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Bonkster

Aerosoft Anchorage for FS9 Released!

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On a FS9-ish subject, I finally flew a shiny UPS MD-11F into PANC from RKSI (the Overland scenery, very nice!), but I still haven't actually seen too much of PANC. Ceiling 100ft and snow, full autoland. Who'da thought it'd be snowing in Anchorage this time of year? LOL.gifCheers, SLuggy

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This might just be the time for me to spend a little time in the good ole US of A. 99.9% of my time is flying around the UK and Europe, Thanks Aerosoft. Heading Westwards !

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haven't actually seen too much of PANC. Ceiling 100ft and snow, full autoland
LOL, that's a pain. We, payware scenery geeks...
Heading Westwards
Or nothwards, to navigate precisely! Big%20Grin.gif

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Or nothwards, to navigate precisely! Big%20Grin.gif
I was referring to the general migratory pattern many of our good fore-fathers took from Europe, armed with only with a blunderbuss, chewing 'bakky', grizzled looks and a far sighted glint in their eyes. Hug.gif

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I don't know about you guys but another Windows Update remotely managing files on my system doesn't sound that great. I mean, the first thing I have a tendency to do is to remove excess garbage like that from my systems...yuck! But then again, aerosoft scenery is pretty nice...I guess it's up to the individual to decide.Hey Sluggy...you flew all the way to Alaska and didn't check the weather? Great review of snow... sure want to hear more about that...ha!Mark

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Hey Sluggy...you flew all the way to Alaska and didn't check the weather? Great review of snow... sure want to hear more about that...ha!Mark
Well, there was a lot of white during the descent, followed by some white during the approach. Around 4000 ft it suddenly became white with some snowflakes, and at around 100 ft I suddenly burst into 1/2 mile vis with some snowflakes. Somewhere beyond my vision there was an airport, apparently. Cheers, SLuggy

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I don't know about you guys but another Windows Update remotely managing files on my system doesn't sound that great. I mean, the first thing I have a tendency to do is to remove excess garbage like that from my systems...yuck! But then again, aerosoft scenery is pretty nice...I guess it's up to the individual to decide.Mark
I'm still not sure why you're resistant to using the launcher... it's not doing anything in the background and it is not remotely manipulating anything. It doesn't even run unless you run it. All you have to do is start the app, activate your scenery, and then quit the app. End of story. Its not running in the background and eating resources. But simply put, if you are that resistant to using it, then you can pretty much forget about ever buying any Aerosoft sceneries. They won't work unless you activate them through the launcher.

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Hi BonksterI didn't want to hijack this thread when I shared my experience of activating PANC but I think your remark deserves some kind of response. It seems that most people have had no problems with the Launcher and I'm glad for them. But in my case it has been a serious headache. A few weeks ago I realized that I was having a persistent problem with scenery files and some aircraft and that the problems went back over a period of about 4 months. After several days and many hours of troubleshooting, I narrowed the probable culprit down to the Aerososft Launcher. I don't really want to waste a lot of time describing how I did so - hopefully you will give me the benefit of the doubt that I'm a reasonably intelligent person and I don't jump to conclusions. Being almost certain that the launcher was the problem I uninstalled it and had no further problems. Then along came PANC, which is a fabulous addon, but required reinstalling the launcher to activate the scenery. Sure enough, all the same isues came back immediately after running it.A few other people have had a similar problem. The issue may be something to do with the fact that when you download a product that also installs the launcher, it apparently installs an older version of it than is available as a stand alone utility that can be obtained from the Aerosoft web site. Whatever the problem is, the reason I raised the issue on here was because it concerned installing and activating PANC. I don't really want to turn the thread into a debate about the launcher - but it DID cause a serious problem on my system. It's not intended as a criticism of Aerosoft or anybody else - it's simply an unwelcome software problem that occurs for some people on some systems... All I wanted to do was alert people that they may have some issues to resolve after runing the launcher to activate PANC.CheersIanps. The next time I have to reinstall the launcher to activate an Aerosoft product, I will download the newest version directly from their web sit and hope it solves the problem. If it doesn't I at least now know what I have to do to restore my FS9 installation back to how it was before it got screwed up

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Hey Bonkster...good comments. I do appreciate people who have constructive arguments and know how to get their points across.So that being said, while the software does belong to aerosoft, the system belongs to me. Now this has been a point of contention between individuals and companies since the advent of computers. We want to use their software and what do they want from us?I believe that they want to be paid for their development efforts (and rightly so) and they want the reasonable expectation that people who are using their software to pay for that use. So in that drive to meet their expectations, my system is being transformed into a tool for their use. Right now, companies are falling hand over feet to get a toehold on my system and are using any means possible to do it. They appear to be willing to do anything and say anything to gain that privilege because it is extremely lucrative for them to do so.What I marvel at is they lengths that they go through to achieve that goal. Companies will pick the most contentious subjects such as anti-piracy to justify their overreaction and attempt to make it appear reasonable that they put software on your system which monitors its use and your system usage.All the while having their co-intent diluted by the loud self-righteous indignation which is publically portrayed as egregious injury. Then after weeping publically and saying please help us, they go off and concoct some of the most one sided licensing agreements ever known to man and no one reads them. I suppose that they’re counting on that? But I think it’s more than just simple anti-piracy measures which are taking place right now. In the case of Aerosoft, I think the identified behavior is market control via an in place distribution mechanism. I think it’s their goal and it’s now being facilitated using the anti-piracy card.Now this is a very intricate argument which is nuanced and detailed...more so then I’d be willing to put my time into in a forum where people simply want to have fun flying...including me.The bottom line is that as these companies effort their own flavor of corporate domination via the internet, your system is going to be literally consumed with software that is essentially useless for you and only fulfills someone else’s agenda...and at both your time and expense. Do you think they care about that?My opinion...Mark

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The bottom line is that as these companies effort their own flavor of corporate domination via the internet, your system is going to be literally consumed with software that is essentially useless for you and only fulfills someone else’s agenda...and at both your time and expense. Do you think they care about that?My opinion...Mark
Mark,While I understand your well-based contention about companies maipulating your system for their own motives (i.e. planting tracking cookies, ad-ware, spyware, etc...) none of that really applies to the point at hand, which is the Aerosoft Launcher.Where this tool is concerned, Aerosoft is not secretly installing the software on your system. You are given the option of installing it during the set-up process for a downloaded scenery file. If you choose not to install it, then it won't install. The consequence of that, however. is that you cannot properly activate your scenery. But choosing to install it, though, DOESN'T mean that Aerosoft is delving into your system and extracting personal information to use for marketing purposes.If you DO install it, it is no different than any other MANUALLY launched program (i.e., FS9, FSX, Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc...) It will only run when YOU choose to run it. It doesn't secretly work in the background, manipulating anything or causing random mayhem with your system. Aerosoft isn't gathering data about you, your preferences, your shopping habits, or anything like that. All they are doing is making sure that the copy of their software that you are installing is genuine and has an associated serial key to prove that. That is the only purpose. And it is their right to ask you to verify that you have, indeed, paid for the software that you are about to install. If you were a developer who spent hours, weeks, or months creating something and were trying to sell it online, wouldn't you want to protect your investment in it by implementing some sort of measure to curb piracy? I know I would. But I also wouldn't take it to the extreme (as companies like Ariane do, with a multi-level security system so complex that getting through it is an exercise in sheer patience.)You have every right to object to some company secretly placing files on your system that, unknown to you, monitor and analyze your system. But that's not what the Aerosoft Launcher is doing. This is a simple piece of software that ONLY installs with your permission... and runs ONLY at your command. Everything that it does, it does with YOUR permission. Nothing could be LESS intrusive than this.Again, I understand your frustration with companies who want to use your computer habits for their own gain, but seriously... Aerosoft isn't doing that here. All they are doing is validating an installed scenery and nothing more.I mean.. seriously... did you object to having to INSTALL Microsoft FS9 when you purchased it? Did you object to having to enter a license key for it? How about Windows? Did you object to having to transmit a license key to Microsoft for verification? Did you object to having to submit to the "Authentic Windows Software" verification process? Microsoft gathers more information about you and your system than ANYONE and they can easily disable your entire operating system if there is anything that is not 100% valid or authentic about it. And that is their right. They developed the software and they have a right to protect it. And they can "reposess it" if you don't pay for it.. just like the bank can repo your home if you don't pay the mortgage.Unfortunately, today's climate of distrust has been created by "pirates" in all shapes and forms. Everyone these days wants "something for nothing!" It's always "Gimme gimme gimme... i deserve this or that for free!" They expect unlimited free updates for a $30 piece of software... no matter whether or not it costs the developer ten times that amount (in terms of man hours) to update it. The argument is always the same too... "I PAID for this software... I am your CUSTOMER... in order to keep me as a customer, you MUST give me things for FREE!! If you DON'T, then I will go to your COMPETITOR who WILL give me something for FREE!" Where did this sense of "entitlement" come from that is so pervasive in today's society?? It seems the more you GIVE, the more that is EXPECTED! Where does it stop???I was raised with very simple values.. If you want something that someone is selling, you pay for it. If you can't afford it, you do without it! Why is that such a difficult concept for so many people to grasp? (and I'm not directing this at YOU, Mark.. just a society in general...)Aerosoft is a business that sells a product to consumers who want that product. They expect that those who want it will pay for it.. because in order to cover the costs that they incurred to make it (i.e. programmer/designer salaries, marketing costs, storage space, packaging, technical support, etc...) they must sell a certain number of units. And.. they have to make some sort of a profit on it. That's the whole principle of business. If you don't make some sort of profit, then what is the point of having a business? So.. in order to make sure that the fruits of their labor are being used legally and have been paid for properly, all they ask is that you use their simple tool to transmit a simple code to them that verifies that you have paid for their software. That is their attempt to protect their investment.. just like a brick & mortar store that protects their premises and merchandise with video cameras. They have the right to ask you to do that (and the key word here is ASK.. they are not forcing you to do it). If people don't want to respect that right, then they should not do business with that merchant. if it was YOUR business, wouldn't you want to protect your investment? If it were your business, wouldn't you want to somehow market your products more effectively in order to generate more sales and make a profit? Put yourself in their shoes just for a moment..In return, their little tool will offer you the convenience of informing you when an update is available for that software and the ease of downloading and installing that update! That's what they are GIVING you.. convenience! Now, In my book, that's Aerosoft going above and beyond the deal that i entered into with them when I purchased the software.And, more importantly, the Launcher tool doesn't force their products down my throat.. it only works when i CHOOSE for it to work. If I don't ever run it again, then I (or my system) are no worse off for it. They are using "PERMISSION marketing"... which means they only market to you if you LET them. And the other thing is that even if you run the software later on, it doesn't automatically check for updates or automaically download them.. you have to TELL it to check for updates and you have to TELL it to download them. That hardly seems like something nefarious going on... I mean.. how much LESS intrusive could it be?Ok... I'm going to get off the soap box now...Look, Mark... I truly respect your stance on "Big Brother"... my stance is very much the same! But in this particular case, I think that the concern is a little overblown where the Aerosoft Launcher is concerned. Aerosoft isn't using the "anit-piracy" angle as an attempt to sell you more stuff... they are simply trying to protect their investment. I support that. And if I didn't, I wouldn't buy their scenery or consent to use their tool. I have a choice.. and I choose to use the launcher.You have the choice too....Cheers! :-)

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Hey Bonkster, I couldn't agree with you more. Opt in or opt out, as I said before, it's going to be up to the individual. Tell you the truth, I might still buy their stuff from time to time because clearly they sell quality products. However, I might not as well.HEY...I was meaning to ask you and simply forgot. When you purchase something new from aerosoft using the launcher, does it only register that one product or does it attempt to register all of the aerosoft products on your system?The reason that I'm asking is that I have a bunch of scenery from them that use the old installer, as well as CDROM versions (if you can believe it). I don't want to transfer licenses simply because I install and use the launcher for a new purchase.Tell me, is that possible?Mark

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Hi SwoopThe Launcher does only run when you manually launch it. But what it then apparently does is checks through your FS9 folders to see what products you have installed. It then presumably determines which of them is an Aerosoft product - sceneries, aircraft or utilities. The version that has caused me serious problems only identifies a few of the many Aerosoft products that I have - most of them are not recognized. It then gives various options for those few products like checking for updates, turning on or off ground traffic etc. All this is GOOD... But in checking through my folders, it has triggered some process which randomly deletes scenery entries from my scenery.cfg file - they just vanish. The sceneries it does this to are both Aerosoft and FSDT sceneries - it does not affect any others. It also causes some kind of corruption with some of these sceneries which running the "repair" function does not fix - I have had to uninstall them and then reinstall them again. And here's the really weird thing - it corrupts some minor things with a couple of my aircraft that are not Aerosoft while failing to recognize the one Aerosoft aircraft I have permanently installed. The truly odd thing is that it particularly dislikes Rick Piper's HS748. It doesn't disable it but it causes issues that require a reinstallation. It's happened too many times to be a coincidence - the same things happen each time I run it, though it doesn't always affect the same particular addons.I know someone is going to come along and tell me I'm wrong - it doesn't do these things. Well, I have spent countless hours fixing these problems and trying to figure out what was causing them. And once I uninstalled the launcher, the problems ceased. And when I reinstalled it to register PANC, they came right back after I ran it. And they haven't returned since I uninstalled it again. Those are the facts. I will leave it up to people who understand computer programming and software issues better than I do - which would be pretty much anyone over three years old. But I do understand one thing - the version of Aerosoft Launcher that is installed when I have purchased new sceneries from Aerosoft has caused numerous problems to my FS9 installation.The next time I buy a new Aerosoft product, which I will, I plan to download the stand alone version from their site. Hopefully that will not cause any problems. Until then, it stays off my hard drive.One last thing - anyone who comes to this thread looking for feedback on Aerosoft's Anchorage scenery - BUY IT! It is an outstandingly good scenery. I don't want anyone to think that I am being negative about the scenery or about Aerosoft. But be aware that SOME people have had a problem with the Aerosoft Launcher that is required to be run for the scenery to display properly.

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Mark,What it does is it looks for sceneries you've installed (both for FS9 and FSX) and then it lists them all in a menu. When you click on an item in the list, it shows whether the product is registered or not and what the version number is. It also tells whether or not there is an update available.For older products, it lists them in a category of "unknown", but it still tells whether it is activated, and gives the version number. There are categories for Scenery, aircraft, train add-ons, etc... every Aerosoft product gets categorized.Since all of my products are downloaded, I don't know how it handles CD-installed products, but my guess is that it treats them the same.As for the problems that kiwiflyer is having, I have to say that those are rare and not the norm. I've never had a problem with the Launcher and it works great for me! I have every FSDT product and it has never interfered with those. It's never affected any of my other sceneries either. I have literally hundreds of payware sceneries installed in both FS9 and FSX and none of them have been affected by the launcher. Again, the only problem I've ever had is when I installed an older product and the Launcher was replaced by an older version. But.. I downloaded and installed the standalone Launcher and all was well again. From now on, if I install an older scenery, I'll just choose not to install the Launcher (since I'm using the most current version) and there won't be any problems, since it accounts for everything from the current moment backwards.There's always the aerosoft forums that can be turned to for problems...but again, I've never experienced anything like Kiwiflyer has, so I can't speak to his problems.Hope that helps!

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