1. Open the Atlantis.proj from the WCSProjects\SX2 folder on your hard drive. Save the project as AtlantisGIS.

2. Go to the Render Task Mode in the Scene-at-a-Glance and add a Scene Exporter Component.

3. Name it GIS and change the Output Format to GIS. Replace Exports\AtlantisGIS in the Output File target with GIS\AtlantisGIS. This will create a GIS folder in the SX2 project folder to hold the exported GIS files. Temporary files will be saved in an Exports folder.

4. Go to the Terrain page. The Grid Cell Size is measured in degrees because the project uses the Geographic - WGS 84 Coordinate System. Let's work with units easier to visualize. Choose New Coordinate System from the Coordinate System dropdown list.

5. The New Coordinate System will default to WCS Back-compatible Sphere. Edit the Coordinate System to open the Coordinate System Editor. Go to the System page and choose UTM - NAD 83 from the System dropdown list.

6. Open the Database Editor, select a DEM, and look at the Extent tab. The longitude is about 108.8º west.

7. Back in the Coordinate System Editor choose Zone 12 from the Zone dropdown list. Zone 12 covers the longitude of this project's DEMs.

8. This will convert our Grid Cell Size units to meters.

9. To better see how parameters on this page interact, change the Bounds to the following values. You'll see the Columns and Rows values change as the Bounds change.

10. We'll export square cells so check Square Cells. Square grid cells aren't required but are convenient. Note that the Columns value changes to match the Rows value.

11. Change the Grid Cell Size value to 10 m. The Bounds shift as necessary to accommodate the cell size change.

12. There are no LOD options in the GIS format.

13. Turn to the Texture page. This controls the texture draped on the terrain. Change the Columns and Rows to 335. That will give us a terrain texture resolution of 3 meters per image pixel.

14. The Foliage page defaults to exporting foliage. No image format is available because foliage placement will be exported as a shapefile.

15. There are no Sky options in the GIS exporter.

16. The Misc page only allows vector export as a shapefile.

17. Misc2 page Cameras, Lights, and Haze options are not available in the GIS exporter.

18. Return to the Gen'l page and Export Scene Now.

19. This will open the VNS Export Control window. Go to start exporting.

20. VNS will ask you to confirm the creation of new directories in the SX2 project folder. You won't get the WCSProjects:SX2\Exports window if you've done any of the other SX2 tutorials.

21. Export Control will let you know when export is complete.

22. Your WCSProjects\SX2\GIS folder contains all the exported data files.

» FLT, HDR, and PRJ files define the terrain » Foliage shapefile contains points for each stem with ID, image name, and height attributes » Vector shapefile contains all vectors » TIF and associated TFW files are texture drapes for the terrain

23. Exported files from this tutorial are in the WCSProjects\SX2\Tutorial Output folder. The completed project file is in the WCSProjects\SX2\Tutorial Projects folder.

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Produced by R Scott Cherba for 3D Nature, LLC Copyright ©2006 All Rights Reserved