10 minutes ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

I know but isn’t it cleared with forced updates? How many times have you had to download the same areas?

I think it is not cleared on the updates, but not 100% sure to be honest. If I recall, only one time Asobo asked us to remove the older cache because of a glitch in the terrain data, I think that was during Christmas last year. 

24 minutes ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

I know but isn’t it cleared with forced updates? How many times have you had to download the same areas?

I haven't had to remove the manual cache on each update.  It stays for each update.  It's just that Asobo recommends you clear the manual cache in case you have some scenery issues.  If you don't have any issues, you can keep the manual cache.

1 hour ago, w6kd said:

That's some pretty gerontophobic stereotyping.  What relation do you assume exists between someone's age and the speed of their internet connection? 

At 64 going on 65, I am allowed to be 😄 

Though to be honest the items that actually correlate with internet speed are likely to end up being geographical location and disposable income not age.

My net at home is 250Mbps fibre (I had the option of  an upgrade to 1.0Gbps but decided it was a bit pointless) and work is 10Gbps via an ATM to UNSW in Sydney.  1.2Gbps is actually pretty good and should give awesome performance in MSFS .

Edited July 9, 20214 yr by Glenn Fitzpatrick

56 minutes ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

 

  hope that one day they will be optional because if they aren’t then not having control of software on my PC that I have bought would be frustrating.

Then how do I fly out of Honolulu at 10:00 my time but 10:00 Honolulu time yesterday or even a month ago and get the local 10:00 weather? It has no historical weather as I understand it. That’s why P3D /ASP3D appeals so much.

.

Updates : the country updates already are optional but any other update won't ever be. This is the toll to pay to have a streaming type of distribution. If you want hires imagery for the whole world you have to accept it.

The lack of historical weather is a major flaw for me too. I would be at least content with  a 24 h historical weather. The weather in MFS is a curious mix. I've never seen the weather environment so well rendered in a sim so far.  But, like for many things in MFS, it has never been really completed  : no real weather briefing for departure, destination, no en-route briefing, dysfunctional weather reports between ATIS, windsock and METAR, clouds missing when the METAR says there should be some,  absurd stormy conditions all over the place with lightnings and thunderclaps . Asobo has said that they prepare a major rehab . We'll see.  

MFS is a strange beast.  Many things are dysfunctional but it also is endearing in many aspects and when  flying it,  one can see its potential to be much more than it is now.

 

 

Edited July 9, 20214 yr by Dominique_K

C;mon guys we all know if someone jumped FSL and delivered a high fidelity Concorde for MSFS before it was released for P3D we wouldn't be able to beat @Ray Proudfoot back he'd be so far ahead of us in line!!  😉  

P3D's learning curve, as well as the saturation of the amount of addons already on P3D's market, makes it hard for new developers to come along into the P3D market. it's why 90% of all the developers in this market have been here for over a decade, some even two decades! Ultimately, P3D was not meant for teenagers looking to make a mediocre freeware aircraft, it was designed for people who were already knowledgeable enough about the simulator. I'm not very surprised that P3D hasn't seen any new development groups for aircraft, because X-Plane and MSFS already took most of them. Most likely the current generation of in-house projects (A300, 747, FSL Concorde, TFDi MD-11, etc.) will probably be the last generation that we will see new aircrafts for P3D targeted to "us".

28 minutes ago, psolk said:

C;mon guys we all know if someone jumped FSL and delivered a high fidelity Concorde for MSFS before it was released for P3D we wouldn't be able to beat @Ray Proudfoot back he'd be so far ahead of us in line!!  😉  

🤣 I just don’t see it happening. Is the MSFS engine capable of supporting Mach 2?

And you have to question who has the skills to create a proper Concorde with a fully operational Flight Engineer’s panel capable of moving fuel around the 13 tanks. Only Andrew Wilson I’m afraid and there’s zero chance of him jumping ship.

I run both P3D and MSFS and have no issue in doing so. MSFS updates on a 10-20MB connection can be a pain but doesn't stop me from using it. My only gripes with MSFS are the weather inaccuracies (I fly on VATSIM so kinda important), the lack of GSX and my study airliners (737, 787, Dash 8). Once GSX, PMDG 737 and Aerosoft Twin Otter hit my time will move from 90% P3D 10% MSFS to more 60% P3D 40% MSFS. The scale will slide as more come over. MSFS is getting better but doesn't mean I'll abandon everything for it.

That said, I think we all need to keep something in mind. Yes Microsoft said this is a 10 year project however I have been through Zune, Kin, FSX, Flight, Windows Phone, Windows 8 Start screen over the last 20 years, so while MSFS is awesome and I look forward to the amazing projects coming out for it, I want Xplane and P3D to keep developing and pushing forward to keep Microsoft/Asobo on their toes and should the day Microsoft decide that   Enterprise VM's  or Forza data is more valuable than MSFS Photogrammy on their Azure Servers, we have something our developers can slide back into that they are familiar with. I'm optimistic but also realistic. I don't want a repeat of 2009/2010. Luckily Laminar and Lockheed will keep grinding, so they'll always be my backup plan.

Have a great weekend guys.

4 hours ago, Bobsk8 said:

And all that costs a fortune. And it still looks like a 15 year old sim. 

One company develops commercial ‘add-on’s’ for real world training. 
One company develops games for gamers. 

i know what I’d prefer to tell my friends at parties what I use. 
 

 

12 hours ago, Glenn Fitzpatrick said:

It is not "still using it" that is the metric, it is whether you are still buying updates and new addons.

People were still riding their BSA and Norton motorcycles long after the companies that made them were defunct and the factories closed down. That did not change anything about the state of the British motorcycle industry.

Yes, that's the point I was making if you read my entire comment, which I made because people seemed to be thinking it meant users were switching, and as I pointed out, their sales data is not capable of tracking that. They may be, or may not be ditching P3D, but JF's sales data can't track something like that.

Norton Motorcycles is still going incidentally. Their website is here.

Edited July 9, 20214 yr by Chock

3 hours ago, Chock said:

Norton Motorcycles is still going incidentally. Their website is here.

Well some Americans acquired the name but never used it. Some guy in Britain bought the name in the early 2000's and tried to build a few bikes but failed with a lot of scandal involved and big debts. When he went broke the rights to the name and the remnants of his operation in the Midlands were flogged off to the Indian TVS Motor Company in Chennai .  Basically the only connection to the original Norton is the legal rights to the name itself.

Not that it makes any difference, BSA is owned by the Mahindra Group based in Mumbai and may at some point actually sell some SE Asian made motorcycles with the BSA name on them.  Royal Enfield, a subsidiary of Indian conglomerate Eicher Motors Limited  are also Indian owned and are made in Chennai. Meanwhile Triumph actually is UK owned but recently moved it's production entirely to Thailand. 

Edited July 10, 20214 yr by Glenn Fitzpatrick

6 hours ago, FrankSalo said:

That said, I think we all need to keep something in mind. Yes Microsoft said this is a 10 year project however I have been through Zune, Kin, FSX, Flight, Windows Phone, Windows 8 Start screen over the last 20 years,

I mean i get this line of thinking, but when one of the two alternatives is that a defense contractor keeps letting at home users (and developers targeting said users) use their product technically against their "personal consumer entertainment" ban on licensing, https://www.prepar3d.com/product-overview/prepar3d-license-comparison/ That doesn't seem like a great alternative to me if we are worried about longevity...

Edited July 10, 20214 yr by MrNuke

11 hours ago, w6kd said:

MSFS is still just an arcade novelty to me, because I want the ability to fly legit training-like profiles that include flight planning, correct procedural operation of a variety of complex aircraft, IFR approach work down to minimums, missed approaches, diverts etc. 

So, I have been using the DC-6 to fly VOR/NDB routes and approaches and that includes (a lot) of flight planning not only to get a serviceable flight plan, but also to make sure I don't crash into mountains or fly into extreme weather. I do this without much help from the Flight Engineer, which means that I need to monitor all systems pretty much during the whole flight. Is this hardcore enough for you or am I still not a simmer because I am using Flight Simulator and not P3D?

And then I want to try something else, I can revert to the FBW A320 (which is, at least, on Aerosoft's level and fast improving), the CRJ, or WT's CJ4/TBM etc.

You might be one of the last holding this "MSFS is Arcade" banner...watch out.

Edited July 10, 20214 yr by GCBraun

2 hours ago, Glenn Fitzpatrick said:

Well some Americans acquired the name but never used it. Some guy in Britain bought the name in the early 2000's and tried to build a few bikes but failed with a lot of scandal involved and big debts. When he went broke the rights to the name and the remnants of his operation in the Midlands were flogged off to the Indian TVS Motor Company in Chennai .  Basically the only connection to the original Norton is the legal rights to the name itself.

Not that it makes any difference, BSA is owned by the Mahindra Group based in Mumbai and may at some point actually sell some SE Asian made motorcycles with the BSA name on them.  Royal Enfield, a subsidiary of Indian conglomerate Eicher Motors Limited  are also Indian owned and are made in Chennai. Meanwhile Triumph actually is UK owned but recently moved it's production entirely to Thailand. 

Yup, being a motorcyclist in the UK I'm familiar with all that, I've had a few BSA and Enfield bikes in the past, they are fun but like all old Brit bikes they tend to leak oil, however, the B31, Gold Star and the Bullet are good fun bikes and pretty simple to work on. But the truth is, Jap bikes are better when it comes to reliability, which is why I have a Dragstar these days.

7 hours ago, Doug47 said:

One company develops commercial ‘add-on’s’ for real world training. 
One company develops games for gamers. 

i know what I’d prefer to tell my friends at parties what I use. 
 

 

Yeah and both were born out of a "game" called FSX. 

Edited July 10, 20214 yr by omarsmak30