PAPI Light Adjustment

:helpsmilie: Does anyone have a quick solution to adjust the brightness of the VASI/PAPI glide path indicator lights at the side of the runways? My lights show way to bright and look like field fires rather than precision lighting.

I did see somewhere (saved games folder?) some mention of lights with two sets of numbers against three entries (differing ranges?). Wpuld I be correct in thinking that editing these numbers to different values adjust the brightness of these ground lights?

The usual 2 virtual beers to the first correct answer :smilewink:

PAPI Lights Brightness Adjustment

:helpsmilie: Does anyone have a quick solution to adjust the brightness of the VASI/PAPI glide path indicator lights at the side of the runways? My lights show way to bright and look like field fires rather than precision lighting.

 

I did see somewhere (saved games folder?) some mention of lights with two sets of numbers against three entries (differing ranges?). Wpuld I be correct in thinking that editing these numbers to different values adjust the brightness of these ground lights? :smilewink:

The folder where the reference to lights resides is:

C:\Program Files\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World\Config\graphics

and scrolling down (when opened in Wordpad) there are three seperate sections under 'Camera': Low, Medium and Far. Each section has the entry 'Lights' within it, and the figures, in brackets, following the word 'Lights' are:

Low

Lights (50, 10000)

Medium

Lights (100, 30000)

Far

Lights (200, 80000)

However, in the 'read.me' file attached it warns that if I edit this file directly I will lose my changes after each and every update - a pain. It suggests creating an 'autoexec.cfg' file in either of two locations. I would like to experiment with the numerical values of the lights as described, but have never set up an 'autoexec.cfg' file before (do I just write it out in Wordpad and save it inside the 'config' or the 'graphics' folder?)and would like some advice as to how to do it, and whether it is advisable. Will I screw up everything if I do so, and how do I get out of it if I do? :helpsmilie:

Use Notpad ++ or you might corrupt the file.

Any file that is replaced during the update is moved to a backup folder.

EDIT: If you mess up just delete it and do a repair.

IIRC when it updates it puts all your modded files etc into a folder called Backup001 or like that. I just drag and drop those files back into the proper areas after the update and everything works again.

I think the settings mentioned above:

Low

Lights (50, 10000)

Medium

Lights (100, 30000)

Far

Lights (200, 80000)

only refers to the distance they are seen and not the brightness of the lights?

I maybe wrong though. And they refer to all lights in general and not just runway lights.

I think you would have to look elsewhere.

Regards,

Milli

So ....... I decided to give it a try. Unfortunately when I tried to <Save> my modded graphics lua I got the message <Access Denied>.

I have put <Run as Administrator> in all places I could find - but no joy. What am I missing?

I take the point about not necessarily the correct lights, too. Of course, all my runway and aircraft nav lights have this 'halo' effect around them. Not a problem for standard runway edge, nav lights etc, but a real pain as I said when trying to read the PAPI lights. I shall look elsewhere as suggested, but I still need to know how to <save> a modified .lua file

Are you using Notepad ++?

If your getting an access denied error you should be able to save the file on the desktop. Then copy and paste in the original directory.

Yes - I am using Notepad ++.

I have tried, and succeeded, in modifying the graphics file referred to previously. My changes had no effect on the PAPI glide-path indicator lights. I shall therefore have to search elsewhere for the relevant <lights> to try and adjust.

It occurs to me that the effect may be due to using three monitors - but even so, there should be a relatively simple mod which could do the trick.

Hi roadrabbit.

Just been having a looksee around the DCS World folder and found something that maybe of interest to you. Have a look in the zip file called AirfieldsTexturesSum.zip found here: DCS World\Bazar\Terrain\vfstextures\AirfieldsTexturesSum.zip\

You will find a load of .dds files and some of them, the ones called:

airfield_lamp_blue.png.dds

airfield_lamp_green.png.dds

airfield_lamp_orange.png.dds

airfield_lamp_red.png.dds

airfield_lamp_side_01.bmp.dds

airfield_lamp_white.png.dds

lamp_all_lights.tga.dds

lamp_white_red.png.dds

lampbw.png.dds

are the actual lights. You can open these in GIMP or Photoshop using the NVIDIA DDS plugin. I should imagine you could just darken the images? The attatchement is a jpeg version of what the "lamp_white_red.png.dds" file looks like for example. Look like VASI/PAPI lights to me.

Regards,

Milli

Here is what I want to change:

http://imgur.com/QDjlJJS

Hi roadrabbit.

 

You can open these in GIMP or Photoshop using the NVIDIA DDS plugin. I should imagine you could just darken the images? The attatchement is a jpeg version of what the "lamp_white_red.png.dds" file looks like for example. Look like VASI/PAPI lights to me.

 

Regards,

Milli

I love the "you can open these ....... " :(

I only have Photoshop Elements and GIMP was way beyond me when I tried using it for something else. Sadly I need leading very gently through anything like that. Does 'Elements' take the nVidia DDS plug-in?

:helpsmilie: Does anyone have a quick solution to adjust the brightness of the VASI/PAPI glide path indicator lights at the side of the runways? My lights show way to bright and look like field fires rather than precision lighting.

 

I did see somewhere (saved games folder?) some mention of lights with two sets of numbers against three entries (differing ranges?). Wpuld I be correct in thinking that editing these numbers to different values adjust the brightness of these ground lights?

 

The usual 2 virtual beers to the first correct answer :smilewink:

Beers ? :)

Here I come :D

lamp-land_white-red.rar

Unrar and copy dds file into your Bazar\TempTextures folder

Cheers :beer:

Well, do i get 1 pint of beer? I was close to the solution!

Regards,

Milli

Hmmmm ..... I have done exactly as instructed, but sadly it has not changed anything on my set-up.

When I 'unrared' the file it gave me a .dds file of 171 KB size which I copied to desktop, then to C:\ ......... DCS World\Bazar\TempTextures as described. Is there anything I need to change or do to the .dds file, or just leave it as received?

As I said earlier, could it be that having 3 monitors has an effect? The lovely pictures enclosed by HungaroJET are using a resolution of 1920 x 1080. My resolution is currently 5760 x 1080.

Is there anything I need to change or do to the .dds file, or just leave it as received?

You don't need to change anything. That dds is good for your resolution also.

Just drop the dds into TempTextures folder and make/post some screenshots :)

The in-game size of the PAPI Lights Textures depends on the screen-aspect .

means: on a 16:3(3x16:9) Triple-head Setup it will be 3x bigger as on a single 16:9 screen.

So one version can't fit for everyone.

This happens with many light textures in DCS , but the most noticeable are the PAPI lights.

ED needs to implement somehow a multiplier in the scene-drawing parameters that takes the actual screen aspect into account. Let's hope this is implemented in the new terrain rendering engine >>>

Please use the attached file for a TH setup - the lights are aprox. 6times smaller as the default.

Here is a comparison:

Unrar and copy dds file into your Bazar\TempTextures folder

lamp-land_white-red for TH -16-3.rar

Virtual Beers are on the House!

The in-game size of the PAPI Lights Textures depends on the screen-aspect ................

 

............. this means: on a 16:3(3x16:9) Triple-head Setup it will be 3x bigger as on a single 16:9 screen.

So one version can't fit for everyone.

 

Please use the attached file for a TH setup - the lights are aprox. 6times smaller as the default.

 

:beer:

Brilliant! Well, not brilliant actually, just sooooooo much better. Very many thanks to all who have taken part in this thread - it was worth pursuing to the very successful outcome. I can see clearly, now, etc etc .....

So now ...

Hello guys,

I've installed the Mod of Peter and for me it's perfect but if with PAPI the lights are OK I found the other lights of the runway and threshold too glow...

Is it one Mod for these other light too glow ?

Here I join you few screenshot of my DCS, I'm in Batumi aerodrome.

Please can you tell me that you think of my lights ?

A great thanks in advance. Skull