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Having Resstless Little Fingers has it rewards & satisfactions, sometimes monetary but most of times NOT!! I just noticed one of my TWO FS2004's (GOLDEN WiNGS 3) is not reading Alpha Channels (environment reflection), the other (SiLVER WiNGS) has them enhanced by Real Environment Pro. When me is tired, Resstless Little Fingers can delete the next file to the intented one, like colateral damage or friendly fire.

I recently noticed this in Golden Wings 3 (GW3) after creating a flight from Duxford piloting a Staggerwing:



So I reviewed same location & aircraft in Silver Wings (SW), with enhaced environment reflection by Real Environment Pro


Reviewing my past weeks FS screenshots, I found this one in SW3:


This Bubu includes AiRCRAFT PREViEWS:

GW3- Staggerwing at Duxford:


SW- Staggerwing at Duxford:


Ironical, because I was gathering shots for posting a conversation about ALPHA channels & how they can enhance realism, when I bumped into this Bubu. I leave this for a kind savant mind to descipher, while I go back-up & build a NEW FS9.CFG & test GW3 for results.

Huh?

No, a new FS9.CFG does not change this NO REFLECTiONS situation I'll have to go into simulator entrails and compare what's missing on my GW3 version of FS2004, with my working & enhanced reflections GW version. Problem is, I have no idea what desciphers ALPHA channels in FS2004!!

Make sure Reflections is enabled from Settings > Display > Aircraft.

Hagar wrote:Make sure Reflections is enabled from Settings > Display > Aircraft.
https://www.simviation.com/phpupload/upl ... 067390.jpg

YES Hagar first thing I checked. Now, I am taking the whole journey (after backing up ALL):



Then configure FS9 as Golden Wings & add Staggerwing


Reflections (ALPHA channel) is back, me still at version Golden Wings ONE: have 4 updates to install, then aircraft add ons, scenery add ons...etc add ons...


BUT I DO NOT KNOW THE CAUSE, so... what reads Alpha Channels? That's the question, Dr.Watson.

I'm not sure exactly what you want to know Jean. I have never tried Golden Wings, Silver Wings or Real Environment Pro & don't know what effect any of them would have on aircraft textures.
All I know is that in a default install of FS9 the Reflections option in FS9 Aircraft Display settings affects the reflective aircraft textures as in my shots below:

1) With Reflections disabled


2) With Reflections enabled


This is defined under the [GRAPHICS] section in FS9.cfg as follows:

1) AIRCRAFT_TEXTURE=1

2) AIRCRAFT_TEXTURE=2

I hope this is some help.

Hagar wrote:I'm not sure exactly what you want to know Jean. I have never tried Golden Wings, Silver Wings or Real Environment Pro & don't know what effect any of them would have on aircraft textures.
All I know is that in a default install of FS9 the Reflections option in FS9 Aircraft Display settings affects the reflective aircraft textures as in my shots below:
1) With Reflections disabled https://www.simviation.com/phpupload/upl ... 198153.jpg
2) With Reflections enabled https://www.simviation.com/phpupload/upl ... 144460.jpg

This is defined under the [GRAPHICS] section in FS9.cfg as follows:
1) AIRCRAFT_TEXTURE=1
2) AIRCRAFT_TEXTURE=2
I hope this is some help.

HELLO HAGAR BUENOS DíAS. First, an apology: no internet signal for two days, the optical line broke & was replaced.

Yes I cheked that REFLECTiONS were enabled, thanks for the Aircraft Texture tips BUT it was not that either. After backing up all in my two versions of FS2004, I installed a clean FS9 & configured it as Golden Wings 3. Then I opened both Golden Wings 3 directories & started swaping Folder by Folder, checking results after each swap.

TEXTURE Folder was the culprit!! (next time I will start at the bottom, not the top folders!!) When comparing files on both Texture folders, I noted a difference in ENVMAP, new one had this image & old one was a BLACK SQUARE!!


Then I went into the Texture Folder of Silver Wings (enhanced by Real Env. Pro) and examined it's ENVMAP file:


So I compared: NO ENVMAP file,


WiTH new ENVMAP file,


& with ENVMAP file ENHANCED,


Just to be shure I configured Golden Wings 3 into Golden Hawaii & choose Whale Watching Tour to compare Standard ENVMAP,


with ENHANCED ENVMAP,


& a view from the bridge:


Then deleted new clean GW3 after correcting my original GW3, to save all those ADD ONS & multiple paraphenalia
After all, this was time well spent: now I have enhanced reflections POLiSHED aluminum in my Golden Wings 3 aircraft!!

Glad you fixed it.

I installed Golden Wings & Real Environment Pro to check them out but soon removed them. Those polished aluminium textures are a tad too shiny for me.

Hagar wrote:Glad you fixed it.

I installed Golden Wings & Real Environment Pro to check them out but soon removed them. Those polished aluminium textures are a tad too shiny for me.

You might have a more advanced PC with better graphical rendering.

Jean Loup wrote:

Hagar wrote:Glad you fixed it.

I installed Golden Wings & Real Environment Pro to check them out but soon removed them. Those polished aluminium textures are a tad too shiny for me.

You might have a more advanced PC with better graphical rendering.

It's only a standard laptop but it runs FS9 & FSX very well.

Hagar wrote: It's only a standard laptop but it runs FS9 & FSX very well.

Mine is an obsolete HP Pavilion Entertainment dv6736nr from NiNE YEARS ago... (needing 2GB MORE memory RAM to update Windows... & me no money). I tried the FSX demo, but stutters like about to freeze my Lap!! Both FS2004's run 100% & Vista is config as NiCK indicates in this Forum Q&A