Hey fellas...
-You guys are awesome...this fourm is equally awesome...so is 3DGS...
-Germany, Canada, USA, Japan, Sweden, Thailand...
-I wish global Goverments worked together so well!
-But that's Politics so I guess we shouldn't go there...

So, back to the topic at hand...
Here is the situation...
-My terrain is incredible...
Made from a USGS .dem and converted to a .hmp
These are the stats:
1.) 1551 x 1142 = 1,771,242 Verticies... (Thanks to Ver. 6.40 Chunking...)
2.) 1.935 x 2.629 triangle size
3.) Terrain size 2999.9 x 2999.9
4.) 683 x 683 Skin Size (I would prefer a 2048 x 2048 - best detail.)
5.) Covers 30 kilometers x 30 kilometers (Not my largest project.)
-There is a sky dome.
-Cyberbabe is the player...
-No sprites - yet, no Buildings - yet, no snow particles - yet and no AI - yet.
-I have tried many concepts for the trees...
From LOD_0 (140 vert's, 168 faces, 32pix x 32pix skin, 24 bit, 96 res, .bmp)
to LOD_3 (14 vert's, 24 faces, 8pix x 8pix skin, 24 bit, 96 res, .bmp)
-I have tried 1 tree at lod_0 to 10 trees at lod_3 (more trees at distance)
-I have tried the fog but to look natural no frame rate increase...
Too much fog does not look natural...
-My terrain is mountanous so to leave lod_3 empty, when you look at distance
looks bad and when the lods kick-in trees appear and or disappear - bad...
-To get proper scale, my terrain is huge and my "player" is very small...
-Camera distances are therefore adjusted so in 3d person I see the player
properly.
-LOD settings are dependant on the clip far variable...
-"Clip far" is set high... To not loose distant terrain...
-"Var loadfacters" are set very low... to kick in to not see changes...
-If "load factors" were not dependant on "clip far" - this could really help.
-Here are my script variables...
var video_mode = 8;
var video_depth = 32;
var video_screen = 1;
var terrain_chunk = 180;
var d3d_triplebuffer = 1;
var time_smooth = 0.99;
var tex_share = 1;
var pos_resolution = 1;
var enable_polycollision = 0;
var shadow_stencil = on ;
var d3d_lightres = on;
var floor_trace = 0;
-Here are function main flags and variables...
tex_share = on;
video_set(sys_metrics(0),sys_metrics(1),32,1);
Camera.clip_near = 5;
camera.clip_far = 100000;
shadow_range = 2;
sky_clip = 40;
var lodfactor[3] = 1, 2, 10;
sky_color.red = 30; //Sky dome is transparent
sky_color.green = 30;
sky_color.blue = 238;
camera.fog = 1;
camera.fog_start = 0.01* clip_range;
camera.fog_end = 2.5* clip_range;
d3d_fogcolor1.red = 132;
d3d_fogcolor1.green = 132;
d3d_fogcolor1.blue = 234;
fog_color = 1;

-I will be using a 3 image splash intro...
-I resourse (.wrs) to pack files and shorten game load time and file download time.

-I am working with a new Sony Vio w/ a gig of ram and 2 gig processer, water cooled - dual processer, so the build compiler kicks in to the 2 cpu setting...

-Maybe I am asking to much of the software and of users computers!!!!
-If you look at my "ski game" (link in my signature below) you will see
that I offer internet downloaders 3 quality versions dependant on user
computer configuration.
That game does not use a USGS .dem
I made the terrain from my memory and site analysis.
I had not yet figured out the .dem -to- .hmp conversion process.

Thanks to all trying to help...
If we figure a way to make this work well...
We stand to advance global simulation use...
Thanks again...
Paul