Texture Callouts in Imported XML

**wildfire563** · 10-02-2005, 09:03 PM

Hi,

I'm sorry if this is a duplicate post, but my last attempt to post this appears to have failed, so I'm trying again.

There seems to be an issue with the texture callout numbers for buildings imported from XML files. I decompiled OB9NAMC.bgl and then imported the buildings for 1D2. Many of them ended up not having any textures in FS upon compilation. Some study revealed that the SGX and XML files call out, for Building 33 for instance, texture 98 for level 1. But in SGX the available texture numbers only go as high as 83.

The imported SGX code is this:

BUILDING 33
-ACTIVE = True
-DISPLAY = 5 12171705 0
-ICAO =
-LATITUDE = 42.3451136666667
-LONGITUDE = -83.4563156666667
-LONGUEUR = 100
-LARGEUR = 20
-HAUTEUR = 5
-TYPE = 00000
-ORIENTATION = 87.93
-PITCH = 0
-BANK = 0
-ORIENTATION = 87.93
-ALTITUDE = 0 m AGL
-DETAIL = 3
-COMMENT =
-ADVTYPE = 0
-ROOFTYPE = 2
-ADVLEVEL1 = 5 98 320 256 64
-ADVLEVEL2 = 0 91 0 0 0
-ADVLEVEL3 = 0 70 0 256 0
-ADVROOF = 2 37 8448 256 4270
-ADVGABLE = 10 1091 256 256 64
-ADVFACE = 10 0 256 256 256
-ADVOTHER = 0 0 0

The exported XML for the building is this:

<SceneryObject
lat="N42 20.63806"
lon="W083 27.37529"
alt="0.0000M"
altitudeIsAgl="TRUE"
pitch="0.00"
bank="0.00"
heading="87.93"
imageComplexity="NORMAL">
<GenericBuilding
scale="1.00"
bottomTexture="98"
roofTexture="37"
topTexture="70"
windowTexture="91">
<RectangularBuilding
roofType="RIDGE"
sizeX="100"
sizeZ="20"
sizeBottomY="5"
textureIndexBottomX="320"
textureIndexBottomZ="64"
sizeWindowY="0"
textureIndexWindowX="0"
textureIndexWindowY="0"
textureIndexWindowZ="0"
sizeTopY="0"
textureIndexTopX="0"
textureIndexTopZ="0"
textureIndexRoofX="8448"
textureIndexRoofZ="4270"
sizeRoofY="2"
gableTexture="1091"
textureIndexGableY="256"
textureIndexGableZ="64"/>
</GenericBuilding>

Both call out texture 98 for level 1. The Roof texture callout is 37. SGX only goes as high as 33. I believe this is a very common hangar in FS.

Is this a problem of interpretation on NewAnalyzeBGL's part? Does SGX need to reference more textures? Is there a cross reference from XML texture numbers to SGX texture numbers?

I think a possible fix would be, don't set the value to 0 on compilation if it is reasonably out of range (i.e. as long as it is integer, and between say 0 and 999, leave it as is). Currently, SGX is setting out of range values to 0.

Help!

Thanks,

Thomas

**wildfire563** · 10-02-2005, 10:23 PM

So, I attempted to do what I suggested above by editing the XML in the view code window and adding all the missing texture callouts and then pressed compile XML (assuming it compiles what is in the window and not what is on the disk (I couldn't find a button to save the edits I made)). The textures did not appear in the compiled BGL.

But somehow, in all the work I have been doing, a compiled copy of the file I created when I imported the exported XML file into SGX found its way into my 1D2\scenery directory, and all those buildings had their textures.

Aggghhhh!

So I'm wondering if the compile XML command compiles what is on the disk or what is in the window. I did cut and paste my edits into a file (but will have to figure out how to remove the line numbers) and will attempt to compile that tomorrow.

Oh well, I'll investigate more later.

Thanks,

Thomas

**wsieffert** · 10-03-2005, 09:50 AM

Yes, there is a cross reference. I believe it comes with the FS2004 BGLCOMP_SDK in an excel (*.xls) file.

I am a little confused on what you are editing. You cannot edit the XML from within SGX (if I am not mistaken - known to happen), since SGX writes the XML from the SGX information prior to calling the compiler (BGLCOMP). Therefore, any manual edits you might make within SGX are replaced with new XML.

If you edit the XML externally from SGX, and compile the modified XML externally from SGX, then your resulting *.bgl with contain your changes.

I always used both decompilers/disassemblers and compare the results before I import to SGX. Remember these tools are reverse engineering and can contain errors. They haven't been updated in quite some time and do not decompile/disassemble all aspects of the compiled *.bgls.

W. Sieffert

**wildfire563** · 10-03-2005, 11:55 AM

Thanks, that's what I suspected might be going on (editing the XML in the XML view window in SGX does not affect what is compiled), guess I'll just have to keep my edits handy in a separate file and replace them into the file as I work until this is resolved.

**wildfire563** · 10-03-2005, 02:56 PM

So,

I went ahead and created a test file of a bunch of buildings referring to the higher number textures. As many of you probably already know, the texture numbers higher than those listed in SGX and the SDK refer to the smallairport.bmp, mediumairport.bmp and largeairport.bmp textures, at least as far as I can tell.

The highest roof texture number is 37. The highest window layer texture is 102. The highest top/bottom texture number is 121.

SGX is capable of handling 33, 84, and 83 respectively.

So far, I have only tested them at x,y,z = 256. Tonight, I will catalogue a cross reference of the numbers to the texture portions, and test them at some different size numbers.

So, anyway, it would be cool, Tom, if you could change the interface to accept these higher numbers. I'll compile pics and byte counts for the cross-reference tonight as well.

Thanks,

Thomas

**wildfire563** · 10-04-2005, 01:20 AM

Here is what I have so far. I have attached an Excel reference of which texture goes with which number for Bottom/Top, Window, and Roof textures beyond the range of those supported in SGX. I have another version of the attached file with graphics, but it is 2.3 MB, so I could not attach it. I'd be happy to email it. I may upload it to Avsim as well.

As noted in the help files, use 256 for each direction to put one whole texture on a side, and multiples/fractions of 256 for lengths other than the default lengths.

A height of 5/10 and 75/150 (small-med/large) meters per texture side is what I calculated as the best compromise on size. Does anyone disagree?

How do you control where a texture starts from when it is applied to a building? The start point of the texture seems randomly chosen. Sometimes the texture starts with the center of the texture at the edge, sometimes some other point. I don't know that I've ever seen any of these textures start with their edge on the edge of the face.

Hope this helps.

Thomas

**wildfire563** · 10-04-2005, 12:46 PM

As a note, I realized the xxxAirport.bgl files I have been using are reduced files from AEU7, hence their 512 x 512 size. I believe the default AEU7 files are 1024 x 1024. But the proportions are still the same, and I assume the default files will be similar. I'll have to get the default files and compare them as well tonight.

I have the spreadsheet with graphics and a tutorial explaining how to use the textures ready to go, I just need to get permission from Chris Arrington before I post it on Avsim, or edit it with the default bitmaps. I'll try to get that done tonight.

Thomas