Is VoxATC dead?

[HomoPrintus 0]

Hi! 

I've recently purchased VoxATC and still wait for UT Bridge to make my UT2 working. But then I've read this forum and it seems that it might never happen. 

Any news from developer? Does anybody seen him alive recently? 

[zmak 331]

His website has a direct email on it somewhere. He does reply although it may take a week or so. Unfortunately he doesn't provide a support forum

[supersym 52]

No he dos'nt reply anymore. I leave a few mails  thoses last month and nothing...

 

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

The problem is that VOXATC relies on FSX and P3d standard file formats like BGL. The developers of the UT series opted to use a non-standard format for their add-ons' databases. It took a while previously for the VOXATC developer to figure out the UT2 database structure and build a translator, UTBridge.

UTL has a totally different database structure than UT2 and hence the delay.  Keep in mind that UTL was first released as an extended beta and also the developer of UTL hasn't released the UTL version of their Powerpack. 

[HomoPrintus 0]

2 hours ago, jabloomf1230 said:

The problem is that VOXATC relies on FSX and P3d standard file formats like BGL. The developers of the UT series opted to use a non-standard format for their add-ons' databases. It took a while previously for the VOXATC developer to figure out the UT2 database structure and build a translator, UTBridge.

UTL has a totally different database structure than UT2 and hence the delay.  Keep in mind that UTL was first released as an extended beta and also the developer of UTL hasn't released the UTL version of their Powerpack. 

Does it mean that UTbridge will work for UT2? I thought that whe new version of Voxatc was released, old UTbridge became incompatible to it

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

I checked when VOXATC 7 was in beta testing and no, UT Bridge didn't work for me with UT2. It might work with the 32 bit versions of VOXATC 7, but I don't know about that for sure. The alternatives to a new UTBridge  are pretty limited ATM:

1. Use My Traffic 6 which works with P3d4 if one deletes the FS9 models.
2. Use AIG flight plans and freeware models. This is what I do, but it is very tedious to set up initially.
3. Download the Boston ARTCC BVAI freeware AI model and livery package and use AI Flight Planner to modify the AIG freeware flight plans. That's only slightly less work than #2.
4. Wait for UTBridge to be updated.
5. Wait for Just Flight's supposed AI Traffic package. The rumors its release go back further than the rumors of a new UTBridge version.
6. Set VOXATC AI traffic levels to 0%, use a real time traffic add-on combined with real time ATC broadcasts. 
7. Use another 3rd party ATC package. I use Pilot2ATC with XP11 and it does a very good job, but of course it doesn't interact with the AI traffic, like VOXATC does.

 

[Ted Striker 338]

Jay, as ironic as it sounds, is VOXATC the only Air Traffic Control addon that actually controls air traffic, albeit limited to MyTrafficX? I haven't found any others that do this.

Ted

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

Yep. The two add-ons (PSX seecon and Lorby's) and  that access ADS-B transmitter data also will "control" AI aircraft, but then one has to use LAAP to automatically play Live ATC streams that match the AI traffic. VOXATC is the only add-on that's truly immersive, especially when it's used with AIG flightplans. Maybe Tegwyn West stopped answering his emails when I asked him if he could port VOXATC to XP11. 

[StevenInkster 1]

10 hours ago, Ted Striker said:

Jay, as ironic as it sounds, is VOXATC the only Air Traffic Control addon that actually controls air traffic, albeit limited to MyTrafficX? I haven't found any others that do this.

Ted

Pro-ATC X + UT Live seems to work fine; the controllers bark instructions at the other aircraft.

Maybe I am misunderstanding the question?

Steven

[Ted Striker 338]

5 hours ago, StevenInkster said:

Maybe I am misunderstanding the question?

I did not phrase the question clearly. Voxatc is the only ATC program that I have found that appears to control you and the AI Traffic. It seems that all the others will direct your flight path but you have to stay out of the way of any AI Traffic yourself.

Does Pro-ATC X keep you and the AI Traffic from colliding with each other in the air and on the ground?

Ted

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

6 hours ago, StevenInkster said:

Pro-ATC X + UT Live seems to work fine; the controllers bark instructions at the other aircraft.

Maybe I am misunderstanding the question?

Steven

Yes. The ProATC controller's say stuff to AI aircraft but it tends to be random comments unrelated to actual control. Ted's correct, other than the default sim ATC, no other ATC add-on both controls and communicates with AI traffic. That's because VOXATC replaces both of those components in the sim. The others only replace the default ATC.

[StevenInkster 1]

19 hours ago, jabloomf1230 said:

Yes. The ProATC controller's say stuff to AI aircraft but it tends to be random comments unrelated to actual control. Ted's correct, other than the default sim ATC, no other ATC add-on both controls and communicates with AI traffic. That's because VOXATC replaces both of those components in the sim. The others only replace the default ATC.

Ah - this is interesting. So, ProATC is like the stock ATC and simply enables the aircraft to follow their (point to point) plans, with a bit of vectoring at the end and (many, many) "go around" calls. I'm assuming then that VoxATC will introduce separation, hold patterns, and assign SIDs/STARs - the whole lot, in fact, to keep the air traffic flowing as in the real world.

THAT would be great, and makes me very interested indeed in VoxATC.

Thanks for your patience in answering my questions.

Steven

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

Yes to your question. VOXATC has a full-featured demo but just be advised, official support is very limited. Like most everything else these days it requires a Navigraph subscription to maintain AIRAC currency. But in addition, if one wants the P3d4 stock airports to match the latest AIRAC, then a subscription to fsaerodata is also a must.

Further, nothing will fix bad airport geometry and VOXATC can get confused by poorly replicated airports with inaccurate gate sizes, airline codes, missing taxiway links, etc.. VOXATC also expects well-constructed flight plans. In summary, don't purchase it unless you are serious about immersive AI traffic and ATC.

[Ted Striker 338]

3 minutes ago, jabloomf1230 said:

Further, nothing will fix bad airport geometry and VOXATC can get confused by poorly replicated airports with inaccurate gate sizes, airline codes, missing taxiway links, etc.. VOXATC also expects well-constructed flight plans. In summary, don't purchase it unless you are serious about immersive AI traffic and ATC.

Jay, Do the some of the default airports have bad geometry or is it just some of the addon airports? Thanks for educating us on all this. I'm just wondering how many airports I will have to fix.

Ted

[zmak 331]

29 minutes ago, jabloomf1230 said:

Yes to your question. VOXATC has a full-featured demo but just be advised, official support is very limited. Like most everything else these days it requires a Navigraph subscription to maintain AIRAC currency. But in addition, if one wants the P3d4 stock airports to match the latest AIRAC, then a subscription to fsaerodata is also a must.

Further, nothing will fix bad airport geometry and VOXATC can get confused by poorly replicated airports with inaccurate gate sizes, airline codes, missing taxiway links, etc.. VOXATC also expects well-constructed flight plans. In summary, don't purchase it unless you are serious about immersive AI traffic and ATC.

First time I hears of fs aerodata but just to be clear

"if one wants the P3d4 stock airports to match the latest AIRAC"

Are you talking about default airports only? hard to imagine anyone serious enough to pay for VOX ATC would be flying default