Hi...I was a beta tester on the, just released, FS2Crew supplement for the PMDG 737 800 and 900 series. When the testing was wrapping up, Bryan sent us a questionaire and one of the questions asked how FS2Crew compaired to FS Hotseat and Flight Deck Companion. Since I don't own either one of those programs I couldn'a answer that question.So....how DOES FS2Crew compare to FS Hotseat or Flight Deck Companion???Thoughts?Thanks for your time....

HelloI think it compares badly against FDC right off the bat as FDC has a profile editor which enables you use it with just about any aircraft whereas Crew is strictly for the PMDG 800/900.This also means that any 600/700 user that wants to use the app has to pay more for the 800/900.Of course the functions of these two apps make a direct compairison invalid but the concept behind Crew is clever as all getup but too narrow in scope.Thank YouTroy

I have FDC and agree with what Troy says, albeit with a different slant ;) FDC has a strong point in being configurable for different aircraft. FS2Crew is miles ahead when it comes to CA - F/O interaction and the F/O "functionality" for lack of a better word. FS2Crew is "narrower" but does it better...

Thanks guys...I was just wondering sice, I'm sure I heard of FDC and FSHS, it just never occured to me to try 'em. So, we're pretty much compairing apples to oranges then huh? ;)

for what it is worth, which is little because I dont own any of them...after revewing the web site, it appears that the amount of setup and prior selections in order to get to run properly for each flight seems to exceed the button pushing and toggle throwing that you would do if you just did it all yourself.its like you have to program the program to run your program, does this make sense to anyone except me?

Pros/Cons to all three programs, FS2Crew, FSHotSeat and FDC. I own and use them all. I love FDC's programability, albeit finding specs for your planes and entering the prolific V1s and such is a pain; FSHotSeat has two versions to use,unprecidented Dopler sound effects for your AI aircraft on the ground, a DJ for your inflight MP3s, decent co-pilot functionality albeit corny machine made voices. FS2Crew is awesome in it's detail and ability to control the PMDG 800/900's, albeit no programability, still, no other program around makes the whole "company" thing so alive! I plan on running FS2Crew, RadarContact and FSHotSX (lite version for airport ambiance) together and fly a LOT of Boeing 737-8/900 flights for awhile!Randy Jura, KPDX

I'm in the same boat.I am really intrigued by some of the features of FS2Crew, but there seems to be TOO much immersion and detail for all the but most hardcore of simmers.I really like the way their menus are incorporated and the things it does to add a lot of real world immersion. But at the same time, I don't know if I always have the time/patience to go through 10 different flows when receiving an aircraft.I wish their was a little more flexiblity with the elements of FS2Crew, so that you could pick and choose how much immersion you wanted.

I understand that it may look like that but in reality it

>I'm in the same boat.>>I am really intrigued by some of the features of FS2Crew, but>there seems to be TOO much immersion and detail for all the>but most hardcore of simmers.>>I really like the way their menus are incorporated and the>things it does to add a lot of real world immersion. But at>the same time, I don't know if I always have the time/patience>to go through 10 different flows when receiving an aircraft.>.... You got that right ;-) and let us remember that the 737 NG by PMDG is also a hardcore sim for serious simmers....Best Wishes,[h4]Randy J. Smith[/h4]http://www.rawbw.com/~bdoolin/shinault/southparkcartmad.gif[h3]PMDG 747![/h3]Caution! Not a real pilot, but do play one on TV ;-)ASUS KV8 DLX | AMD 3200 64 | 1 GIG PC 3200 DDR | GIGABYTE 5700 ULTRA | ViewSonic VP192b 19" |

Heh heh...I think I logged about 50+ hours on the PMDG 800/900 beta testing this puppy and I STILL can't get the hang of the managed approach. I get about half way through and I'll find a way to hose it all up again and either have take the aircraft back and finish the approach myself or go around. Or the time when I forgot to set the RA to 50 and the FO went and did the missed approach procedure while my face was buried in the panel somewhere. That'll wake ya up! ;)

As the developer of FS2Crew I am of course just a little biased, however I think that it all boils down to "different strokes for different folks."Causual simmers might be intimidated by FS2Crew. The learning curve is pretty steep for most and it's not meant for those who just want to "hop in and fly." One of my friends who presently sits left seat on the NG commented that FS2Crew is only really of value for people who want to prepare for real-world training on the plane.I'd like to think that FS2Crew fills the void in the market for those people who really want the extreme detail.Yes, the present version only works with the PMDG 800/900, but that's the price you pay for getting the extreme detail.I could have made it more generic, but then I'd have to turn the detail down quite a bit, and I don't want to do that.All the best,Bryan