Oh Oh! >>> On the debate on whether a WX radar is useful or not, the answer certainly is (at this time) NO... However could anybody explain what an empty passenger cabin is made for in FS, or a flushing toilet, or windscreen wipers, and so on...? <<

Hi Michael,I'm sure you're right about lots of people think it's more important (or maybe fun would be a better word) with flushing toilets etc compared to a wx radar. Guess what kind of functionality is present should differ between what kind of add-on a/c you invest your money in. For the PMDG a/c, I wouldn't hesitate for long if I had the possibility to choose between working wipers or a wx radar.Cheers,

I guess the real challenge for the developers is technical (they can't do it well just yet) rather than "it is not necessary" (which is an excuse that does not fly - hence my remarks above to eliminate the "Nay sayers" hiding place). It was evidently easier to create the empty passenger cabin and the other "eye candies" than a reliable state of the art WX radar, but thanks to Reality XP this has now changed, it is technically possible, the difficulty probably is to integrate this existing add-on with the cockpit display systems. From what I read on various fora, the pressure is now coming up and soon there will be those with and those without. There is little doubt in my mind that PMDG will probably be among the leaders if not THE leader of the pack in this integration business. I wish them luck in their research and quest for quality.

Smart move Jean Claude.Michael

I do most of my flights online at IVAO and it would be great to have a map where you can actually see what the ATC talks about when it comes to VOR's etc. Visited their site and noticed you can download FSNav and use it for free 20 times without paying for it so that's what I'll do!Cheers,

>Does someone of you guys know if there is a program somewhere>that can convert PMDG's flighplans to a format AS2004 can>read, ie rte=>pln?>>TIA,Hehe TIA, I don't have that problem because I use British Airways Virtual BAC OSP tool. Just make a flight plan on http://rfinder.asalink.net/free/ and insert it in the OSP. It will audit it AND convert to .pln and .rte :-) The .pln I use only to make wind smoothing in AS2004./seb

Hi Seb,Sounds good! And what do you recommend for us not members of BA Virtual...because I guess it's not a program you can share with the rest of us...?TIA=Thanks in advance ;-)

>Hi Seb,>>Sounds good! And what do you recommend for us not members of>BA Virtual...because I guess it's not a program you can share>with the rest of us...?Hi Richard. No I can't. I'm afraid you have to register to get a working login/password. But, well, pre-BAV I found a solution that did it for me almost just as good: Insert the http://rfinder.asalink.net/free/ flight plan into the free version of FSBuild (remember to replace the " " with "-" between navpoints). Export the flight plan to .pln and .rte in one go. Works like a daisy.EXAMPLE CYYZ-KMIA:1) Go to http://rfinder.asalink.net/free/ and generate the plan:CYYZ DCT NNSIQ J531 BUF J61 EDDYS J174 DIW AR14 METTA AR1 HOBEE HEATT6 KMIA2) In notepad replace the " " with "-" so you will get:CYYZ-DCT-NNSIQ-J531-BUF-J61-EDDYS-J174-DIW-AR14-METTA-AR1-HOBEE-HEATT6-KMIA3) Insert this into FSBuild (the free version is sufficient here) and click on BUILD FLIGHTPLAN.4) Tick the options to the left, FS2000/02 and PMDG 737NG, and click on BUILD FLIGHTPLAN again. This will export the new FP to .pln AND .rte.OPTIONAL: merge step 3 and 4 and have FSBuild export the FP at the same time it builds it by ticking the options FS2000/02 and PMDG 737NG before you run BUILD FLIGHTPLAN the first time. The way I do it is to review the FP before I export it because FSBuild sometimes makes ridiculous routings that double the distance. Your choice :-)Included in the example is HEATT6. SIDs/STARs are something http://rfinder.asalink.net/free/ includes if it feels like it. If you want to leave this option open when programming the FMS just remove the SIDs/STARs from the flight plan before you run the batch in FSBuild.>TIA=Thanks in advance ;-)LOL. That one totally flipped over my head, although I must admit I DID frown a bit over the thought that you would change your name from Richard to Tia :-D/seb

Hi again,Thanks alot for your reply and help!! I have tried the solution you suggest using the free version of FSBuild but never managed to have it work for me but I'll give it another shot now with your explanation at my hands.All the best Seb,

Anyone knows where you can find the free version of FSBuild these days? Looked at their site (where I've downloaded it before) but couldn't find it there anymore.TIA,

>Hi again,>>Thanks alot for your reply and help!! I have tried the>solution you suggest using the free version of FSBuild but>never managed to have it work for me but I'll give it another>shot now with your explanation at my hands.>>All the best Seb,Yes, do that and just ask if there is an problem along the way or if there is some detail missing from my explanation. INCIDENTALLY, I tried the prodecure again now and it works fine except that I realized KMIA was a very bad example because no runway is included in the AIRAC cycle I have! Try with ANY OTHER DESTINATION than KMIA and it should work. This, by the way, is not an error on FSBuild's part, but simply a result of an incomplete AIRAC. I can't have KMIA as destination if I program it manually either./seb

Hi Seb,OK, thanks for the update but my biggest problem right now seem to be where to find the old freeware version of FSBuild. Checked the FSBuild site where I've downloaded it before but couldn't find it there anymore :-(

Hi Richard,has maybe something to do with that post : http://www.forumboard.net/1767/messages/4398.html

Hi Benjamin,Thanks for pointing this out to me, explains why I couldn't find it at the fsbuild site anymore.Is there someone with a copy of the old freeware FSBuild that could send it over? Don't think that would be a legal problem since it has been available as freeware. My email-address is in my signature.TIA,

>Is there someone with a copy of the old freeware FSBuild that>could send it over? Don't think that would be a legal problem>since it has been available as freeware. My email-address is>in my signature.>>TIA,Richard, just sent you a copy. Hope this helps.Regards/seb