36 minutes ago, ca_metal said:

I don't think they've said the ray tracing (shadows) is limited to cockpits. I don't even know if they can limit ray tracing like that (ray tracing inside the cockpit, but turn the effect off for the outside scenery). 
 

Of course it can be limited. Ray tracing does not have to be used for everything, it's main advantage is its easier to get some effects on parts of the scene that are otherwise much harder to calculate/code in a normal pipeline.

Shadows are only one thing & to be honest I can't see anything noticeable that ray tracing should do for giant exterior shadow scenes that should look that better. I mostly expect it will be noticeable in cockpits & overall lighting.

About mesh shaders, they are the future of geometry pipelines imo, it's not just unloading culling to the GPU but you gain much more scalablity & performance wise.

From a consumer perspective it'll mean much more detailed 3d assets resulting in better graphics and addons, from an artist point of view, possibly some less bakes to make (Those are really time consumig). So they benefit everybody. Only one will suffer are coders though, its the moral equivalence of transitiong an DX11 engine to DX12, but for how you draw geometry.

That's probably why really few engines adopted them for now, most AAA engines have small maps. Giant open scenes like in flight simulation though  sounds like a really good candidate. Photogrammetry/Autogen & trees LODs could potentially be really improved, as an example. Even more detailed aircraft 3d models etc...

But they are not trivial to implement & we are taking this thread sideways a bit 🙂

Edited July 7, 20241 yr by Inu

I hear that multiplayer model matching has been fixed. No more tube liners posing as GA twins and 'Bonanza lookalikes for everything else. Deep joy. 😛😍👍

4 hours ago, F737MAX said:

Prepar3D is derived from Microsoft ESP (Enterprise Simulator Platform).

There was a reason why LM couldn't offer a home or entertainment version of the P3D sim until MSFS turned up on the scene.

LM failing to abide by the wording of the licencing agreement would have seen MS' legal team in a strong position to win a breach of contract court case.

I took your statement and put it to ChatGPT3, "What was the reason why Lockheed Martin couldn't offer a home or entertainment version of the P3D sim until MSFS turned up on the scene.?

Here was its answer:  doesn't really mention or explain why LM altered the EULA:

Lockheed Martin's Prepar3D (P3D) simulation software is a direct descendant of Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX), which Microsoft sold to Lockheed Martin. The key reason why Lockheed Martin couldn't offer a home or entertainment version of P3D was due to licensing agreements and market positioning.

1. Licensing Restrictions: The licensing agreement between Microsoft and Lockheed Martin restricted P3D's use to professional, educational, and training purposes only. This was likely to prevent direct competition with Microsoft's consumer-focused Flight Simulator series.

2. Market Positioning: Lockheed Martin positioned P3D as a serious simulation tool for professionals in aviation training, military, and academic settings. Marketing it as a consumer entertainment product would have conflicted with this professional image and potentially diluted its brand.

When Microsoft Flight Simulator (MSFS) 2020 was released, it re-entered the consumer market with a state-of-the-art flight simulation platform that appealed to home users and enthusiasts. This allowed Lockheed Martin to maintain its focus on the professional market without competing directly with MSFS 2020 in the consumer space.

For me the bad taste is around the price tag to adhere to the then EULA:  $600 for version changes.  For what it was, that was alot especially then, historically.

1 hour ago, Ron Attwood said:

I hear that multiplayer model matching has been fixed. No more tube liners posing as GA twins and 'Bonanza lookalikes for everything else. Deep joy. 😛😍👍

Where did you hear this?

Kind Regards,
Andre

For precise, concise, factual answers, The Bing Chat MS Copilot built into the Edge browser shines. I do believe MS copilot is the best and less slanted AI in the world.

Edge Browser: top right is a large copilot icon offering 3 choices:

informal, verbose

medium

concise, factual

---

I normally use Firefox browser. But when looking for exact factual answers the Bing Copilot in Edge is the simplest to use, the fastest, and gives the most on target results.

16 minutes ago, Andre92 said:

Where did you hear this?

Kind Regards,
Andre

Oh. It might have been 'in my dreams'. 🙄

I use FSLTL and I see plenty of contrails all the time. Sometimes they're short, sometimes they last a bit longer but one thing's for sure, I would never pic the ones in FS9 over MSFS

In 2024, Captain Sim Boeings might have bright text banners and less robust contrails.

Oh no my last comment was meant for a different thread lol

4 hours ago, Noel said:

I took your statement and put it to ChatGPT3, "What was the reason why Lockheed Martin couldn't offer a home or entertainment version of the P3D sim until MSFS turned up on the scene.?

Here was its answer:  doesn't really mention or explain why LM altered the EULA:

Don't trust Chat GPT... even says on the site it will contain errors.

Edited July 8, 20241 yr by Tuskin38

13 hours ago, Tuskin38 said:

Don't trust Chat GPT... even says on the site it will contain errors.

Of course.  I brought it up because neither did F737MAX state what the reason was that the EULA was changed, he just said "there was a reason..." so checked to see if ChatGPT was able to tease out the reason, and it wasn't.