Version du 04/12/2006 – traduction by Nap0

Mission Creation
Créateur de mission

Overview
Vue d'ensemble

The purpose of this document is to explain how to create missions for Flight Simulator X. A mission is a structured flight that can be an adventure, a tutorial, a test of knowledge or skill, a fun ride, or whatever the creator can dream up. These missions are stored in XML files and are made available to the user through the Missions menu of Flight Simulator X.
Le but de ce document est d'expliquer comment créer des missions dans FSX. Une mission est un vol vol organisé qui peut être une aventure, un tutoriel, un test de connaissance or skill, une course ou encore tout ce que vous pouvez imaginer. Les missions sont stockées dans des fichiers XML et sont disponibles par le menu mission de FSX

Creating Missions involves use of the Object Placement Tool, which is powerful but not the easiest or most obvious tool to use.
La création de missions nécessite d'utiliser l'outil de placement d'objets, il est puissant mais ce n'est pas le plus simple a utiliser.

The Tutorial section of this document explains how to install the tool, how to create a simple mission using it, and how to add that Mission so that it shows up in Flight Simulator X.
Cette section explique comment installer l'outil, comment créer une simple mission et comment l'ajouter dans les missions de FSX

The Reference section of this document explains all the options available to make more complex and involved missions.
La section Référence décrit toutes les options disponible pour créer des missions très complexes.

Table of Contents
Table des matières

• Overview

  • Table of Contents

  • Setup

    • Testing for a successful setup

  • Tutorial: Creating a Mission

    • Step 1: Design the Mission

    • Step 2: Create the Mission Metadata

    • Creating New Categories

    • Step 3: Link the Mission to a Flight File

    • Step 4: Test for successful creation of the Mission

    • Step 5: Record the Audio for the Mission

    • Step 6: Introduce the Mission to the User

    • Step 7: Add a Property Trigger, or two

    • Step 8: Add a Proximity Trigger

    • Step 9: Add an Object Activation Action

    • Step 10: Add an Airport Landing Trigger

    • Step 11: Add Goals and Rewards

    • Creating Rewards

    • Step 12: Test and Refine the Mission

    • Creating an SPB file

  • Mission Object Reference

    • Actions

      • Generic Action Properties

      • Activate Waypoints Action

      • Adjust Payload Action

      • Attach Droppable Payload Action

      • Attach Effect Action

      • Change Object Type Action

      • Count Action

      • Custom Action

      • Dialog Action

      • Failure Action

      • Goal Resolution Action

      • Grant Reward Action

      • Object Activation Action

      • One Shot Sound Action

      • Play Animation Action

      • Play List Action

      • Point Of Interest Activation Action

      • Random Action

      • ResetTimer Action

      • Rumble Action

      • Spawn Action

      • Timer Adjust Action

    • AI Object

      • AircraftAI Object

      • TakeoffAI Object

      • LandingAI Object

      • TaxiAI Object

      • GroundVehicleAI Object

      • Waypoint List Object 

      • Waypoint Object

    • Area Definition Object

    • Group Object

    • Mission Object

      • Camera Mission Object

      • Attached World Position Object

      • Attached World Object

      • Picture In Picture View Controller Mission Object

      • Point Of Interest Mission Object

      • Realism Overrides Mission Object

      • Ridge Lift Mission Object

      • Scenario Metadata Mission Object

      • Thermal Mission Object

    • Scenery Objects

    • Mobile Scenery Objects

    • Spawn List

    • Triggers

      • Generic Trigger Properties

      • Airport Landing Trigger

      • Area Landing Trigger

      • Counter Trigger

      • Menu Prompt Trigger

      • Parking Trigger

      • Property Trigger

      • Proximity Trigger

      • Timer Trigger

    • Goal Object

    • Disabled Traffic Airport Object

Setup
Installation

The tool itself is coded in Object_Placement.dll. Object_Placement.dll can be found in the Microsoft Flight Simulator X\SDK\Mission Creation Kit directory.
L'outil lui-même est codé dans la DLL Object_Placement.dll. On peut le trouver dans le dossier Microsoft Flight Simulator X\SDK\Mission Creation Kit

To install the dll, the dll.xml file in the <Drive>:\Documents and Settings\<alias>\Application Data\Microsoft\FSX folder should contain the following bold lines (if the dll.xml file already exists in this folder), or the dll.xml file should contain all the following (if the dll.xml file does not already exist at the right location).
Pour installer la dll, le fichier dll.xml dans le dossier <Drive>:\Documents and Settings\<alias>\Application Data\Microsoft\FSX doit contenir les lignes en gras ci-dessous. Si le fichier n'existe pas, il faut le créer avec le contenu ci-dessous

Note that the Disabled entries must be False, and that the Path is either absolute or relative to the installation Microsoft Flight Simulator X folder. The path given above will change if the SDK or Flight Simulator were not installed to their default folders. If there are other addons that need to be loaded in addition to the Object Placement tool, then they will also need <Launch.Addon> entries.
This is all the setup that is necessary.
Remarquez que l'entrée Disabled doit être à False et que le chemin peut être absolu ou relatif. Si il y a d'autres addons, il seront déclarés dans la section <Lauch.Addon>

Testing for a successful setup
Tester l'installation

You will know that Flight Simulator has correctly installed the tool when you start up Flight Simulator. Firstly there will be a diagnostic window for SimConnect that should report that the dll has been launched. Secondly the tool will be available in the Tools menu of Flight Simulator.
Vous saurez si l'outil est correctement installé quand vous démarrerez FS. Premièrement une fenêtre de diagnostic pour SimConnect doit vous indiquer qu'une DLL a été lancée. Deuxièmement, le logiciel sera disponible dans le menu Outils de FS

Ensure that Flight Simulator is running in Windows mode and not full screen mode (you can toggle between these modes by pressing Alt-Enter).
Assurez-vous que FS fonctionne en mode fenêtre et non pas plein écran (touche Alt-Enter)

If you get an error message in the SimConnect diagnostic window, check the SimConnect.xml file for the correct path to the tool, and check the tool is where is should be.
Si vous rencontrez un message d'erreur dans SimConnect, vérifiez le fichier SimConnect.xml

If the tool has been installed correctly, clicking on Object Placement in the Tools menu will give you the dialog below:
Si l'outil a été installé correctement, Cliquer sur Object Placement dans le menu Outils et vous obtiendrez la fenêtre suivante :

Recommendation

Because of the size of the dialogs, it can be easier to create missions using dual screens: one containing the tool dialogs, and the other showing the terrain where the Mission objects are being placed. If you are using a single small monitor, you will have to keep moving the tool dialogs out of the way to correctly position your objects.
Parce que la taille des fenêtres de dialogue est importante. Il est plus facile de créer des missions en utilisant deux écrans et d'en utiliser un pour l'outil et l'autre pour visualiser le terrain.

Close Flight Simulator for now. The first step in creating a mission is done outside of the program.
Maintenant, fermez FS. La première étape se réalise en dehors du programme

Tutorial: Creating a Mission
Tutoriel: Création d'une mission

This section goes through all the steps necessary to create a simple take-off, perform a single task, and landing mission.
Cette section montre toutes les étapes pour créer une simple mission : Décollage, réaliser une simple opération, atterrir

Step 1: Design the Mission
Etape 1: Organiser la mission

For experienced mission designers it is a very good idea to design the mission in some detail before even starting to use the tool to create it. However for newcomers to the tool it is easier simply to start with a basic outline. For the purposes of this tutorial in how to use the tool, the outline of our mission is:
Il est préférable pour créer une mission de la planifier auparavant dans les détails et d'en commencer la programmation même si l'outil peut semble simple à prendre en main. Pour ce tutoriel, le programme de la mission est le suivant :

1. Fly a Cessna out of Boeing Field

2. Reach a certain altitude and speed (1000 feet and 80 knots)

3. Complete a left or right traffic pattern

4. Land back at Boeing Field, trying to land on the runway number

5. When the aircraft has landed, the mission is over

1. Vol en Cessna à partir de Boeing Field

2. Atteindre l'altitude de 1000 pieds et 80 noeuds

3. Réaliser un virage à droite ou à gauche

4. Revenir à l'aéroport en essayant de se poser sur le numéro de piste

5. Quand l'avion à atteri, la mission est terminée

The mission will simply be called MissionCreationTutorial.
Le nom de la mission sera MissionCreationTutorial

Having decided on this the next stage is to do a bit of preparatory work before working the tool. Flight Simulator loads up the missions that are in the Microsoft Flight Simulator X/missions directory, so start by adding a sub-directory to this called Missions in Progress, and a sub-directory to this called Creation Tutorial.
Nous allons dans cette étape préparer le travail avant d'utiliser l'outil. FS charge les missions qui sont dans le répertoire Microsoft Flight Simulator X/missions. Commençons par créer un sous répertoire appelé Missions in Progress et un autre appelé Creation Tutorial

Now add three files to the Creation Tutorial directory: two images files and one HTML briefing file. The two image files should be square and will appear in the Missions list of Flight Simulator. The first will be used before the mission has been completed by the user, and the second for when the mission has been completed. The images should be 380 pixels wide by 232 pixels in height and either 256 color or 5-6-5 format (use the Imagetool utility to convert 24 bit bmp files to 5-6-5 format.). The image should give some idea of what the mission is about. For our tutorial we will use a simple picture of a Cessna:
Maintenant, ajoutons 3 fichiers dans le dossier Creation Tutorial. 2 fichiers image et un fichier HTML contenant le briefing. La première sera utilisée juste avant la fin de la mission et l'autre à la fin de la mission. L'image doit faire 380x232 pixels et au moins 256 couleurs ou alors le format 5-6-5 (utilisez Imagetool pour convertir les bmp 24 bits au format 5-6-5). L'image doit donner une idée de ce que sera la mission. Pour notre tutoriel, nous utiliserons simplement une image de Cessna



The briefing file should be an HTML file describing the mission. You will probably not be able to complete the briefing file until the final mission is completed and tested, but for now use one of the images and our mission description. For example:
Le fichier HTML du briefing décrit la mission. Il sera probablement complété quand la mission aura été créée et testée. Par exemple :

Mission Creation Tutorial

In summary the Creation Tutorial directory now contains three files:

• Cessna_Complete.jpg

• Cessna_Incomplete.jpg

• MissionCreationTutorial.HTML

En résumé, le dossier Creation Tutorial contient maintenant 3 fichiers : Cessna_complete.jpg, Cessna_Incomplete.jpg et MissionCreationTutorial.HTML

Step 2: Create the Mission Metadata
Etape 2: Créer les méta données de la mission

The next step is to create metadata for the mission. Some of this information is simply for your own use in organizing and retrieving the missions that you are working on. Start up Flight Simulator again, and select FREE FLIGHT. For aircraft select the Cessna C172P Skyhawk and for airport select Boeing Field King Co Intl. Then select Fly Now and click on the Object Placement Tool from the tools menu.
L'étape suivante consiste a créer les méta données pour la mission. Démarrez FS et sélectionnez Vol libre. Choisissez Cessna C172P Skyhawk et l'aéroport Boeing Field King Co Intl (KBFI). Cliquez sur Voler Maintenant puis sur Object Placement dans le menu Outils.

In the main Mission tab, first click New Mission then enter a suitable name and description. Enter Mission Creation Tutorial for the name, and some appropriate text for the description. These do not appear when the mission is being run, but are simply for your own use in cataloging and maintaining your own missions. Next click on the Objects tab, this will give you the following screen:
Sur l'onglet Mission, cliquez sur New Mission et entrez un nom et une description. Par exemple Mission Creation Tutorial pour le nom et le texte «qui va bien» pour la description. Ceci n'apparaîtra pas quand la mission sera lancée. C'est simplement pour des raisons de classement et d'organisation. Ensuite, cliquez sur l'onglet Objects. Ce qui donnera l'écran suivant.



Click on the Add button, then in the First drop down list (activated by clicking within the box) select MissionObject. Click in the Second box to display the drop down list of mission objects, and select ScenarioMetadata. Click on Add again and the dialog should look like this:
Cliquez sur la bouton Add, dans la première liste déroulante, choisissez MissionObject. Cliquez sur la seconde liste des objets missions et choisissez ScenarioMetadata. Cliquez encore sur Add et la fenêtre doit afficher donner ceci

Note

If you get the error message "You need to be looking at or closer to the ground" - use the hat switch on the joystick to lower the green cross hairs so that they point at the ground. This can be necessary even though the object being entered is not relevant to any particular ground location.
Si vous avez un message d'erreur «You need to be looking at or closer to the ground», utilisez le «chapeau» de votre joystick pour abaisser le pointeur vert jusqu'à ce qu'il touche le sol. Cela peut être nécessaire pour les objets qui sont entré sans position particulière.

The next step is to add the appropriate values for the properties of the metadata. To edit any value double click on the entry in the Value box. For our simple mission, enter Mission into ScenarioType, Seattle into LocationDesc, select Beginner for skill level, and  enter 15 minutes for EstimatedTime. The DifficultyLevel can be any integer value, and is used to sort the list of missions by difficulty - easiest appearing first. Leave this at 0 so that the mission appears at the top of the list each time you start Flight Simulator, for convenience. When you have completed creating the mission, if it is to be used by others, then compare the difficulty (and the DifficultyLevel value) with other missions and then change this to an appropriate value.
L'étape suivant consiste à donner des valeurs appropriées aux méta données. Pour éditer une valeur, double-cliquez sur le champ Value. Pour notre mission, entrons Mission dans ScenarioType, Seattle dans LocationDesc, Beginner pour le niveau et 15 minutes pour EstimatedTime. DifficultyLevel pour être n'importe quelle valeur entière. Elle est utilisé pour trier l'ordre des missions par difficulté. Les plus faciles apparaissent en premier. Mettez 0 pour que celle-ci apparaissent en haut chaque fois que vous lancerez FS. Lorsque vous aurez terminé de créer la mission et après plusieurs essais par vous même et d'autres vous aurez peut être besoin d'ajuster cette valeur.

UncompletedImage refers to the bitmap that is to be displayed before the mission has been completed by the user, so type Cessna_Incomplete.jpg here, and obviously the CompletedImage refers to the bitmap that will be used when the mission has been completed, so type Cessna_Complete.jpg. For MissionBrief type MissionCreationTutorial.HTML. It is important not to add a filename to the metadata until that file acutally exists, otherwise the tool may crash. This is why we created the briefing file and images first.
UncompletedImage fait référence à une bitmap qui sera affiché juste avant que la mission sera terminée.Dans notre exemple, Cessna_Incomplete.jpg. CompletedImage fait référence à une bitmap qui sera affichée lorsque la mission sera terminée, ici Cessna_Complete.jpg Pour MissionBrief, tapez MissionCreationTutorial.HTML. Il est important de ne pas ajouter les noms de fichiers tant que ceux n'existent pas car cela peut planter l'outil. C'est la raison pour laquelle nous les avons créés en premier.

Leave the text messages and CategoryRef unchanged for now.
Laissez les messages de texte et CategoryRef en l'état pour le moment.

Now save off the mission, by going back to the Mission tab and clicking Save Mission. The default is to save the mission file into your My Documents\Flight Simulator Files X directory, but instead navigate to the Microsoft Flight Simulator X\missions\Missions in Progress\Creation Tutorial directory, and save the mission there with the filename MissionCreationTutorial. Saving a mission will write out the details of the mission to an XML file. If you open up the file that has just been saved it should look similar to this:
Maintenant, sauvez la mission en retournant sur l'onglet Mission et cliquez sur Save Mission. Par défaut, la mission sera sauvée dans My Documents\Flight Simulator Files X mais à la place allez dans le répertoire Microsoft Flight Simulator X\missions\Missions in Progress\Creation Tutorial et sauvegardez la sous le nom MissionCreationTutorial. Ceci avec générer un fichier XML contenant les détails de celle-ci. Si vous ouvrez ce fichier, vous devriez y trouver quelque chose comme ci-après.

Now is a good time to enter the category of your mission. The category (referenced by a GUID in the CategoryRef property of the metadata) will idenfity the mission as one from the following list:
Maintenant le moment est venu d'entrer la catégorie de votre mission. La catégorie (GIUD dans la propriété CategoryRef des métadonnées) identifiera la mission parmi la liste suivante :

• Tutorial

• Just for Fun

• The Good Life

• Backcountry

• Pilot for Hire

• Emergency

• Airline Pilot

• Challenges

To set the category GUID in your metadata cut and paste the value out of this Category file. We will use the Tutorial category for this mission. Typically a tool such as Notepad is used to make this kind of edit to the mission data. Make sure to include the brackets {} when you cut and paste the GUID.
Pour renseigner la catégorie dans les métadonnées (CategoryRef) , copiez-collez la valeur du fichier Category File (FSCategories.xml). Ce fichier s'ouvre avec le bloc-notes (ou autres) et récupérez la valeur entre les crochets {} et avec les crochets.

Creating New Categories
Créer de nouvelles catégories

It is possible to create your own categories. To do this create a new file and add the appropriate text and GUID entries to it. The file should be placed in the Microsoft Flight Simulator X/categories folder. Refer to the Hints and Tips section of the SDK Overview documentation for information on how to generate your own GUIDs. 
Il est possible de créer votre propre catégorie. Pour ceci, créez un nouveau fichier et ajouter les balises texte et le GUID qui conviennent. Ce fichier doit être placé dans Microsoft Flight Simulator X/categories. Allez voir Trucs et Astuces du SDK Overview pour apprender à générer votre propre GUID.

The format of a new categories file follows, add as many <SimMissionUI.ScenarioCategory> elements as necessary (change the items in bold appropriately):
Le format du fichier de la nouvelle catégorie ressemblera au suivant, ajoutez autant de <SimMissionUI.ScenarioCategory> que nécessaire (changez les items en gras)

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-16" ?> <SimBase.Document Type="AceXML" version="1,0" id="FSCategories"> <Descr>AceXML Document</Descr> <Filename>YourFSCategories.xml</Filename> <SimMissionUI.ScenarioCategory id="{GUID}"> <Descr>Description of your new category.</Descr> <Title>Title of your new category </Title> <PreviewImage>banner_image.bmp</PreviewImage> </SimMissionUI.ScenarioCategory> </SimBase.Document>

The banner image should be 335 pixels wide by 75 pixels in height, and it too should be placed in the Microsoft Flight Simulator X/categories folder.
L'image bannière doit être de 335 pixels par 75 de haut et doit aussi être placée dans le dossier Microsoft Flight Simulator X/categories

References

• Scenario metadata mission object

Step 3: Link the Mission to a Flight File
Etape 3: Lier la mission au fichier de vol

The next step is to link the mission we have just started to a flight file. It is flights that are loaded into Flight Simulator, not missions, so we need to attach the two. If you have not done so already, at the start of Step 2, set up the starting location within Flight Simulator, namely create a flight with your chosen aircraft at the chosen airport. For this sample mission, we are using a Cessna at Boeing Field airport.
L'étape suivante consiste à lier la mission que nous avons commencé avec un fichier de vol. Ce sont les vols qui sont chargés dans Flight Simulator, pas les missions, ainsi nous avons besoin de lier les deux. Si vous n'avez pas déjà fait ce que est au début du point 2, sélectionnez la position de départ dans Flight Simulator en créant un vol en choisissant un avion et un aéroport. Pour cette exemple, nous utilisons un Cessna sur l'aéroport Boeing Field.

Having placed your aircraft at the right location, simply select Save Flight from the Flights menu and save it off. Name the saved file MissionCreationTutorial. Now close Flight Simulator.
Après avoir placé l'avion au bon endroit, sauvegardez le vol et nommez le MissionCreationTutorial. Maintenant fermez FS

Next go to the My Documents\Flight Simulator Files X directory and cut and paste (or move) the flight file and weather file of the flight that you just saved over to the location where you saved the mission. In our example, the mission was saved to the Missions in Progress\Creation Tutorial directory, which, after moving the flight and weather files, should now contains six files:
Ensuite allez dans le dossier Mes Documents\Flight Simulator Files X et coupez collez le fichier de vol et de météo que vous venez de sauvegarder. Sans notre exemple, la mission a été sauvegardée dans le répertoire Progress\Creation Tutorial. Après cette opération, nous devons trouver six fichiers.

• MissionCreationTutorial.xml

• MissionCreationTutorial.FLT

• MissionCreationTuturial.WX

• Cessna_Complete.jpg

• Cessna_Incomplete.jpg

• MissionCreationTutorial.HTML

• MissionCreationTutorial.xml

• MissionCreationTutorial.FLT

• MissionCreationTutorial.WX

• Cessna_Complete.jpg

• Cessna_Incomplete.jpg

• MissionCreationTutorial.HTML

In the Creation Tutorial directory, open up the flight file (MissionCreationTutorial.FLT) in Notepad.
Dans le répertoire Creation Tutorial, ouver à l'aide du bloc-note (ou un autre éditeur) le fichier MissionCreationTutorial.FLT

The first section of a flight file should be [Main]. Under this should be Title= and Description=. This is the text that will appear as the title and description for the mission in the Missions menu (along with the image file created earlier), so edit the text, perhaps adding spaces, so that it is what you want. For example:
La première section du fichier de vol doit être [Main]. ensuite ce doit être Title= et Description=. C'est le texte qui apparaitra comme le titre et la description de la mission dans le menu des missions (avec l'image créée plus haut). Editez le texte selon votre souhait. Par exemple :

[Main]
Title=Mission Creation Tutorial
Description=Décoller et voler !

Now go to the very end of the file and type the following section entry:
Maintenant allez tout à la fin du fichier et ajouter la section suivante :

[ObjectFile]
File=MissionCreationTutorial

Note that the xml file extension is not added to the filename, and that there are no spaces around the equals signs. This links the mission to the flight file.
Notez que l'extension xml n'est pas ajoutée au nom du fichier et qu'il n'y a pas d'espace autour du signe égal. Ceci fait la liaison avec le fichier de vol.

Now save off the flight file.
Maintenant sauvez et fermez le fichier

Step 4: Test for successful creation of the Mission
Etape 4: Tester la mission

The next step is simply to test what we have done so far. Start up Flight Simulator, select Missions in the left hand menu, and check that the Mission Creation Tutorial has appeared with the correct image and text.
L'étape suivante consiste simplement à tester ce que nous avons fait précédemment. Démarrer FS, sélectionnez le menu Missions et vérifiez que la mission : Mission Creation Tutorial apparait avec la bonne image et le bon texte

Select the mission. The first thing that should appear is the short briefing file we created. Then click Fly Now. You should be sitting on the runway in a Cessna at Boeing Field. If all is well select End Flight. An End of Mission dialog should appear, but without any goals or rewards, as we have not yet added any to our mission.
Sélectionnez la mission, La première chose qui chose apparaitre est le court texte du briefing que nous aovns créé. Cliquez sur Voler maintenant. Vous vous retrouvez alors sur l'aéroport de Boeing Field. Si tout est ok. Sélectionnez Fin du vol. A la fin de la mission, une fenêtre de dialogue doit s'afficher mais avec aucun but ou récompenses puisque nous ne l'avons pas encore ajouté à la mission.

If all this appears correctly then the first steps are complete, if not examine the xml and flight files to check for mistakes.
Si tout parait OK dans ces premières étapes passons à la suite. Sinon, vérifiez les fichier xml et de vol à la recherche des erreurs.

>>>>> FIN TESTS + RELECTURE ICI au 04/12/2006 <<<<<

Step 5: Record the Audio for the Mission
Etape 5: Enregistrer les sons de la missions

You can of course record the audio for your mission at any time, but as you are going to start adding dialog and other actions to the mission, now might be a good time to do it. Each piece of spoken text, by a co-pilot, ATC, instructor, passenger, or whoever, should be recorded, probably in mono. Also, any special sound effects should be created too, which could be in mono or stereo sound as appropriate.
Vous pouvez bien sur enregistrer du son pour votre mission à n'importe quel moment, mais c'est peut être le bon moment pour le faire. Chaque annonce par, le co-pilot, ATC, instructeur, passager ou tout autre devrait être enregistré en mono. Des sons spéciaux peuvent aussi être créés en mono ou stéréo selon les circonstances.

Most sound files should be created as 22KHz mono wave (.wav) files. There is no point sampling at a higher rate as the sound engine will downsample any such files to 22KHz. MS-ADPCM compression is an option, but is not required. Typically audio content will sound better uncompressed, but this will use up about four times the storage space.
La plupart de fichier doivent être échantillonnés à 22KHz en mono ou stéréo. Il n'y a pas d'intérêt a choisir un taux plus élevé. MS-ADPCM est une option pour la compression mais n'est pas obligatoire. Classiquement, plus le son sera de bonne qualité plus le fichier prendra de place sur le disque

You wiill probably have to revisit your sound recordings during the testing of your mission, but having the recordings handy now will increase the value of that testing.
Vous aurez probablement besoin de revoir vos enregistrements durant les tests de votre mission mais faire les enregistrements maintenant augmentera la qualité de vos tests.

Create a sub-directory of your mission directory called sound, and move all the recordings into this directory.
Créez un sous-répertoire dans votre mission appelé sound et placez les enregistrement dedans.

For our simple mission add to the sound directory with the following recordings:
Pour notre exemple, nous avons ajouté les enregistrements suivants

• Mission1.wav: "Welcome to Boeing Field. Take off when you are ready".

• Mission2.wav: "Good, now climb to an alitude of 1000ft with a speed of at least 80 knots".

• Mission3.wav: "Great, now complete a left or right traffic pattern and land back at Boeing Field. Try to land on the runway number."

• Mission4.wav: "Nicely done, now bring the aircraft to a complete stop."

• Mission5.wav: "Good job, you have completed the mission".

• Mission1.wav "Bienvenu à Boeing Field. Prêt à décoller quand vous êtes prêt"

• Mission2.wav "Bien, maintenant montez à 1000 pieds avec une vitesse de 80 noeuds"

• Mission3.wav "Super, maintenant effectuer un virage à droit ou a gauche et retournez vous poser à Boeing Field. Essayez de vous poser sur le numéro de la piste"

• Mission4.wav "Très bien fait, maintenant ralentissez l'avion jusqu'a l'arrêt complet"

• Mission5.wav "Très bon travail, la mission est terminée"

Of course a real mission will have many more recordings, including good advice for when the participant is not doing so well.
Bien sur, dans une mission réelle, il y aura beaucoup plus d'enregistrements incluant des conseils dans le pilote est en difficulté.

Note

The audio engine of Flight Simulator does not support pre-rendered 5.1 surround sound (six channel wave files), but will render mono sounds (not stereo) in the correct 3D location, and will render in 5.1 surround sound if such a system is installed. However this does not apply to sounds recorded for missions,  so mission audio is limited to mono and stereo.
Le moteur audio de FS ne supporte pas le 5.1 mais le rendu mono est correct en 3D

Step 6: Introduce the Mission to the User
Etape 6: Préparer la mission pour l'utilisateur

Ensure you have Flight Simulator up and running. First click Settings, then General, then select the Show Captioning check box, as shown below. This will ensure that you can both see the dialog text as well as hear the sound file. By default, the Show Captioning check box is left unchecked.
Assurez-vous que les paramètres de FS sont corrects. Allez dans les settings / Général et cocher Show Captioning. Ceci vous assurera que les textes seront visibles et les fichiers sons audibles. Par défaut, le Show Captioning est décoché

When you have done this, make sure the Allow realism changes during Missions check box is selected - this will make adding triggers and actions easier. Now click on the Mission Creation Tutorial in the list of Missions, and then click Go To Briefing. When the briefing document appears, click Fly!. Then open up the Object Placement Tool.
Après avoir fait ceci, assurez-vous que Allow Realism changes during Missions est coché. Ceci permettra d'ajouter des déclencheurs et des actions plus facilement.

The first thing that most missions will do is introduce the mission to the user with some speech and text. The text will appear on the screen the same time as the text is being rendered by the audio system. The first step is to add the dialog actions. Do this by clicking on Add, selecting Action in the First box, then DialogAction in the Second box, and then enter the Text and SoundFileName properties as appropriate:
La première chose au début d'une mission est de faire une introduction en texte et son. Le texte apparaîtra en même temps que le son se jouera. Première étape, ajouter une boite de dialogue. Cliquez sur Add, sélectionner Action dans la première boite alors dans la seconde DialogAction et entrez les propriétés de Text et SoundFileName adéquat.



Repeat this process of adding Dialog actions for all five recordings you have made for this mission. In each case you should only be typing into the Text and SoundFileName properties. Notice how each action is appended with a number in the All Items list.
Répétez ce processus pour tous les enregistrements que vous avez créez pour la mission. Notez que chaque action est complétée d'un numéro dans la liste All Items

The next step is to add a timer trigger, that will initiate the first of our dialog actions.
L'étape suivante consiste à ajouter des déclencheurs temporels qui initialisera les actions de dialogue

To do this go to the Object tab of the tool, click Add, then select Trigger from the First box, and TimerTrigger from the Second box. Click Add again and you will see the list of properties associated with a timer trigger:
Pour ceci, allez sur l'onglet Object de l'outil, cliquez sur Add et sélectionnez Trigger dans la première boite puis TimerTrigger dans la seconde. Cliquez encore sur Add et vous verrez la liste des propriétés associées au Déclencheur temporel.



It is best to let the user wait a few seconds before introducing the mission to the user, so change the StopTime value to 5.0. Leave the StartTime at 0.0, so the timer starts when the flight is loaded. Actions are initiated by timer triggers when the stop time is reached, so these two values will initiate the text and speech 5 seconds into the mission.
Il est bien de laisser quelques secondes a l'utilisateur avant de lancer la mission, donc mettez la propriété StopTime à 5.0. Laissez StartTime à 0 ainsi le timer démarre quand le vol commence. Les actions sont initialisées par le déclencheur quand le temps est écoulé. Le texte et le son seront donc traités 5 secondes après le début de la mission

The property OneShot set to True simply means that the action should only be fired once (this is not very important for timer triggers, which are only fired once, but you will have to decide with other triggers whether you want them to keep firing their actions if a user keeps triggering them). Activated should be True - this means that this trigger is to be considered active, and is not waiting for any other event before it is to become active. Leave the other properties as they are.
La propriété OneShot est à True pour spécifier que cette action ne s'exécutera que seule fois (ceci n'est pas très important ppour un déclencheur temporel mais pour d'autres types de déclenchements cela poeut être très utile). Activated doit être à vrai. Ce qui permet de considérer le déclencheur comme actif. et il n'y a pas d'attente pour aucun autre événement avant qu'il le devienne. Laissez les autre propriétés comme elles sont.

Note

The All Items box, in the top right corner of the dialog, now contains the additional item we have added. Clicking on any item in this box will bring up that item and its properties to the boxes below.
La zone All Items, dans le coin en haut à droite contient maintenant les item que nous aovns ajouté. en cliquant sur ces items nous retrouvons les propriétés dans les champs en dessous.

We have not finished yet, as we have not yet linked the timer trigger and the dialog action. Do this by clicking on Property Set for the Actions property. This will bring up a list of items in the Elements box that this trigger could be linked to. Double click on DialogAction1 in the Elements box to link the trigger and action. This will be shown both by a + sign appended to the name in the Elements box, and also an entry in the References box, as shown below:
Nous n'avons pas encore fini. Nous n'avons pas encore liés les déclencheurs et les dialogues. Pour ceci, cliquez sur Property Set dans la ligne Actions de la liste Property. Cela fait apparaître une liste d'item dans la boite éléments pouvant être liés. Double-cliquez sur DialogAction1 pour liés les deux. Un signe plus apparait devant le nom dans la boite Elements et aussi une entrée dans la boite References comme ci-dessous



This is all we need to do to introduce our mission.
C'est tout pour l'introduction de la mission !!! (c'est déjà pas mal)

Go back to the Missions tab and save off the mission. Then exit the flight start the mission again, wait five seconds, and you should both see and hear the text Welcome to Boeing Field Take off when you are ready. If you do, then all is well, if not, go back and check the properties for the trigger and action.
Retourner dans l'onglet Missions et sauvegardez la mission. Démarrer la misson, attendez 5 secondes, vous devriez voir et entendre la premier texte. Génial non ? (avis du traducteur) si ce n'est pas le cas, retournez contrôler les objets, propriétés et déclencheurs (bon courage)

This is one of the most simple examples of a trigger and action, but this process of linking these two elements of a mission applies the tool.
Ceci est le plus simple exemple de trigger et d'action possible mais le processus de lien entre deux éléments de la mission s'applique dans tout l'outil

Notes

The Latched property appears in all the triggers, but this is not a value that is set when creating a mission. Latched will be set to True when a trigger fires, so if a mission is saved off part way through, and reloaded later, the system will have recorded where the user is within the mission.
La propriété Latched apparait dans tous les déclencheurs mais ce n'est pas une valeur initialisé quand on créer une mission. Latched sera mis à True dans le déclencheur aura été "joué" ainsi lors de la sauvegarde d'une mission, il sera possible de la reprendre à ce point là

Actions in a mission are queued up one after another as they are fired. Dialog actions do not pass processing to the next action until the attached wave file (if there is one) has completed playing. There can also be an additional delay added to the end of a dialog action by entering a value into the DelaySeconds property for the action. This is to ensure the user both has time to read the text and/or hear the wave file, but also extra time to respond to any request that this speech has made, as the next action may well be testing for that response.
Les actions de la mission sont placées en file d'attente et exécutée les unes après les autres. Les actions de dialogue ne passent pas à l'action suivante tant que le fichier son n'a pas été complètement joué. Il est même possible d'ajouter un délai supplémentaire par la propriété DelaySeconds. Ceci permet de s'assurer que l'utilsateur à le temps de lire et d'écouter mais aussi bénéficier d'un temps supplémentaire pour répondre à une action demandée qui sera elle même vérifiée à l'action suivante.

References

• Dialog actions

• Timer triggers

Step 7: Add a Property Trigger, or two
Etape 7: Ajouter une ou deux déclencheurs

If it is not still loaded, reload the mission and open up the Object Placement Tool.
Si ce n'est déjà fait, rechargez la mission et ouvrez l'outil Object Placement Tool

All our mission does so far is ask the user to take off. To give them the next stage in the mission, we can give them some more details just after the aircraft has taken off. To do this we can use a property trigger and link it to our second dialog action.
Notre mission fait plus que demander à l'utilisateur de décoller. Pour give them l'étape suivante dans la mission, nous devons donner un peu plus de détails après que l'avion ait décollé. Pour ceci, nous pouvons utiliser la propriété trigger et la lié à la seconde boite de dialogue action.

Click Add, then select Trigger and PropertyTrigger. A property trigger is one that tests one or more conditions, typically speed or altitude of the aircraft, but there are many hundreds of other possibilities.
Cliquez dur Add, sélectionnez Trigger et Property/Trigger. La propriété Trigger est là pour tester une ou plusieurs conditions. Typiquement la vitesse ou l'altitude de l'avion mais aussi plusieurs centaines d'autres possibilités.

In the Properties box of the property trigger, ensure Activated is True, and click on the Property Set for Actions. Then double click on DialogAction2 (in the Elements list) to link it to the property trigger. Then double click on the Property Set for the Condition property. This will bring up the Conditional Editor dialog box. Click Add Term and select Simvar.AltitudeAMSL for the left hand side of the condition (LHS). Leave the Operator as Greater Than, and type 50.0 for the right hand side (RHS), so the dialog looks like this:
Dans la boite propriétés des propriétés du Trigger, vérifiez que Activated est à True et cliquez sur la propriété Set for Actions. Alors double-cliquez sur DialogAction2 (dans la liste Elements) pour le lier à la propriété Trigger. ensuite double-cliquez sur la propriété Set for the Condition. Ceci affichera la boite de dialogue de l'éditeur de conditions. Cliquez sur Add Term et sélectionnez Simvar.AltitudeAMSL sur la gauche (LHS:) Laissez l'opératuer plus grand que (GreaterThan) et tapez 50.0 dans le champ à droite comme ci-après.



The simple condition we have entered indicates that the trigger will be fired when the user's aircraft is more than 50 feet above ground level. The units of a condition appear under the Simvar property. If the unit of measurement for any simulation variable is not obvious, refer to the Simulation Variables document. Click OK to add the condition to the trigger.
La simple condition que nous avons entrée indique que le déclencheur s'activera quand l'avion aura atteint 50 pieds au dessus du sol. Les unités de la condition apparaissent sous la propriété Simvar. Si l'unité de mesure pour une variable de simulation n'a pas visible, allez voir le document Simultation Variables. Click OK pour ajouter la condition au déclencheur.

Notes

Both the left and right hand sides of a condition can be one of: Property, Double, Long, Unsigned, Boolean or String. If Property is selected the next box will by default contain [User]. [User] refers to the user's aircraft, obviously, but there can be other aircraft under control of the AI component of Flight Simulator, and if these aircraft existed property triggers could be set on them too.
les valeurs à droite et à gauche des conditions peuvent être de type : Double, Long, Non signé, Booléen ou chaîne de caractères. Si la propriété est sélectionné la boite suivante contiendra par défaut [User]. [User] fait référence à l'utilisateur de l'avion. Il peut y avoir un autre avion sous le contrôle de l'IA et si cette avion existe il peut aussi avoir des déclencheurs.

There is an issue with the Object Placement Tool that some options are presented that simply do not apply given the selections that have been made. This applies both in the main dialog and the Conditional Editor. Mission designers should study the Mission Object Reference, and be prepared for some trial and error, in the creation of missions using this tool.
Il y a un moyen avec les options de Object Placement Tool de ne pas appliquer les sélections qui ont été faites. Ceci s'applique à la boite de dialogue principale et à l'éditeur de conditions. Le créateur de missions doit étudier le Mission Object Reference et être préparé pour des tests et des erreurs ...

For reference, the PropertyTrigger2 properties should now look like this:
Pour faire un point, la propriété PropertyTrigger2 doit présenter ceci :



In our sample mission we want the user to fly up to an altitude of 1000 feet, with a minimum speed of 80 knots, before returning. To do this we should now enter a second property trigger, this time with two conditions, and of course a link to the third speech dialog to indicate when this has been done.
Dans notre exemple, nous voulons que le pilote monte jusqu'a 1000 pieds à la vitesse minimale de 80 noeuds avant de revenir. Pour ceci alors allons saisir un second déclencheur, cette fois nous aurons deux conditions et bien sur nous ferons la liaison avec la boite de dialogue indiquant que ceci à été fait.

Enter two conditions into the property editor:
Entrez deux conditions dans l'éditeur de propriétés

• Simvar.AltitudeAMSL        Greater Than             1000.0

• Simvar.IndicatedAirspeed   Greater Than                 80.0

And click on the Actions Property Set to link to DialogAction3.
Et cliquez sur la propriété Actions pour lié à DialogAction3

Notes

In the first property trigger the AltitudeAGL (above ground level) value is used, to ensure that the aircraft has taken off, but in the second property trigger AltitudeAMSL (above mean sea level) is more appropriate.
Dans le premier trigger la valeur AltitudeAGL (au dessous du sol) est utilisée pour s'assurer que l'avion a décollé mais dans la seconde propriété, le trigger AltitudeAMSL (au dessus du niveau de la mer) est plus approprié.

With multiple conditions usually they will all have to be true for the trigger to fire, so the default is for conditions to be ANDed together. Set the Term list operator box value to OR if only one condition has to be true to fire the trigger. Note that conditions involving both OR and AND logical operators cannot be created using the Condition Editor. It is easy to see how quite complex conditions could be entered as property triggers. They can test for both success and for troubling situations like excessive G forces, ptich angles, airspeed and so on.
Avec plusieurs conditions utilisées, elles devront toutes être à true pour que le trigger se déclenche. Par défaut, c'est l'opérateur AND (et) qui est utilisé. Choisir dans la liste des termes OR (ou) pour déclenché lorsqu"une condition est réalisée. Noez que les conditions OR et AND ne peuvent pas être utilisées en même temps dans une conditon. Il est facile de voir combien cela peut devenir complexe. Il peut tester le succés et pour les situations critiques comme des G excessifs, un angle d'attaque élevé, vitesse trop grande, ...

If multiple conditions are entered each can be edited or deleted by selecting them in the condition box (which will have the number of the condition and the total number of conditions preceding it), such as:
Si plusieurs conditions sont saisies chacune peut être éditée ou supprimée en la sélectionnant dans la liste des conditions.

Save off the mission, then restart it and test that both property trigger dialog actions are triggered at the appropriate points. Notice how simply climbing above 1000 feet does not fire the second property trigger, it is necessary to increase the speed to 80 knots before it does fire.
Sauvegardez la mission et relancez la et testez si les deux trigger fonctionnent correctement. Notez qu'il ne suffit pas de monter à 1000 pieds mais aussi d'avoir une vitesse d'au moins 80 noeuds.

References

• Property Trigger

Step 8: Add a Proximity Trigger
Etape 8: Ajouter un déclencheur de proximité

A proximity trigger will fire if the specified object (usually the user's aircraft) enters a specified box. The box is defined by a length, width and height, and can be placed anywhere in the world. It is usually most useful to move to the approximate location for the proximity trigger first. The joystick and hat switch can be used to move the cross hairs, you may also want to use the Slew feature to move larger distances. In our example we want to create a proximity trigger at the ideal landing spot on the runway (the runway number). First use the joystick to select the center of the runway number, then click Add and select AreaDefinition and RectangleArea. The length, width and height property values can be edited, so change them to a length and width of 100 (units are in meters), and a height of 20.
Un trigger (déclencheur) de proximité s'activera si l'objet spécifié (habituellement l'avion) entre dans un volume spécifié. Le volume est défini par la longueur, largeur et hauteur et peut être placé n'importe où dans le monde. Il est souvent utilisé pour se déplacé vers un endroit précis. Le joystick et le chapeau peut être utilisés to move the cross hairs, vous pourrez aussi couloir utiliser le mode déplacment pour l'emmener sur des longues distances. Dans notre exemple nous vouons créer un trigger à proximité sur point idéal d'atterissage (le numéro de la piste). Premièrement utilisez le joystick pour pointer sur le centre de la piste et cliquez sur Add et sélectionnez AreaDefinition et RectangleArea. La longueur, largeur et la hauteur peut être éditée. Mettez 100 pour la longueur et la largeur et 20 pour la hauteur.



The orientation about each axis can also be changed (though is not necessary in this case), and set the Rendered property to True if the box should actually appear in view. Set Rendered to be True for this sample.
L'orientation sur chaque axe peut être peut être changé (ce n'est pas nécessaire dans notre cas) et positionnez la propriété Rendered à True si la boite doit actuellement apparaitre dans la vue. Mettre Rendered à True pour cette exemple

The next step is to add the proximity trigger and attach it to this area definition. To do this select Add then select Trigger and ProximityTrigger, then in the Properties box click on Areas, then double click RectangularArea1 in the Elements box. This links the trigger to the area. Also, select the OnEnterActions property and link it to DialogAction4, to link entering the area with the appropriate speech.
L'étape suivante consiste à ajouter un trigger de proximité et d'attacher celui-ci au volume défini. Pour faire ceci, sélectionnez Add puis Trigger et Proximity/Trigger, alors dans la boite Properties box cliquez sur Areas, double-cliquez RectangularArea1 dans la boite Elements. Ceci lie le trigger au volume. Ensuite, sélectionnez la propriété OnEnterActions et l'associé à DialogAction4 pour lié l'entrée dans la zone au texte approprié

For this proximity trigger we do not want it to be activated until the user is airborne, and has completed the previous step (climbed to 1000ft with a speed of 80 knots), so we set the Activated property to False. The next step is to change the activated property to true, at the appropriate time.
Pour ce trigger de proximité, nous n'avons ne voulons pas qu'il soit actif tant que l'utilisateur est en l'air et ait réaliser l'étape précédent (montée 1000 pieds et vitesse 80 noeuds). Pour cela, nou avons positionné la propriété Activated à False. L'étape suivante est de changer la propriété Activated à True le moment venu

Notes

When a mission is saved off, area definitions become locked, and the properties cannot be edited until the Locked box is unchecked. This is to help prevent accidental changes to a carefully placed area.
Quand une mission est sauvegardée, la définition des volumes est bloquée et les propriétés ne peuvent être éditées tant que la boite Locked est décochée. Ceci évite les changements accidentels.

For future reference, more than one proximity trigger can be attached to a single area definition, and it is also possible to attach proximity triggers to moving objects. This is more advanced than we need for our first mission, but refer to the reference for more information on how to do these things.
Pour une référence future, plus d'un trigger peut être attaché à un volume et il est possible d'attacher des volumes à des objets en mouvement. Ceci est plus avancé que ce que nous faisons dans notre première mission mais allez voir dans les références plus bas pour voir ce qu'il est possible de faire.

Make sure you are saving off the mission regularly.
Assurez-vous de faire régulièrement des sauvegardes de la mission

References

• Area Definition object

• Proximity Trigger

Step 9: Add an Object Activation Action
Etape 9: Ajouter une action activation d'objet

To link the inactive proximity trigger to the completion of a previous action, go through the following steps.
Pour lié un déclencheur de proximité inactif a la réalisation de l'action précédente, réalisez les opérations suivantes:

First, add an ObjectActivationAction to the mission. It only requires a few properties: leave NewObjectState as True, and click on ObjectReferenceList to display a list in the Elements box. Double click on ProximityTrigger4. This means when the object activation action occurs it will activate the proximity trigger.
Premièrement, ajoutez un object ObjectActivationAction à la mission. Il demande quelques propriétés. Laissez NewObjectState as True et cliquez sur ObjectReferenceList pour afficher dans la liste Elements. Double-cliquez sur ProximityTrigger4. Ceci permet quand l'activation de l'objet apparaît que le déclencheur de proximité s'active.

Next, select PropertyTrigger3 (with the altitude of 1000 feet and speed of 80 knots condition) from the All Items list, and click on Actions. Double click on the ObjectActivationAction5 entry under Elements. PropertyTrigger3 now fires two actions, a dialog action and the object activation action.
Ensuite, sélectionnez PropertyTrigger3 (avec les conditions altitude = 1000 et vitesse = 80) dans la liste All items et cliquez sur Actions. Double-cliquez sur l'entrée ObjectActivationAction5 sous Elements. ProperyTriiger3 réalisera maintenant deux actions, le déclenchement du dialogue et l'activation de l'objet

The logic here should be fairly clear. The proximity trigger is inactive until the user's aircraft reaches the required altitude and speed. When the aircraft does meet these requirements the proximity trigger becomes active.
La logique ici est relativement claire. Le déclencheur de proximité est inactif tant que l'utilisateur n'a pas atteint l'altitude et la vitesse requise. Quand l'avion aura atteint les critères altitudes/vitesse le déclencheur devriendra actif.

Note

A trigger can activate any number of actions.
Un déclencheur peut activer un nombre illimité d'actions

References

• Object activation action

Step 10: Add an Airport Landing Trigger
Etape 10: Ajouter un déclencheur Airport Landing

Many missions will end with a successful landing. Add an AirportLandingTrigger and enter the four digit Airport identification code to identify the correct airport (KSEA for SeatTac International or KBFI for Boeing Field, for example). Again set the Activated property to False. Set the Actions property to trigger DialogAction5, which is the appropriate mission completed text. For this case leave the landing as FullStop (the alternatives are TouchDown and Any), and leave the RunwayFilter entry for now (it is possible to specify which runway must be landed on to fire the trigger).
Beaucoup de missions se terminent par un atterissage. Ajouter un objet AirportLandingTrigger et entrez les quatres lettres d'identification (KSEA pour SeaTac Internation ou KBFI pour Boeing Field). Placez encore la propriété Activated à False. Associés la propriété Actions du déclencheur à DialogAction5 qui annoncera la fin de la mission. Dans cet exemple, laissez landing à FullStop (les autres possibilités sont TouchDown et Any) et laissez l'entrée RunwayFilter sur Now (il est possible de spécifier sur quelle piste atterir pour activer le déclencheur)

Go back to the ObjectActivationAction created in Step 9 (click on it in the All Items list) and add the AirportLandingTrigger to the actions that become active when the object activation action fires.
Retourner sur ObjectActivationAction créer à l'étape 9 (cliquez dessus dans la liste All Items) et ajouter AirportLandingTrigger dans les actions il deviendra actif quand l'objet activaation sera déclenché

References

• Airport landing trigger

• Object activation action

Step 11: Add Goals and Rewards

For this mission we might decide that there are two goals, one for the user to enter the proximity trigger box and land on the painted runway number, and the second for a correct landing (coming to a complete stop).

Add goals by clicking Add, then selecting Goal. The goal state should be left as pending. The text entered here will appear in the End Mission dialog, along with the final state of the goal (pending, completed, or failed). Enter two goals, one for landing on the runway number, and another for a correct landing. The text can be Landed on the Painted Number , with an Order number of 1, for the first goal, and Complete Stop, with an Order number of 2, for the second goal.

Next, add a GoalResolutionAction for each goal. The Goals property of this action should be linked in the usual way to the goals themselves. Go to the ProximityTrigger and add the second goal resolution action (Landed on the Painted Number) to its list of actions. Finally go back to the AirportLandingTrigger and add the correct goal resolution action (Complete Stop) to the list of  actions which it fires.

There is currently no concept of an optional goal in the Mission system.

Creating Rewards

Rewards are different from goals, they are persistent and added to the user's pilot records. A reward can be serious in the sense of a certificate for achieving some level of skill, or more trivial, for example a reward for photographing a humpback whale off Hawaii. The rewards that ship with Flight Simulator are integrated into the missions and tutorials that are provided, so it makes most sense to create your own rewards, if you choose to use them.

To create the simplest form of reward, go through the following steps:

1. Create artwork for the reward. Use appropriate art tools to create one detailed piece of art for the reward (300 pixels wide by 370 pixels in height) and one thumbnail piece of art (100 pixels wide by 80 pixels in height). These will be referenced by the reward file and appear on the user's screen when aiming at and achieving the reward. The artwork can be .bmp or .jpg files.

2. Fill out an xml file that matches the following format.

   <?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1" ?> <FSData version="9.0"> <Reward rewardId="{GUID}" name="name of the reward" description="description of the reward." type="TROPHY" bitmap = "artwork_small.bmp" rewardDetailBitmap="artwork_large.bmp"> </Reward> </FSData>

3. Create and enter a GUID for the reward, to be referenced by the mission itself.

4. Enter a name to appear in Flight Simulator X.

5. Enter a description to appear when the user selects View details.

6. Enter a type for the reward, which can be one of: TROPHY, BADGE, MEDAL, CERTIFICATE, POSTCARD or SPECIAL_ITEM.

7. Enter the filename for the thumbnail piece of art, and the detailed piece of art.

8. Ensure that both pieces of art and the xml file are in the same folder, then run the command line tool, BGLComp with the xml file as input (entering the command: BGLComp reward.xml). Alternatively drag the reward xml file over the BGLComp icon. The BGLComp tool is in the SDK\Environment Kit\BGLComp SDK folder. This will create a rewards file, with a .rwd extension. Copy the rewards file to the Microsoft Flight Simulator X/rewards folder. This file includes the artwork, so is the only file required.

9. Add the reward to a mission by selecting its GUID in a Grant Reward action, and then link this action it to the final trigger.

A rewards file can contain any number of rewards, simply by entering as many <Reward> </Reward> entries in the xml file as there are rewards. More complex rewards can be created by adding a <Criteria> section to a reward. The following table shows an example with all the possible criteria.

The criteria in the above example are not very realistic, they require the user to have completed two landings at two different airports and landed at the list of the three specified (KORD, KSEA, and KBFI). It also requires 10 hours experience in a whole range of situations, and that two other rewards must have been earned before this one can be given. All criteria are logically ANDed to make up the requirement for a reward, and all equals signs should be interpreted as greater than or equal to (in other words, at least 10 hours experience in all the aicraft and situations listed in the example above). The following table gives some more realistic examples:

References

• Goal objects

• Goal resolution action

• Grant Reward action

Step 12: Test and Refine the Mission

Having completed building the mission, ensure you have saved it all off, and then test it thoroughly. The best designed mission can still exhibit strange behaviour during testing.

There are of course many cases where the mission might inappropriately reward a user. For example, the proximity trigger in our example will still fire correctly if the aircraft is landing upside down, without its gear down, too fast, or whatever. To tighten up a mission you will need to add conditions to many of the triggers, especially the proximity triggers.

This ends the tutorial section of this document. The most popular and useful actions and triggers are covered in the tutorial, but there are many others, and the following reference section describes all the Mission Objects.

You can also refer to the missions provided with Flight Simulator (by loading them into the Object Placement Tool, or viewing the XML in an appropriate editor) for examples of how different triggers, actions, goals and rewards can be used. Mission files created using this tool are in an open XML format. Mission files supplied with Flight Simulator X are in a binary format with the .SPB extension. If both are present in the same folder, the .SPB file is read in preference. To help in the understanding of the mission system, the XML files used to create the default missions are supplied in a sub-folder of this SDK.

Creating an SPB file

Mission files can either be in XML or SPB (Sim-Prop Binary) format. The binary format is faster to load that its XML equivalent. To create an SPB file, run the simpropcompiler.exe tool, which is in the SDK\Core Utiliites Kit\SimProp folder. This is a command-line tool, so open a command window, navigate to the SDK\Core Utiliites Kit\SimProp folder, then enter the following command:

> Simpropcompiler 2spb –symbols C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Microsoft Flight Simulator X\propdefs\*.xml yourMission.xml yourMission.spb

Note that file extensions are required for both the input and output filenames. To simply validate the xml file without creating any output file, change the keyword 2spb to validate.

Error Reports

To get more detailed error reports when there is an error in a mission file, make sure the following entry is in the fsx.cfg file, which is in the Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Microsoft\FSX folder.

[DEBUG]
ReportLoadErrors=1

Mission Object Reference

This section contains a reference of all the properties that apply to each of the Mission Objects.

• Actions

• AI Objects

• Area Definition Objects

• Group Objects

• Mission Objects

• Scenery Objects

• Mobile Scenery Objects

• Spawn Lists

• Triggers

• Goal Object

• Disabled Traffic Airport Object

Actions

An action is a declarative way to cause something to happen in the world.  Examples of actions are playing a sound file, completing an objective, showing text in the adventure window, failing an engine, completing a goal, etc.

Generic Action Properties

All actions include the following properties.

Activate Waypoints Action

Waypoints are essential for the movement of certain AI objects. The activate waypoints action provides one or more AI object with a new list of waypoints.
 

Adjust Payload Action

An adjust payload action is used to set, or add to, the weight on a payload station.

Attach Droppable Payload Action

An attach droppable payload action is used to change the payload that gets dropped when the user presses a key configured to drop the payload.

Attach Effect Action

The attach effect action attaches a single special effect (such as smoke, fire, contrail etc.) to one or more objects.

Change Object Type Action

A change object type action changes the object the user is in. For example, it can be used to change from one type of aircraft to another.

Count Action

A count action will add the value of the Count property to the list of triggers (which should be Counter triggers). Counter triggers will fire when a certain specified count is reached.

Custom Action

A custom action is used to enable communications between a mission and a SimConnect client application.

Dialog Action

A dialog action is used to add speech to be rendered over the audio system, and/or text to be displayed on the screen. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Failure Action

A failure action is used to change the behavior of one of the aircraft's systems. It is possible also to change a failing system's status back to fully functional, by changing its HealthPercent value to 100. Failures only apply to the user aircraft.

See Also

• Failure Trigger

Goal Resolution Action

The goal resolution action is used to set whether goals have been completed or not. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Grant Reward Action

The grant reward action rewards the user with a single reward, to be placed in their pilot records. See Creating Rewards for more details.

Object Activation Action

The object activation action will change the state of  most different types of object, Triggers, AI objects, Scenery objects and some Mission objects. Do not use it for points of interest, use PointOfInterestActivationAction for that particular case.

One Shot Sound Action

The one shot sound action will render a single wave file. Use this for sound effects rather than dialog (use the Dialog action for speech audio).

Play Animation Action

The play animation action will initiate an animation sequence on one or more objects.

Play List Action

The play list action will play the specified music items on the adventure music track.  Individual play list items can be set to a random position within the play list.

PlayList Item Object

A playlist item is an audio track that forms part of a playlist action.

Point Of Interest Activation Action

A point of interest activation action will change the state of one or more Point of Interest objects. It is very similar to ObjectActivationAction, but also sets the current point of interest to be the one with the lowest cycle order in its list.

Random Action

The random action is used to initiate one action from a list of possibilites.

ResetTimer Action

The reset timer action is used to set the current time of a list of timers back to their start times.

Rumble Action

The rumble action is used to initiate rumble in the Universal Controller (typically an XBox controller).

Spawn Action

A spawn action will create all the new objects (including AI aircraft, scenery, actions and triggers) specified in a Spawn List object. A spawn action that is called mutliple times will create multiple objects.

Timer Adjust Action

The timer adjust action adds the DeltaTime property value to the timer trigger's internal clock.

AI Object

AI objects are computer controlled vehicles. Four types of vehicle can be controlled by the AI (artificial intelligence) component of Flight Simulator:

1. Aircraft

2. Boats

3. Ground vehicles

4. Other

AI objects appear under the title PATH_CONTAINER_OBJECTS in the All Items list. If an AI controlled object is added to the mission, the following properties apply to it:

AircraftAI Object

AircraftAI objects are referenced by AI Objects.

TakeoffAI Object

Takeoff AI objects are referenced by AircraftAI objects.

LandingAI Object

Landing AI objects are referenced by AircraftAI objects.

TaxiAI Object

Taxi AI objects are referenced by AircraftAI objects.

GroundVehicleAI Object

Ground  vehicle AI objects are for those land or sea vehicles which are to follow a course. The course is made up of a series of waypoints.

Ground vehicle AI objects are referenced by AI Objects.

Waypoint List Object 

A waypoint list object contains a list of waypoints, and some other general properties for the motion of the AI object.
Waypoint list objects are referenced by Ground vehicle AI objects, Aircraft AI and MSOWaypointController objects.

Waypoint Object

A waypoint is a location in the world, with a set speed, that an AI object should aim for.
Waypoint objects are referenced by Waypoint list objects.

Area Definition Object

Only one type of area definition is supported, RectangleArea, which defines a 3D box, and contains the following properties:

Group Object

A group object simply defines a single reference to one or more objects. This is helpful if a selection of object is used a number of times, however, group objects cannot refer to other group objects.

Mission Object

There are five types of Mission Object. Mission objects have the same generic properties as Actions.

Camera Mission Object

Use the camera mission object to place a camera in the world, which can be at a fixed location or attached to another (moving) object. The view from the camera will become the main view for the user.

Attached World Position Object

Attached world position objects are referenced by Area definition objects, Camera mission objects, Picture in Picture view controller mission objects, and Point of interest mission objects.

Attached World Object

Attached world objects are referenced by Area definition objects, Camera mission objects, Picture in Picture view controller mission objects, and Point of interest mission objects.

Picture In Picture View Controller Mission Object

A PictureInPictureViewController object adds a small view window and is typically used for a "bomb-cam" - giving a view of or from a falling object.

Point Of Interest Mission Object

Use the point of interest object to highlight a location or other object. The highlight can be, for example, a vertical beam of light pointing at the object. Points of interest are displayed in the mission compass, and can be stepped through according to the cycle order.

Note

Between the distances of MinimumModelDistance and MaximumModelDistance the scale factor is interpolated linearly between MinimumModelScale and MaximumModelScale. This feature is used to make the in-scene pointer (for example, the highlight beam) appear larger the further the user is away from the object, and the smaller the closer the user gets to it.

Realism Overrides Mission Object

This object can be used to override the user's realism settings. For the specific properties: User Specified indicates that the user's settings should be used.

Ridge Lift Mission Object

A RidgeLift object is used to simulate the effect of a hill slope on the wind.

Scenario Metadata Mission Object

The scenario metadata provides information that the mission system uses to place the mission appropriately in the list of missions presented to the user. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Thermal Mission Object

A thermal object can be used to simulate atmospheric effects, including thermals and downdrafts. Refer also to the Weather Systems documentation.

Scenery Objects

Scenery objects can be added to the world, to appear only when the mission is being undertaken. Scenery objects take the following properties:

Mobile Scenery Objects

Mobile scenery objects can be added to the world, to appear only when the mission is being undertaken. Mobile scenery objects take the following properties:

MSOWaypointController Object

The MSO (Moving Scenery Object) waypoint controller has the following properties.

Spawn List

A spawn list is a list of objects (AI aircraft, scenery objects, triggers, and actions) that should only appear in the mission when a certain stage in the mission has been reached. Spawn lists are initiated by Spawn actions. If the spawn action is called more than once, then multiple objects are created.

Triggers

Triggers initiate actions. There are eleven different types of triggers. When they are active, they will fire whenever the appropriate conditions are met. When a trigger is deactivated it is not evaluating its conditions to decide whether it should fire its actions.

Generic Trigger Properties

All triggers include the following properties (except where noted in the descriptions below).

Airport Landing Trigger

An airport landing trigger is fired when the user's aircraft (not AI controlled aircraft) lands on a runway.

RunwayFilter Object

A runway filter object can be used to specify exactly which runway an aircraft is to land on.

Area Landing Trigger

An area landing trigger is fired when the user's aircraft (not AI controlled aircraft) lands on one in a specified list of areas.

Counter Trigger

A counter trigger will fire when it is counter reaches a specified limit. The counter is incremented by  Count Actions.

Menu Prompt Trigger

A menu prompt trigger will create a menu of options for the user. For some missions this can be as simple as the option to continue, and the option to turn back.

MenuItem Object

Menu item objects form the options for a Menu Prompt trigger.

Parking Trigger

A parking trigger will fire when the user has reached the parking spot assigned by the ATC at the airport specified.

Property Trigger

A property trigger fires when one or more conditions are met. These conditions can be based on aircraft speed, altitude, failure of components, or a whole host of other simulation variables. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Note

There is an issue with the Ground Speed property. It cannot be tested to being equal to zero in a condition, so mission designers should check for ground speed being less than 1kt to detect a "stopped" aircraft (or other object).

Proximity Trigger

A proximity trigger is fired when the specified object, usually the users aircraft, enters a given box. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Note

If a proximity trigger has its OneShot property set to True, and it has on-enter and on-exit actions (or on-enter and on-exit conditions) the trigger will deactivate itself on the first set of actions. So in other words, when the on-enter actions fire, the proximity trigger will be deactivated and the on-exit actions will never fire.

So if you are going to use both on-enter and on-exit actions or conditions, or any combination, you must set the trigger so that OneShot is set to False.

Timer Trigger

A timer trigger fires when the given number of seconds has elapsed. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Goal Object

There is only one type of goal, and a mission can include one or more goals. See the explanation in the tutorial for an example.

Disabled Traffic Airports Object

A disabled airport will not be involved in any AI traffic, either as a starting point or a destination.

© 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

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