alpilotx

An introduction video showcasing X-Plane 10 UHD Mesh Scenery v1 in the Colorado Mountains. Scenery used (you can get it at www.alpilotx.net for free!): UHD Mesh Scenery v1 (Colorado Mountains) Tree lines and farms v2 (North America) Music from Jason Shaw (freemusicarchive.org) Nice And Easy Thingmajig Wheels One Fine Day Green Leaves

As of today, the UHD Mesh Scenery v1 series has a new region: Japan The main differences (and improvements, compared to HD Mesh Scenery) are: High resolution DEM elevation data. Based on the AW3D (© JAXA) 30m data, and where AW3D has holes, filled up with SRTM 1sec (30m) data. Latest landclass data based on the "AVNIR-2 high-resolution land use land cover map 2016 February release (version 16.02)" (© JAXA) Massively increased mesh density ... by roughly factor 2.5 to 3! This is not only beneficiary to the better representation of the higher res DEM data, but also - once more - improves landclass and forest detail! Because of this, the "UHD Mesh Scenery v1" Scenery is very heavy on hardware resources and will only run smoothly on modern, higher end PCs. Its very important - before even considering a download - to have at least 16 GBytes of RAM and a modern / powerful GPU! Detailed infos and download links are here: http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-uhd-mesh-scenery-v1/ There is also a "release video" on youtube, to give you a impression about what to expect: If you are - only - looking for comparison screenshots, here are the official ones accompanying the release of UHD Mesh Scenery v1 - Japan. Just follow the link to my Google Photos album: UHD Mesh Scenery v1 - Japan (most screenshots in the first part of the album come in pairs - they are comparisons between UHD and HD quality! The first of each pair is HD, the second UHD - but there are also caption for each picture to make this clear)

I already wanted to add that info: at least X-Plane version 10.25 is mandatory for either HD or UHD Mesh Scenery (that version delivered terrain types / textures for a few new landclass types which I introduced at that time)

A new addition to the successful donationware HD Mesh Scenery v3 series has been release. This time, covering the rest of the American continent: Central AmericaSouth AmericaAll usual "parameters" of the already existing HD Mesh Scenery v3 apply to this scenery too. Special topics to be noted: This new region was primarily made possible by teh ESA CCI Landcover datathe South/Central America extension is based on latest (end of October 2015) OSM data4 already existing HD Mesh Scenery v3 ZIP files (+20-080, +20-090, +20-100, +20-110) have been updated as they overlap with this new region, and thus most of the non US DSFs are re-created based on the new data (US tiles are included unchanged in these ZIP files). You can clearly see that this files are replacing older ones, as they have a V301 instead of V3 in their name.You can download the files via the map here: http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-hd-mesh-scenery-v3/Comparison screenshots (before / after) can be found here: https://picasaweb.google.com/101666907909842492197/HDMeshSceneryV3SouthAmerica?authuser=0&feat=directlinkSome examples: Visualizing deforestation!

Hi guys ... there is a simple reason (other than the - also very important - ones listed on my website!), why Finland (and any other flat region) will quite likely never have UHD coverage: because it is - relatively - flat ... and UHD coverage makes far less sense there than in mountainous regions.

Which is - usually - the most common reason for problems like this (at least from all the support mails I receive, this is one of the most common "mistakes")

IMPORTANT: at the moment, only two download mirrors are available (ISDG / Aerosoft) ... Flightsim.com (with torrents!!!) will come online in the (approximately) next 24 hours. So, maybe you should not download immediately everything at once and wait a little bit. Especially as flightsim.com will also offer the - usual - torrent seeds!

Hi, After the first batch of UHD Mesh Scenery tiles released in February 2015, there is now a new set of additional regions to be enjoyed. They are: Northern Washington state (west of the already existing Montana UHD region)Canadian Rockies (between 49N and 55N ... from the Pacific to the plains around Calgary - quite a big area )Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden)Pyrenees in EuropeThey are all using - just like before - 30m / 1sec resolution data (either from Viewfinderpanoramas / NED or SRTM) and much higher resolution triangle mesh to be able to use all that detailed data. One "difference" is, that the new regions are based on newer Openstreetmap data (from around end of April 2015). Important: Because of this, the "UHD Mesh Scenery v1" Scenery is very heavy on hardware resources and will only run smoothly on modern, higher end PCs. Its very important - before even considering a download - to have at least 16 GBytes of RAM and a modern / powerful GPU! Especially when activating the new, "extended DSF" feature in X-Pane 10.40, the RAM requirement might double! The complete coverage is now: All informations, possible updates, installation instructions, and download links can be found here (IMPORTANT: you do not need to re-donwload old UHD files, as they have not been changed / updated!): http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-uhd-mesh-scenery-v1/A lot of NEW screenshots can be seen here: https://picasaweb.google.com/101666907909842492197/UHDMeshSceneryV1NewRegions?authuser=0&feat=directlinkPS: I would like to ask all users, who are fluent in other languages than English or German (and have time), to please spread this news in other forums / new sites

Hi, Just wanted to "announce", that in the foreseeable future (coming weeks, as my time permits), a few additional UHD regions might come online: adding most of Northern Washington state (west of the already existing Montana UHD region)adding the Canadian Rockies (between 49N and 55N ... from the Pacific to the plains around Calgary - quite a big area )adding most of Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden) - I know, someone will be very happy about this adding Pyrenees in EuropeAnd here is a teaser of the Mount Rainier at UHD res (taken in 10.40b5)

Yes, thats a "classic" problem when this "plateau" problem is observed.

A new addition to the successful donationware HD Mesh Scenery v3 series has been release. This time, covering the top of the world, the Himalaya "region"! All usual "attributes" of the already existing HD Mesh Scenery v3 apply here too. Special topics to be noted: coverage is 6 "big tiles" (6.3 Gbytes), but not entire 10x10 degree areas. The covered area extends: from 70E to 100E, and 24N to 38N!data used comes from a GLCN project (and this also shows, which area has high res landclass data): http://www.glcn.org/databases/hima_landcover_en.jspthe Himalaya extension is based on latest (end of April 2015) OSM dataYou can download the files via the map here: http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-hd-mesh-scenery-v3/Comparison screenshots (before / after) can be found here: https://picasaweb.google.com/101666907909842492197/HDMeshSceneryV3Himalaya

A more or less (or halfway, or barely, or what ever) official thread about mesh Remexe is over at the org ... It might possibly help you in the process of learning to use it (but to my understanding it is still - at best - a beta): http://forums.x-plane.org/index.php?showtopic=81152&hl=

After the successful release of "HD Mesh Scenery v3" last December, the new "UHD Mesh Scenery v1" tries to push the limits of the X-Plane 10 scenery engine even further. The general characteristics of "UHD Mesh Scenery v1" are identical to those described in HD Mesh Scenery v3. The main differences (and improvements) are: 30m resolution DEM elevation data instead of 90m DEM data.(once more) massively increased mesh density ... by roughly factor 2.5 to 3! This is not only beneficiary to the better representation of the higher res DEM data, but also - once more - improves landclass and forest detail.Because of this, the "UHD Mesh Scenery v1" Scenery is very heavy on hardware resources and will only run smoothly on modern, higher end PCs. Its very important - before even considering a download - to have at least 16 GBytes of RAM and a modern / powerful GPU! Covered Regions (see coverage on the download maps below): Europe - AlpsUSA - Colorado Mountains (parts of New Mexico)USA - Canyons and Mountains in Arizona / NevadaUSA - Mountains in Montana (5x5 degree area)USA - Sierra Nevada (Yosemite etc.)Picture of Europes Coverage: Picture of USAs Coverage: Because of the limited regions, the overall file volume is "only" 8.7 GBytes (spead across 5 ZIP files), and is available via the following sites: flightsim.com (with direct download AND very important: BitTorrent seeding)isdg.com.auaerosoft.comx-plane.org (coming later)All informations, possible updates, installation instructions, and download links can be found here: http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-uhd-mesh-scenery-v1/Here are the official screenshots accompanying the release of UHD Mesh Scenery v1. Just follow the links to my picasaweb albums: https://picasaweb.google.com/101666907909842492197/UHDMeshSceneryV1FINAL?authuser=0&feat=directlink(all screenshots come in pairs - they are comparisons between UHD and HD quality! The first of each pair is UHD, the second HD - but there are also caption for each picture to make this clear). I recommend all users: first start with one of the smaller regions (for example: Sierra Nevada). Download it, install it, test if it works and then get the other regions!Use BitTorrent (via flightsim.com) if possible, to avoid traffic congestion at the download sites!PLEASE take the time to read the short but important instructions! They help you (and then me) to avoid the most common mistakes!Have a lot of fun! Andras Fabian www.alpilotx.net PS: I would like to ask all users, who are fluent in other languages than English or German (and have time), to please spread this news in other forums / new sites Screenshots

Yes, of course UHD does this too ... although, even the largest triangles are still much smaller (maybe i can tune it there a bit, but don't expect miracles - neither do I want really big triangles because of the landclass representation). And with 16 GB ... well, you are on the low end, and will definitely find places with UHD where it will not be enough (thats why i warned about this). But at least you should be able to start up in a few nice locations ...

This is already happening as we speak ... the X-plane default mesh (or the HD Mesh) do all use an irregular mesh .... which does exactly this: making less triangles where landscape is less interesting, and adding more, where more happens. But also remember, that triangles are not only needed for elevation but also to represent (reflect9 the landclass (as texturing is decided on per-triangle basis). In this old(er) interview, you can see quite a few screenshots, showing the irregular mesh (and other details about the scenery generation): http://www.flightsim.com/vbfs/content.php?13946-Interview-With-Andras-Fabian

Yes, the grand Canyon profits from this big time ... and its also - still - quite good on FPS (because there is almost nothing else to render, other than the high res mesh). And int he Alps ... well, the screenshots don't tell the whole story ... but when one flies trought the Alps with UHD, you can see a lot of fantastic detail, making the whole experience even more natural. What impressed me a lot is the fact, that by the myriads of tiny extra details in the forms of the mountains, you get a much better impression of their dimensions (its much more immersive). And even in the Alps, there are many areas where you see massive improvements (like in the Dolomites etc.) ... Well, the "funny" thing is, that I first started my experiment by looking at Rio ... but I still do not have "easy to use" high res DEM there. For example the new, 30m SRTM data (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2014-321) ... well, it still has some holes (especially around Rio) so its not easily usable. I have one other data-set (its just awkwardly split in many piecese) which I might check out ... but still, this would not solve the problem with missing, high-res landclass data.

Yes, its partially possible and already happening .... but going to a level, where only the spires are "expensive" and the res "cheap" would be very hard 8and tedious) to achieve ... and there is much more in that region, which would again rise the mesh density. So, its not worth to try to optimize - for me - this extremely. So yes, I emphasize again: its "sad" but true, that this will only be for high end hardware. Maybe, see it as an "experimental" mesh ...

I couldn't sit idle in the last days, and started some very extreme experiments pushing the scenery generator even further outside of its comfort zone. I massively increased the mesh resolution (almost 3x of HD Mesh Scenery v3) and added in some nice 30m DEM data (everything else - on the data side - is identical to HD Mesh Scenery v3). Well, the results have surprised even me ... the Alps or the Grand Canyon changed their look in a quite obvious (and positive) way, making them look even more realistic (and big - yes, the "feeling" of dimensions has improved very nicely!). At the moment I am tinkering with the results, and am also waiting for some DEM data improvements (the good guy behind Viewfinderpanoramas.org hinted to me, that he wanted to increase the 30m Alps data very soon - and of course, I will wait for that). But then, I am definitely considering to share a few, smaller UHD regions with you (don't even bother to start asking for "regions" ... I will do the ones, I find the best to do at the moment). Like the - entire - Alps, the Canyon Land in the USA, and Maybe Colorado and the Yosemite region ... BUT, there is one drawback. of course, this absolutely insane (consider it experimental) mesh resolution needs some beefy hardware to run (users who have FPS concerns with HD Mesh Sceney v3 should not even think about it). On my machine, it worked quite well (yes, definitely usable FPS) ... BUT it will definitely need a minimum of 16 GB RAM (24 or 32 might be much safer). Here are a bunch of comparison screenshots (labeled UHD and HD ... so you can browse trough them and see the differences): https://picasaweb.google.com/101666907909842492197/PREVIEWUHDMeshSceneryV1?authuser=0&feat=directlinkAnd some quick examples: PS: This is also showing you, what X-Plane could one day achieve with hardware tessellation (its on the roadmap of Laminar ... but without a due date) with less heavy DSFs.

UPDATE: The HD Mesh Scenery v3 is now available on DVDs too (for those with limited bandwidth), from fspilotshop.com: http://www.alpilotx.net/downloads/x-plane-10-hd-mesh-scenery-v3/#Via-DVD-deliver

Last line in latest version-update-blog-entry: http://developer.x-plane.com/2015/01/try-x-plane-10-32r1/ And no, it will be less heavy on VRAM, but very heavy on RAM usage! The plan is to load 4x3 (=12) instead of 3x2 (=6) DSF tiles at once ... as such, it will also - approximately - double the RAM needed to keep it all in memory (so, in places where 8 GB RAM were enough, you should rather have 16 GB RAM at hand)! For this reason, it will - almost 100% sure - be an optional setting (and by default disabled). Interestingly, its not extremely heavy on FPS (because in the distance, it really only draws the basic, textured mesh ... but no other 3D clutter, texture overdraw, etc.). But this might largely vary depending on your GPU! PS: I know this, because some - longer - time ago, I had an internal dev release of Laminar running, which already had the first, experimental implementation of this feature

SimHeaven, definitely NOT! Those are myriads of unique phototextures which would need to be - ALL - winterized on their own. This is one of the drawbacks of phototextures.

Merry Christmas to you all too!

UPDATE: flightsim.com has now adapted Chris' torrent files ... so, you get the "good" torrent files from everywhere.

Sorry ... I thought I have read that somewhere (or I just completely mixed up you with some other user) ... My fault! Happy you can test it (might be interesting for you).