UTBridge Info

[tjrush 56]

Any chance that we will see a new UTBridge?

[mwilk 1,107]

You might see a man on Mars first. If I was selling niche software, this wouldn't be the business model I would choose.

[Falconfly 62]

I'd really love to see a new version. I mean it's mentioned on their website! I already have utlive. 

[stevefocus 15]

Have tried emailing the dev a couple of months ago and got no response as is normal for him. Love the fact that on his website it says it will be available in a couple of months and that deadline passed back in September. Shame a more reliable dev can't buy him out and take over.

[Falconfly 62]

Yea it's a shame. He used to be very responsive earlier. Can't we work around it? I mean would converting the utlive plans be that difficult? 

[jabloomf1230 2,450]

10 hours ago, Falconfly said:

Can't we work around it? I mean would converting the utlive plans be that difficult?

As you all know, UT2 and UTL both use proprietary file flight schedule file formats to provide realistic AI flight plans  and also to prevent pirating. This creates headaches for other developers whose software has to mesh with UT aircraft and schedules. It took the developer of Super Traffic Board a lot of work to figure out how to make STB work with UTL and it still doesn't works anywhere as well as it does with AI packages that use BGL-based flight plans. Basically, any other developer has to reverse engineer the UTL database structure in order to access the information that it contains. A one person operation like VOXATC is going to be taxed to the hilt to do this and then one has to consider the rewards of doing so. VOXATC works fine with 1) the default AI traffic (ugh), 2) My Traffic 6  and 3) AIG flight plans. It remains to be seen what Just Flight does with its upcoming AI traffic package, but if it isn't based on the BGL format, expect similar delays using it with VOXATC also. 

My guess is that every time that the VOXATC developer stops communicating with his user base, he is probably busy with a big update. People were pretty concerned several months ago also about the lack of official support and then what happened? 64 bit VOXATC 7.4 was released.  I suspect that the UTL Bridge is probably causing the present delay, because the bugs in VOXATC 7.41 are pretty minor and mostly consist of both a few of the utilities  and the client-server apps needing updates. I gave up on UTL and went the painful but rewarding AIG route. The models are much nicer looking and the schedules are constantly updated. Sure AIG uses the BGL format, but seriously, does anyone really care what an AI aircraft does at cruise altitude? In FSX or P3d you rarely ever see the high altitude AI aircraft, so whether they follow real world flight plans when enroute is a minor consideration. What matters more to me is what things look like on my arrival, approach, departure and on the ground and VOXATC is a wizard at doing that.