OpusFSX Version 2.60 Available Now

• True Upper Winds and Temperatures
  
• Long Range ATIS Reports
  

Opus Software are pleased to announce Version 2.60 of OpusFSX is available for download.

 

The latest release includes enhancements to the Live Weather engine incorporating the World Wide GRIB Upper Winds and Temperature Forecast data, both current and historic. Weather Reports provide details of the Upper Atmosphere winds and temperatures together with long range ATIS reports for your destination airfield and up to four alternates, accurate to up to 300 miles away. In addition these weather reports can be used for non-ATIS airfields.

 

A demonstration version of the software is available together with a 30 day money back guarantee on your purchase if you are not completely satisfied.

 

website: http://www.opussoftware.co.uk/opusfsi.htm

Awesome! Opus, it only does everything.

How good is Opus? Well I was on a flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Orlando (in the Eaglesoft CX 750). There was a long line of clouds being held just off the East coast beaches. I headed North to Melbourne and Cocoa Beach, skirting the line of clouds just off to the right of my wing, then turned West and went about 40 miles on in to KMCO. As I approached the turn to final, I went to external view and looked Eastward to see the same line of clouds and formations that I saw when I flew up the coast. Other weather programs would have changed the patterns or those clouds would have been gone, but Opus kept it real. It was awesome.

Other weather programs would have changed the patterns or those clouds would have been gone

 

I've been checking the clouds behind me a lot lately. AS2012 does not change them or remove them in either DWC mode (with Prevent Cloud Redraws) or Smooth Cloud Transition mode. If the METAR changes you'll see a difference, which may be a sudden change of the entire sky depending on the weather engine and depiction mode.

 

Was it the previous version of REX that had this problem?

 

Hook

The difference is the depiction of weather for 300 miles around you with OpusFSX, not just your local weather.

The difference is the depiction of weather for 300 miles around you with OpusFSX, not just your local weather.

 

That's useful for tuning ATIS frequencies, assuming you can receive them that far away (I've never tried), but clouds will still only be drawn out to a maximum of your cloud draw distance set in FSX, up to 110 nm.

 

If you could get proper wind/baro/temp smoothing (without needing a registered FSUIPC) and proper cloud depiction to the maximum visibility without cloud shifts/popping, even if the METAR changes, then you'll have a real winner. Lock the clouds within some reasonable distance, say 2/3 of your cloud draw distance, and fade clouds in and out slowly beyond that distance, and people won't notice it changing. The weather may not match the METAR *exactly*, but will be generally accurate and will look very good and give a good experience. Your clouds aren't going to match exactly anyway when a METAR is a hour old.

 

Hook

Great to see the progression of this weather engine. Will check it out.

 

Couple questions. I see a screenshot of winds aloft for an ATIS report of up to 300 miles. How can we get winds aloft average for a whole trip.

So we can plan for fuel better not just for the first 300 miles from the departure airport.

 

Also what have you done in attempts to supress the wind shifts? Ive tried AS now and that has been the only one to really supress my wind shifts particularly with PMDG aircraft. Its not eliminated completely, but I had to disable OPUS when flying high because it was so much more worse for some reason.

 

Also as a suggestion, Your Opus Demo might be better served with a time limit with full functionality. You really cant see the power of OPUS LWE just sitting on the ground. Limit it to 15-30 minutes or something . I think more people would see it better this way.

We do NOT use or need FSUIPC4 for any form of weather smoothing.

 

Our weather reports act as a perfect long range ATIS report, accurate weather over 300 miles from your destination or any of your four alternates, or other sites of interest.

 

What Cheryl meant was, if you see a weather front 50 miles ahead, fly through it or around it, fly on to your destination for another 30 minutes, refuel, turn round and fly back, you will meet the same weather front on your return journey.

 

Also if you see a front or storm clouds ahead of you, fly through or around them, then turn back, you will be able to enjoy the same storm. Its not just the clouds in your immediate vicinity, it is all the weather around you that is detailed, varied, accurate, and stable.

 

Stephen

We do NOT use or need FSUIPC4 for any form of weather smoothing.

 

I understand your newest versions provide proper upper level wind smoothing. I fly low level. Are you doing wind/baro/temp smoothing at all altitudes without needing that function from FSUIPC?

 

If it's not obvious from my earlier post, two things I won't put up with are sudden shifts in wind or barometer and cloud popping. AS2012 can currently handle one or the other, but not both at the same time. If it could, I wouldn't be here.

 

Hook

The development and improvements in the LWE are ongoing. We have minimised any chances of wind shifts but of course with true forecasted winds they are always possible. But we are about to start phase three of the GRIB beta dev cycle and will be greatly reducing any possibility of wind shifts even further, but at the same time keeping the RW weather all around you.

 

To truly suppress wind shifts you must, up to now, resort to global weather, then try to give some impression of real weather around you, but its really just global. There are also problems in FSX that will manifest themselves no matter what engine is used. You can avoid them by manipulating the upper winds to be FSX friendly. There are also other tricks that we use. The phase three dev will see these effects implemented further. Most users have not had wind shifts for a long long time. It has been months since I have had a single wind shift other than a very minor fluctuation when using certain variable upper wind targets.

 

But to me and many others the most important aspects are the real weather horizon to horizon, the 100% accurate weather at your destination and alternates, the 100% accurate weather reports for any site over 300 miles away, the real low overcast effects that give you nail biting minimums, etc.

 

Regards

Stephen

 

 

 

 

I understand your newest versions provide proper upper level wind smoothing. I fly low level. Are you doing wind/baro/temp smoothing at all altitudes without needing that function from FSUIPC?

 

If it's not obvious from my earlier post, two things I won't put up with are sudden shifts in wind or barometer and cloud popping. AS2012 can currently handle one or the other, but not both at the same time. If it could, I wouldn't be here.

 

Hook

 

Wrong, there is NO upper level wind smoothing. We have some surface wind smoothing that is controllable (can be disabled) but thats only to prevent FSX problems on some users systems, I have never needed it. The smoothing functions in FSUIPC4 are not needed and don't really add anything with our weather engine, our LWE works completely different and has no need of FSUIPC, the LWE does everything itself.

 

As everyone knows, wind shifts are due to an FSX internal bug, you can stop them for good by dispensing with real weather and making everything global. We do not do that but do try to minimise them for most people. I never experience them, unless I am deliberately testing the most varied and varaible upper wind targets.

 

At present our weather accurately depicts the weather in accordance with the METARs. Accuracy and real world conditions are everything to us. But we will be inteoducing Weather Smoothing soon which will prevent sudden abrupt changes in the reported METAR conditions and graduate the changes around you over a period of time to show the changing conditions and re sync with the METARs. Of course everything is monitored and the weather at your destination will be spot on as it is now. So to will be the weather reports, even if the station is over 300 miles away.

 

Stephen

But we will be introducing Weather Smoothing soon which will prevent sudden abrupt changes in the reported METAR conditions and graduate the changes around you over a period of time to show the changing conditions and re sync with the METARs.

 

Best news I've heard yet.

What can I say, it works like a charm. Thanks for the outstanding work! Opus just keeps getting better and better. I can't wait to see what else you're going to come up with for the future B)

I just want to chime in here and say thanks to both Steve and Cheryl for also updating the documentation as well! it's nice to see all things copacetic between the update and the documentation.

Thanks, we do our best to keep up to date with the documentation which reflects the latest beta version.

 

Regards

Cheryl