Geof,If you ever do change your mind and fly into Canada again and need charts and approach plates, just let me know and I'll point you where to get them from or even pick them up for you myself (my local pilot supply shop usually has a supply for all of Canada).Jeff

Thanks for the offer-Jeff-howdy neighbor! After talking to local airport operators I think I know what to do now-but I know where to go now if I have doubts. My customs sticker expires at the end of this month and then there is the new elt requirement which still seems to be shaking out. However, I do have plans in August of next year to do a 5000 nm guided flying tour of all the Canadian provinces. I hope it will be a go!

Hi, Charlie aqnd everyone.Your CX2 is fine for using it for Ground work, for airborne time you will find out that if you did not do your home / Ground work you will be in serious trouble. There are many digitized Charts and Plates here at AVSIM that can be used with the Flight Sim Manager, FSM Moving Map, but unfortunately many things will not work in FSX.There are many, new, things, mainly electronic aids, that can be of help, if used properly. The calculator is one of them.One thing that worries me, now days, is the in flight WX. Many people tend to get in the air before they check the WX on the ground. I, personally, will not fly with those people.While in flight you can use Thumb rules to compare and make the small adjustments needed. There are many things you can do on the ground, that you can use in flight to minimize the amount of calculations, like set up each check point every 10 or15 NM. Depending on your GS, that can tell you if the winds / GS have changed and what you have to do for the next leg, by just adding or subtracting the difference in time. You should be able to do the Diversion to another airport by just using Thumb rules, a ruler, or pencil marked with the scale of the chart you use, or your thumb. If you find yourself way off, get on the horn and ask for help. You can simulate the same thing in VFR by going to an IFR flight plan to your destination, without changing location. Not as good as real ATC but at least you will get headings.I posted a similar message a few years ago, and here are some things that may help. Some things, in the System hardware, have changed, but the Aviation related information is still valid.I, personally have, but do not use much, FSX, and mainly use and still recommend, FS9. I find FSX to be less useful as a tool mainly because of the inability to get a good performance with the present Hardware. Main problem, Fluidity. Many real world pilots underestimate the necessity of this element discounting it, but the reality is that if you do not get the proper update, especially in the Instrumentation for IFR, you will not / should not be using the Sim as a Tool. If what you want is a Scenery viewer, FSX is the way to go. In a few years, when Hardware will be able to compensate for inefficiencies of the present code, the situation may change.Some the suggestions will need to be adjusted, accordingly, if you use FSX.I tried projectors and multiple monitors. I find that a large, at least 21 in., high resolution Monitor works the best for me. Projectors, and some large LCDs tend to have visible gaps between the active pixels which detracts from the sensation of reality. Going from a 17, or even a 19 in. monitors to a 21 or 23 does help, and it may take while to get used to the feel. I’ve seen people that said they felt motion sickness / vertigo like effect, when transitioning.After many years, of real life flying, 6 DOF full motion simulators, and PC simulation combinations including motion platforms, this is what I find to be the most flexible, and help me get the most out of sims.This message is bound to be boring for the Scenery viewers. If that is the type of simulation you do, you may want to skip it. If you are serious about using it as tool, learn about some of the limitations / pit falls, and want to get the most out of the sim, read on.As a CFII, I try not to misuse this tool, and want to make sure that others understand what the shortcomings and limitations are, and how, in my opinion, to be best used.A simulator will help you develop, good, or bad habits, depending on the way you approach your sessions. I think of it as Katas in the Karate, or Speed / Heavy bag, Shadow boxing, work. If you don’t practice right you’ll pay the price later. In flying, there is not much room for mistakes, it's not very likely that you will get away with just a black eye . Here is what I found useful and generally suggest to the people that I interface with, depending on their experience level and their qualifications I have more individually related suggestions.Minimum Elements required before a trip VFR or IFR:1. Weather. FSS, include TFRs, NOTAMs etc.2. Fuel.3. W&B4. Known Traffic Delays.5. Runaway info., Length, Altitude etc.6. Landing , Takeoff and Cruise Performance. Make sure you take into account D.A.Note: There are some GROSS issues that can develop a negative learning transfer by using MSFS, and here is how you can counter act some of them:For a typical GA, 172 / 182, NEVER allow the Pitch / Attitude indicator to go beyond 10 degrees, for normal operation, Take Off, Landing etc.Always try to use the proper airspeed for Take Off and Landing. If you cannot get a Flight model that allows that, in the proper configuration, discard it.Don’t fly the VSI, try to use your AI as main Attitude indicator, and use the VSI as part of your Altimeter, tells you where you are, try to think of them as one gauge. Whenever you scan the Altimeter scan the VSI, tells you where you will be / going.Proper Scanning, for every 4-5 second inside, spend 16-20 second outside looking for traffic.Begin each maneuver / turn by looking / scanning, "Clear Left Turning Left..". The Twist assignment in your Joystick / Controller, normally assigned to Rudder, really helps.Depending on the Aircraft you use, here is what I suggest, to get the most realistic feel / experience from MS, in general:If you are a real world Pilot try to interface, and use all the equipment, Charts, GPS (se GPS out) available.When you sit down at your sim, think of it, and treat it, as if it is a real aircraft, no shortcuts. A complex aircraft / Heavy, where more than 1 pilot is required, is beyond the scope of this discussion.Remember: Practice as you fly, or you will end up flying as you practice.During flight if you find yourself doing nothing, you are doing something wrong.Every practice is a flight, and every flight is a practice / new learning experience.I try to use VC inside cockpit Mode, ONLY.Get an aircraft / add ons that fit your computer’s configuration, and configure your sim to match your trough put. You will never get the sensation of flight with a choppy output, I don’t care how sophisticated your panel / aircraft is.Try to sim fly with an Instructor or a body that is real pilot, that can generate random failures and create distractions. If that is not possible set up some random failures in the sim.Get a Kneeboard, write the Clearance, directions, Freqs., etc., down, you can compare them later to the real world flight, if curious.Put the keyboard out of your reach, use your Controls, see below my config., a voice controller, I use SpeechBudy2, and only use the Mouse only to the extent needed.Install Rudder pedals for your Yaw and better Ground control.Adjust your Forward view / Zoom to around 0.5-0.7 for Take off and Cruise. This gives you a better perspective and speed sensation. You can use 1.0 for Landing, or around 250 Ft. AGL, if needed. Note: The Eye point position changes with the Zoom rate, make sure you have a configuration readily available, use + - Ctrl, Shft., B.S., Enter. I have these setup in SpeechBody2.Adjust your initial / default Instrument panel to view only the top 6 instruments at the default T.O. Zoom you chose (.5-.7), or as close as you can get to the real size in the real plane, for the Monitor size you have.Set your Frame rate level to get a smooth / fluid updates of your instruments, with all your Mesh, Scenery, etc. loaded.Do not violate any rules, for VFR that can take a lot of planning in a congested area. Try to Hand fly as much as possible, know how to use, and use the AP only if needed.Before Take off do the minimum 5 elements required. See below if you don’t know them. Always File a Flight plan. Select a flight that is around 1-2 hrs. in length.Always start at a tie down location, and follow the Clearance, Ground, Tower, ATC etc. instructions. Use the Moving Map if you have a second monitor, this is a lot more difficult in MS than real life.Know your numbers, if something is not right, make sure you take steps to understand it and fix it, if things don’t add up, Talk and Land. On every Take off and Landing try to practice a different technique, Short, Soft, Precision etc.Stay inside the cockpit, if you want to see your aircraft from outside, to analyze a flight / maneuver, use the Recorder or the Flight analysis. Stay ahead of the aircraft, Always expect a problem, analyze the most likely thing to go wrong, i.e. during T.O. Power issue / aborted T.O. what, when, how, why. After T.O. Always know where your next landing spot is, WX, Terrain, Time, Position, Frequencies etc. Use the Moving Map on the second monitor if needed.Use, and adhere to the ATC, live or MS built in, instructions. Don’t worry about getting longer route, it happens in real life also.Always use Checklists and read them out loud, you can use SpeechBuddy2 for this.Assign Pan view right / left, to the twist handle, for a quick, look left right, scan, 45 etc.Choose / set up mixed WX at different points on your route.A lot of people have problems hand flying the ILS. Some tips: Know and use your configurations and numbers, performance flying. Always fix one thing at the time. Analyze what is more important and fix it, i.e. if you are off 200 Ft. in altitude and 5 Deg. off in Heading, fix the Altitude, then fix the other element.If you get bored in 1-2 hrs. flight you are not practicing right.FS9 Setup.I am sorry about not mentioning all the developers that contributed to these addons but this file was intended for my own, sanity / use only. I decided to release it after I sent it to some of the people I interface with on professional / personal basis, and decided to post it, in the hope that others may benefit from it.I use NO Payware addons.Display:I use multiple setups: 2 x 21in monitors, Second monitor for moving map, radio stack etc.If I use the Projector for Scenery, requires 2D mode and it gets very little use:1 Monitor for the Panel, in the second monitors, moving map / radios, etc.At times I use 3 Monitors and the Projector, but the inability to separate the Scenery window in VC makes that combination inadequate and not used often.Video controller settings: AA>4, AF>8, HQ, VS, Cmb>0Controls: Sidewinder Precision Pro USB with Pan view right left assigned to the twist handle. CH Products Pro pedals Game port to USB Interface assigned to Rudder with the Toe brakes.Comfortable, Headset & mic., most of the inexpensive sets work fine like Labtec.SpeechBuddy2 spbdy2nofsu (TV) interface files.Note: I use VC mode only with the outside Zoom rate of .5-.70 and the panel view set to give me about the same size as real instruments, or about 2.75 in. diameter on a 21in monitor, in default / start condition. I always use August 4 19:30 / Dusk as time of day, since I don’t like any of the day textures in MSFS.Must have / always present, Addons / mods: FS9 182 quasi RG aircraft with slow flight / Spin capability, or Cruise model (TV). TBM700. Bac1-11.At times I use MSFS C182 with some personal “.air”, “.cfg” mods.C172, and or MSFS C172 with RealAir “.air” and “.cfg” files, SpeechBuddy2. Litroads.zip / bright highways (AVSIM). Note: DAWN_DUSK_SMOOTHING=1 //Must use, in "fs9.cfg", with “litroads” for Dusk transition.Taximarks.zip (AVSIM).Raymondo’s USA_roads(flightsim).FSM Moving Map v1.1.0, or later: ( http://www.ranainside.com), on secondary monitor, Raymondo’s mesh for the area used (AVSIM).Landclass for the area and 10m scenery for the areas used more often.Note: By using USA Roads and Litroads, at dusk to dawn, you can eliminate most of the Landclass needs. Other sceneries installed:Test SNA, \lax \ral10 \san \sfo \calandclass \usa_roads \US Columbia River Gorge scenery \US Columbia River Gorge landclass \capri_v2 \egadi \ischia_v2 \lampedusa \procida_v2 \rio \reno \sedona \las \honlulu \hawai10 \yosem10 \Mount Whitney.Minimum Elements required before a trip VFR or IFR:1. Weather. FSS, include TFRs, NOTAMs etc.2. Fuel.3. W&B4. Known Traffic Delays.5. Runaway info., Length, Altitude etc.6. Landing , Takeoff and Cruise Performance. Make sure you take into account D.A. Assignments / changes: “fs9.cfg”Sidewinder Precision Pro USB{JOYSTICK_MAIN {8A112170-FDEB-11D8-8001-444553540000}}AXIS_EVENT_00=AXIS_AILERONS_SETAXIS_SCALE_00=91AXIS_NULL_00=52AXIS_EVENT_01=AXIS_ELEVATOR_SETAXIS_SCALE_01=92AXIS_NULL_01=54AXIS_EVENT_05=AXIS_PAN_HEADING // Twist handleAXIS_SCALE_05=93AXIS_NULL_05=72AXIS_EVENT_06=AXIS_THROTTLE_SETAXIS_SCALE_06=127AXIS_NULL_06=1BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_00=ATTITUDE_BARS_POSITION_UPBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_00=2BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_01=GEAR_TOGGLEBUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_02=ELEV_TRIM_DNBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_02=1BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_03=ELEV_TRIM_UPBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_03=1BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_04=FLAPS_INCRBUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_05=FLAPS_DECRBUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_06=PROP_PITCH_INCR_SMALLBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_06=2BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_07=PROP_PITCH_DECR_SMALLBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_07=2BUTTON_DOWN_EVENT_08=ATTITUDE_BARS_POSITION_DOWNBUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_08=2POV_MOVE_EVENT_00=PAN_VIEWPOV_MOVE_REPEAT_00=1CH Products Pro pedals Game port to USB Interface{JOYSTICK_MAIN {A7DEEE10-3D85-11D9-8001-444553540000}}AXIS_EVENT_00=AXIS_LEFT_BRAKE_SETAXIS_SCALE_00=127AXIS_NULL_00=114AXIS_EVENT_01=AXIS_RIGHT_BRAKE_SETAXIS_SCALE_01=127AXIS_NULL_01=114AXIS_EVENT_05=AXIS_RUDDER_SETAXIS_SCALE_05=127AXIS_NULL_05=84BUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_00=1BUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_02=1BUTTON_DOWN_REPEAT_03=1POV_MOVE_REPEAT_00=1 Other “fs9.cfg” mods:SHOW_OPENING_SCREEN=0FULL_SCREEN=1SMOOTH_VIEW=1IMAGE_SMOOTHING=1TEXTURE_MAX_LOAD=1024TEXTURE_QUALITY=3LOD_TARGET_FPS=16NUM_LIGHTS=6PAN_RATE=500{DISPLAY.Device…. }Mode=1280x1024x32TableFog=0 //ADD{DISPLAY}UPPER_FRAMERATE_LIMIT=24TEXTURE_BANDWIDTH_MULT=400{TERRAIN}TERRAIN_ERROR_FACTOR=89.000000TERRAIN_MIN_DEM_AREA=10.000000TERRAIN_MAX_DEM_AREA=100.000000TERRAIN_MAX_VERTEX_LEVEL=21TERRAIN_TEXTURE_SIZE_EXP=8TERRAIN_AUTOGEN_DENSITY=1TERRAIN_USE_GRADIENT_MAP=1TERRAIN_EXTENDED_TEXTURES=1TERRAIN_DEFAULT_RADIUS=9.900000TERRAIN_EXTENDED_RADIUS=4.900000TERRAIN_EXTENDED_LEVELS=9.5{SCENERY}IMAGE_COMPLEXITY=3DYNAMIC_SCENERY=1DYN_SCN_DENSITY=0DAWN_DUSK_SMOOTHING=1 //Must use with “litroads” for Dusk transition.SUNGLARE=0LENSFLARE=0{MAIN}Maximized=1Location=325,303,1007,985HideMenuNormal=0HideMenuFullscreen=1Ave_Frame_Rate_Display=1 //ADD to see AVG frame %Questions and or comments, post here, or send PM. TV