To complement these, you need a good mesh. I suggest you look into FSGenesis or FSGlobal, both provide world coverage.You can't buy GEX 2.0 - that is only a version.You are going to be buying GEX Europe and UTX Europe - good. But as said, complete it with a good mesh.You DO NOT need extra landclass for terrain if you are using UTX Europe - that is, only for the areas where UTX covers it. Now, you could expand it to those areas where UTX doesn't cover it, look into Scenerytech Landclass.In general, sorting is going, from down up:mesh (being the low number in FSX scenery editor)landclassairport scenery (being the high(est) number)GEX is not being added to scenery, as GEX is replacement textures only.UTX manages itself. No need to "put it into scenery library".You are thinking too much. :) Just get on with it. Buy a product, run the installer and go from there... don't buy many products, those above are enough to start with. You'll be buying more soon, I promise you.To learn better, I suggest you do the learning center, yes. What is your flying hardware, I guess you do have a joystick?Default planner sucks in terms of reality - I would never think of using it any more. But for the beginning it does deliver some basics - the question is, what do you know about navigation etc? Do you know basics about VORs, NDBs, ILS etc? How to navigate around according to a navigational chart? VOR-to-VOR navigation?Third party aircraft are complicated (=realistic) and they do require a learning curve. That is, depending on the aircraft of course. If you want to fly simple GA, Carenado might be a good place to start looking. Simple, good looking, good sounds, nice feeling, better than default.If you want reality in terms of GA, look no further than RealAir or A2A.If you want jets, PMDG is on top - NGX comes to mind, but be aware, those are uber-real and not easy to operate for newbs.Tower communication - well, a chapter for itself. I learned from some googled websites, as I went along, took me couple of years. I'm not saying I can do everything right like a real world pilot, but I do have some idea, and I can use VATSIM without a problem. As I went onto a real flight with a friend of mine, I would have had no problems talking to the tower, and the expressions I know were 1:1 used in real world.There is no collective tutorial, since that would take way too much to make and maintain. Unfortunately, FSX is a huge learning curve if you want to go deep in it - but believe me one thing, it's highly rewarding when you arrive. And still then, there are always new things to explore.EDIT: And oh yes, welcome to AVSIM.

You are thinking too much. :) Just get on with it. Buy a product, run the installer and go from there...

Just a note on product installing. I'm a newbie also and the freeware .exe Orbx airport I recently tried to install did not install properly. I had to copy/paste the scenery and texture files from an Orbx directory directly inside my FSX main dir. Via Google search I put them into the addon scenery directory and it then worked. Not sure if I was doing something wrong but I was also unable to browse Add Scenery from within FSX using the Scenery menu area.See thread/file I'm referring to with before and after pics here.

Hello Lyvean and welcome to this crazy hobby.I do recomend REX 2.0. I consider it the best visual upgrade you can get for FSX as it covers Cloud, Water and many atmospheric textures and effects.Cheers

I just want something reliable. Running ASE6.5 with FSX is not very good. The jump in airspeed between flight levels was too crazy.Which is better?Register FSUIPC?Or just get REX?REX won't mess with my payware airports, will it?

If I buy Ground Environment X Europe and Ultimate Environment X Europe will I get a close to reality Europe more or less? Will the cities look a bit like their real counterparts for example?

Hello and welcomeI'd certainly recommend UTX Europe, but I wouldn't bother with GEX Europe. It bears little resemblance to the real landscape, at least not in northern areas anyway.Might be worth having a look at some screenshots, but in my opinion you're better off with the default or some photoscenery.Ian

Thanks Costa and oldbear, well met.I'm ready with UTX Europe and GEX Europe will follow. For weather add on I will be using FSReal. I used the automatic tweaking tool for a better config, but I can't understand what the tweaks do. Is it for better perfomance, better graphics or balanced based on my hardware?Also, in FSReal, does Dynamic Weather mean that the weather will change according to new data during flight? If so why is it at 0? Should I tick mixed clouds or not? Does the program create turbulence?Next, I want an easy to handle but fast aircraft do to some exploring. Do you have any recommendations? My goal is to learn to use the flight planner (which one do you recommend?) so I can start to understand some terms. And to answer your question, Costa, no I don't know what VORs, NDBs, ILS are. :( Can I learn these from the learning center?)That's it for now. :)

What automatic tweaking tool did you use?I don't know FSReal.Fast and easy to handle? Hmm... Carenado Malibu. Speed 400 km/h. Easy to handle. But, not really what one would call basic systems aircraft. Turbine Duke is not slow also, way more simpler IMO though.A fast google gave me this, I remember reading this years ago:http://www.navfltsm.addr.com/index.htmGo through learning center too.

What automatic tweaking tool did you use?I don't know FSReal.Fast and easy to handle? Hmm... Carenado Malibu. Speed 400 km/h. Easy to handle. But, not really what one would call basic systems aircraft. Turbine Duke is not slow also, way more simpler IMO though.A fast google gave me this, I remember reading this years ago:http://www.navfltsm.addr.com/index.htmGo through learning center too.

I used this. It was recommended in here for a great freeware (if memory serves me well).The weather add on is this. Again recommended here for a great freeware alternative to ASE.edit: thanks for the guide. I'll start it right away. You also said you are using a 3rd party flight planner. I don't want to start learning the default and then switch to another. Maybe it's better to start and stick with one from the start?P.S. I have a great flight planned for tonight in Scotland. :)

That's good. This tool is supposed to give you best balance between performance and good looks. But you should look into setting a Nvidia Inspector correctly, if you have an Nvidia card.I know about FSRealWX, but I have never used it, is what I ment.I'm not using any planners per se - I'm usually flying predefined routes, as my routes resemble real life (I'm 737, 747, jets flyer). But some are mentioning Plan-G, maybe you should look into it.

That's good. This tool is supposed to give you best balance between performance and good looks. But you should look into setting a Nvidia Inspector correctly, if you have an Nvidia card.I know about FSRealWX, but I have never used it, is what I ment.I'm not using any planners per se - I'm usually flying predefined routes, as my routes resemble real life (I'm 737, 747, jets flyer). But some are mentioning Plan-G, maybe you should look into it.

Oops, sorry. Didn't mean any offence. :)I have an ATI card and I have read everywhere that it doesn't like FSX very much. Fortunately I don't have any special problem until now. I used the auto config to try some busy airports and cities (like LAX, JFK, NY) and I was getting acceptable frame rates (between 25 and 34 - flying low in NY dropped it to 16-19 which was ok). In other places I've tried... mostly everything goes smoothly. I would like some better graphics at distance though so I don't see bluries that much but actual scenery (don't know what to change yet though).Thanks for the info. :) I will be back with more flying questions.

I would like some better graphics at distance though so I don't see bluries that much but actual scenery (don't know what to change yet though).

Set zoom to 60-70%, no matter if outside view or inside (you can even do that with a default flight and then save it with your zoom factor), and manually change the LOD_RADIUS to 6.5 in FSX.cfg (be aware that if you change something in FSX settings, the LOD_RADIUS is going to default back to 4.5 or lower). Good luck!

You DO NOT need extra landclass for terrain if you are using UTX Europe - that is, only for the areas where UTX covers it. Now, you could expand it to those areas where UTX doesn't cover it, look into Scenerytech Landclass.In general, sorting is going, from down up:mesh (being the low number in FSX scenery editor)landclassairport scenery (being the high(est) number)

I'm sorry but I do not know what these mean. FSX scenery library has "BASE XXX". Is this the mesh? Should I put landclass, (I'm considering this), for example, avove BASE files but below the country files (ASIA, africa etc)? After propeler objects or before? If the installation is automatically should I leave everything in the order the program chooses to put them in the scenery library?I can't find a proper explanation anywhere. :(

You put mesh visually above the base (higher number), but below the "Africe, Asia..." and other scenery entries. You must think of it like building a LEGO. You can't put a roof when you have no base. But you also don't want a good base to be replaced by the "bad" base (eg. FSX default mesh, BASE files), that is why you place it "above" the BASE, so that your mesh replaces the other one.You want Landclass to be applied onto a mesh, thus being above, but you want your landclass to replace the FSX default landclass...etc etc... get it?There are no tutorials for this kind of stuff. Noone wrote it. And probably never will. You just gotta go through the learning curve, as I said before.

So let's see what I've learnt so far, just to make mini guide. :)FSX install.Then install mesh (leave it where the program puts it)Then install landclass (move ALL available landclass so ALL "base" files in the scenery library are below but keep it before the countries (Asia, Africa etc). No (major) need to install landclass in the regions where UT is available but separate installs are allowed. So, for example, someone can install UT for USA and also install separate landclass for Europe. As long as it keeps the order above.Then install GEX (leave it as it is)Then UT (move every UTs above propeler objects. If there are other UT do the same. Always keep the order. So it's propeler objects -> EVERY UT available-> then everything else the system has in order.Extra scenery (like airports or cities) from the avsim library above everything else.Install order does not matter.Is this correct?

Looks ok for the beginning.Then install mesh (leave it where the program puts it)Sometimes there is no installer, you gotta place it yourself (add to the scenery library).Then install landclass (move ALL available landclass so ALL "base" files in the scenery library are below but keep it before the countries (Asia, Africa etc).You don't change way the default scenery is sorted. You basically put everything after it. Only exception is mesh, which *can* be put before FSX default landclass. It's not a must, but is advised.No (major) need to install landclass in the regions where UT is availableNo need at all. And certainly not advisable - due to UTX placement of buildings and roads, it works best if one product.GEX has no scenery library entry, so it doesn't matter.Then UT (move every UTs above propeler objects. If there are other UT do the same.UT has its own installer and takes care of correct placement. Do not change, at all.If your Propeller Objects is last entry at your default install, then you place everything above it, with an except of mesh, which can be placed after FSX mesh.Always keep the order.You got that right.Install order does not matter.If you sort it afterwards, no, doesn't matter.

So, to make things clear:a) When you say "FSX default mesh" you mean the "base" files?:( When you say "FSX default landclass" you mean the folders with countries like Asia, Africa, etc and some folders which have city names, right?c) If mesh has an installer then I don't have to change its order. I just leave it where the program puts it, as long as I install first, right?Thanks for your support and patience. I can be a bit of OCD about these things, right to their tiniest detail.When I feel comfortable enough with my knowledge I do intend to write a small guide based on this topic. I'm hoping someone who has no clue whatsoever about the game (like me) will find it useful.Cheers