Texture XML Properties

TEXTURE XML PROPERTIES

The <texture_filename>.<extension>.xml file goes in the Texture folder beside the other files for the object textures. This file is only required for Scenery Object and SimObj Object textures, and each texture requires an accompanying XML file.

NOTE: This file should not be added or edited manually. Instead the file should be created/edited using the Texture Tool. The information on this page is provided solely for reference.

This file is formatted as follows:

<BitmapConfiguration>
    <BitmapSlot>
        <!-- TEXTURE SLOT HERE -->
    </BitmapSlot>
    <UserFlags Type="_DEFAULT">
        <!-- FLAGS HERE -->
    </UserFlags>
    <ForceNoAlpha>
        <!-- ALPHA TOGGLE -->
    </ForceNoAlpha>
</BitmapConfiguration>

`<BitmapConfiguration>`

This is a container element - with no attributes - for the following sub-elements that define the way the texture will be handled in the simulation:

`<BitmapSlot>`

This is a sub-element of <BitmapConfiguration> and has no attributes. It is used to specify what "slot" the texture occupies within the material shader. The table below gives the available values and their corresponding slot in the Plugins materials:

BitmapSlot String	Plugin Texture Slot
MTL_BITMAP_DECAL0	Base Color (Albedo) Base Color (Albedo) (Front Glass Color)
MTL_BITMAP_METAL_ROUGH_AO	Occlusion(R) Roughness(G) Metallic(B) Reflection (R), Roughness (G), Metallic (B) Occlusion(R) Aniso RoughnessX(G) Metallic(B)
MTL_BITMAP_NORMAL	Normal Normal (Front Glass Normal)
MTL_BITMAP_EMISSIVE	Emissive Secondary Details(RGBA) Emissive Ins Window (RGB) offset Time (A)
MTL_BITMAP_ADD_DECAL0	Detail Color(RGB) Alpha(A) Details 1 (R), Icing Mask (G), Details 2 (B) Behind Glass Color (RGB) Alpha (A)
MTL_BITMAP_ADD_METAL_ROUGH_AO	Detail Occlusion(R) Roughness(G) Metallic(B) Detail Reflection (R), Detail Roughness (G), Detail Metallic (B)
MTL_BITMAP_ADD_NORMAL	Detail Normal Icing Normal (Use Detail UV Tiling)
MTL_BITMAP_BLENDMASK	BlendMask Refection Mask (UV2) GeoDecal Blended Mask
MTL_BITMAP_OCCLUSION	Occlusion (UV2) Wiper Mask (RGBA)
MTL_BITMAP_WINDSHIELDDETAILNORMAL	Detail Normal
MTL_BITMAP_SCRATCHESNORMAL	Scratches Normal
MTL_BITMAP_IRIDESCENTTHICKNESS	Iridescent Thickness (R)
MTL_BITMAP_DETAIL_METAL_ROUGH_AO	Melt pattern(R) Roughness(G) Metallic(B)
MTL_BITMAP_CLEARCOATCOLORROUGHNESS	Clearcoat Colour (RGB) ClearCoat Roughness (A) Behind Glass Color (RGB) Alpha (A)
MTL_BITMAP_CLEARCOATNORMAL	ClearCoat Normal
MTL_BITMAP_ANISO_DIR_ROUGH	Anisotropic Direction (RG), RoughnessY (B)

`<UserFlags>`

This is a sub-element of <BitmapConfiguration> and is used to specify the FLAGS for the texture. This element has the following attribute:

Attribute	Description	Type	Required
`type`	The type of FLAGS. This must be "_DEFAULT"	String	Yes

Flags are added by concatenating strings using the "+" sign. Note that the string must also start with a "+", for example:

<UserFlags Type="_DEFAULT">
    +QUALITYHIGH+ALPHAPRESERVATION+NOMIPMAPS+ANISOTROPIC=0
</UserFlags>

The available FLAGS are:

Flag	Compiler behavior	Sim behavior	Rendering side-effects
QUALITYHIGH	Uses a higher compression quality, if applicable. Some texture usages already compile to the highest available quality (such as normal map textures).	N/A	Increased memory usage, slower rendering, less compression artifacts.
ALPHAPRESERVATION	Computes mipmaps in a way such that the ratio of transparent/opaque pixels is maintained. This is important for textures that act as alpha masks, to prevent averaging the opacity between neighbouring pixels.	N/A	Sharper alpha masks.
NOREDUCTION	N/A	Disables unloading MIP levels based on quality settings.	Increased memory usage and higher quality on lower graphics settings.
NOMIPMAPS	N/A	Disables the use of mip-maps.	Increased memory usage and higher quality on lower graphics settings, but requires extra processing.
PRECOMPUTEDINVAVG	Computes the inverse average of the texture, per mipmap, and stores it with the texture.	Allows the simulation to read the inverse average color per MIP. Used for setting the ground texture colour of certain elements (for example, the aprons in an airport).	N/A
ANISOTROPIC	Sets the anisotropic level for the texture. This must always be last in the concatenated string and is followed by an "=" sign and the level.	Sets the anisotropic level for the texture.	N/A

`<ForceNoAlpha>`

This is a sub-element of <BitmapConfiguration> and has no atrtributes. It is used to specify whether the texture should be rendered with the alpha component intact (false) or not (true). For example:

<ForceNoAlpha>
    true
</ForceNoAlpha>

Note that if this element is not included in the XML then the default setting is "false".