VS2005?

[Guest Knikolaes]

Well i finally decided to upgrade my 737 PIC to FSX. All went well except for the fact that none of my switches work.After reading and performing the recommended actions on the Wilco Support page for the 737, including manually installing the SDK, making sure .NET Framework was installed (I installed all versions of Framework just to be safe) and assuring I have proper permissions on my Vista, the situation remained the same.The ONLY thing I have left to try is at the bottom, where it states I have to have VS2005 installed "as stated at FSInsider". I searched FSInsider and only vagure matches came up.I am going to properly assume that VS means "Visual Studio" If this is the case, that is where my issue comes in. I keep getting the runaround from Microsoft's handly little navigation system for VS2005. I keep getting redirected to VS2008, which is a payware product and far out of my budget range. I am also not a developer, so don't see why I need to purchase developer tools just to run an FS Addon.I found references on the web that VS2005 had a free version to download. Does anyone have an actual copy of this i can snag if it is indeed Freeware? Microsoft has completely replaced any references to VS2005 with thir new VS2008 product line.I sent a support request to Wilco, but I am certain to get more assistance here from the community.<> I did find a VS2005 SP1, which is a little over 430 MB. If this is just a service pack, I wonder how big the actual VS2005 is O.o I'm downloading SP1 in preparation for actually attaining the real product so I can get these addons running again. After reading what Wilco had to say on their support page i am also guessing that this may be an issue as to why the FSX version of the Flight1 ATR has the mouse flickering issue.My FSX is currently SP2 with Acceleration Installed.Chris

[PhilTaylor 45]

If you are developing add-ons that are content only - then you do not need a compiler.If you are developing add-ons that contain code and not just content - then you need a compiler.If you use VS2005 as your development tool, then you may or may not need the VS2005 SP1 update.Neither VS2005 nor VS2008 are freeware.

[Guest Knikolaes]

Okay so VS2005 is payware and it IS required in order to run third party add-ons. I'll have to wait then.I am not developing, but was going by the quote here per Wilco:"Please note that FSX version REQUIRES Flight Simulator X Service Pack 1 + Flight Simulator X SDK (and the VS2005 update as indicated on FSinsider.com)"Following the link, FSInsider concurs with this:"Notice: Third-party content requires VS 2005 SP1 to successfully load. Third-party content developed for FSX using VS 2005 SP1 requires the new VS 2005 SP1 redistributable file, available here: Download"But the download link is not the VS2005 redist. it's the C++ 2005 Redist. Or are these the same thing? And do I need the full developers version of VS2005 installed to install the redist?I tried installing the Redist, and it always looks like it starts to download. I get an "ACCEPT" screen and I click Accept, then it has a very quick what LOOKS like an install, but nothing ever verifies a successful installation.I'm going to reboot and try to load the 737 PIC again. If the issue persists I know this wasn't the answer anyway.Thanks for the reply though :-)

[PhilTaylor 45]

I do not believe anyone needs a dev tool to run a 3rd party add-on, that would seem like a bad design to me.It might be necessary to have the SDK to get full functionality of an add-on but again requiring it for any usage seems like a bad design since the SDK is only available to Deluxe customers.The link we provide is the VS 2005 SP1 RTL redist, since that is the part that can generate a hidden dependency and cause failures in add-ons. I blogged about this before SP1 shipped.

[Guest Knikolaes]

Actually I really feel like an idiot.I apparently had not successfully installed the Vista upgrade pack which is available at Wilco for an additional 10 bucks. When i was reading their troubleshooting tips i was mistaking "Vista Upgrade" for "FSX Upgrade". **sigh** I need sleep.She works beautifully now, although I did verify I did NOT have C++ installed before. I have a few other add-ons that were misbehaving. Going to go see if this fixed that issue as well.Chris