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Airport Design Editor: need help.

Navy Chief

Navy Chief

Senior Member
Ok. I am going to give ADE another try. I downloaded/installed latest version, plus I updated my SDK from the Acceleration disk.

My initial goal was to delete the default buildings from NAS Whidbey Island. John Stinstrom did a great version for FS9, but unfortunately it does not convert well to FSX. I thought maybe I could improve the default KNUW a little, using aerial pictures on Google Maps, and ADE. I found a drop down menu that listed them, and hit delete for each one.

I compiled/saved the bgl file, but when I initiate a flight at Whidbey, all of the buildings are still there:help:

So I tried making an exclusion box that covered the entire airfield, and selected deletion of the generic buildings. Compiled file, and rebooted FSX.

Didn't work. Everything is unchanged. Grrrrr.

The revised BGL file is in the Addon Scenery/Scenery folder.

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks.

NC
 
Check the scenery library to see if your Addon Scenery folder is active. It sounds like your revised BGL isn't active or you have another that is conflicting with it.
 
Michael,

I don't understand how to check if the Addon Scenery is active. I know the revised BGL file I made/saved in ADE is there. Pete
 
I recently started to play around with it. I saved my revised bgl's in a new folder within addon scenery and ensure that it is higher than my default stuff. Within your folder, create a scenery folder then put your modded bgl's in there, then activate in the normal way. Worked for me on a couple of airfileds. That said, some of the default buildings don't show up in the afcad, so I can't delete them, they must be some where else ??????
 
guzler said:
That said, some of the default buildings don't show up in the afcad, so I can't delete them, they must be some where else ??????
Click to expand...

Oh no. That sounds like a headache in itself, trying to figure out.

All I want to do is wipe the airfield slick, and put what I want in place.

I wouldn't be even attempting it, but NAS Whidbey, and other Navy bases aren't planned by anyone I know of. If I can successfully do this one, then I'll look at NAS Agana, and NATC Pax River.

NC
 
The answer to the original question of how to get rid of stock buildings in ADE is this:

Open your ADE file, select Tools, Load Stock Data. This will import all the default buildings, objects, etcetera into your ADE file. Select the ones you don't want and delete them.

I had the same problem with buildings at EGBO and a beacon at Culdrose and that was the answer.
 
NavyChief, the Scruffy Duck Airport Design Editor is a great little tool to modify airports and I use it most of the time. I did find that when I make exclusion boxes, many times they simply do not work in ADE. Even though they show they are there in the view drop down window after compiling the bgl the shrubs and autogen are still on the runway and taxi surfaces. I also have AFX and use it to make my exclusions. First, I have to remove the ADE exclusion then put the AFX exclusions in fresh. After recompile the exclusions work perfectly.

Lately I had a problem with my aircraft bipassing a new airport I am working with. They simply would not land. Both AFX and ADE have a fault error check and both were clean with no faults. I was just about exhausted trying to find the answer when I found FSX Planner. This is another really powerful airport design program. When checking my airport and each runway the fault editor said my approach altitudes were way to high. I was unaware that I had even set the approach altitude. Once I brought the approach altitude down within reason, all my aircraft land just fine. Both ADE and ATX missed this one and do not even mention it.

Hope this helps, Tom
 
Stovall: That'll be because removing autogen (plants, shrubs, buildings, etc.) is not done using an exclude in FSX scenery design.

You need to create a flatten file to do that, by creating a polygon and assigning it the type of "AB_Flatten_ExcludeAutogen" - you can also exclude landclass and there are options to remove/leave a number of different things.

Regarding approach altitudes, Approaches are a PITA in FSX scenery design, particularly ILS ones. They have to be hand coded and, unless you were modifying an existing airport that already had one, then you have to add them manually, so I don't know how that happened! They weren't included in FSXPlanner when I used it before switching to ADE which (at the time, at least) was considerably more capable as a design tool. Obviously FSXPlanner has come on as well, which is very nice to hear... I might have to go back and look at it again, if it'll do approaches!
 
JimC1702 said:
My Whidbey Island is here:

http://library.avsim.net/download.php?DLID=121819

I use stock scenery items, not custom buildings, but it's better than the default.

Also Patuxent River:

http://library.avsim.net/download.php?DLID=124337

Jim
Click to expand...
\\


I really like your scenery packages, but are they modifiable? What I mean is, if I wanted to replace a hangar with a different type, is it possible? I opened up Instant Scenery, and selected "delete object", but the hangars in the scenery were not accessible.

Thanks.

Pete
 
Ian, thanks for the info, AFX exclusion rectangles work just fine to remove the trees and scrubs but I have no luck using the exclusion rectangles in ADE.

The airport is a new one being developed by one of SOH's own, for some very nice era scenery. I was making traffic for this WIP great scenery. Having to enter the approach information manually explains why I had the problem. FSX Planner picked up the problem with the Fault Finder but AFX and ADE did not catch it.

Thanks again, Tom
 
navychief,

If you open the scenery file in Instant Scenery, you should be able to remove and replace any of the buildings I placed using it. You can't just go to the airport though and remove them, you have to click the Open Scenery button and point it to KNUW_JC.bgl.

For the default buildings you're back to the same issue. I can remove them with AFX.

If you want, I can remove them and send you a clean file. I probably won't be able to do it till later tonight or tomorrow morning.

Jim
 
If you clip the edge of an autogen tile (I can never remember which LOD that is, but it has one) then you will remove the autogen within that tile, but according to the SDK, the correct way of doing it is using an FLX, which I've never had a problem with...

...actually that's not true. I've never had a problem provided I remember to set them to the same altitude as the airport! :mad:

When I was trying to build IPBA up in British Columbia, I had all sorts of problems trying to convince the AI to use an ILS, until I searched FSDeveloper and found that you have to hand-code approaches in XML then compile them, otherwise FS won't recognise the ILS and will only route traffic on visual approaches. There was a link there to a tool which automatically created an ILS, but not the waypoints to get to the ILS, so I hope there's a better tool available now...
 
Thanks Ian, that is good to know about the ILS, I will remember your comments if I program my AI to use ILS etc.

Much appreciated, Tom
 
JimC1702 said:
...you should be able to remove and replace any of the buildings I placed using it. You can't just go to the airport though and remove them, you have to click the Open Scenery button and point it to KNUW_JC.bgl. .......For the default buildings you're back to the same issue. I can remove them with AFX....If you want, I can remove them and send you a clean file. I probably won't be able to do it till later tonight or tomorrow morning. Jim
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for the offer! I will try it myself, because I am really wanting to do this! But I will let you know if I am successful! Thank you so much!

Pete
 
Wow, some simple and some comlicated advice here. I seem to be going from the unconciously incompetent to the conciously incompetent stage of scenery building design !!!
 
guzler said:
Wow, some simple and some comlicated advice here. I seem to be going from the unconciously incompetent to the conciously incompetent stage of scenery building design !!!
Click to expand...


Yep, I agree! All I want to do, is remove default objects. As for ILS, autogen tiles, etc...... I have no clue what that is all about. I just want to make the buildings and other objects look better, and be in the right place! I probably need to start with a smaller airport. This project might be a little big for my first attempt!

NC
 
Navychief: I answered your question about stock buildings a while ago... ;)

It really is just as easy as displaying them in ADE (using Tools, Load Stock Data), selecting them using the mouse and deleting them.

I have had to use it for buildings and library objects a few times and it is the official procedure, according to the posts on the support forum at FSDeveloper.

Hopefully that'll help?

Regarding small versus large sceneries, my first one was "Ian P's Bush Camp" (IPBC), which I think is available at Avsim (although that might be my second, "Ian P's Bigger Base" - IPBB, can't remember) for which all the scenery was done using Instant Scenery. I then moved on to just amending the AFD (taxiways, parking spots, etc.) for a couple of airports and military bases to make them work with AI and finally started designing my own airfield from scratch - IPBA in British Columbia, which I never finished - before getting dragged into doing the WW2 bases for various reasons.

Because I did it in little steps, my only really big learning curve jumps were when the ILS at IPBA wouldn't be used by AI and the flatten issues, which I solved by creating my flattens in a later version of ADE, rather than having to use ADE for basic scenery design and SBuilderX for the flatten.

I have found one issue with ADE very recently, which is that if you create a water poly, it always places it at sea level and I can't see a way of changing that. It looks like I'll be creating water in SBuilderX for a while yet.
 
For "removing" anything, anywhere at anytime there is no better tool than SBUILDER....just what you need.
 
Thanks Ian, I did manage to remove everything from a small default airport near my house. I will now begin "recreating" it!

Appreciate yours and everyone's help. More to follow, I am sure!

NC
 
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