docfu

Just to clarify, I'm not really concerned with the color of grass that's NEAR my aircraft, but when grass is rendered in the 1000-1500 meter distance they just appear as dark pixels that stand out from the landscape. Would be nice if rather than grass being rendered sparsely at a distance it was just rendered as transparent and almost invisible

I have a Corsair H70, I believe. The only thing I recommend is that you plan your PC carefully. I went through a great effort to get mine into the case that I chose but so far it's been 5 months and no major problems. Keep in mind you need space to run the two hoses and there is only so much you can rotate and bend. (Non-standard ATX, 12" Cube)

Is there any way to make the grass semi-transparent so that it blends with the landscape textures below? I find the grass looks fine in winter because it's fairly pale but in spring and summer the green is either too dark or too light to match in with the terrain textures beneath it...

In order to make mods easier and more accessible please follow these simple steps when releasing mods: 1. Take responsibility for your project. It's a big job releasing even a simple mod. Be ready for recommendations and criticism. Feedback helps make the simulator better for everyone and it's up to you to make the best of what other people suggest. Other people are reading and looking at your work, even if they don't say so, so definitely take the time to do things right. When you do, you save other people time and hassle, when you don't, you cause frustration. 2. When you post a new mod, always edit the original post so people can find the latest information. Nothing sucks more than having to re-install DCS World because you installed something broken or out-of-date. Keep your original post up-to-date so people can find the latest information about your mod without having to spend hours searching through outdated comments and irrelevant information. Don't have the latest information on your mod on post #20, and then #30, and then #50. Keep post #1 up to date, and if other people post work/changes that are interesting, ask, and then include those updates in your original post. 3. Always post before/after screenshots (if the mod is a graphical enhancement). A picture is worth a thousand words, and screenshots showing how your mod improves the simulator shows people exactly what changes, when and how. Youtube videos are even better, just be sure to post high quality ones so people can make out the difference. 4. Write and maintain a readme.txt. People hate it when they open a zip to find a few directories with buried config files and no instructions. Save them the hassle of figuring out where stuff goes by taking five minutes to write a description of what your mod does and how it works. Be sure to link back to the original forum post as well, just so people know where to look for updates. 5. Include original config files and list which versions of DCS Products that your mod works with. It's nice to know how to enable a mod, but it's also nice to be able to disable it as well. If you can't include the original config files, at least write a list of files affected so people know what to back up before installing your mod. 6. Make your work available. Put your work on a site where everyone can get it with a minimum of hassle. Nothing sucks more than file sharing sites that make you wait 60 seconds to download a file or have hourly limits. Try to use file hosting sites that let people get your stuff with a minimum of hassle. 7. Know when to throw in the towel. All good things come to an end. Remember that some day your mod may become irrelevant due to similar features being added to the original game. Be a good sport and update your original post to let people new to the board know that your mod and information are now out of date and that they shouldn't use your mod because it will mess up their game or have no effect. Nobody wants to spend hours reading forum messages just to find out the mod they were trying to get to work was already implemented as a standard feature into the game and they just wasted a few hours when they could have been doing something more productive. And remember, if you start a project and are unable, for any reason, to continue it, always ask and see if someone wants to take over maintaining what you start.

No kidding, grass and trees look amazingly realistic with this on. It's a wonder why if you are at certain angles that Ambient Occlusion turns off but when it's on it makes a huge difference in the quality of screenshots. I often felt that stock DCS lacks some of the visual contrast needed to look like real life, the black areas you see in real life during the day just aren't there in the game...

Thanks for the tips. Not sure about using spoiler tags for every entry. The original post with less than 15 entries has grown HUGE. It also means duplicating and sorting through a lot of forum entries which shouldn't be necessary if the mod developers keep their original posts up to date. The spoiler tags are definitely nice for previewing the updates/screenshots when available.

My main goal is to have mods that improve the game, not mods that change the game. So, since the improved vehicles pack makes the game better, it's here. If there was, say, for instance, a "star wars" mod, that won't be here, because it alters the original game from its purpose...

Before you start wishing for new stuff... There are a lot of existing improvements to DCS World that already exist but that simply aren't installed with the original software. I am asking forum members to post their most highly recommended updates for DCS World to this thread. I will then compile them into the first post so that people new to the DCS universe can find them easily. Last Update : August 29, 2012 Recommended Third Party Updates For DCS World: (All have been tested with DCS World 1.2) Click on the spoiler tags to view more information about an individual update. Updates from the DCS Website: Fixed Training Videos Patch: (To be fixed in the next update...) http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/206863/ Russian Voice Communications for SU-25T: http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/206727/ Ricardo's HD SU-25T Cockpit: (With Russian Lettering) http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/ru/208092/ Improved Global Specular: (Shininess) http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/181451/ Improved Ocean: (Light/Medium/Dark) http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/181214/ Updates from the forums: NEW! Increased overcast draw distance modification http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=93051 6 Degrees of Freedom Hack for the Su-25T http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?p=1482473&posted=1#post1482473 Increase Ground Texture Noise/Distance: (Remove blurry landscape textures...) http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=77297 Vehicle Updates Pack 1: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=88561 Increase the size of the Radio Messages/Radio Selection Menu: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=92483 Drag and Drop + Clickable Radio Menu Mod: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=76225 Smaller, More Realistic Sun: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?p=1526362&posted=1#post1526362 Improved Smoke and Fire Modification: http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1471145&postcount=23 New Roads: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=76526 zzzspace REAL SOUND v1.0 for DCS World http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=92598 DCS World Mods for Individual Expansions KA-50 Black Shark 2 Training missions http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=84612 JTAC & AWACS for KA-50 http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=93228 [DCS World: Black Shark 2] Sound Mods http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=93448 (A-10C) JTAC UTM coordinate training mission http://files.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/99424/ Please PM me with anything you would like to see added to this list.

Specifically, this applies to the SU-25T using the nightvision camera. I noticed when looking for the airport on the return flight that it doesn't show up in the night vision camera. All of the trucks are rendered along with the buildings, but none of the concrete from the runway is there. This doesn't sound right. I'd expect either to at least see the runway (in grey) or in black, but not having it rendered at all seems wrong...

Wow... Usually I hear the phrase "arguing on the internet makes you stupid" but I think I've learned quite a bit from this thread...

Ditto here... Actually I had an additional problem, I landed but ran off the runway and stopped, landing gear was busted, got it repaired, limped onto the runway and shut the plane down to get a second repair because it broke again and the second time the repair crew didn't fix it. Does repair give you a new plane every time? Or does it only do it once per landing?

Hi there ED, I'd like to make a simple suggestion to improve the campaign system as it sits, shouldn't be too hard. It would be nice if at the end of the mission, after I'm returned to the debrief screen, if the game would ASK me if I want to keep the stats from the last mission. All cheating on stats aside, there's any number times where I've botched loadouts, had controller problems or other interruptions in the last week. Along with the occasional crash, it'd just be nice if I could have the choice over whether or not stats are counted or the game progresses. I don't think campaign stats in this game have the weight that they do in other games(like say, World of Warcraft where statistics determine your character) so there isn't really any good reason that choosing to add or toss stats couldn't be optional, other than "war is hell." Thanks.

Actually does this thing have an afterburner? I noticed the engine speeds top out at 100% but there is an extra 10% on the dial....

I apologize. I was simply angry at people who act like this is a problem that can be easily cleaned up. It can. It'll take hundreds of years and a great effort on behalf of many good people. Humanity will survive and become stronger as a result. The difference between disasters like tsunamis, typhoons, and terrorism and nuclear accidents, however, is that humans have a choice in the latter. The question isn't whether or not nuclear power in Japan is safe. It's whether or not we can trust the people running the plants. Can you ever really trust people to do the right thing in these matters? I used to believe that if technology was built and designed properly, human error would be negligible. So I guess my point that I was really trying to make is: Can we actually get the people running these plants to admit they aren't safe, shut them down, deconstruct them, and then build new ones that are safe, in locations that are more safe, and design a system that actually has checks and balances to prevent accidents like this in the future? The answer is no. It's not going to happen. The system will continue status quo until we have another accident, another earthquake, another disaster. Nothing short of a revolution is going to oust the people currently running the reactors in Japan. So when I get angry at you for saying this problem isn't simply going to be cleaned up, please understand why. We can turn over the soil, yes. Give everyone a dosimeter and check the food daily, yes. We can clean up the current reactor and say "it's safe," yes. But in my opinion, this isn't the kind of future any of us should want.

Anyone care to explain this one?

Giving them Thorium reactors won't happen though, simply because it would be a boost to their economies and very few governments in this world work on "good faith." America or anyone else wants leverage over the goverments in Iran and North Korea, they don't want them operating autonomously in any way, shape or form. As for Fukushima and Japan, I really resent your black joke about people dying 5000 miles away. What I was trying to explain was that it's not JUST cleaning up the mess, there is is an incalculable toll on people that takes place when a reactor goes ka-boom. You can say I am "fear mongering" but you don't have to actually live with that fear. For you the problem is thousands of miles away. You don't have that worry. I personally know people who have fled that area. They've lost everything. Their house, their land, everything that their families has worked for all their lives, is now worthless. They'll get some government compensation but it will never replace what they've lost. So please, come to Japan and tell them in 60 years everything will be cleaned up and back to normal. I'm sure you'll make a lot of friends that way. Tell them the explosion really wasn't that bad. Tell them they have no reason to worry. Tell them everything is just fine and nuclear power is completely safe. In the end, what I'm saying is, you shouldn't be voicing your own opinions on something that hasn't truly affected you, except to say that it hasn't affected you. From the tone of your voice on this message board, you have no sympathy for the people there who have lost everything, and now have to worry for the rest of their lives about how the disaster may affect them. As a note, there was a video I was going to post about how the explosion destroyed the lives of three high school students but it now appears that it has been removed from youtube by the local government. So instead I'll post a video of how children near the disaster area live on a daily basis. It's translated properly. Watch it, learn and decide for yourself if the area is "safe." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lnpPo1gQX8&feature=youtu.be

Just to be fair and honest, when Chernobyl went kaboom the Russian government waited a long time before releasing any information to the rest of the world. As it sits now, that area of the world will be inhabitable by humans for a long time. With Fukushima, now a year later, there is evidence of massive cover-ups by the power company and a total lack of willingness of the government to do anything about it. Current word is that the reactor melted down through to the seabed and is leaking into the ocean. The national news reports nothing on this. They are completely bought out by the electric company. There are a lot of people who think this problem can be fixed. Let me tell you right now, it can't. The people who have fled there have lost everything. Entire communities and villages lay abandoned. I live three hundred kilometers from that plant. So far they've found radiation in my area. Radiation in the milk. Radiation in the food. The fallout is everywhere. There is no such thing as 'cleaning up a nuclear disaster area.' The radiation stays. It's impossible to clean up that amount of soil, or woods, or mountains. Even if you clean a city one year, it blows back in the next. The simple fact is that when a nuclear disaster happens, you can't plan on having a future anymore. You can't plan on having children anymore because you can't be sure you'll be able to give them a good life. Everything around you begins to die a slow death, even if radiation isn't a factor where you live, the worry about it is constant. The only thing you can do is live in ignorance or in silence.

Looking for any hardware? Maybe there is something I could buy for you in return. You'd do me a huge favor if you'd ship those babies to Japan =)

I tested this and it seems to work pretty well. {combos = {{key = "JOY_BTN23"}, }, down = iCommandPlaneFlapsOn, up = iCommandPlaneFlaps, name = "Flaps Landing Position", category = "Systems"}, {combos = {{key = "JOY_BTN22"}, }, down = iCommandPlaneFlapsOff, up = iCommandPlaneFlaps, name = "Flaps Up", category = "Systems"}, {down = iCommandPlaneFlaps, name = "Flaps Up/Down", category = "Systems"}, Since Flaps On and Flaps Off set 100%, pushing flaps again when you use up seems to work. Unfortunately there is no FlapsMiddle Command...yet. On a side note, I tested this in the hangar at 5am in the morning and it was raining...inside the hangar... ED...your hangers have a major leakage problem...

I like my women trashy. :thumbup:

As a language instructor, I can say one thing that goes for sure is that you learn more when something is hard, even if you have a feeling of failure afterwards. The SU-25T has been a riot to learn for me. I've spent almost all week on just that first campaign mission, playing it over and over while learning the various systems and trying out weaponry. There is a lot to learn about flying, and even more to learn about landing. (Is that 7 m/s crosswind considered hard by the way?) One thing I can't get enough of in this game is no matter how skilled you get, simple things like MANPADS and SAM's always give you a nice kick in the ass to remind you that there is no such thing as a 'clean war'. Sure you can take all KH-25ML's and just bombard your targets, one by one, all day, but you don't LEARN as much that way. I was even ready to give up on Vikhr's until I learned that high angle and flaps for stability seems to make a huge difference in target impact. Now I love 'em because I can get 8-16 kills versus 2 with the KH-25MLs. All this simulation cockpit experience really makes me wonder what unmanned drone piloting must be like and if they can be used to take out armored targets. So yes, the toad is a flying piece of garbage, now learn to fly it so well your enemies are afraid to show up for work.

Flaps Just to clarify on that, flaps down + flaps up work, but there is no flaps - medium setting, which, in using the HOTAS Warthog, would mean that neither flaps down nor flaps up is pressed.

Hi there, Not sure if I should post this in the Wishlist section or the Bugs and Problems section but the wishlist seemed more for things that will never reach reality. Anyway, I am currently running DCS World with a TM Warthog and it would be nice if the SU-25T's configuration file could make extended use of the toggle settings and flap keys. The specific LUA hooks I'd like are: All of the below I'd prefer to have when the buttons are actually pressed. APU ON-Press APU OFF Lights On-Press Cockpit lights On-Press Flaps - Raise when Pressed. Flaps - No change by default. Flaps - Lower when Pressed. (It appears there are 3 flaps settings for the SU-25T, but due to the flaps key, they are either all the way up or all the way down.) ELINT On-Press I-251 On-Press NightVision On-Press Gear Up On-Press All of these would make me a very happy camper. :thumbup: Jonathan

Thank you for posting this. You just saved me a TON of trouble... P.S. Loz: Nice setup, if I decide to invest more money into my setup, a touchscreen will definitely be the way I go.

Oops! Forgot to mention, I have Windows XP on the Air with an SSD installed. I can go to Windows 7 if need be. I can connect to the local network over wireless(prefered) or via cable if need be.