What is the best / eaisest way to create flatten files to overcome sunken AI?

[Guest danowat]

Hi,I have problems with some addon airports and sunken AI, I understand it is possible to overcome this be creating "flatten" files.What is the easiest, best, way to do this?ThanksDan.

[ejoiner 21]

I wish Lee Swordy would create a way to use AFCAD to create these.A wysiwyg way to do it would be AWESOME. Probably an easy utility that everybody could use. Eric

[RobdeVries 28]

Steve Greenwood (http://www.fs-traveler.com/) is working on a new version (wysiwyg)of his flattentool. Should be published soon.Rob

[Guest danowat]

Hi,Lets hope its soon, I am looking forward to having something that will do the job.CheersDan.

[RobdeVries 28]

Holger or Steve, is there already something known about the release of this nifty tool?Rob "Holland&Holland" de Vries http://www.emotipad.com/emoticons/Flying.gif"To go up, pull the stick back. To go down, pull the stick back harder"

[Holger 0]

Hi there:well, standard flatten switches don't work at airfields because the default (or add-on) altitude of runways, taxiways, and buildings are coded in the scenery files. That is, if you use a flatten switch to lower or raise the airport your AI might be on the tarmac but your buildings and runways will be floating or sunken. A perfect Catch-22.For add-on sceneries, it's the original designers that would have to make sure that the altitude matches the default elevation. The only other alternative I know of is to decompile the default flattens, edit the airport's elevation, and recompile that version (it's the same approach I've been using for my lake elevation switches). The problem is that the default files cover large areas (i.e., many different airports) and editing of two or more airports within the same area by different users will likely lead to incompatible versions of the edited files.Steve's utility should be available soon but the only thing it can do for airports is to deal with steep cliffs or drop-offs around the airport's perimeter.Cheers, Holger

[ronzie 21]

Perhaps I misinterpreted the effects of flatten switches on scenery, but while it may provide a "shelf" for sunk scenery holes and will cap scenery from "peeking through" open areas where the mesh is higher than scenery polygons, I understand that flatten switches will not help in the case where an airport is on a mesa above the surrounding scenery as dictated by the mesh.Were there any solutions for this? I had this issue in FS2K2 after applying Ed Denny's commercial mesh for the US. An article tidbit in Computer Pilot mag suggested it could also be installed in FS2K4.

[Holger 0]

Howdy:you're correct, flatten switches can only make the transition between airports on plateaus and the surrounding terrain less dramatic but they won't rebuild a gradual slope. However, there's a tool in the works that will allow mesh designers to do just that. Here's a link to the thread: http://www.flightsimnetwork.com/cgi/dcforu...rum=DCForumID21Cheers, Holger

[RobdeVries 28]

great great some progress. The messgae dates from november 9. Is there already some news about the mentioned tool from jkvato? Rob "Holland&Holland" de Vries http://www.emotipad.com/emoticons/Flying.gif"To go up, pull the stick back. To go down, pull the stick back harder"

[Guest sgreenwood]

Hi Rob,The new, much revised, FSUIPC version of my flatten utility is now available at:www.fs-traveler.com/flatten.shtmlIt has undergone many revisions and may continue to do so, so I encourage folks to note the release date and check back occasionallly for updates!As always, feedback and suggestions are welcome.Enjoy, Steve

[Guest Stamatis]

Hello Steve,Will these flatten bgl files also cure the sometimes bumpy taxiways or aprons at some airports? I was told that this problem may be due to using the wrong surface area, but I am a complete layman when it comes to scenery design.Stamatis

[Guest sgreenwood]

Hi Stamatis,No, I don't believe so. They can cure most problems with grass flashing through the aprons when the airport and mesh elevations differ. But I'm afraid your information is correct and your problem is one for the scenery designers.Steve

[Guest Stamatis]

Thank you Steve, it was the "flatten" in the name which raised my hopes :-)It would be nice if a similar tool could be devised for us laymen which would also flatten the actual surface and cure these annoying bumps...Stamatis

[RobdeVries 28]

Great Steve, gonna experiment with it on some problem area's :)But how about the jvatko tool mentioned by Holger (in the flightsimmersnet forum)Rob "Holland&Holland" de Vries http://www.emotipad.com/emoticons/Flying.gif"To go up, pull the stick back. To go down, pull the stick back harder"