Mach3DS

Post the lua code. This can be solved easily. Then post a pic of your file folder contents so we can see the names of the files.

Are you using someone else's work as a basis for yours? This looks like you took someone's texture set to start from. Including the description.lua which likely contains those elements as custom textures. If so, that's your problem. You have lua callouts for textures you don't have in your folder. I point this one first because it's the easiest thing that could happen. A missing texture is only caused by 3 things: 1. Missing the physical texture file from your folder. 2. Calling out a texture in the lua file with a different name than the one in your folder or the default file. 3. Calling out a texture in the lua that does exist in your folder with a different name than the default file but using the "true" or "false" command incorrectly.

I mean, why not just make the launching of model viewer with it's ability to view encrypted models, limited to launching from inside DCS or better yet, the DCS launcher, the way the updates are started. You can check DRM etc etc. then on launch, it shuts down DCS and we can simply use the new Model Viewer which can view encrypted models. But please, as mentioned, the files themselves need to be unencrypted and viewable. I don't understand this decision? I also, find the similar phrase of "We made skins before model viewer" to be gas lighting and extremely condescending. We're not children. We're mostly grown men. I can't speak for others, but I know like many of us, we're professionals. Working in many cases along side the real world counter parts to many of the things in DCS. Please, we do all of this for free for the community and as hobby. Help us help you make the best decision that won't hand tie us, and that won't put you into a corner in the future because of what could be a myopic stance in the short term.

Not just rotate. But actually move the model off axis. Like you can with the MV. This lets you get views of areas that are not centered in the FOV. In addition, currently with Shift+Mouse Click+Drag you can also rotate the model around it's own axis which is very helpful in conjunction with ALL the other aforementioned things. None of this matters at all, if all the textures are hidden/inaccessible and encrypted. Encrypting the model is one thing. Hiding all the textures and file paths via texture encryption negates all this effort anyway. We don't know the names of files, can't use any files as a base to start from. If you don't have the ability to create UV meshes, then you can't really even recreate textures from scratch. SO this whole thing is academic. The model encryption was never the biggest issue.

Let's hope this isn't a bait a switch situation. Hold Livery Competition. Get Liveries. Fully Encrypt after the fact. That would be supremely Underhanded. I'm hopeful that this is not this situation. It's a good sign.

This is a great idea.

That's my questions as well. Like, is it in actuality easier, and less time, work and resource intensive to add all these features into the core game, rather than just have people load model viewer with a login like you do for DCS anyway? I mean, it just seems counter-intuitive.

I believe you mean "...replacement for the powerful [Model Viewer]...". But Yes. It's not just about refreshing the textures, although that waste of time is without a doubt a big problem. Without the ability to manipulate the model in 3D space with the same functionality as Model Viewer, then it's little good for alignment purposes. Yes, it cuts the time down to see the changes but you can't get close enough or the right angles to see fine details if it remains as it currently is. You can't change the lighting to see how it looks in various lighting conditions. You also can't see, All the other file types or Channels. ROUGHMETS (AO, CAVITY, ROUGHNESS, METALLIC etc.), NORMALS, MATERIAL ERRORS. You can't export LUA code for livery files. Show attach points. Load additional models for things like drop tanks etc. when creating custom paints for those. Pilot models, Argument related texture changes. The whole host of items that currently provide a unparalleled experience for creating content for DCS. Going away from this is truly going back to the stone ages in time and MASSIVE REGRESSION in capability. I don't frankly care what's planned, for some future unknown date. This is a 100% HERE & NOW issue. The other massive elephant in the room now, is that we have to have the FULL GAME running while we're trying to work in apps like Photoshop, GIMP etc. Good luck with that. RAM is a huge issue. This will cause major performance problems and running out of memory. Which leads to Photoshop crashing, losing work, and corruption of PSD files with a big chance of making them unusable. It will 100% make work slower to save etc etc. This is s full stop terrible idea IMHO. I wish Nick Grey would read these threads from the major art content creators and step in with a edict from on high. This is one of those ideas that if it were in my board room, I would have shut down. Immediately. Alas, it's not. So, please, read this with the sincerity it's written with. I'm not slinging insults. I actually care about this hobby and this sim. This is actually a bad idea. You can't make it a good one. Hopefully, mods don't just delete my post. Again, wouldn't just making MV have the ability to check your account be WAY easier than trying to add all the abilities of MV to DCS? The entire point of having a Model viewer is to Not to have to load the FULL game while working, so that you don't have to compete for resources of a game while needing them for the dev tools! Of course none of this matters when you encrypt the actual textures along with the model files. You can't access the textures to know the names, or use them as a basis for any improvements. So, without being able to even see the files on my drive, there's little point. This is an even bigger issue than than encrypting a model. Without providing all the files as paint templates, there's no way to use them, know their names or make any LUA entry edits anyway. I don't think this one was thought through all the way. No offense is intended in that statement, just seems like a knee jerk reaction, with a big pendulum swing consequence. And as stated many many times in the past, will not solve the issue they think it will, and only hurts the very community they are looking to buy their products. Respectfully, Mach3DS

I don't use any of the default stuff anyway. So, for the most part all the "missing" stuff is not missing anymore. So much work has been done that it's basically that way.

Be careful what you wish for. If they were to update the model and the textures, they would almost certainly encrypt them both. Which would make the Viper essentially inaccessible for community textures and liveries for the most part. Let's hope they never update it.

Try looking at an image that has a real heat signature greater than ambient. The images are essentially blobs. I believe it's being caused by too much bloom in the shader. At 5.7nm I CANNOT resolve that I'm looking at an F-16 in flight without it being at 90 deg profile image. I believe that it is less sharp an image than were used to but I also believe that the shader bloom is washing out more details than perhaps it should in DCS for a balance of realism vs playability since the MFD screens and images we're using can't display images greater than 1024 resolution as set in the settings (as I understand it, please correct me if I'm wrong)? So it may be a way to achieveing a more "realistic" effect being able to go from an unresolved blurry image to one that has good detail in XR, but because we're using lower resolution already it's hard to make that a effect compelling without making it more blurry to begin with? I could be way off base but seems like it could be part of what's happening.

Thanks for the kind words man.

thank you my friend!

I made this livery originally for private use by the Virtual 57th FW, 36th VFS. I've deemed that it's been long enough in the hangar. I will be releasing this and a few other 36th Paints. This is uploaded and waiting for ED to approve. **I apologize for the low resolution images. Flickr has stopped allowing anyone to even view the images at higher resolutions than 1024. So I'm looking for a new image hosting site.**

You need to change the color space to CYMK then back to RGB. This will fix the problem. It's been known for years.

I'm not sure if it was noticed or not. It's not a texture problem. It's a 3D geometry issue. So everyone will have the issue. It's not a criticism, just an issue. That mod itself is awesome! I really appreciate the efforts to bring it all together! The new pods and tanks are just awesome. My only question is are the tanks supposed to have the line or are they supposed to be smooth over the top? I genuinely don't know. It could be the design. I know the Raptor obviously isn't suppposed to have it. Maybe we can get GD to fix it. I can ask.... Currently I'm just using the old model since it visually is correct. Seems like everything is working correctly?

FYI, unless there is something special about the new F-22A.EDM file, I suggest using the old one from 2021. The normals are now working again in the new file BUT the model is not welded at the centerline and causes a major visual abnormality. The same thing is present with the new LO drop tanks. It causes DCS to render a shadow at a hard line instead of continuous and makes what should be a smooth surface with a hard edge. See images below. IMAGE 1 = Original 2021 EDM. You can see the nose is smooth and there is no line. IMAGE 2 = EFM v.2.1.0 EDM. You can see the hard edge which should not be there.

Can I ask a legitimate question here? I'm not trying to bait anyone, or be a jerk. I'm obviously extremely disappointed with this decision as it's opening an entire host of issues which were clearly not previously thought through. Question: Who exactly is pushing for this encryption of models and textures? Surely it's NOT the devs, right? They should be fully aware that it does not protect your IP. This seems like a knee-jerk reaction by someone else who is completely unaware of how the sim software interacts with the PC hardware. This is literally only causing a problem for legitimate customers and good faith community members. You all know that right? Those tech savvy enough who could do it before are still tech savvy enough to still do it. Please take this as a frustrated but good faith inquiry from a long time supporter, customer, tester, content creator and texture artist. It's become so astonishing to me that it's gone down this road. You will literally KILL livery making for your sim. This is taking a generational step backward. That's not hyperbole. Again, I earnestly plead with ED to reconsider this ineffective IP theft measure, and just walk it back. The livery/texture community will be greatly affected by this over arching policy decision. Why? Because you're making it impractical and extremely painful to down right impossible to continue in this hobby with your future products. And frankly if this is how it's going to be in the future, then I've come to the end of my contributing rope. It's not reasonable and it's down right disrespectful to those who put it so much time FOR FREE to make your community vibrant and diverse with content - to ask them to spend 5x more time on something that will ultimately be much worse in quality. I bought the F-5E and the remastered version. I've purchased most product until now. I have been more than happy to support DCS. This makes me want to completely reconsider my future purchases and support. Respectfully, A long time customer.

I got so carried away, I didn't even think of that! Hopefully we don't have a repeat of the F-5 and being unable to create high quality liveries in a reasonable amount of time and actually can view/edit core textures to make fully custom liveries at the highest quality level possible for the community! It looks phenomenal. Very excited about it. Hopefully we can paint it. It's kind of depressing to think about if it does turn out like the F-5. Finally have the first FF Redfor aircraft and it's the classic I've been waiting for since I saw the discovery wings episode decades ago. My fingers are crossed that it won't be. It would be a real shame.

Thanks man!

I suspect that you didn't enable the alpha transparency and it was converted when you opened those 2 files to take the screenshots. However they look like they're identical.

RELEASED! DL LINK in first post! Enjoy.

Yes sorry, what Wyvern said above. Please post pics of the files open in the editor. We need to compare them.

Soooo nice! I wish ED would officially create F-16 variants. Like I would PAY for it. We need this kind of stuff as official.