Active Sky Cloud Art for FSX & P3D - Released!

[kterz 49]

Just got the demo for AS16. Did they say something about soild overcast ? not sure if this soild... 

 

 

Hi,

 

 

"solid overcast" is a feature of ASCA, not AS16. Did you get ASCA too, cause this doesn't seem like ASCA to me

[Rimshot 1,140]

 

Unfortunately no.  According to the marketing blurb on the hifi website:

 

ASCA Integration for Real-Time Texture Dynamics AS16 works with any texture/graphics add-ons (including default graphics), but when combined with ASCA, real-time texture dynamics and automatic wx-influenced selections are enabled

 

No, it's already been mentioned before and is mentioned on the product page for AS16 and ASCA. If you want the dynamic texture changes it has to hook into ASCA. If you don't want the dynamic texture changes then use AS16 with REX textures or another texture sets prior to starting FSX, just like you do now with ASN and any other textures.

 

Thanks fellas for clearing it up 

[roi1862 602]

Hi,

 

 

"solid overcast" is a feature of ASCA, not AS16. Did you get ASCA too, cause this doesn't seem like ASCA to me

 

So anyway to have a new product i have to buy 2 products. Because as far as AS16 i dont see much of a difference to justify the price...

[spearmint_flyer 579]

Just got the demo for AS16. Did they say something about soild overcast ? not sure if this soild...

 

Is your cloud coverage say to maximum?

 

 

 

 

I haven't seen the cloud pass through "smoke"

feature. I spent all day cloud hunting and nothing

[roi1862 602]

Is your cloud coverage say to maximum?

Of course.And i cant get the passing cloud effect either. And yes its on in the options.

[kterz 49]

A couple more comments:

 

- As mentioned previously. AS16 and ASCA may be on a network machine, but they have to be on the same machine.

- Please don't run ASN and AS16 interchangeably for the same target simulator. AsConnect interface is different between them and you'll run into trouble unless you remember to install each time the "correct" dll. (i.e for FSX, run ASConnect_FSX_Install.exe before using ASN and run ASConnect2016_FSX_Install.exe before ruinning AS16). This is not a problem if the applications target different simulator that is if you have both FSX and P3D installed and you want to use ASN for FSX and AS16 for P3D (or vice versa)

- ASCA is cross- compatible with both FSX and P3D (if both installed). When you run the respective AS16 version (for FSX or P3D) , it will automatically update the target simulator for ASCA. This way it will know where to install the content.

[G MIDY 101]

Sorry for my ignorance I haven't managed to find this information - as a general question does this work with PMDG T7 WXR and other addons similar to ASN did?

 

Edit - I have found it on the HiFi site, I must be blind, and it is compatible!

[Bobsk8 12,712]

Reading this thread, and I am still confused. I am using ASN and Soft clouds now. If I get this new product, do I have to uninstall soft clouds, to use it? 

[4L0M 33]

I bought for FSX, P3D and the Active Sky Cloud Art as upgrades to ASN, cost me over £80, which in my opinion is a complete joke.

 

So far only tested in FSX.  Pro's : Easy to setup, Performance seems ever so slightly better than Active Sky Next, definitely no worse. Didn't need to uninstall ASN, this made the upgrade process easier as AS16 automatically found my ASN key when installing.

 

Only tried the "Global" configuration so far, where AS16 uses ASCA to inject texures on the fly.

 

Cons : Clouds so far, look pretty unnatural to me, they look, too clean possibly? If that makes sense. I do use sweetfx if that has any bearing, although sweetfx looks great with Rex Clouds.

 

Another BIG con so far.  My FSX has crashed to desktop twice this morning, once when I was going into cloud and the cloud textures started to flow over the front of the Aircraft ( which did look pretty cool ) and once on runway a second after ASCA had finished injecting textures.  My FSX has NEVER ever crashed since it has been installed for months with ASN and REX soft Clouds, yet 2 crashes in the space of an hour this morning after installing AS16 and ASCA.

 

Shots in FSX, Haven't had time to install into P3D yet.

 

Regards !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EDIT : For clarification, FSX was set to Max cloud coverage, 90N/M, AS16 settings were all default and I HAVE installed the additional 1GB+ HD Texture pack.

[GSalden 4,656]

@Jim

 

If ASCA can be on a client , where are the textures for the server stored ?

Hopefully not on the client as sending textures over the netwerk will be cost performance...

[Glynn 405]

 

 

Reading this thread, and I am still confused. I am using ASN and Soft clouds now. If I get this new product, do I have to uninstall soft clouds, to use it?

 

It's a Weather engine Bob, it's going to use whatever textures you have in your Sim just like ASN did,

But if you want your cloud textures updated dynamically you will also need the cloud art package

[roi1862 602]

I bought for FSX, P3D and the Active Sky Cloud Art as upgrades to ASN, cost me over £80, which in my opinion is a complete joke.

 

So far only tested in FSX.  Pro's : Easy to setup, Performance seems ever so slightly better than Active Sky Next, definitely no worse. Didn't need to uninstall ASN, this made the upgrade process easier as AS16 automatically found my ASN key when installing.

 

Only tried the "Global" configuration so far, where AS16 uses ASCA to inject texures on the fly.

 

Cons : Clouds so far, look pretty unnatural to me, they look, too clean possibly? If that makes sense. I do use sweetfx if that has any bearing, although sweetfx looks great with Rex Clouds.

 

Another BIG con so far.  My FSX has crashed to desktop twice this morning, once when I was going into cloud and the cloud textures started to flow over the front of the Aircraft ( which did look pretty cool ) and once on runway a second after ASCA had finished injecting textures.  My FSX has NEVER ever crashed since it has been installed for months with ASN and REX soft Clouds, yet 2 crashes in the space of an hour this morning after installing AS16 and ASCA.

 

Shots in FSX, Haven't had time to install into P3D yet.

 

Regards !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Indeed looks horrible.

[HUSSAR 272]

@Jim

 

If ASCA can be on a client , where are the textures for the server stored ?

Hopefully not on the client as sending textures over the netwerk will be cost performance...

 

Hi Gerard,

 

The textures are loaded into the main sim root folder when you select and install the first theme.  Make sure to navigate to your simulator root path in the ASCA settings screen and save.  Once back in the main UI you can select and install one of the dynamic weather settings.  I have been running this way since testing began and the texture installation is very quick.

 

Happy flying!

 

Robert

[Sethos 4,335]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That looks bloody awful. The sky colour on the last one is downright criminal. 

[hesynergy 67]

Dynamic clouds?

 

Faggedaboutit!

 

What we're really talking about here is NOT having to reset our sliders each time we choose literally thousands(**) of scenarios involving many combinations of aircraft/meteorological/air/ground sceneries and frame hungry DLC.

 

Conservative example:

1 weather generating package(Lie...Lie...LIE!) & see A. Below

1 sky/cloud texture package ...See A. Below

2 payware LandClass/vector packages

3 photo-real sceneries

4 frame eating utilities/add-ons

5 payware aircraft

6 payware airports

7 Orbx sub continental scenery packages

8 possible weather scenarios(probably closer to hundreds of variations...but we'll say eight to stay conservative)

 

...and wayyyyy conservative 100 parameters in our FSx/P3D/X-Plane .cfg files

 

A. and Hugely under-estimated 12 setting parameters for each...

 

...I will stop there...but y'all know there others to add to the mix...

 

So, let's use computer lingo and substitute "*", for the multiplication or times sign so that y'all can Google the answer ...

 

what does ((1*10) * (1*10) * 2 * 3 * 4 * 5 * 6 * 7 * 8 * 100 * 12 = ?

 

How many scenarios is that?

 

(**)How bout 4.84 x10^9

 

Or conservatively closer, 4,838,400,000.

 

And we wonder why we are having difficulty finding the sweet spot if we change just ONE?

 

 

 

As I suggested not too long ago http://www.avsim.com/topic/490648-any-solutions-for-poor-performance-around-large-cities/?view=findpost&p=3442166

 

We need to DEMAND a Prepar3D RFP - "Adaptive Smoothing" in other words, Dynamic Performance Enhancement before ANYTHING ELSE…

 

An "MOON-MISSION" algorithm that looks at WHAT we are flying, who and what and how many are flying with us, what phase of flight, what we're flying IN, and INTO....in the air and on the ground, and dynamically adjusting our sliders incrementally ...to maintain a smooth, functional, satisfying..immersive simulation.

 

Then, once out of the difficult to display area, increases the sliders rightward to maintain the EyeCandy/performance criteria.

 

Just the blue sky ramblings of an old fart curmudgeon, aviation loving, simulator student.

 

Cheers,

 

Chas...dropping the topic, and the mic.