FS11 or FS12 Feature Request

[=Hollywood= 0]

Hi Paul, Mike, Adam and the rest of the gang ;-)You'll probably see this in an inbox somewhere too ;-)I've been collating a lot of GIS data and came across something tonight that could be a really cool addition to the FS franchise if perhaps down the track FS was to implement physx support...If per se FS implemented physx support water would be the main aspect of the sim that could make the FS world very very dynamic...From waterfalls, to tides to river flow and flood data, the ability to see dynamic water based on the physx engine would revolutionize the simming experience...I've been digging around at the USGS site and came across http://waterdata.usgs.gov which has water flow data for a lot of areas in the United States... Not sure how much worldwide data is available...Everything from flood data and water flow and height data is available, and could be incorporated into a 'real world hydro' download link that would work similar to the real world weather system...Some of the key benefits of implementing a physx based water system in FS11/12 would be:* The ability to also incorporate worldwide bathymetric data (i.e. ocean, lake and stream floor data...) With LIDAR projects expanding at an exponential rate and state governments creating 2.5m LIDAR based DEM models that have all drainage and slopes accurately modelled by the time we reach FS11 or 12 there should be a substantial base data set available to see realistic water systems in FS...* On top of that the sim could be expanded to also create new plug in simulator systems... We're talking mariner and submariner simulation, the ability to sail on the ocean surface as well as go below the surface of the ocean...FS has so much potential to become more of a global simulation system, not only modelling flight but also transportation systems (roads/rail), shipping/boating, and also orbital space...If FS's base earth system was used and 'plug-ins' were used for simconnect then the possibilities of not only aviation simulation would be possible, but also many many other forms of simulation... With 2m dem data and accurate vector roads and flat roads being modelled on high resolution DEM data it is now possible to drive up the side of a mountain, with switchbacks and all... No worries about sharp elevation changes with non-fractional elevation points...I believe that FS is almost at the dawn of a new revolution, one in which not only flight simulation is modelled, but also ground and water simulation as well...The other benefit with physx would be with the modelling of air systems, this would allow weather to become dynamically generated, with weather systems being possible (again LIDAR data for air movements and currents can be used), and even the possibility of hurricanes and tornados then become possible in sim...I know I've always been on the edge of looking at the future of MSFS and what may be possible tomorrow and seeing what can be done today... Some of these ideas can be implemented now if I can find a talented programmer who knows about simconnect... Some other smaller scale ideas are also possible, such as modelling seasons on a daily basis based off averages of world climate data and ice/snow cover data...I've got a lot of projects on the backburner now, and once I get my initial high res projects done I want to branch out into expanding FS in ways that haven't ever been seen before...Anyway just a few thoughts from an old time FS user, and futurist...Dean...

[Guest possum]

Sounds like my dream program! :-jumpy Im sure some will be appalled that someone should suggest Flight Simulator doing something other than simulating flight, but I think this is a great idea.

[Mace 1,904]

Wow, sounds very ambitious Dean. In the past, that has been the concern with this...it's pretty all-encompassing to make FS develop into an "everything simulator". But with things like physx chips, I suppose it has more realistic potential, especially going forward.My own prediction is that standalone Physx chips will not go anywhere, per se. But rather they will be implemented in future cpu's. So it won't be a dead-end technology, but rather it will be re-implemented in another form...that is, AMD and Intel cpu's, +2+ years out.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2530 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2 GB Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8, WD 250 gig 7200 rpm SATA2, CoolerMaster Praetorian

[Guest The Wizard of Oz]

No reason why they could not be optional expansion packs with similar pricing.Re WOZ