Getting Started
with VNS 3: Terrain
Basics
Part 3D. Generating Terrain
1. VNS doesn't limit you to imported
data for terrain. You can also create terrain with the Terrain Generator. Create a new project and name it TG.
2. When asked if you want to
import data, answer No, as we'll be creating our own.
3. Go to the Data menu
and open the Terrain
Generator.
4. Open a view for TG
Camera and zoom back a notch with the - (minus)
key.
5. We have terrain visible in
the camera view, but we don't have any DEM objects in the Database Editor. This is a preview of the default Terrain Generator texture, size, and elevation range.
It doesn't become a DEM object until we create a DEM.
6. Select Elevation Range Texture
Operations  and Edit Texture.
7. Drag the Texture Editor out of the way so we can see the camera view.
The default element is a Hybrid Multifractal texture.
8. Go to the Selected Element
dropdown list and choose Turbulence.
9. The camera view refreshes
with the new texture element.
10. Try Pebbles next.
In addition to creating artificial terrain, the Terrain Generator
Texture Editor is a great place to experiment with different
textures and see how they work in 3 dimensions.
11. Close out the Texture Editor and go to the Terrain Generator Coverage page. The default terrain size
is about 28 kilometers on a side and the elevation ranges from
0 to 5000 meters.
12. To choose another area preset,
use the Area Presets dropdown list and select Square
Kilometer.
13. The elevation range and cell
size will scale accordingly.
14. The camera view changes as
the nearly 800 square-kilometer terrain is reduced to a single
square kilometer. That's the DEM off in the distance.
15. Reset the TG Camera
to its default position.
16. You can also set your own
values for DEM dimensions, bounds, cell size, and elevation range.
As with all VNS Components, you can load a prebuilt Terrain
Generator. Select Load Component 
from the titlebar to open the Component Gallery.
17. Load the Groovy Component.
18. You don't see any terrain
because the Component has the preview disabled. Go to the General
page and check the Preview Enabled box.
19. Create DEM, save your
project, and close out the Terrain Generator.
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