Scenery help needed

[JW49]

I recently downloaded the following Las Vegas scenery file:http://www.simviation.com/fs2004scenery6.htm  When the file is unzipped, there are just two folders, scenery and textures, no main file folder.  I have copied and pasted the below install instructions which, to me, are clear as mud.  I'm not sure where they are intended to be placed.  Addon Scenery?  Scenery/cities/LasVegas?  He states a folder named: VGAS2004.  I have no such folder anywhere in FS9, and there is none in the zip file.  Never really worked with scenery before.  I have printed out all applicable tutorials re. scenery installing, but it applies to the addon scenery folder.  Hoping someone here can interpret the below instructions for me.  The config. lines, I have no problem with.  Any and all help appreciated.  Thanks, Jerry

*Installation
(1)Move this VGAS2004 folder to your Flight Simulator 9\Scenery directory.

        Flight Simulator 9\Scenery\VGAS2004\
                             
(2)Insert following lines to Flight Simulator 9\scenery.cfg

[Area.0XX]
Title=VGAS2004
Local=Scenery\VGAS2004
Layer=XX
Active=TRUE
Required=FALSE

Set XX bigger number than 39.

[Fly2e]

Hey JW49,
Forget those directions, here is the simple way.

You have two folders that unzipped from the file, Scenery and Texture, correct?

Open the scenery folder, copy all and Paste in your add on folder scenery.
FS9/Addon Scenery/Scenery.

[JW49]

Thanks Dave, I'll give it a try........Jerry

[RollerBall]

Whoaaaa

With respect Dave, not the best way to do it.

...\ADDON SCENERY\scenery is best used for AFCAD AFD files - you just paste em in and they are activated automatically. If you start putting addon scenery files in there as well in a very short while it would become terribly messy and impossible to de-install specific sceneries if you wanted to.

The BEST way to install any addon scenery is to create a specific folder for it in the main FS9 ....\ADDON SCENERY FOLDER like it tells you to do eg VGAS2004.

Then you either paste the scenery and subfolders directly into it as this install so helpfully lets you, or in the case of other sceneries that aren't quite so organised, create your own scenery and texture subfolders and copy the appropriate files in as instructed in the scenery ReadMe.

So you have:

....\ADDON SCENERY\VGAS2004\scenery
....\ADDON SCENERY\VGAS2004\texture

Then when you have everything in place you start the sim, click on Settings..Scenery Library..Add Area and browse to the new scenery. In this case the VGAS2004 folder.

Then you have to stop the sim and restart - and enjoy your new scenery.

Sorry I have to disagree, but if people start by doing things in an organised way, they'll avoid many of the pitfalls that can (and do) happen

Roger

Oh and BTW

There's no need to edit the scenery.cfg file. Why this cobblers keeps appearing in addon sceneries I do not know. The prog does this for you automatically and there's great potential for you to mess things up big time if you don't know what you're doing.

[Hagar]

I have to agree with Roger here. Check out my Scenery Clinic. This is the method I've been using in all the M$ sims for over 5 years now without a hitch. http://www.simviation.com/lair/fs2004sc.htm

Oh and BTW

There's no need to edit the scenery.cfg file. Why this cobblers keeps appearing in addon sceneries I do not know. The prog does this for you automatically and there's great potential for you to mess things up big time if you don't know what you're doing.

I can only assume that the people who advise you to activate addon scenery by editing Scenery.cfg don't know the best way to install scenery themselves.

[Fly2e]

Wait a minute, So what you are saying Roger is that in the FS9 Root folder you obviously have the default Add On Scenery Folder. Now instead of throwing all the bare files in each folder, scenery into scenery and texture into texture, You can sub name each add on scenery like you said

....\ADDON SCENERY\VGAS2004\scenery
....\ADDON SCENERY\VGAS2004\texture

My way, the sim would load the new files on boot up and there you go but I could never ever find the files if I had to because they are all just lumped in there. A very messy way of doing things I might add. You could never locate files you put in if you really needed to edit or remove a scenery add on. The way you describe you are saying you now have sub folders in the add on scenery folder that are clearly labeled as to what add on scenery they are. They will not load now until you go to settings and add scenery???

If this is correct, well I know it is coming from You Roger, this would clear up many, many things for me!! It would also explain why I have 2 other payware scenery add ons in my add on scenery folder that say FLYTAMPA. That is the payware add ons that I purchased from Flytampa and in them are 2 folders, scenery and texture. I was wondering how it was working. I thought it put them there as a back up or something!! To make this scenery active though, you do need to do what you said though,

Then when you have everything in place you start the sim, click on Settings..Scenery Library..Add Area and browse to the new scenery. In this case the VGAS2004 folder.

correct?

I need to go try this now!! Sorry JW49, my way will work but I just learn new things every day!!  ;D

Boy, do I feel like a fool now!

[garymbuska]

That is the way I do it Just create a folder in the addon scenry folder name it after the scenery you are going to put in it then put the scenery and texture folders into that newly created folder. Like rollerball said it makes things nice and easy. and you know exactly where it is and what is in each folder.

[Fly2e]

Well I am now very Happy to hear this. As I am in the early stages of installing over 10gigs of add on scenery and this will make things so very easy! Funny thing, I have been doing it like this since I 1st started using the sim only to find out this now. I don't know weather to feel like a "newbie  :-X " or just take it like a man!  ;D
Now it all makes perfect sense!

Thanks,

Dave

[JW49]

I'm gonna go back in and do it over rogers way.  I have read hagars scenery clinic and knew how to do it that way but thought this was something different, didn't know I had to create that main file folder.  Thanks Guys

[Fly2e]

I'm gonna go back in and do it over rogers way.  I have read hagars scenery clinic and knew how to do it that way but thought this was something different, didn't know I had to create that main file folder.

Agreed!!

Happy installing!!!  ;D

Dave

[RollerBall]

Just send money - loads of it. Always works  ;)

OK one more thing while we're at it. Mesh.

Here's what I do. Have a subfolder inside ADDON SCENERY called .... wait for it...MESH.

Then inside this create further subfolders for each mesh you load with a scenery sub-sub folder in each one, into which you place the actual mesh file(s).



Then you activate each one in the usual way. That way, because new updated mesh files seem to come out on an almost weekly basis, you can easily deactivate and/or remove old ones when you have replacements because you know exactly where to look.

The other thing is that you want to observe the correct scenery priorities (what the sim calls layers). So you must place the meshes above the default scenery files in the scenery library but below installed sceneries.

See this pic - see where the meshes are - right above the last default scenery file.



Also, where I have 2 meshes in the same area (SFO/California) the 'local' mesh goes above the large general area mesh.

Also you can see how by doing it this way, although I have 2 Hong Kong meshes installed, only the 'best' one is activated and I could if I want delete the other one (but haven't).

I always try to keep as much out of the sim main folders as I can (Scenery, Textures etc) but it's not always possible to do so though and some addon files have to go into the main folders. So what do you do? Yep - goes without saying - you take a copy of the original just in case because strangely enough, things have been known to screw up from time to time  :D

Roger

[Hagar]

Does nobody here bother to read my tutes? I might as well not bother posting them.

[JW49]

The check's in the mail Roger!  Now, if I wasn't thoroughly confused with the simple Addon Scenery folders, I think the brief Mesh clinic and the priorities listings has done it.  I will get to the mesh thing a little later, when I learn exactly what "mesh" is.  Thanks again for the help guys!  Got to go put on my aluminum foil hat now so the commies can't steal this knowlege from me. ..........Jerry

[RollerBall]

Does nobody here bother to read my tutes? I might as well not bother posting them.

Hey - we still love ya - don't have one of your moods on us (it's just his age folks - I'll probably be like that when I'm that old  ;) )

[Hagar]

Hey - we still love ya -

Well, that's a relief I must say.

don't have one of your moods on us (it's just his age folks - I'll probably be like that when I'm that old  ;) )

Leave my age out of this. I'm in my second childhood.