And what does the "file=$texture_A.bmp" do if the texture= line is the one the gauges actualy go to? Some have it and some don't.

[Vcockpit02]
file=$texture_A.bmp    <----what is this line for?
Background_color=0,0,0
size_mm=512,512
visible=0                    <----what does this line mean?
pixel_size=512,512
texture=$texture_A    <----this line determines which invisible texture the gauge goes to...?

Using notepad.exe, I added two [VcockpitXX] entries to the existing panel.cfg file, something that FSPS still cannot do on its own. Then, I selected all the gauges that the Kodiak uses, and used FSPS to arrange the gauges to “best fit” the available space of two 1024x1024 areas.

   //--------------------------------------------------------
   [Vcockpit01]
   file=pan1.bmp            // this is the “visible” background image 24-bit RGB
   size_mm=1024,1024
   visible=1
   pixel_size=1024,1024s
   texture=$pan1            // this is the $dummy texture filename used in Max/Gmax

   //--------------------------------------------------------
   [Vcockpit02]
   file=pan2. bmp           // this is the “visible” background image 24-bit RGB
   Background_color=0,0,0
   size_mm=1024,1024
   visible=1
   pixel_size=1024,1024s
   texture=$pan2            // this is the $dummy texture filename used in Max/Gmax

A Brief, But Necessary Digression

I must now take a few moments to mention a “gotcha” that factors into the topic of gauges and gauge polygons.
The chief "gotcha" that occurs with this method is that when the lights are on, the entire surface of the gauge poly loses transparency and becomes "black."  The simple fix for this problem is obvious in retrospect: where there is no surface, there is no black showing!

There are several ways to overcome this problem and this is an excellent example of why you need to keep this in mind during the "Strategic Planning" part of VC development:

  1. Apply a base texture to the poly via a panel.cfg entry (aka: cover up)
  2. Make the gauge poly the exact size and shape of the actual gauge being used (aka: cookie-cutter)
  3. Move the gauge poly behind the physical panel (aka: peek-a-boo)

Moving Along...

For the Kodiak project, I chose to use a combination of cover up and cookie-cutter, since all of the gauges used in the real aircraft are surface mounted, unlike most Piper aircraft that use mostly backmounted gauges.  There are two ways of getting a texture on the main panel. The first uses a bitmap in the \panel folder and the second uses bitmap in the \texture folder. Where in FS9 there is no obvious advantage to either method, in FSX using the \texture folder method would allow the developer to apply bump and specular mapping if they so desired. Regardless of which of the two locations is used though, the lightmap bitmap will always be placed in the \texture folder.

NOTE: If you decide to place the VC bitmaps in the \panel folder, they MUST be 24-bit format! The panel system will not load compressed images.

[Vcockpit01]

   //--------------------------------------------------------
   [Vcockpit01]
   file=pan1.bmp
   Background_color=0,0,0
   size_mm=1024,1024
   visible=1
   pixel_size=1024,1024s
   texture=$pan1

For the sake of sanity, I name all bitmaps using a common “root” so that I can keep track of them.  The file= entry is used to tell FSX where to find the background texture for the panel.  The texture= entry defines the name of the texture that FSX will automatically create at run-time for the gauge system to use. The “lightmap” is named “pan1_L.dds”.

The best way to visualize what the $filename is...  is to think of it as a perfectly square, 2D panel.. with all the gauges on it, in no particular order. The only way I've ever created one, is with PanelStudio.. and then literally take a screen shot of the big, square panel... that becomes $filename.bmp (after cropping and resizing to 1024X1024)  ,  because it's a near perfect representaition of the gauge layout (defined in a panel.cfg)

Yeah.. lotsa cross-talk.. as in jumping from one concept to another, before fully understanding any of them..  This "shotgun" method has merit though.. in forcing you to see how important it is to take it slow.