With all the searching I've done here and elsewhere, I just can't seem to find something that works.I'm trying to figure out how to get pixels in the 2D panel bitmap to be transparent... two methods I've seen mentioned are making the uppermost leftmost pixel a specific color, and supposedly every other pixel with that exact color becomes transparent... didn't work.I've also seen that anything 0,0,0 will be transparent. Didn't work either!It may be that I'm not saving correctly. I have Photoshop and GIMP and have tried both. I'd also like to be able to preview the transparency in the image editor somehow.Any help appreciated...cheersAndrew

2d panel bitmaps must be saved in 24bit RGB format. Any pixel with RGB:0,0,0 will be transparent. It will always display as pure black in any image editor.

2d panel bitmaps must be saved in 24bit RGB format. Any pixel with RGB:0,0,0 will be transparent. It will always display as pure black in any image editor.

I tried that - not sure what happened. I'll try again. I have to assume that Photoshop can build these perfectly well. For that matter, can I create partial transparency? I assume it's just alpha on/off but not sure. I'd love to do this for the edges to avoid aliasing.Regarding how it looks on a display: don't even get me started. ;) Just wondering if there is a way to preview the transparency.regardsAndrew

I tried that - not sure what happened. I'll try again. I have to assume that Photoshop can build these perfectly well. For that matter, can I create partial transparency? I assume it's just alpha on/off but not sure. I'd love to do this for the edges to avoid aliasing.Regarding how it looks on a display: don't even get me started. ;) Just wondering if there is a way to preview the transparency.

In Photoshop, you can copy/paste the panel image to a new layer, then replace the base layer with pure black (0,0,0). Use the select tool to carefully trace along the top edge of the glareshield and up the center post (if there is one), then simply press the Delete key to remove ever pixel selected.If you add a pure white layer inbetween the base (black) layer and the panel layer, you can more easily see if there are any stray black (or almost black) pixels along the edges you need to correct.If you save as a PSD file, you can always go back and make any needed corrections and quickly Save As 24bit RGB .BMP file again until you're satisfied.

hmm, interesting question, Bill ?Can we have partial transparacy, like window glass in 2D panels?

Unfortunately, it's not possible. It's a binary solution set: opaque or fully transparent.

Thanks Bill - not sure why it didn't work before, but I just created a quick test and it worked fine. I may have saved as 8 bit without realizing it.It's too bad about the partial transparency; I was counting on this to ease the edge of the panel into transparency without harsh aliasing, but oh well. I suppose that's one of the benefits of a 3D cockpit.