configure.in script changes:

[flightgear.git] / docs-mini / README.xmlpanel

diff --git a/docs-mini/README.xmlpanel b/docs-mini/README.xmlpanel
index 08830190cc1b90022b007891ee4f164289a1e576..6019cc028f2a967bf014fd75cd11db1fa6a0cae4 100644 (file)
--- a/docs-mini/README.xmlpanel
+++ b/docs-mini/README.xmlpanel
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 Users Guide to FlightGear panel configuration
-Version 0.4, October 11 2000
+Version 0.6, March 1 2001
 Author: John Check <j4strngs@rockfish.net>  
 
 This document is an attempt to describe the configuration of 
@@ -28,13 +28,13 @@ via XML to address this limitation.
 
 Using Custom Panels:
 
-The default panel location is $FG_ROOT/Panels/Default/default.xml.
+The default panel location is $FG_ROOT/Aircraft/c172/Panels/Default.
 $FG_ROOT is the place on your filesystem where you installed FG
 data files. Alternate panels can be specified on the command line 
-or set as the default in the $HOME/.fgfsrc or $FG_ROOT/system.fgfsrc 
-using a property specification. The format is as follows:
+or set as the default in the $HOME/.fgfsrc or $FG_ROOT/preferences.xml 
+using a property specification. The command line format is as follows:
 
---prop:/sim/panel/path=Panels/Default/default.xml
+--prop:/sim/panel/path=Aircraft/c172/Panels/Default
 
 The path description shown is relative to $FG_ROOT. An absolute
 path may also be used for locations outside $FG_ROOT. I would 
@@ -62,10 +62,10 @@ Comments are bracketed with <!-- -->.
 
 <PropertyList>
  <name>Example Panel</name>
- <background>Panels/Default/Textures/panel-bg.rgb</background>
+ <background>Aircraft/c172/Panels/Textures/panel-bg.rgb</background>
  <instruments>
   <clock>         <!-- the "unique_name" -->
-   <path>Instruments/Default/clock.xml</path>
+   <path>Aircraft/c172/Instruments/clock.xml</path>
    <x>110</x>
    <y>320</y>
    <w>72</w>      <!-- optional width specification -->
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ Comments are bracketed with <!-- -->.
  </instruments>
 </PropertyList>
   
-The default location for instrument files is $FG_ROOT/Instruments/Default/.
+The default location for instrument files is $FG_ROOT/Aircraft/c172/Instruments/.
 Alternate locations may be specified in the panel configuration, paths
 must be absolute to use files outside $FG_ROOT.
 
@@ -96,9 +96,9 @@ may be static, as in a label, or generated (if it needs to be dynamic, as
 in an LED display), or a combination of both. 
 A switch layer is composed of two or more nested layers and will display
 one of the nested layers based on a boolean property. For a simple example 
-of a switch see $FG_ROOT/Instruments/Default/brake.xml. Textures used in a 
-switch context *must* have width and height specified to be visible.
-Each layer may contain zero or more transformations.  
+of a switch see $FG_ROOT/Aircraft/Custom/Instruments/brake.xml. 
+Textures used in a switch context *must* have width and height specified to be 
+visible. Each layer may contain zero or more transformations.  
 
 A transformation is a rotation, an x-shift, or a y-shift. Transformations 
 can be static  or they can be based on properties. Static rotations are 
@@ -124,10 +124,33 @@ applied *before* the transformation that describes the needle movement.
 About Textures:
 
 The texture files used to create the panel instruments are maximum 256x256
-pixels, red/green/blue/alpha format. When calling a section of a texture file
-the 0,0 lower left convention is used. There is a pair of x /y coordinates
-defining which section of the texture to use. 
-
+pixels, red/green/blue/alpha format. However the mechanism for specifying
+texture cropping coordinates is decimal in nature. When calling a section 
+of a texture file the 0,0 lower left convention is used.
+There is a pair of x/y coordinates defining which section of the texture 
+to use. 
+
+The following table can be used to calculate texture cropping specifications.
+
+# of divisions | width in pixels | decimal specification
+per axis
+        1   =   256 pixels              1
+        2   =   128 pixels,             0.5
+        4   =   64 pixels,              0.25
+        8   =   32 pixels,              0.125
+        16  =   16 pixels,              0.0625
+        32  =   8 pixels,               0.03125
+        64  =   4 pixels,               0.015625
+        128 =   2 pixels,               0.0078125
+
+The recommended procedure for generating gauge faces is to use a
+vector graphics package such as xfig, exporting the result as a
+poscript file. 3D modeling tools may also be used and are prefered
+for pretty items that don't require text such as levers, switches,
+bezels and so forth. Ideally, the size of the item in the final render
+should be of proportions that fit into the recommended pixel widths.
+The resulting files should be imported into a graphics manipulation
+package such as GIMP, et al for final processing.
 
 
 *  If there are *any* XML parsing errors, the panel will fail to load, 
@@ -140,5 +163,3 @@ defining which section of the texture to use.
    there may also be built-in layers for special things like a
    weather-radar display or a GPS (though the GPS could be handled with
    text properties).
-
-