Quote from Scawen :

Thanks, unfortunately the solutions aren't simple, though I'm sure we'll do...

That solution could work. I often share out of the share folder anyways to preserve the png naming convention. Even if I had the dds in the online version, and somehow I lost it locally, I could always convert the dds back to png, even one at a time wouldn't be an issue considering the situation (and hopefully learn to backup using any of the free cloud services).

As a test on my private car (deriv off), I opened the 7z, deleted all the pngs out of the folder, then uploaded, and not using any vpn from Canada, it was 55 seconds to update. I'll change the car back to the original untouched 7z (reverted to orig now) as I just wanted a comparison before you worked on the workaround.

That does seem like it could be a good solution for the time being, as well as decreasing overall storage space for you guys by about half. I could just let the modders know that want to use my mod, to contact me to share them a copy of the mod through the share folder.

Last edited by OpenClutch, Mon 6 May 2024, 16:46.

You have to paste and replace the original dds files with these. It shouod be located somewhere in lfs data folder

Quote from stuchlo :

Thanks for support ...

that's a shame, sadly gradients dont translate well when converting from png to dds. you could try a similar effect using dark and very dark points, altough it will probably not be as effective as what you tried here. this wouldve looked great i imagine without the compression.

I had a look and I don't know a way to fix it while using compressed textures. It is 16 bit colour banding due to the conversion to DDS. You can see it in the editor too if you switch on compressed textures.

I have a few too many things to do, so can't really investigate further at the moment. I'm not sure but maybe it could be better to go for a plain colour as the best compromise within the current system.

Quote from rane_nbg :

I feel like I'm in those games where you need to find a difference between two pictures and not see anything

Are you talking about shading and reflections? If so, isn't this due to the new LFS lighting method that the Editor is using? It's still not available in-game, this will be in the upcoming future update.

Im talking about dashboard texture, and it probably cant be fixed cuz converting in dds that have less quality. But maybe it not that bad if ppl do not notice that, but for me it looks obvious though.

I see the value in wanting this, but also you can just make a copy of the dds folder and swap the name of the folder between folders, selecting which one you want to load with. LFS loads and launches so fast and the texture folder is so small i doubt this would ever be really viable

Great, with this one you can even edit dds, awesome, thank you very much man.

I see. Well, anyway tnx for info. I once used some simple program to edit dds and repack it back, but forgot which was it. Was hoping you could remind me, but no worries.

I guess this is enough info for someone to make a better looking grass texture.

Quote from rane_nbg :

Tnx man. Do you have any advice on which program to use for viewing dds files?

I don't usually open them, I only preview them in the largest preview mode (with Win10) in the folder. If I need to edit something, I find it with the preview and I convert it into PNG. Then edit it and convert it back to DDS. In time I found out that you can't trust every software and a lot of them are full of viruses, so I didn't reach that far.

Tnx man. Do you have any advice on which program to use for viewing dds files?

I don't see the strange horizontal line anymore... interesting.

The problem with front/rear lights being washed out is the glass texture s_glass - it should be fully transparent.
The lights texture is perfectly fine.
This is how it should look (I have edited the .dds file).

I have added it to the list of mods that could be approved.

Last edited by Evolution_R, Tue 12 Mar 2024, 16:25.

Hello fellow racers
today I am suggesting something that I would love to have, as you all know you are not allowed to edit published vehicle mods without permission. However, I also know that some of us may want to change particular details of some mods, so my suggestion is to be able to fully edit and customise mods any way we want however they are only available in single player. Now this is a very complicated topic and I know it is unlikely for this to happen and files may be sent to other players and stuff, but essentially the only thing that is stopping full mods customisation is that when you try to edit and mod and save it, you need some dds files (i don't know much about files system or the editor) which you are unable to get other than from the publisher themselves. So that is my suggestion. I know it is very complicated and prob will not happen, but I hope something similar will be available in the future.
thank you

tbh i alr made it, just need to add the dds file to lfs next patch

I wanted a Miata skin (for XRG) and started looking for it but I couldn't find it so I made it myself. I hope you like it. ( EDİT: for 7.E press G to open popup lights) You can Use dds for better miata!

Last edited by katraYSA, Sun 25 Feb 2024, 18:31.

Options - Graphics - Shadow type-off, Full-scene AA and mirror AA-none, textures-low res
Options - Misc - Maximum buffered frames 2, Full physics for remote cars-no

Ctrl+Alt+del after u start the game - task manager - details tab - right click lfs.exe - set priority-high
Killing background processes like browser, discord and etc will also help

https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/99913
And finally a must-have for weak integrated gpus (install in LFS/dds folder)

Hello Mod Creators,

Here is a PATCH for the LFS Editor. Editor 0.7A or later must already be installed!

This is not a thread for random requests regarding the mods system.
For mods suggestions, use the Mods System Suggestions forum section.


Changes in Editor E8:

Option to include or exclude PNG textures when exporting for upload
- Exclude PNG to reduce file size and allow a faster upload
- This does not affect the appearance of a mod in game
- The PNG textures are not required for a functioning mod
- DDS (in-game textures) are included whichever option you choose
- PNG files can be useful if you allow derivatives of your mod


Changes in Editor E7:

Drag selection box:

Function to make drag box from points now available in points mode
Scale / rotate / shear axes are now hidden while making a drag box
Grey button shows drag info to avoid left buttons moving around

Typing individual values to align points:

ALT + click r/f/u numbers to set all selected points to same value
- relative values compared with last selected point not preserved

New modeller line guide:

Set up a trace then click "guide" to create a line guide
- the guide is visible in most editor modes and all views
- options to hide/show the guide or draw it open/closed

Merging subobjects:

You can now merge a subobject fully into another subobject
- this is a step towards moving a selection between subobjects
- triangles can now be transferred via an intermediate subobject


Changes in Editor E6:

Much faster "reduce detail" function
Command /rtex can be used to reload textures
Editor unlock no longer affects LFS unlocks
(S3 number of unlocks now matches S1/S2)


Changes in Editor E5:

Earlier versions can no longer be used for mod uploads
More updates and fixes for some of the official cars


Changes in Editor E4:

Rim editor:

A complete rim profile cross section is now shown
Options for rim guide well offset and reverse mount
Points are a different colour in surface mode
Protection against adding duplicate or opposite surfaces
FIX: + and - buttons did not instantly update the 3D model

Spoke editor:

A complete 3D rim profile is now shown
Separate show options for spoke / rim / tyre / guide
It is now possible to rename the first mapping in the list
A "rim" button is shown beside the first mapping (used for rim)

Misc:

A new set of vehicles is included with updated dash and wheels
Engine damage and shift light can be enabled in the dash editor


Changes in Editor E3:

Modeller cutout screen:

FIX: Number of materials and material index were wrong for subobjects
- helps when optimising a model for frame rate by texture sharing

Engine editor:

Increased maximum value of "Turbo MOI Multiplier" to 2.0
- allows turbo to spool up slower (more turbo lag)

Rim guide in rim editor and spoke editor:

Decreased the minimum width of car rim flange (was 12mm, now 11mm)
- this is correct for the 'J' rim profile used on modern road cars


Changes in Editor E2:

Spoke and Rim limits:

New triangle budget of 4240 is shared between Rim and Spoke objects
- rim objects produced in rim editor are convenient for most rims
- each surface of the rim object contains 120 triangles
- some wheels may be built entirely as a spoke object

Spoke editor:

A wireframe of the tyre and rim are shown in "wire" view mode
A new 3D rim guide is included, representing a minimum wheel rim
- the shape is similar to the rim flange of a thin steel rim
- alloy rims should exceed the guide as they are thicker

When exporting for upload:

Rim and spoke limits are checked when you export the model
Model limits are checked in all configurations


Changes from Editor 0.7C to 0.7E:

https://www.lfs.net/patch-7e/editor/changelog


DOWNLOAD:

LFS Editor PATCH 7A to 7E8 [If you already have LFS Editor 0.7A or later]
Editor 0.7A or later must already be installed!
EDIT: Download link removed, official update 0.7F is now available: https://www.lfs.net/forum/thread/95664

Last edited by Scawen, Sat 27 Jul 2024, 10:07.

You can't just take someone else's work and call it your own, whether it's from the mod folder or not. I do agree it's kinda weird how it's pretty easy to load up a car and convert the dds, but at the same time, it's very educational in how mods are built, I'm all for learning how the best mods are created to apply some of the same techniques (read, techniques, no content re-used) to my mods. It can also help keep everyone honest, being it's a community-built mod with potential legal implications; having the ability to open up the veh file to see what's potentially hidden could surface a potential legal issue before others find it (like a config that isn't used, but is after review)

Honestly, we should be building up the manual with this knowledge, but that's a lot of work for a volunteer to document all these techniques. If the review process was dialled, including changes after review, we could encrypt the folder. Luckily, lfs is pretty unique so ripping models and using it elsewhere isn't that common to my knowledge.

Often when I ask mod creators for permission to use their model that doesn't have deriv on, they tell me to get it from the mod folder anyways instead of passing over the share files, it's just easier for them. I prefer the share files since the textures are all named properly making it much easier to work with.

I see many people take from the MODS folder and if I am not mistaken that is not the correct way to make a derivative if the mod allows it correct?

The correct procedure should be to contact mod author for files, so that player has the ex: TEXTURED.PNGS and not the TEXTURED.DDS as so the model doesn't give you a error like ex: COULD NOT LOAD FILE TEXTURED.DDS and end up having said derivative maker converting DDS to PNGS.



I am 100% against using the MODS folder.
Here is why.

1. You don't know who you are taking from so you cannot credit which ends up getting called out when it's in REVIEW state which wastes lfstech's time.

2. I consider it to be in bad taste to just spew all over a good mod with a tweak for 1000hp etc etc

3. Most likely can cause license issues.

Last edited by JayDeM, Tue 16 Jan 2024, 00:48.

Krita might be nice image editor aswell.

Make sure to check <game path>/data/skins/Skins_README.txt if you haven't already.

And if you got the urge to load-in image saved in .dds format, you can try out ImageMagick of FFmpeg to do so, quick google will show you what you need to get them running. Than both programs require just this one command line for basic usage:

Just remember that the 2D plane of the skin file LFS needs, due to technical reasons with 3D graphics, does not have proper aspect ratio when imported to the game. Thus, for example even size circle in the editor will become bit squeezed / elipse. Maybe one day someone will make plugin for blender to edit the skin when it's already mapped on car for best preview.

Why would you need to use editor for skin creation? In LFS garage you have the viewer where you can see the skin on car without hassle of converting dds for editor.

So, I was making my first skin for the mod PROTOTYPE2, so I copied the veh file from "LFS\mods\vechiles" and pasted it to the veh folder of the LFS editor. Everything was fine with creating the skin after watching some tutorials.Finally I had finished my skin and tried testing it from the editor but I got an error: "19 png textures not found". I went to the folder where I got the 'veh' file from and copied the 'dds' files and then pasted in the folder the editor was referring to (png folder), it didn't work...I then turned the 'dds' into 'png' but didn't work either...

If anyone knows the solution or wants to suggest something please answer.

Thank you

Off topic - here is a (code) .bat file for 7zip to backup all the important LFS stuff, place it on the LFS root folder:


creates a smaller file you can upload it anywhere and always have your stuff with you

Hi there!

A few days ago i wanted to create a little skin for the Prototype 2 https://www.lfs.net/files/vehmods/8A8457?skins for my own usage. I downloaded the attached Skin Template Kit which contains a PSD file.

I use Gimp (Linux) when creating a skin for default cars and i had no problems with it so far. The P2 template is 2048x2048. I used to do the same stuff as before with the default templates: adding layers, colouring selected areas and finally exporting the file as JPG. But this time everything looked out of order after copying and loading the skin in the gameclient. I resized it the PSD to 1024x1024, did all the work again, but at the end with the same result. I even loaded the DDS from the game folder, but again everything is on the wrong place.

Looks like i am doing something wrong here and i prolly need some enlightenment.
Do i have to stretch the PSD file before and if so to what aspects?

Thanks!

I think something needs to be done about (censored) LFS servers. There are people around me who play on these servers. And unfortunately, even though I explain to them that this situation is not good at all, they say that it does not pose a problem for them. The servers don't appear to be empty, and a few servers I looked at were actually full. In fact, I think it is an issue that should be referred to the judicial authorities. What do lfs moderators think about this issue?
*/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
* /
* 1-) I think removing s2 and s1 and merging them under a single license could solve this situation. /
* /
* (but that solution doesn't seem viable.) /
* /
* 2-) In other lfs versions, if there is support for these versions, that support can be removed. /
* /
* 3-) The right to open a server with a local network connection can be removed. /
* /
* 4-) lfs's own tools can be made to connect to lfs servers. in this way, it may become impossible to
* play lfs without connecting to the lfs server. (this will eliminate the situation of playing without
* be online, but there are no houses without internet in this century and I think this situation will not
* be a problem) (at the same time, dds extension files made by people themselves may become unusable, but
* we can connect these files to the server, so they can use the designed files.). /
*///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Last edited by uf1, Tue 3 Oct 2023, 07:00.

I was looking for the dds of the tracks and the xrt tail lights, but thanks a lot bro!