Aces High Bulletin Board

Help and Support Forums => Aces High Bug Reports => Topic started by: GuyNoir on July 20, 2012, 10:39:41 AM

Title: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: GuyNoir on July 20, 2012, 10:39:41 AM

The new environment map reflections look great!  ...but as the title says, when you're sitting in the cockpit, the environment map reflects the cockpit instead of the outside of the plane, as it should.

...I wonder too if the environment mapping would look better if it were toned down just a bit.  At the moment, it has a bit of a celophane look to it on some planes (like the B29).   :eek: 

Also, I guess this is an issue for the skinners, but some of the painted plane skins, like on the B17, are now using the environment map reflections, which looks crazy since the paint probably wouldn't have mirror-like reflections like that!


Regardless, between the bump-mapping, the shadows, the lighting, and the new environment maps, these planes are looking danged good!   :O

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: GuyNoir on July 21, 2012, 11:01:58 AM

Ok, ok, clearly there aren't enough photos, so here're some screenshots I just took of the bug:

Here's one from outside the plane, where the reflection looks as it should, mirroring the outside world:
(http://i.imgur.com/fy1tK.jpg?1)

and here's one from inside the plane...  mirroring the inside of the cockpit:
(http://i.imgur.com/JBTEj.jpg?1)


edit.  I kind of wonder if this'll be an easy thing to fix... it almost looks like the reflection is taken from the 180 degrees behind your head causing you to see the cockpit behind you.  

Maybe a fix would be to make the plane transparent in the shadow mirror world...  I dunno.

The unfortunate thing is that the reflections look great from outside the plane, but we spend the majority of the time inside the plane, so we'll mostly only ever see the messed up reflection, which doesn't look right.

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: GuyNoir on July 25, 2012, 09:23:43 AM

I think that the environment maps have now been disabled on all skins but the defaults?  (along with the bump-mapping)  

After comparing the default skins to the others, I think the bump mapping and environment mapping really make those skins pop, and they look very good!   Seriously, it's a big step up!  I wonder how long it'll take for the new effects to filter to the rest of the user-created skins?

I also think possibly that the environment map effect has been toned down slightly?  I'm not sure at all...  Either way, the bare-metal P47 skins look very nice with it!   ...especially with the matte paint layered on top of the bare metal!   :O    

Unfortunately, though, when you're in the plane, you still see the cockpit reflected instead of the outside of the plane, which ruins the effect!

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: Hazard69 on October 01, 2012, 10:46:50 AM

Apologies to the forum police for bringing up an old thread, but this is the problem as I understand it.

The environment map seems to reflect the world 180 out of phase with your view (a simplistic yet effective method). Hence when your view is from within the cockpit, it refelects the other end of the cockpit.

A simplistic fix would be for the system to consider using the F3 view at the view angle your head is viewing at from within the cockpit and render 180 out of phase with that. While it would still be unable to reflect your airframe, it would generate the appropriate sky/terrain image then (which imho is a damnside better than ur cockpit) :aok.

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: 100Coogn on October 01, 2012, 04:39:53 PM

Quote from: Hazard69 on October 01, 2012, 10:46:50 AM

Apologies to the forum police for bringing up an old thread, but this is the problem as I understand it.

The environment map seems to reflect the world 180 out of phase with your view (a simplistic yet effective method). Hence when your view is from within the cockpit, it refelects the other end of the cockpit.

A simplistic fix would be for the system to consider using the F3 view at the view angle your head is viewing at from within the cockpit and render 180 out of phase with that. While it would still be unable to reflect your airframe, it would generate the appropriate sky/terrain image then (which imho is a damnside better than ur cockpit) :aok.

Category:  Aces High Bugs Report + A Simple (simplistic) Fix = You will not be taken seriously...

Coogan

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: fuzeman on October 01, 2012, 07:31:14 PM

Pretty sure this was mentioned:

Quote from: hitech on September 02, 2012, 11:27:39 PM

That is because you are running the first notch of environment mapping, it uses a static reflection.

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: branch37 on October 03, 2012, 05:37:09 PM

I can sometimes see the view from inside the tower reflected in my gauges.

Title: Re: The Environment Map reflects the cockpit instead of the plane!
Post by: Chalenge on October 03, 2012, 05:51:38 PM

You know how to fix this? Make a skin.