ahclds Basic Commands

[hitech]

We have not written all the help tabs and documentation for the cloud editor.


Movement is now the same as all other editors I.e. Right mouse button and swadzq keys. Mouse wheel for speed.

For the weather tab.
Left mouse   Select Front.

Shift Left mouse (Move Front)
Control Left mouse (Set velocity heading.)
Alt Left Mouse (Add front)

For the Clouds tab.

Left Mouse (Selects).
Shift Left Mouse (Moves)
Alt Left Mouse (Add Cloud).


If you have Render Cloud checked, and then save cloud it will also  save a binary cldX.cld  file where the X is the type number you put in cloud settings. It will then also show in the weather select dialog box.

If you wish to use your custom clouds, you need to put the .cld file in the texsrc folder of a terrain.

Please play around with the cloud, You will find the "Is Parent" very use full when your trying to generate large areas of scattered clouds.

What it does is let you then generate random  shapes to fill the parent shape. And then those shapes are populated with random sprites.

Please test FPS when you create new clouds, it is very easy to swamp the system with no additional value in appearance. Less is more.

The weather portion is very similar to the old method only there are no longer rows and cols because each cloud is ment to be created at least a 30 by 30 mile area.

HiTech

[Easyscor]

Is there any way to kill the sun's glare off the west third of the window? I had to scroll the map to see the western portion.
It currently renders the left side of my editing window pretty useless.

EDIT: I just noticed that if I yaw the map, the sun's glare rotates with it and stays over the same western section even after I rotate it around to the east.
The glare is a map thing instead of affecting the editing window.


I wanted to take a quick tour but haven't much time this morning to do much more then that. I like that it will open both a res file and the texsrc map file. 

I have a few terrains that need weather so I'll keep you posted unless I can pawn the project off on someone else.

[Easyscor]

It could use a Top View button, maybe a Home View button as well.

[hitech]

It could use a Top View button, maybe a Home View button as well.

I added that friday.

[bustr]

Hitech,

Should I just go ahead and generate a new weather system for bowlma and rely on the reports in the "Bugs" forum to be addressed enough that I won't make the community fly around at 12FPS? I don't want to hurt them in that manner. Yeah and that sun glare on the CBM map can get nauseating at times. I think you found my equivalent of the tunnel walls going by from the old "Doom" game. I have to focus on ignoring the effect while working the fronts. Had a room mate who could only play Doom for 15 minutes then have to go throw up from nausea because of the tunnel walls. Guess this is payback after 25 years, I used to make fun of him over it....

By the way, thank you for the new clouds, they are great to look at and very immersive.

[hitech]

Hitech,

Should I just go ahead and generate a new weather system for bowlma and rely on the reports in the "Bugs" forum to be addressed enough that I won't make the community fly around at 12FPS? I don't want to hurt them in that manner. Yeah and that sun glare on the CBM map can get nauseating at times. I think you found my equivalent of the tunnel walls going by from the old "Doom" game. I have to focus on ignoring the effect while working the fronts. Had a room mate who could only play Doom for 15 minutes then have to go throw up from nausea because of the tunnel walls. Guess this is payback after 25 years, I used to make fun of him over it....

By the way, thank you for the new clouds, they are great to look at and very immersive.

I had just taken out the glair on the map this morning before coming here.

Also found out that cloud layers are currently not working.

I put up  a quick layout for bowlma online this, feel free to make one and send it , but try not to have overlapping fronts. I have not fully tested the effect of more then 1 front in view at a time.

HiTech

[bustr]

OK, no overlapping.

[bustr]

Testing the default 50x50mile center box with 4cirrostratus.

I gave it .75min time to live, I'm not sure if the 50x50 block generates, then moves for .75 as a block or, it keeps generating inside of the 50x50 pushing it at 70mph for .75min.

Produces a very nice cloud system inside of the 50x50, I was able to fly very near and no FPS drop. Inside it can drop very low and bounce up and down depending on how close to the outer edge of the puff ball I am. Two of the screen shots show rendering issues looking at a diagonal down the length of a wide cloud formation.

When you say overlapping is that one 50x50 higher than another slightly past the lower one's boarder running over it or, two 50x50 next to each other even if they do not touch?