Okay gonna pull the trigger on the combo.  Will let you know how I fair in P3d with it.

 

Were do you see this combo package AS2016 for FSX and P3D?  I don't see it.

I got AS16 but held back on ASCA initially because some reservations were expressed by the early adopters. Now that that seems to be behind us, I have a few questions about how ASCA cloud textures work:

Do I have to start an ASCA executable before I fire up the sim or does it run as a dll or...?

How cloud textures work if I decided to leave AS16 turned off (and what happens to my default cloud textures - I currently have a FEX texture set installed over the default P3D clouds that I like)?

Does it operate independent of AS16 (i.e. if i choose rain and gray, will it install a different set then if I choose Fair Weather)?

Excellent. . Since now I'm in all the way...

@Henry Street - 

 

ASCA is continually being improved so don't completely give up on it. I have yet to see what *I* would describe as "cartoony" clouds. There are some visuals that I prefer to others but all are acceptable (to me). 

 

Consider - in most cloud sets, you pick you favorite and install it. Then as you fly you only see the one you like. One of the main features of ASCA is the dynamic clouds which, by it's very nature picks from different sets according to weather, etc. If you gets sets that you don't like, that affects your overall impression. The ability to select and mark your favorite sets to be used in dynamic clouds might be something to look forward to.  :wink:

 

Vic

 

Thanks Vic I won't give up completely. But I'm looking at the unedited screenshots from SP1 on the HiFi webpage....on the very first one I see a texture repeated 4 times. I've never seen that with Rex Soft Clouds.

Here is some info on SP1:

 

http://www.hifisimtech.com/as16-asca-sp1/

1. Do I have to start an ASCA executable before I fire up the sim or does it run as a dll or...?

 

2. How cloud textures work if I decided to leave AS16 turned off (and what happens to my default cloud textures - I currently have a FEX texture set installed over the default P3D clouds that I like)?

 

3. Does it operate independent of AS16 (i.e. if i choose rain and gray, will it install a different set then if I choose Fair Weather)?

 

 

1. When you start AS16 it will automatically load ASCA (minimized to the tasbar if you wish).

 

2. P3D (as well as FSX) can only work with ONE cloud and sky set at a time. So if you decide to not use AS16 and ASCA you will be using the set that was last used. As soon as you start using ASCA your current FEX textures will be overwritten by ASCA textures. ASCA will dynamically load different textures (if you use the dynamic theme) and when you close P3D the last used set will be the one you will see the next time you start P3D (without AS16 and ASCA). If you want your FEX textures back whenever you don't use ASCA, you will have to load them using FEX after you stopped using AS16+ASCA. Again, only ONE texture set can be used at a time: if you keep that in mind, you will see it works pretty logical.

 

3. ASCA will only do its dynamic work with AS16. If you don't run AS16, ASCA will do nothing dynamically. Choosing a preset weather theme in P3D will not automatically change textures. You can however use ASCA just like you use FEX: run ASCA (without AS16), choose a texture set (not the dynamic one), install the textures and that's it. You can close ASCA after that. Again, the key thing to remember is that P3D can only use one texture set at a time.

SP1 is adding some very nice improvements.

Thank you Jerome for the detailed response to my questions. As a follow up, if I just wanted to do a quick 'fair weather' flight and use ASCA as a static tool, do the texture sets still stack up against FEX or REX?

Jeroen, you stated that ASCA will overwrite my FEX clouds as soon as activated.

 

I have been under the impression if I UNCHECK Cloud Textures in the ASCA Settings, then install my desired FEX clouds and then activate ASCA, it will NOT overwrite my FEX clouds, but will dynamically change my FEX clouds as needed to display proper conditions.

 

Please confirm.  Thanks so much :smile:

 

 

I have been under the impression if I UNCHECK Cloud Textures in the ASCA Settings, then install my desired FEX clouds and then activate ASCA, it will NOT overwrite my FEX clouds, but will dynamically change my FEX clouds as needed to display proper conditions.

 

It cannot change your FEX textures dynamically because it does not know anything about them.

ASCA can only change it's own sets dynamically because it needs to know which set is appropriate for the conditions, it's not just changing sets randomly but choosing the best one to represent the current metar.

Thank you Jerome for the detailed response to my questions. As a follow up, if I just wanted to do a quick 'fair weather' flight and use ASCA as a static tool, do the texture sets still stack up against FEX or REX?

 

 

You mean if the quality of ASCA is at the same level as FEX and REX? Some say it is, some say it isn't. I personally still use the HDEv2 clouds.

 

 

I have been under the impression if I UNCHECK Cloud Textures in the ASCA Settings, then install my desired FEX clouds and then activate ASCA, it will NOT overwrite my FEX clouds, but will dynamically change my FEX clouds as needed to display proper conditions.

 

I've said this elsewhere already but this sort of proves my point that you actually only need ONE cloud set to give you ALL kinds of cloudscapes in the sim... You had the impression, I presume from looking at the sim, that different cloud sets were used and shown while actually all you saw was ONE FEX cloud set doing its work.  :wink: You are right that ASCA won't overwrite the FEX clouds when you uncheck the clouds in ASCA but that's it. As Glynn posted: there is nothing ASCA can dynamically do with ONE set of textures and ASCA can only dynamically load its own textures. 

 

I also think quite a few people are a bit confused by the use of the word dynamically because both AS16 and ASCA do things dynamically but they are quite different. AS16 dynamically changes the weather and you will see all kinds of weather and clouds in the sim for which AS16 uses only one active texture set. ASCA dynamically replaces one cloud and/or sky set with another cloud and/or sky set. That's it. In any case, even when ASCA is doing its thing, there always is only ONE texture set active.

 

 

I also think quite a few people are a bit confused by the use of the word dynamically because both AS16 and ASCA do things dynamically but they are quite different. AS16 dynamically changes the weather and you will see all kinds of weather and clouds in the sim for which AS16 uses only one active texture set. ASCA dynamically replaces one cloud and/or sky set with another cloud and/or sky set. That's it. In any case, even when ASCA is doing its thing, there always is only ONE texture set active.

 

Not true in full dynamics mode. See my explanation here: http://www.hifisimtech.com/forums/showthread.php?6529-Difference-between-full-dynamics-and-global-automatic&p=32482&viewfull=1#post32482

Not true in full dynamics mode. See my explanation here: http://www.hifisimtech.com/forums/showthread.php?6529-Difference-between-full-dynamics-and-global-automatic&p=32482&viewfull=1#post32482

 

 

I see. But that only concerns my remark that ASCA is always using one texture set: if I understand it well, ASCA can use various files out of a max of 8 texture sets in full dynamics mode, correct...? But of course only if you enabled the clouds in ASCA: otherwise only the installed texture set will be used and that will always be one (ASCA or FEX or REX or whatever).

ASCA can use various files out of a max of 8 texture sets in full dynamics mode

 

AFAIK SP1 will add more textures.

AFAIK SP1 will add more textures.

Absolutely