====== Falcon 4 PCX To DDS Conversion ======

[[https://www.pmctactical.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=47|Falcon 4.0 Forum]], [[:falcon4|Falcon 4 Home]], [[falcon4:campaign|Falcon 4 Campaign]], [[falcon4:cockpits|Falcon 4 Cockpits]], [[falcon4:database|Falcon 4 Database]], [[falcon4:file_formats|Falcon 4 File Formats]], [[falcon4:srtm|Falcon 4 SRTM Terrain]], [[falcon4:terrain|Falcon 4 Terrain]], [[falcon4:textures|Falcon 4 Textures]], [[falcon4:tools|Falcon 4 Tools]]

To convert your old pcx (Original Falcon and AF) tiles into DDS format what RV and OF uses, there is few options. You can do everything manually by using utility like [[http://www.irfanview.com/|IrFanview]], [[http://www.imageconverterplus.com/how-to-convert/pcx_dds.html|Image Converter Plus]] or super manually by PhotoShop and save tile by tile (but I dont know anyone who would do it this way), or you can use the automated method with an extra utility.

This automated method is by using utils called [[falcon4:tools:seasonswitcher|SeasonSwitcher]] found in the various RV and OF installation packages.

When you run this util, it reads the Falcon 4 registry for curTheater directory, it then proceeds to find //\terrdata\textures\// directory and starts to process the texture.zip and texture.bin found in this directory.

<code>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE "SOFTWARE\Microprose\Falcon\4.0" "curTheater"
</code>

And

<code>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE "SOFTWARE\Microprose\Falcon\4.0" "theaterDir"
</code>

**Usage**:

<code>
SeasonSwitcher.exe -0
</code>

To run it automatically from command line.

If you want to run it together with registry modification so you dont need to go ingame Falcon to change it, do it like this (in our example for "Vietnam" theater):

<code>
reg add HKLM\Software\Microprose\Falcon\4.0 /v curTheater /t REG_SZ /d "Vietnam" /F
SeasonSwitcher.exe -0
</code>

The util then reads the texture.zip and creates new DDS files for each of the pcx found in the texture.bin, it also creates the completely new fartiles system.

**Note!**\\
If your texture.bin contains "holes" so that you are missing **ANY** tiles at the texture.zip, this util will fail to create the tiles, it just gives you an error and exits. This is major downside of the util if you happen to have such "holes" in the texture.zip - a fact known to happen in my theaters tile-sets sometimes.

Also if your registry is not set for proper theater you want to process, the util runs the current theater (what ever that might happen to be).



====== Notes ======

There is also util called **TerrainTexCompress**.exe.  This program basically peforms the same process of convering pcx to dds but t will also run thru the KO.TEX file and convert all the indexed BMP textures in the KO.TEX file and populate the KoreaOBJ (DDS) folder for the Cobra/RV/OF. **SeasonSwticher** performs a similar function but instead has a preset for changing the color palletes by a specific stepwise offset to simulate the four seasons. I haven't seen the specific set of instructions that are associated with each of the four season offsets but I would guess that the setting for -0 gives the standard color setting without any change to the orignial pallete, the other settings for -1, -2, -3 all introduce some sort of adjustment to the existing pallete that offsets the colors in a way to increase the color of tiles in some direction, (and I am just guessing now) more yellow/red, more blue/green, or more towards a grey/white. Note, that experience has shown that these generic color offsets do not seem to work well for all tile sets.  It is up to the user to decide what looks best for their personal use.