lalex

I have a better suggestion - why don't you do a simple search with the VATSIM/ VATIL keyword, and read the forums yourself. I am sure you will find everything that interests you faster than anyone here is able to summarize all the news for you. Best, Alex

The Platinum and the Millenium (and the Medial) towers are already in ver 1.0! They are South of the Kirya Twr (the three-buildings complex). So no need for photos for that area, but I still appreciate photos of Bet Asia, Europe etc... Best regards, Alex

:-) Sorry but you cannot change that intensity either - it is all "hard coded" in the scenery by the developer. Besides, it wouldn't have improved the framerate either :-) I am happy you like TLV. Happy VFR-ing. Alex

Hi, 1. The "moving highways" do reduce performance quite significantly since they are a "leftover" technology from the previous FS and it seems that they are not optimized for FS2K4. But Seev decided rightly that they add very much to the realism so they will stay... Anyway, until the full SDK does not appear, there is nothing to be done. 2. Reducing mipmaps etc. will have no influence on the dynamic highways since they are not bitmaps. You might want to try to reduce the Autogen which also reduces FPS significantly. Alex

Hi, Today I uploaded the newest TLV VFR scenery at AVSIM and Flightsim.com. I guessit that it will take some time until the files will appear in the list, so keep checking. The new scenery completely replaces Ver. 1.0 and includes 51 high rise buildings and some minor corrections and further optimization for the previous ver. 1.0 buildings. Good news - Dizengoff Center made it into this release. I plan some 10 more buildings for TLV/RG and then enter "maintenance mode" - correct, optimize and maybe add some structures if somebody specifically asks for and sends relevant information. Saying "please add this and that building" without sending specific information (pics and data) will not be enough. Finally, I am surprised that still there is no significant FPS drop, so go ahead and enjoy! Best regards, Alex

Is there anything interesting there? I don't know TLV that well. Regards, Alex

I am happy that I can still post here in English without ruffling too many feathers. Where were we? This is an answer to several emails so please try finding your answer here: 1. The scenery is ready (without Dizengoff). I have some more testing to do and MAYBE Dizengoff. If not - we'll have Dizengoff and other items in a future release. 2. Thanks for the 3DMAX help offer but I'm already done . No need for help for now. Right now, I will release minor upgrades to TLV and Haifa (@10 buildings max). After @100 items done so far for FS2004, I can easily cope with that . Thanks anyway and I will contact you later. 3. Football Stadiums. Never forgot them but I had to start somewhere in a logical order. Given the fact that we are simmers, the most important factor was height, although some might rightfully argue that stadiums are massive and visible structures. Anyway, they were planned nevertheless. Now, after finishing @50 high rise buildings, I can think of stadiums. I have K. Eliezer pics, but if you have more good pics email them to me at virtu_al@netvision.net.il. Not more that 2 Mb/ day. Thanks. 4. Thanks for the many thanks and support. Enjoy flying around Israel. 5. I plan to return flying online maybe next weekend. I must try the new voice client. See you online. Regards, Alex

I see, I don't have Hebrew on my computer since Hebrew screws up the directory and file names for certain applications that I need. Therefore there is no hope to have Hebrew anytime soon :-(. Anyway, I understand that this is a problem, and I will reduce my presence here to only announcement posts. Regards, Alex

I don't know. Maybe it will be about time to get back to flying online . Alex

:-) 1. Lawyer? Nice to know . 2. Roger on the digicam - thanks. 3. Egged Bus Station is already in HFA VFR (needs to be fixed a bit though). Rambam will be in. 4. Eilat - Double thanks Best, Alex

10x guys, Yes, the "ugly" Haifa hotel will make it too - it is an important VFR landmark. I think it is called Meridien but I am not sure. Actually there are some pics I still need Ilan, etc: 1. TLV - I have done already America House but I need Asia House, Europe House - basically everything that goes on around the IBM HQ. 2. HFA - MATAM pictures and sizing (if you want it in), MATAM plans. 3. HFA - Ba'hai architectural details - sizing, angles, etc. What I really need is a top down and side projection of the entire complex. I have many pics but not good enough to do an accurate reproduction. Basically, after these sceneries are finished I want to start working on Eilat. This would be a great time to send in pictures of everything that moves there - hotels, important buildings, LLET, etc. (anyone from Eilat?) The general rule is that if you haven't seen it in my scenery and you think it is important, then send in the pictures, location (LAT/LON or description) and sizing info, and I will put it into one of the updates. Pictures can be aerial but I prefer ground-based, in good light and not too "artistic" (crazy angles, etc.). The pics should cover all the sides, if they are diferent, and should highlight everyything special about the building. Small details are not important - remember - when you fly you do not see buildings from less that 100m! and even that is an exaggeration. The only exact details I need is for airports. Pics can be sent to virtu_al@netvision.net.il - and never more that 2MB/day. Regards, Alex

You think you liked Ver. 1.0? The new version adds 20 buildings more - The Textile Center (, Isrotel, Tel Aviv Towers (2), Opera House, Amot Towers (3), America House, RG Twin Towers (2), NIP Tower, Toyota and MAYBE Dizengoff (2). In addition some Ver 1.0 buildings have been enhanced and textures optimized. ETA? MAYBE this weekend, if not, then definitely the next one After that, I'm getting back to Haifa VFR 1.1 which has been slowly getting improved. Now we need more buildings there - Rambam Hospital, Dan Carmel and Nof Hotels, IEC HQ, minor fixes (the cooling towers and RWY34 ). Have fun, Alex

Oren is correct. Follow his advice. Alex

The annoncement title says that it has been posted on AVSIM and Flightsim.com. It's been on AVSIM since yesterday evening, and now it appears on the main page - the new downloads list after the news, as usual. Flightsim.com taks 24hrs to update the upload list so for now it can be d/l only at AVSIM. Both AVSIM and Flightsim.com use intermediary code for the d/l process so it is impossible to point directly to the file. They use this for statistics and copyrighting. Anyway, AVSIM's URL http://www.avsim.com and Flightsim.com is at http://www.flightsim.com . Good luck. Alex

My sceneries are made compatible with Seev's Landclass - if that's what you're asking. Alex

Now it's better - thanks Shadi for the tip :-) Alex

:-) I didn't mean to criticize you Oren, and I am sorry if I sounded that way. I understood your intentions, and your help is appreciated. I just wanted to make sure that people RTFM ("Read The F..ing Manuals". In Israel we throw out or ignore the manuals too soon and then we contact customer support with idiotic questions - oh well. And I am happy that you like what you see. That will keep me going for the next TLV phase. And you wil be pleasantly surprised that the Kirya will see a special boost - but NOT on the "interesting" side. Marganit twr. will stay alone in that sense. Regards, Alex

In the readme it is clearly stated: "2. Disable any Tel Aviv/Ramat Gan scenery - if you don't, you may experience strange results." People should read the installation instructions sometimes :-)

TLV VFR 1.0 is fully compatible with Seev's Tel Aviv Metropolitan Landclass (which I recommend). It is clearly explained in the readme file.

About the Tel Aviv VFR Project ============================== This work is the most accurate Tel Aviv VFR scenery to date and is a result of about two months of research and development. The sizing, object location etc. was based on a combination of maps, satellite photos, pictures and visits to location. In addition it closely follows tips and information from various architecture companies which planned the towers, leading to very accurate modelling. Wherever possible photo-realistic textures were used. Given the fact that the Tel Aviv VFR scenery will significantly expand in the coming weeks making it a very crowded scenery, some of more subtle architectural features have been left out for the sake of frame rate. The buildings were designed with performance in mind - the key issue was to make them realistic to viewing distances of more than 300'(100m). The scenery is by no means complete. There are many other less tall, but important structures that are planned and already being created for future scenery releases. Besides, there are many towers that are being built or planned in Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan, two of them towering at around 240m each; so there is plenty to do. Meanwhile enjoy VFR-ing over Tel Aviv, or the LLBG RWY 12 approaches. The LL (Lima Lima) RWY12 outer marker is located on top of the Shalom Meir Tower. Tel Aviv VFR 1.0 currently covers: - The Ramat Gan Business District (9 towers) - The Azrieli Towers (2 towers) - The Shalom Meir Tower - Marganit Twr - Platinum, Medial and Millenium Towers complex (3 towers) - Rubinstein Twr - Elrov Twr - Levinstein Twr - Gan Ha'ir Twr + Rabin Square (1 tower + City Hall) - IBM Building - The Tower - Seaside hotels (6 buildings) A little bit about Tel Aviv =========================== Tel Aviv is the busiest and the biggest city in Israel. It is the first newly founded Jewish city in the reborn Israel, but it is anything but "traditional". In the recent years, many skyscrapers have been added to the skyline which once was dominated by the Shalom Meir Tower in Tel-Aviv and the Diamond Exhange building in Ramat-Gan Business District. While Shalom Meir Tower still stands out among the less tall buildings surrounding it, the Diamond Exchange building has been literally engulfed by many post-modern architectural wonders which dwarf it to the point of non-relevance. Although technically not Tel Aviv, my scenery covers almost all of the important towers of the Ramat Gan Business District. Looking at the imposing architectural complex and its tallest feature (City Gate Tower - standing 244m) will make you understand why. Another important much talked-about project is the Azrieli Towers or better known as "Shalom towers" (not to be confused with the old Meir Shalom Meir Tower) - Shalom means "Peace". This project has seen several changes during its construction, the most significant ones being the cancellation of one of the three towers - the Square Tower - and the height increase of the remaining two - the Round Tower (187m) and the Triangle Tower (169m). Despite being the busiest and most cosmopolitan city in Israel, Tel Aviv is not the capital - Jerusalem is. Think of it as Manhattan versus Washington DC. Alex Lawrence 2004©

Thanks Ilan, Now, after Haifa and LLHA I plan to concentrate on Tel-Aviv. I already have several objects based on Ittai Arnon's material, but I plan to cover many more buildings. There are a lot of new, tall buildings in TLV beside Azrieli. Since I live in the North, I would need quality architectural pictures and sizing information (and location if possible) for better covering Tel Aviv like it has never been covered in the past. The devlopment will be in gMax only so don't be afraid of low frame-rates. As I learned during scenery development, the biggest frame killer is Autogen (especially in TLV) and non-gMax scenery - not necessarily in this order . So, if any of you wants to see the TLV scenery come out faster, please send all the info to virtu_al@netvision.net.il. Please remember that my inbox is limited to 10MB so take it easy with the pictures. Thanks, Alex L.

For more info please refer to the new VATIL SUPPORT forum. Also please continue the technical reports about LLHA in the new forum :-) Alex

Hi - sorry but I don't Have Hebrew on my computer. Anyway, regarding the LLHA scenery crash. There are some users who reported this and it seems that it is system-related. In any case I will post a "non-crashing" version tonight on AVSIm and flightsim.com but I guess that it will take @24h for it to appear on their files list. Meanwhile disable the "crash" option in the "realism" menu in FS2004 :-) The file will be called LLHA11AL.zip and will be a simple "copy over the old files" install". Have fun, Alex