Tldr; New 737 update to fix a camera bug that appeared like a freezing bug, pretty much nothing worth noting on 777 progress other than adding wear to textures. Still doesn't really appear that close.

 

https://forum.pmdg.com/forum/main-forum/general-discussion-news-and-announcements/289852-06apr24-777-update-and-important-737-notam

Captains-

Important PMDG 737 for MSFS Update:
During the course of the week we have been working with some customers who have been experiencing software stability issues with their 737 installations. This has lead us to a few important fixes that we have bundled and pushed out via the PMDG Operations Center this evening.

These fixes are related specifically to a mechanism within the 737 that controls the viewpoint while you are entering data into the tablet. Without getting into too much detail, we have found that it is possible to get the viewpoint camera "stuck" while entering data into the tablet, and this would wind up creating a confusing condition for the user in which they thought the airplane had frozen, even though the sim was still running perfectly fine.

To address the issue, we had a good portion of the team dedicated to research and replication so that the tablet team could engineer a fix that would de-capture the viewpoint in a manner that is intuitive and natural without you having to manually intervene. With this fix in hand, we felt it was a good idea to push this update to you in time for your weekend flying- and that has lead to build 3.00.0093 being available via the PMDG Operations Center.

For those on Marketplace (PC/XB) we are still waiting for MS to complete their intake process on build 3.00.0092, and then build 93 will immediately get dropped into the hopper to start that journey to you. We will keep you apprised as to progress in that regard- as you know the marketplace intake process does take a bit of time.

PMDG 777 for MSFS:
Since we are here, I have a few cockpit images to share with you!

Before you go scrolling below- please remember that these images are in-development shots and do not necessarily represent the finished product. We are still hard at work on fit/finish and it is a detail oriented process.

First up is a general overview of the flight deck, taken from just above the pedestal. A portion of the cockpit is in direct sunlight, and most is lit by indirect lighting, which shows off the diffusive quality of the surface paint that is used on the flight deck. This is a very hard coating to work with because it does such an effective job of diffusing light in order to reduce glare on the flight deck that it makes it very hard to photograph or scan effectively- so we have spent many many hours building out diffuse layer models until we finally got a surface quality that would work well in direct and indirect lighting.

If you look on the throttle pedestal just below the trim cutoutt switch guards (the red ones!) you can also see some of the surface damage in the panel face where it was clearly handled improperly during a maintenance check. (Yes- I blame the mechanics! )

This image also showcases the beginning of some of the "Wearing" that is currently being implemented- specifically the high-touch areas that tend to get polished by fingertips and the oils that they carry. If you look around the yoke horns, and specifically at the palm-grip for the electronic checklist (directly to the right of the flap handle) you will notice that the palm guard is polished and shiny from the hands and oils that have been rubbed into it during the twelve years of operational life on our subject airplane.

If you are tactile defensive, like I am- this makes you want to bid to a fleet type that does not have such a horrid collector of oils and spooge... (Yes- other pilots make fun of my habit of cleaning knobs and buttons and switches and high-touch surfaces during cruise flight... It is a thing. IYKYK.)

Vin is hard at work adding in much of the aging detail, now that the other portions of the cockpit are finished... so watch for more grime and goo coming to a knob near you.



I mentioned that our survey airplane was a twelve-year-in-service airplane- but it is worth pointing out that this ship was operated by an airline with flight crews who obviously took pride in their place of work and made some effort not to sully the place in normal operation. (The 737 we originally used for the NGX was... filthy... I still have trauma!) Even with that evident care, some places on a flight deck develop normal operational wear, and nowhere is this more evident than the natural wear and aging that can be seen on the floor.

Now, we have chosen to put new carpeting into the flight deck of your 777, because the carpet that existed in our subject airplane was identifiable, and we did not want to force branding into the cockpit given the broad range of airlines that all of you might want to fly with. But in this image you can get a sense of the quality of the knap and edging on the carpet sections that are held down mostly by velcro in order to give the flight deck a finished feel.

The foot scuff plates are appropriately work, with the metal work showing signs of wear in places where the heels get dragged regularly. (Did you know these are heated from below using the foot heater controls to keep your toes warm when it gets dark on the flight deck? At night flying jets- the temperature extremes in various corners of the cockpit can be quite challenging to work with. Some airplane types can get downright uncomfortable, especially around your feet when pointed away from the sun- so these skid plates are heated from below to give you some sense of warmth.

If you look at the metalwork on the right rudder pedal, you can see that our scanning even picked up the wear in the ridges of the rudder pedal- and this is present on all four of the rudder pedals in the cockpit.

There are some dust and crumbs in corners and places also- which really shows up nicely when the lighting gets projected down there from the angle of the sun. I wanted to veto such detritus, but the team thought it should be present since it was on the subject airplane.


Okay last image for tonight is taken from directly in front of the crew rest station door, looking forward to the flight deck. In this image you can see how we have modeled even the carpet in 3D, as it lays on the aluminum floor structure of the flight deck, surrounding the J-rails for the seats. I point that out because it is that level of detail in the modeling that really gives you a sense of depth and space when looking at the model from inside the airplane.

No doubt, you have likely picked up on the fact that I am showing you this image with the door open specifically to answer That Question.

Yes. The door can be opened and closed. Yes, you can wander around the cabin. Yes the sounds are tuned to where you are in the airplane, and sounds that can be heard from the cabin that cannot be heard from the flight deck are present, and yes closing the door behind you will change what you can hear from the cabin...

We took some night-time images of the cockpit from this perspective, but after sizing them appropriately for the forum- they became very artifacted so I opted not to show them here. We'll have to do a lighting expose for you in video because it has been my experience that showing dark images of the cockpit in MSFS is a bit like photographing your dog. (Ever noticed that when you take a photo of your dog- the photo never seems to have as much personality as they do in video or in person? You caught that one millisecond in time and they just looked goofy or warped- but they never appear that way in person... Dark scenes in MSFS are the same way. In person they look spectacular, but in still images often they look artifacted and cloudy... Anyway... )

As in our 737, the movable lights on the flight deck (the grimes lights and the reading/map lights) can be moved about and pointed where you want them. That was one of my favorite features in the 737 and I dare say most of you probably didn't notice that you could adapt your map lights... but you can! The same is true here in the 777, and it makes for some very interesting lighting conditions on those long, overnight legs that you will no doubt have ahead of you!




Alright- I can hear the team making noise about the fact that I still have work to accomplish this week, so I'd best get back to the hangar. There is more testing to be done so that we can get you off on your worldwide journeys in our new flagship airplane!

Have a most enjoyable weekend, everyone- your team is hard at work for you.

 

Edited April 6, 20242 yr by Andrew2448

Images from the post:

Personally, on the much discussed topic of textures from recent media, I think they look much better in natural lighting conditions, as expected. They really were doing themselves no favor with the fake 100% maximum omni-directional lighting used in previous pictures. There's definitely some compression in these photos so with any luck they'll look even better in person.

Edited April 6, 20242 yr by Andrew2448

I’m excited for this, but I can’t help to say it…. I’ve never seen a post so excited to point out crumbs and dust more than this one. 

I hope that the "grime and goo" aging detail is subtle. I prefer a relatively clean and intact cockpit.

Looking at the third picture, am I right in assuming the seat moves backwards then laterally sideways ( for access) ?

49 minutes ago, Paul K said:

Looking at the third picture, am I right in assuming the seat moves backwards then laterally sideways ( for access) ?

Yes

7 hours ago, Andrew2448 said:

New 737 update to fix a camera bug that appeared like a freezing bug

I've just flown a 9.5 hour BBJ flight.  Half way through my keyboard became non-functional.  I went into the EFB and cycled the "on-screen keyboard".  It came back.   Then just after the TOD, my joystick and rudders became non-functional (strangely, throttles still worked), and the keyboard became non-functional again.  This time, cycling the EFB did nothing.

The 'Ctrl+Alt+Del' hack also didn't work.

I closed the flight down, just 40 miles from my destination airport, after a 9 hour flight. 😫

I immediately went to the Ops Center this morning and saw there was a further update for the 737.  I hope it's fixed that showstopping issue!  Was very unpleasantly surprised to see this type of end to a flight with a PMDG plane.

Edited April 6, 20242 yr by JYW

PMDG planes shouldn't be freezing what a circus they've become.

2 hours ago, jon b said:

Yes

Thanks Jon. I'm rather proud of myself for working that out. 😂

On 4/6/2024 at 1:32 PM, Paul K said:

Thanks Jon. I'm rather proud of myself for working that out. 😂

Forgive the one word answer I was in a rush at the time but could tell you needed to know ! 🙂

 

19 minutes ago, jon b said:

Forgive the one word answer I was in a rush at the time but could tell you needed to know ! 🙂

 

No worries - all I needed was a quick confirmation that I'm a smart a*se. 😉

On 4/6/2024 at 5:57 AM, Christopher Low said:

I hope that the "grime and goo" aging detail is subtle. I prefer a relatively clean and intact cockpit.

I'm about as far away from being a flightsim aircraft developer as it's possible to be, but - I would've expected these sorts of things to be finished by now, according to the noises Randazzo has been making about how close to release we are....

Perhaps that's indicative of how easy finalising the texturing is compared to all the hard work of coding systems and flight dynamics, but to me it still sounds some way off....

And yes I'm impatient!! 😄

Haven't check in with PMDG updates in awhile.  Is the aircraft features still stuck in the FMC (openings doors, catering trucks, etc) or has that all been moved to the tablet now like it should?🧐

1 hour ago, Dillon said:

Haven't check in with PMDG updates in awhile.  Is the aircraft features still stuck in the FMC (openings doors, catering trucks, etc) or has that all been moved to the tablet now like it should?🧐

Is that how the real 737 works?