Mach3DS

Hopefully it too is NOT encrypted!!! Although, if it is, then we know the direction that ED is moving. Time will tell I guess.

Thank you sir!

2. That's what I was referring to with needing a file path folder structure. We have no way of implementing them via the conventional method even if we were given a working model.viewer, files and LUA entries. 5. Clearly no. LOL. There's no way to access the files. They're hidden, as far as I'm aware.

Open the dds file and start creating duplicate layers from selected areas. Create UV mesh layers for alignment using MV dot files in blender.

It will "work" for the exterior. If you want to do anything custom, I've been told that there are no roughmets or normals included. THere's no pilot textures/roughmets/normals, Helmet, patches etc. If you want to do anything fully custom and have it look decent you will need all of those. For it to work in basic terms we will also need a folder path structure which doesn't exist either. Since it's currently encrypted. Where do you put said new textures? 9L has said they're working on it. But we really do need all those things. So it kind of begs the question, if they were do give us all those things as say PSDs, what's the point in encrypting anything other than the model file at that point? Just fix the model viewer to read the encrypted model file and open up the rest of the textures as usual. Then you don't have to create PSDs or do any additional work. We can all create templates from the DDS files. To me, that makes the most sense.

Again this isn't the biggest issue. The bigger issue is the encrypting of all the texture files.

Didn't want highjack the other thread. This was my tan suit for the 16th WPS HG. But that other dude is correct, there's not a default tan suit as a selectable option. null

Thanks 9L! What a pleasant surprise. Can I ask that you make an additional request. It was already mentioned but Roughmets AND Normals. For normals all we need is the .dds files. We can create addional geometry and apply it on top. This is also essential for high end Livery/Texture work. And for the one off requests that so many people make that lie outside of the standard military schemes.

And my biggest worry is that they will do this to the other models as well. Frankly, with that in mind, why would I put anymore time into any module if it could just be encrypted and then all that work is sidelined and totally unusable? That really sucks motivation. And ultimately this is why I haven't painted mods, because they break and all that work is a complete waste. Any way I digress. I've said my piece. I am hopeful that we will get a good resolution. Can't imagine that they want user created textures to go away. Wish you all the best.

I'd rather not support this kind of action with my talent. I'm not wasting my life when a better method exits and has existed for years. This is a massive step backwards. With all due respect, they can do what they want it's their company. I do think it's the wrong decision.

No, I very much am NOT willing to do that. And once you try, you'll realize that it's not really practical to use for a substitute tool. That's not even the biggest issue. The issue is load times. It takes me like 3-5 mins to load the sim each time. Vs a single button press to reload a texture - 1 second.. at minimum that's 180 to 300x longer. Just to see a change. It's not worth the time. I click that button at least 45x times a session while doing alignments or adjusting Roughmets or normals. I don't think people understand what that actually means. I spend up to 60 real hours on a high quality livery with custom everything, before it's complete. Just clicking the button replacing it with opening the full sim -- If I did that 45x in a session that's 180 seconds x 45. 8100 seconds or 2.25 hours of straight waiting. No thanks. I have better things I could be doing with my life. That's why this is such a big deal. Now realistically I prob click that button way more than that. But If I cut it down to like even 30x in a session. That's way too much waiting; and it makes it impractical for me to paint with such slow progress.

9L, I think there's a misunderstanding here. It's not possible to paint the model at all. The file structure doesn't exist, and the LUA code is unavailable. That's the biggest issue. We can't make anything - not even the hard way, even if we wanted to.

Guys, the LUA is only one part of what we actually need. 1. Model Viewer for Work flow and LUA. 2. Textures unlocked - for custom things like flight suits helmets patches, cockpits etc. normals, Roughmets, glass. 3. We need them unlocked so that we have a file path that the game actually recognizes as where textures are stored. Currently we have no path (that I'm aware of). So like, what do you call the folder? Even if you have the LUA you don't have a folder/file path structure.

Negative the cockpit was just redone at I believe normal default size whatever that is. I think it's actually quite low like 2048. I just didn't recall off hand. Sorry. It might be 4096. I'm not at my PC. Thank you sir!

Here's what I'm hoping happens: 1. According to Skatezilla DRM isn't implemented in the current version of Model Viewer. So implement it and we can continue doing our thing. Or take a snap shot of our account and encrypt it with our install to verify our account from like the launcher. Then we can launch it stand alone and it just checks for our install and account file or something. Seems like there's got to be a way we could do this where we can continue to produce good user content and preserve ED's IP. 2. Make the Texture Files viewable. Since the model files are encrypted, then the textures are seemingly useless anyway and keeping them hidden is just overkill. And there are sneaky technical ways for people get stuff anyway (I recall someone did something like that with Apache to in order to make a crazy weathering job) and skin. Anyway, if the model is encrypted then textures should essentially be useless to most people anyway without the viewable model? 3. Barring no.2 at least make them useable and viewable for the those who purchased the content.

Regarding new F-5E Template -- Does it give you the normals? Pilot helmet? Flight suit? G suit? Glass textures? internal pilot textures? There's a whole host of reasons why encrypting the all the textures is bad for community morale. Especially if you've purchased it. I understand (somewhat) if you haven't.

I certainly hope not...I love making liveries and textures and custom things, and have been for decades in all flight sims...it's a major love I have of this hobby. IMHO This would be a 1000% misread of the room by ED if this was in fact the direction they were going. I would not buy single livery. No offense. And I would be just as put off if they somehow tied them to these "rewards" or like career mode or whatever, that you can earn as play as Wags eluded to in the recent QA video that they had in mind. No user liveries makes a stale product. Fast. Because you know that ED certainly won't be making any of those custom jobs everyone likes. It would be a LOSE/LOSE situation IMHO.

I didn't see this until after I i posted...so, DRM loads with DCS which explains why ME version works? But we still need access to core texture files for custom stuff like helmets suits, Roughmets, if we want to edit the Normals for custom things like stiffener plates etc. I find it reasonable to encrypt if you don't own the modules, but not if your own them. So to me this issue is more than just a model viewer problem.

A version of model viewer runs in DCS in the ME. The solution as I see it, for MV, is that we just need whatever version is running in the ME to be made into the stand alone. That way the 3D assets remain encrypted. But we can view our work. And create the Lua files etc as we've been doing for like a decade. The other thing we need access to are the default texture files. Without them you can't edit the Roughmets for example to create the quality skins. You want a change the flight suite or helmet? You need the default files. We can't be recreating every texture from scratch? You need to edit the RM for glossy paint vs matte camo or bare metal... for example. I don't think it's unreasonable to allow access to those. Ateast to paying customers. Who own the modules.