Cockpit sharing in FSX

[Guest ghrasko]

My FSX has not yet arived, but I try to be prepared. I develop my aircraft to be compatible with it. I started my development to be compatible with FS-Net i.e. to use custom events instead of modifying the special values right in the mouse callback. In this way FS-Net was able to distribute my custom event to the other pilot sharing the same aircraft.Now I heard that FSX has some similar capabilities (not having the possibility to check yet), but I can not see any instructions in the SDK docs about this feature and/or about the necessary programming technics. The main question is of course the synchronization of variables that do NOT have a corresponding variable in FS (for example FMS variables, special navigation equipment, electronic network setting etc.).Does this really exist in FSX and is there any way to synchronize the non-FS variables?Gabor

[n4gix 4,947]

Gabor, I do not believe that FSX will pass non-default tokens or commands through the multi-player interface.

[Guest ghrasko]

>Gabor, I do not believe that FSX will pass non-default tokens>or commands through the multi-player interface.Ahh, that's mean againg that only standard instruments will be synchronized. Most of the people using some modern FMC or old type of navigation equipment that will not be synchronized. Based on my earlier experience it means that it will not be used too much :(Gabor

[n4gix 4,947]

>>Gabor, I do not believe that FSX will pass non-default>tokens>>or commands through the multi-player interface.>>Ahh, that's mean againg that only standard instruments will be>synchronized. Most of the people using some modern FMC or old>type of navigation equipment that will not be synchronized.>Based on my earlier experience it means that it will not be>used too much :(Actually, it's being used a LOT! That's part of the problem now; there's just too many people using the Gamespy Lobby Service.Also, understand that FSX's multi-player isn't used at all for VATSIM or IVAO, since it only works via the Gamespy Lobby.So... given that there is no "Shared Cockpit" outside of the Gamespy Lobby Service, it's rather a moot issue.

[beatle 0]

<>Well, you can use Shared Cockpit along with the Direct Connection option (ie connecting to a server at a known IP address), so it is available via at least one option outside of the Gamespy Lobby (I think FS-MP.COM uses this method for their servers).

[Guest ghrasko]

Just to understand it absolutely clear...If I develop an aircraft that has features (equipment, systems, gauges etc) that can not be matched to FS internal values and tokens then that aircraft can not be (fully, but in fact at all) used for sharing even not in the Gamespy Lobby.Most of these aircrafts (PMDG Boeings with FMCs, PT-Tu154 with special Russian type of navigation equipment and a lot other simulating the whole electrical, fuel and other systems are not at all programmed in a way that they could even theoretically be shared (synchronized). But if you carefuly separate user inputs from the actual variable modifications by using events (custom ones also) then if these events are synchronized over the LAN/WAN then the aircraft can be synchronized.I started to redevelop our Samborski An24RV this way and it will possibly work fine with FS-Net, but that solution is not widely used and it seems it is not pushed too much by their developers either.I am not blaming MS not to build this possibility into FS itself, I only HOPED that it would be in this release having heard the preliminary news. Anyhow I think this programing method useful even in case the aircraft is not used in a shared cockpit environment. It very nicely separate all inputs from the actual behaviour of the aircraft, thus making the code much more logical (though there is a small addition to load on the system because of the events).The only question - I could not yet test without FSX - is whether it would at least locally (in a single PC) pass my custom events the same way as FS9 had made?Gabor

[n4gix 4,947]

><<>So... given that there is no "Shared Cockpit" outside of the>Gamespy Lobby Service, it's rather a moot issue.>>>>>Well, you can use Shared Cockpit along with the Direct>Connection option (ie connecting to a server at a known IP>address), so it is available via at least one option outside>of the Gamespy Lobby (I think FS-MP.COM uses this method for>their servers).Thanks, Tim. OK, so I spoke a bit too broadly. :)It still remains true though that 3rd party products such as Squawkbox and FSInn cannot tap into the FSX multi-player interface.

[n4gix 4,947]

>The only question - I could not yet test without FSX - is>whether it would at least locally (in a single PC) pass my>custom events the same way as FS9 had made?I do not believe so, Gabor. How could anyone predict what data to pass?In simple language, any such shared data would have to have preestablished "buckets" at each end of the connection into which the unique data values may be stored.Yes, an interface could have been written to dynamically create the necessary "buckets" when first connecting, but that's something that is unlikely to happen (or have happened)...

[Guest ghrasko]