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Tutorial - How to create a world using Real-World Height data

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  • NodakNodak Posts: 89 Member
    edited March 2014
    Has anyone successfully created a height map using Google Earth from this tutorial yet? If not, this needs to be removed from the FAQ because there is very little help with this topic. I've been trying for days to figure out how to get past getting SRTM to work with the current version of Google Earth on a 64-bit OS to no success whatsoever. Very frustrated. I'll keep messing with it, and if I'm successfully I'll update this tutorial, but I doubt this the help I need will be found here as this thread is dead.
  • aminovasaminovas Posts: 1,523 Member
    edited March 2014
    Hi!
    I almost posted in here a few weeks ago about this.

    I have definitely used the techniques in this excellent tutorial on multiple occasions, to the point where I would say this is all a keeper in my tool box of CAW tools. And this is coming from someone who used to use DEM data professionally. The SRTM module for Google Earth and MicroDEM worked great, better than anything I was taught in school, and they totally replaced my other tools for achieving the same thing. So, please, I hope no one deletes this tutorial! It is great.

    That said, I don't know what is going on with the Google Earth SRTM kml. I know that the SRTM databases have changed a great deal over the last year, and I haven't been able to get data through it for several months. I've tried on three different computers, reinstalled Google Earth etc. It is incredibly annoying. It used to be you just had to uncheck and re-check the "elevation" subset of the KML to get the grid to display with icons to download to files you wanted, but it is not working at all at the moment so far as I could tell. I'd bet money it has to do with the SRTM database changing and it is popular enough, they will likely update the KML. If they don't, it might be because DEM datasets are switching to cloud-based storage systems and in some cases the format of DEM storage seems to be changing.

    So, here is what you can do to get the data in the meantime (and if this doesn't make sense, post back here and I'll run through it myself to see what I can do to make it more clear):
    For US data, you can download from the National Map. I can't remember whether you need to use Earth Explorer or not. One of these databases does not host the right format of DEM that you need (GeoTiff), so, if you don't find it, try the other one:
    http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/
    http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/

    If you are looking for non-US data, it might be hard to find the higher resolution DEMs that are most useful for us. Do a google search for SRTM DEM data, and you should find some options. You may need to know the coordinates of the data set you are looking for, and Google earth could be helpful for that. I am sorry, I don't have the energy to run through this right now to explain it all better, but if there is interest in how to do this and these suggestions don't get you there, post back, and I will try to clarify.

    Once you get your data as a GeoTiff, the instructions with MicroDEM and CAW are just the same. I will say that depending on the resolution you are working with, and especially if you are using the lower resolution DEMs and zooming in on a very small area, an island for example, that you probably won't want to "decimate" the data. Just take it into a graphical editing program (Gimp or Photoshop), crop to the right shape and resize, and apply a gaussian blur (~ 1 pixel radius).

    Also, I have been trying out real world data in a program called World Machine and if you do a search on youtube for "real world data" and "world machine" I am pretty sure there are some how-to videos for getting DEM data into World Machine, and it works just the same for CAW.

    Good luck, and don't despair (I turned into a raging lunatic when I finally figured out that KML wasn't working. Super frustrating.) Good DEM data is still out there, and I personally think it is well worth it :)

    Edit to add: here is the youtube link to the video I using the National Map data and MicroDEM and World Machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_wCiWztNmo
    Post edited by Unknown User on
  • thije2thije2 Posts: 8
    edited April 2014
    Sorry, I did what the tutorial says but I don't even get the trangle in the right side of the screen and your MICRODEM doesn't look like mine..
  • nachoocapsnachoocaps Posts: 1 New Member
    Hey it looks like this thread is dead by now, but anyways. I tried to follow step by step. But the SRTM for GoogleEarth is not working, because I don't see any triangle. So is there any another way to get the SRTM data so I can make it work with MicroDEM and CAW.
  • MattyMansonMattyManson Posts: 2 New Member
    TS3 CAW needs the world to be bigger and more space out, the large 2048x2048 plus 1:1 needs improvement, the fact reminds. I encountered a few problems of not getting it in CAW.

    Has anyone try to do a world that is 6 miles n/e/s/w, has some towns that are compress and not able to put the right number of lots on it.

    My steps are similar to The CAW requirements

    Step 1 I use Google Earth and Microdem, and follow the same steps with in tutorial

    step 2 1:1 is compressing the space which makes uneven or too small and not able to put the right number of lots and road space

    step 3 2048 by 2048 is not large enough and with 1:1 in place it states that it will not be usable to create the world from the users mind.

    I had a few problems in the way if anyone saw the problem they think, I gone mad which I have not.

    yours Matthew :)

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