Why am I not that exited at the news that FSX will be on the shelf in 4 weeks? Two years ago I was chomping at the bit, credit card in hand waiting for Microsoft to release "A century of Flight". The day it was released I was down at the local box store and finally had my prize. During those two years Payware and Freeware developers were sprouting up everyware. At no time in the history of flight simming have we enjoyed such a huge choice of great addon products and I purchasd and downloaded many of them. (I'm to scared to add it all up. I bet I could have bought a used car for what I've spet on FS over the last tw years).Right now my version of FS9 is a far cry from the software that came out of the box two years ago. It has grown to consume almost 60Gbs of hard drive space. With great addons like Ultimate Terrain, GE Pro, Ground Enviroment, Flight Environment and Active Sky to name a few, FS9 is now one h*** of a sim.So right now I'm really happy with what I have. Will I get FSX? You bet, but I don't think I'll be running out the door the morning of Oct.17th to buy FSX. (Maybe Oct.20th. LOL)Dave FisherCYYZP4 Prescott 3.2e 478p 800mhz 1mg CPUP4P800SE Asus Motherboard2.5 gig PC3200 DDR RAM 400MHZGeforce Ti 4200/128Maxtor 80 Gig ATA 133 HD x2WDC WD800 80 Gig HDhttp://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/ng_driver.jpghttp://fs2crew.com/linepilot.jpghttp://www.jdtllc.com/images/rcv4bannersupporter.jpg

It's actually 3 years, and not 2.Fs04 came out fall 2003.

Im with you dfish. After all I have spent of fs9 and with all the addons I have its fine for me. And with my addons it looks alot better than fsx. Maybe not those screenshots, but if I want a frame rate above 8 then it sure does it does on my pc.

Howdy, I couldn't agree more. If they have not allowed the expansion of more realistic icing condition's and or weather conditions to where you fly a cessna 172 right thru the middle of a towering cumulous cloud that is hovering up to FL500 you may end up losing a wing or get certified for aerobatics real quick then I really don't want it considering the amount I have invested in the FS2004. I really think that it being a sim and wanting to simulate flight to the nearest to real thing then I think it should definately simulate better weather conditions to that level of realism to really make future pilots or people wanting to be pilots pay alot more attention to their metar's and taf's and be better prepared in planning a flight. Instead of hey there is a storm I need some excitement I want a bumpy ride so I am gonna fly right thru the most violent stuff I can find. Or if there is a storm maybe I should go around instead of plowing right thru it and trying some new snap rolls etc ;). And for those that complain about it allow them to turn that option off or have a mary popping's option to allow them to fly thru buildings etc.. (grin). And if that is really the way a person want's to simulate flight good luck in the real world. May be a statistic on a NTSB report quicker than you think. My 2 cent's... Happy Landings, Josh

As you are, I'm quite content with what I have now. I think I'll be waiting a bit, allowing others to give their mini reviews on the forums here, before I grace my system with Microsoft's latest offering.

Because it doesn't look like there is that much to get excited about. I bet I can show you some screens of mine with all my addons with fs9 and you wouldn't even care about fsx.

Hi,I think the main reason that two large groups of people here at these forums are not that excited about FSX is that their major requests for this version were not acted upon. One group tends to be single player airliner fliers that wanted improved ATC, better AI, and better airports. The last one is true (although many here already bought addon airports better than those in FSX), but the other two appear to be essentially unchanged. Since eye candy, multiplayer, and other FSX features tend to be less important to this group, they feel like there is not much in FSX to get excited about. I tend to agree with them.The other group is interested in improved flight dynamics, improved interaction between their plane and the sky, and a better feeling of "flight". I think the last one has been improved (but perhaps not enough), but the flight dynamics and the weather system are also essentially unchanged. Thus this group is not satisfied either.However, I'm hoping that the mission system will be a savior for this sim and when some very cool airliner and bad weather missions are released, that will bring the rest of us over. In fact I hope for a "generic airliner mission" that adds a huge amount of realism to *any* airliner flight. If not, then I'm happy with FS2004.However, don't take this message as a complaint. I understand that we simmers are a small part of the total sales of this sim, and that the developers needed to create interest in a larger group of people. I believe they succeeded in this task. Unfortunately, it just didn't include me...Take care,--Tom GibsonCal Classic Propliner Page: http://www.calclassic.comFreeflight Design Shop: http://www.freeflightdesign.comDrop by! ___x_x_(")_x_x___

>>>> Howdy,>> I couldn't agree more. If they have not>allowed the expansion of more realistic icing condition's and>or weather conditions to where you fly a cessna 172 right thru>the middle of a towering cumulous cloud that is hovering up to>FL500 you may end up losing a wing or get certified for>aerobatics real quick then I really don't want it considering>the amount I have invested in the FS2004. I really think that>it being a sim and wanting to simulate flight to the nearest>to real thing then I think it should definately simulate>better weather conditions to that level of realism to really>make future pilots or people wanting to be pilots pay alot>more attention to their metar's and taf's and be better>prepared in planning a flight. >> Instead of hey there is a storm I need some excitement I>want a bumpy ride so I am gonna fly right thru the most>violent stuff I can find. Or if there is a storm maybe I>should go around instead of plowing right thru it and trying>some new snap rolls etc ;). And for those that complain about>it allow them to turn that option off or have a mary popping's>option to allow them to fly thru buildings etc.. (grin). > > And if that is really the way a person want's to>simulate flight good luck in the real world. May be a>statistic on a NTSB report quicker than you think.I couldn't agree more, has the weather in FSX been 'beefed' up at all?!?!

> I couldn't agree more. If they have not>allowed the expansion of more realistic icing condition's and>or weather conditions to where you fly a cessna 172 right thru>the middle of a towering cumulous cloud that is hovering up to>FL500 you may end up losing a wing or get certified for>aerobatics real quick then I really don't want it considering>the amount I have invested in the FS2004. I really think that>it being a sim and wanting to simulate flight to the nearest>to real thing then I think it should definately simulate>better weather conditions to that level of realism to really>make future pilots or people wanting to be pilots pay alot>more attention to their metar's and taf's and be better>prepared in planning a flight. >> Instead of hey there is a storm I need some excitement I>want a bumpy ride so I am gonna fly right thru the most>violent stuff I can find. Or if there is a storm maybe I>should go around instead of plowing right thru it and trying>some new snap rolls etc ;). And for those that complain about>it allow them to turn that option off or have a mary popping's>option to allow them to fly thru buildings etc.. (grin). Agree.

Yeah theres a serious issue with turbulence in fs2004 though. It is always way too smooth, even with asv6 I think there is room for improvement. I just hope that hifi sim will add some more realistic turbulence and allow those clouds to reach higher altitudes. One thing also about weather is there is never that semi-thick layer of cirrostratus coming off a waether system that often covers the entire sky at FL370.

In all fairness FS9 looks pretty dated out-of-the-box compared with FSX, and really it's pretty static and dry. Don't get me wrong, I've greatly enjoyed it, but in all honesty FSX will offer a far more rewarding experience.Why?Well, everyone who's flown the missions say that it really adds to the enjoyment you get out of it. Missions aren't just the fly between pylons affair. There are all kinds of missions that simulate real life situations and conditions, and the flexibility you get out of creating them is almost limitless.Also, although subtle, the wildlife, cars, birds, and ship traffic will dramatically enhance the experience. Reason? Even if you don't spend time staring at it, it will lodge itself into your subconcious and actually create a much more immersive experience.Lastly, FSX out of the box is vastly superiour to FS9 out of the box. Ever flown above trees in FS9 and looked straight down? The trees almost become invisible because they only have vertical textures representing them. In FSX, they also have horizontal textures so are much more voluminous. This dramatically enhances the visual realism. Also, night-day graduations and the sky are far better in FSX than in FS9.Think of the potential for addons in FSX as well. I can assure you in about a year from now you'll be wondering how you ever thought FS9 could compare to FSX.My 2c.James

It would be very exciting if we had the top hardware from October 2009! Because until then, it will be more of the same; although, I don't think it's all Microsoft's fault, or is it?The FSX screens look very good though, very good!RH

We buy water,air,sunsets,clouds,roads,trees,sounds,jump on just about anything that comes out.Most sell for $30 average. Say $20 for some roads or $30 for new houses and trees.At around $50 FSX is a #### of a addon value considering you get an entirely new world.If the addon developers broke that down into pieces Im sure it would be thousands of $$$$ worth.I just do not see what all the stress over its release is all about.You are not going to be forced to delete FS9 and if you load fsx and it runs like crap, you are not going to be charged by the hour while its on your computer.

>Yeah theres a serious issue with turbulence in fs2004 though.> It is always way too smooth, even with asv6 I think there is>room for improvement. I just hope that hifi sim will add some>more realistic turbulence and allow those clouds to reach>higher altitudes. One thing also about weather is there is>never that semi-thick layer of cirrostratus coming off a>waether system that often covers the entire sky at FL370. I don't know, especially with head latency, the turbulence in FSX is pretty cool to me.

Well, I have to say, you could go back prior to FS2004 being released and FS2002 and you would swear the talk was about FSX release:-roll No disrespect meant but just an observation.I for one will get FSX the day it is released and I'm really looking forward to it. I have a very high end machine but know, just like prior versions, I won't be able to run with all sliders to the right. A large part of my enjoyment is "tinkering" with FS and utilizing all the great add-ons that will come out. IMHO the inter-action that the MS team (Aces) has had with the FS add-on developers and the community is many times better than past versions. This can only add to the development potential of FS add-ons.I'm pumped!!! And at my age that's no small feat!:-lol