====== OFP TexView ======

[[https://www.pmctactical.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=43|OFP Forum]], [[:ofp|OFP Home]], [[ofp:file_formats|OFP File Formats]], [[ofp:tools|OFP Tools]], [[ofp:missions|OFP Missions]], [[ofp:modeling|OFP 3D Modeling]], [[ofp:terrain|OFP Terrain]]

**Operation Flashpoint (OFP)** aka ArmA: Cold War Assault (CWA)

TexView is texture viewer and conversion tool supporting internal texture formats of Operation Flashpoint.

====== Supported formats ======

Input:\\
  * JPG
  * TGA (24 bit / 32 bit with alpha channel)
  * PAA
  * PAC

Important note: All input textures should have resolution 2^x / 2^y (e.g. 16 / 16, 32 / 32, 64 / 64, 256 /256).

Output:\\
  * TGA (32 bit with alpha channel)
  * PAA/PAC ( 12 bit RGB + 4 bit alpha channer / 8 bit grayscale + 8 bit alpha channel / 16 bit DTX DirectX compressed texture format with optional 1 bit alpha channel)

====== How to use it ======

You can open any supported image using menu File / Open or drag and drop the image file icon into the main window of Texview (tip: you may assign PAA and PAC extensions to TEXVIEW application using Windows desktop).

You can save the file into the format you need. The output file format (PAC, PAA or TGA) will be choosen depending on the extension you write in "Save As..." dialog to the filename line. Bit depth and optional alpha channel will be selected automaticaly depending on the format of the source image. Please be aware that bit depth of the exported texture may be lower than bit depth of your source image. During the export all mipmap levels of the texture will be created automatically.

Currently supported textures in Operation Flashpoint can have resolution up to 256 x 256. Higher resolution textures are fully supported by TexView tool and Flashpoint can work with them but it will always force to use 256 x 256 mipmap (maybe this will be changed in some future version of the game exe).

====== Available functions ======

-File

Open [CTRL-O] - open an image file\\
Save as... - export the image file

-MiMap

Prev [up] - display previous mipmap level\\
Next [down] - display next mipmap level

Generate - generates mipmap levels for previewing by Up/Down. You don't have to use it before save, because TexView generates all mipmap levels automatically when saving.

-View

Toolbar - display / hide toolbar\\
Statusbar - display / hide statusbar\\
Zoom in [+] - zoom in\\
Zoom out [-] - zoom out\\
Show alpha - display alpha channel on / off\\
Show RGB - display RGB channel on / off

====== Alpha channels and bit depth ======

See SAMPLE\iabrams.tga as an example how to use alpha channel in the game. Please note that bit depth of result will depend on the alpha channel of source. Don't use alpha channel unless you really need it. Even when you need it, prefer using simple transparency (alpha value always fully transparent or fully opaque) rather than full alpha blending. One bit transparency (alpha-testing) will be used if you use 100% black and 100% white only in the alpha channel of the source image. This allows using more bits for color information and it is also an easy way to avoid any artifacts that are hard to avoid when using real alpha blending.

Check also [[arma:file_formats:paa|PAA file format]].

Download [[ftp://www.flashpoint1985.com/flashpoint/breathe/doc/TexView_11.zip|here]] at bis pages.