REX Sky Force - Cloud Model Sync Explanation

[Guest]

14 minutes ago, B777ER said:

Same with me. No cumulus files were updated. I had those other rex_rainbow, glow, flare, Corona and blob installed as well even though I never installed them manually. I am completely lost as to what I did wrong. 

I myself think something went terribly wrong with the hotfix. The one that the program itself came up with was just an exe without an msi which is needed for the fix. I did install the proper fix after that manually but I do presume something went wrong there. The way REX offers fixes with that rexinstaller.exe is a full proof recepy for problems and mistakes imho.

13 minutes ago, vgbaron said:

I would suspect there's a backup methodology somewhere. When you uninstalled SF, did it replace all the files it installed? If it diid not, that could get messy.

I do know it left the cloud files where they were and only replaced the xml with the default one. The textures I am not sure about... In the end I used ASCA to restore the textures however that snapshot was taken AFTER installing SF so my 'default' is 'infected' by SF anyway somehow now... I have no clue if my default is really default anymore.

[Nyxx 6,993]

20 minutes ago, J van E said:

I have no clue if my default is really default anymore.

J pick an airport and a time and date runway your starting at, take a screenshot I will do the same.

[geolpilot 88]

Please All,

My humble apologies. ASCA injecting only sky textures DOES NOT touch the CloudArtFiles.xml placed there by SF! So Vic is correct - it will leave your SF installation of .cld files and the .xml OK as it injects ONLY sky textures.

Here is what happens (and what made me make this erroneous claim), and I just duplicated it.

1. If you switch (tick on) ACSA cloud structures (to maybe do comparisons with SF),  and install an ASCA theme (manually or dynamically), then the SF CloudArtFiles.xml will be overwritten by the ASCA version. It leaves the installed SF .cld files intact(does know anything about them after all).
2. If you then finish ASCA cloud structure testing, and tick ASCA cloud structures off again, leaving only sky textures set, and install a theme, then ASCA overwites its CloudArtFiles.xml with the old default FS9 version. Guess that is a neat and quick way of switching off its cloud models, since it leaves all the ASCA*.cld files (607) in place. Suppose this was so that if you ever wanted to toggle ASCA cloud structures back on again, it just has to write back its own CloudArtFiles.xml - instant.

So  if you ever do step 1 and/or 2 above, then you will have to reinstall the SF cloud models. Also instantaneous as all it has to do is write back its CloudArtFiles.xml, since it already left all the SF .cld files installed.

May have to watch that if ever uninstall SF completely all those 1161 .cld files are not left behind. Not going to test this, as my install is OK.

Hopes this clarifies everything (Vic happy?). Sorry again for any confusion my post caused. I feel bad about that, but at least now we know we can safely use ASCA sky textures on their own with SF.

Edited January 8, 2018 by geolpilot
grammar correction sentence 1

[Guest]

31 minutes ago, geolpilot said:

May have to watch that if ever uninstall SF completely all those 1161 .cld files are not left behind. Not going to test this, as my install is OK.

As I posted above all SF cloud files remain there in the cloud folder when you uninstall SF.  All 1160 of them. Only the xml gets replaced with the default one. 

[Guest]

52 minutes ago, Nyxx said:

J pick an airport and a time and date runway your starting at, take a screenshot I will do the same.

Thanks! I think I am good though. I found a folder in the recycle bin in which all files had dates from last summer so they must be defaults. Well, anyway, here is what it looks like on June 1st, 2017 at EHSBm runway 9, using the default Mooney and the basic default buildings storms weather theme. Looks pretty default to me.

[B777ER 2,486]

4 hours ago, Nyxx said:

With only installing SF clouds and moon this is what you should see. Did it today to show dates.

ASCA with ENVTEX is all fine for sky colours.

Nope, no cumulus or cirrus clouds are loaded by SF3. I followed the guide on page 6 of this thread from J van E and they won't install. I did d/l the Hotfix from REX and after doing so I saw that I had to redo all the settings. The textures are not being sent over (file path is correct as I have other Rex files in their as mentioned previously that I did not even choose to use) and the xml file is updated as well. 

This is the most confusing  software that I have had to try and get set up. I am waiting for J van E to get it sorted and repost his guide hopefully as he and I have the same issues. 

I don't not want to install the Hotfix because I don't want CTD of the sim from a program I am using nothing but bloody clouds for! 

[Guest]

Ok, did some more testing. Sigh. Is anyone here sick and tired of me already? Anyway, I just found out that SF does NOT install cloud textures on my PC. It does install files during the initial setup of the program but if I select another set of clouds and click on Install I get a message everything has been installed but 1. the files in the texture folder are still the same, nothing has happened, and also 2. the option Currently in sim keeps on saying set 1 of the clouds is installed, even if I installed set 8.

Something is wrong here. So far Eric/B777ER confirmed having the same problem. Is anyone having this problem too? All this is happening before firing up ASCA or ENVTEX after the fresh install of SF.

[Nyxx 6,993]

18 minutes ago, J van E said:

Thanks! I think I am good though. I found a folder in the recycle bin in which all files had dates from last summer so they must be defaults. Well, anyway, here is what it looks like on June 1st, 2017 at EHSBm runway 9, using the default Mooney and the basic default buildings storms weather theme. Looks pretty default to me.

June 1st, 2017 at EHSB runway 9, using historical weather.

[Ted Striker 338]

1 minute ago, J van E said:

Is anyone here sick and tired of me already?

Quite, the contrary Jeroen. I for one appreciate you taking one for the team and talking about it. It  does not look like this Sky Force is ready for prime time. With all the confusion on what it is, how it works, and how use it, I am going to stay away for awhile.

Thanks,

Ted

[Nyxx 6,993]

If I click on "currently installed in sim" it shows what I have correctly.

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, Nyxx said:

June 1st, 2017 at EHSB runway 9, using historical weather.

Thanks! My clouds go a lot further into the distance using historical weather but that may be a setting in AS or the sim: at least the colors and kind of clouds look very similar so I think I have found my 'default folder'.

I made a backup of this default folder and whenever I am going to test new textures (ASCA, ENVTEX, SF) I will FIRST restore this default texture folder AND the clouds folder too. I just don't trust those addons anymore to do the job properly LOL

7 minutes ago, Ted Striker said:

Quite, the contrary Jeroen.

Good to hear, thanks!

2 minutes ago, Nyxx said:

If I click on "currently installed in sim" it shows what I have correctly.

Well, that's odd. That screen there in SF has always been completely filled on my PC and shows Set 1 for absolutely everything! It did so before I reinstalled and also after! I wonder if Eric also sees a full list there showing Set 1... Man, how odd is this. Incredible.

[Nyxx 6,993]

35 minutes ago, J van E said:

Thanks! I think I am good though. I found a folder in the recycle bin in which all files had dates from last summer so they must be defaults. Well, anyway, here is what it looks like on June 1st, 2017 at EHSBm runway 9, using the default Mooney and the basic default buildings storms weather theme. Looks pretty default to me.

Did the test again using your setting so there now the same ! using just the basic default buildings storms weather theme

Think there is a huge difference myself!

[B777ER 2,486]

22 minutes ago, Nyxx said:

If I click on "currently installed in sim" it shows what I have correctly.

Have applied the Hotfix from REX? If yes, after you applied the Hotfix did you have to redo all your settings? Are you using Activesky for the weather engine? Lastly, can you please provide the steps that you took to get it up and running with Activesky? 

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, B777ER said:

Are you using Activesky for the weather engine? Lastly, can you please provide the steps that you took to get it up and running with Activesky?

Make sure to disable the weather engine in SkyForce and well, that's it...! After that just start Active Sky and it will do its job.

To disable the SF weather engine click on the gear icon in the lower left corner, go to Engine (in the row at the bottom) and make sure every option is disabled. That's it.

BTW I just tested ENVTEX skies running dynamically through ASCA while using SF for clouds and it works indeed as advertised and as vgbaron posted. So no fear that this will screw up anything. I loaded a flight, changed the weather a few times, saw the sky textures clearly change and after that I loaded my test flights again (with AS disabled so the weather would be the exact same) and my sim looked the EXACT same as on my last SF shots.

[B777ER 2,486]

Ya, SF wx engine is disabled. Problem is no cumulus or cirrus textures are being sent from SF3 to p3d/texture folder.