RealAir Citabria Fixes For P3Dv4.4

[ctb 2]

RealAir Citabria standard configuration fully working in P3D v4.4 with minimal content log errors:

Acquire a paid digital download or DVD of "American Champion Aircraft" by RealAir.

Execute the RASScout07_F1_Install_dl.exe file and install to a new folder (<REALAIR>).

Copy files to your P3D folder (<P3D>):
<REALAIR>\Effects\* -> <P3D>\Effects
<REALAIR>\Gauges\* -> <P3D>\gauges
<REALAIR>\SimObjects\Airplanes\Realair Citabria 2007 -> <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes
<REALAIR>\SimObjects\Airplanes\RealAir Scout 2007\Texture -> <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes\Realair Citabria 2007

Scout contains a base set of textures Citabria uses.

To make the cabin lights switch work, change <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplaines\Realair Citabria 2007\aircraft.cfg:
-light.6=6,   -3.20,    0.00,    0.35,   RASScout_vclight
+light.6=6,   -3.20,    0.00,    0.35,   fx_vclight

To fix a bunch of camera content log errors, change <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplaines\Realair Citabria 2007\aircraft.cfg:
-PitchPanRate=0
-HeadingPanRate=0
+PitchPanRate=4
+HeadingPanRate=4

For every camera.  This also makes it possible to slightly adjust gauge and control cameras.  You don't need these cameras if you use hat switch or TrackIR and zoom.

Gauge cabinet files not packed efficiently for P3Dv4 cause content log errors.  To fix, download and install the P3Dv4 SDK (<P3SDK>) and repack them via Command Prompt (run as Administrator):

cd <P3D>\guages
mkdir RASScout07
expand RASScout07.cab -F:* RASScout07
<P3SDK>\CabDir.exe RASScout07
rmdir /s RASScout07

mkdir RASScout07_Radios
expand RASScout07_Radios -F:* RASScout07_Radios
<P3SDK>\CabDir.exe RASScout07_Radios
rmdir /s RASScout07_Radios

Content log errors occur like this when manipulating the magneto switches:

[error.6]
error=Gauge/Script Error
Type: Unknown
Name: Unknown
Error: Invalid script (no command is more than 4 characters): "if{1} els{0}
                (>K:MAGNETO1_LEFT)
            "

[error.7]
error=Gauge/Script Error
Type: Unknown
Name: Unknown
Error: Invalid script (no command is more than 4 characters): "els{0}
                (>K:MAGNETO1_LEFT)
            "

However, the magnetos still turn off and on.  Cold start works per manual, with RPM reduction with one magneto.  Turning off both magnetos shuts down engine.  P3D failure system can fail magneto individually.

The error comes from script in <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes\RealAir Scout 2007\Model\RASScout07_VC.MDL.  Anyway to fix this without having original design files? 

It appears to fly correctly and all gauges work without any other content errors.  I like it.

[ctb 2]

Correction:

Copy the whole Scout folder over to P3D, not just the Texture folder:

<REALAIR>\SimObjects\Airplanes\RealAir Scout 2007-> <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes

Instead of:

<REALAIR>\SimObjects\Airplanes\RealAir Scout 2007\Texture -> <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes\Realair Citabria 2007

[Lorby_SI 2,038]

Hi,

instead of dumping all this into the simulator core folder, I suggest to keep it externally and use an add-on.xml to link the content to the sim. Then you can just turn it on or off at will.

Example:

1. Create a folder structure like this

• C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\Effects
• C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\Gauges
• C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\SimObjects\RealAir Scout 2007
• C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\SimObjects\Realair Citabria 2007
• C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\SimObjects\...whatever other plane, helicopter, boat or car

2. Move your files into these folders, instead of the the simulator core directories

3. Create the reference file C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\add-on.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<SimBase.Document Type="AddOnXml" version="4,0" id="add-on">
  <AddOn.Name>Legacy Aircraft</AddOn.Name>
  <AddOn.Description>Ported aircraft from FSX etc.</AddOn.Description>
  <AddOn.Component>
    <Category>SimObjects</Category>
    <Path>Content\SimObjects</Path>
  </AddOn.Component>
  <AddOn.Component>
    <Category>Gauges</Category>
    <Path>Content\Gauges</Path>
  </AddOn.Component>
  <AddOn.Component>
    <Category>Effects</Category>
    <Path>Content\Effects</Path>
  </AddOn.Component>
</SimBase.Document>

Then you can play around with the aircraft files to your hearts content without endangering core simulator files - and you can enable/disable it on the Options->Addons dialog in P3D - and just delete it without a trace if you want.

Best regards

Edited February 17, 2019 by Lorby_SI

[ctb 2]

Oliver, thanks.  For simplicity I'll post any further directions as if installed to P3D directly, but your approach sounds safer and would make <P3D> mean:

 C:\Users\...\Documents\Prepar3D v4 Add-ons\Legacy Aircraft\Content\

[BamaKevin 8]

Am I out of luck purchasing the Scout? I know they went out of business.

[ctb 2]

No.  The Scout is part of the "American Champion Aircraft" package.  You can find downloads or DVDs on Flight1 and Aerosoft or used copies on ebay and Amazon.

The instructions above pertain to the Citabria in that package.  I have not tested the Scout, but it likely has similar issues and fixes.

[BamaKevin 8]

Thanks

[ctb 2]

The American Champion Aircraft package includes a program to configure panel layouts:

<REALAIR>\scout07\Config Panel.exe

See the Panel Layouts tab.

To change panel layouts, change <REALAIR>\RealAir\scout07\AutoPlay\Files\Config.ini:
-FSROOTPATH=CANCEL
+FSROOTPATH="<P3D>"

Replace <P3D> with the real path.

Restart Config Panel.exe (as Administrator if necessary to change P3D files), modify the Citabria layout, click Save, and restart P3D.

[ctb 2]

This script in the MDL file causes the "Invalid script (no command is more than 4 characters)":

(A:Recip eng leftmagneto:1,bool) 0 ==
if{1} els{0}
(>K:MAGNETO1_LEFT)

Perhaps the magneto switches still work despite the error because K:MAGNETO1_LEFT key event is a toggle event that doesn't take an argument, so it doesn't matter if the if/else blocks fails to push 1 or 0 onto the RPN script stack?

(RPN is an expression language P3D interprets to create dynamic behavior - see P3D SDK documentation.)

[ctb 2]

To make the cockpit light work with the color RealAir chose for it, do not change light.6 settings in <P3D>\SimObjects\Airplanes\Realair Citabria 2007\aircraft.cfg.

Instead, change <P3D>\Effects\RASScout_vclight.fx:
-X Scale=0.03, 0.03
-Y Scale=0.03, 0.03
+X Scale=1.00, 1.00
+Y Scale=1.00, 1.00

[ctb 2]

The content log error from:

if{1} els{0}

Results from no spaces between the brackets and number inside.  Perhaps the P3D interpreter sees if{1} as a five character command and raises the error because "Invalid script (no command [in RPN] is more than 4 characters)"?  

This causes no error:

if{ 1 } els{ 0 }