[WIP] Lighthouses mod

[JeromeHeretic]

Registration to forum doesn't work to me. E-mail with code never come...


BTW: Also exist 20km unfficial patch for GWX: ftp://Maik:Woelfe@hartmuthaas.no-ip....phere_Unood.7z


Try it too... Im not sure now, but i have strong feeling, that in one, or in second environment is not changed values for visibility in binoculars and so (it's in zones.cfg i think.. not sure when i try remember now).
So... in case of some problems you can diff this files and get correct one, or just change needed values.


And THX for that link, but i already know it. :-) I have ready list with about 2000 lighthouses (but still there are bugs, i know it and slowly repairing) and written scripts for automatic generating of LND.mis, locations.cfg, SCR.mis. (because script recognition lightouses and lightboats)
I'm only waiting if you both will finish some more lighthouses, so i can generate world with different lighthouses on different places. Now i'm using just one lighthouse and GWX lightboats.


When we are talking about this, i have few ideas, but i don't know how to do it. Sure it is possible, but maybe it is needed for every mutation add new dat file to game, so only some reduced amount of variations is possible to add to game.
But if it is possible, i think it will be enough even in this reduced form.

I was looking to previously posted page: http://www.sailingissues.com/navcourse9.html and i got idea, that i like to have:


- Lighthouse with red light (as a marker to port side of route into the ports)
- I think, that "common" lighthouse used in game can be lighthouse which i have, with normal, long blinking white light.
But on the long coastal lines, where are a lot of lighthouses in some distances i want sometimes some specific lighthouse, from
which i can recognize where exactly i am. I know it already from transatlantic travels, that error of my position after transatlantic route is so big, that even if i find a lighthouse on horizont, im never sure which one it is...
So... idea is have few "morse" blinking lighthouses. I think that 4 "bit" table must be enough for everyone.
So when we look into morse code table, there are this possibilities for lighthouses:
B -...

C -.-.

F ..-.

H ....

L .---

Q --.-

V ...-

X -..-

Y -.--

Z --..
With lighthouse which i already have (lets call him "slow blinker") and when can be speed of blinking changed to quick, we have table of 12 unique lights (+ red one)!


So when i get the markings from that page, we can have FL, Q, MoB, MoC, MoF, MoH, MoL, MoQ, MoV, MoX, MoY, MoZ and Iso R.
Now question for you is, if it is possible? (Im sure just only about changing color of light, even if i don't know how to do it.)

EDIT:
Ah yes, i almost forget. In GWX are tugboats near lightboats. This is not looking much realistic, but it is great idea, because when you go on high TC and watch crew see a ship, TC falls to 1, so you know that you are near that lightboat!
Would be nice, if can be implemented, that watch crew reactions on lighthouse is the same as for ship. (Daesn't matter if crew say "ship spotted", it's not important that lighthouse is not a boat, is important, that i know about it and that TC falls to 1)
Is this possible? (Im afraid not... because it is "land unit", but better ask, than be silent and lost this functionality if it is possible)

[bigboywooly]

Yeah I put the tugs near lightships as they are not noticed by crew so saving you collision.

You could make a lighthouse model and class it whatever you like. The icebergs get spotted as a ship so you don't hit them. Not ideal but otherwise at high tc you run the risk of collision

[Jeff-Groves]

Originally Posted by JeromeHeretic

- Lighthouse with red light (as a marker to port side of route into the ports)
- I think, that "common" lighthouse used in game can be lighthouse which i have, with normal, long blinking white light.
But on the long coastal lines, where are a lot of lighthouses in some distances i want sometimes some specific lighthouse, from
which i can recognize where exactly i am. I know it already from transatlantic travels, that error of my position after transatlantic route is so big, that even if i find a lighthouse on horizont, im never sure which one it is...
So... idea is have few "morse" blinking lighthouses. I think that 4 "bit" table must be enough for everyone.
So when we look into morse code table, there are this possibilities for lighthouses:
B -...

C -.-.

F ..-.

H ....

L .---

Q --.-

V ...-

X -..-

Y -.--

Z --..
With lighthouse which i already have (lets call him "slow blinker") and when can be speed of blinking changed to quick, we have table of 12 unique lights (+ red one)!


So when i get the markings from that page, we can have FL, Q, MoB, MoC, MoF, MoH, MoL, MoQ, MoV, MoX, MoY, MoZ and Iso R.
Now question for you is, if it is possible? (Im sure just only about changing color of light, even if i don't know how to do it.)

You'd need to play with the particles settings on the light houses to try to get the morse code thing.
Each Light house can be done separately so it should be possible.
I'd suggest leaving the rotating white light alone and adding your morse code blinker as a separate light with no rotation.
On top of the Light House perhaps as a red blinking light?

Or maybe a small light near the base to simulate someone on shore sending you a signal?
Danged spies!

[JeromeHeretic]

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

You'd need to play with the particles settings on the light houses to try to get the morse code thing.

Blah... i don't know this stuff. Im glad, that now i realise reverse direction in animation... that's why i was asking for it and not to do it by myself.
But THX for info... now i know it's possible.

Originally Posted by Jeff-Groves

Or maybe a small light near the base to simulate someone on shore sending you a signal?
Danged spies!

I mean not as small light, but as main light of lighthouse. It is common, that lighthouses are blinking this codes.

[Jeff-Groves]

I have a separate light house saved from the Game.
IF I get time amongst all the other stuff I'll play with it and see what I can do. Could come in handy added to other projects I have.

[gap]

Originally Posted by JeromeHeretic

And THX for that link, but i already know it. :-)

Glad that you know it already. Very few lighthouse are not listed in the Lighthouse Directory, and it also provides general information and pictures of the active lights, as well as verbal and pictorial reference (when possible) of currently inactive or no longer existing lighthouses.

Originally Posted by JeromeHeretic

When we are talking about this, i have few ideas, but i don't know how to do it. [...]
have few "morse" blinking lighthouses. I think that 4 "bit" table must be enough for everyone.

Is this possible? (Im afraid not... because it is "land unit", but better ask, than be silent and lost this functionality if it is possible)

Yes, it is possible. As said by Jeff, by playing with light particle settings we can mimic even complex flashing schemes. Kendras is a master on this subject, but with some time and the help of a calculator, I can also handle this type of effects. The one lights that we couldn't find a way to reproduce so far, are sector lights: i.e. light beams that can only be seen when looking at them from some angles...

Terrain objects are not configurable, but if lighthouse models are set as land units rather than terrain objects, and if different light halos are stored in a library file, we can then link each lighthouse to any tipe of light effect (or even multiple effects) by use of equipment nodes. There are several advantages in this type of approach:

- Just like air and sea units, land units are handled by the AI; they can see and be seen by other units, attacked, and destroyed.

- they can be made to appear or disappear from the game based on date, simulating the destruction of some of them during the war.

- their lights, set as any other equipment, can be configured by date, simulating the change in usage (or the darkening) of some lights during the war.

[JeromeHeretic]

Originally Posted by gap

The one lights that we couldn't find a way to reproduce so far, are sector lights: i.e. light beams that can only be seen when looking at them from some angles...

Can't be way block light emission by some invisible barriers? Lets say, that you create two barriers in L and in the corner of this L you add light.
(But i think this is not so important. We can live without it.)

[gap]

Originally Posted by JeromeHeretic

Can't be way block light emission by some invisible barriers? Lets say, that you create two barriers in L and in the corner of this L you add light.
(But i think this is not so important. We can live without it.)

Kendras experimented with the sector lights, so I cannot enter in the details. I think he tried blocking the light by using some barriers (though I don't think they were invisible: how can an invisible object block the light? ), but the result wasn't satisfactory.

I had another approach in mind though: my (untested) idea was creating a 3D world-aligned particle shaped as a narrow light cone. In theory we should see a dim light beam when looking at the light from the "dark" angles, and a glaring halo when looking at it from the "illuminated" angles. At least this is how I imagine leading lights; sector lights with colored sectors may look different than I described above.