2 versions of BGLC 8.0

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi all.It appears we may have 2 versions of BGLC 8.0There is a version that came with the Special Effects SDK... date modified as :4/1/2002This version is supected to NOT allow placement of effects in the southern hemishpere. I just had some correspondence with a scenery designer from South Africa that could not get effects to show with this version.================A more recent version, in the BGL Compiler SDK, along with another version of BGLPlacer, DOES allow placement of effects in the southern hemisphere...date modified as:6/4/2002The South African Designer, Alan Wilson, is able to now place effects using the newer BGLC.A review with a hex editor reveals they are not identical.================If others from the southern hemishpere have this compile problem, and have them fixed by the newer release of BGLC, please let us know.Dick

[Guest christian]

Hi Dick,I haven't tested it 100% but it seems the later version doesn't read customized include files. This would really make it useless.Cheers, Christian

[Guest]

Hello Dick I as well find that the later version does not read (at least my) coutomized include files either. Dan

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Dan And Christian.Are these Gmax related include files, or are these related to other types of sceneries?Oddly, the latest version of MakeMDL contains the BGLML portion of BGLC... from the older ( 8a ) version.EDITED:Christian and Dan are right, it's NEWEST version of BGLC that gives problems in the southern Hemisphere ( let's call it 8b... distributed with the BGL_Compiler SDK ).I've been using the 8a version all along! ( 8a... distributed with the Special_Effects SDK ).Dick

[Guest christian]

Hmmm, I used my own includes for AFD as far as I rememeber, and it wouldn't work with 8b. 8a worked without problems. As I said I haven't gone to excessive lengths trying to fix the problem, so the solution may be out there...Cheers, Christian

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Christian.I just edited my earlier post. It does appear the newest version ( 8b ) is not right. Why did they release 2 versions... and especially a second version that doesn't work right?I remember you had problems with that BGLPlacer program earlier... I wonder if the BGLC version was the cause?Unfortunately, these 2 versions look identical size-wise and from their properties. The only cure is to delete everyversion of BGLC from your system. Then unzip the BGLC 8a from the Specialeffects_SDK.What a headache.Dick

[Guest christian]

Are you sure?my results were:8a - has the southern hemisphere placement bug8b - has the include doesn't work bug (never tested the southern hemisphere bug, but assumed it would be fixed)confusion, confusion *:-* :-xxrotflmao Christian

[arno 1]

Humm, I think I use the latest one (BGL compiler SDK) all the time and I never had problems with it. What do you all mean with the include bug? If I include for example the mesh inc files in my scenery that works fine (you must mean something else :)).Arno

---

Member Netherlands 2000 Scenery Team[link:home.wanadoo.nl/arno.gerretsen]Arno's FlightSim World for scenery design hints, tips and other tricks...

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Christian.I just had another correspondence from another designer trying to us the Cellgrid macros I made. He couldn't get them displayed.His grid is to be displayed at S21* 12.95' and E55* 44.82'The BGL he sent me doesn't display. I compiled the Cellgrid TXT file, and resulting BGL does display.Here's the worst part:I can compile the BGL with EITHER version, and it will display on my machine.I looked at his BGL's header bounds, and they were really messed up... so I have no idea what is wrong with his BGL, or how he compiles it.????==============cellgrid is a series of nested macros, and includes other INC files from within it. It's really more complex code as far as includes and macros are concerned, than we normally would run across. It compiles fine with either version, in either hemisphere.==============The problems I've had with the 8b version, are in using the CSV files in the southern hemisphere. It's some kind of error computing the Latband, and actually refuses to compile a BGL.That's the only problem I've seen, personally.Dick

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Christian, and all.After poking around in the newest BGLC ( 8b from the BGL Compiler SDK ), I've noticed some macros have been removed from the BGLMAC.inc section:FACET13FACET14FACET15FACETNBUILDING_OCTAGANAREA_SENSE3I can confirm this last version of BGLC will NOT compile a CSV file from BGLPlacer in the Southern Hemisphere.I can compile CSV files correctly with version 8a, from the Special Effects SDK.I'm assuming there was a compiling error when BGLC8b was built, that MS never knew about.I'm attaching a CSV file made by BGLPlacer. It places a building near the Milford Sound, NZ airfield. I'm curious if other designer's can compile this with either version of BGLC 8.0. I'd like to confirm that the version that comes with the Special Effects SDK is a good version. Use "save target as" to save the TXT file to your computer. You can leave the extension as .txt, or save it as .csv.... DO NOT use .asm for a csv file! BGLC will destroy a CSV file with that extension.I am especially interested if non-US designers have a problem with BGLC8a. In the US, we typically use (.) for decimal notation, but many countries use (,)... and I'm wondering if that is a problem.Also, the Lat-Long notation for the CSV files for BGLPlacer should be as:S44* {space}40.7300',E167* {space}55.7300',Here's Kroonstad, South Africa:S27* {space}40.3300',E27* {space}18.6500',Dick

[wsieffert 0]

Dick,I looked at the information you provided above in both BGLC.exe files and I am a little confused about several of the Macros you indicated were missing:BGLC8a - 3-13-2002FACET15BUILDING_OCTAGANAREA_SENSE3BGLC8b - 6-4-2002FACET15BUILDING_OCTAGANAREA_SENSE3BGLC7 - 8-4-2000FACET15BUILDING_OCTAGANAREA_SENSE3I looked in the above three versions from FS2002 and FS2000 and could not find the above in any of the versions.Secondly, I am a little confused about trying to compile the test file you provided. I downloaded it and renamed it to test.csv. I tried dropping it on each BGLC and didn't get anything. I then opened a DOS windows and try the usual: BGLC8 test.csv but just got errors. Are there some other files I need to put in the folder to compile the test file.I also noted there are two BGLPlacer.exe programs. Do you think they may be different?BTW, doing anything with Annotator??

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Bill.If you cannot compile This CSV by a drag'n'drop, then you don't have the right version of BGLC 8.0That's the test. This won't compile with the bogus version... so you don't have version 8a... that's also why you couldn't find BUILDING_OCTAGAN.Version 8a will compile the file.Special Effects SDKThat version of BGLC is maked as 4/3/2002 4:20pmThat's the good 8a. I just downloaded it to a "TestBGLC" folder on the desktop, downloaded the above txt file to that folder, renamed the txt file to "test.csv", and drag'n'dropped onto the good BGLC.. it compiled. That's the test. No other version will compile that CSV file.All other versions of BGLC 8.0 are not right.Once I got a good version verified, I deleted all other versions of BGLC from my hard drives ( I still have the zipped versions in downloaded SDKs ). Dick

[wsieffert 0]

I just downloaded the Special Effect SDK again and you are 100% correct, it compiles with that version.I think MS must have updated the SE SDK after it was posted but didn't tell anyone that it had updated items. I downloaded the first SE SDK on 4/3/02 @0831EST and they must have been assembling a different version at that time because the new BGLC is dated 4/3/02 @1620 (4:20PM) and the times are probably PST. All the other files are also newer than my first download.They did a similiar thing with the customterraintextures_sdk since I have two version of it also.TSK! TSK! TSK!

[wsieffert 0]

What's even stranger (or maybe not), the effects.csv file that comes with the bgl_compiler_sdk.exe can be compiled with all three of the BGLC8 versions.

[rhumbaflappy 113]

Hi Bill.It's just the southern hemisphere that's affected by the bug... which means many of our favorite designers from New Zealand, Australia, South Africa... are left in the lurch for their home areas.That's why the 8a version is important.Dick