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VC and CFS3 perspective

gaucho_59

gaucho_59

Charter Member
I have a question for anyone who is savvy... (I am just an artist... no real know-how of the innards of CFS files) Does anyone know WHY all VCs (in all CFSs) and aircraft in CFS3 present with such exagerated vanishing point perspective? (Like, in CSF 3... wings are so loooong in side views...) Is it that they are produced by some program? (CAD-like)
 
It's a CFS thang, we wouldn't understand.... If you use zoom - [ and ] keys - you can change the angle of view, but the perspective is something we're stuck with.
 
Hi Gaucho, :wavey:

The odd 'fish-eye' view is a bit strange and prevents decent close up screenies. However it has blessed cfs3 with a very good 3d quality which I've not seen in any other flightsim.
 
Ted means you can widen or narrow the pilot's view field. That means that the eyepoint appears to move closer to the gunsight, or further back, widening the field of view.

The stock Bf109g-6 has this line (my colours):

<Station Name="Pilot" Type="pilot_station" View="0" FovUp="25" FovDown="15">

The Field Of View up and down here give you the standard "gunsight" view.

A lot of add-on or modified aircraft have these figures instead:

<Station Name="Pilot" Type="pilot_station" View="0" FovUp="45" FovDown="30">

These give you a wider field of view similar to what you get in FS/CFS2.

But I'm not sure that's what you mean.....
 
vc perspective

ndicki said:
Ted means you can widen or narrow the pilot's view field. That means that the eyepoint appears to move closer to the gunsight, or further back, widening the field of view.

The stock Bf109g-6 has this line (my colours):

<Station Name="Pilot" Type="pilot_station" View="0" FovUp="25" FovDown="15">

The Field Of View up and down here give you the standard "gunsight" view.

A lot of add-on or modified aircraft have these figures instead:

<Station Name="Pilot" Type="pilot_station" View="0" FovUp="45" FovDown="30">

These give you a wider field of view similar to what you get in FS/CFS2.

But I'm not sure that's what you mean.....
Click to expand...

Hi again! and I am sure gladly surprised by the quick replies... acually, since I fly mostly in CSF2 and all he FS versions... my curiosity was ticked most of all by the VCs in those games... which have ah.. yes...you could say a decidedly fish-eye view type of perspective...ever widening from the vanishing points... I have worked with some that have a texture file with the general lines of the front of the cockpit... and obtained a "man made" more realistic view... like correcting those inclined vertical lines that start way large at the top and go down to extremely narrow ends at the top edge of the instrument panel hood... and rivets or nuts that are totally deformed...etc.
In the attached cleanup.. the results are a little more pleasing (to me, of course)... but still the perspective is a bit unrealistic...
Thanks for the info Ted... I certainly will try the suggestion for CFS3... if I find that file you quote... (I am not that savvy with config files)...
Again, thank you so much... btw... my given name is Carlos... and though a Viet Nam era retired officer living in California, I once hailed from the legendary Pampas...View attachment 28534
 
gaucho_59 said:
Hi again! and I am sure gladly surprised by the quick replies... acually, since I fly mostly in CSF2 and all he FS versions... my curiosity was ticked most of all by the VCs in those games... which have ah.. yes...you could say a decidedly fish-eye view type of perspective...ever widening from the vanishing points... I have worked with some that have a texture file with the general lines of the front of the cockpit... and obtained a "man made" more realistic view... like correcting those inclined vertical lines that start way large at the top and go down to extremely narrow ends at the top edge of the instrument panel hood... and rivets or nuts that are totally deformed...etc.
In the attached cleanup.. the results are a little more pleasing (to me, of course)... but still the perspective is a bit unrealistic...
Thanks for the info Ted... I certainly will try the suggestion for CFS3... if I find that file you quote... (I am not that savvy with config files)...
Again, thank you so much... btw... my given name is Carlos... and though a Viet Nam era retired officer living in California, I once hailed from the legendary Pampas...View attachment 28534
Click to expand...

Welcome Carlos,
it is very nice to see you involved.. And a Vet, I am always are pleased to see Vets in the forum..
Even officers, (I won't hold it against ya, no one is perfect)..:icon_lol: :icon_lol: :icon_lol:
Just playing there..

I hope you find the men here as wonderful as I do..
BRAVO..
:salute: :salute: :salute:
 
Thanks for the welcome

HouseHobbit said:
Welcome Carlos,
it is very nice to see you involved.. And a Vet, I am always are pleased to see Vets in the forum..
Even officers, (I won't hold it against ya, no one is perfect)..:icon_lol: :icon_lol: :icon_lol:
Just playing there..

I hope you find the men here as wonderful as I do..
BRAVO..
:salute: :salute: :salute:
Click to expand...

Only one problem... I keep forgetting where I posted the comments and then spend a lot of time looking to see the answers... hahaha senior momen I guess
 
gaucho_59 said:
Only one problem... I keep forgetting where I posted the comments and then spend a lot of time looking to see the answers... hahaha senior momen I guess
Click to expand...

Well then, if you go up to the top of this thread and look at "Thread Tools", you can subscribe to the threads you wish to track and be notified by PM or Email when there is a response. Very useful to just read the message and click a link in Email to get back here. :) Sir :salute: Sorry, habit from my Vietnam days as a SP5th class in the Signal Corps, Qui Nhon 67-68
 
External views

Not sure about the external views. I know that in MAW you can pan further away from the plane than you can in the stock CFS3. I would think then there is a way to modify the view but have never tried. The external never concerned me much as compared to the interior views. Now only if we could get NDB's and guided rockets ....... my life would be nearly complete.
 
Edit ViewUI

NachtPiloten said:
Not sure about the external views. I know that in MAW you can pan further away from the plane than you can in the stock CFS3. I would think then there is a way to modify the view but have never tried. The external never concerned me much as compared to the interior views. Now only if we could get NDB's and guided rockets ....... my life would be nearly complete.
Click to expand...

Hi Nacht, for the external views, there is a guide in Microsoft Game Studio site - quote:
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]
"ViewUI Developer Description: Understanding the ViewUI.xml file [/FONT] [FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] ViewUI.xml, included with Combat Flight Simulator 3, contains view defaults and preferences. Some questions have come up regarding the format of this file. An annotated version of the XML is attached below. [/FONT]
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] To save the file to your computer, right-click on the link and choose "Save Target As".
ViewUI.xml [/FONT]
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] Like many Combat Flight Simulator 3 settings files, a default version of the file is located in the users Combat Flight Simulator Directory (usually, c:\program files\microsoft games\combat flight simulator 3.). [/FONT]
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] However, if the user changes any preferences in-game, a modified version of the ViewUI.xml is stored in the users Application Data directory (on a Windows XP machine, this is c:\documents and settings\[user name]\application data\microsoft\combat flight simulator 3.0. The Application Data and/or Microsoft directory may be hidden on your machine.) [/FONT]
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] Therefore, if you wish to experiment with changing ViewUI.xml, you should first: [/FONT]

  • [FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]
    [*] Back up your copy of viewui.xml in your Combat Flight Simulator directory.
    [*] Delete the copy of viewui.xml in your Application Data\Combat Flight Simulator 3 directory.    [/FONT]
[FONT=trebuchet ms, verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif] As you modify the copy of viewui.xml in your Combat Flight Simulator directory, make sure to remove the automatically saved version of viewui.xml in your Application Data directory. "[/FONT]
 
The link's not valid...

It'll take you to a "Can't find" page - type ViewUI into the box and it'll give you the valid link - the address Popsaka has pasted above. You work it out...

Copy & pasted below for info - unfortunately the colour has gone out of the text:





−
<Settings>
−
<!--
This section contains all of the user settable attributes for each view mode.
-->
−
<ViewUI>
−
<!--

VirtualCockpitView - Contains all user controllable settings for the virtual cockpit view.

FovScale - multiplier on the FovUp and FovDown specified in each vehicle's .xdp file.
RotationRate - controls the speed at which smooth scrolling occurs in the cockpit.
TranslationRate - controls the speed of head movement up/down, left/right, and front/back.
VerticalLimit - limits the amount of up/down and front/back movement for the head in the cockpit.
LateralLimit - limits the amoount of left/right travel of the head in the cockpit.
LightColor - controls the color of the in-cockpit lighting. It is an RGB triplet, with each component going 0-255.
DrawCockpit - true/false flag controlling if the cockpit is drawn or not. It will save the users in-game choice.

-->
<VirtualCockpitView FovScale="1.0" RotationRate="0.9" TranslationRate="0.5" VerticalLimit="0.3" LateralLimit="0.3" LightColor="255 50 50" DrawCockpit="true"/>
−
<!--

SpotView - Contains all user controllable settings for the Spot View.

ViewDist - Default distance from eyepoint to object center (Meters) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_x - Vertical offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_y - Horizontal offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
ViewVerticalOffset - Amount to move the eyepoint up (Meters)
VerticalDelta - Controls vertical rotation speed
HorizontalDelta - Controls horizontal rotation speed
ZoomDelta - Controls zoom speed
ZoomMin - Minimum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)
ZoomMax - Maximum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)

-->
<SpotView ViewDist="20.0" ViewVerticalOffset="0.0" NominalAngles_x="3.0" NominalAngles_y="30.0" VerticalDelta="80.0" LateralDelta="80.0" ZoomDelta="10.0"/>
−
<!--

ChaseView - Contains all user controllable settings for the Chase View.

ViewDist - Default distance from eyepoint to object center (Meters) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_x - Vertical offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_y - Horizontal offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
ViewVerticalOffset - Amount to move the eyepoint up (Meters)
VerticalDelta - Controls vertical rotation speed
HorizontalDelta - Controls horizontal rotation speed
ZoomDelta - Controls zoom speed
ZoomMin - Minimum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)
ZoomMax - Maximum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)

-->
<ChaseView ViewDist="20.0" ViewVerticalOffset="0.0" NominalAngles_x="3.0" NominalAngles_y="5.0" VerticalDelta="80.0" LateralDelta="80.0" ZoomDelta="10.0"/>
−
<!--

FloatView - Contains all user controllable settings for the Float View.

ViewDist - Default distance from eyepoint to object center (Meters) - saves user settings
ViewVerticalOffset - Amount to move the eyepoint up (Meters)
MaxTrackingOffset - Maximum distance eyepoint to object (Meters)
HistoryTargetOffset - Controls how far into the past to go to find the point to point the eyepoint at - must be less than 64
HistoryCameraOffset - Controls how far into the past to go to find the eyepoint - must be less than 64 and greater than or equal to HistoryTargetOffset

-->
<FloatView ViewDist="5" ViewVerticalOffset="2.0" MaxTrackingOffset="30.0" HistoryTargetOffset="24" HistoryCameraOffset="48"/>
−
<!--

FlybyView - Contains all user controllable settings for the Flyby View.

StartViewDist - Distance in front of object to start the camera (Meters)
StopViewDist - Distance behind object needed to reset the view (Meters)
ViewOffsetVert - Distance above objects path to place the eyepoint (Meters)
ViewOffsetHoriz - Distance right of objects path to place the eyepoint (Meters)

-->
<FlybyView StartViewDist="400.0" StopViewDist="400.0" ViewOffsetVert="15.0" ViewOffsetHoriz="15.0"/>
−
<!--

PlayerTargetView - Contains all user controllable settings for the PlayerTarget View.

OffsetDist - Distance behind player's object (Meters)
OffsetHeight - Distance above players object (Meters)
ZoomVal - Percentage of OffsetDist to use
ZoomRate - Controls speed of zooming
ZoomMin - Minimum multiplier of OffsetDist allowed
ZoomMax - Maximum multiplier of OffsetDist allowed
ViewToTarget - true = view from player to target, false = view from target to player - saves user setting

-->
<PlayerTargetView OffsetDist="25.0" OffsetHeight="2.5" ZoomVal="0.8" ZoomRate="1.0" ZoomMin="0.1" ZoomMax="10.0"/>
−
<!--

WeaponView - Contains all user controllable settings for the Weapon View.

ViewDist - Default distance from eyepoint to object center (Meters) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_x - Vertical offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
NominalAngles_y - Horizontal offset angle for eyepoint (Degrees) - saves user settings
ViewVerticalOffset - Amount to move the eyepoint up (Meters)
VerticalDelta - Controls vertical rotation speed
HorizontalDelta - Controls horizontal rotation speed
ZoomDelta - Controls zoom speed
ZoomMin - Minimum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)
ZoomMax - Maximum distance allowed eyepoint to object (Meters)

-->
<WeaponView ViewDist="20.0" ViewVerticalOffset="0.0" NominalAngles_x="3.0" NominalAngles_y="30.0" VerticalDelta="80.0" LateralDelta="80.0" ZoomDelta="10.0"/>
<ObserverUI ForwardSpeed="600.0" LateralSpeed="600.0" VerticalSpeed="100.0" PitchSpeed="20.0" YawSpeed="20.0" JoyForwardScale="5.0" JoyLateralScale="5.0" JoyYawScale="5.0"/>
</ViewUI>
−
<HUD>
−
<!--

This section of the file defines not only which HUD gauges go where, but also how the needles move in the HUD gauges. The different colors used for friendly/enemy/bogie/goal can also be set here.

-->
−
<!--

The Gauge# sections define what is shown for each of those gauges, and where on the screen to display it.
Type can be one of the following
HUDAirspeed - Airspeed gauge
HUDCompass - Compass Rose
HUDAdi - Attitude/Direction Indicator
HUDAlt - Altimeter
HUDVsi - Vertical Speed Indicator
HUDText - Additional text display
HUDPipper - Fixed gun cross

pos - Initial position (0.0,0.0) -> (1.0,1.0) with (0.0,0.0) being the top left of the screen, and (1.0,1.0) being the bottom right. pos is not used for the TargetCone or the LabelDisplay.

visible - visibility flag - missing or non-zero means visible

-->
<Gauge1 Type="HUDAirspeed" pos="0.10 0.8"/>
<Gauge2 Type="HUDCompass" pos="0.30 0.8"/>
<Gauge3 Type="HUDAdi" pos="0.50 0.8"/>
<Gauge4 Type="HUDAlt" pos="0.70 0.8"/>
<Gauge5 Type="HUDVsi" pos="0.90 0.8"/>
<Gauge6 Type="HUDText" pos="0.83 0.2"/>
<Gauge7 Type="HUDPipper" pos="0.5 0.5"/>
<Gauge8 Type="TacticalDisplay" pos="0.1 0.1"/>
<Gauge9 Type="TargetCone" pos="1.0 1.0"/>
<Gauge10 Type="LabelDisplay" pos="1.0 1.0"/>
−
<!--

The colors section allows for customizing of the colors used to indicate object allegiance, current target, and current goal. All colors are in packed ARGB format.

FriendColor - color used for friendly objects
EnemyColor - color used for enemy objects
TargetColor - color used for the currently selected target
BogieColor - color used for unknown objects
GoalColor - color used for mission goals
HumanFriendColor - Used for human friendlies in MP missions
HumanEnemyColor - Used for human enemies in MP Dogfights

-->
<Colors FriendColor="0xFF0000FF" EnemyColor="0xFFFF0000" TargetColor="0xFFFFFF00" BogieColor="0xFFFFFFFF" GoalColor="0xFFAF00AF" HumanFriendColor="0XFF00FFFF" HumanEnemyColor="0xFFFF00FF"/>
−
<!--

For each gauge type you get to define what the background image is and what the needle image is. For each needle there can be a mapping table defining the relationship between the displayed value and the angle to rotate the needle. Each needle also defines its size, center point, and rotation offset to point to the nominal zero. Each gauge also has a "Metric" version for use when the HUD is in 'Metric' mode. All gauges should have a metric section

NOTE: All image sizes/coords are in pixels.

BGImage - Texture sheet where the background can be found
BGPos - Location on the sheet where the background is
BGSize - Size of the background image
BGScale - Image scale multiplier 1.0 if not specified
NeedleImage - Texture Sheet with the needle image (if needed)

For each needle
Pos - Location on the texture sheet to find the needle
Size - Size of the needle
Center - Center of needle rotation, relative to the top left corner
Offset - Rotation amount needed to get from the image to the gauge zero point
TableSize - Number of data points in the mapping table

For each entry in the mapping table there is a pair of numbers. The first is the value to be displayed, in gauge units, the second is the rotation of the needle needed to point to that location on the dial.

Several gauges also support additional tags. These are listed here

HUDText
Color - color to display the hud text in. (packed ARGB)

TacticalDisplay
BackColor - If a background image is NOT defined for the tactical diaplay then a square background of this color will be used (packed ARGB)
GoalAlpha - Alpha density of the goal pointer as it rotates around the outside of the tactical display.

LabelDisplay All of these settings store user preferences
ShowRank - Adds pilot rank to the label - default off - only applies when close enough to see the name
ShowKills - Adds pilot kills to the label - default off - only applies when close enough to see the name
ShowType - Adds object type to label - default off - only applies when close enough to see the name
DrawBrackets - Shows target brackets around selected object

-->
−
<HUDAdi BGImage="hud_guages.dds" BGPos="343 170" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="attitude_card.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="30 452" Size="68 120" Center="35 60" TableSize="3">
<DataTable Entry0="-90.0 -270" Entry1="0.0 0.0" Entry2="90 270"/>
</Needle1>
<Needle2 Pos="58 107" Size="7 11" Center="4 55"/>
</HUDAdi>
−
<HUDAdiMetric BGImage="hud_guages_metric.dds" BGPos="343 170" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="attitude_card.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="30 452" Size="68 120" Center="35 60" TableSize="3">
<DataTable Entry0="-90.0 -270" Entry1="0.0 0.0" Entry2="90 270"/>
</Needle1>
<Needle2 Pos="58 107" Size="7 11" Center="4 55"/>
</HUDAdiMetric>
−
<HUDAirspeed BGImage="hud_guages.dds" BGPos="345 343" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="hud_guages.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="372 22" Size="104 25" Center="31 12" Offset="90" TableSize="9">
<DataTable Entry0="0.0 0.0" Entry1="50.0 8.0" Entry2="100.0 44.0" Entry3="150.0 89.0" Entry4="200.0 135.0" Entry5="250.0 185.0" Entry6="300.0 233.0" Entry7="400.0 263.5" Entry8="500.0 289.0" Entry9="700.0 344.0"/>
</Needle1>
</HUDAirspeed>
−
<HUDAirspeedMetric BGImage="hud_guages_metric.dds" BGPos="345 343" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="hud_guages_metric.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="390 28" Size="86 15" Center="23 7" Offset="90" TableSize="11">
<DataTable Entry0="0.0 180.0" Entry1="100.0 195.0" Entry2="150.0 220.0" Entry3="200.0 240.0" Entry4="250.0 270.0" Entry5="300.0 292.0" Entry6="400.0 350.5" Entry7="500.0 380.0" Entry8="600.0 455.0" Entry9="700.0 495.0" Entry10="800.0 555.0" Entry11="900.0 615.0"/>
</Needle1>
</HUDAirspeedMetric>
−
<HUDAlt BGImage="hud_guages.dds" BGPos="2 344" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="hud_guages.dds">
<Needle1 Pos="390 28" Size="86 15" Center="23 7" Offset="90"/>
<Needle2 Pos="387 94" Size="78 20" Center="28 10" Offset="90"/>
<Needle3 Pos="466 59" Size="24 27" Center="-45 14" Offset="90"/>
</HUDAlt>
−
<HUDAltMetric BGImage="hud_guages_metric.dds" BGPos="2 344" BGSize="166 166" NeedleImage="hud_guages_metric.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="12 315" Size="28 20" Center="14 10" TableSize="3" WindowPos="0 45">
<DataTable Entry0="0.0 0.0" Entry1="8.0 151.0" Entry2="15.0 276.0"/>
</Needle1>
<Needle2 Pos="390 28" Size="86 15" Center="23 7" Offset="-90"/>
</HUDAltMetric>
−
<HUDCompass BGIMage="hud_guages.dds" BGPos="171 343" BGSize="168 168" NeedleImage="hud_guages.dds">
<Needle1 Pos="200 17" Size="134 134" Center="67 67" Offset="0"/>
</HUDCompass>
−
<HUDCompassMetric BGIMage="hud_guages_metric.dds" BGPos="171 343" BGSize="168 168" NeedleImage="hud_guages_metric.dds">
<Needle1 Pos="200 17" Size="134 134" Center="67 67" Offset="0"/>
</HUDCompassMetric>
<HUDText Color="0xFF0000FF"/>
<HUDTextMetric Color="0xFF0000FF"/>
−
<HUDVsi BGImage="hud_guages.dds" BGPos="3 5" BGSize="165 165" NeedleImage="hud_guages.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="390 28" Size="86 15" Center="23 7" Offset="90" TableSize="9">
<DataTable Entry0="-20000 98.0" Entry1="-6000.0 98.0" Entry2="-4000.0 135.0" Entry3="-2000.0 185.0" Entry4="0.0 270.0" Entry5="2000.0 355.0" Entry6="4000.0 405.0" Entry7="6000.0 442" Entry8="20000 442"/>
</Needle1>
</HUDVsi>
−
<HUDVsiMetric BGImage="hud_guages_metric.dds" BGPos="3 5" BGSize="165 165" NeedleImage="hud_guages_metric.dds">
−
<Needle1 Pos="390 28" Size="86 15" Center="23 7" Offset="90" TableSize="9">
<DataTable Entry0="-30 135.0" Entry1="-20.0 155.0" Entry2="-10.0 185.0" Entry3="-5.0 225.0" Entry4="0.0 270.0" Entry5="5.0 315.0" Entry6="10.0 355.0" Entry7="20.0 382" Entry8="30 405"/>
</Needle1>
</HUDVsiMetric>
<TacticalDisplay BGIMage="tactical_display.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="128 128" BGScale="1.2" BackColor="0x1f0000FF" Mode="0"/>
<TacticalDisplayMetric BGIMage="tactical_display.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="128 128" BGScale="1.2" BackColor="0x1f0000FF" Mode="0"/>
<TargetCone/>
<TargetConeMetric/>
<HUDPipper BGImage="reticule.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="64 64"/>
<HUDPipperMetric BGImage="reticule.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="64 64"/>
<LabelDisplay BGImage="brackets.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="32 32"/>
<LabelDisplayMetric BGImage="brackets.dds" BGPos="0 0" BGSize="32 32"/>
</HUD>
</Settings>
 
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