Carenado in X-Plane

[danklaue 65]

Lately, sounds are largely re-authored from scratch as well (by Thranda). The 3D model goes through some adaptation, and has to be completely re-animated from scratch (not a minor task, especially not when considering complex cockpits with hundreds of switches, dials, buttons, handles, levers, covers, latches, and click spots, many of which are routed through custom plugin-based logic).  Textures are re-done for X-Plane to take advantage of PBR. (Albedo textures can largely be re-used, although they go through touch-ups and often times a 4k-ification process).  Flight model is from scratch, as X-plane's flight physics is DEScriptive, not PREScriptive (as in FSX/P3D.). You actually have to model the aircraft again in PlaneMaker, which is a geometric shape (that is hidden for the final release) that interacts with the atmosphere in X-Plane to produce physical effects that determine the flight dynamics.  There is nothing (except for maybe initial engine HP values, fuel quantities, and weights) that can even be gleaned from the FSX/P3D files.  

Additionally, in the areas where X-Plane's flight dynamics model does not provide us with enough detail (such as, say, weird curves or kinks in the charts, as a function of altitude, where Laminar only gives us linear control between two target altitudes), we can "nudge" the base flight dynamics to cause the plane to fly more accurately, via plugin modules.  That way, we have the best of both worlds... we can make use of X-Plane's "DEScriptive" Blade-element-theory-based flight physics, which makes it behave very realistically in most circumstances, with the added benefit of nudging it here or there, if necessary, to achieve the numbers that X-Plane's flight physics model is not yet high-res enough to be able to account for. 

Plugins are coded from scratch.  Thranda has built an entire logic library in SASL's plugin infrastructure, which has contributed to accelerating the production of, and facilitated the maintenance of a large fleet of planes that all share common logic elements (and with that, a certain commonality in "feel" between aircraft).  I like to think of it like a buffet.  There's a menu, and every plane can select existing menu items from the buffet, and put it on its own personal plate.  The plane goes out with the particular plateful of logic that corresponds to that plane, encapsulated within and encrypted for that particular plane. 

 When a plane comes along that has more complex systems, it's like a guest that comes to the buffet line, and asks for a custom dish, which is then whipped up, or modified from an existing menu item.  The more planes we have, the more our logic library grows, and the more approachable complex planes become, as we have the headroom to concentrate on more minutiae and depth.  The real beauty is, that despite the fact that this logic is inaccessible to end-users, they can still configure most of the variables that make that plane's logic unique, via the "Manifest.json" file.  So the planes are largely customizable by end-users, provided they know what to look for in the configuration file.  

So we're always striving to make the most of all of the advantages that come with partnering with companies that already have a recognizable brand and presence in FSX/P3D, and are able to add a layer of experience to those base products in X-Plane, always with the hope of convincing more and more people to give X-plane the chance we feel it deserves.  And from the looks of it, we're only just beginning. Things are ramping up.  We're tackling more complex planes. We're adding more features and more depth. We're updating planes to take advantage of the latest advances in X-plane (although keeping pace with Laminar is a bit tough).   I do believe that customers get a MUCH better deal out of the X-Plane variant of these planes, not only because X-Plane is the better platform and the market leader in terms of simulation, but also because we are able to add so much nuance and depth to the experience in X-Plane.  Besides, most of Carenado's offerings are still more affordable for X-Plane than their FSX counterparts.

[Paul Deluca 164]

Very good points  Danklaue: Like in my case bringing up the Cessna SkyCourior in my last post regarding ld-3 containers. We could see loading, and unloading in the very near future with other trucks, trailers etc. on the ramp. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

[Bjoern 1,153]

15 hours ago, danklaue said:

The 3D model goes through some adaptation, and has to be completely re-animated from scratch (not a minor task, especially not when considering complex cockpits with hundreds of switches, dials, buttons, handles, levers, covers, latches, and click spots, many of which are routed through custom plugin-based logic).

Can't the keyframes be reused when working with a 3ds Max model? Or are you more referring to the animation tags?

 

P.S: Wish you'd have time to update your aircraft making tutorial on Youtube for XP11. 😊

[danklaue 65]

57 minutes ago, Bjoern said:

Can't the keyframes be reused when working with a 3ds Max model? Or are you more referring to the animation tags?

We've tried that... it's quite cumbersome.  The stuff that comes to us from 3DS has a format that has to be revisited a lot anyway... for instance, the keyframes in FSX/P3D can be 200-300 keyframes long, and at some point, we've grown accustomed to working with bones in a lot of circumstances.  At this point, it's a toss-up whether it'd be more worth trying to work with the way it comes from 3DS (and all the problems associated with it) vs. just re-authoring animations based on existing templates and planes. 

3 hours ago, Bjoern said:

 P.S: Wish you'd have time to update your aircraft making tutorial on Youtube for XP11. 😊

I wish I had more time in general.  The opportunities are many, and the growth is staggering.  I'm excited, though... when I think back of the "dream" I had when I first published those tutorials, and see where we're at now, it's quite thrilling to see what's been happening.

[Paul Deluca 164]

I  see Carenado has made an announcement about something big happening for their 20th  anniversary. Just saw it  on social media.

[alexcolka 183]

Let's hope for a big discount 😁

[Paul Deluca 164]

I am hoping to see new generation aircraft being released by them Alex.

[avgaskoolaid 292]

My guess is some close partnership with a manufacturer to deliver higher fidelity, officially licensed planes. No idea what that manufacturer could be- maybe Textron/Cessna? Maybe even Gulfstream? 

I don't think a discount or one new plane would warrant this kind of 'special announcement'. 

 

[Pastaiolo 1,686]

Or a lovely ATR, in Milviz face.

[warbirds 555]

What about their new B58 Barron,,,anyone have it and how do you like it?

[Paul Deluca 164]

I don't have it.  Looks real nice though.

[Longranger 148]

1 hour ago, warbirds said:

What about their new B58 Barron,,,anyone have it and how do you like it?

I like it. I like especially the fact, that they really made a complete new Baron 58. This goes far beyond a simple upgrade. They have fixed many of the graphics bugs of the old version, the completely new sounds. I was just waiting for the Reality Expansion Pack from SimCoders to make a final comparison but in my opinion even the new B58 by itself was worth the money. In my opinion Carenados, or I should say Thrandas , best upgrade so far. You only see the difference in the lack of fine features in the textures. Although I would guess that the costs between such an upgrade a completely new plane (or more precise a new FSX/P3D conversion) is more or less the same.

[avgaskoolaid 292]

The announcement has been made... it's an ATR-42-500. 

Interesting.... I wasn't expecting a new aircraft announcement but there you have it. I wonder if we can also expect a 72 at some point in the future. 

As always, initial release will be for P3D and FSX but I'm sure it'll come to XP at some point in the future. Who knows... maybe it'll get fast tracked through the development/porting process by Thranda because the ATR is so popular. 

[Paul Deluca 164]

I came close Avgas: I was expecting a new generation airliner like the Mitsubishi MRJ.  France 89 had it perfect.   Good guess!!!!!!!.

Edited April 11, 2019 by Paul Deluca

[mpw8679 428]

12 hours ago, warbirds said:

What about their new B58 Barron,,,anyone have it and how do you like it?

Along with the Simcoders REP it is very good.