Clouds turn dark too early in spring months

[ONDR4.cz]

Hello, with the 3.1 update I noticed that the clouds turn pitch black in the evening, which is not necessarily a bad thing but it happens while the sun is still above the horizon and the plane (and the ground) is still illuminated with sunlight, which looks totally unrealistic and kind of breaks the immersion. However, I have found out that when I set the time to summer, the change in lighting of the clouds DOES correspond to the sun position at all times and the clouds only go dark after the sunset. In 3.0 it worked correctly no matter which time of year it was, but now it looks like SkyMaxx thinks that the sun is lower than it actually is. Any thoughts on this?

[sundog]

SkyMaxx does in fact think the sun is a little bit lower than it really is, by just a couple of degrees. We did this on purpose, because some customers were complaining that Skymaxx Pro 3.0's clouds were too bright just as the sun was going down.

I'm going to adjust it back a little bit for a future update, though, because personally I think you're right. It only affects a few minutes around sunset, though.

Can't make everyone happy! In fact, that's been my main lesson in SkyMaxx Pro 3.1. Almost everything we've changed in response to customer feedback has been met with new criticism from the opposite direction, although I know the silent majority is really enjoying this update overall.

 

 

[ONDR4.cz]

Thanks for the response, sundog! It's interesting though that the clouds never go totally black in August for example, but they do in April. I also like that you take customer feedback into account, but this change seems like a bit of an overkill . Sometimes it's for the better when developers just stick to their guns and do it the way they think is best, as personally I think 3.0 was pretty much spot on.

[alexcolka]

How about a cloud darkness slider for a future update? It could make people happy, although don't know the developers, he he.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[Cameron]

6 minutes ago, alexcolka said:

How about a cloud darkness slider for a future update? It could make people happy, although don't know the developers, he he.

That has more potential to do harm than good from a brand/marketing perspective. We're going to have to continue to listen to customers to find the happy medium on a deal like this. Cramming the UI with more options definitely isn't the answer!

[Jakob Ludwig]

That has more potential to do harm than good from a brand/marketing perspective. We're going to have to continue to listen to customers to find the happy medium on a deal like this. Cramming the UI with more options definitely isn't the answer!

Totally agree. Another question bouncing back to the main aspect here. Does the used skycolor and the selected date influence the cloud lighting or is it somehow independent? Short answer accepted [emoji6]

[tomcat357]

Unrealistic Carolina Blue Sky works fur me

[sundog]

6 hours ago, Jakob Ludwig said:

Totally agree. Another question bouncing back to the main aspect here. Does the used skycolor and the selected date influence the cloud lighting or is it somehow independent? Short answer accepted

The sky color set selected doesn't affect the cloud lighting, but the time, date, location, and even position and phase of the moon do.

[Jakob Ludwig]

The sky color set selected doesn't affect the cloud lighting, but the time, date, location, and even position and phase of the moon do.

Clear [emoji6]

Thanks for clarifying

[ONDR4.cz]

In 3.1.1 it's pretty much spot on now, thanks Frank!

[alexcolka]

Yes perfect balance of whites and greys with 3.1.1.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[mb339]

What values have changed in v3.1.1 config compared to v3.1?

[sundog]

11 hours ago, mb339 said:

What values have changed in v3.1.1 config compared to v3.1?

There were many code and config changes in 3.1.1. The change relative to this thread affected an offset applied to the solar altitude when computing lighting on the clouds. But, I don't encourage tinkering with our configuration settings, as they can have unexpected effects - or even no effect in many cases. Most people who have tried don't even modify the correct file!

[mb339]

Thanks, just curiosity.