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L1011_pilot

Setting Question

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Hi,I am a little new to FSX stuff and I was wondering what is the difference between Mesh Complexity and Mesh Resolution. I think that mesh complexity is what makes the mountain and terrain elevation look more realistically but as for mesh resultion and its funtion I don't know...Thanks!

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Complexity would be the rendering radius from the user's aircraft. Resolution tells FSX how high of resolution mesh to render. If you have 10m mesh, but set the resolution to 19m that is what will be shown. If you have 10m and set the resolution to 5m you will see 10m, as there wouldn't be any 5m to show you.

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Complexity would be the rendering radius from the user's aircraft. Resolution tells FSX how high of resolution mesh to render. If you have 10m mesh, but set the resolution to 19m that is what will be shown. If you have 10m and set the resolution to 5m you will see 10m, as there wouldn't be any 5m to show you.
OK. Then what is mesh resolution???

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Think of it as the level of detail or precision.

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OK. Then what is mesh resolution???
Mesh resolution is measured by the distance between data points in meters.

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Mesh resolution is measured by the distance between data points in meters.
Is it true that if you are using FSX with the default scenery 38m will suffice? I am a very basic FSX user... Also, is this an FPS hog?Thanks!

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Is it true that if you are using FSX with the default scenery 38m will suffice?
For Florida, yes! :( Elsewhere? Depends upon the personal preference of the user. And their computer. Mesh is drawn in the same sequence as textures, which is towards the end of the rendering loop. If a system is running under a "load" of many addons you may never see the final drawing of textures and mesh, so it could go to waste. I don't know if high resolution mesh is well suited for high and heavy pilots. I'm more of a low and slow tourist, so I appreciate the topography.I think there is still some freeware mesh here (after the hack of the site) for Hawai'i that I made. Try it and see if it makes a difference for you.

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Hello:If you wanted to see more terrain detail when flying at lower altitudes, based on your system technical specifications, you could try setting FSX terrain mesh sliders at 100% Mesh Complexity and 10 Meter Mesh Resolution. :( You may need to limit the other sliders such as Level of Detail Radius to "Medium", Scenery Complexity and Autogen to Very Dense (or less), and Traffic to less than 20 % depending on the altitude, speed and local scenery density you are flying over.If you like "low and slow" flying as much as I do, you may enjoy the highly detailed terrain that Bill Womack (aka "Spotlope") used in his latest payware "Cushman Meadows" scenery package located near Emma Field in the Pacific Northwest about 38 miles Southwest of Seattle in Washington State.http://iblueyonder.com/fsx-scenery-packages/cushman-meadows-kcmw/FYI: < I have no connection with the KCMW scenery package or the entity that sells it, but I do enjoy flying in it ...as a customer ! > Angel.gif To further illustrate the topic under discussion here, terrain mesh in the "KCMW - Cushman Meadows" scenery package is at a LOD (Level Of Detail) of "14", with FSX mesh elevation data points compiled to 2.4 Meters (7.873992 Feet) apart on the ground.NOTE: To visualize this level of detail at KCMW, one's FSX Mesh Resolution slider must be set to a 'higher' precision of "5 Meters".Also, one would need to be flying at a lower altitude, and such detail would only be visible from the aircraft over a distance of 2 nautical miles or less.Beyond a distance of 2 miles, FS displays a lower resolution rendering of the terrain (a lower "LOD") ex: approximately one half as detailed (twice the distance between elevation data points, and therefore LESS mesh data point "density") at 4 miles, with detail decreasing progressively over greater distances as visualized from one's aircraft.If one only flys at higher altitudes (ex: in larger "heavy" aircraft) and only approaches the ground at larger airports with larger surrounding "flat" terrain areas, one might not often visualize terrain mesh at levels higher than LOD-13, and perhaps one might see little difference "at altitude" in such flight scenarios with terrain mesh that is more detailed than LOD-11 (19.1 Meter) or even LOD-10 (38.2 Meter).[EDITED]In the USA, FSX "out-of-the-box" terrain mesh has an internal resolution of LOD-10 (38.2 Meters / 125.3277 Feet between elevation data points on the ground), so the default terrain mesh "may" meet the needs of most "heavy" fliers.[END_EDIT]However, "low and slow" FSX fliers might enjoy scenery packages having highly detailed add-on terrain mesh with a resolution better than LOD-12 (LOD-13 or a higher "LOD" number). :( Hope this helps with deciding on what terrain mesh and associated settings to use for your preferred flying style. :( GaryGB

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In the USA, FSX "out-of-the-box" terrain mesh has an internal resolution of LOD-12 (9.6 Meters / 31.49597 Feet between elevation data points on the ground), so the default terrain mesh may meet the needs of most "heavy" fliers.
MS couldn't fit 10m mesh for the CONUS on two DVDs, even at their compression ratio. FSX ships with 38m for the CONUS and Hawai'i and it only gets worse in the many different areas covered.

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MS couldn't fit 10m mesh for the CONUS on two DVDs, even at their compression ratio. FSX ships with 38m for the CONUS and Hawai'i and it only gets worse in the many different areas covered.
Hi Lance:Oops... sorry for the typos... you're correct: indeed FSX default CONUS (aka "Continental United States") mesh internal source data resolution before compilation was reportedly "LOD-10" ...and NOT 10 Meter aka '9.6 Meter' (I got lost copying info out of my reference table !) :( Thanks for the heads-up; I have corrected my post above to avoid any misunderstanding in what I was trying to convey. :( Regards, :( GaryGB

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I think there is still some freeware mesh here (after the hack of the site) for Hawai'i that I made. Try it and see if it makes a difference for you.
Found it ! :(Hawai'i 19.6m terrain meshFile Description:High resolution terrain mesh for the Hawaiian Islands. Aloha!Filename: lcs9_hawaii.zipLicense: Freeware, limited distributionAdded: 10th January 2010Downloads: 1232Author: LCSims / Lance TuckerSize: 25057kb http://library.avsim.net/search.php?SearchTerm=lcs9_hawaii.zip&CatID=root&Go=SearchNice work, Lance ! :( GaryGB

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Thank you, Gary. Nice to see you found the FS9 mesh. Since this is the FSX forum... I made some 10m (9.6 to be precise) for use in FSX. Unless the hack ate it up. Guess I should go check on that? :Thinking:Oops! FSX mesh looks to be a casualty of the hack! I'll get it re-upped here at Avsim.

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The 38m setting is what you should use for default FSX mesh - you'd only set it higher if you bought payware or downloaded freeware addon mesh that has a higher resolution.


Ryan Maziarz
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