AutoKneePads for Falcon BMS
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@Todd1215 said in AutoKneePads for Falcon BMS:
Great work ! Inaddition to @Logic it would be great to add flight tacan and what UHF each flight is using. These details can be determined manually but who wants to do that when your task saturated already.
Just a few ideas for improvement.
I’m afraid it’s the same reply that I made to Logic, I created the code for actually drawing the KneePads a long time ago, and it’s a bit of a nightmare, so I don’t really want to revisit that part of it to add anything.
Apart from that there just isn’t any space left to add anything else, I remember just trying to fit in everything when I created it.
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@linknet @Logic I’m not normally a zealot for FOSS but it would be nice for projects like this to have source available … especially ones that are likely to require updates as new versions of BMS rollout, over the years. It always makes me sad when some useful community-authored tool gets abandoned (RTTConfig, etc) and other folks want to fork and take ownership, or submit minor improvements, but can’t.
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@airtex2019
At the moment I’d prefer not to make it open source, but If I ever decide to abandon it I’ll either transfer the code to someone else or failing that post it online. -
AutoKneePads for Falcon BMS
Updated 16 January 2023:
The first post has been updated with the latest Version 1.01.
- AutoKneePads now includes a built in Web Server to allow viewing the KneePads in a web browser.
- The System Tray menu now has options to Start And Stop the Server and to display the Server Local IP Address for use in a browser.
- On start-up AutokneePads uses the Web Server running status setting saved from the last session.
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Thank you for your software.
Do I need Helios to make the two .PNGs appear on the pilot’s legs?
If not, can you tell me how to make them appear?
It should be obvious … but I did not find it . -
@Rouge1512
Helios isn’t required.You should just need to run AutoKneePads before you enter 3D and leave it running when it will automatically transfer the images to the pilots legs.
If you’ve tried it and it isn’t working then just let me know.
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@linknet This works in VR too, right? Just checking as obviously can’t work with Helios when in VR. Thanks!
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If the Pilot Model with the KneePads is visible in VR which it should be if you enable it, then it’ll work fine,
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@linknet Thanks!
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@linknet
Thank you for your answer.Mine is unfortunately no, it does not work following your prescriptions.
Before I discovered and tried your software, I used WDP and Ezboard. It is always the two pages of the latter (from the last time I used it) that appear respectively on the 1st page right and left on the legs of the pilote.
Maybe an interference with Ezboard?
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@Rouge1512 said in AutoKneePads for Falcon BMS:
@linknet
Before I discovered and tried your software, I used WDP and Ezboard. It is always the two pages of the latter (from the last time I used it) that appear respectively on the 1st page right and left on the legs of the driver.Are you using Falcon BMS 4.37 and the Korea Theatre just to eliminate some of variables?
Presumably you did, but I need to ask, did you open and print the briefing for the new mission with AutoKneePads running?
Then check in the AutoKneePads\Briefing folder to see if the Briefing.txt file has been updated.
Next check in the AutoKneePads\KneePads folder and see if the KneePads.png file has been updated.
Finally if all of that worked check that this file is updating: Falcon BMS 4.37\Data\TerrData\Objects\KoreaObj\7982.dds
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4.37 = yes
Korea = yes
Print the brief : yes
Briefing.txt updated : yes
KneePads png unpdated : yes
7982.dds updated : I don’t have any software to open .dds, but if I zoom in on the thumbnail displayed by Windows, it seems to me that no : I still have an image generated by Ezboard.
The same I get in 3D.Which sofware I need to watch a . dds ?
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@Rouge1512
OK.
In the AutoKneePads\KneePads folder is it creating the KneePads.dds file and is this being updated? Just check to see if the file date and time change.If that’s being updated then temporarily rename the Falcon BMS 4.37\Data\TerrData\Objects\KoreaObj\7982.dds file and see if a new one is created.
Edit: I don’t suppose that the Falcon BMS 4.37\Data\TerrData\Objects\KoreaObj\7982.dds has somehow been set to read only?
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@Rouge1512 Wait, just to be sure, you’re not using AutoKneePads and EZBoards for the same mission, do you? If so, they will compete for the same file!
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I will check this out tonight, ASAP.
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No, not at the same time and in the same mission
I was using EZBoard before I tried Linknet’s software -
First, thanks for the great work Rogue1512.
Unfortunately, I have the same issue but don’t use any other utility for the knee pads in my case.
AutoKneePads creates the correct ‘briefing.txt’ and 3 PNG files but doesn’t update the DDS files correctly, in my case.
I think it does something as I can see it makes 7982.bak, but 7982.dds is the same as the original one.
I hope this helps you to find the solution.
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@z34rpm
Yes, thanks, that is a help.
It means that it has correctly located the 7982.dds folder and created a backup file.
So it means one of two things:- The 7982.dds file is locked or read only.
- The source file KneePads.dds which should have been created in the AutoKneePads\KneePads folder actually hasn’t been created.
I think No. 2 is more likely, could you check for the existence of KneePads.dds in the AutoKneePads\KneePads folder.
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@linknet ,
This is a great tool! Thanks for coding it! As others reported, the kneepads produced are stored in the …\AutoKneePads\KneePads folder as .png files) and the index.html web server works great, but the kneepad pages do not get saved into …\Falcon BMS 4.37\data\terrdata\Objects\KoreaObj or into the appropriate theater KoreaObj file (for example, …Falcon BMS 4.37\data\Add-On Mideast128\terrdata\Objects\KoreaObj).
That is actually OK for me, because I would not want your program to overwrite the original kneepad file (for example 7982.dds) unless it first saves the original someplace safe.@z34rpm , I did not see a 7982.bak generated in any of my …Falcon BMS 4.37… folders.
I also do not see a 7982.dds in the …\AutoKneePads\KneePads folder - just the three .png files and index.html
I found it worked great by having AutoKneePads generate the .png files (left and right) and then using Weapon Data Planner to update the kneepads at a place of my choosing using the .png files AutoKneePads generated and saved into the …\AutoKneePads\KneePads folder. This allows me to put the generated kneepad pages into whatever theater I want (though it would obviously work best in the theater in which the briefing was generated).
That worked well for me, and allowed me to put the (extremely useful) briefing information where I want it on my kneepads. This allows me to select what I don’t mind losing on my kneepads in order to have the (extremely useful) briefing info. there instead.
I know that you stated above that it is very difficult to change what is generated from the briefing, and would take some recoding effort to be able to allow the user to select what briefing data is actually generated to the kneepad pages. That function would be extremely useful in future iterations (and perhaps a worthy challenge for your already outstanding coding prowess). For example, might be useful to have the IFF or HARM data instead of Steerpoint data. It might be useful to have just the assigned target steerpoint data instead of all steerpoint data including non-assigned steerpoints for each waypoint. These are just some food for thought and by no means should you interpret this as casting any shade on your outstanding project.
Thank you for taking the time to make an outstanding tool for our sim.
Regards,
Tomcattwo
(VoiceClone) -
From my side:
- no creation of kneepads.dds or *.dds of any name in the AutoKneePads folder,
- and thus no new 7982.dds in Falcon BMS 4.37\Data\TerrData\Objects\KoreaObj\ ,in replacement or even in creation if I delete the one which already existed.