strider

Bob, welcome home from a fellow CO resident. Personally I don't want any stinking "FMC" or any other modernization of the TM2 :( . I'm perfectly happy with the CWS system and the Sperry 77, as is. I've got MORE than enough freakin' glass cockpit, FMC totin' metal to last a lifetime! I want it to stay "old school". Completing the PDCS was mentioned and that gets my vote. An overhead or dome light, for us old blind farts, would be helpfull and a bit of panel graphics clean-up to sharpen things up.Other than that and a few clean-up items already mentioned by others...I'm happy with the "technological philosophy". If some of these can't be accomplished...so be it...I won't complain. I won't put in an FMC or any of the other "modernization" stuff anyway, so if the next version comes with it, without option...I'll be skipping it. I ain't afraid of no INS, I can take off, cruise and land my Mouse completely by hand...I don't need another addon with a chipset doing it for me. Vic

Hmmm...so far the only way to get mine to not fail is to start and end at an airport. If I add SIDS/STARS to a plan, in FSNav, it DOES start and end with a runway...and then proceeds to fail on export?? I believe, now, that this is because of the VERY outdated SIDS/STARS database in FSNav which conflicts with my Navigraph monthly updated AIRACS I load in the PMDG. I agree with your assesment of the FSNav situation...but would settle for a way to add the latest SIDS/STARS to it, as downloaded from Navigraph monthly and add airways to a flight plan, instead of doing it ISEC to ISEC? This has always been the two shortcomings, in my opinion, of FSNav as a modern flight planner.

Yep...too many issues when doing that so...I'm stuck in the dark, S-I-G-H! Another payware developer bites the dust. See ya! Vic

>I haven't tried it but one thing you would lose>for sure is the support... ;-) Nope...nope...not going to say it...it's too easy! LOL!

What would I lose if I saved the panel folder from the 737-700, then installed the 737-8-900, then replaced ALL the panels with the original -700? What would not work, if anything? Vic

Yep...completely deleted the PMDG 737's and installed only the 600-700 and...Voila! I have lighting that actually LIGHTS the panel at night for easy viewing. Now the real work begins...how to figure a way to keep that lighting in all PMDG 737's, after installing the 800-900 models. I believe that calls for a new thread. Thanks for helping me figure out what PMDG did to my panels, Bill. Vic

Well, I see one obvious difference...you have only one switch. My 737 panels have 2: "Panel Lights", which is in the same place as your "Panel Bright" and results in the backlighting, and "Dome Bright", which is above your switch...but only works in the VC on my panel. I wonder if a bit of creative editing can bring back my 2D dome light (and that of most users, also! I'll bet the 800-900 add-ons took it away from all panels)? Vic

This is what I have been saying, Bill...that switch you speak of ("Dome Bright") is not a working switch on my 2D panels (600, 700, 800 or 900). From what I've heard it doesn't work for most other people also. The "Panel Lights" switch is the only working one and it results in the backlit, but otherwise very dark, panel posted at the top of this thread. I'm wondering if it's something that got changed when the 800-900 was installed because I tried it on the 600 and it isn't clickable except in the VC...not in the 2D...which is all I use. I suppose I could uninstall (again) and only install the 600-700 and see what happens...but that doesn't really solve the issue. Vic

The DLL file is installed (I think it was always there?). I believe it installed with FSNavigator or the PMDG 737-600,700 series as I didn't install it seperately. When I say "3rd install" I was refering to the PMDG 737 series itself. The first was due to malfunctioning panel switcher buttons...push one and FS9 crashed every time. The re-install fixed that. The last install was to try and correct this problem with exporting from FSNav, which didn't help. As I said, sometimes it gives me the "Export failed" error but the plan appears OK in the CDU. Other times it does not and on rare occasions it exports without error. I'm beginning to wonder about the SIDs/STARS that I use in FSNav flight plans...they mey not be up to date with those installed every cycle in the PMDG? I will have to try exporting a plan without them and see what happens. The other comment was regarding the habit of PMDG 737's loading AIRAC info every time that a flight is created with them, whenever you switch aircraft to one of them or whenever a saved flight with a PMDG 737 is loaded...is that supposed to happen? I was comparing how I always see this with the PMDG aircraft (progress bars stating AIRAC info is loading) and never see it with other add-ons which have AIRAC data for their FMC's. Add to these issues I've had, the fact that the 2D panel was overlooked for a dome light (and the silly reasons given for that) and I am a bit put out to say the least. Vic

>Here it is - all lit up.>Bill How in the World did you get that?? That's what I'm wishing for. Vic

Every time I try to export a saved FSNav flightplan to the PMDG 737 I get a "flight plan export failed" warning. Sometimes the flight plan will still load under "CO_ROUTE" in the FMC...sometimes not. Yes, I DID search this forum...and there are 3 other posts asking the same basic question with no answer. One wasn't even replied to!?! Why does the PMDG have to load the AIRAC data every time a flight is created/started with the 737 (I always see a progress bar for all the data)? The PIC 737 and LevelD 767 don't exhibit this behavior? The data is loaded on install from Navigraph and no further "loading" appears with the other 2 add-ons? All of this leads me to believe that my PMDG 737 is not working correctly. This is a 3rd install so please don't ask me to repeat that process...that ain't the problem. Vic

>The switch you are looking for is on the overhead panel.>Switch is "Panel Brt or Dim" in centre of OH (I think - not at>sim computer at the moment)>Bill Exactly my point, Bill. It only works in VC! Here's what the VC overhead lighting looks like. Compare that to the picture of the 2D PMDG panel posted by Mike Roth, above...it's like Night vs Day!! Why can't 2D users have this kind of illumination in the PMDG 737?? Why are we relegated to 2nd class? Did I pay less for my add-on than VC users? No. Is there a reason this can't be corrected for 2D users? No. As previously mentioned...if the other payware makers can do it (I won't even mention all the freeware that can do it!)...why can't PMDG fix this glitch in an otherwise fine piece of payware?http://users.frii.com/viciii3/737_VC_night.jpg

No, I've got that already...THIS is how you illuminate a panel at night...and you can turn it off after your at cruise. If Dreamfleet and Captain Sim and LevelD can do it...why can't PMDG??http://users.frii.com/viciii3/727_night_panel.jpg Nice, bright overhead lighting for those 2nd class citizens who can't stand a VC. Yes...I know the PMDG 2D lighting is supposed to reflect a real flight deck...why then do the VC'ers get an overhead light? To illuminate the shadows during daylight is the standard PMDG response. How about illuminating the 2D panel at night so we can see what the heck we are doing? Answer: Because we don't really care about the minority who fly 2D panels, is my guess. If they can't fix this in my 737-6,7,8,900 why would I bother buying the 747 and MD-11. 2 purchases I WAS looking forward too...not so much now. Vic

Where's the overhead or fluorescent lighting so one can see what they are doing? Only in the VC? Huh, I NEVER fly VC. At night, while doing pre-flights, it's impossible to see the panel accurately. Sure, it's fine once all the switchology is done and your cruising along at FL360 but it's useless otherwise. Has any brilliant soul come up with a fix for this silliness or is my PMDG 737 only good in daylight hours? If that's the case...where do I apply for my 2D users discount? If it can only be safely flown 12 hours a day I should get 50% back...no? Sheesh!

Really? How refreshing! That doesn't happen often in the FS world! Vic