Advanced Question How to manually create .TEX files.

[Mojave]

Hello,

I have a little project I'm doing that requires the creation of a separate solar system from the default one in orbiter. I know how to create planets and moons etc.

The problem I'm having is creating textures that are higher than level 8. I was wondering if there were any other utilities out there that can help me achieve creating higher levels for my planet. I know that there is the pltex.exe in the orbiter/utils folder but that doesn't let me create high level planet textures.

Additionally, are there any plugins out there for e.g. GIMP that can create the .TEX files? I have google'd the file extension but found little information on them.

Thanks, in advance!



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[orb]

I know that there is the pltex.exe in the orbiter/utils folder but that doesn't let me create high level planet textures.

But it of course allows creating higher than level 8 textures:

Select a task:

(G) Create a global planetary surface texture (resolution level <= 8)
[highlight](L) Create a local high-resolution surface area (resolution level > 8)[/highlight]
(C) Create an opaque or semi-transparent cloud map
(M) Merge high-resolution texture files
(Q) Quit

>> [G|[highlight]L[/highlight]|C|M|Q]:

"Local" only means it doesn't need to cover the whole planet, but it can if you have the full map.

 

[Mojave]

Oh man, it was that simple? :lol: I was under the impression that was just for surface tiles.

Thanks, man.

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---------- Post added at 11:33 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:10 AM ----------

Okay,

When I use this tool it says that my bitmap is an insufficient resolution. What exactly does this mean? Do I need to change the resolution by scaling or is there another meaning?

 

[martins]

If you want to create a texture of level n covering the entire planet, you need a source map of size 2^(6+n) by 2^(5+n). If it is smaller, pltex will only generate levels up to the maximum supported by that bitmap.

There is no point rescaling the source bitmap. This will not improve the resolution, and just wastes texture memory. The only exception is if your source map is just below the size required for a given level. For example, if you have a 30000 x 15000 bitmap, it's ok to scale it up to 2^15 x 2^14 to create level 9.

 

[Mojave]

I'm not entirely sure what you mean to do. Can you please explain in a bit more detail?

 

[martins]

I'm not entirely sure what you mean to do. Can you please explain in a bit more detail?

I meant to explain the relationship between source map size and supported texture level. If you didn't understand it, then the simplest thing to do is just to ignore the warning from pltex. You've already got the the highest texture level supported by your map.

 

[Mojave]

Thank you, I understand what you are saying perfectly now.

---------- Post added at 02:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:43 AM ----------

I passed my level 9 texture through the pltex.exe and it converted perfectly. However, when I load the scenario up in orbiter the planet is just a black sphere.

Do I need to run the bitmap with the first program to so it creates level 1 - 8 textures aswell?

 

[martins]

Do I need to run the bitmap with the first program to so it creates level 1 - 8 textures aswell?

Yes.

 

[Mojave]

Oh thank you. All my questions are answered now. Much obliged.



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