Reflected light that reflects in windshield of cockpit

[ImADot]

Well, it's another semi-transparent layer that the vid card needs to render.  And the 10-year-old game is irrelevant; just needed a visual example for what I think was the wish of the OP. 

[gyrene81]

I'd rather have a visible pilot instead of an empty seat or canopy reflections...but that would probably be a framerate killer as well.

Does beg the question as to why ancient games like Mig Alley and Falcon 4.0 could render such things with ease and it couldn't be done in AH without causing a framerate problem. Neither of those games were MMO so there was no issue of data transfer...could that be the reason?

[Motherland]

Your eyes see semi-transparent.......  But sadly, that isn't what the video card sees. FRAME RATE KILLER.... I'd bet your life on that.

Well I guess it means a lot to bet the life of some one you've never met before over the internet... anyway...

Could you explain to me 'what the video card sees'? Because just looking at it it looks like the game displays a semi transparent bitmap (like oil damage or blood spatters that we have in game) over the span of the canopy glass. Unless you have a problem with oil damage or blood spatters I can't imagine why something like this would cause you trouble.

I'd rather have a visible pilot instead of an empty seat or canopy reflections...but that would probably be a framerate killer as well.

Does beg the question as to why ancient games like Mig Alley and Falcon 4.0 could render such things with ease and it couldn't be done in AH without causing a framerate problem. Neither of those games were MMO so there was no issue of data transfer...could that be the reason?

I don't see why it would be a framerate killer? We already have a visible pilot inside the cockpit at lower LOD's. At the highest LOD you would just have the pilot instead of the empty seat. A few extra polygons and another 1mb texture. I can't imagine how it would be significantly detrimental, especially since HTC usually does such a good job making very detailed 3D models with very low polygon counts.

Does beg the question as to why ancient games like Mig Alley and Falcon 4.0 could render such things with ease and it couldn't be done in AH without causing a framerate problem. Neither of those games were MMO so there was no issue of data transfer...could that be the reason?

I also don't understand how data transfer would come into the equation. If you just have a static 3D model you don't need to say 'hey there's a pilot in here'. I've always thought it was just an artistic decision. However personally I'd much rather see pilots in the cockpit, since the cockpits seem very empty, especially after the addition of shadows.

[LLogann]

I have bet my own so many times, I figured I'd give yours a shot.  Calm down and count to 10 Mother, this is the internet.  

And no I can't, I'm lazy..... Do it your darn self.  http://forum.framerateissues.com/

Well I guess it means a lot to bet the life of some one you've never met before over the internet... anyway...

Could you explain to me 'what the video card sees'? Because just looking at it it looks like the game displays a semi transparent bitmap (like oil damage or blood spatters that we have in game) over the span of the canopy glass. Unless you have a problem with oil damage or blood spatters I can't imagine why something like this would cause you trouble.
I don't see why it would be a framerate killer? We already have a visible pilot inside the cockpit at lower LOD's. At the highest LOD you would just have the pilot instead of the empty seat. A few extra polygons and another 1mb texture. I can't imagine how it would be significantly detrimental, especially since HTC usually does such a good job making very detailed 3D models with very low polygon counts.
I also don't understand how data transfer would come into the equation. If you just have a static 3D model you don't need to say 'hey there's a pilot in here'. I've always thought it was just an artistic decision. However personally I'd much rather see pilots in the cockpit, since the cockpits seem very empty, especially after the addition of shadows.

[Motherland]

I have bet my own so many times, I figured I'd give yours a shot.  Calm down and count to 10 Mother, this is the internet. 

Err.... calm down? OK....

And no I can't, I'm lazy..... Do it your darn self.  http://forum.framerateissues.com/

I want to know why you think it would hurt framerates, not whether it actually would... that's two completely different subjects. If I went looking for how something like the OP could murder framerates, I could look for hours and not find anything... because it wouldn't.

By the way, if you honestly think that displaying a simple semi transparent bitmap over the canopy would massacre framerates, you probably shouldn't fly fighters, or use the Ostwind or Wirblewind, as the reflector sight is the same thing.

You definitely shouldn't fly the RV8 either, as it has exactly what the op is asking for (albeit not very pronounced by default)



These are the guilty files in the process...
I'll warn you the masses of data stored in them could slow your computer to a crawl.... if you don't believe me look it up....

First a 8 bit, 512x512px, 257KB bitmap named ENV.bmp(twice my RAM!)


And another 8 bit, 128x128px 17KB bitmap named XENV.bmp(more resource intensive than Windows Vista!)

[gyrene81]

Motherland...the OP is looking for a direct reflection of the cockpit interior showing whatever would in reality be reflected on the glass based on the sun's position...it also has to be dynamic in that as the position of the sun changes while the plane is moving, turning, rolling, climbing, the reflected objects change not only in content but shape...that is a hell of a lot more rendering, even in semi-transparent form than the examples you posted.

[Motherland]

Motherland...the OP is looking for a direct reflection of the cockpit interior showing whatever would in reality be reflected on the glass based on the sun's position...it also has to be dynamic in that as the position of the sun changes while the plane is moving, turning, rolling, climbing, the reflected objects change not only in content but shape...that is a hell of a lot more rendering, even in semi-transparent form than the examples you posted.

Correction... what was posted as an example from Falcon 4.0 is exactly what we see in the RV8.
Toki also makes references to MiG Alley and says what he's thinking of would be possible with one texture so I'm not so sure that he means something truly dynamic in the OP, though it would be nice. And probably not too intensive considering we already have basically the same thing with the water.

[gyrene81]

True...if it were just a static transparency showing a semi realistic reflection it shouldn't be much more of a frame hitter than the oil on a cockpit...as long as it didn't have to change...my next question would then be, since we don't have the ability to change our virtual pilot visual focus, wouldn't it get annoying to have that in your view when you're trying to locate an enemy dot?

[Motherland]

True...if it were just a static transparency showing a semi realistic reflection it shouldn't be much more of a frame hitter than the oil on a cockpit...as long as it didn't have to change...my next question would then be, since we don't have the ability to change our virtual pilot visual focus, wouldn't it get annoying to have that in your view when you're trying to locate an enemy dot?

As long as it's not too dark it wouldn't be a problem... you could probably have an alpha slider for it like we do for the gunsight.
There's no issue seeing anything in the RV8, though, again, it's not very pronounced.

[Kurtank]

That reflection is on the wing, broski. Not the canopy.

[Motherland]

That reflection is on the wing, broski. Not the canopy.

-There's no mechanism in the game for dynamic reflection off of plane parts
-There's no reflection on the external RV8 texture
-That pattern is present in the texture which is applied over the canopy
-I've screwed with the texture that is applied over the canopy to understand how it works a bit better

This is the external RV8 texture. I there's no reflection on the wing



What you're seeing is in this texture, about half way down on the right side. This texture is applied semi-transparently on the canopy.

[Kazaa]

+ 10000000000000000000000000000 00000000000000000000000000000 00000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000

This would top the eye candy off for me.