how to use lock on skin?

[iKa 0]

hi everyone

i'm totally new to this

i have no clue how to use the LOMAC skins i'd download on this website

help me pls

thanx a lot !

[Brit_Radar_Dude 1]

Almost all (99%?) skins, mods, etc in Lockon are made MODMAN compatable by their authors. If you haven't already used it, MODMAN is a very nice addon management utility for Lockon that is a must-have! Gives you one click adding/removing of skins, Mods, etc. MODMAN "knows" where to put the files that make up the skin or Mod and it keeps the old files so that the skin or mod can be un-installed later if you wish.

 

Get MODMAN here,

http://www.lockonfiles.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&d_op=viewdownload&cid=165#cat

 

I just can't imagine not using MODMAN. The alternative of having to keep some kind of notebook with details of what mods and skins I've installed over the last 4 or 5 years and how to uninstall them again would be a nightmare....

 

When an author makes a skin, he makes it into a MODMAN pack. The MODMAN pack includes a file with a file extension of .lma or .lma3 or similar. This file contains the details to tell the MODMAN utility how to install the skin.

 

In the unlikely event that they have not been made MODMAN compatable, then the author usually will include a readme file to tell you which folder the skin or Mod needs to be placed in.

 

 

Lockon has a fixed number of slots for each aircraft type, some aircraft types have more skin slots than others. In the ME (Mission Editor), in the PAYLOAD section for an aircraft you can set the skin you want. Note that you can change the skins for flyable aircraft and also for the AI aircraft. When you install a new skin with MODMAN (or manually), then that new skin will replace one of the default skins. Which default skin depends on which one the designer of the new skin chose to replace, ie which slot number he chose.

 

Sometimes a readme file with the skin will tell you which slot number, mostly skin designers don't bother and more usually you have to look at each skin to find your new one. When you open up a mission in the Mission Editor and select an aircraft then choose the PAYLOAD screen, you see a picture of the aircraft and you can see what weapon loadout it has, what skin it is wearing, etc. If you look lower left, you see a pulldown menu called COLOUR SCHEME. It tells you the name of the current skin, click on the pulldown and you see the whole selection and you can deduce which slot number the skin is. When you load new skins, it does not necessarily change the name shown in this pulldown menu yet it DOES change the skin. It means you have to look at each skin in turn to find the one you want. Slightly annoying but only takes a few seconds to find the one you want. I'm sure I recall occasionally that new skins I've loaded in the past did change the names in that menu or maybe I just imagined it.... When you finished changing to the skin you want, then don't forget to SAVE the mission (top left save icon).

 

This is the most common problem folks have with D/L'ed skins, they have successfully used MODMAN to add them into Lockon but fail in the final step to actually select the skin "in game". This explains why folks get confused when they fly a mission and the new skin doesn't appear.

 

Example.

The new skin replaces default skin number 3 for the A-10.

You fly the A-10 quick fly mission straight from the main page.

Unless that mission coincidentally used skin number 3, then you would see no change.

 

Example

The new skin replaces default skin number 3 for the A-10.

You fly an A-10 campaign you have downloaded from the Community.

Unless the missions within that campaign coincidentally used skin number 3, then you would see no change.

 

Example.

This time you make your own mission using the ME and choose skin number 3 in the PAYLOAD screen.

Now you see the new skin.

 

One final thing. MODMAN expects the pack to be zipped (.zip or .rar etc) so don't unzip the pack. MODMAN does that automatically for you.

 

Hope that makes it clear.....

Edited January 25, 2010 by Brit_Radar_Dude

[iKa 0]

thanx so much !!