An updated region under the tree...

[Guest fu3]

Yes Folks,"Seattle '08" has arrived in the Avsim Library - or will have shortly ;)The "MD5s" checked out OK so there should be no errors in the zips. Thank goodness, together they're >160MB...Please take time and read the instructions first to avoid problems e.g. please don't just copy over your existing FU3. This is a major upgrade and needs to be done right for the best results.http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/182352.jpgEnjoy your holidays :-waveRegards,Jon Point

[Guest colsie12]

Nice to see it around at long last. Xmas has come early.

[agtim 0]

Congrats Jon for this great work.Well done it's in the lib just for Christmas :-)More than 30 downloads in the first hours.:-wave Andre

[Guest fu3]

Thanks Andre,"More than 30 downloads in the first hours."Yes, but there seem to be 41 downloads of Part 2 and only 28 of Part 1 *:-*Or maybe that's because Part 2 appears first? Either way, Part 2 is mostly AI stuff - Part 1 is the 'real nitty-gritty' ;)Mmmmmmm, turkey's in the oven....Merry Christmas All :-waveRegards,Jon Point

[Christopher Low 5,332]

Well done, Jon. I don't use the Seattle region these days, but I might just check this out.

[Lars Peter 0]

Hello Jon.I have just installed a new second harddrive on my old XP.computer and reinstalled FU3 as choice nr.1.. to have some more space available.The new addons for seattle region seems to be very good again.Thank you very mutch for your time doing this freeware complete addons.Lars Peter.

[Guest CaptRolo]

Merry Xmas Jon ;Thanks for putting time and effort into making FU3 a better place to fly in .Much appreciated.CaptRolo

[Hans_Petter 1]

Installed and tested :-)It works flawlessly and looks great! It seems that I've even gotten rid of some old AI hiccups during loading -- there's no need to hit "escape" to resume loading anymore. Regarding "looks", the proof of the pudding is the shorelines. I see very few blue segments running uphill where the water meets land.Hans Petter

[Guest fu3]

Folks,I'm glad that you all like it. I am also really happy that it is proving to be as stable for others as myself. In a couple of emails I received, people have also commented on this. Some problems were AI-related, though there were a lot of missing models and models on tile boundaries that didn't help. To me, it was one aspect of FU3 that probably annoyed a lot of people. One can only enjoy so much when faced with random crashes...The only complaint I've had so far is that the framerates get a bit low on some PCs, but most of this seems to happen near Seattle City. The problem there is that the City, Renton, Boeing Field and Seatac are all visible - in my estimation, something like 2000 models. My PC gets dragged down to 12-15 fps around there. The only solution is to remove any packages you don't want. That said, I don't think the framerates are worse than with Chris's 'Seattle 2005' pack installed but there's more to see...Speaking of seeing, I'd love to see some screenshots from users, showing anything interesting that you find. This package may give you new favourite locations or journeys. It certainly has for me!I cannot pick any favorites yet because there are just too many places to choose from :-roll Regards,Jon Point

[Christopher Low 5,332]

Jon,I asked this question a short time ago, but I can't remember if you answered it or not. Are all of the modified taxiway lines, lighting systems, new taxiway signs etc. that I included in the Seattle 2005 pack at the correct elevations ?

[Guest fu3]

Chris,You did and I'm sorry I didn't answer - must've got side-tracked :-rollThe answer is, in general, yes. Some of the airports included were ones I'd modified when testing models (mostly smaller off-beat ones). I believe that almost all of them were somehow based on yours, as I have always used the '2005 set since you released it ;) I know that Lewis Creek, Snoqualmie GC, Bergseth, Asplund and Wolff were ones I'd played with for a long time. Some smaller ones may have had lines removed and I did prune a few tyres here and there (what was I thinking? 36 polygons?). The larger ones are basically '2005 untouched - they're fine as-is. As to exact actual height, most are close, but, like some of the original strips, end-up 20ft higher or lower. I found that strips had to be raised 10-20ft from datum just to match the originals. In most cases this gave the best terrain fit too. The effect may be related to the fact that flat vs. curved tile issue - like side-slipping at Jefferson :-lolI had to manually reset each airport, except the larger ones. In the main, this involved moving the blue square a short distance to another location. This location being of identical altitude to the flattened part of the strip, it often required me to move it closer to the actual runway. I only flattened what I HAD to, not the entire field if possible. For larger places like SEA and Renton, I had to flatten the entire paved area. For smaller strips, only the runway and taxi/parking areas.Packages are similar. I may have modified all of them to some extent, but mainly to add trees to ridges to make them sit in with the scenery better. The new elevation 'catches' forests and buildings - to the extent that many forested areas appear above the surrounds. Whilst a nice effect at a reasonable distance, close-up they look better with a few trees! There are also a few new models - or really old ones that never made light of day. I removed a lot of my mistakes, but there might still be a few around.In any case, if you wish to reload yours, it is easy enough. Reset in FLED is instantaneous. Open a package, grab an object, save and close. With airports, just drag the blue square to somewhere the same height as the strip. The runways and taxiways should all line-up OK. Any 'missing' strips can be easily corrected - I never intended this as a final version - I just need to get some feedback first ;) PS You included readme files in a number of your '2005 packages. As far as I know, I left them in - I assume this was the Gentlemanly thing to do!:-waveRegards,Jon Point

[juvat 0]

Jon,Will the .cpd to .bin conversion be required before installing your files?The dim one, JimB :-zhelp

[Guest fu3]

Jim,No, it works with either CPD or BIN versions. CPD vs. BIN only affects the terrain texture. Airports and packages don't care about textures, they only need the correct elevation. The new (and corrected) elevation is supplied with the update ;)No more of this:http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/182515.jpgNow you get this:http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/182516.jpgWill someone get rid of that house? Actually, I took the first shot years ago to show how stupid I was, trying to operate the DC3 from Crest. The second shot shows that I am still as stupid, quite some time later :-lolNote the differences in elevation in the background...I still recommend the BIN conversion, if only to allow texture modification, like my modified Bandera:http://forums.avsim.net/dcboard.php?az=sho...17044&mode=full:-waveRegards,Jon Point

[Christopher Low 5,332]

"PS You included readme files in a number of your '2005 packages. As far as I know, I left them in - I assume this was the Gentlemanly thing to do!"Oh, I don't worry about stuff like that. Some people make FAR too big an issue out of it. This is freeware, not some commercial project !

[Christopher Low 5,332]

I'm pretty sure that I added the house in my Crest Airpark scenery package. The best solution would be to simply move the parking spot forward, so that the bigger planes fit :)