Easy way for anyone to set up moving SHIPS into FS2004

I came across this program a few months ago for the first time "Heli Traffic 2009" and it is a module program for FS2004. It is easy to get the helicopters up and flying in the sim.

BUT ... I spent yesterday using this program to add SHIPS to the sim. I searched to see if any one had tried it before but I didn't find any posts. I read up on how to set up ships the original "by the book way" and that wasn't clear or easy to understand.

Using this program for ships is easy. You tell the program the SHIP is a helicopter but then tell the program NOT to USE it as a random Heli. You can then take the ship and assign it a starting Helipad (at ground ZERO) and then set it to travel to its destination (at ground ZERO). Set the maximum flight height to ZERO. You can even set up WAYPOINTS during the ship's course, to avoid land masses.

It's easy ... some Programmer ought to make a whole new program like this just for setting up ships as a stand alone program.

Regards

Drake

... some Programmer ought to make a whole new program like this just for setting up ships as a stand alone program

Two of the programmers already have: AICarriers.EXE and AICarriers.NET for FSX-SE. Just as easy if not easier to set up, and can be done "on-the-fly" if you'll pardon the pun, or as a pre-programmed route :) You can add in various sets of ships, tell them to go straight, turn here, stop, anything you like to do.

Originally designed for add-on (and the FSX Acceleration) carrier-capable aircraft, but it's turned out to not be limited to military ships. You can set up Ferries, cargo, military, whatever...

Just thought I'd let you know. And remember, use AICarriers.NET for Steam. It was specially written for Steam. I am pretty sure it works fine with Acceleration, too, but I know that's what the EXE was originally written for.

Check the library to download it.

Pat☺

Two of the programmers already have: AICarriers.EXE and AICarriers.NET for FSX-SE. And remember, use AICarriers.NET for Steam. It was specially written for Steam.

Pat☺

....Informative ..... BUT ..... it doesn't answer the OP's original plea: "Easy way for anyone to set up moving SHIPS into FS2004" and ". some Programmer ought to make a whole new program like this just for setting up ships as a stand alone program." (for FS2004 users ... inferred).

Failing all the above ideas. If a way of adding wakes to the existing static shipping could be found (and was quick and easy to do)

It would at least give an illusion of movement.

Cheers

A.

Quote: "If a way of adding wakes to the existing static shipping could be found (and was quick and easy to do). It would at least give an illusion of movement".

Socks, I have done this with my carrier and the ships in the support fleet. It IS quick and easy to do, and looks very effective. There are three wakes in \Effects supplied with FS9: fx_wake_?.fx, where ? is one of l/m/s (large/medium/small). All you have to do is add them behind the ship with ADE.

Whilst you're doing that, add an fx_shipsmoke_?.fx to just above the smokestack. If you want dense smoke, add a small and a large on top of each other.

If you change the wind direction so the ships appear to be steaming directly into it, then you will end up with a very credible illusion of movement. Well at least I found it credible, but then I am very credulous. :D Your mileage may very, but I suggest it's well worth while.

Finally, if you want to make a really powerful and fast ship, then on this site there is a fabulous ship_wake that the late Opa made.

Here's a screen cap of a wake effect only (no smoke). The bitmaps in it are my own, but from this angle it looks pretty much the same as the large standard wake.

Here's a screen cap of a wake effect only (no smoke). The bitmaps in it are my own, but from this angle it looks pretty much the same as the large standard wake.

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]182142[/ATTACH]

Steve that looks very affective.

I have a problem though!

All you have to do is add them behind your ship with ADE .

I know not what is ADE.

Andy

A simple pom!

I've had moving (AI) ships all over the world for years and which follow simple home made (taxiway) tracks via the Afcad program. This also works for moving (AI) vehicles on airport aprons, e.g. busses, etc ...... BUT.......there's a problem with all of them, namely that they all make the standard AI Cessna piston engine sounds, which can become rather overwhelming when taxiing around on aprons with many such vehicles, all doing their thing.

These engine sounds are specified in each of their AI "aircraft.cfg" files but even if I delete or disable the line(s) concerned, FS9 keeps defaulting to the AI Cessna sounds.

Have any of you managed to figure out a way of making only these specific ships/busses, etc quiet, without getting involved in the so called "dynamic objects" programming ?

Hans

Airport Design Editor, a replacement for the AFCAD program.

Thanks Tom.

I will download it, and have a fiddle about.

Actually although this post relates to shipping, would a program like this help with things like aircraft parked half inside terminal buildings ? ie could I repark them correctly.

I have an add-on airport scenery for MROC (I think:-) in which some aircraft are parked in this manner .Its a reasonable add-on so I would like to keep it.

Anyways

Cheers

Andy

Thanks Tom.

I will download it, and have a fiddle about.

Actually although this post relates to shipping, would a program like this help with things like aircraft parked half inside terminal buildings ? ie could I repark them correctly.

I have an add-on airport scenery for MROC (I think:-) in which some aircraft are parked in this manner .Its a reasonable add-on so I would like to keep it.

 

Anyways

Cheers

Andy

If an af type file (afad af_2, AFX_, ADE, etc) came with the MROC scenery rename any other af type for MROC to .bgh from .bgl to make it ineffective so the one with the add-on MROC you are using has priority. It is unlikely the MROC designer misplaced the af file parking places in relation to the buildings.

If you do not have FSUIPC3 you can download it and use it free with ADE. The latest FSUIPC3 is here:

http://forum.simflight.com/topic/66139-updated-modules/

By windowing FS9 and ADE use can use the lock feature in ADE. Load the MROC af file into ADE. Load your aircraft type in FS at MROC and skew it into position where you would like it to park as seen in the overhead view in FS. In ADE a cursor will follow and you can see how it relates to the parking location in the af file used with MROC. In ADE you can if needed move the parking spots so that the AI aircraft will be properly positioned not to get inside the building objects.

When done save the ADE project file first and check for errors with the ADE error checking tool. When happy compile the project into a .bgl to replace the one (rename the original causing the problem) and if no fatal errors occur during compiling you should be all set.

The parking spots in the af type file with associated taxi lines will show on the scenery after it is reloaded into FS.

Now, this procedure is for ai aircraft parking that are protruding into scenery objects. If the designer has misplaced static aircraft, that file will have to be merged into the ADE project so they can be moved.

I'm rusty on this but it should give you an idea what is involved.

Other issues could be if the designer did not use proper exclude areas and the buildings you are seeing are from stock or other sources that are not lined up with the af file used that can be causing a conflict.

scanafd.zip in the FS9 Misc library here scan be used to find duplicate af type files for the airport id (MROC) to check priority. A more complex utility intended for designers will search all of your installed frequency and then you can filter out MROC. It should be noted that the last one listed (loaded last) has priority. That one is at http://www.scruffyduck.org/simple-airport-scanner/4584282795 . It is somewhat intuitive to run. The full scan will take awhile and be sure you check the FS9 path. Then filter down to MROC inthe list. note that this does NOT show the default scenery in its list.

Frequently a designer my have multiple af type tagged files in the same folder as overlays for special cases. the one that shows your runways, taxiways, and parking is the one of interest that needs to be loaded into ADE.

Some work here to correct that scenery but if you really want to use it it might be worth the learning curve for ADE as that is least harmful (IMHO) to newer scenery where objects may be contained that AFCAD might exclude in its compile.

As always, store the original as a copy somewhere.

@hjwalter

Re the default aircraft sounds you are getting, I haven't done this for years but if my memory serves me right there is a sound file called something like ai_sounds.

Do a search in the FS sound files you should find it, try renaming it so it doesn't activate and/or use another sound instead.

I changed some sound files on ai helicopters years ago and this is how I did it.

Quote: "...Actually although this post relates to shipping, would a program like this help with things like aircraft parked half inside terminal buildings ? ie could I repark them correctly."

Socks, for this you get the worst possible answer: "That depends". If the airport and all scenic objects are contained within one giant blob bgl file, then you are in luck. ADE will show you the airport (runway, taxiways, etc) with the static objects on them. You can move the static objects around to your desired level of perfection and then recompile. Timeframe: Few minutes to say an hour.

However .... if the airport download contains an "airport only" bgl, with the static and any other stuff in separate bgls, then you are in for a very long evening.

Having said that..... ADE is still extremely useful for peering into what makes up an airport. In fact I would go so far as to venture that ADE and MCX are "indispensible".

Socks: Here's an example of the "easy" one, where the airport and static objects are all in the one file. Now I use "Carriers 2006", and in that there are NO static objects on the flight deck at all. Here is an ADE screen grab, showing the carrier deck (conceptually only a "runway", "taxiways" and "aprons"); with the static objects (that I have added) as the yellow rectangles. The larger ones are aircraft (duh), the smaller ones are service equipment and the like.

Coming back to your previous question, the far right static object is an F-14 Tomcat in a take-off configuration on the "front right" catapult. The two little blue triangles in it are afterburner special effects, also added through ADE. You would add a ship and a wake effect and a smoke effect in exactly the same way as I have added the Tomcat and the afterburners.

The two long thin static objects seemingly in mid-air are in fact aircraft sitting on the carrier's aircraft elevators. The elevators are conceptually not part of the airport therefore ADE doesn't show them.

In my next post I will show you an overhead view of this from FS so you can see how it all looks.

Socks: Here is a screen grab from FS flying over the carrier. Note the Tomcat on the catapult with the two white dots behind it - the afterburner effects. Also note the two aircraft on the elevators. The elevators are in the "down" position, ie, not level with the flight deck, so you can see some water peeping through around them.

Also from a previous conversation, you can see a little of the Kelvin Wave (bow wave) coming from the bow (duh!) of the carrier. That's also one of mine :D but you can have it.

This has taken a while, but I hope that this demo addresses your two issues. #1: ADE can very easily add an effect (eg, a wake) to a static object (eg, a ship). #2: ADE can very easily move static objects around; eg, to correctly reposition one that is slightly misplaced.

Hi,

The answer for the sounds is that in FS9 there is very little you can do. The default AI sounds (or whatever sounds you replace those with) are located in the main Sound folder and start with ai and xai (interior and exterior sounds). These will play for all AI aircraft. There are separate sounds for each engine type (piston, turboprop, small jet, large jet).

The soundai folder only works in FSX, unfortunately.

There is only one way I know of to specify sounds for each AI aircraft in FS2004, and that is the payware FSHotSFX program, which does NOT work on any OS later than XP and is no longer supported (except for re-registration requests).

There is a file called 'silence.wav' in your FS9 SOUND folder (fsx too).

Make a copy of 'ai_singleprop01.wav' and use 'silence.wav' by renaming IT to ai_singleprop01.wav'. When the ai idles by you, you will only hear 'silence'.

When the AI is taking off and/or flying you will hear the 'ai_singleprop02.wav', 'ai_singleprop03.wav' and 'ai_singleprop04.wav'.

You can do the same for twinturbo and lrgjets. Using silence for '...01.wav' will quiet them too when they taxi close to you.

Chuck B

Thanks Guys

For such detailed info ADE.

I have downloaded it and had a quick fiddle with MROC ,I only succeeded in messing it up ,but no worries ,as I say I was just messing about.

I simply rein the orig MROC.

I fear I may have to read the manual for ADE.

Is it a mighty manual?

Steep learning curve?

Worried!

Andy

Doing "simple" things in ADE is very intuitive. Selecting an object, moving it, changing things about it.

What you MUST MUST MUST get right, is understanding the concept of a source file, one or more intermediate files (eg, xml) and a compiled (bgl) file. What they do - and don't do - and going from one to another. The concept is the same as any other compiled computer language.

Doing "simple" things in ADE is very intuitive. Selecting an object, moving it, changing things about it.

 

What you MUST MUST MUST get right, is understanding the concept of a source file, one or more intermediate files (eg, xml) and a compiled (bgl) file. What they do - and don't do - and going from one to another. The concept is the same as any other compiled computer language.

Thanks Steve

What I attempted to was to move two terminal buildings so that AI aircraft would not be parked half inside them.

Moving the buildings seemed easy enough. And when I had done that I selected a save option, but probably the wrong option as planes were still inside buildings.

Eventually my tinkering resulted in a lot of the airport scenery disappearing ,so I. called it a day at that point and rein my orig MROC .

The scenery itself is not super duper ,but nice enough, just planes parked inside terminal buildings.

Cheers Andy

At this point I must apologise to the OP.

I have rather hijacked the post.

Andy

1. Copy the AF2_MROC.bgl (or whatever the scenery file is called) file from its current active location to the desktop as a backup.

2. Within ADE, do an Open Airport from BGL and select that bgl file in the active location.

3. Move your buildings around, and any other editing you wish.

4. Select Compile (near top right corner).

5. Select as your compile target the file you originally started with. That is, you are going to compile back to the same file.

6. Agree to overwrite the file.

You're Dunn. If you don't like what you've done, you can always restore the bgl file from the desktop. If you need to repeat, do so from step 2, so you always have your original unedited file on the desktop.

Adding your ship's wake and/or smoke is done the same way. Purists may argue with this procedure, but it does work.