Object Placer and LOD Fixer auto tiler

[Guest]

We have now new great programs in our hands.

OBJECT PLACER & TILER UTILITY
The Object Placer & Tiler Utility is a multi-function program. The Object Placer functions currently places bridge objects automatically, generating a Tacedit compatible CSV (Comma Delimited Variables) file which can be imported into Tacedit. Tacedit export CSV files can be edited (selected objects exported or deleted) and reimported into Tacedit.

The Tiler Utility scans the L2 terrain file to find road and river tiles which are no alighned or terminated. It also finds improper transitions between cover types (e.g., farm to forest). For each type of scan, a report is generated in CSV and/or text format.

LODFIXER
LODFixer is basically a auto tiling tool, you can specify your own patterns of what tiles to use or you can lay the basic cover tiles. You can also tell LODFixer which areas of the map you want to process. This utility works on 64, 128 and 256 segment maps.

WITCHFIX
WitchFix is a utility that converts .wch/idx file to a text file that you can edit. It then converts the edited text file back to a .wch/idx. The pointers
in the .idx file are adjusted to point to all the strings, original and edited/added strings.

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[Guest]

Falcon Korea is a hypothetical war, but it could have happened. Since large theaters are now possible, have you given any thought down the road about a WWIII Falcon Europe during the cold war?

[Guest]

GREAT TOOLS!
So, Snaek Man, What's the best estimated hours required to produce a new tiled Falkland thater with those tools?
I mean the one processed by DEM2L2, of course.

[Guest]

I created Vietnam 64 segment map from the scratch (only had TDF files ready), using our dem2lf.exe, TerrainView Auto Compute Features and finally LODFixer autotiling.

This took me less than 3 minutes

I know the result is not perfect, but when we compare the time used creating it and the time used manually hand tile 4096 segments... there is really no contest. LODFixer wins.

The idea is only hand tile the important areas and features, rest is left for autotiling.

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[Guest]

I am scared.
" Give me 3 minutes, and i'll give you a theater " !!! WOW!!!

Man, I suppose the new L2 and O2 are for better horizontal view ))
Just cant tell the difference between yours and this 3-min-made one!!

Hey, Should announce this great news to all theater fans!!!

Of course, there still leave some thing for hand-tiling...ya, much much less than we expected!

[Guest]

Just wanted to let you know that I am monitoring this forum. If you have any questions about my utilities, ask away.

Fred

[Guest]

Ok I have one for you BaldEagle, how can I add LODFixer to use only wet farmland tiles for 160 tile covertype, and dry farmland tiles for the 96 dry farmland?

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[Guest]

oh shit i'm also affraid i may be out of job . one thing i can tell you guys keep this stuff out of my team. auto tiling its like an horror story. i prefer to leave the tiling to a human not a machine.
and may the force be with you.
Death_119 (israel theater building team)

[Guest]

Ya, Dudi, your theater is going well.
Dunno if Auto-tiling could be performed on some designated area? so you dont have to worry about some marginal areas that people hardly going there.

[Guest]

You can apply the autotiling from 1 up to 4096 segments, location is your choice.

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[Guest]

I am scared again...now where's the magic tool that generate campagin+ PAK in less 3 minutes? )

[Guest]

LODFixer is making great looking farmland and if you are not happy, you can specify your own patterns of autotilesets. Very nice.

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[BaldEagle]

quote:Ok I have one for you BaldEagle, how can I add LODFixer to use only wet farmland tiles for 160 tile covertype, and dry farmland tiles for the 96 dry farmland?

Make two different script files, one with wetland tiles only in DataType=1 DateType=2, and the other with dry farmland tiles only. Rename the one you want to use to "Terrain-L2TileScript.dat".

Fred

[brewskie]

Wow, this new Eagle Dude knows his stuff.
Speaking of eagles,Phili won yesterday, now I believe they play my NY Giants.

[Quicksilver]

Here's another question:

LODFixer asks you to input the co-ordinates of your theater at the .ini file. Where can you get these co-ords from? Real life maps? Perhaps TacEdit?

Quicksilver

[BaldEagle]

LODFixer doesn't use the lat./long, so you can put in any coordinates you want to. If you want the actual coordinates, then you will have to ask the people who built the theater, or locate them on a real world map.

Fred

[Widowmaker]

Tacedit can do this

put the coordinate af the TV grid into it and it gives you long lat
You can do this with adding an object into a*.tac

I hope these are the coordintaes you are searching for

[Tazz]

quote:Originally posted by brewskie:
Falcon Korea is a hypothetical war, but it could have happened. Since large theaters are now possible, have you given any thought down the road about a WWIII Falcon Europe during the cold war?

Well I'm working on such a scenario but for the mainwhile with the regular 10x10 DEM data though.

[brewskie]

Tazz, I believe a Falcon Europe "East VS West" during the cold war, has the potential of being the best theater ever created for F4. Mainly because it's a war against the Warsaw Pact nations and their 50,000 tanks,and the thousands of bmp's,mobile sams,zsu's,helicopters and aircraft.
If at some point Snakeman wants to shift
the emphasis to Falcon Europe, i would be glad "honored" to help out My advice would be to work with PMC and co-produce a 128 type theater. Let PMC take the lead in heading up a project of this magnitude. It's extremely complex and cutting edge. You will find it will go alot smoother and get done much quicker if their involved. Falcon Europe will need everyone's participation.

[This message has been edited by brewskie (edited January 10, 2001).]

[87th_striker]

I do not think that's such a bad idea, Tazz ?

The F4 community will love this scenario, and it certainly takes a lot of people to pull it through !

Why not set up a project group ?

[Snake Man]

quote:Originally posted by Quicksilver:
LODFixer asks you to input the co-ordinates of your theater at the .ini file. Where can you get these co-ords from? Real life maps? Perhaps TacEdit?

You'll get the long/lat cocordinates from the DEM data download package, the .HDR file.
Its like this vietnam example:
---
file_title = vietnam
data_type = raster
grid_cell_registration = center
map_projection = Lat/Lon
left_map_x = 101.99999988720
right_map_x = 112.00000002720
upper_map_y = 22.00000002720
lower_map_y = 11.99999995920
number_of_rows = 1200
number_of_columns = 1200
grid_size = 0.00833333333
elev_m_unit = meters
elev_m_minimum = 1
elev_m_maximum = 2844
elev_m_missing_flag = -500
---

Its the left_map_x, right_map_x, upper_map_y and lower_map_y.

However if you are working on existing terrain files with no data available (hdr), well like posted earlier, you need to ask this data from the creator of the initial terrain files.

Of course, LODFixer dont NEED the coordinates, so just copy-paste korea or balkans


BTW guys, I want to keep this message area strictly on LODFixer issues. No off topics please.

PMC TFW
Snake Man

[This message has been edited by Snake_Man (edited January 15, 2001).]

[Tazz]

quote:Originally posted by brewskie:
Tazz, I believe a Falcon Europe "East VS West" during the cold war, has the potential of being the best theater ever created for F4. Mainly because it's a war against the Warsaw Pact nations and their 50,000 tanks,and the thousands of bmp's,mobile sams,zsu's,helicopters and aircraft.
If at some point Snakeman wants to shift
the emphasis to Falcon Europe, i would be glad "honored" to help out My advice would be to work with PMC and co-produce a 128 type theater. Let PMC take the lead in heading up a project of this magnitude. It's extremely complex and cutting edge. You will find it will go alot smoother and get done much quicker if their involved. Falcon Europe will need everyone's participation.

[This message has been edited by brewskie (edited January 10, 2001).]

Sounds like a good plan. I really need a team of people because I can't do everything myself. I have all the E00 data on Germany, Poland, Czech Republic and I have first hand knowledge on the area and detailed OOB's for both Soviet and USAFE side as well as info on Luftwaffe and East German AF OOB. I modified the OOB to set the theater in the late 90s, allowing realistic deployment of the Block 50/52 F-16C and an OOB that could be very realistic if the cold war had not ended. (for example, Hahn, Bitburg and Ramstein still operational fighter bases, UK based F-111 and F-15E units deploying to Germany, as well as the F-16's of Torrejon, Spain and the use of the 3rd and 4th Soviet Air Force in Poland and Germany, moving the 4th AF into their wartime bases of Eastern Germany.

So I just did the autotiling but I don't like the default balkan/korea tiles too much. We have these great FS2000 tiles, with excellent European forrest and farmland tiles as well as very realistic city and village tiles but I don't have any experience converting these.

Would be great if we could get an experienced team together to build this theater. We'll need tilers and someone who knows how to properly convert these FS2000 tiles as well as skinners and we also have the problem of missing 3D objects. The primary missing objects are aircraft (SU-24, Tornado GR1/F3) and tanks (T-72, T-80).

Problem is that due to my demaning work (software development) I have very little time to devide between work, my relationship and computer 'play time' as my girlfriend calls it. So I can't devote myself totally to this project... so I could really use a team of people here

[crossup]

Just one question:
Permission to include you in theater credits for tool creation?
Crossup

quote:Originally posted by BaldEagle:
Just wanted to let you know that I am monitoring this forum. If you have any questions about my utilities, ask away.


Fred

[BaldEagle]

Hi Crossup,

You have my permission to use my name in your theater credits.

TIA for the recognition,
Fred