Putting textures over the default

[Guest]

Hi, I am a bit of a newbie to the scenery game. I have created several buildings/objects using GMax and successfully put them into FS2K2. However, how do I update the ground textures? I don't want to change the terrain (elevations), but just put new textures over the old ones. Do I have to create a BGL with matching elevations? I want the 'new' textures to wrap over the current surfaces.I understand the different types of texures (for seasons, night etc) and bmp depth, but I don't know how to import them into FS as ground textures. I did create some ground-level flat planes with textures on them. but as the ground is not flat this didn't really work.I have found some information about LODs and sizing and scaling, but I am unsure how to put everything together.Any help would be appreciated.Jimmy.

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Jimmy.How large an area are you wanting to re-texture? And why do you want to re-texture them?

[John_Cillis 2,406]

I wrote Landclass Assistant for this purpose. It can't update textures within the confines of an airport, or add lakes, etc... But it can change rural scenery to urban scenery, desert to forest, etc....Here is a site (which is in French) where someone used Landclass Assistant to update Martinique... It should give you a better idea of what it can do. Landclass Assistant (and the required updates) are found in the file library. The .inf update should be installed last...http://skydig.free.fr/index.php?page=scene972-John

[Guest]

Check out this thread...http://ftp.avsim.com/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboa...ewmode=threadedIt might be what you are talking about.

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Jimmy.This is exactly why I asked what size of re-texturing you want to do... Latitude-longitude boundries will do.There are 3 new techniques that will work:Landclass... for re-texturing large areas. John's tool is great, and the method is well known. It can replace any ground tile... LOD13 ( 1223 meters at the equator ).Custom ( photoreal ) resampling... for entire airport or city areas. tlassiter has become a real pioneer in this proven method, as has Bob Bernstein. It requires a bit more work than landclass replacement... usually based on a satellite photo, and therefore quite accurate. My thinking is that an area as small as a 2x2 LOD13 area may be resampled.TMF decals... for smaller areas, primarily, although an entire airport could be re-textured. It has the benefit of adding it's own autogen and seasonal changes. In the long run, it takes less time than CUSTOM resampling, and blends in seamlessly with the surrounding textures. But, the process is still experimental, and requires learning some assembly language. The learning curve can be discouraging at first. Soon, better tools will be developed. fsregen now has some TMF capability. TMF works at the sub-LOD13 level for changes as little as 9 meters span at the equator. Advanced TMF techniques can add re-meshing, flattens, water, shorelines, roads, streams, islands... using default ground textures, or custom textures.I'm going to assume that you aren't quite ready for BGLC language, so landclass or custom resampling are probably the way to go.

[Guest]

Thanks for the help - I think I'll have a play around with the landclass tool and see if it helps me out - however I do want to use custom (ie satellite photos) to replace the default. I'm not sure on the size I want covered yet, but I'll see what I can do with the info provided.Jimmy.