Well, I have in fact gotten lower OVC and BKN clouds at the rough altitudes that I have set the layer in METAR, however, it is still very intermittent. But they have been there in some form or fashion, so I don't think that the code is reading them incorrectly. Chris, I think there is different problem caused by two things, the shape of the clouds (an FS9 limitation?), and the placement. In order to really see the clouds, I test my layers with very high visibility (25-30sm)so that I can see the layers clearly, and how far they extend, and where the holes are, so that the visibility does not mask any problems.The problem of differing altitudes seems to be this. First, there is a "hole" above the airport usually that allows the cloud layer to exist all around, but not really over the airport. So, when you take off, you see the cloud layer that you have set off to the side, in front, and in back, but by the time you fly to the cloud, you have obviously continued to climb, and reach the cloud at a higher level than it's "bottom". Thus you lose visibility as you fly into the side of it essentially, but because they are not over you as overcast is, you fly horizontally into the cloud, and not vertically into it, and hence lose sight of the ground at a higher altitude than the reported bottoms Make sense? So, one big problem is there is always a hole over the aiport. And, of course, if you have visibility set low, than you can't see this, but it has been there for every test I have done. So, the way that ASV renders visibility may be "covering" (ha ha) up a big problem by using the visibility to conceal holes. Needless to say, we have all been trying METARS with low vis and low OVC. Try high vis and low OVC!BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY,there is another characteristic that is causing this "flying into the cloud layer much higher than the reported layer in the METAR". Unlike the RW, where OVC is basically a "flat layer" that you fly into most of the time, and lose visibility almost instantly, in FS9, clouds are usually 3 dimensional objects that don't have flat bottoms!!!! So, when you fly upward, one part of the clouds that makes up the layer may be at the reported layer, or close to it, but the rest of the "bottom" of the cloud, and the space in between them is not. Think of an upside down triangle. The point may be at 500 ft, but the rest of the lower sides are somewhere above 500 feet. So, if we can get a true flat layer for OVC, than I think we can solve the problem. The problem with this is it will likely be pretty transparent due to FS9 limitations, but then we can use the overcast enhancement function like it is supposed to be used. Because two thin, flat layers against one another could solve the problem, rather than just piling another layer of 3 dimensional cumulus clouds on top of the overcast layer to create opaqueness at the wrong altitude. Because if you use two 3-d cumulus cloud layers to simulate overcast, it is still easy to fly up "between" the individual clouds and cloud layers. So, solution? Obviously, ASV can create layers that are not reported in the METAR to increase the visuals. That is one of its strengths. Why not code ASV so that when there is an OVC in the METAR, just place two flat stratus levels on top of each other within 100 ft or so, and then bam, you have solid overcast within the constraints of FS9!CB

Hi CB,There is a new setting called Stratus Separation and the default value is 7000. Try experimenting with that value(lower) and see what you find.Hope this helps,JimActiveSky Sales and Supporthttp://www.hifisim.com/images/asv_dev_team.jpg http://www.hifisim.com/images/asv_proud_supporter.jpg

Jim, Thank you very much. I will try that. CB

Interesting reading these threads on OVC. I was having the same problem with AS2004.5 and launched a hot topic on this in this forum about a month ago. It seems this is the same problem I had with 4.5. If you go to spot view with the presumed OVC the "hole" isn't just around the airport it follows the plane everywhere! Chris and Jim addressed this and the determination was that it was an FS9 issue. I also am Comm-ASEL-IFR and wanted to simulate those nice 2-300 foot OVC approaches and it can't be done no matter what I try with 4.5 or ASV. The only way I get it is with good old 2002 and wxRE! I'll keep tracking these threads to see if someone else can get nice solid OVC in FS9.

>problem I had with 4.5. If you go to spot view with the>presumed OVC the "hole" isn't just around the airport it>follows the plane everywhere! Chris and Jim addressed this>and the determination was that it was an FS9 issue.Since FS2002 (or maybe even 2000) i noticed this.Well before buying any meteo software.At the time i didn't even fly online.And still when you moved the eye-sight in spot view just above your plane, and trickled with the view menu moving the distance farther from the plane, you could clearly see the rose of clouds around you.More: you could see the clouds turning faceing the plane like sunflowers.It has always been that way MS depicted clouds.