Below is a statement from the FTX website that I think is great for the simming community. The Features web page not only mentions cloud shadows, but other features that will make FSX be a great experience. I am totally excited about this product and looking forward to its release.From FTX Website:Further developments planned include real-time cloud shadows, dynamic texture swapping and real-time water variation based on weather data. Full integration with the FEX Environment Simulator will enable an unlimited variation of ground textures to accurately reflect conditions in real world for your region as you fly. More details about how Xenvision Technology will revolutionise ground textures will be published here on the FTX website in the coming months.Another excerpt:FTX will be able to place different crops in rural fields based on the actual planting seasons for that regionThe link:http://www.flightterrain.com/features.html

"Further developments planned" being the key word there. I'm certainly looking forward to hearing how they plan on pulling it off.

I don't think they would make wild clamins if they didn't think they could do some of this.JMO but IMO they will do this if they say they will do it.

>I don't think they would make wild clamins if they didn't>think they could do some of this.>>JMO but IMO they will do this if they say they will do it.I didn't say that I think it can't be done. If I thought that, I would have said that. But they also didn't say they were going to do it, they said that they plan at some point in time they to work on it. That is a long way from saying it's in.I'm merely curious as to how they even plan on starting. An effect, I suppose, but I can't figure out how.

>From FTX Website:>Further developments planned include real-time cloud shadows,>dynamic texture swapping and real-time water variation based>on weather data. Full integration with the FEX Environment>Simulator will enable an unlimited variation of ground>textures to accurately reflect conditions in real world for>your region as you fly. More details about how Xenvision>Technology will revolutionise ground textures will be>published here on the FTX website in the coming months.>OMG FTX will be able to dynamically swap textures? That would be incredible since they could add cloud shadows and darken the ground or water in overcast weather.Maybe ACES has added this capability in SP2?

I can confirm cloud shadows will be in FTX, and further-more there is zero performance hit. We will show some screenshots of this in action as soon as humanly possible, because this is something we felt was needed to increase the depth of realism in the simulator and are therefore quite proud of.Kind regards,Chris Norris

I thought that website looked familiar :-lol Regards,Jim Karn

Although I haven't purchased FEX yet, Im truly amazed by what you guys are able to do with this sim! :DIll definately will purchase both once I have upgraded my system :-hah :-waveshocky :-hahhttp://img7.exs.cx/img7/5379/Banner21.jpg

Hi ChrisIs this static or dynamic cloud shadows? Not sure how you could pull off dynamic cloud shadows, but even static ones will be fine by me. Better than nothing at all!Cheers,Christian

It is dynamic :-) As your flying along you will invariably pass through cloudy areas of varying cloud cover and then into clear skies. The cloud shadows will relect the cloud cover, so when in the clear no shadows.I won't at this stage say how this was achieved, but we needed to look at the problem from a different angle, where it would not cost a single frame in performance terms.Kind regards,Chris

>Below is a statement from the FTX website that I think is>great for the simming community. The Features web page not>only mentions cloud shadows, but other features that will make>FSX be a great experience. I am totally excited about this>product and looking forward to its release.>>From FTX Website:>Further developments planned include real-time cloud shadows,>dynamic texture swapping and real-time water variation based>on weather data. Full integration with the FEX Environment>Simulator will enable an unlimited variation of ground>textures to accurately reflect conditions in real world for>your region as you fly. More details about how Xenvision>Technology will revolutionise ground textures will be>published here on the FTX website in the coming months.>>Another excerpt:>FTX will be able to place different crops in rural fields>based on the actual planting seasons for that region>>The link:>http://www.flightterrain.com/features.htmlnow that is exceptionally COOL!I wonder why water variations werent included in FEX though?If you can vary the crops (the appearance of crops) then maybe we can have snow that actually only exists if its snowed in the area?that would be cool.

Changing ground textures based on weather events, in this case snow, is a great idea. If the FTX guys see this, I hope they consider it. I for one, would love to see that. Wonder if any other simmers can post other good ideas for texture swapping, or anything else applicable to FTX that perhaps the FTX people can consider.

I heard it's going to be so real, that if you take too long on a grass field, you can actually see the grass growing :-)

Hi guys,try this: load a flight in FSX (or FS9, for that matter), anywhere outside the tropics, then switch to the Winter Wonderland weather theme and fly around for a bit. Notice something? You already paid for your in-flight switch-over to snowy ground ;-)The implementation of the transition isn't all that great but FS does place and draw textures as square tiles so it's difficult to avoid the checkerboard look while textures are being switched. Maybe some kind of fading could be implemented...Cheers, Holger

>try this: load a flight in FSX (or FS9, for that matter),>anywhere outside the tropics, then switch to the Winter>Wonderland weather theme and fly around for a bit. Notice>something? You already paid for your in-flight switch-over to>snowy ground ;-)As long as FTX's solution does not require a "Please wait, loading..." popup that freezes the sim... ;)>The implementation of the transition isn't all that great but>FS does place and draw textures as square tiles so it's>difficult to avoid the checkerboard look while textures are>being switched. Maybe some kind of fading could be>implemented...I think you can see something similar when the sun is setting or rising and FSX gradually "lightens up" each texture block one at a time. It takes a while to go through them.