OpenSceneryX v4 Beta Testing

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Because it’s so big and contains significant new features, we have taken the unusual step of running an open beta test of the next release of OpenSceneryX (v4.0.0).

The beta test is being run over on the thresholdx.net forums so if you want to take part and get early access to the next release, head over there now – all the details are in the README post.

Note: If you want to take part in the beta, please be aware there may be bugs and issues that cause problems with your X-Plane® simulator, so if you don’t feel comfortable with this please wait for the full release.

OpenSceneryX v3.2.0 Released

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Happy New Year!  To celebrate 2019, here’s a new version of OpenSceneryX. Highlights:

  • New scenery objects in this version:
    • Incorporated FlyAgi Wind Turbine Library by FlyAgi into OpenSceneryX, which includes 40 animated wind turbines in a variety of heights and styles.
    • Incorporated FlyAgi Vegetation Library by FlyAgi into OpenSceneryX, including:
      • A set of ‘forests’ of volumentric grass, in a variety of shades.
      • A set of ‘forests’ of volumetric flowers, vines and shrubs.
      • A large set of 265 higher definition forests.
      • An additional Acer (Maple) tree, in a variety of heights, using the same high definition texture as the new forests.
      • An additional two Quercus (Oak) trees, in a variety of heights, using the same high definition texture as the new forests.
      • A Corylus (Hazel) tree, in a variety of heights, using the same high definition texture as the new forests.Thank you Agi for offering this merge, it is really appreciated.
  • Modified scenery objects in this version:
    • The USA Hawaiian forests were empty and using a blank texture, which has been the case since they were first added. We now use pacific_lowlandinstead, as the closest match.
    • Added TILTED attribute to all appropriate objects so they follow sloped terrain. Affects aircraft, vehicles, some furniture and some people.
  • Other changes:
    • Removed all unnecessary EXPORT_BACKUP lines for RE_Library backup library.
    • Third party libraries are now exported using EXPORT_BACKUP instead of DEPRECATED EXPORT entries. Means that if both OpenSceneryX and the source library are installed, the source library takes precedence, which is important when it is still being actively maintained and updated and may be ahead of OpenSceneryX.
    • Replaced the Backup Library with the latest v2.0.0 version.
    • Individual screenshots generated for all European forests.
    • Individual screenshots generated for all US forests.
    • Added a set of simHeaven export paths so they don’t have to copy actual objects out of OpenSceneryX on installation of their packages. These new paths will be used in the next releases of VFR Landmarks and X-Europe.
    • Now write a version.txt file containing the version number and date into the library folder, for utilities such as xOrganiser to use.

As always, if you already have a recent version of the installer, just re-run it to update your install. If you need a new installer, grab it from the home page.

Have fun with the new stuff, and a huge thank you to all the contributors.

New Installer Released

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We’ve released a new version of the OpenSceneryX installer (v2.4.0) for all platforms.  No changes to the library itself, but this version introduces the ‘Steam’ button for Windows and Linux, as well as fixing some bugs and changing the hosting.  Here are the full release notes:

  1. Library update hosting has now switched to AWS + CloudFront + CloudFlare, to reduce load on the web servers for static files (even with full Cloudflare caching the origin servers were still serving ~200k requests per day).  Should be faster for you too.
  2. Steam install button now implemented on Linux and Windows.
  3. Fixed a problem in the Mac version where the X-Plane folder was not remembered between executions.
  4. Mac version is now notarized (security audited by Apple).
  5. Mac version now supports new ‘Dark Mode’ in macOS Mojave.
  6. Fixed missing logo banner in about box.

Download the new version from the home page: www.opensceneryx.com

OpenSceneryX on YouTube

Also, for those of you just starting out with X-Plane and OpenSceneryX, we’ve produced a series of ‘How-to’ videos on YouTube. There’s some for all users of X-Plane and a couple for scenery developers who want to use the library. Not for the experts, but if you’re having trouble with first steps, take a look and let me have any feedback in the comments.

OpenSceneryX 3.1.0 Released

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We have just released OpenScenery v3.1.0. The main change in this version is the addition of over 1200 individual plant and tree objects. These should be much easier to use than forests if you just want to place a few individual plants around your sceneries. The full changes are:

  • New scenery objects in this version:
    • A huge collection of 1263 individual plants and trees, built using the same textures as the existing forests for efficiency. As objects, these are much more convenient to use than forests if you need to place individual plants.
  • Modified scenery objects in this version:
    • Updated DDS version of European tree texture to include two missing trees.
    • Added DDS versions of US tree textures.
  • Other changes:
    • Added 15 missing or incorrect paths from RE_Library.

The installer hasn’t changed, so if you already have the latest version just re-run it. If you need to download it, go to the OpenSceneryX home page.

New Installer Released

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There is a new version of the installer out – v2.3.0. This doesn’t include any changes to the OpenSceneryX library itself, but does include the following improvements:

  • The new backup library was missing placeholders for .net (roads) and .str (object strings) which could cause issues with some scenery packs installed.
  • Added a PayPal donation button to the installer to try to help cover the costs of running the library.
  • Fixed some display issues on Linux, mainly related to button sizes.
  • The ‘Steam’ button on Mac now finds an X-Plane 11 install if one exists, and if not it will try to find an X-Plane 10 install.

Grab it for all platforms from the OpenSceneryX home page.

New Mac Beta Installer

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There’s a new beta version of the Mac installer available, which hopefully fixes the issue where it couldn’t find an X-Plane 11 Steam install when hitting the ‘Steam’ button.  It’s available for download here.

Edit: The beta period has now finished, get the latest release version of the installer from the OpenSceneryX home page.

There are a couple of other changes, the full release notes are:

  • The new backup library was missing placeholders for .net (roads) and .str (object strings) which could cause issues with some scenery packs installed.
  • Added a PayPal donation button to the installer to try to help cover the costs of running the library.
  • The ‘Steam’ button on Mac now finds an X-Plane 11 install if one exists, and if not it will try to find an X-Plane 10 install.

OpenSceneryX v3.0.0 Released

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It’s a massive new release of the library, with almost 1,000 new objects. Here are the full release notes:

  • New scenery objects in this version:
    • Incorporated most of RE_Library by Richard C Elliott (einstein at the .org) into OpenSceneryX, which is about 900 objects. There are too many to list individually here, but the collection includes offices, radio installations, vehicles, hangars, fire stations, control towers, terminals and visual control rooms. Thank you Richard for offering this merge, it is hugely appreciated and expands the scope of OpenSceneryX considerably.
      • IMPORTANT NOTE 1: Certain iconic objects from specific airports were not included because OpenSceneryX, by design, does not contain world-unique objects (for example, the old EGCC Manchester International control tower). If any designer has used these objects, they will disappear. To fix this, airport designers will need to include these objects directly in their scenery packages. Richard has given permission to use his objects directly in this way (see the documentation in the RE_Library package) but as a courtesy it might be polite to drop him a note to let him know.
      • IMPORTANT NOTE 2: Some objects that were very similar to others were merged, for efficiency.
      • IMPORTANT NOTE 3: Because OSX requires all vehicles to be facing North with the tip of the nose at the origin, The RE_Library fire engines will change position and orientation. I’m afraid the only way to sort this out is for airport designers to tweak the placements of these objects and release new versions of their airports.
      • IMPORTANT NOTE 4: Some of the control tower objects in RE_Library were combinations of specific office blocks and specific Visual Control Rooms (VCRs). For efficiency, these have been replaced with the equivalent office blocks (without VCR), so airports that have used these will need to be modified to have a VCR placed on top of the office block. However, this has the added advantage that many more building / VCR combinations are now possible.
    • Four Supacat SUV600 fire vehicles, based on Land Rover 6×6 chassis.
    • A set of fire training rigs in a variety of colours.
    • A set of churches in two sizes and a variety of construction materials.
    • A fuel hydrant hatch polygon.
    • A collection of metal sheds.
    • A pair of white and yellow bollards.
    • A hotel.
    • A school / play-centre.
    • A wooden bungalow.
    • A pair of concrete barriers.
    • A small orange cone.
    • A hut constructed from a shipping container.
    • A set of shipping containers in various sizes and textures.
    • A small office constructed from a shipping container.
    • A wooden airport security building.
    • A wooden clubhouse.
    • A GPU unit.
    • A wooden airport terminal building.
    • A wooden hangar with a house attached.
    • Two baggage carts.
    • A baggage cart tractor.
    • A small tug.
    • A 27m concrete control tower.
    • A selection of fire extinguishers, standalone and in cabinets.
    • A complete fuelling installation, including underground tanks, pump, lights and signs.
    • A flood light.
    • A collection of warning and emergency signs for use around fuel installations.
    • A refuelling pump station.
    • Underground fuel tanks.
    • A set of fuel drums.
    • A set of gable markers in various colours.
    • Two metal garages.
    • Two metal glider boxes.
    • A grandstand for a sporting event.
    • A set of 5 metal hangars.
    • A further set of 28 metal hangars.
    • A set of 6 larger, more complex hangars.
    • A pair of wooden parking barriers.
    • A 250m radio mast and a 30m radio tower.
    • Three small metal huts.
    • A set of 56 plastic and galvanised tanks in a variety of sizes and colours.
    • A toilet facilities block.
    • A set of green waste bins with lids in various colours.
    • A McDonalds® fast food restaurant.
  • Modified scenery objects in this version:
    • All legacy X-Plane v7 objects have been converted to v8. The only objects affected were the animals.
    • Fishing boats 1, 2, 3 and 4 were not pointing North. These have been rotated 90 degrees to conform with the OpenSceneryX standard. Apologies for any problems this may cause with existing scenery packs.
    • None of the Robin DR221 aircraft were pointing North. These have been rotated 90 degrees to conform with the OpenSceneryX standard. Apologies for any problems this may cause with existing scenery packs.
    • The small yellow, white and red/white cones have been replaced with improved models.
    • The existing 12m shipping container was rotated 90 degrees to standardise across all shipping containers. Apologies for any problems this may cause with existing scenery packs.
  • Other changes:
    • Two invalid lines were fixed in the backup libraries (RE_Library and world2xplane library).
    • Added support to include external libraries within OpenSceneryX, which provides the ability for libraries to be merged. Items in external libraries are published to their original paths as well as new OpenSceneryX paths.
    • All deprecated paths are now exported into a DEPRECATED section of the library file, so they no longer show up in WED.
    • Refreshed design and branding in library docs and developer pack docs.
    • All processing for legacy X-Plane v7 format object files has been removed. The v7 format is no longer supported by OpenSceneryX.
    • Re-compressed a bunch of the PNG textures that gave the best saving in file size.
    • Developer documentation PDF now contains clickable screenshots and titles to take you to the online docs for the item.
    • Website now shows a carousel of the latest additions to the library, with screenshots and links.

Minor Library Update Available

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A new version of OpenSceneryX has just been released – v2.2.1. This is primarily a feature and bug fix release, but also it includes some updated ships with proper X-Plane navigation lights. Full release notes:

  • Modified scenery objects in this version:
    • A number of the ships and boats have had real navigation lights added, thanks to PilotFlo from the MarineTrafficX project for supplying these.
  • Other changes:
    • Developer documentation PDF now contains in-document clickable links on the table of contents.
    • Small design refresh in developer documentation PDF.
    • All object screenshots look a lot better and are now larger to make them clearer. They are also now automatically generated by a script, making them far easier to manage, create and regenerate.
    • All non-object screenshots have been re-created at a larger size to make them clearer.
    • The new backup library was missing placeholders for .net (roads) and .str (object strings) which could cause issues with some scenery packs installed.

To get the update, just re-run your installer.  If the installer tells you that it is out of date, get the latest from https://www.opensceneryx.com.

Shout out for new content – If you are a talented 3D modeller, and would like some of your work included in a future version of OpenSceneryX, we would love to see it.  It’s really easy to send it to us – just go here: https://www.opensceneryx.com/contribute/upload/ and follow the instructions.

More New Installers

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Another new installer version has just been released for all platforms. I’ve spent a lot of time optimising and improving the networking code, so this version should be a lot faster, smoother and also (especially on Windows) the user interface should be more responsive.

Also, the Mac version is now a Disk Image download, with a customised look and feel.

The full release notes:

  • The intensive local file checking process is now threaded, improving application responsiveness and redraw. The improvements are especially noticeable on Windows.
  • Both intensive file operations now yield some time to other threads to improve application responsiveness and redraw. The improvements are especially noticeable on Windows.
  • The install operation is now much faster, and can make full use of fast Internet connections.
  • The Mac and Windows installers are now code signed, meaning they will not be blocked from running.
  • The Windows installer now runs as an administrator, using the proper UAC mechanism, specified in the application’s Manifest.
  • The Mac installer is now distributed as a Disk Image (DMG) with a custom design.
  • Cross-platform bugs in the license confirmation dialog fixed.

Download the new versions from the OpenSceneryX Home Page.

New Installer Version Released

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A new version of the installer has been released, which hopefully fixes some of the recent problems with failed file downloads.  The Mac and Windows builds are 64 bit and we also now have Linux x86-64 bit, Linux x86-32 bit and Linux ARM 32 bit builds.

This release includes the following changes:

Version 2.1.0

  1. The Mac installer now provides support for the default Steam location.  A new button allows you to select the Steam folder if it exists.
  2. The installer now includes the Backup Library that chris k originally built and einstein took control of.  This means that if you have OpenSceneryX installed, you no longer need the Backup Library.  The installer allows you to choose whether the placeholders used are visible or invisible – the visible ones should be bright red.
  3. The Mac version is now a full Cocoa application.
  4. There are three Linux versions: x86-32 bit, x86-64 bit and ARM 32 bit.
  5. The installer should be a bit more robust if your network connection is interrupted.
  6. We now support high resolution displays.
  7. Switched to secure HTTPS for all server communications. This required a rebuild of the network code.
  8. Small design refresh.

Download the new installer from the OpenSceneryX home page.