http://news.yahoo.com/flight-simulators-used-enthusiasts-worldwide-014652612--finance.html

 

Sorry if this has been mentioned before, I've been inactive lately, I'm in Vegas at the moment.

 

In here the AP recognizes that flight simulators (like FSX) are used by people worldwide. It also recognizes (incorrectly) the $80 addon for the 777 that disappeared. This is incorrect because the PMDG add-on is the 777-200LR and costs $90. Either way, it was nice to see AVSIM in the news today!

Old news now, but it's still kind of a thrill to see AVSIM and PMDG mentioned in the mainstream press.   I remember when AVSIM was hacked back in 2009 that there was a story in the BBC

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8049780.stm

 

That the 2009 event would get this kind of coverage was kind of a big deal back then for me.  I often wonder how our little community rates in the grand scheme of things, and even back then, many websites were hacked into daily, so I was quite pleasantly surprised to see the hack appear on that news site.  It felt like the end of the world for me, and I'm sure many others at the time, but I always have to remind myself this hobby has a very small niche following.   This isn't Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto, although I often wish we had as large a community. 

 

Nevertheless, it's debatable if the current coverage of PMDG and flightsim is a good of bad thing.  The fear is that simmers could be seen as "weirdos", especially real life pilots.   It's not like doctors or accountants load up simulations related to their professions during their spare time.   Aviation is a whole different animal though, as we can all attest to, it's in our blood.  The way I see it, flightsim is like fantasy football; everyone has hobbies where they want to escape, to pretend they are paid for doing something they love.  I'm proud to see our hobby getting some media attention.   Maybe we will see some more interest from the public, the more the merrier right?