swambast

LONG OVERDUE STT UPDATE - NOV 2010 After quite a very long absence, I have returned with a vengeance … LOL! I’ll probably get the tool just perfect and then TK will update everything, but at least so far it’s been relevant over multiple patches… This functionality in a way is a tribute to the true trail blazer and object placement guru who really pioneered “lay-outs” – the one and only Kevin/Wrench! In addition, I would like to honor one guy that has stepped a little further away from the community to spend more time with his family. Steffen/Tannethal was always my go-to guy every step of the way - to test, make improvements and encourage me to push the limits. Without him, I would not be where I am today – Steffen, I salute you! Finally, one more guy that has really jumped in and kicked this tool around pouring his time, support and pokes for improvement (ok, ok I’ll make airfield parking support for ya!) I wish thank is Umut/PureBlue whose Anatolia project is really coming to life now! So here I share what in my humble opinion for me is an absolute break-through on the STT too. Leveraging some heavy use of complex geometric formulas and modified Pythagorean Theories (that others helped me with…LOL), I have really “revolutionalized” the tool in a way I never dreamed possible. Imagine having just one target object. Think about this one target object as being a box. This one single but very special target object “box” is technically referred to as a 'SOC'. ‘SOC’ stands for "STT Object Collection." But let's give this box a more meaningful name, maybe "SOC-SmallUSArmyCamp." Now, within this box are many individual target objects such as jeeps, M113s, tents, barracks, etc. that of course make up the small US Army Camp. Furthermore, assume these individual objects are neatly arranged exactly how I want them within the box: the tents and barracks are in a row, the jeeps are guarding the perimeter, watchtowers in the corners, etc. In the past, we would have to manually calculate all the offsets to these objects, or always place them at a pre-determined position in order to not disrupt the pre-defined offsets. Well, instead of having to move and manipulate the 100s of items in the box, what if I could just move the whole damn box where I wanted? And what if after I moved the box, it would automatically update ALL the individual target offsets depending on where I moved the box? Are you still with me…? If so, that’s the capability I can deliver! One macro can now represent 100s of objects - think of the possibilities everyone!!! Imagine having pre-defined SOCs for "AAA" emplacements where you have the AAA shelter, FireCans, SAMs, etc. already laid out! You just simply drag and drop the box wherever you want on the grid, and in one click you have just created a complete AAA site exactly where you wanted, made up of dozens of the respective target objects already aligned exactly as you wanted! Imagine entire villages added by placing a single macro! Imagine taking entire airfields and replicating them to any new location that you want - all by just adding a single ‘SOC’ macro! But wait, there’s more! You can also create any custom SOC collection you want! You can use FSSC or modify any one of my base template designs. And it’s easy to do, because you’re working with a graphical system, not an .ini with offset values. Want to move the truck park further south…? Just group the 10 red square trucks and drag them that way, save your SOC file and presto, you’re new object collection is ready. You can literally build your own custom boxes to hold anything you want! When the tool recognizes one of your special SOC objects / boxes, it automatically converts everything to it’s proper offset positions. Holy moly, talk about a real time saver! I can’t even begin to describe how much this has forever personally changed the way I think and perform target placement! Now it’s NOT perfect, it’s still in a beta state and right now there are some slight rotation limits, but I’m confident I’ll be able to work through those. Anyway, here’s a quick working example…probably not the best example but you'll get the idea. Here I create my custom SOC “Box” which is a small U.S. Army camp which primarily consists of trucks and tents… Here, I’m working with the default Da Nang Airbase. I use the graphical editor, and select my “SOC” macro. Next, you can see how I’m placing the small U.S. Army Camp “box” just west of the Da Nang airfield. The default Da Nang airfield has about 95/96 objects. Notice also how the box encompasses the proper width/length dimensions of the furthest objects. Next I just save my file and load up the STT tool. When I convert, the tool detects a SOC object, and translates the one “box” into it’s respective individual targets. Look here how the count went to 213 objects and each is properly displayed with it’s updated offset coordinates based exactly on where I placed the box. I’m done – no more tweaking or updates needed! Run the game, and here is an example of what I get. Start to finish time – about 5 minutes for me… Now imagine having predefined boxes for just about anything you might need, and the flexibility to put them exactly where you want them, create your own custom ones, etc. It really makes the modder's job a lot more manageable, and just might even be friendly enough for the average user to grasp. Well, more to come again soon but thought I'd share the latest updates since it's been a long time, and I really appreciate all the guys that PM me and ask what's been going on with this thing...!

Congratulations Dels and Team, truly a magnificent delivery...way to go guys!

Man, I have just got to share the news just in case... Has everyone interested in attack helicopters or not been paying attention to the absolutely incredible work being done on the AH-1G Cobra? Guys, hold your breath, this one is gonna be mind-blowing and it's catered for us Thirdwire nuts!!! For more of the details and to follow the progress, head on over to Master Diego's workshop here and offer a nudge of support (go to the last pages to see the most recent progress): http://combatace.com/topic/44508-ah-1g-cobra/ Can I please get production-ready model #1 when it's ready...it will be worth every penny! FREAKIN' AWESOME!!! Swambast

Happy Birthday Monty!

Enrico - truly magnificent, congratulations! This is just stunning and is already a masterpiece now that it's released...!

All, I wanted to share with you some “news from the front” that you may find interesting regarding Dave/Crab02, many of whom you know or will remember. Please join me in congratulating Dave on his promotion to First Sergeant in the U.S. Army which occurred in mid-June. He has also earned the trust and respect of the military to lead an entire Company of soldiers, a clear recognition of his capability and leadership. In August, Dave will also be celebrating a milestone of 20 years of service to our country. So to him and to all the others that serve to preserve our freedom – thank you, congratulations, and we wish you the best always! Steve

Dave, Dave, Dave...why I know my rusty programming skills are not the best in town, but I can still manage to whip up a thing or two. :wink2: It's not the prettiest thing you'll find out there, LOL, but it should do the job. Comes complete with 'Support Combat Ace' functionality, just like all good tools should! I'm putting the final touches on it, but should be ready for you to test in a few days my friend, hope this helps! Swambast

How does that make you any different than some of the modders out there? I honestly don't see the difference.

Answer "why" to that question for yourself, and perhaps you will find the answer to your other posted question.

Darn, I missed this thread earlier. This is a must-have. Paul, your attention to detail is second to none, and this updated pack is absolutely fantastic...over 60 missions!!! Thanks much, you can truly tell it's a labor of love and always top quality...Congratulations on the release and this will be my new spare-time enjoyment!

Hi all modders and thanks for reading. Anyway to get around this little problem I'm having or is this a game engine limitation? Thanks for your ideas...(and LOL...where is Stary when you need 'em?) Sorry, don't know why I can't post my image directly (keep getting this "You are not allowed to use that image extension on this board" so I must be doing something wrong or I'm not important enough...) Custom Tree Problem

Hi Paul and All, I would like to offer this as an additional contribution... hope it helps, it's on it's way to you...

Comrpnt, that is great work building off the foundation laid by PG and KRFRGE...I am eagerly awaiting the update of your VMFA-531 missions and looking forward to your next release...thanks!!!

Great, thanks guys, appreciate it!

Sorry Guys, I'm asking this because I don't have access to my WOV computer (v 8.30.06) or of course would test it myself: can someone please refresh my memory and let me know if the .Heading=0 and .Heading=360 values are both acceptable within WOV (v 8.30.06 if possible)? Thanks in advance...

Congratulations Stary, wonderful and beautiful work as always...thank you!

Damn man, that is creative thinking...I was looking to use it for a different purpose, but will try your proposed solution and see if it works...thanks for sharing!

future_tuskegee_airman Sorry, no screenie but a request - how do I get a message to you? The messaging system says you "can not use the messaging system"...huh? - Steve

Man, that is a significant improvement and looks real nice my friend, keep it up!

Anyone have insight into which of these variables from the EnvironmentSystem.ini might most impact frame rates...? Obviously, they all are interrelated, but was wondering which of them cause the biggest impact? Thanks for any ideas... [CloudsBroken] MaxClouds=220 MaxCloudParticles=220 3DCloudMaterial=CloudMaterial 3DCloudHorizontalSize=12500.0 3DCloudVerticalSize=2900.0 3DCloudSizeDeviation=0.4 3DCloudParticleDensity=2.6 ParticleSize=640.0 ParticleSizeDeviation=0.4 MinBaseAltitude=800.0 MaxBaseAltitude=1200.0

Thanks Kevin, I figured it out using Gimp 2...I'm resizing HorizonClouds down from 1024 to 512 for better performance (I think...testing to follow) and the the trick with GIMP is that you HAVE to make sure you uncheck the default "RLE Compression" when saving, otherwise you will lose the alpha/transparency channels.

Hmmm, OK - think I've got a solution going here with GIMP...

Hi All, working on some cloud modding which is outside my wheelhouse....anyway, what really are .TGA files (e.g., special .bmps, .jpgs, etc.?) and how can I properly resize them to ensure that the transparency channels/layers are retained? Thanks in Advance for suggestions.