please help me install my first altsurface?? (newbe)

[Rjp buisson]

I just downloaded the 4Kjupiter.png texture.
I created this 4Kjupiter.ssc fle:
AltSurface "4Kjupiter" "Sol/Jupiter"
{
Texture "Jupiter4K.png"
}
In which (dedicated?) directories have I to place those 2 files???
Do I need another file?
I currently use Celestia 1.3.1
thanks

[granthutchison]

To keep things straight, you could add them to your extras folder in a directory called (say) jupiter4k.
The structure would look like this:

Code: Select all

\jupiter4k
  4kJupiter.ssc
  \textures
    \medres
      Jupiter4K.png

Grant

[granthutchison]

I just downloaded the 4Kjupiter.png texture.
I created this 4Kjupiter.ssc fle:
AltSurface "4Kjupiter" "Sol/Jupiter"
{
Texture "Jupiter4K.png"
}

Hang on, though. If your texture is called 4Kjupiter.png, your AltSurface should reflect that name:

Code: Select all

AltSurface "4Kjupiter" "Sol/Jupiter"
  {
   Texture "4Kjupiter.png"  # <= this line changed
  }


Grant

[Rjp buisson]

Sorry ,but it does'nt work eitheir;
I had already made this change of names myself
(I choose Jupiter4K.ssc, AltSurface "Jupiter4K" and Jupiter4K.png)
So??
My exact structure IS:
/extras
/Jupiter4K
Jupiter4K.ssc
/textures
/medres
Jupiter4K.png
And my Jupiter4K.ssc contains:
AltSurface "Jupiter4K" "Sol/Jupiter"
{
Texture "Jupiter4K.png"
}
And I have currently BlueMarble DDS Virtual texture running fine !
I realy DONT understand!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[selden]

Rjp,

Turn on the "console log" and look to see what error messges it shows.

Type a "~" to display the log. On my keyboard, that's a "Shift-`". You probably have a European keyboard and must type a "space" after you type the tilde.

It could be that your "jupiter4k.png" is damaged somehow. Try loading it into a paint program. Make sure it's dimensions are 4096x2048 and that it's actually a png file.

[Rjp buisson]

Rjp,

Turn on the "console log" and look to see what error messges it shows.

Type a "~" to display the log...

It could be that your "jupiter4k.png" is damaged somehow. ..
.

Thanks alot, but:
1) My log ,on starting Celestia dont display an error message:
Celestia catalogs loaded from /extras:
MarsNormalMapDXT3.ssc ok,
minormoons.ssc ok,
Moon16K VY.ssc ok
That's ALL, but NO error message!

2) I checked Jupiter4K.png with ACDSEE:
Whow! it looks as a terrific beauty!... but no dammage.
It is decleared as a:4096 x 2048 png
?????? frustation*§

[selden]

It sounds like you did not see all of the log entries. The log should start with

Code: Select all

Error in .ssc file (line 64) Parent body 'OGLE-TR-56' of body 'b' not found'

Use the up- and down-arrow keys to look at the other log entries.

If your Alternate Surface ssc file is not listed, then Celestia did not find it. Either you made a typo in the filetype (.ssc) or it is not in a directory where Celestia is looking.

Added slightly later:
Make sure you have the windows feature "hide known filetypes" disabled. If your SSC file is really named "Jupiter4K.ssc.txt" then Celestia will not use it.

[Rjp buisson]

I found a beginning of hint:(?)
1)I retreaved my BlueMarble VT directories from /extras to lighten the initial loading.
2) I restarted Celestia and got on the console log, an error message ..
AT LAST!
who says:
"error in .ssc file(line1): object name expected"
3) I retreaved the possibly incriminating Jupiter4K.ssc file from his directory:
no more error message!
so
What's WRONG with the 1st line if this file:
AltSurface "Jupiter4K" "Sol/Jupiter"
{
Texture "Jupiter4K.png"
}
????????????????
More generaly, where can I find a complete DOC on .SSC files syntax, implementation, and use?
Thanks
Thanks

[selden]

There's nothing wrong with the text that you are showing us, but that may not be what is really in your ssc file.

do this to display your ssc file:
1. in your post to the forum, put the commands

Code: Select all

[code]
[/code]


2. In the editor that you are using to look at the SSC file, use the two editing commands "select all" "copy"

3. in the post, click between the code commands so that the insert cursor is between them. use the editing command "paste"

4. in the post, click outside the code commands so that the insert cursor is away from the text of your ssc file. Add your description of what you did.


Then post your message.

[selden]

To answer your question about docs, at the moment there is no one complete description of ssc files. Thomas Guilpain wrote a description which is at http://members.fortunecity.com/guilpain/
but it has not been updated to include AltSurface.

(I just noticed that he made the mistake of using two different types of quote marks in his documentation. That can't work.)

[Rjp buisson]

..but that may not be what is really in your ssc file.

do this to display your ssc file:
1. in your post to the forum, put the commands
...Then post your message.

I did it already(copy and paste) my way in my previous post,but please find it here your way:my Jupiter4k.ssc

Code: Select all

AltSurface "Jupiter4K" "Sol/Jupiter" 
{
   Texture "Jupiter4K.png"
}

More Strange than ever?
This .ssc was edited using WordPad (WindowXP) in Unicode format (because I could'nt create a .SSC type (a .SSC extension) in "text type"..?)
I just retreaved ALL my other add-ons in my /extras directory
(except the original minormoons.ssc)
My structure is now minimal:
/extras
.minormoons.ssc
. /Jupiter4K
.. Jupiter4K.ssc
.. /textures
... /medres
.... Jupiter4K.png
With this I finally got 2 error messages:

bad character in stream
error in .ssc file(line1): object name expected

Is it a editor/file-type problem?
or
Is Jupiter no more a Sol satelite????

[granthutchison]

Your use of Unicode is likely be the source of the problem - Celestia can have difficulties with embedded characters that don't appear when you look at the file in a text editor. Plain text is much safer.
It's easy enough to make a plain text ssc in Notepad: just create the file and save it with an ssc extension.

Grant

[Rjp buisson]

YES THANKS, that's it: wrong editor's filetype:
History: I DID start with notePad first, in TEXT type file , entered .ssc extension when saving, but Celestia didn't recognize it...
so I found notePad silly and swiched to WordPad ,and I (the silly one) choose unicode type who didn't propose a default extension: Celestia accepted my file with .ssc extension but.... You know the last part of the story!
Thanks to both of you!
By the way
1) Are there other undocumented debuging commands like shift~ ?
2) Is-it possible to define the number of lines of the log console,or to log one page at a time, because we seem missing the beginning when the messages are numerous?