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tml avatar image
tml asked tml commented

How "legacy" is the legacy gauge or FX stuff, actually?

In the latest SDK, for instance several TACAN-related #defines were added to WASM/include/MSFS/Legacy/gauges.h . Also, the F/A-18E uses a new (?) "legacy" .fx for its afterburner. Does this mean that such things, though said to be "legacy," are actually still fine to be used? (But others, like the legacy flight model, probably truly are not to be used if you at all can avoid it.)

gaugeswasm
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thealx answered tml commented

> F/A-18E uses a new (?) "legacy" .fx for its afterburner

No it does not. New type of effects used - since last update effects editor got support of luminosity (for flame glowing) and heat blur. Some legacy FX files no longer works already, all of them will be replaced completely soon.

As for mentioned "gauges.h " it contain functions and definitions for DLL gauges source code support. Can't say for sure but I think it will be available for a long time as some of them still useful.

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tml avatar image tml ·

> > F/A-18E uses a new (?) "legacy" .fx for its afterburner

> No it does not

So the LIGHT_ASOBO_Afterburner.fx is truly "legacy" and did exist earlier already? It is mentioned in the asobo-aircraft-fa18e/SimObjects/Airplanes/Asobo_FA18E/systems.cfg.

(I don't have any copy of the pre-SU7 installation to compare to, and sadly for some reason Windows has updated its timestamps even though I only looked at it in Notepad, so I can't say what its timestamp was right after installing SU7. But most of the .fx files in fs-base-effects-legacy/effects have timestamps from December 2020, but some are from the second half of this year. Is that not a sign that new .fx files are still introduced?)

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thealx avatar image thealx tml ·

Ah this one. That is light, not very same type of effect as smoke. Modern light system not exists (yet) so you are right - they still in the action and has no alternative. They are legacy in the meaning that was migrated from previous version of the sim but not abandoned.

Effect itself (flame and glare) defined in model/F18E.xml as ASOBO_FX_AFTERBURNER template, but modern effect can't insert light source into the scene so FX light used for that.


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tml avatar image tml thealx ·
Ah thanks, that makes things much clearer.
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