Dornier Do-27: what's this?

[Guest]

There are two things in the Do-27 about which I can't find anything in the manual...What's this for?http://i16.tinypic.com/54n2nbl.jpgAnd what's this for?http://i11.tinypic.com/6cfxbiu.jpgI've got one little problem: some textures are shimmering all the time, like on this picture. (I've made two shots to give an idea of what's happening.)http://i9.tinypic.com/4utk3l1.jpg http://i9.tinypic.com/4ougjzo.jpgThis also can be seen on the Master switch (the silver around the switch itself) and all nametags (in the N9313A anyway, which I use). I've got AF on 16x and FSAA on 8x, so... it can't be that. I don't have this problem elsewhere (in FSX nor in any other game). It's not annoying me THAT much, but I'd rather fly without that shimmering all the time!

[Guest dswo]

I can't answer any of your questions, I'm afraid. I can't help but notice, however, that the correction card for the magnetic compass is blank in the last pair of screenshots. So's mine. Does anyone know -- will this get filled in with time?

[Guest Papa 3 Charlie]

My Do-27 does the same thing with flashing/shimmering parts within the virtual cockpit. Must be a bug.Bryan

[Guest JSPuonti]

The shimmering you mention towards the end is usually result of two textured (and visible) polygon surfaces that are extremely close to oneanother.My understanding is that when your GPU tries to calculate the position of the two surfaces in 3D space it ends up placing them at the same coordinates (it basically can't calculate accurately enough to figure out which one is in front). Since these calculations are done every frame, even the tiniest change in their position in 3D space results in one or the other being placed "on top". What you see is the texture flickering in and out randomly.This is why you might sometimes notice that the VC gauges on some add-on planes are "detached" from the panel and appear to float slightly off the surface. This is done to avoid the kind of flickering you're experiencing. Since the gauges are sufficiently separated from the panel, your GPU won't have trouble figuring out which one of the surfaces (the panel or the gauge polygon) is on top.The color depth you use in FSX or on your Windows desktop can have an effect on how pronounced these issues are. Some games allow you to separately set the bit accuracy of the video card's Z-buffer (or W-buffer) which is used for these calculations, but some games use the same bit-depth as your color palette. In the latter case using a 32-bit color palette means the game will also calculate polygon depths with 32-bit accuracy. I'm not sure how FSX works in this regard.

[Orlaam 306]

>There are two things in the Do-27 about which I can't find>anything in the manual...>>What's this for?>>http://i16.tinypic.com/54n2nbl.jpg>>And what's this for?>>http://i11.tinypic.com/6cfxbiu.jpg>The dial on the side of the throttle panel is used to influence how the levers move when you use the mouse to move them up or down. It's a friction dial for the levers in other words.The white tube looking thing is used for air circulation; An air nozzle for flow control. Purely a moving part for visual enhancement in the sim.

[Guest]

Thx! All clear now!BTW Anyone knows if it is possible to override the Do-27 start situation? I'd like the cover on the pitot and the pilons before the plane to be still there when I return to the plane... I spend some time setting things up the way I want them and saved the flight as default. But after loading it today I was reset to the cold and dark default... What's the use of being able to cover the pitot, build a tent and remove the pilot if these things aren't saved...? It spoils the fun of really being there for me...

[Guest PhilC]

I agree. I think "cold & dark" should be shut completely down, pilot and passenger (if enabled)removed, chocked, tied down and covers installed.

[Guest]

Right. It's a bit daft to do all that after loading the flight, because right after that you would have to undo it all again! ;) The manual says to remove the pitot cover before flight: well, since there is no need to put it on at all, this is a but useless information...Don't get me wrong, I love these details, but they are useless if they can't be saved... The Do-27 still is the best GA around though! :) I have to say I really love to fly without AP: never thought I would! And I also keep an eye on ALL gauges now (like oil temp) which I never did before because there was no need to. This certainly is entertaining on longer flights. I even have autogen turned off because I usually am too busy with handling the plane. And besides that: the windows are so old and dirty that you can hardly see anything outside... :( (I'm exaggerating here, of course) ;) The real reasong for turning off autogen is that the Do-27 does have quite a negative impact on fps on my E6600 with 8800GTX...)

[Orlaam 306]

I don't know about saving a "Cold & Dark" cockpit with the Dornier, but you do have to clean the windows. Open the kneeboard that came with the Do-27, not the MS kneeboard, and goto the repair page. Make sure the plane is shut down, and in fact I think it must be all set up visually for repair outside (not 100% sure). Then perform the repair check and when it states it's finished, flip to the second page and check the clean windows box. Then perform the repairs and it'll clean up in a few seconds.

[Guest]

LOL I was just kidding about the windows and know how to clean them. But thanks anyway. :( Although I have to say the windows of the Do-27 are always a bit dirty, even when they are cleaned, but I LOVE that! I used to remove all reflection.dds files from the aircraft I was flying because I wanted an unobstructed clean view on the world, but not with the Do-27: the more dirty the windows, the better: it makes everything looks much more real too (with autogen off and through that dirt window everything looks a lot more realistic down there. And because I have enough to do during take off and landing I do not miss the autogen: by the time I have time to look outside I am so high up in the sky that the textures alone make things very real, even more so than with autogen!)BTW Those things (dirty windows and the technical state of the plane) DO get saved luckily!!! Imagine the plane being in perfect shape everytime you load it again...! ;)Man, I am really very excited about this plane. :( It almost feels like it's real: I mean, I am at work right now (yes, I know I should be working!) and when I think about tonight I really have the idea a real plane is waiting there for me at the airfield and I should not forget to check the oil this time! The fact that you have to take care of it makes it so great! Awesome. As you notice I just can't stop talking about it! :(