Hi thereI have been a mostly happy FSMeteo user since the early days of FS2000. I am seeing and hearing good things about ActiveSky. What I am wondering is what am I gaining vs. FSMeteo by plunking down another

Hmmm, well, I just installed Active Sky yesterday and have only about 2.5 hrs of flight time so I'm not gonna be much help. However, I did note that sudden changes of clouds were a thing of the past. The weather is now more likely to change slowly. The jury is still out on this one; I don't feel that I've grasped all the ramifications of the program yet. :D

Hi Misha,I, too, have long used FSMeteo--since it was first released. Marc's work was then revolutionary and he has constantly updated his product. FSMeteo is a first-class act.Just like you, I was impressed by the AS2004 testimonials published here and elsewhere. After considerable wavering, I took the plunge a month ago and have been pleased.A caveat. This response is based on several weeks' flying, but not on an explicit controlled comparison of the two products' weather rendering. (It would be better to examine distinctly different times and places and produce a side-by-side assessment.) So this report is more feel than science.AS2004.5 (the most recent version) seems to produce better, that is more believable, weather. It's main advantage lies in how it mixes weather from various reporting stations as well as the TAFs. At altitude, one can look all over the sky and see distinctive weather patterns evolve off in the distance. FSMeteo's newest version does this to some extent, but my seat-of-the-pants impression is that AS2004.5 does it much better. Both programs produce more dramatic weather changes than one might like (the smoothing is not yet perfect), but both are very much better than the state-of-the-art a year ago. To my senses, AS2004.5 is provides a superior mixture of weather variation and movement. The dynamics (well, the "Active" part) are the strength of AS2004. The result is a more realistic weatherscape

I own both products, and while I have used FS Meteo for a long time, I feel ActiveSky 2004 is much better overall. I find the weather from ActiveSky to be very accurate. Also, both products have a lot of features, however ActiveSky can do everything FS Meteo can do, and a lot more. For example, both have a FSS weather service, but FS Meteo only displays the wx info on screen while Activesky has a voice which will actually read the current conditions.

>If one is a sim-fanatic (Misha?)If I wasn't one, would I be asking whether I should spend

Hi,Thanks for your interest in our product!1. Wind shifts are fixed, even without processing a flight plan.2. We have visibility smoothing and enhanced overcast.3. We process many stations so clouds change smoothly.Hope this helps,JimActiveSky Supporthttp://www.hifisim.com/images/as2004proudsupporter.jpg

Hi, Misha:I, too, own both, but admittedly have not upgraded to the latest FSMeteo. The reason? The ActiveSky guys are fanatical about their product, both from software improvement AND support aspects.I do not know of any software publisher, large or small, that is more diligent about improving the product than Damian. And his trusty sidekick, Jim, provides un-ending support at all hours AND at their own support forum here at AVSIM. In other words, Batman and Robin make a great team!Definitely an two-thumbs-up product. (Sorry, couldn't find a thumbs-up smiley)Regards,Wilson

Hey Wilson,I don't look too good in tights!!JimActiveSky Supporthttp://www.hifisim.com/images/as2004proudsupporter.jpg

I have used ActiveSky for almost a year now and I'll say two things about it:1) the ActiveSky support staff treats you like a customer in a professional and courteous manner, and efficiently works to solve the problem you have, no matter what level your question is at. 2) the software has matured in the last year and solved or worked around several limitations in the FS weather environment. It is one of the better products I have ever purchased for FS and probably the one that has the most impact on the "being there" feel.It certainly has my vote.

Hi Misha,Another one in favour of AS2004.Like you I have used FSMeteo since I started simming with FS98 and loved the program.When the original Active Sky was released I tried it and it was OK, some things I liked in it, other features of FSMeteo I liked better so Active Sky got partial use.When FS9 was released the built-in wind shift problem caused a number of problems for me with FSMeteo so I took more interest in the development of Active Sky and AS2004.I have FSMeteo V 6.4 but exclusively use AS2004 for the reasons given by other posters.To answer your specific questions.a) Very rarely get sudden changes at altitude but can get them climbing to cruise, dependant on the weather. However they are well damped and not as violent as I remember them being with FSM.Damian and team (is there a team?) and Pete Dowson have spent a lot of time and effort to overcome this problem which is after all a FS9 'undocumented feature' not addressed in the recent patch, like a lot of other 'features'.:( Not a problem in AS2004, unless of course the weather dictates that.c) Sudden changes of cloudscapes, not a problem. Stutters could be a different matter. It may not be FSMeteo/AS2004 causing the stutters, it may be the amount of clouds being drawn that are taxing your system and causing the stutters.If you do purchase AS2004 I advise setting cloud layers to 5 initially and see how your system copes with complex weather. If it flies along then try unlimited cloud layers, if that causes stutters then limit the layers to something above 5.If you do decided to purchase AS2004 I'm sure you will be pleased with it and the excellent customer support.

HI MishaJust picked up AS and it is a great product.I have been using FS Meteo for a long time and it has been uninstalledfrom my PC.The fog and mist are fantastic to see and far superior to anything i have seen.Well worth the money.The dynamic TAF generator is a major step forward and its a ripper product all around.Darren

Two additional questions about Active Sky if I may Please:1. Is there a panel window available similar to that in FSMETEO which displays local and destination conditions and winds aloft?2. If the "MakeItVersionFS2002=Yes" edit is implemented in the FSUIPC.ini file for use of the Dreamfleet 737-400 panel, do you get an error message window when Active Sky is activated? (Note, even though this happens with FSMETEO, I have never seen any difference in its performance after clicking "OK")Thanks:RTH

Hi,1. Using FlightWatch, our voice portion, will give you destination conditions and ground winds. The flight planner will give you winds aloft for your route.Hope this helps,JimActiveSky Supporthttp://www.hifisim.com/images/as2004proudsupporter.jpg

Thanks Jim:Greatly appreciated.RTH

Thanks to everyone for their input here. I bought ActiveSky yesterday and did one brief flight from EKCH to EDDF and all I can say is wow! No stutters, smoothless transitions and the gradual decrease in visibility as you descend below the cloud layer is something to be seen to be believed. Happy camper now. :-)Misha