Thanks for the thoughtful responses and locations to try everyone!

You always know that a person's coming from X-Plane when he uses the term "ortho."

Down under..?

Try flying this flight plan:

 

I just discovered that MSFS actually has a non-ortho option! I assumed that turning off Bing maps in the setting would use a preloaded low-quality but still accurate satellite imagery built into the sim, but come to find out it instead generates scenery just like X-Plane. It's "the old way", where it puts generic fields and forests where they do not belong, and all roads look the same (though even in this mode, the roads look way better than X-Plane's roads), so I still prefer using the default satellite terrain. My performance also went down (lots of stuttering) with Bing imagery turned off, probably due to the processor having to autogen terrain rather than just use stuff downloaded from a server.

Anyway, I wasn't expecting that!

19 hours ago, David Mills said:

You always know that a person's coming from X-Plane when he uses the term "ortho."

So, while I have been too "busy" dealing with a health issue, I still monitor various forums and threads of interest.

Interestingly, I see this statement and wonder, "why would someone say this, and what relevance does it have?"

Perhaps you might elaborate what the difference is between MFSF Scenery and XP Scenery? So we can clearly understand the difference.  You know, otho from Bing vs Ortho from everywhere else?

48 minutes ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

Interestingly, I see this statement and wonder, "why would someone say this, and what relevance does it have?"

I hope that your health issue is on the mend.
It looks to me like a harmless observation of something that is evident.
One can read all over these forums that X Plane users refer to covering the virtual ground in images of the real ground as "ortho".
In years of use of Microsoft flight simulators, starting from Fs2002, right through to P3Dv5, the same method is widely described as "photo scenery".
I suppose that the comment was remarking on the apparent fact that MSFS has attracted users from both X Plane 11 and from other Microsoft and Lockheed Martin simulators and that one can often tell the difference by the individuals' use of "ortho" or "photo scenery".
Lately, "Bing Imagery" or "Google Imagery" seem to be the new terms.
Nothing really to be upset about.

 

 

Edited July 14, 20223 yr by Reader

I second Utah in the states. Always happy to have flown there, and I love going in and out of KSLC with the backdrop of the Wasatch mountains.

I also really enjoyed Tasmania, I thought it looked great.

3 hours ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

Perhaps you might elaborate what the difference is between MFSF Scenery and XP Scenery?

MSFS scenery is a stunningly beautiful, real-world, engineering masterpiece. XP scenery ... isn't.

4 hours ago, David Mills said:

MSFS scenery is a stunningly beautiful, real-world, engineering masterpiece. XP scenery ... isn't.

So I was correct!  Thank you for the confirmation.  I happen to have flown in two areas in MSFS where the scenery is gwad awful generic textures and I happen to have the same areas in amazing high def satellite imagery in XP.  Those areas are on the West Coast of British Columbia, specifically just outside of the Bella Coola airport flying toward Williams Lake AND all the area in the North West Territories in MSFS is a joke for quality...so I can confirm that your statement is a bias as I believed you intended with the first post I made above. 

 

 

8 hours ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

So, while I have been too "busy" dealing with a health issue, I still monitor various forums and threads of interest.

Interestingly, I see this statement and wonder, "why would someone say this, and what relevance does it have?"

Perhaps you might elaborate what the difference is between MFSF Scenery and XP Scenery? So we can clearly understand the difference.  You know, otho from Bing vs Ortho from everywhere else?

"Ortho" is for teeth.  Photoscenery is what we can have in flight simulators.

I think Japan has the best Ortho in the game. Similarly it has by far the cleanest and best performing photogrammetry. 

1 hour ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

all the area in the North West Territories in MSFS is a joke for quality...so I can confirm that your statement is a bias as I believed you intended with the first post I made above. 

You appear to be determined to try to start a fight over nothing.
Perhaps it would help if you were to look for a positive in MSFS as well, as requested by the OP.

1 hour ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

  I happen to have flown in two areas in MSFS where the scenery is gwad awful generic textures and I happen to have the same areas in amazing high def satellite imagery in XP

Wouldn't that make you "2nd" then? 

 

1 hour ago, 1st fltsimguy said:

So I was correct!

Sounds like entrapment 😂. Well played 👏

9 hours ago, Dermot McClusky said:

I second Utah in the states. Always happy to have flown there, and I love going in and out of KSLC with the backdrop of the Wasatch mountains.

I also really enjoyed Tasmania, I thought it looked great.

I love Utah, I mean I built an airport for it, but in all honesty, a lot of the quality is average to mediocre and in some cases much worse.
The eastern US is far far cleaner, so is the extreme coastal Western US, and even Alaska in most areas is better.

A lot of deserts in general have issues because the flaws are more exposed as the ground has no grass or trees to hide the flaws, so it's going to look worse even when it's good (not always but often).

South America looks good, at least where I was flying the other day (about 50 miles S-SW of Balmaceda).
Otherwise, I have to say France, Switzerland, Austria, and Europe are the best besides the eastern US.

Some of the absolute clearest though is actually in the Appalachians. Only a few questionable spots in Appalachia.

One flight that comes to mind is flying out of Blairsville or Morganton towards Nottely Lake, or towards Chatuge Lake to the NorthEast of Blairsville...

Far eastern Kentucky also has some sweet spots like Pikeville County Airport (KPBX).

Edited July 15, 20223 yr by Alpine Scenery

I have to mark this thread.