Il2's skinning tool....good for SH3-skins?

[Paajtor]

I was browsing through my old Il2/FB-files, and came accross a panel-finding tool.

It's used by skinners to determine particular locations on aircraft-skins: let's say you want to put text on some part of the fuselage, but have troubles finding the location on the skin-file....simply load the tool as skin, view the aircraft ingame, and remember (or take a screenie of) what you see on your spot.

I thought SH3-skinners might take benefit of it as well.
The file is a simple 1024x1024pixel bmp, 1025.05 KB (it's Il2's high-resolution skin-format).

I'm not sure if this format can be used in SH3 straight away, so it may have to be converted first (I never made skins for SH3).

Here is the link.
One glimpse should tell you how to use it.

[danlisa]

This will be handy

We have actually used a similar method for sub skins. i.e divide the TGA texture file into squares and then fill them with high contrast colours.

Your boat ends up looking like a patchwork quilt as the texture mapping is, to say the least, not logical.:rotfl:

For anyone using this, please remember that (for example) GW1.1a's U-boat textures are 2048x2048 and GWX's textures are 1024x1024.

Good Find

[Paajtor]

You're welcome.

Is that one of the reasons why GWX is told to have shorter loading-times than GW1.1a?

[danlisa]

Yes & because all the extra texture files, that were 'loose' in SH3/GW1.1a, have been packed into the DAT files.

This re-packing means that SH3 doesn't have to 'look' for the textures at each loadup.

This clever solution enabled them to double the content while reducing load times. Simple but effective.

Simple but effective

If Kpt.Lehmann reads this he'll hang me as I think he did most the 'packing'.

[Edelweiss]

Originally Posted by danlisa

Yes & because all the extra texture files, that were 'loose' in SH3/GW1.1a, have been packed into the DAT files.

This re-packing means that SH3 doesn't have to 'look' for the textures at each loadup.

Okay BUT if a new skin in DAT files is applied (let's say via JSGME), the "old" TGA files in the "Textures" folder will still have the priority, i.e. be loaded and applied on the player's sub ? Or maybe is it a specificity of GWX (I'm using IuB) ?

Sorry for the rookie question , but every skin in DAT files I tried to apply to date seems to have no effect at all, only the TGA files work...

[HundertzehnGustav]

nope, the TGA files in the textures tnormal folder have priority... have to delete these first if you want to use a DAT packed skin...

[azn_132]

I wonder if this skinnin tool work for SH4?

[Edelweiss]

Originally Posted by HundertzehnGustav

nope, the TGA files in the textures tnormal folder have priority... have to delete these first if you want to use a DAT packed skin...

Danke for the precisions Gustav, that's what I was thinking (priority of the TGAs over the DATs).

Chris

[Paajtor]

Originally Posted by azn_132

I wonder if this skinnin tool work for SH4?

I think so:

Originally Posted by danlisa

GWX's textures are 1024x1024.

So is the tool.