Animations...how to keep separate?

[Stiglr]

I've finally started working with the X-Plane plug in to work with animations.

I've created a few for one aircraft, but one thing is puzzling.

All the animations I've created "play" together, even though they are separate Animation Groups in the heirarchy. This is somewhat troublesome, because some are 3-value animations (like the rudder, with a center at 0 value and 1 and 3 at the extreme angles of the rudder deployment) and some are simpler, 2-value animations.

How do you "separate" animation groups, so that when you select any animation and use the time slider, only THAT animation will move? And, conversely, if you DO want to tie multiple animation groups together, how do you 'manage' and 'organize' them?

[captainpeter]

You need to assign different datarefs to animation groups for individual movement.
I don't really understand what you mean with 2- or 3-value animations.

For a simple rudder assembly you need one dataref which outputs a floating point value which gives the deflection in degrees (+/-).

For more complex animations like a hstab which moves with trim and an attached elevator which moves with pitch input you simply put the elevator assembly (the complete anim-group) into the hstab anim-group. You can create really complex mechanical assemblies by nesting animation groups.

Make sure you got the latest datarefs.txt file in the AC3D plugins folder btw....

cheers
peter

[Stiglr]

Thanks for the help!!

For one thing, I know I don't have a dataref.txt file... didn't think I'd really need it since I'm not exporting to X-file. Maybe if I get one just for AC3D to refer to, that particular function will work (right now, if I even select the dropdown for datarefs I get an error dialog). Then, this might solve the problem of AC3D only "seeing" one animation for all the animation groups.

As for 3-part vs. 2-part animations, there is a distinction in the flight sim I'm working with. A rudder, for example, has three animation detentes: a center (no input) and the full left and right deflections. Another animation, say, a flap, might just have two (full up and full down), or a canopy might only have two (open and closed).

[captainpeter]

You will need Commands.txt & DataRefs.txt from your X-Plane plugins folder (get the demo from x-plane.com if you need the most recent version of those files).

The plugin should be here:
http://www.xsquawkbox.net/scenery/tools.php

You specify the animation ranges from the x-plane properties (select the rotation or translation object first). simply choose a dataref, define which dataref range corresponds to which object translation and you get the slider to control it.

peter

[Stiglr]

Again, thanks!

I got the two files from the demo (took long enough, though!) and now have values to put in the dataref fields. That "separated" the animations.