As far as I know the VC's that do have some holes are the VC's that came over from FS2004 and weren't updated. We wanted to fill the holes, but the amount of work wasn't trivial and we simply ran out of time.

I'm not I like them they have some minor problems but over all they are pretty much a big upgrade.

yeah got mo idea why it was neccesary to bump up this old post,,, anyway most of the new FSX Planes are certainly not PAyware quality but a significant improvement over FS9 and the GS1000 is fun,,,

Unfortunately you are in a dwindling minority, and the future of FS needs to cater to the majority of simmer's desires.It's a fact of life.Oh, and I can assure you there are plenty of VC's that look better than any 2D cockpit could. Case in point? The RealAir Spitfire's VC.James

Hmmm....Concerned about lack of 2d cockpit supportI am thinking of switching over to FSX but currently fly fs9 with "Wideview" and placed my "2d" self customized cockpit panel onto its own monitor below the outside view monitor , this has worked great for the last three years and gives a most realistic feeling when flying,Virtual cockpit just doesn't give me that on any level, (maybe I'm missing something,)I look outside for the outside view, look below the " outside view " to see the panel, (just like when really flying ) ,if they drop the ability to do this I will be a unhappy with the future prospects available for the home cockpit user or builder. Virtual cockpit may work for the single monitor user but if you want to simulate sitting in a cockpit you need multiple monitors ,each dedicated to outside view(s) and panels which is no big deal in todays hardware configurations and makes the experience a whole lot more fun....Allan" Seahawk"

-SNIP->So is there any way to set that view down in .cfg files>somewhere? I'd like to do it across the board, not just in>each aircraft.>>Jim There are View variables in both the aircraft.cfg and panel.cfg. I've dropped the view on a couple of my imported FS9 aircraft by changing these parameters. here's a panel.cfg entry I changed in my L-049A Connie: //VIEW_FORWARD_DIR=3.75, 0.0, 0.0VIEW_FORWARD_DIR=2.75, 0.0, 0.0And the aircraft.cfg...this gave me a left-rear view of the #1 engine and part of #2:"Views" <--- those "" "" are really square brackets...//eyepoint=18.2, -2, 5.1eyepoint=17.4, 2, 6.1I don't have the info at hand right now that defines those parameters but just play around with them until you getthe view you want. Keep in mind that the VC and 2D cockpits seem to react differently now.Also, make sure you assign a key to the "Aircraft Reload"command so that you can make your chages and reload the aircraftto see the results without having to reload the entire flight. Paul

Wideview is now available for FSX. Also I am sure some great payware planes with 2D good panels will soon be available.3d or VC cockpits are great for those the majority of sim flyers that have only 1 or 2 monitors. They work much like sitting in the cockpit and swiveling you head to see what is around you inside and outside the windows.I don't yet have FSX, but I will give you some examples using FS9.The first requirement is a very well designed VC and I am using the Dreamfleet Baron 58. It has many well placed click points.The second requirement is a Hat switch on your controller or a TrackIR device. I will describe the process using the Hat switch.Baron VC normal view:http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/9564/clip12kv7.jpgUsing Hat pan over to autopilot (or desired instrument:http://img274.imageshack.us/img274/628/clip22vo0.jpgZoom into panel with zoom keys or programmed button on you controller and click changes. (Just like leaning head forward in real life):http://img274.imageshack.us/img274/9404/clip32dz2.jpgChanges made, zoom back out and pan back to normal view:http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/3354/clip42ef8.jpgYou can also pan you head for realistic cockpit views like looking out the right window to see the big iron rolling down the runway:http://img274.imageshack.us/img274/8881/clip52vw5.jpgI have gotten used to this and I really like it as it is much more realistic than staring at a static 2d picture. But it really all comes down to expectation.

Second that to the fullest.Guess I'll never understand how people who don't have something like TrackIR ever manage to control a complex airliner. It's even hard to do this in 2D, so the handy feature of undocked windows is a true life saver here.Without TrackIR (which, BTW I guess can only be a compromise as well: turning your head while the eyeballs stay fixed? Doesn't sound very "natural" to me :-( Should mean: needs to be the other way round), the right hand on the joystick and the left used to manipulate the keyboard (guess no joystick has enough buttons), what else than the coolie hat is left to pan around? And what degree of artistic practice is needed to handle that "sophisticated device" so that it doesn't draw 50% of one's attention away just to find that viewpoint needed for a given situation?I agree that "light" and "easy" GA aircraft or such with only a few simple gauges are candidates for VC flying, but for everything else I'd like to see a live demonstration of a hand-flown CAT III approach with in-flight engine relight attempts and simultaneous radio tuning (this demands a real VC freak out of this world I guess) - without TrackIR.So why could anybody interested in sim-flying those heavies suggest to eliminate VCs? A fast PC and fluent VCs will never eliminate the problem of panning around in them quickly and easily enough if no "pan device" is available.TrackIR for me is, as I already said, only a compromise, and I can virtually feel my eyeballs getting stuck because of that "natural" way of panning. Instruments in reality are often a lot bigger than what the sim shows ('cause it tries to re-create a whole panel on a way too small screen, that's why that d**n centerpost always blocks the view), so even with TrackIR I see myself rocking back and forth in my chair to zoom in and out sufficiently ;-) - let aside I cannot imagine I'd get a comfortable feeling using it.So, why not use the best approximation to the original and put 2D windows of panel other sections into undockable windows and eventually spread them over a second monitor? This way, the important things are immediately available, and one can loog at them using the "natural" way of turning the eyeballs only (and quickly enough without putting stress on the sim, looking elsewhere with the eyes only doesn't involve CPU power at all - a great thing!). And, the instruments are big and sharp enough then.I for my part more than often tried to become familiar with VCs (I even have an Ariane 737NG bird with only a VC), but as much as I wanted to master it, I never succeeded because of the reasons above.As long as I have undockable 2D windows, I'll prefer them in all ways (don't even need cartoonish background photos of the panel). Some of the planes I did my own panels for have only horizontally stacked RealityXP Jetline gauges and no panel bitmap at all. It's all about instruments, knobs and functionality, not nice bitmaps and VCs for me.Amen ;-) . Andreas

thanksreal nice pictures anyway I uploaded a picture of my cockpit , just so you can see a different way to enjoy this hobbyhttp://forums.avsim.net/user_files/160759.jpg

That looks like a lot of fun.I have seen a number of system simular to yours. You are using WideFS correct?Only a very small minority fly that way because of the dollars involved. From what I understand WideFS has now been made FSX compatable so you should be ok there.How many PCs are you networking to get that configuration?Ron

That cockpit is awesome! I would give up VC's in a heartbeat if I had that setup!Bill

hey guys ,it all started with the idea to get the panel instruments off the same screenand to be able to look to the side window at the runway threshhold on downwind for approaches. so it evolved slowly from there, once you start it never ends, you just slowly keep building and adding. a couple of years ago I was running seven computers on nine screenswith Wideview, now I have succesfully set this up with two computers and four video cards running seven monitors.As to cost you have to rationalize (at least I do)that any aircraft you rent or buy , the operating costs/hour will always far outweigh any computer cost,and therefore in the long run much cheaper and still alot of fun,Happy flying and hope the 2D panels stay awile