# Objective
- Introduce variants of `LoadContext::load_direct` which allow picking
asset type & configuring settings.
- Fixes#12963.
## Solution
- Implements `ErasedLoadedAsset::downcast` and adds some accessors to
`LoadedAsset<A>`.
- Changes `load_direct`/`load_direct_with_reader` to be typed, and
introduces `load_direct_untyped`/`load_direct_untyped_with_reader`.
- Introduces `load_direct_with_settings` and
`load_direct_with_reader_and_settings`.
## Testing
- I've run cargo test and played with the examples which use
`load_direct`.
- I also extended the `asset_processing` example to use the new typed
version of `load_direct` and use `load_direct_with_settings`.
---
## Changelog
- Introduced new `load_direct` methods in `LoadContext` to allow
specifying type & settings
## Migration Guide
- `LoadContext::load_direct` has been renamed to
`LoadContext::load_direct_untyped`. You may find the new `load_direct`
is more appropriate for your use case (and the migration may only be
moving one type parameter).
- `LoadContext::load_direct_with_reader` has been renamed to
`LoadContext::load_direct_untyped_with_reader`.
---
This might not be an obvious win as a solution because it introduces
quite a few new `load_direct` alternatives - but it does follow the
existing pattern pretty well. I'm very open to alternatives.
😅
26df1c1179