Gentlemen ,This question is for those using IOCARDS .I learnt reading the IOCARDS site that we need to know the offsets of the keys , lights and everything we want to use with IOCARDS.Is this true ? and those panels which we don't know the offsets ? is there any chance to use IOCARDS without to know the offsets ?Thanks and regards Alberto Kunzel

Captain Alberto,You search for the FSUIPC SDK on Pete Dowsons website. In there is a word document with a huge table containing all offsets. These are all the offsets for the default FS variables. There are no real offsets for panels that are not made by MSFS (except for some exceptions).

>Captain Alberto,>>You search for the FSUIPC SDK on Pete Dowsons website. In>there is a word document with a huge table containing all>offsets. These are all the offsets for the default FS>variables. There are no real offsets for panels that are not>made by MSFS (except for some exceptions).Dear Phillippe,Thanks for your input .So , this means that if the panel is not the default from MS we cannot use the IOCARDS in full .If this is correct I think that I will continue to use key2mouse in my project.Thanks and regards,Alberto Kunzel

Well it all depends ...If this panel that is not made by MS uses the default MSFS variables (offsets) or not. If it does use them, it can be interfaced. Most of the time they use the default MSFS variables to some extend. But some panels use fully their own. In which case key2mouse is indeed an option.

i do have a question on this topic, i am sort of new to this interfacing and i use phidgets, i to ran into a problem is that they work well with the defalt planes, no problem there, but as far as add on planes you will have trouble, i run the level d 767 and that is the only plane that i know of that also gives you the SDK,s with the plane, but that still means you have to be able to make it work with the interface cards.well any way i ran into a fellow sim builder that to uses the level d 767 and he ran into the same problem, he was also a programer so he wrote a program called fsconv, that allows you to use the fsuipc offsets and well anyway allow level d 767 sdk,s to work .fsconv is for the level d 767 only.well the problemm with me is that i dont understand the lingo that is involved, if i was using iocards what do i do on my end to make it work , is there a software that comes with iocards.with phidgets there is a software interface that sets it up for you to use the defaut planes , but what do i do manually to allow another add on plane to work.Thanks................Robert

I am not familiar with Phidgets. However from what I understand if you build around Level D767, if I were you .. i'd sell them phidgets and with that money buy IOcards from OpenCockpits and then work with the stuff Nico Kaan gives you. In no time you'll have a good working setup!

Hi,That was my advise to him to.The other option might be to use FS2PHIDGET, a tool to let Phidgets hardware communicate with FSUIPC offsets. At least that is what I understand if I look at this website:http://www.phidgetsusa.com/fs/fs2phidgets/..._FS2Phidget.aspBut you still have to write a so called Flight Function File with the FSUIPC (FSCONV) offsets you are going to use (the same as the ini file for FSBUS made by George Dorkofikis).But even then I think that IOCards SIOC is much more powerful. I'd only recommend to use Phidgets if you want to implement simple things like leds and switches or if you are new to programming. Actually IMHO if you have no programming skills I would not start building a home cockpit at all ... You better stay with glass cockpits.Nicowww.nicokaan.nl

amenI do have programming knowledge but I'm quite sure that basic SOIC is not at all hard !!If only they'd make an USB-LCD card with 1 card which can hold more than 8 displays .. I'd be off getting ridd of all my interfaces and replacing all with IOcards !

Alberto,I'm using IOCARDS with SIOC.You have to consider that with SIOC you can implement almost a full functionality of a cockpit, no matter what the panel is.Some aircraft panels don't use completely FSUIPC so in theory you shouldn't access to all the functions that this panel gives you.I faced this problem having a payware products where the panel doesn't even let you turn on a light from an external program.If you change the state of a switch from an external program (as it may be done with SIOC) the "panel's logic" restores it immediately to the previous state !As you can see this can make a cockpit implementation very hard to do but I tried to replace that panel with a default MSFS panel (in my case with the Boeing 737's panel) and so everything worked out.Of course I had (and I will have) to implement "manually" (with SIOC) all those functions that the Boeing's panel originally doesn't have and that are typical of the aircraft that I'm building the cockpit.After all we don't need to see the MSFS panel when we will have our cockpit completed, no?Regards,Bob

Very true ..New builders tend to build around a 2D panel. Which in fact is what you're trying to get ridd of in the first place when you start building a home cockpit. So indeed it's pure logic to perhaps even fly a plane with no 2D panels at all ! ( which is only possible if you got external glass gauges obviously :( .. of if you make full steam gauged analoge cockpits )

>Alberto,>>I'm using IOCARDS with SIOC.>You have to consider that with SIOC you can implement almost a>full functionality of a cockpit, no matter what the panel is.>Some aircraft panels don't use completely FSUIPC so in theory>you shouldn't access to all the functions that this panel>gives you.>I faced this problem having a payware products where the panel>doesn't even let you turn on a light from an external>program.>If you change the state of a switch from an external program>(as it may be done with SIOC) the "panel's logic" restores it>immediately to the previous state !>As you can see this can make a cockpit implementation very>hard to do but I tried to replace that panel with a default>MSFS panel (in my case with the Boeing 737's panel) and so>everything worked out.>Of course I had (and I will have) to implement "manually">(with SIOC) all those functions that the Boeing's panel>originally doesn't have and that are typical of the aircraft>that I'm building the cockpit.>After all we don't need to see the MSFS panel when we will>have our cockpit completed, no?>>Regards,>>BobBob ,Thanks for your information .I am building my cockpit based on the DF 737-400 from Dreamfleet , which I think is one of the best panel I have seen in this hobby. You can control almost 100 % of all gauges using the mouse . Unhappily I know that several offsets are not the offsets of MSFS default , so , my doubt in using IOCARDS is if we need to know the offsets in order to have all the original control of DF737-400 working properly .I will try to understand as SIOC works before to order the hardware I need.If you have more information on the above please let me know.Thanks and regards,Alberto K

I don't know that product of Dreamfleet directly, but have you tried to ask to their support forum if there is the way to know which offsets are involved with their panel?Some of the payware products have also a kind of SDK documentation for developers or cockpit builders to help them in their implementation.If you want to know more about SIOC and IOCARDS I suggest you to search on the forum at www.opencockpits.com .There are plenty of discussions where to learn better about this system.Regards,Bob

>I don't know that product of Dreamfleet directly, but have>you tried to ask to their support forum if there is the way to>know which offsets are involved with their panel?>Some of the payware products have also a kind of SDK>documentation for developers or cockpit builders to help them>in their implementation.>>If you want to know more about SIOC and IOCARDS I suggest you>to search on the forum at www.opencockpits.com .>There are plenty of discussions where to learn better about>this system.>>Regards,>>BobBob ,Thanks , I will try to learn little more about IOCARDs / SIOC.The support of Dreamfleet could not help me with the offsets , they simply told me that they did not know , and that's it .As I know for gauges wtitten in C++ is possible you know the offsets, but when written in XML is not possible , and that panel the majority of gauges are in XML.Best regards ,Alberto K

Read this topic a bit:http://forums.avsim.net/dcboard.php?az=sho...id=19634&page=2Will help you underway with basic SOIC.Then forget about DF737. They will not help you interface it. Many have tried.

>Read this topic a bit:>>http://forums.avsim.net/dcboard.php?az=sho...id=19634&page=2>>Will help you underway with basic SOIC.>>Then forget about DF737. They will not help you interface it.> Many have tried.Thanks Philippe, I will read that right now .Regardsalberto K