• Which the release of FS2020 we see an explosition of activity on the forun and of course we are very happy to see this. But having all questions about FS2020 in one forum becomes a bit messy. So therefore we would like to ask you all to use the following guidelines when posting your questions:

    • Tag FS2020 specific questions with the MSFS2020 tag.
    • Questions about making 3D assets can be posted in the 3D asset design forum. Either post them in the subforum of the modelling tool you use or in the general forum if they are general.
    • Questions about aircraft design can be posted in the Aircraft design forum
    • Questions about airport design can be posted in the FS2020 airport design forum. Once airport development tools have been updated for FS2020 you can post tool speciifc questions in the subforums of those tools as well of course.
    • Questions about terrain design can be posted in the FS2020 terrain design forum.
    • Questions about SimConnect can be posted in the SimConnect forum.

    Any other question that is not specific to an aspect of development or tool can be posted in the General chat forum.

    By following these guidelines we make sure that the forums remain easy to read for everybody and also that the right people can find your post to answer it.

FS2004 LOD tutorial not working in FS9

S

Sandor

Messages
6
Country
unitedstates
I have been creating scenery objects in FSDS for a few months now. This week I wanted to add LOD models to them and started with the LOD tutorial that comes with FSDS. It seems pretty straight forward but when I place the tutorial object in FS9 (either with EZ-Scenery or .BGL straight from FSDS) only the main LOD model is visible, even if I slew to the other side of the airport.

Next I tried creating three .x files each containing one of the LOD models in the tutorial and labelled them: test_LOD_400, test_LOD_100, test_LOD_025. When I load the first into MadeMDL all three are visible in the LOD tab but this does not work either.

I read here of an issue with LOD and FSX and the animated poly fix. Though I'm using FS9 I wanted to eliminate this possibility and merged the tutorial ferris wheel file with the LOD tutorial (to add animation to it) but this did not work.

FSDS makes implementing LOD seem pretty straight forward so I can't for the life of me figure out what I'm doing wrong,... does anyone have any ideas? Thanks !
 
Hi Sandor

Which version of FSDS are you using 3.0 or 3.5.1 if using 3.5.1 which compiler are you using?

“Next I tried creating three .x files each containing one of the LOD models”

I think you should have only one model with the three LOD models with in it.


I haven’t worked with FS9 in a while but I will do a quick test to see if it works the same way as FSX.
H_Farfy:D
 
Sorry for the buzzkill but.........

LOD's do not work for scenery models using FSDS 3.0 or higher. I've heard through the grapevine that they do work using FSDS 2.0.

Why they don't work for scenery models but yet work for aircraft models (usually AI models), I have no idea. You'd have to email Abacus for the answer to that.

Many an FSDS user (including me) has been incredibly disappointed when they finally realized that LOD's are not possible for scenery when designing with FSDS, for FS9 or FSX.

The smart ones learned to use Gmax, the rest of us are out of luck.

Doesn't mean you can't design good scenery. But we can't get away with the same detail that the Gmax guys can. My entire Nellis AFB scenery was done with FSDS but there are certainly areas where I would have loved to use more detail but had to make the tradeoff for better FPS.
 
Last edited:
Hi Mike

I have not tried to use LOD in FS9 so I am not sure how to get them working there BUT for FSX I use FSDS3.5.1 and I can tell you they WORK I use them all the time.

I just wrote a tutorial explaining how at

http://farfyscenery.katuu.com/

H_Farfy…Scott:D
 
Farfy said:
Hi Sandor

Which version of FSDS are you using 3.0 or 3.5.1 if using 3.5.1 which compiler are you using?
Click to expand...

Hi Farfy,... thanks for your response.

I'm using FSDS version 3.5.1 and version 0.0.0.4 of BGLComp.exe that I downloaded from MS via a link on Abacus' website. I also downloaded MakeMDL version 9.0.0.30612 from there. Are there other versions of these tools available? I'm assuming I can't use the FSX versions for scenery to be used in FS9.

“Next I tried creating three .x files each containing one of the LOD models”

I think you should have only one model with the three LOD models with in it.
Click to expand...

This is my understanding too of how FSDS handles LOD models but since it wasn't working for me I tried doing it the "long way" so to speak and use the LOD tab in MakeMDL to add three separte .x files labelled correctly that then appear in the LOD tab,... this didn't work. Also, when I load up the .x file of the LOD tutorial from FSDS in MakeMDL I do not see the three LOD models this file should contain in the LOD tab in MakeMDL,... should I see them listed there?


I haven’t worked with FS9 in a while but I will do a quick test to see if it works the same way as FSX.
H_Farfy:D
Click to expand...

Again, thanks for your help!
 
Hi Sandor
Sorry but so far I can not get this to work proper in FS9, I will mess with this a bit more.
I'm assuming I can't use the FSX versions for scenery to be used in FS9.
Click to expand...
I don’t think an FSX model will work in FS9, I tried installing a FSX model I with ADE but it didn’t work.
Perhaps you can try installing one with EZ-Scenery. (I have never used EZ-Scenery)

H_Farfy:D
 
No .mdl compiled with XtoMDL.exe will work in FS9, period. End of story... ;)
 
Farfy said:
I have not tried to use LOD in FS9 so I am not sure how to get them working there BUT for FSX I use FSDS3.5.1 and I can tell you they WORK I use them all the time.
Click to expand...

Well that figures! Maybe that explains why they don't work in FS9. Maybe Abacus was planning ahead with FSDS 3 and focusing solely on FSX.

There's gotta be a way. A friend of mine is trying to use FSDS 2.0 to compile models with LOD's, that's how desperate he is.
 
Farfy said:
Hi Sandor
Sorry but so far I can not get this to work proper in FS9, I will mess with this a bit more.
Click to expand...

Well in a way I'm glad to see it's not just me,... and a scenery designer with more experience is also having an issue.:)


I don’t think an FSX model will work in FS9, I tried installing a FSX model I with ADE but it didn’t work.
Perhaps you can try installing one with EZ-Scenery. (I have never used EZ-Scenery)
Click to expand...

I'll give this a try tomorrow,... thanks for taking the time to look into this.
 
Hi Bill
No .mdl compiled with XtoMDL.exe will work in FS9, period. End of story...
Click to expand...
Ya I didn’t think you could use FSX in FS9 but I had never tried either.


Sandor
I spent some time looking thorough the Gmax forums to see how they did LOD for FS9 and so far I am not having any luck.

Can we talk you into upgrading to FSX …LOL


Hi Mike
There's gotta be a way.
Click to expand...

I agree, just like so many things we need to find the trick.

H_Farfy:D:D
 
I had an almost identical problem trying to export and convert multiple .X files (from the 3D canvas modelling tool) as LODs for FS9 scenery objects.

MakeMDL appeared to process everything correctly and recognised the files as LODs but basically I found I could not get it to work at all in FS9

However... when I combined the models into a single .X file and user Per Part LODs, following the group naming convention -see appendix of makeMDL sdk doc, it worked perfectly.
 
decapod said:
However... when I combined the models into a single .X file and user Per Part LODs, following the group naming convention -see appendix of makeMDL sdk doc, it worked perfectly.
Click to expand...

Now you have my attention. While I go off to hunt down that SDK documentation, can you explain this technique a bit further please?
 
It's a matter of having two parts in the same place with different names.

e.g. - my range rover fire truck has 6 high poly wheels:
mnyjzltwgiljknnmvzt2.jpg


I have two "parts" in the same place on the model.

wheels_lod_100 - which contains the high poly version
wheels_lod_040 - contains 3 textured cylinders where the wheels are instead

When I'm close I can see the high detail wheels, as I move away these switch to the cylinders.
 
Ok Guys I have just used Paul’s method in both FSDS3 and FSDS 3.5.1
(FSDS 3.5.1 is set to FS2004 and compiling with MakeMdl)


I am sure we can refine this later.
But for a quick test.


I made a cube, then in the “Part Properties” I just changed the name from “box” too “Box_LOD_400”

Next I made a Tube, and again changed the name too “Tube_LOD_100”

And last I made a “Sphere” and changed the name too “Sphere_LOD_025.

I set the cords to my test airport and saved the project as A BGL file install and loaded it into the game

It looks great
Thank You again Paul.

H_Farfy:D
 
You guys realize that this, as it now appears to be, is one of the "Holy Grail's" for us FSDS/FS2004 scenery designers !!!

I can't wait to try it out.

Thanks does not even begin to express my gratitude for sharing this info!!!!

-Mike G.
Military AI Works
 
No probs guys, glad to be of service

- I'm a relative newcomer to FS9 (I concentrated on FSX for a couple of years) and didn't realise LODs were a problem.

Scenery LODs are also a problem in FSX but for a different reason.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top