FastCargo

According to TW on the FB page, though the wiki entry says they were, no photographs seen ever show K's carrying Bullpups or having the distinctive dorsal hump the Bullpup carriers need for the avionics. I personally have no idea...any 'Sader heads know the real scoop? FC

Lexx, You can make it a cruise missile. SF2NA cruise missiles are targetable. It neatly solves the problem...no tricking the sim required. FC

Have you installed an SF2 game before? Have you installed an SF2 game with a mod folder? FC

Actually, it should be a LOT more feasible now. FC

Actually, the distortion is a 'bleed' issue...I thought that was solved when the 'Decal' version of the LOD was exported...I'll have to check. The 'duplication' of the decal is a whole other issue which is inherent in the way the sim handles decals. The best way to explain it is this...you notice how a lot of models, the intake interiors are a seperate mesh from the intake exteriors. The reason is because of the decal issue. Basically, in the decal ini, the engine will attempt to place that decal on every polygon in that position, on that mesh that faces that direction listed in the DecalFacing line. Unfortunately, for complex shapes like the intake area, the only way to resolve it is to break up the mesh (which may result in ugly seam lines) or to paint the decals on the skin. Sometimes, the position can be jiggered a bit to avoid the issue. The 'bleeding distortion' on the other hand, can only be fixed by reexporting the LOD file. FC

View distance is fine for a SF2 KAW game. Only folks obsessed with long distance glints would say it is unsat for such a thing. FC

If you're talking about the movie version of Firefox, the PAK-FA only looks like it in the same way a general 'large twin engine twin tailed fighter' looks. The original book that Craig Thomas wrote was even more generic...with the cover art depicting a MiG-25. FC

Yep, exactly what Stary said...caused by mapping of those parts being "edge on" as it were. FC

I don't know why, but it seems to me a TW KAW sim is tailor made for the SF2 engine. Simple avionics, NOT WW2, and no one else is doing one. Heck, the Exp pack for WOI even includes several models that could be used. I'm really surprised no sim maker has attempted to seriously (or even casually) address this conflict since Mig Alley. Note, I am not talking 3rd party mods (including our own). FC

I very seriously doubt the SF engine will be 'open sourced' unless it is outright abandoned. I'd imagine as long as TK continues to stay 'in the biz' as it were, the core of any future projects on the PC will be SF engine based. Otherwise, it means either building a brand new engine or licensing and learning a different engine. I can't see either of those for the PC...but stranger things have happened. I've been refraining from commenting on the 'locks' as it were, but some of it makes perfect sense. The LODs are easy...it is to deter reverse engineering directly from the format. This is different than ripping from the DirectX output, in that errors creep in. Note that mlracing is using the easily accessible SF1 models for his reverse engineering videos (which still look like pre-renders) and not SF2 stuff. And just to be clear, reverse engineering abandoned software to release free upgrades and updates are one thing...doing that to software currently being sold by the developer to make a living is quite another. That is why he is persona non grata here. Now, as far as some of the terrain locks go, that's easy. They were put in place to minimize or eliminate weaknesses in the rendering engine from mods. It is as simple as that. Think about it...what is easier to do from a coding stand point...try to fix ordering issues in the engine...or simply constrain parameters to prevent those issues in the first place. It's simple...even a sandbox has borders. Those borders are simply being defined more clearly to keep mods from showing weaknesses in the engine and having a bunch of noobs flood the forums with "This doesn't work" when using a 3rd party mod. Lord knows there's enough issues with the stock stuff... Now, some of the other stuff that is locked is a bit of a head scratcher because I can't figure out why they would be. However, before anyone gets their hackles up...how many of you work 'in the business' and code core? Not objects, not textures, not terrains, but core files of ANY combat flight simulator? Those who are...I'd like to hear from you. FC

Conceptually, it really is that simple. Download the F-103 to get a good idea of the basics (and I say BASIC) of what a bump map and spec map look like. In a spec map, the more 'white' a section is, the 'shiner' it will appear in the game. HOWEVER, spec maps are not grayscale. Unlike a heightmap you build to make a normal map, spec maps use color as well. So, in short, the amount of white will determine how 'shiny' it is, but the amount of color will determine what color that section will shine. For example, when I built the F-103 spec map, initially I used the diffuse texture pretty much straight on without much tuning. But, in game, the aircraft wasn't shiny...except for the squadron insignia on the tail which GLOWED red. So I tuned down the insignia, and made the main color area white. Now the body shines like natural metal, and the insignia gives off a faint red tinge when it shines. I've uploaded the F-103 MAX file, so you can play with the F-103 download and the F-103 MAX file and get an idea on how it all works. FC

I doubt it...the first F-4E model I built was the 1/32 scale Revell version back in the early 70s, and it was pretty crude back then. Its problems were well known, even then. The later 1/32 Revell model was better, based of their German F-4F model, but still has its own issues (the nose shape and bland cockpit being the worst problems). FC

It doesn't surprise me really. Unless he were to totally revamp the series, why have an SF3? He certainly doesn't have the money for a total and complete overhaul. Could he do incremental updates on the SF2 series? Sure, but I very seriously doubt the core will change. My guess (and it's just a guess, mind you), is that the current offerings will soldier on. After all, now they are built and out there, the only thing they need are updates. DLC and EXPs could still be released of course, but again, I doubt the core will change. Additional revenue streams will manifest from the Android and iOS apps, and maybe some other project. FC

Whoops...didn't notice this was for the SFP1 series... FC

I thought that it wasn't that they were folded, but that they were not LOCKED. As soon as they attempted to generate some lift....whap...new vertical stabs! FC

I don,t think so, but TK released one for the TW sims sometime ago and the KAW mod also has a new one about to be released... FC

First, you can also constrain by DiameterLimit Second, because there are so few hardpoints, you can 'duplicate' weapon stations, for instance: to this: And use different LoadLimit, LengthLimit, and DiameterLimit for each one. FC

And it makes money...go figure. FC

Well, to be fair, ANF had already been out in a way as the F-18 Landing Sim for several months prior. My son played the hell out of that...but great advertising for ANF. And ANF looks great, plays well, and seems very stable. I haven't bought it yet (no A2A), but thinking about it. At least SFA has been getting consistently good reviews. Over the last month or so, I've been stuck pretty much only using my tablet and phone...I've spent less than 5 hours on my laptop due to circumstances at home. So, the timing has worked out, getting to see what's out there in the Android world. One thing I have noticed in all the time I've been playing SFA...I haven't seen one glitch or force close at all. It has been extremely stable. Considering this is a freshman Android programming release, that's pretty good all things considered...there is a lot of crap out there that isn't so stable. About the only thing I've noticed is sometimes it'll bog down if there are too many bandits (10+) and even then, not always consistently. FC

Folks, did the updated ini files fix the issue? FC

Fantastic work as usual! FC

File Name: Super Why! Flying Game Mod (beta) for SFP1/SFG File Submitter: FastCargo File Submitted: 13 October 2012 File Category: User Made Missions Super Why! Mod authored by FastCargo ********** Version 0.9 Beta *********** Be advised, this is a complete modification to Strike Fighters:Project 1 or Strike Fighters Gold (SFP1 or SFG). It has NOT been tested with Wings Over Vietnam, Wings Over Europe or Wings over Israel (WOV,WOE,WOI), but it should work with them. It is meant to be a 'stand alone' mod, and as such is not guaranteed to be compatible with any additional mods or changes. Using anything from this mod, or adding anything to this mod, may 'break' the mod or the mod you are transferring stuff to. In short, use it as a stand alone mod and don't screw with it! ************ Credits *************** Mission concept, 3d Model, texturing and overall mission work - FastCargo Terrain - Based on the 'American North West - 4 Seasons Rebuild', with work by Major Lee, Wrench, Doghouse, CA_Stary, and Dueces. Because I cribbed from a few sources, I'm pretty sure I got everyone properly credited. If I did not, let me know and I will fix it right away. Acknowledgements: TK - For the ThirdWire series. My wife and kids - For letting my OCD take over to get this mod done. Various public domain sources for some of the pictures and artwork. PBS and Out of the Blue Enterprises LLC Likenesses and Super Why! artwork are property of their respective copyright holders. Myself, CombatAce, and ThirdWire are in no way associated with PBS and Out of the Blue Enterprises, LLC. This mod is not to be considered an official product of PBS Kids or Out of the Blue Enterprises and cannot be used for any monetary gain. *************Notes************ After the startup video, the main screen should be fairly easy to navigate. The center lets you 'fly', the door is to exit, and the computer is the options screen. Basically, the menu simply restricts you to fly Instant Action only...there are no other options available. The flying itself consists of flying Super Why around the sky, looking for clouds with various words at the top. You can 'shoot' the clouds, which will then fade away. That's pretty much it...there is no 'score' per se. The Options screen is the stock SFP1 screen, however, I'm pretty sure most of the Gameplay options are disabled. You can try to mess with them, but the effect may be unpredictable. The genesis of this project was noticing how my young (at the time) autistic son liked Super Why (a kid's show that encourages reading), airplanes, and technology. So I thought how I could adapt a combat sim into a kid's sim. The problem was my son outgrew the speed I was working on the project...by the time I got it to a state of playability...he no longer needed it. So it has been hanging on my hard drive. It is a pretty good mod at this state, but is kind of boring, since there are no debrief screens, and not much happens other than flying around, reading and 'shooting' clouds. There are things that could be done to make it more complete, but time has erased the need, and the engine has moved on. It's uploaded here for anyone to use or build on for their kids. Enjoy! 13 Oct 12 FastCargo Click here to download this file

Gunrunner, I'd agree with you that TK probably overstates his costs somewhat. But it irks me that folks seems to dismiss his claims out of hand, without even thinking about it a little bit. Check out what Matt Wagner said about FC3: Hmmm...sound familiar? All one has to do is look at the wreckage of old combat flight simulator developers (especially those with modern aircraft) to realize...this s**t is tough to do and consistently stay in business. And that's what this is...a business. I will say it one more time...anything built in the TW sims is supposed to be designed to offset its costs to make a profit and put food on the table. If it is not expected to ever do that...guess what...it won't get done. The only people that have access to that data (costs verses revenue) for TW is probably TK. Does anyone here...anyone...do development of combat flight simulations as their sole source of revenue? Not as side business to augment your retirement or other income... but no kidding, your primary job. I'd love to hear your thoughts. FC

I am not sure why people believe that just because you can mod something that coding core isn't that much harder. Any here ever coded any open source projects? Heck, if is so easy, Flightgear is open source. Code that for a while and come back here when you've got the engine doing everything you want in your combat flight simulation. Volunteers?

Okay, first, you probably shouldn't have done this...it's easier to add, make sure the new stuff works before removing the old stuff. Yes, another reason to wait until the new stuff works... Once you get the new stuff working. A better idea would be to dive into the folders and figure out HOW the campaign works. Then once you build your new campaign AND VERIFY IT WORKS, then delete the old stuff. The easiest way to figure this out is to download a campaign built for SF2:E. Nato Fighters 5 I believe has been updated to the newest patch level. Download, install and take a look at all the ini files. Yes, see the answer to question 2. Check either the SF1 or SF2 sections. They may also be in the Nato Fighters mod. Again, check the Nato Fighters mod. I believe there is one available...check our downloads section. I don't think so, I believe that is hardcoded by the game engine. FC