Anti-Aliasing... the down side

[Guest TomOOO]

Anti Alias works by changing pixels at a contrast edge (line)so that these pixels are averaged by pixels around it. The "size"of the anti alias value defines more surrounding pixels to processthe centre one.The problem you are finding is that solid surface pictures appearmuch better (planes), but lines (small features) can becomeblurred or smudged. Hence you have to decide the level of anti aliasto pay off with making solid scene pictures (planes etc) muchbetter with less jagged edges, and over effect on narrow lines. The narrow line problem is colour bleeding from the other side ofthe line from the line being processed - since high levels of antialias look "too" far away and merge both sides of the line.In my field of work we only use 2x anti alias because of this problem.RegardsTom

[Ray Proudfoot 8,930]

Well Paul looking at your system spec you have a seriously fast graphics card which is probably why you can run AA at 16X. I won't enter the nVidia vs ATI debate as I've seen grown men reduced to dribbling wrecks! :-lol Now that I'm a little more educated about the downside of high and low AA I'll tweak things until I can find a good compromise. I do have lots of 3rd party airports so it will be easy to spot undesired effects of too low AA settings.I've just started my descent into Ben Gurion at the eastern end of the Med having departed Malaga two hours ago. Concorde has no equals :-)Cheers,

[psolk 3,037]

I will see you at LLBG in a few hours ;) What an AMAZING freeware scenery area huh??? Right now I am on my way to connect in EGLL as BA 48 from KSEA in the PMDG744 to BA163 in the LVL-D on my way to LLBG. I like my FS2Crew planes :) I am about 2080 miles from London LOL...Alas the concorde is still one I have not mastered. I have the PSS version but never really learned to fly her. Maybe I should re-invest the time. As for the system, yes she is a bit of a beast but I did not want to say that earlier because then it seems like the only reason I chimed in was to boast about my own system and that certainly wasn't my intention. Did you click the link in my sig to see the setup? The 8800 GTX cards at 2 gigs are a very nice complement to the OC'd C2d. I have never been happier with a system than with this one.If nothing else you certainly brought up something for people who fly predominantly 2-D to think about I would think... When the majority of the screen is panel it could certainly look blurred like you pointed out. Maybe part of the reason I don't see it is I am always VC?Imagine the day when the software can't keep up with the hardware, sometimes I just dream...Cheers Ray,-paulTom, what do you do??? Just curious :)Primary RigLiquid CooledIntel C2D E6600 @3.2 gigsAsus P5N32SLI-Plus2 gigs Corsair XMS PC6400 4 4 4 12 @810Dual OC'd XFX 8800GTX @ 2 gigs24 inch Widescreen LCD 16XAA/16XAFDual 19 inch LCD'sRaid-0+1PCPower and Cooling 1k Quad SLIhttp://home.comcast.net/~psolk/3monitorsa.htmlBackup RigAMD 4000 San Diego @ 2.72 Gigs Kingston Corsair XMS CL2XFX 7900 GTX Raid-0

[Ray Proudfoot 8,930]

Hi Paul,Thanks for mentioning the 3rd party Ben Gurion scenery. I'd picked that airport simply because it was right at the other end of the Med. I had no idea there was a goods freeware airport available. :9 I shall install it before the return flight.<>:-lol I could wait 2 hours and still get back to Malaga before you land at Heathrow. Don't you just love Boeings ;-)Concorde does take some practice and unlike other jet aircraft you can't just leave the a/p on and go and watch some telly. I'm constantly checking everything is okay even though I use the VFE for fuel balancing. Take-offs and landings are a real adrenolin rush though especially on a 24" display :-) If you find the time then persevere with it as it's a superb aircraft. 23 miles a minute man!! :9 That's a nice setup. Are you happy with the CH Yoke? I've got the Pro Throttle as the extra buttons come in handy but I'd like the realism of a proper throttle bank.I see you're in no hurry (like me) to fly with FSX. Yes, I have it installed but still prefer the extra smoothness of FS9. Once FSX is patched and DX10 cards are reasonable I'll think about building a new system.It's been a useful discussion and I hope others who don't fully understand what AA does can tinker with their settings and maybe improve the views.Enjoy the rest of your flight. I shall be in the land of nod by the time you land! :-wave

[psolk 3,037]

Ray,Got to http://www.vatil.org/vatil/index.phpThere is enough scenery to literally convert Tel-Aviv, the Negev, Eilat etc.. into the best spots in FS. Truly all of that scenery is amazing and free. You will immediately want to turn around and land again after you install it :).Hmmm I might have to dedicate a weekend to that Concorde you speak so highly of.I love the Yoke, I couldn't imagine flying without it. i only sim in things with a yoke, Cessna/Boeing primarily so it is also the most realistic. The throttle quad is also quite key. You are correct, like you I am still FS9 bound for quite some time. For me the most important thing is performance and realistic Aircraft. Until you can give me PMDG, LVL-D and even PSS birds with FS9 performance in FSX I have no reason and no desire to switch. Besides when you combine FlyTampa sceneries with AES by Aerosoft a good add-on and FS2Crew what more could you possibly need? Cheers Ray, always a pleasure and enjoy your return leg and your new found sceneries. LLBG2006 is one of the best freeware available hands down and I have an updated Afcad for you so that you get ILS 12 and ILS 26 instead of visual 30. good luck,-Paul

[altstiff 71]

Just tried this and yur right, it actually does give me better performance. (looks better too?!?!?)Strange? Maybe the in game AA is set to something lower and over rides the windows NVidia (in my case) control panel? I run mine at X4.

[Guest TomOOO]

PaulHum...I have written scientific software for about 22 years includingsimulation (not planes !) using finite element analysis (thinkX-plane) and integration of equations of motion (think MS9/X).Mostly graphics/visualisation/databases at the moment (plusmanagement). I use FS9 to escape and look at the view.RegardsTom (Edit : can't even add up the years now...)

[Ray Proudfoot 8,930]

Hi Paul,I've downloaded that scenery - thanks. I'll install it over the weekend and fly the return.I only fly the PMDG737 and Concorde. I find if you fly too many aircraft you become a jack of all trades and master of none! My Concorde skills are not as good as my Boeing ones but they're adequate enough to get me up and down. I hate using the autopilot for the landing - what's the point? If you need answers to any questions you can either PM me or post them on the PSS Concorde forum.When I asked about the Yoke I meant the throttle quadrant. :-doh Trouble is I'm struggling for space and wouldn't want to lose the buttons on the Pro Throttle so I'll just stick with it.I'm guessing you're a VatSim flyer. That puts us in opposite camps! As you can see from my sig I'm in the RC camp :-) I guess you can't be tempted away from the Dark Side! :-lol Thanks for the tip on the Ben Gurion scenery. Is that AFCAD available to all in the Library?Did you make it to EGLL and Ben Gurion?