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LOD Modelling

I may be wrong but isn't FSDS2 incompatible with the new XML modeling standard introduced in FS2004? If that's true it would seem to not make sense to use it anymore or the risk is great anything you create won't work in future versions.

Art
 
artmartin said:
I may be wrong but isn't FSDS2 incompatible with the new XML modeling standard introduced in FS2004? If that's true it would seem to not make sense to use it anymore or the risk is great anything you create won't work in future versions.

Art
Click to expand...

They've talked about the incompatibilty issue for the last two versions of FS but it continues to be backward compatible. I think this trend will continue especially with the discontinuation of GMAX registration. Sounds like it's time for Louis Sinclair to release FSDS3.
 
I am afriad most people on this forum use GMax. There seem to be very little FSDS designers left. It is also a long time ago that I used it, so I don't know if it supports creating LODs.

Else you can always make different versions of your object and tweak their API macros so that they show on the right condition.

Skydvdan1 said:
They've talked about the incompatibilty issue for the last two versions of FS but it continues to be backward compatible. I think this trend will continue especially with the discontinuation of GMAX registration. Sounds like it's time for Louis Sinclair to release FSDS3.
Click to expand...

I don't think GMax has anything to do with this. The whole discussion is never about the tool you created the scenery with. The compatibility discussion is about the internal BGL commands that are used. And to me it seems very likely that some of the older Fs5/Fs98/Fs2000 commands will no longer be supported in the future.

So to be as safe as possible, I prefer to use the latest code. And until now GMax is the only tool available that can create Fs2004 style scenery objects. That GMax might no longer be available for the next version of FS does not matter, it matters which commands are used inside your object to draw it.

The fact that it has taken more then 2 years since the release of Fs2004 for any other tool to come with a version capable of generating the latest standard of code is not very good if you ask me. All that time people still using the old tools (although they display fine in FS) have missed the advantages of the new format.
 
arno said:
I am afriad most people on this forum use GMax. There seem to be very little FSDS designers left. It is also a long time ago that I used it, so I don't know if it supports creating LODs.

Else you can always make different versions of your object and tweak their API macros so that they show on the right condition.



I don't think GMax has anything to do with this. The whole discussion is never about the tool you created the scenery with. The compatibility discussion is about the internal BGL commands that are used. And to me it seems very likely that some of the older Fs5/Fs98/Fs2000 commands will no longer be supported in the future.

So to be as safe as possible, I prefer to use the latest code. And until now GMax is the only tool available that can create Fs2004 style scenery objects. That GMax might no longer be available for the next version of FS does not matter, it matters which commands are used inside your object to draw it.

The fact that it has taken more then 2 years since the release of Fs2004 for any other tool to come with a version capable of generating the latest standard of code is not very good if you ask me. All that time people still using the old tools (although they display fine in FS) have missed the advantages of the new format.
Click to expand...

What kind of advantages are you talking about? :scratchch
 
The first few that come to my mind are:

  • Easier placement with the XML code
  • The attachtool script to create hard platforms, attach effects, etc
  • Slightly better performance compared to the old code
  • And as discussed above, a better chance of working in the future (although this will remain a point of discussion till we actually see the next FS :))
 
arno said:
The first few that come to my mind are:

  • Easier placement with the XML code
  • The attachtool script to create hard platforms, attach effects, etc
  • Slightly better performance compared to the old code
  • And as discussed above, a better chance of working in the future (although this will remain a point of discussion till we actually see the next FS :))
Click to expand...

I wonder how many of these will be incorperated into the next version of FSDS? I just heard there's a version 3 in development. Also can you tell me anything about your involvement with the development of EZ-Scenery?
 
Hi Dan,

Skydvdan1 said:
I wonder how many of these will be incorperated into the next version of FSDS? I just heard there's a version 3 in development.
Click to expand...

I guess we'll have to wait and see for that. As I wrote in my earlier reply these are not really features of GMax, but features of the new Fs2004 scenery format. So any tool supporting this format should be able to offer those features.

It would certainly be good to see more tools moving into the future. As it is sad that many of the design tools still in use at the moment, haven't taken the new features into account yet.

Skydvdan1 said:
Also can you tell me anything about your involvement with the development of EZ-Scenery?
Click to expand...

As stated on the website of Abacus I helped with the Library Manager. As the name says it's a tool to manage your libaries :).
 
Have you seen the new feature set for FSDS3?

New and Improved Features

Louis Sinclair, the inventor of FS Design Studio has added new and improved features to the most widely used design tool for Flight Simulator. The result is this extensive upgrade to FSDS V3.

Here's a partial list of the new features in the upgrade:

New Full FS2004 compatiblity. FSDS now uses the Microsoft MakeMDL and BGLComp tools that provide the complete FS2004 feature set.
New Export to .x file fomat. For advanced users who want to "tweak" the .x file for MakeMDL.
New Boolean operations provide powerful way to cut and split parts.
New Animation capabilities as provided by the FS2004 documentation
New Support for using specialized textures: nighttime, lightmaps, more.
New Unlimited Undo / Redo. Protects your model from inadvertent design errors. Roll back each design operation, step-by-step.
New User selectable Autosave interval. Safeguards your model from computer failure.
New FSDS compatibility. New version recognizes and handles earlier file versions.
New Aircraft Specification Sheet simplifies setup of new aircraft for Flight Simulator
Updated HELP files with tutorials for making animated scenery.

What do you think?
 
Hi Dan,

Yes, that sounds very nice. It is good to see that more design tools are being updated to the Fs2004 standards.
 
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