AR196 Project in AD2K

okay, here's a screenie;
i removed the external fuselage
and some other stuff for the shot.
the parts in question are the darker shaded
red and gray, just forward of the yellow panel.
pretty obvious, really.

as a side note;
the varying shades of the glass pieces
are just an experiment to see what
different transparency settings will do.

:running:____i'm off to see if i can fix the problem.
 
well, so much for that idea.
i'm glad i didn't waste time elaborating.

fortunately, there is an alternative,
rebuild the interior walls from scratch.
of course, this time, being sure to place
everything in the correct order.

apologies for the darkness of the shot.
i was playing with sim time
to see the effect on the texture.

got to go coffee up,
then, back to it.

oh yeah, the whole reason for this exercise
was to add the covered forward bulkhead
and floor behind and below the panel.
 
i really need to take a break...pant, pant
here's a shot of today's progress, so far;

View attachment 51853

a few things to note;
first, the long, light gray piece
below the windows
is actually, 5 pieces.
for some reason, the texture is showing
the opposite of the side they should be on.
in other words, the pieces on the other side
of the fuselage are dark, but should be light,
like these, and vise versa.
i hope i can just swap sides with them.
we shall see.

second, for some reason, there is a line
just behind the windscreen.
i think it's a minor texture support chain alignment issue.
dink, dink, dink.

third, see the interior peeping around the front opening?
it's not a big deal...it's nothing, really.

fourth, looking closely at the shot,
i thought the texturing pattern was kind of interesting.
to get the effect, i took the shot
when the sim was out of focus.
it shows a slight texture misalignment,
first, between the aft and mid fuselage joint,
and second, between the mid and forward fuselage joint.
this is not visible when the sim is in focus,
but what the heck, all the same, it's a flaw
that should be a relatively easy fix.

i may put off fixing the texture issues for a bit
and go to work on the canopy framework next,
then align the windows to the frames,
copy them, including the windows, to the other side,
and finally, copy and flip the whole mess,
so the windows and frames can be seen from the inside.

theeeen, i need to decide the next move,
cowling/engine area, prop,
or, wings and all that goes with them.
no, i haven't forgotten the floats.
i'm planning on saving the float framework for last.
i figure that is going to be, visually,
the most challenging to get right.
hopefully, by that time, my skills will
have improved enough to do it justice.
 
Anyone looking can instantly tell thats a P47 on floats, LOL
Looking great my friend.
It will be a great birthday present in august 2012 ??? maybe?
:mixedsmi:
Dave

Luv ya dude
 
:applause:Bravo smilo!:applause:

You're making progress at a fast pace. The issues you were having with the shading, in the first shot as well as in the third with the five canopy/middle section joints, appears to me to be vectors inversion. Can't say why and how to correct them with AD2000 though...:kilroy:

If the middle section bulkheads aft and fore are exactly the same as the fuselage aft and fore section, it could be only a question of overlapping by one unit both parts. Same thing with the dash top.

Again, good progress!
 
No Dice said:
Anyone looking can instantly tell thats a P47 on floats, LOL
Looking great my friend.
It will be a great birthday present in august 2012 ??? maybe?
:mixedsmi:
Dave

Luv ya dude
Click to expand...
thanks Dave, but, really?
what do you suppose my wife
wants with an ar196 model?
she's definitely not a simmer.

hubbabubba said:
:applause:Bravo smilo!:applause:

You're making progress at a fast pace. The issues you were having with the shading, in the first shot as well as in the third with the five canopy/middle section joints, appears to me to be vectors inversion. Can't say why and how to correct them with AD2000 though...:kilroy:

If the middle section bulkheads aft and fore are exactly the same as the fuselage aft and fore section, it could be only a question of overlapping by one unit both parts. Same thing with the dash top.

Again, good progress!
Click to expand...
thanks, Guy.
i think i will have to think about your advisory.
i don't know much about vectors, yet,
let alone inverting them.

when i made the (5) parts,
i used parts that were originally tied to the bulkhead templates.
actually, first i covered the templates,
deleted the ones i didn't need,
then, modified those to the size i wanted,
two points from each one were already where they had to be.
when i first changed two of the original points,
i got a pop up window that said;
"Confirmation"
"template point: do you want to untie it?"
i said yes, because i wanted to change the points.
when i finished with one part,
i mirrored it to the other side.

just for grins, i am tempted to swap the parts,
from one side to the other,
just to see what happens.
it couldn't hurt.

but that will be later.
right now, i'm puttering with the canopy framework.
 
when i made the (5) parts,
i used parts that were originally tied to the bulkhead templates.
actually, first i covered the templates,
deleted the ones i didn't need,
then, modified those to the size i wanted,
two points from each one were already where they had to be.
when i first changed two of the original points,
i got a pop up window that said;
"Confirmation"
"template point: do you want to untie it?"
i said yes, because i wanted to change the points.
when i finished with one part,
i mirrored it to the other side.
Click to expand...

I'm wondering out loud here; is it possible that, in keeping the points already in the "good" positions, you inverted the polygon's surface? Then, the outside would be inside and vice-versa, like a turned glove?

I started the tutorial a long time ago but never went very far with it. I can't believe that Hervé Devred would have missed something that obvious. It may be time for me to do a bit of studying of that prog, if only to understand what you're talking about smilo.
 
Hey Smilo,

The shapes aren't quite what I would have expected, but it looks pretty good thus far. I am not entirely sure what to expect for shapes because I haven't spent the hours looking at photographs that I would have for one of my own projects.

From your description, it appears AD2000 is a much greater featured application than AF99 is. If you can flip vectors for a single polygon, then it seems there are possibilities.....

- Ivan.
 
my manager says i talk too much.
that i could spend more time building
if i didn't make each post,
a 500 word dissertation.
he has a valid point.

hubba, i spent a few hours today,
experimenting with the afore mentioned parts.
i tried flipping them, swapping them,
i even made new ones,
all to no avail, so i gave up, for now.
the solution will come in time...later.

Ivan, it is true that ad2k has many features.
most, i have no clue how to use.
but, i'm learning as i go along.
as for "shapes", i'm not sure i know what you mean.
other than those shown here.
i have not even begun to add the extras,
like exhausts, air scoop, antenna,
and those funny little oval dimples on the cowling.

View attachment 52031

it's been a busy weekend

------:kilroy:-------
maybe i should take a shot of this thing
on my 1024x768, secondary monitor.
she's looking pretty long and lean on the wide screen.
 
Hi Smilo,

It finally dawned on me what you meant by correct only from ONE direction. If you are still having that issue, you might want to go back and look at my Tutorial for AF99 using the Macchi Veltro. Specifically, go look at the Cockpit section.

This is what Hubbabubba keeps calling "Ivan's Conga". The basic idea is to find the "Central Part" which for most of my projects is the Pilot's Head. To connect to the Pilot's Body, we use a viewing plane between Head and Body. The Viewing Plane or Seal or whatever is about where the Guillotine would go for an execution. If we are above the Neck, we see the Head in the Foreground. If we are below the Neck, we see the Body in the Foreground.

If you look at the example of the Cockpit on the Veltro, you can see how each additional Piece is added to the monster wad of stuff that was all the previously added Pieces with a new Viewing Plane between the New Piece and all the prior "Stuff".

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforu...an-s-Workshop-AF99-Tutorial-C205-Veltro/page6

Please Ignore this if you have already worked around the issue.

- Ivan.
 
somewhere, i'm sure of it, i just can't find it, there was mention of the lower float parts disappearing when the ac is at rest, then, reappearing when the ac taxis over a certain speed. please tell me i didn't dream this. if this is possible, please tell me how the feat is accomplished. is it an air file thing or what? i have spent the weekend building, rebuilding and rotating a float. it, actually, turned out pretty nice, if i do say so myself. it still doesn't have a rudder, though. minor detail i'll go take a screenie, after i splash some paint on it.

---------------:kilroy:----------------

okay, here it is,
View attachment 52577
yes, the waterline is off.
it's a stock texture that i use
and it can be adjusted later.
there are a few other issues,
but i don't see them a major problems.
 
Smilo,
Ivan brought that up I think a few posts back, he would Know far better than I, BUT
I was never impressed the way it worked in FS98 or CFS1 ( he may have a fix). I think
building the entire float will make the plane great for CFS2.

Dave :running:
.
 
i've never intended to build
just the upper part of the floats.
that would look good in the water,
but totally wrong in flight.

while this model should be just fine in cfs2,
i haven't given that any thought.
it is mainly for cfs, but, thanks to ad2k, not exclusively.

if i can develop any skill with ad2k,
i would like to pursue a long time dream...
making the cfs ai models a little more visually accurate.
nothing too complex. i don't want to kill frame rates.
i just want a little better detail.
i would start with the Do17,
then do the mosquito,
then, the B-24, B-25 and Ju-88.
in my opinion, they are,
simply put, butt ugly.

but, first things first.

i am about ready to wrap it up for the weekend.
i started at 02:00, worked about 4 hours,
took a break and then,
have been at it for most of the day.
if nothing else,
i am definitely not speedy,
but i do feel like i have made progress.
 
Hang in there my friend, I was once told "all good things are worth waiting for", It came true.
Many years ago I met my wife, later had a beautiful daughter, and now I have great friends
like yourself, Ivan, Hubba, Cees, Lindsay and to many to type in this post.

We are with you. although all on pins and needles.

Dave :salute:
 
The display of the underside of the float when moving above a certain speed is a conditional display feature of the model that can be set in AF99. These conditional displays are used for things like "Landing Gear Down", "Flaps Extended / Retracted" and other such things. There are none for Ailerons, Rudder, Elevator and AF99 / Aircraft Animator use "Tags" to communicate these Pieces to each other as "Speed Below XXX" conditional displays. They can also be used for real "Speed Below" things such as Floats....

I can email you a model I have that shows the way this works, but I don't know if that will really help you considering that this is a AF99 (and SCASM) feature and that isn't what you are using. I understand that AD2000 can also do animation, so perhaps you should look at that.

- Ivan.
 
your patience is much appreciated,
although, the pins and needles part is worrisome.

apologies for not being quicker,
but i would like to do this right.

i have absolutely no clue
as to a completion time frame.
 
Quicker?

Who am *I* to be commenting on folks being quicker on projects???

I haven't finished a project in under a year recently.

BTW, the Pins & Needles part about not knowing exactly how to finish the project? I go through that with EVERY project.... That is the part where you actually learn something. Besides, if you can't figure it out today, work on something else until you figure it out.

- Ivan.
 
thanks, at least now, i have an idea where to look.
ad2k has an animator built into it,
but i haven't looked at it closely.
i don't know if it has the "...speed conditions"
but it would sure be cool if it did.
we shall see.

i completely agree with
the set a problem aside for later theory.
it's like banging your head against a wall,
after a while, all you can see is the wall.
i find that even though the issue is not at the forefront,
i'm still thinking about it.
where i get into trouble
is if i set something aside,
i often get distracted and forget about it.



i guess for me, the pins and needles factor
is my concern that i'll get sidetracked
and won't finish the project.
that, and i'm worried that Dave
will poke himself full of holes.
 
Thank you Smilo,
I have not laughed so hard all day!!

I will start with very small holes with a pin, in a month I will move up to an Ice Pick.
When I get upto my speed drill, I will start forwarding pictures.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of Ya'll

Dave :salute:
 
No Dice said:
Thank you Smilo,
I have not laughed so hard all day!!

I will start with very small holes with a pin, in a month I will move up to an Ice Pick.
When I get upto my speed drill, I will start forwarding pictures.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of Ya'll

Dave :salute:
Click to expand...
mission accomplished
 
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