SkyMaxx Pro has gone downhill since release?

[AnonymousUser68]

I see myself as a pretty loyal customer of SkyMaxx after buying it full price, day one so please don't see this a rant. I just think SkyMaxx has so much potential and am baffled by the recent updates.  

 

On day one, SkyMaxx looked amazing. There was room for improvement but the result was excellent.

 

Huge Fluffy Clouds Everywhere!

 

 

 

 

 

These look incredible

 

 

 

 

 

Today I flew an a 7 hour flight and had clouds below me all the way provided by SkyMaxx v1.3

 

I had a good opportunity to have a good look and I was pretty disappointed, I mean what's going on? 

 

All my sliders are on the far right hand side/max. Including cloud detail, draw distance, max size and min size.

 

 

 

This was three solid layers of cloud (overcast) and it's still patchy

 

 

 

Even on the ground you can see weird wisps in the air

 

 

Different flight but you get the idea

 

 

I included this one to show it isn't all bad. At least the clouds look decent from the side.

 

 

 

 

       

[Hueyman]

Hey man, I'm happy as this prove my feeling wasn't wrong !

 

I have no shots left from 1.0 but I remember being more amazed on the early days than now. Now, with all stuff I have ( SMP, Maxx FX, Fly with LUA, Real Terra Haze ), everything seems to override the others, so I decided to uninstall everything a,d just install MAXX products which I'm a huge fan of.

 

And yeah, with latest 1.3 release, maybe performances have increased but quality too .. First clouds were almost Cristal clear, when I saw your firsts shots I thought it was some FSX screens !

 

Please John, please make a compromise for future update, and bring back the possibilty to recover those might clouds...

 

PS : I also noticed that adding two layers of same clouds type, one above another, makes them generate at the exact same place ( I mean, when looked from above, both layers are perfectly superposing .... )

[JohnMAXX]

I see your point.....First most of those WOW shots are when HDR was an issue, that is not coming back.  I did update a couple of textures in a recent release I think it will be better to bring back the old ones very soon......

 

Hang tight!

 

As far as going downhill, this has been the oposite.  Right now we are limited in the SDK but we are working on the code to bring even more WOW to SkyMAXX, below is a very early look at what we have cooking.  Ill talk about it more once we have it all worked out......

 

 

 

Keep in mind these are very early shots, and things like texture blending are still being worked.....

Edited April 16, 2014 by JohnMAXX

[Hueyman]

Thanks for your answer John,

 

I am sorry to say this, but even in WiP, what you show here is more or less the same thing we have ( trust me, don't want to criticize or have such non-constructive behavior )

 

Don't know what the others think, but I would rather wait one year or more to have a true ground breaking version, than download every two months a slightly better version but with more or less the same things behind the scene.

 

I don't know how you work, and how X-Plane handle that, but can we hope for such wonders in the X-Plane 10 run ? Or this is simply impossible due to actual technical limitations ?

 

 

What shocks me the most now is the blurriness of the clouds edges... On nice weather, cumulus are very neat on a blue sky

[JohnMAXX]

Huey I am well aware of the competition and to be honest I am not a big fan, the approach is outdated and not as volumetric.... I mean this in a very nice way, maybe FSX/P3D is what you are looking for......  Our goal isn't to make a REX clone and this will never be our focus.....Not to say REX isnt beautiful,  but pictures in the sky are not what we want.  My vision of SM is to have beautiful cloud formations that are volumetric and realistic, something pretty and practical for flight simulation.

 

As far as your assestment of the SS's I just provided if you look at them you will see we are adding more details to the clouds,  again this is a very early look at them.  I usually hesistate posting such images since users tend to jump to conclusions.  In this case I wanted to post some images as to say "hey look we are working on things for you" ,  but that has backfired and my update is crap according to Huey.....If I dont post anything I see things like "SkyMAXX is Falling Apart in a Ball of Fire".....Damned if I do and damned if I dont.....

 

Updates to SkyMaxx are not always geared towards visual enhancements BTW, most importantly,  stability of the promised product was our initial focus.  Now that we have this, as shown in the above images(which backfired), we are focused on making SkyMAXX more visually appealing.......

Edited April 16, 2014 by JohnMAXX

[Cameron]

I am sorry to say this, but even in WiP, what you show here is more or less the same thing we have ( trust me, don't want to criticize or have such non-constructive behavior )

How on earth can you compare the WIP shots to those that the original thread starter posted? I'm not even seeing a close resemblance...

Don't know what the others think, but I would rather wait one year or more to have a true ground breaking version, than download every two months a slightly better version but with more or less the same things behind the scene.

Read the forums and you'll quickly learn you are almost alone with that thought.

I don't know how you work, and how X-Plane handle that, but can we hope for such wonders in the X-Plane 10 run ? Or this is simply impossible due to actual technical limitations ?

Sounds like P3D or FS X is calling your name.

Really though, Valentin. You have a pretty negative tone in almost all of your posts (no matter the subject) all the time. A change in your way of speaking would be a breath of fresh air.

[Hueyman]

You have a pretty negative tone in almost all of your posts (no matter the subject) all the time

 

No, an objective one. Don't want to argue with anyone but if you take time to read my posts, I'm as negative as positive, can be really enthusiastic while being pessimistic on other sides. But that's not the matter here.

 

I just added my 2 cents to the OP message, I know SMP is one of the most innovative product of the year ( and even past years ... ) and ask John himself, I'm the first to be thankful for that. But I can't just say " Hey, this is marvelous " and stay quiet for things that could be improved. I know you'll tell me there is room for improvement in every product, but if a user can't comment what he/she may like to see in the future, what is the point of having a forum ? I thought I told that in a very objective and respectful way but as usual, I'm pointed as a bad boy.

 

For your last comment, I left FS in 2005 and will never go back again, I just took these images because I think they are a nice representation of how clouds are in real life. I'm a real pilot and I'm well aware how it feels when flying through a cloud top, the speed feeling etc ... I know REX and Cie. uses nice HD 2D images, that are only nice looking at from a certain point. I just said I also know screens of the 1.0 were much closer to reality than what we have now, that's all.

 

This isn't, in any case, a fact for me not to LOVE SMP anymore, I just added this, and I feel really sorry you feel frustrated or attacked

[Cameron]

No, an objective one.

I disagree. A very recent post especially proves my point.

 

but if a user can't comment what he/she may like to see in the future, what is the point of having a forum ?

There's a difference between being almost always negative in all subjects of posts vs. doing what the original thread starter here did, which was genuinely be constructive...and it's welcomed. You continue to tread heavy on waters no matter how many times you have been informed to try and do otherwise. It's getting tiring, Valentin. Your posts here are just adding fuel to that fire, whether they are "constructive" here today or not. It's your entire history of posts that I'm more concerned about, and which then changes the perceived tone of your posts here.

 

...but as usual, I'm pointed as a bad boy.

This is the kind of stuff I'm talking about. Negative and immature.

Please, think a little harder given your past and circumstances before you post. I have a ton of patience for almost everyone here, but admittedly, you're on a shortlist at the moment, and it's only getting shorter...

Thanks for taking it all in.

[JohnMAXX]

I dont feel attacked Valintin and I am concerned with feedback from the community, I responded to the OP's concerns with insite on what we are working on to show how organic SkyMAXX is.
 
You responded with REX, as if I am not aware of REX. Your reply to my images were negative, you dont have to be in love with them but asking a few questions as to whats going on  would of warrented a conversation from my side. Some answers you may have had about the images could of possibly been answered with thoughtful conversation along with answers to our future goals.....
 
Instead you went ahead and decided to state that the images do not look any different when they obviously are, now Im more focused on replying to your antics versus discussing SkyMAXX and our future plans....
 
To be fair Valintin, this happens often in the community and maybe this is why my participation  isn't as frequent as it use to be.  Nobody wants to join a conversation and always be in a defensive stance.....

 

 

Maybe I do feel a tiny bit attacked now that I think about it.....

Edited April 16, 2014 by JohnMAXX

[Hueyman]

Okay, please let me give you my excuses

 

And now, please try to move on

 

So, would you please let us know a bit more about the goals you're aiming for the future of Sky Maxx Pro ? Honestly, I would be glad to know more about it !

Edited April 16, 2014 by Hueyman

[JohnMAXX]

Okay, please let me give you my excuses

 

And now, please try to move on

 

So, would you please let us know a bit more about the goals you're aiming for the future of Sky Maxx Pro ? Honestly, I would be glad to know more about it !

 

 

Nah im tired.....Ill talk about it later.....

[skiflyzander]

John, I know this is a weird place to ask this... but what are the possibilities of these clouds making it into Prepar3d v2? Especially with the screenshot you just showed... I think they would be a huge hit! But of course the main development should be x-plane

[AnonymousUser68]

Updates to SkyMaxx are not always geared towards visual enhancements BTW, most importantly,  stability of the promised product was our initial focus.  Now that we have this, as shown in the above images(which backfired), we are focused on making SkyMAXX more visually appealing.......

 

Good to hear! I must say that performance has improved significantly through updates which is a big positive. 

 

First most of those WOW shots are when HDR was an issue, that is not coming back.

 

If you have the time could you go into a little more detail with this, just for my curiosity

 

Are you saying that something that made v1.0 clouds look great is that they were rendered in HDR but as a result hurt framerate?

[JohnMAXX]

John, I know this is a weird place to ask this... but what are the possibilities of these clouds making it into Prepar3d v2? Especially with the screenshot you just showed... I think they would be a huge hit! But of course the main development should be x-plane

We are focused on getting SkyMAXX updated for X-Plane at the moment but who knows where this journey will take us

 

Good to hear! I must say that performance has improved significantly through updates which is a big positive. 

 

 

 

 

If you have the time could you go into a little more detail with this, just for my curiosity

 

Are you saying that something that made v1.0 clouds look great is that they were rendered in HDR but as a result hurt framerate?

 

 

On our initial roll out in HDR mode  SkyMAXX drew clouds twice plus there were some ugly lighting issues, this made performance very poor in HDR mode we fixed it with Version 1.1.  I decided to change a few textures in the V1.2 update in an attempt to make the clouds seem more detailed,  in hindsight I think this made the clouds seem less volumetric. 

 

We are going to be releasing a minor update soon that brings back the more volumetric look in the clouds: 

 

 

 

 

 

[Hueyman]

Absolutely gorgeous

[azpilot]

Shots looks very nice John!  SkyMaxx Pro is still the single best add on that I have purchased for X Plane 10.  Looking forward to the new version of UrbanMaxx.

 

Keep up the great work! 

[Colin S]

Holy cow, looks awesome. I do have to agree that on a beautiful sunny day, cumuli can often look like cardboard cutouts even in real life I love seeing these shots of what's still to come, keep up the good work!

[Mik75]

We are focused on getting SkyMAXX updated for X-Plane at the moment but who knows where this journey will take us

On our initial roll out in HDR mode SkyMAXX drew clouds twice plus there were some ugly lighting issues, this made performance very poor in HDR mode we fixed it with Version 1.1. I decided to change a few textures in the V1.2 update in an attempt to make the clouds seem more detailed, in hindsight I think this made the clouds seem less volumetric.

We are going to be releasing a minor update soon that brings back the more volumetric look in the clouds:

Holy cow!

That's breathtakingly beautiful. Do you have any news on the subject of cloud shadows? Right now I use the default clouds, but the look of them can be really boring, and the performance with them isn't too good. Your clouds casting these nice shadows on the ground would be the best thing that could possibly happen (for me...)! ;-)

[Cameron]

Do you have any news on the subject of cloud shadows?

 

It can be somewhat hard to blatantly find, but this has been discussed extensively in these forums.

 

For the moment it's simply not possible with X-Plane's current SDK.

 

Regarding the shots John posted just above...be prepared to check your inboxes soon on another update!

[Mik75]

It can be somewhat hard to blatantly find, but this has been discussed extensively in these forums.

For the moment it's simply not possible with X-Plane's current SDK.

Regarding the shots John posted just above...be prepared to check your inboxes soon on another update!

Ok, thanks. You know, it's the hope that dies last...

[Tom Knudsen]

To facts. 1: Comparing FSX clouds to X-PLANE is just silly 2: All the sliders to the right equals best graphics is plain stupid

Happy easter everyone.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[AnonymousUser68]

Firstly, thanks to John. Those new screenshots look very nice! Screenshot two's clouds look nice and fluffy while the night lighting in screenshot three looks excellent. The last one still looks a bit patchy but of course I'm that isn't a final version.

 

2: All the sliders to the right equals best graphics is plain stupid

 

Plain Stupid? You may find it fun to be condescending over the internet but really?

 

I have cloud draw distance set to maximum and I have cloud detail set to maximum. If this doesn't prove to be the most graphically appealing settings what is the point in having settings at all? 

[Tom Knudsen]

Firstly, thanks to John. Those new screenshots look very nice! Screenshot two's clouds look nice and fluffy while the night lighting in screenshot three looks excellent. The last one still looks a bit patchy but of course I'm that isn't a final version.

Plain Stupid? You may find it fun to be condescending over the internet but really?

I have cloud draw distance set to maximum and I have cloud detail set to maximum. If this doesn't prove to be the most graphically appealing settings what is the point in having settings at all?

Nothing condescending about stating that an belief or notion is stupid, just an opinon. And about the sliders, you stated it your self and I quote "what is the point in having settings at all" when you set it to maximum?

[ointment]

To facts.

Calling something "stupid" while incorrectly using the word "to" when you clearly meant "two" does not exactly command respect for your post. It kind of makes the post look....well....stupid.

Simply my opinion.

Edited April 19, 2014 by ointment

[Ben Russell]

Calling something "stupid" while incorrectly using the word "to" when you clearly meant "two" does not exactly command respect for your post. It kind of makes the post look....well....stupid.

Simply my opinion.

 

Actually, I'd say Tom has an excellent grasp of English, a truly absurd language. He does very well to share his opinion in a second language. It's very rare that his meaning cannot be clearly understood.

 

While he may have the occasional typo I value what he has to say far more than most.

 

 

Nitpicking silly little things while providing very little of value on a regular basis however is what I would define as stupid, and that fits you to a tee.