

 

[=rk=]

Review your procedure for grabbing sat image (SBX). Before compiling and after capture, you can modify the image to represent each season, tag it appropriately and it is compiled into the ground .bgl. The procedure is simple and clearly described in SBX documentation and related posts. It is important to know that most tools use software in the SDK to compile .bgl's. So the MCX ground poly procedure is using the same compiler as the SBX procedure and likely would automatically establish seasons, if it had textures assigned for them. I do not know why MCX prevents assignments.

 

[Gerald Krutsch]

Review your procedure for grabbing sat image (SBX). Before compiling and after capture, you can modify the image to represent each season, tag it appropriately and it is compiled into the ground .bgl. The procedure is simple and clearly described in SBX documentation and related posts. It is important to know that most tools use software in the SDK to compile .bgl's. So the MCX ground poly procedure is using the same compiler as the SBX procedure and likely would automatically establish seasons, if it had textures assigned for them. I do not know why MCX prevents assignments.

I'm not sure I understand your reply but I will definately look into SBX documentation.

As a side note I use this tutorial for my work:

meaning:
- I use SBX (SbuilderX) just to grab the image tiles for my airport!
- I then place the resulting image as a background in ADE to get it's dimensions.
- I modify the img in Gimp (soft edges / alpha channel) and save 4 different img's representing seasonal changes
- With the known dimensions i go in Sketchup, draw a surface with the exact dimensions and apply the Material (Texture) on it.
- I cut the big Texture into segments < 100 x 100m and make it unique (this prevents shimmering or errors due to earth curvature)
- export 3D model for MCX conversion
- ...

It's just after the MCX conversion that I get my first .BGL file! I don't compile anything from SBX...

 

[=rk=]

It is important to know that most tools use software in the SDK to compile .bgl's. So the MCX ground poly procedure is using the same compiler as the SBX procedure

I see that you have linked a video that I did not make. I personally do not advocate the idea of "using as many tools as possible" and I've already explained that these tools all use the same basic software to compile .bgls. So in truth, you don't compile anything from SBX, nor MCX, you compile from Resample.exe and to be ruthlessly honest, Gerald, it's best to go to the source, imo. I always assemble my cround polygon images, write my own .ini file and then drag/drop that document directly onto Resample.exe.
All these helper softwares apply the same changes you can using Notepad and we have an expression in my country about cooking that I believe applies here, in that too many cooks spoil it. Here's my point: ADE is NOT necessary for grabbing sat images, remove it from your procedure. Sketchup, same. MCX, not necessary. Heck man, you have so many helpers, you will NEVER see the original software, what is worse, you have someone barely more skilled than you, making a video explaining the use of software he did not write, along with the original concepts of scenery design, that has to be translated to you, in the space of 40 minutes. I am sorry, but this does not live up to Youtube's implied promise of instant knowledge.

Please review this download. "Make Photo Real Ground Textures," by Luis Tirado. It is not the Holy Grail of scenery design, but it is well written, very understandable and conveys clear to understand techniques for creating professional grade, seasonal ground polygons, using only SBX, Resample.exe and Photoshop, which in your case would be Gimp. Once you understand how incredibly simple a ground polygon is, then you can apply the idea's Mark has suggested and you will be in a better place to understand how the tool's in the other softwares he's recommended can help you achieve a specific goal.

 

[GaryGB]

Hi Gerald:

To distinguish the above (2) methods of applying textures to 'Direct Draw Surfaces' visible AGL in MSFS / P3D:


Ground Polygons (aka "G-Polys", aka "GPs") are flat 3D models, in either:

* Non-MDL format ('legacy'): compiled and placed via SCASM / ASM ...directly into BGLs

These have a Z-Bias feature, and have very limited Material attribute options

[EDITED]

SCASM / ASM G-Polys may be compiled with an option to display seasonal texture image Materials.


BTW: FS9 MDLs compiled via SDK MakeMDL can be "tweaked" to enable display of seasonal texture image Materials.


* MDL format: compiled via FSX and/or P3D SDK XtoMDL, packaged / placed via SDK BGLComp into BGLs

These have more Material attribute options than SCASM / ASM G-Polys


FSX MDLs do NOT have a Z-Bias Material property option

P3D MDLs DO have a Z-Bias Material property option



Both FSX and P3D G-Polys may be compiled with an option to display seasonal texture image Materials, however this requires multiple MDLs placed via the Autogen method.

P3D MDLs can also display seasonal textures via Material scripting without a requirement for use of Autogen methods

Additionally, one can define display criteria for seasonal textures in P3D MDLs via MCX ...after use of the G-Poly Wizard:

https://www.scenerydesign.org/2017/07/prepar3d-v4-visibility-conditions-for-scenery/

https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/seasonal-ground-poly.441941/

[END_EDIT]


Methods above are distinct from custom Land Class imagery objects mapped to FS 'terrain grid' Quad / Area Point vertices.


* Custom photo-real aerial / satellite imagery: compiled / placed as terrain mesh-clinging texture image tiles via SDK Resample

These may be compiled with an option to display seasonal texture image Materials


BTW: Custom Land Class CVX Vector objects are distinct from Custom photo-real aerial / satellite imagery, but are also mapped to FS 'terrain grid' Quad / Area Point vertices as objects with- or without- terrain mesh-clinging attributes, and also with- or without- mapped texture images; these objects are compiled / placed via SDK SHP2VEC.


PS: I believe that this thread requires a reply by Arno to clarify whether MCX G-Poly Wizard is currently able to implement seasonal texture image Materials when compiled in native P3Dv4.x BGL format via the current build of P3Dv4.x SDK XtoMDL.

GaryGB

 

[Wonderboy]

I believe that this thread requires a reply by Arno to clarify whether MCX G-Poly Wizard is currently able to implement seasonal texture image Materials when compiled in native P3Dv4.x BGL format via the current build of P3Dv4.x SDK XtoMDL.

I have just tried in MCX to mount seasonal textures in the Ground Polygon Wizard. In FSX mode, no problem, but a negative Z-Bias causes an error. In P3Dv4 mode, the seasons are turned off altogether, but Z-bias can be made negative. So how to make a seasonal airport substrate in accordance with the SDK?

 

[arno]

Hi,

In the MDL format you can't have seasonal textures. So it only works in the FS2002 style ground polygons. If you are using P3D v4 you might be able to do it using a visibility condition on the part. Else you would have to use a tool like SODE to switch the object based on the season.

What Rick is referring to is using resample to assign the seasons. That would work for photoreal scenery.

 

[Wonderboy]

That would work for photoreal scenery.

Hi Arno. Then how to assign a photoreal scenes negative z-bias?

 

[arno]

With resample you have no layers. The image is just shown on the terrain.

 

[Pavel1971]

Hey. I'm confused. I need to create seasonal. I wanted to do it with GPW, but I read that the seasons in it do not work for P3D. You need to use visibility conditions.
You can not tell in detail how to use it. I'm just learning and I can't figure it out.
Thank!

 

[Itay Dor]

There is an example in some scenery lemme search it and I will pm you with the example


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Pavel1971]

Thank you very much. I am looking forward to it.

 

[Itay Dor]

There is some script in the mdl file


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[Gerald Krutsch]

@Pavel1971 I gave it up trying to use MCX for seasonal since it simply did not work.
I managed to do it by hand using the Resample.EXE from the SDK. It needed some reading but after understanding how it works, it simply worked like a charm.

Just download the documentation as presented by @=rk= . I can assist you if you like by providing you my config file.

BR,
Gerald

 

[Pavel1971]

Thanks for the answer. I use Resample.EXE to create seasons in photo landscapes. My polygon in the script is made of their textures. I managed to change the seasons using the hierarchy editor - visibility condition by setting the value to the winter season. Creating a polygon using GPW, I placed it in another layer. Now, in winter, my winter season is loading, at other times of the year, the main season.
If you can, show me also an example of creating seasons with SODE!