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wad53

Possible problem with FlightScenery Portland

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Hi,I am a fairly new user of RC4 and find it to be great. I have also just purchased the new (also great) FlightScenery Portland Scenery but have run into a problem, which has only occurred since installing Portland. I have run the Rebuild Scenery DB part of RC4 to update it for the new Portland scenery. When loading the flight plan to depart from KPDX into RC4, launching RC4 and returning to FS2004, my aircraft is hanging in the air over the sea somewhere. It seems that RC4 cannot find the appropriate data for KPDX. ie. after checking the Controller Info section of RC4, there is no comm or navdata for KPDX. To help diagnose the problem, I ran AFCAD to check the KPDX data and 2 new AFCAD files come up. 1. KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl 2. AF2_KPDX.bgl The second file seems to be the traditional AFCAD including all the comm and navaid data, but the first one has no comm or navaid data. Just a guess, but I suspect that when RC4 tries to read this data it only reads the first file and subsequently sees no info. I checked the R4.csv file and there were no KPDX entries.To further test this, I disabled the FlightScenery KPDX (and afcads), re-ran the RC4 Scenery rebuild, and all works fine with RC4. Has anyone else had this problem?? I have also posted this at the FlightScenery forum, as I am not sure where the problem originates, or where to best find a solution. However, for me at least, the two programs are incompatable but both excellent addons. Warren


Warren

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Update to above.By disabling the file KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl, the RC problem is fixed, but this obviously means the ILS info for 28L is then not updated. So not really an acceptable fix.Apart from writing a new AFCAD, are there any other ways around this?Warren


Warren

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I moved all the AF2 files from Portland scenery to Addon SceneryScenery, and rebuilt a new scenery DB and everything was ok.Looks like RC don't or won't read the AF2's in FZ02scscenery.


Rune B.

 

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when makerwys.exe doesn't read all the scenery files, it usually means that there is something wrong with the scenery.cfg filemake sure all the area sections of the file are unique, and that all the levels are uniquejd

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Thanks Rune, Tried your suggestion but no luck.John, Did a thorough check of the scenery.cfg file and no problems there.It doesn't look to me like makerwys.exe is not reading the scenery file. It looks like RC is reading the AFCAD files, including the FlightScenery file KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl (which has runway data but no comm data), and is then overriding the main AFCAD file AF2_KPDX. (I admit I am working in the dark here though). Vauchez has advised me that KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl is not an AFCAD, but is needed to correct a default incorrect runway allignment for KPDX. Is it possible that RC4 is reading data from it?If I run AFCAD 221 it detects KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl as a duplicate AFCAD, and when you open it, it has runway info but no comm data. Incidently, if I run ScanAFD it also detects this file as a duplicate AFCAD.The only way I can get RC4 to work with FlightScenery KPDX is to disable (rename) KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl, re-run makerwys.exe, and then re-install KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl. It then works fine. However, if I then re-run makerwys.exe, the problem returns (ie. no comm data in RC4 for KPDX). I have tried this numerous times and it is always the same.This is not really a satisfactory work-around as I will have to do this process everytime I add new scenery or run the RC4 Scenery DB update. Not sure where to go from here, except to see if anyone else encounters this problem. I'm sure lots of people will be running both addons soon, since they are both at the top of their fields.Appreciate any further help.Warren


Warren

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>Thanks Rune,> Tried your suggestion but no luck.>>John,> Did a thorough check of the scenery.cfg file and no>problems there.>>It doesn't look to me like makerwys.exe is not reading the>scenery file. It looks like RC is reading the AFCAD files,>including the FlightScenery file KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl (which>has runway data but no comm data), and is then overriding the>main AFCAD file AF2_KPDX. (I admit I am working in the dark>here though).rc does not read any afcad files. only makerwys read .bgl files> Vauchez has advised me that KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl is not an>AFCAD, but is needed to correct a default incorrect runway>allignment for KPDX. Is it possible that RC4 is reading data>from it?makerwys has to read it. i can't read it>If I run AFCAD 221 it detects KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl as a>duplicate AFCAD, and when you open it, it has runway info but>no comm data. Incidently, if I run ScanAFD it also detects>this file as a duplicate AFCAD.>>The only way I can get RC4 to work with FlightScenery KPDX is>to disable (rename) KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl, re-run makerwys.exe,>and then re-install KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl. It then works fine.>However, if I then re-run makerwys.exe, the problem returns>(ie. no comm data in RC4 for KPDX). I have tried this numerous>times and it is always the same.>This is not really a satisfactory work-around as I will have>to do this process everytime I add new scenery or run the RC4>Scenery DB update.> Not sure where to go from here, except to see if anyone else>encounters this problem. I'm sure lots of people will be>running both addons soon, since they are both at the top of>their fields.>>Appreciate any further help.>>Warren> > >

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I suggest you look at the ILSFIX bgl in AFCAD and see what the author is talking about. Be sure to turn on navaid viewing. Write down the runway properties for 28L and also the navaid (ILS properties) for 28L. Close it and then move out the fix file into a safe holding folder that FS will not find. Make a safe backup _copy_ of the AF2 afcad file with a renamed extension into a holding folder medntioned above out of the FS realm. Reopen AFCAD and KPDX second layer. Look at the 28L runway properties and navaids (particularly ILS 28L) properties. Edit what you have to to make the runway and ILS properties the same as in the fix file afcad data you wrote down, then save it.Open FS and let it reindex the scenery. Close it. Open RC and let it run the scenery db rebuild. With only the base and one corrected AFCAD things should go well.FS9 itself only likes one afcad besides stock so you are killing two birds with one stone by bringing the AF2 file up to date. Makerwys.exe will now see the stock afd properties plus all the data in the AF2 you updated overwriting the stock data with your complete updated AF2 data.See if the comm data is there now.

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Hi Warren,There was a similar problem with the Rhode Island scenery. It involves the order in which makerwys reads the scenery files and was fixed by renaming one of the files.I don't have the Portland scenery to check but I think that if you rename KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl as !KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl all may be well.All the best,John

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>There was a similar problem with the Rhode Island scenery. It>involves the order in which makerwys reads the scenery files>and was fixed by renaming one of the files.>>I don't have the Portland scenery to check but I think that if>you rename KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl as !KPDX_28L_ILSFIX.bgl all may>be well.>>All the best,>>JohnBingo!!! :-beerchug Renaming the file as above fixed the problem. Thank you very much John. Now, it would be nice to prevent others from going through this issue. As I have stated, there are sure to be others encountering it as both programs will be very popular (and rightly so). Given that it is a compatability issue (both programs are fine in isolation), is it possible for you to advise the Flight Scenery group so that it can be prevented (preferably) or at least give customers a fix?I have been a little uncomfortable airing this problem on both forums, although both groups have been trying to help.Thanks again to all for their help.Warren


Warren

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The author of the makerwys utility is looking into this as well.

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But doesn't renaming this file also eliminate the fix? I know that the IOS for this runway is way off.Greg


Greg Clark

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The group found the problem with the fix AFCAD. We can not touch the supplied fix since it is the author's package. You will have to modify the ILS by getting the data from the fix file using AFCAD and modifying the ILS properties in the original afcad file supplied. Then you move the fix file out of the scenery area so FS will ignore it, restart FS so it reindexes its scenery, shut down FS, start RC and rerun the RC rebuild database utility function.Makerwys has protections in it that it will not include previous scenery runways such as when a new scenery fix containing runways that are renumbered due to magnetic variance drift are encountered. It also excludes runways without starting points to eliminate pseudo runways used in the "STAR RUNWAY" method used by AFCAD designers to make non-parallel runways active.Rather than just including the realigned ILS in the fix, the author included runways without starting points. When makerwys saw this higher priority fix scenery with runways it deleted from the database the original authored scenery runways (which had already replaced the default) but did not put in the ones without starting points. If the author had included starting points in the fix (you need to enable this option in the AFCAD view menu to see them) the runways would have been included. There was also mention that the fix scenery might have had a code that causes previous runways to be ignored triggering makerwys to delete previous versions in the database or something like that.You could add starting points to the runways in the fix file but I suggest since all the group noticed was an ILS realignment, it would be better to correct the original scenery file afcad and move the fix out of the scenery folders so FS will not include it.We're looking at ways to bullet-proof against this happening but the various scenarios whether to include or exclude elements from lower priority afcads and sceneries is very complex. I'd post on their forum to find out what was actually changed (that is if it goes beyond the single ILS fix) and if there is more request the author to supply a new fix file with starting points on the runway as is the FS standard for active runways. AI needs those starting points as well.Unfortunately we can't modify another author's work. Sorry for the complex answer and I hope I am relaying this information correctly.Don't quote me as an accurate scenery designer, I am just a beta-tester here stating some analysis as I interpret it and I am not speaking for the RC development and support group.Thank you for your understanding.

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"But doesn't renaming this file also eliminate the fix? I know that the IOS for this runway is way off"Hi Greg, I assume you mean ILS (typo?) I have tested ILS28L with and without the "Fix" file, and without it the ILS and runway don't allign. However, with the "Fix" file renamed it seems OK to me. Therefore the renaming of the file seems to be an acceptable compromise.Ron, I also would prefer to have one single AFCAD which included the fix. I have looked closely at both files using AFCAD2 and there are a number of subtle differences, and I am unsure what to modify. We need someone who is familiar with the scenery and AFCAD's to help provide some help, or preferably a new AFCAD. I'm not sure that FlightScenery are willing to change their files for this issue. At the moment, it seems to be working ok for me since renaming the Fix file, although I have had one CTD when flying into KPDX. It has not been repeated though.Warren


Warren

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I looked on the FlightScenery support forum where John Burgess of the beta team here posed the question in the thread you started. They stated the rename causing a priority change for makerwys will not make the fix ineffective as long as it remains in the folder they indicate.As to makerwys, it searches through all files of type .bgl as listed in the FS scenery.cfg file. Files other than AFCAD titled can contain runway and navaid properties such as the default FS 9 APxxxx.bgl files (I think AP stands for "airport"). This insures that important airport information is not excluded for analysis and possible acceptance.If you look on the flightsim.com FS9 forum searching for users jvile (Jim Vile) and rfields (Reggie Fields), both who are active in project ai and the subset afcad forums, you will find a statement about AFCAD listing layers that are not specificly afcad but have similar properties. While the fix implemented by flightscenery was not designed with the AFCAD tool it seemed to be of the same type. The reason I mention this is that AFCAD will list the default/stock layer and TWO other layers for KPDX, a seeming violation of the FS9 practice of limiting an AFCAD layer addition to one only relating to possibble CTDs and unpredictable AI behavior. The "find duplicate AFCAD" utilities also give a false warning in this instance.Regarding the creation date of the fix file it was apparently created early in their scenery development to fix FS9 default APxxxx.bgl errors for KPDX so they could proceed with their tests.One has to remember that AFCAD 2.21 was created prior to (late) release of the FS9 AI and scenery SDKs to the general public design community. It was created by analyzing default scenery files and speculative tests. In most cases it serves the community very well with very few errors.

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Thanks Ron, this is a very good explanation. I have learned something new from this, and no doubt it will assist others. Thanks again for your help to understand this issue. As explained earlier, I am extremely happy with both Radar Contact 4 and FlightScenery Portland.Warren


Warren

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