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Whilst we impatiently wait for any news.

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Whilst we impatiently wait for any news on the ORBX UK project it's interesting to note that several offers on UK Photographic scenery and bundles thereof have been selling out at considerably discounted prices.

 

Latest offer for the Scenery alone arrived by newsletter from www.flightstore.co.uk this morning which has all the Generation X VFR photographic scenery at 50% discount!

 

With the Treescapes for FSX, Xtreme UK Airports and UK VFR Airfields packages this must represent the most serious competitor that ORBX has anywhere (with the possible exception of NZ with their existing scenery coverage)

 

It will be interesting to see a comparative review of these packages when ORBX UK is released? Hopefully someone will write an objective one. So far ORBX has provided a good mixture of all the features of these existing individual packages in other regions that they've covered.

 

Will they compete with the UK? Our dense little island has more features per square mile than anywhere yet attempted with the ORBX "style" so it might be a serious challenge to the concept.

 

As a low and slow pilot Photographic scenery has definitely had its limitations for me. As a real PPL a few years ago the reality in flying around much of Southern England (especially as I flew from Denham) is a combination of prevailing weather and controlled airspace that keeps you below 2500'. An altitude my WWII pilot uncle regarded with alarm as "Low Flying!" .....but then the only controlled airspace they had was defined by Ack Ack

 

Anyone reading here already got any of the UK VFR photographic scenery and who'll be buying the ORBX version when it's released? Obviously comparing the two will not be that easy if screenshot comparisons are to be achieved?

 

Meanwhile some good offers on the existing stuff for those even more impatient than me!


Geoff Brown

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Good point on the competition. I'm in love with the current UK photo stuff for now and I guess the simple comparison will be rather tricky. My plans are not including any Orbx UK purchases so far since I'm pretty happy with what I've got.

 

However, I imagine the Orbx approach to scenery to enable a few advantages. A main one will surely be the seasonal variation being possible with their way of doing scenery. Another one, to some extend, is the way the night lighting can be established. Although Horizon included some really good 'workaround' (for photo means) in their older titles.

 

The main one is, you've named it, one does not need to buy extra tress to receive some depth. While one can get used to hires flat photo stuff and the nice framerates included, the scenery with the trees and buildings (autogen) will surely be better. Best combo (for me) would be the stuff France VFR offers, combining those character traits to some extend. Not cheap, but really nice looking and feeling.

 

What I do like is the real looks of the photo stuff, although offering an image from some years back and for summer only, that's how it looks like at that place. So while the things like Orbx may give some nice textures and correct lines on the roads and water, it's still a more artificial look for me.

 

I must admit that I never was a fan of the UK expansion plans since I think that there are regions in FSX where no scenery is available but seriously needed. The UK is covered pretty good, means areas and airports. Eastern Europe, Africa, Russia and Asia are deserts, even outside the normal desert ranges and would surely offer a nice and challenging setup for addon scenery. Same as Australia did back then, before Orbx rendered it the beautiful and exciting place it is.

 

But I guess the UK decision involved the vital part of 'how much can we expect to sell?' Perfectly reasonable of course, but leading to the mentioned competition while other places remain deserts. Even places like Greece and Italy are 'just' some UTX Europe definition and a few spotty payware and freeware places. A shame when looking how beautiful the real scenery is.

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I've got the three volumes for England with the excellent UK2000 VFR airfields. It's good, but the flat buildings near airfields look terrible when flying low or on approach.

 

I'm looking forward to the ORBX package. The difficulty may be that the placing of auto gen buildings and roads etc. may not be as accurate for VFR flight.

 

Good price on the Scotland photo scenery at the moment, but it needs lots of hard disc storage space.

 

Peter

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Good price on the Scotland photo scenery at the moment, but it needs lots of hard disc storage space.

Very good point, Peter. I always think about the SSD users when some scenery package arrives in two digit gb sizes like that one. I mean, you have to switch quite some 8gb DVDs when installing. A while back, no mainframe had that disk space.

 

I guess one could see it at KJAC (haven't got it yet) how some scenery can grow when they include hires photo stuff. How big is that airport and surrounding? Three gb? The whole of PNW was at four.

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Vol 8 Southern Scotland weighs in, in excess of 50GB (7 DVDs). And believe me, it is not a large area and that is before adding Trees and Airports, from Scotflight, ES & UK2000.....roll out the multi TB discs. Then you can have all varieties, Orbx and others and switch between to suit the mood.

 

Two more Vols to follow, 6 & 7, North & Central Scotland hopefully before Xmas, or maybe not. Then at sometime yet to be arranged perhaps Vol 11 for Northern Ireland. And more trees and more airports.

 

Think the time may have come to find a domestic sized Main Frame. Sure some will become available soon, at auction, from the M.O.D. following all the swingeing cuts in the Military.....Tally Ho chaps.


Arnie....if it ain't broke, don't fix it...

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It's all down to if you want real or generic.

we will have to wait and see with Orbx UK untill then look at this

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2D9f084oOP4&feature=player_detailpage


David Murden  MSFS   Fenix A320  PMDG 737 • MG Honda Jet • 414 / TDS 750Xi •  FS-ATC Chatter • FlyingIron Spitfire & ME109G • MG Honda Jet 

 Fenix A320 Walkthrough PDF   Flightsim.to •

DCS  A10c II  F-16c  F/A-18c • F-14 • (Others in hanger) • Supercarrier  Terrains = • Nevada NTTR  Persian Gulf  Syria • Marianas • 

• 10900K@4.9 All Cores HT ON   32GB DDR4  3200MHz RTX 3080  • TM Warthog HOTAS • TM TPR • Corsair Virtuoso XT with Dolby Atmos®  Samsung G7 32" 1440p 240Hz • TrackIR 5 & ProClip

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I disabled my GenX a while ago, as I was fed up with the constant stuttering and poor performance associated with photographic scenery.

As a lapsed PPL/IMC based around Biggin Hill, I used to enjoy flying FSX around the very same airspace that I once used to in the RW.

But everything changed once I discovered ORBX; the detail is amazing, it seems more lifelike than photo scenery, it has buildings and trees, and it performs better than GenX ever could, so I migrated in a virtual sense.

For me, one of the biggest gains is that I can really enjoy exploring areas that are new to me following roads and rivers from US sectional charts using Sky Vector, rather than flying around the South coast of England on my way to Shoreham or the IOW.

Been there, seen it, done it, got the video (homemade VHS!) and photo's (yes, real film!).

I'll buy ORBX UK when it appears, plus a nice fast 8Ghz processor with zillions of Gb's SSD space when they are common place and cheap, and FSX can then continue to serve for another 10 years!

The question is for me, where will I choose to fly?...


Mr Fabio Lagattolla

"It's better to be on the ground wishing you were flying, than flying but wishing you were on the ground!"

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The question is for me, where will I choose to fly?...

I think I can relate to that problem already. :mellow: ^_^

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It's all down to if you want real or generic.

 

"Real" is pretty subjective in this context. What you're going to like really depends on what tradeoffs are important to you as each form of scenery trades off something to try get to a believable recreation of the real world.

 

Looking at this video and then comparing it to the flight I made last night in Orbx PNW down the Willamette valley, well... There's no comparison to my eye. The trees help overcome some of what I don't like in photoreal scenery, but not enough. Looking at the planted fields, for example... On my Oregon flight, they were utterly convincing and three dimensional, even from 6000'. In the video? Flat and static looking. And the rivers?

 

Just not my thing, I'm afraid. Some will disagree, and we'll have to wait and see what Orbx is really able to do here, but I know where my biases already lie. :-)

 

Scott

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It's all very subjective, and down to personal taste and preference; simply, there isn't a right or wrong answer.

 

I should try the latest GenX though I know I won't as i don't want to purchase yet another addon that sits idle; I'd be more tempted if it included trees and buildings.

 

Truly, I'm thankful that companies like ORBX and GenX exist, and that they push the boundaries of what's possible. I remember the green on black stick figures of MS FS under Hercules displays, and I cannot believe sometimes how lifelike our hobby has become.

 

And yet we still complain!

 

We each have a choice I guess, and that's just fine with me.

 

It's all good and great in my book.


Mr Fabio Lagattolla

"It's better to be on the ground wishing you were flying, than flying but wishing you were on the ground!"

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And yet we still complain!

 

We each have a choice I guess, and that's just fine with me.

 

No complaining from me. The point I was (probably poorly) getting to was that there is no "best" - everything gets measured against our own personal preferences and those are going to vary. I completely agree - the nice thing here IS to have choices coming.

 

Scott

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I totally agree, I meant no disrespect to anyone whatsoever.

I think it's amazing that we can do what we can do with flight simulation today.

It's utterly amazing!


Mr Fabio Lagattolla

"It's better to be on the ground wishing you were flying, than flying but wishing you were on the ground!"

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Well I'am just going to wait and see ATM I use UTX Euro and UK2000 for airports. When we see Orbx UK that will be the time to choose for me.


David Murden  MSFS   Fenix A320  PMDG 737 • MG Honda Jet • 414 / TDS 750Xi •  FS-ATC Chatter • FlyingIron Spitfire & ME109G • MG Honda Jet 

 Fenix A320 Walkthrough PDF   Flightsim.to •

DCS  A10c II  F-16c  F/A-18c • F-14 • (Others in hanger) • Supercarrier  Terrains = • Nevada NTTR  Persian Gulf  Syria • Marianas • 

• 10900K@4.9 All Cores HT ON   32GB DDR4  3200MHz RTX 3080  • TM Warthog HOTAS • TM TPR • Corsair Virtuoso XT with Dolby Atmos®  Samsung G7 32" 1440p 240Hz • TrackIR 5 & ProClip

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ORBX and Horizon are doing two differnt landscapes...Remember the UK is densely populated.

 

I find the current version of Horizons scenery for the UK excellent,no stuttering or pewrformance issues whatsoever.

 

Will I try ORBX version...Probably ....

 

Dave

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