All-Aircraft-Simulations
Cockpit Photoshop Preview - Printable Version

+- All-Aircraft-Simulations (https://allaircraftsimulations.com)
+-- Forum: IL2 Work In Progress MODS Download & Discussion (https://allaircraftsimulations.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=268)
+--- Forum: MOD Creation Tutorials and Assistance (https://allaircraftsimulations.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=312)
+--- Thread: Cockpit Photoshop Preview (/showthread.php?tid=61355)


Cockpit Photoshop Preview - dup - 03.05.2009

Hi

I'm sure that someday I saw a tip on this forum to preview texture cockpit in game without reloading il2.
I can't find it...

Do you know this post ?

Thanks a lot ! Cry

- JAMF - 08.05.2009

If it's true, that would really help. Quitting and starting IL2 again works, but it takes a lot of time when you do it 20 times, 30 times etc.

- JAMF - 16.05.2009

OK, I got the answer in the Ebro thread:

Bee Wrote:
JAMF Wrote:A lot of time is going into changing an instrument or panel a bit, starting IL2, make a DF server or run a QMB save to check the look in cockpit, shut down IL2, back to adjusting pixels, rinse, repeat... Smile

Ye Gods man! Don't do it that way. You'll be there until hell freezes over. Confusedhock:

Do this;

1. Open [edit]Paint.NET[/edit], whatever you use. Also fire up Il-2 and have both programs running simultaneously.

2. Open up your cockpit skinning project and start pushing your pixels about. When you want to have a look at your progress save those tga's and jump into QMB and fly the plane for a sec to see how it looks.

3. Now here is the trick... Make more changes to your skinning project and take a fresh look at your results.
To do this, quickly load up another, different aircraft in QMB and fly it for a second. Just a second is all you need. Il-2 can only hold one cockpit in it's memory at a time. It remembers the last on you flew, in all it's detail, even after you exit a mission. Jumping into a different aircraft for a sec will refresh the games memory of that aircraft and make it "read" your modded aircraft all over again the next time you fly it. Does that make sense?

As an example, here's what I did with the I-153 I was working on:

* Alter a cockpit texture in photoshop and save the changes.

* Fly the I-153 in QMB and observe the changes, taking notes if necessary.

* End the QMB mission. Hit the Windows key to get out of Il-2 temporarily. Make further changes to the textures and save them again

* Jump back into Il-2 and fly the next aircraft on the list (I-16 in this case, but any different plane will do) for just a moment.

* End the QMB flight and start another one. This time going back to the modded I-153 cockpit. You will notice that the game has now re-read the textures and your most recent changes are all there for you to see.

Easy eh? No need to waste hours and hours exiting/restarting the entire game each time you want to check if that knob is in the right spot or that line needs to move one or two pixel spaces to the left.... :wink:


- JAMF - 16.05.2009

A slightly different way of doing it, as you can focus on the cockpit without needing to fly:

Quote:Start IL2 -> Multiplay -> Create new server -> Create -> Mission Type: 2 -> Mission: Dogfight 5 -> Load

Select airfiled/runway in grid Echo 2, it's a concrete runway, might be useful.
Go to Arming and select aircraft being worked on-> apply -> fly

(*)Take notes and/or screenshots

Esc -> Refly -> Arming -> select different aircraft -> apply -> fly

Then Ctrl+Esc to desktop to edit the texture, save file.

Click the game in the taskbar.

Esc -> Refly -> Arming -> select aircraft being worked on-> apply -> fly

(return to *)

Reason for DF Mission 5 is it has 2 sides, the concrete runway, takes fewer mouse movement than DF Mission 13 in "4". For bug hunting, the sun is lower in the sky (not noon), so turning the AC around will show the sunlit side of the texture is set correctly in the MAT file.

[EDIT] "Quit mission -> Load -> Select airfield" replaced by "Refly", much quicker.