Aintry

Streakeagle-- I've been looking at your photograph of an F-15 in flight and, I've gotta tell ya, it's not what I would call the best picture to use as the basis for a detail comparison. Not only is the picture blurry, but the shot angle and the lighting conditions differ from those of the 3d model shots and, in the case of lighting, the differences are very significant. I don't know how I'm supposed to determine the shape of an F-15 canopy when I can't see all the way around it. Don't you think a schematic drawing of an F-15 would have been a more effective starting point for a discussion of modeling details? Tristan

Problem 1: Roll back to a 5-series ATI driver and see what happens. I get graphics anomalies in SFP1 if I use any 6-series driver. Problem 2: Since it appears the Deutschland terrain was designed for use in SF and not in WOV, you'll probably need a copy of the desert.cat file from SF if you want the Deutschland terrain to function correctly in WOV.

From TK on the Thirdwire forum: "And finally, please note that you might need to upgrade your DirectX version (again). If you get missing d3dx9_**.dll error, you need to click on one of the following Microsoft link to download the latest version (June 2006 version is the most current, but the game will require only the April 2006 version)..." I'm running DX9 April 2006 and haven't gotten the missing d3x9_**.dll error, so I assume that means DX9 April 2006, which is what I have installed, is OK.

Hmmm. TK himself says that DX9c April 2006 is current enough. Everything works so far with my setup.

http://www.thirdwire.com :)

Doh -- that's right. The F-15. I spend too much time flying Russian planes.

Actually, WOE has the F-14 as a stock aircraft, and it's flyable.

That's right. And what's wrong with that?

Well, if I may play devil's advocate here, one-stop shopping has a lot of potential appeal to casual simmers. A lot of people would probably like to play 'WOV' in its full glory without having to customize it first using dozens of separate -- albeit free -- downloads. A number of modders have, apparently, given the 'yap' guys permission to use their work.

Leave it to me to exclude the probable in favor of the improbable. Duh.

The modders didn't provide a texture for the mirrors.

That's fine, SayWhat, but I hope people can believe me when I say that flame wars have started over these seemingly innocuous-sounding topics. I wouldn't have said anything in the first place had I not feared the ritual charbroiling of the unsuspecting.

The 'Weapons Pack' uses a national classification system that differs somewhat from that of the stock game. This means that, in order for planes to "read" weapons from the 'Weapons Pack', the data and loadout files of the individual planes need to be modified. Bunyap's latest WP contains data and loadout files for a lot of the stock aircraft of the SF/WOV/WOE series. They are contained in an 'Objects' folder within the WP package. Copy these files into your game to get stock (and I mean stock, not modded) aircraft to read the weapons in the latest WP. If you are using *modded* aircraft, including modded F4s, you have two choices regarding data and loadout file updates: 1.) Update the data and loadout files of the individual aircraft yourself, using the instructions that come with Bunyap's WP. 2.) Get the updated data and loadout files from the guys who produced the modded aircraft. Bunyap has set up a centralized database so modders can provide users with updated information. One of the other guys here should be able to supply you with a link (I can't remember what it is, off hand). You can also edit weapons availability using the weapons editor included with Bunyap's WP, if you don't feel like pursuing any of the options above. I've never done this myself, so I can't offer any input on weps editing. Other people have done this; perhaps they could provide you with some editing shortcuts if you want to go that route.

You need to be more specific. Weapons could fail to show up on aircraft for a lot of different reasons. Give an example involving a specific aircraft.

Come on modders, what're ya waitin' for? Guys -- if wishes were horses.... It takes a looong time to model a *single* aircraft accurately. I wouldn't make a long list of suggestions without being prepared to do the lion's share of the modding work as well. Gathering information is the easy part; getting a team together to build your dream plane is another matter entirely.

n/t

What do you mean by "better", exactly?

Hi again, Cpt. Scarlet. There's one thing I should have included in my original post, but didn't. I run Visual Targeting and HUD Display in 'Normal' mode. I like the icons and flight info, but I don't like the on-screen radar map, so I use a huddata.ini edit to get rid of it. If, unlike me, you plan to run everything in 'Hard' mode, then a huddata edit is 'not' necessary, as Crusader has pointed out. I'm sorry for any confusion my oversight may have caused. Tristan

At least some of the things you want can be done via the game GUI, in the 'Gameplay' section. Set Visual Targeting and HUD Display to 'Hard' and that should clear up a lot of the screen clutter. If that doesn't do everything you want, you might have to consider doing some custom file editing.

n/t.

I noticed a bit of a performance drop in SFP1, post SP4. But I discovered that the new 3d clouds had nothing to do with it; clear, inclement -- all else being equal, the clouds didn't change performance levels. I'm not surprised, though, that post-SP4 game refinements have, overall, slowed the SFP1 down some. Avionics, smarter AI -- there are a bunch of things that could be affecting post-SP4 game performance.

If that's the same as "Mission: Unarmed Reconnaissance" I'd say yes.

My squadron and I are frequently "SAM lunch" in Gepard's 'Israel' terrain. There's definitely something Freudian going on here.

Hi Allen -- I use a program called '7-Zip' for file extraction. See: http://www.7-zip.org Tristan

Hi, Allen Thanks for hanging in there, and ditto what Fubar said. I'm assuming that what we're discussing here is a problem with an entire airplane, and not just a mod like a cockpit. It's possible that you now have a sub-folder in the Aircraft folder that the game can't read. The only sub-folders that should be in the Aircraft folder are things with aircraft designations -- 'F-4e', 'MiG-17'... things like that. Look for the sub-folder that you installed to the game's Aircraft folder; my guess is that it doesn't have the designation of the aircraft you are trying to run, but instead says something like 'Objects' or 'Aircraft'. Keep clicking on that folder until you get to the folder which has the designation of your plane on it -- 'F-8d', or whatever. Drag and drop *that* folder, the one with the plane designation, into the game's Aircraft folder, where all the other plane subfolders are. Your aircraft should now show up in the game. From now on, you need to make certain that any folders you put in the Aircraft folder have plane designations on them. If it doesn't say something like 'MiG-23', or 'F-14', the game won't be able to "see" the plane. It's the same deal when installing custom cockpits -- all of the pit information has to be installed to the folder of a specific airplane. Otherwise, the game won't 'see' the custom cockpit. As for sources of plane downloads, all I can really say is check the CombatAce download section, and then the community links section. Everybody has his own favorite download site, I think.