The A2A Simulations Community

Some planes and all helis have steerable landing lights...

Could you possibly add this functionality to Shockwave 3D lights please?

Oh, and how about a heli searchlight (Nightsun) option? With focussable light cone... for those SAR jolies... (That'd give the Saitek throttle quadrant thumb slider something to do... )

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

I would also add, that for the Kamov (and other a/c) the "built in" landing lights sometimes point a different direction. This is not always apparent, but if you look at the attached tower view shot, you can make out the Kamov LL are pointing slightly downwards...

TIA

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

...and another thing...

Where helicopter lights can be moved, what about tail-draggers?

I would think that straight ahead is best set parallel to the ground. On some planes, the angle of the LL is really skyward.

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

Yes, the tower view doesn't like this effect. It's out of our reach to fix it.

regards
ROB

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A2A Simulations Inc.

Sorry Rob - I didn't mean the "Afterburner" effect - I meant the angled default (built in) landing light - if you look, you'll see it pointing down - away from the Shockwave light (immobile)

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

Ah, yes. Indeed, we had a dabate about "the angle" and we decided to make this addon as generic as possible to suit the widest range of possiblities, hence the paraller direction to the ground.

You could experiment by yourself with the FX file to change its direction...

regards
ROB

_________________
A2A Simulations Inc.

Fair do's... what do I need to edit the FX files? I know - check... [edit] Oh! Surprise - Editor of all things...[/edit]

What about steerable lights? (see above re helis)

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

Rob, whereabouts in Poland?

I am there on business next week - for my company (Recaro) I'll be visiting Swiebodzin...

As to the FX file - would it be the emitter heading, the particle rotation or the ParticleAttributes pitch? (My guess is the latter)

[Emitter.x]

Pitch=0.00, 0.00
Bank=0.00, 0.00
Heading=0.00, 0.00

[Particle.x]
Rotation=-45.00, -45.00

[ParticleAttributes.x]
Extrude Pitch Max=0.00


(I've deleted the rest for space saving

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

You're welcome. Hot summer, so take shorts and sandals (pack in longs as well just in case).

Try Pitch=0.00, 0.00. Note, there is more than one emitter...

Steerable lights - impossible. What you are able to steer is the vector of the landing light built-in into the MDL, while this 3D Light is the FX installed through the CFG file - they are completly separated from each other except for the switch's on/off event.

regards
ROB

_________________
A2A Simulations Inc.

No it isn't...

A lot of FS helis do it - try the default ones. Oh, better if you can tie the "move Landing Light" commands to a spare coolie hat as I do on to the throttle quadrant of the Saitek X52. Granted - they may well steer the "lamp" in the mdl, but they also steer the illumination on the ground - and that isn't mdl... is it?

I just love that word impossible - it's an impossible word in it's own right, when referring to graphics. I would rather use "Not possible - YET". After all, all that you need to do is to move certain bits from a to b in the right order.

We might need another generation for shockwave lights to move - but I can think of a possible algorithm for this action...

Loop
1. get coolie switch position
2. if "north" add 0.5 to pitch
3. if "south" subtract 0.5 from pitch
4. if "east" add 0.5 to yaw
5. if "west" subtract 0.5 from yaw
6. if "center" exit loop
Do Loop

I am not a programmer, but I know that it is only a matter of pointing...

OK, OK, rant off

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)

I repeat, it's the MDL thing. No can do.

regards
ROB

_________________
A2A Simulations Inc.

OK, we'll agree to disagree then.

Any addon is allowed to read the stick position (amongst other FS data). Any addon "guage" can feed info to the game. So in theory, any addon could change the position of other addons (i.e. the position and angle of addon light cones) - it's only numbers, and Microsoft allow this. Any mdl things would continue to run in background - if you get the numbers right, it'll all go unnoticed to the user.

There's even software around that picks up FS output data on the fly and modifies the game - FSUIPC springs immediately to mind, wideview...

I presume by mdl, you mean the cone of light that the default landing lights paint on the ground? I didn't want that changed anyway. And the moving landing lights on the aircraft? Of course they must stay!

One day then...

Don't worry - I do still like this addon, it's great fun.

_________________
Chris B, aka 'Dances with paintbrushes', aka EagleSkinner



All new "EagleSkinner" repaints can be found on my homepage. (Click on the banner)