Help with assigning controls in X-Plane 11

[richie894 45]

Coming from p3d and have some issues getting my controls set up in XP what with the different XP terminology. Can someone please point me in the right direction?

 

1. Parking Brakes - I do not see an option; what is the command I need to select to turn on/ off the parking brakes

 

2. Toe brakes - I have MFG crosswind pedals. They show up in the control screen. I have successfully got the rudder working by selecting "yaw". I have assigned the left and right toe brakes to the pedals and the blue bar shows in the menu as I press them to show it is registering. But when I am moving down the runway slowly and press the pedals the aircraft does not slow at all let alone stop.

 

3. Autopilot - which command is the for the master autopilot on and off.

 

4. Unavailable button options - I am using a Warthog Hotas and the joystick does comes up in the control menu. But only about 4 of the buttons are available for me to program. How can I program the other buttons? Do I need to do it externally, i.e. in the Thrustmaster Target software?UIP

[Paraffin 2,197]

1. Parking brakes is the "V" key on the keyboard. It's maximum brake pressure, not parking brake as such, but that's how it's mapped in X-Plane. 

 

2. Toe brakes -- check to make sure you don't have something else also assigned to toe brakes, which could cause a conflict. I'm using Saitek Pro Combat pedals and the toe brakes work, so i suspect a conflict.

 

3. Autopilot -- look for "Servos toggle" in the command list.

 

4. Only a few of the buttons on controllers like the Warthog are labeled on the image of the device. To assign commands to the other buttons, look for the View drop-down menu at the upper right of the menu and choose "Other controls." That brings up all the other buttons on the right side. Click a button to see its number (you might have to scroll down), and then you can assign any command.

[Jimmy RFR 406]

The parking brake question sure comes up frequently. Almost like LR should re-label the control 'parking brake'. :smile:

[WR269 367]

With the toe brakes, take your time with the calibration.....move the toe brakes several times, back and forth, move them with the yaw axis, do everything you can...I had a few issues with the toe brakes and turns out it was because it did not calibrate in every possible movement combination.

[richie894 45]

Got it all set, much easier to fly now. Thanks all.

[N1125Y 22]

... assigning commands in X-Plane are very interesting graphically it's been nicely executed but other than that it is a bit weird:

 

Can't find the Buttons assignments for the alternators

 

No Dom/ Flood lights Button assignment

 

The Fuel  Selector commands do not make any sense, no control over multi Engine Selectors mean I can't assign On & Off to each fuel tank individually

(Carenado on his B58 concealed the Fuel Selectors under the seats and made you hovering over the seats to look for the Selector. Funny .... )

 

​Cowl Flaps I'm trying to assign 2 Saitek TQ Levers to 2 Cowl Flaps, no way you can assign only one that will operate the 2 levers    

    

Have no clue what are the Slider # X means, and I have tons of them ?

 

Any thoughts ??

 

Cheers Yair     

[Jimm 437]

No offense to those who are asking about button assignments but isn't the whole point of flying a simulator to learn where all of the controls are and making the adjustments with the knobs and switches?  Assigning buttons to do all of the work, kinda takes the fun (and learning) out of the sim and turning it into a game, rather than a great learning tool as it is.  Changing your view to flip switches or turn knobs teaches the pilot how to multitask, while controlling the plane.  The most I have configured are the quick camera views and a couple of button assignments, such as toe brakes and an autopilot toggle.

[richie894 45]

No offense to those who are asking about button assignments but isn't the whole point of flying a simulator to learn where all of the controls are and making the adjustments with the knobs and switches?  Assigning buttons to do all of the work, kinda takes the fun (and learning) out of the sim and turning it into a game, rather than a great learning tool as it is.  Changing your view to flip switches or turn knobs teaches the pilot how to multitask, while controlling the plane.  The most I have configured are the quick camera views and a couple of button assignments, such as toe brakes and an autopilot toggle.

Nope. It is important for me to have key commands on my stick. I.e trim and autopilot just like IRL.

[Jimm 437]

Nope. It is important for me to have key commands on my stick. I.e trim and autopilot just like IRL.

Trim and autopilot, I can understand and you are correct in assigning commands to buttons and switches on a yoke to mimic real life, but when it comes to non-essential commands, it's not really necessary.

[Paraffin 2,197]

No Dom/ Flood lights Button assignment

 

If you mean the interior lighting, that's for two reasons. First, because every aircraft has a different interior lighting setup. Where there is more than one light, it allows separate lights to be controlled individually with the 3D switches in the cabin like the 3 dome lights in the default C172. The second reason is that many of these cabin lights are on dimmer switches (also like the C172), which requires turning a knob with the mouse and can't be assigned to an individual on/off switch. 

 

I know it's a little annoying sometimes. As with instrument lighting (which is also usually variable), it takes me some extra time to set up the cockpit the way I want it. But otherwise it would take up too many analog axis assignments if every individual light was assigned to a controller axis.

Nope. It is important for me to have key commands on my stick. I.e trim and autopilot just like IRL.

 

I've been able to assign every essential flight command to my HOTAS rig, and the rest are switches I don't need to touch with the mouse until I'm in stable flight and can spare the time for mousing. 

 

The only complaint I have about X-Plane's controller assignments is that, ideally, I should be able to assign the same controller switch to different functions for different aircraft models (i.e. joystick prefs stored in each plane folder). There are some commands like helicopter force trim release or autopilot assignments that are handled differently by different aircraft plugins, and that requires assigning too many extra switches that do the same thing. I know there is a plugin somewhere that can do this, and I can also do it with different configurations in the TARGET software I use for my HOTAS rig. But it should be a feature in the basic sim. 

[Jimm 437]

If you mean the interior lighting, that's for two reasons. First, because every aircraft has a different interior lighting setup. Where there is more than one light, it allows separate lights to be controlled individually with the 3D switches in the cabin like the 3 dome lights in the default C172. The second reason is that many of these cabin lights are on dimmer switches (also like the C172), which requires turning a knob with the mouse and can't be assigned to an individual on/off switch. 

 

I know it's a little annoying sometimes. As with instrument lighting (which is also usually variable), it takes me some extra time to set up the cockpit the way I want it. But otherwise it would take up too many analog axis assignments if every individual light was assigned to a controller axis.

 

I've been able to assign every essential flight command to my HOTAS rig, and the rest are switches I don't need to touch with the mouse until I'm in stable flight and can spare the time for mousing. 

 

The only complaint I have about X-Plane's controller assignments is that, ideally, I should be able to assign the same controller switch to different functions for different aircraft models (i.e. joystick prefs stored in each plane folder). There are some commands like helicopter force trim release or autopilot assignments that are handled differently by different aircraft plugins, and that requires assigning too many extra switches that do the same thing. I know there is a plugin somewhere that can do this, and I can also do it with different configurations in the TARGET software I use for my HOTAS rig. But it should be a feature in the basic sim. 

What if, in theory, you make a copy of your config file and then modify the new one to accept new assignments based off of what aircraft you are flying?  Sounds absurd, but seems legit.

[Jimmy RFR 406]

 

 

No offense to those who are asking about button assignments but isn't the whole point of flying a simulator to learn where all of the controls are and making the adjustments with the knobs and switches? Assigning buttons to do all of the work, kinda takes the fun (and learning) out of the sim and turning it into a game, rather than a great learning tool as it is.

 

I'm a hardware junkie. (I have a problem, and I can admit it...) :smile:

 

I have a PFC Cirrus II yoke console, retrofitted with a pair of Leo Bodnar usb boards, that has enough switches to run all major functions on a twin. Add to that a Saitek trim wheel (which has found new life with X-Plane, works really well), a Saitek TPM for aircraft with vernier controls, an few extra Saitek TQ's to place for various oddball throttle configs, a Saitek switch panel to use when I pull the console out to fly with a stick, a X-55 TQ (the stick died awhile back) to use for left hand throttles, some homemade panels with dual concentric rotary switches, and lets see... I've likely forgotten a bit.

 

Depending on the aircraft I'm flying, I can use my controls (and a wood framework of 2X4's and 1x4's) to emulate near accurate control placement of many different cockpit styles. I still use some buttons and knobs in the cockpit, but I absolutely love being able to reach for hardware switches and buttons.

[Paraffin 2,197]

What if, in theory, you make a copy of your config file and then modify the new one to accept new assignments based off of what aircraft you are flying?  Sounds absurd, but seems legit.

 

That would work, but for that much effort I might as well use the TARGET software that can load different configs in the Thrustmaster HOTAS. For one thing, I think it would work to swap configs while X-Plane is still running, which might be the smoothest way to do this when changing to a different aircraft.

 

Oh, and I just remembered that the Warthog throttle quadrant can be set up to swap between 3 additional "layers" where buttons can send different commands based on the layer. It's intended for mode switching on one aircraft (like between air-to-air, navigation, or air-to-ground in the A-10), so it's kind of a clumsy way to handle this. But that would also work, for at least 3 different unique aircraft models. 

 

I still think it would be ideal if X-Plane saved controller prefs separately for each aircraft model instead of a single fixed pref file. Or maybe a basic main pref file (so as not to confuse newbies) and then a set of custom commands for individual a/c models.

Depending on the aircraft I'm flying, I can use my controls (and a wood framework of 2X4's and 1x4's) to emulate near accurate control placement of many different cockpit styles. I still use some buttons and knobs in the cockpit, but I absolutely love being able to reach for hardware switches and buttons.

 

I've tried not to go too far down that path, although it's neat to see how others have set up their home cockpits. The Warthog throttles and control base have a slew of switches already.

 

Lately though, I've been strongly tempted to add the Saitek multi panel, just so I have a physical knob for setting altitude capture on the autopilot. That's probably the cockpit control I use the mouse on the most (aside from the GPS), and it can be a bit fussy in some cockpits. It would be nice to have that on my desk, along with the autopilot mode buttons to confirm current mode. 

[Jimm 437]

That would work, but for that much effort I might as well use the TARGET software that can load different configs in the Thrustmaster HOTAS. For one thing, I think it would work to swap configs while X-Plane is still running, which might be the smoothest way to do this when changing to a different aircraft.

 

Oh, and I just remembered that the Warthog throttle quadrant can be set up to swap between 3 additional "layers" where buttons can send different commands based on the layer. It's intended for mode switching on one aircraft (like between air-to-air, navigation, or air-to-ground in the A-10), so it's kind of a clumsy way to handle this. But that would also work, for at least 3 different unique aircraft models. 

 

I still think it would be ideal if X-Plane saved controller prefs separately for each aircraft model instead of a single fixed pref file. Or maybe a basic main pref file (so as not to confuse newbies) and then a set of custom commands for individual a/c models.

I think you're on to something.  Just like the way XP automatically saves camera views per aircraft, why not extend that ability to the controls?  For a lot of folks who fly both GA and tubeliners, that feature would be most welcomed.  I have the Thrustmaster TFlight Hotas X, and while it is pretty simple to set up, I know I have futzed around with the button assignments more than once, due to changing from GA to tubeliner.

[Jimmy RFR 406]

 

 

I still think it would be ideal if X-Plane saved controller prefs separately for each aircraft model instead of a single fixed pref file.

 

This would be heaven.