InTheAir

Robert, Thank you for your professionalism and commitment to quality that PMDG is so well known for. Thanks for the update, my money is in the holding pattern! A Fanboi and I'm not ashamed to say so.

One thing is for sure, starting pilot salaries are extremely low and have been for a long time now. "Airline Pilot" was rated #3 most stressful job to have in 2012 with an average salary of $103,210. I think corporate America could do better by the men and women who have so many lives in their hands everyday. My hat goes off to anyone making the journey to become a commercial pilot. It's expensive to get and an under appreciated / compensated career choice that I feel is based on the passion for flight. This is where corporations are taking advantage of people. The entire industry is designed to make as much money as possible off of the students trying to become pilots. I'd love to see the annual earnings statistics from commercial flight training over the last decade.

Great timing RSR. Congrats to team PMDG!

I'd imagine that if there was information regarding the people responsible it's internally know to PMDG staff. I don't recall there being definitive proof released pointing a finger at the alleged. If I remember correctly, it was let known that the attacks came from China and then assumptions were that it must be a competitor. Fact remains, directly following the NGX release came the DDoS attacks. That's how I remember it going down anyways.

Try going here: Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Performance Information and Tools Then click "Adjust Visual Effects", might be some settings in there causing the problem. Good Luck,

The SweetFX settings file I'm using (SweetFX_Settings_Sharp.txt) was found here: http://sfx.thelazy.net/games/ Here's the file: /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Description / '------------------------------------------------------------/ Game: Any SweetFX version: 1.4 Author: CeeJay.dk Description: These are the default settings for SweetFX 1.4 They smoothen jagged edges with SMAA anti-aliasing, sharpen the image with LumaSharpen and make the colors slightly more vibrant with Vibrance. Please note when tweaking settings that higher numbers does not always equal better (nor does lower). Finding the best settings for your game and your taste is about finding just the right amount to apply. If you made a good setttings preset please share it with your friends, on forums and websites, and/or submit it to the SweetFX Settings Database : http://sfx.thelazy.net/games/ /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Choose effects / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ // Set to 1 for ON or 0 for OFF #define USE_SMAA_ANTIALIASING 0 // [0 or 1] SMAA Anti-aliasing : Smoothens jagged lines using the SMAA technique. #define USE_FXAA_ANTIALIASING 0 // [0 or 1] FXAA Anti-aliasing : Smoothens jagged lines using the FXAA technique. WIP - Currently only works in DX9 and you need to use the FXAA injector dlls. #define USE_CARTOON 0 // [0 or 1] Cartoon : "Toon"s the image. (Interferes with SMAA, CRT, Bloom, HDR and Lumasharpen) #define USE_ADVANCED_CRT 0 // [0 or 1] Advanced CRT : Simulates an old CRT TV display. (Interferes with SMAA, Cartoon, Bloom, HDR and Lumasharpen, and it has a very high performance cost) #define USE_BLOOM 0 // [0 or 1] Bloom : Makes bright lights bleed their light into their surroundings (relatively high performance cost) #define USE_HDR 0 // [0 or 1] HDR : Not actual HDR - It just tries to mimic an HDR look (relatively high performance cost) #define USE_LUMASHARPEN 1 // [0 or 1] LumaSharpen : Also sharpens the antialiased edges which makes them less smooth - I'm working on fixing that. #define USE_TECHNICOLOR 0 // [0 or 1] TECHNICOLOR : Attempts to mimic the look of an old movie using the Technicolor three-strip color process (Techicolor Process 4) #define USE_DPX 0 // [0 or 1] Cineon DPX : Should make the image look like it's been converted to DXP Cineon - basically it's another movie-like look similar to technicolor. #define USE_MONOCHROME 1 // [0 or 1] Monochrome : Monochrome makes the colors disappear. #define USE_LIFTGAMMAGAIN 1 // [0 or 1] Lift Gamma Gain : Adjust brightness and color of shadows, midtones and highlights (avoids clipping) #define USE_TONEMAP 0 // [0 or 1] Tonemap : Adjust gamma, exposure, saturation, bleach and defog. (may cause clipping) #define USE_VIBRANCE 1 // [0 or 1] Vibrance : Intelligently saturates (or desaturates if you use negative values) the pixels depending on their original saturation. #define USE_CURVES 1 // [0 or 1] Curves : Contrast adjustments using S-curves. #define USE_SEPIA 0 // [0 or 1] Sepia : Sepia tones the image. #define USE_VIGNETTE 0 // [0 or 1] Vignette : Darkens the edges of the image to make it look more like it was shot with a camera lens. May cause banding artifacts. #define USE_DITHER 1 // [0 or 1] Dither : Applies dithering to simulate more colors than your monitor can display. This lessens banding artifacts (mostly caused by Vignette) #define USE_BORDER 0 // [0 or 1] Border : Makes the screenedge black as a workaround for the bright edge that forcing some AA modes sometimes causes. #define USE_SPLITSCREEN 0 // [0 or 1] Splitscreen : Enables the before-and-after splitscreen comparison mode. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / SMAA Anti-aliasing settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define SMAA_THRESHOLD 0.12 // [0.05 to 0.20] Edge detection threshold. If SMAA misses some edges try lowering this slightly. I prefer between 0.08 and 0.12. #define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS 16 // [0 to 98] Determines the radius SMAA will search for aliased edges #define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS_DIAG 6 // [0 to 16] Determines the radius SMAA will search for diagonal aliased edges #define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 // [0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default. // -- Advanced SMAA settings -- #define COLOR_EDGE_DETECTION 1 // [0 or 1] 1 Enables color edge detection (slower but slightly more acurate) - 0 uses luma edge detection (faster) #define SMAA_DIRECTX9_LINEAR_BLEND 0 // [0 or 1] Using DX9 HARDWARE? (software version doesn't matter) if so this needs to be 1 - If not, leave it at 0. //Enable this only if you use a Geforce 7xxx series or older card, or a Radeon X1xxx series or older card. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / FXAA Anti-aliasing settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define FXAA_QUALITY__PRESET 9 // [1 to 9] Choose the quality preset. 9 is the highest quality. #define fxaa_Subpix 1.0 // [0.000 to 1.000] Choose the amount of sub-pixel aliasing removal. #define fxaa_EdgeThreshold 0.1 // [0.000 to 1.000] Edge detection threshold. The minimum amount of local contrast required to apply algorithm. #define fxaa_EdgeThresholdMin 0.060 // [0.000 to 1.000] Darkness threshold. Trims the algorithm from processing darks. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Cartoon settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define CartoonPower 0.1 // [0.1 to 10.0] Amount of effect you want. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Advanced CRT settings / '----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define CRTAmount 1.00 // [0.00 to 1.00] Amount of CRT effect you want #define CRTResolution 1.2 // [1.0 to 8.O] Input size coefficent (low values gives the "low-res retro look"). Default is 1.2 #define CRTgamma 2.4 // [0.0 to 4.0] Gamma of simulated CRT (default 2.4) #define CRTmonitorgamma 2.2 // [0.0 to 4.0] Gamma of display monitor (typically 2.2 is correct) #define CRTBrightness 1.0 // [1.0 to 3.0] Used to boost brightness a little. Default is 1.0 #define CRTScanlineIntensity 2.0 // [2.0 to 4.0] Scanlines intensity (use integer values preferably). Default is 2.0 #define CRTScanlineGaussian 1 // [0 or 1] Use the "new nongaussian scanlines bloom effect". Default is on #define CRTCurvature 1 // [[0 or 1] "Barrel effect" enabled (1) or off (0) #define CRTCurvatureRadius 1.5 // [0.0 to 2.0] Curvature Radius (only effective when Curvature is enabled). Default is 1.5 #define CRTCornerSize 0.0010 // [0.0000 to 0.0020] Higher values, more rounded corner. Default is 0.001 #define CRTDistance 2.00 // [0.00 to 4.00] Simulated distance from viewer to monitor. Default is 2.00 #define CRTAngleX 0.00 // [-0.20 to 0.20] Tilt angle in radians (X coordinates) #define CRTAngleY -0.10 // [-0.20 to 0.20] Tilt angle in radians (Y coordinates). (Value of -0.15 gives the 'arcade tilt' look) #define CRTOverScan 1.01 // [1.00 to 1.10] Overscan (e.g. 1.02 for 2% overscan). Default is 1.01 #define CRTOversample 0 // [0 or 1] Enable 3x oversampling of the beam profile (warning : performance hit) /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Bloom settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define BloomThreshold 20 // [0.00 to 50.00] Threshold for what is a bright light (that causes bloom) and what isn't. #define BloomPower 1.0 // [0.000 to 8.000] Strength of the bloom #define BloomWidth 0.0142 // [0.0000 to 1.0000] Width of the bloom /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / HDR settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define HDRPower 1.30 // [0.00 to 8.00] Strangely lowering this makes the image brighter #define radius2 0.87 // [0.00 to 8.00] Raising this seems to make the effect stronger and also brighter /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / LumaSharpen settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ // -- Sharpening -- #define sharp_strength 0.9 // [0.10 to 3.00] Strength of the sharpening #define sharp_clamp 0.030 // [0.000 to 1.000] Limits maximum amount of sharpening a pixel recieves - Default is 0.035 // -- Advanced sharpening settings -- #define pattern 1 // [1|2|3|4] Choose a sample pattern. 1 = Fast, 2 = Normal, 3 = Wider, 4 = Pyramid shaped. #define offset_bias 3.0 // [0.0 to 6.0] Offset bias adjusts the radius of the sampling pattern. //I designed the pattern for offset_bias 1.0, but feel free to experiment. // -- Debug sharpening settings -- #define show_sharpen 0 // [0 or 1] Visualize the strength of the sharpen (multiplied by 4 to see it better) /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / TECHNICOLOR settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define TechniAmount 0.11 // [0.00 to 1.00] #define TechniPower 2.8 // [0.00 to 8.00] #define redNegativeAmount 0.88 // [0.00 to 1.00] #define greenNegativeAmount 0.88 // [0.00 to 1.00] #define blueNegativeAmount 0.88 // [0.00 to 1.00] /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Cineon DPX settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define Red 8.0 // [1.0 to 15.0] #define Green 8.0 // [1.0 to 15.0] #define Blue 8.0 // [1.0 to 15.0] #define ColorGamma 2.5 // [0.1 to 2.5] Adjusts the colorfulness of the effect in a manner similar to Vibrance. 1.0 is neutral. #define DPXSaturation 3.0 // [0.0 to 8.0] Adjust saturation of the effect. 1.0 is neutral. #define RedC 0.36 // [0.60 to 0.20] #define GreenC 0.36 // [0.60 to 0.20] #define BlueC 0.34 // [0.60 to 0.20] #define Blend 0.2 // [0.00 to 1.00] How strong the effect should be. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Monochrome settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define Monochrome_conversion_values float3(0.18, 0.41, 0.41) // [0.00 to 1.00] Percentage of RGB to include (should sum up to 1.00) /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Lift Gamma Gain settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define RGB_Lift float3(0.88, 0.88, 0.88) // [0.000 to 2.000] Adjust shadows for Red, Green and Blue #define RGB_Gamma float3(1.125, 1.125, 1.125) // [0.000 to 2.000] Adjust midtones for Red, Green and Blue #define RGB_Gain float3(1.1, 1.1, 1.1) // [0.000 to 2.000] Adjust highlights for Red, Green and Blue /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Tonemap settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define Gamma 0 // [0.000 to 2.000] Adjust midtones #define Exposure 0.00 // [-1.000 to 1.000] Adjust exposure #define Saturation 0.2 // [-1.000 to 1.000] Adjust saturation #define Bleach 0.0 // [0.000 to 1.000] Brightens the shadows and fades the colors #define Defog 0.000 // [0.000 to 1.000] How much of the color tint to remove #define FogColor float3(0.00, 0.00, 2.55) // [0.00 to 2.55, 0.00 to 2.55, 0.00 to 2.55] What color to remove - default is blue /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Vibrance settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define Vibrance -0.18 // [-1.00 to 1.00] Intelligently saturates (or desaturates if you use negative values) the pixels depending on their original saturation. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Curves settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define Curves_mode 2 // [0|1|2] Choose what to apply contrast to. 0 = Luma, 1 = Chroma, 2 = both Luma and Chroma. Default is 0 (Luma) #define Curves_contrast 0.58 // [-1.00 to 1.00] The amount of contrast you want // -- Advanced curve settings -- #define Curves_formula 7 // [1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9] The contrast s-curve you want to use. //1 = Sine, 2 = Abs split, 3 = Smoothstep, 4 = Exp formula, 5 = Simplified Catmull-Rom (0,0,1,1), 6 = Perlins Smootherstep //7 = Abs add, 8 = Techicolor Cinestyle, 9 = Parabola. //Note that Technicolor Cinestyle is practically identical to Sine, but runs slower. In fact I think the difference might only be due to rounding errors. //I prefer 2 myself, but 3 is a nice alternative with a little more effect (but harsher on the highlight and shadows) and it's the fastest formula. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Sepia settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define ColorTone float3(0.5, 1.10, 0.90) // [0.00 to 2.55, 0.00 to 2.55, 0.00 to 2.55] What color to tint the image #define GreyPower 0.0 // [0.00 to 1.00] How much desaturate the image before tinting it #define SepiaPower 0.58 // [0.00 to 1.00] How much to tint the image /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Vignette settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define VignetteRatio 1.00 // [0.15 to 6.00] Sets a width to height ratio. 1.00 (1/1) is perfectly round, while 1.60 (16/10) is 60 % wider than it's high. #define VignetteRadius 1.00 // [-1.00 to 3.00] lower values = stronger radial effect from center #define VignetteAmount -1.00 // [-2.00 to 1.00] Strength of black. -2.00 = Max Black, 1.00 = Max White. #define VignetteSlope 8 // [1 to 16] How far away from the center the change should start to really grow strong (odd numbers cause a larger fps drop than even numbers) #define VignetteCenter float2(0.500, 0.500) // [0.000 to 1.000, 0.000 to 1.000] Center of effect. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Dither settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define dither_method 1 // [1 or 2] 1 = Ordering dithering (good and very fast), 2 = Random dithering (even better dithering but not as fast) //Note that the patterns used by Dither, makes an image harder to compress. //This can make your screenshots and video recordings take up more space. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Border settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ //No settings yet, beyond switching it on or off in the top section. /*-----------------------------------------------------------. / Splitscreen settings / '-----------------------------------------------------------*/ #define splitscreen_mode 3 // [1|2|3|4|5] 1 = Vertical 50/50 split, 2 = Vertical 25/50/25 split, 3 = Vertical 50/50 angled split, 4 = Horizontal 50/50 split, 5 = Horizontal 25/50/25 split

Hi Jeff, One thing that works very well for me is to position the TiR camera in line of sight to the clip. My clip is on the left side of my headphones and the camera is all the way on the left side of my monitor. Hope this helps. Also, I like to have the pro clip extended up just a little bit over my head.

I'm almost positive I have the fix for this CTD issue. When using SweetFX in combination with it's SMAA or FXAA anti-aliasing options, CTD's seem to haunt FSX. This has been the case for me anyways. The fix is to disable those options and let NVInspector (for Nvidia users) handle all the anti-aliasing. AND.. this seems to be an important factor... "Pause" the sim prior to switching to or from full screen mode. This has worked for me. I'm currently using both ENB and SweetFX and rarely experience any crashes. The settings are still off as I'm not entirely happy with the bloom effect but still looks much better than default FSX in my personal opinion. The problem with this setup is that now there are two config files to tweak... Here is a shot of the 738 NGX at KPHX from the tower view with and without the ENB/SweetFX setup. I have gone to and from full screen mode to do these shots at least 20+ times. Without ENB/SweetFX: With:

First things I noticed that were different are in the VC listing: [CameraDefinition.002] Title = Virtual Cockpit Guid = {C95EAB58-9E4A-4E2A-A34C-D8D9D948F078} Description = This is the description of the virtual cockpit view. Origin = Virtual Cockpit MomentumEffect =Yes SnapPbhAdjust = Swivel SnapPbhReturn = False PanPbhAdjust = Swivel PanPbhReturn = False Track = None ShowAxis = YES AllowZoom = TRUE InitialZoom = 0.6 SmoothZoomTime = 2.0 ZoomPanScalar = 1.0 ShowWeather = Yes XyzAdjust = TRUE ShowLensFlare=True Category = Cockpit PitchPanRate=30 HeadingPanRate=75 PanAcceleratorTime=0 HotKeySelect=1 clipmode=Minimum

@ moss1, if you have any problem with the setup let us know, we have more than 15 years combined experience with TIR5 and the pro clip and that's just the few of us replying in this thread. Good luck! I used printer paper for the task and once I got a good fitting piece it has stayed and I never bothered to get a new pro clip. It's seriously been like this for a good 18 or more months. I'd like to call it being frugal.. That is understandable and I would totally agree, except the headphones I'm using now are the most comfortable things ever. I forget I'm wearing them even after long periods of time. If you're interested they are Tritton's. Mine are discontinued of course but the new ones look good. Forgot to mention, they come with leather or felt style ear covers and are adjustable and cool on the head. They also look cool. haha

The misinformation machine is hard at work here. I'm an old school PC enthusiast keyboard+mouse gamer and will never go to a console if I can help it. Never had one and don't plan on getting one. The rumors circulating around that PC gaming is on it's way out couldn't be more wrong. That's all I have to say about that.

I'm going on about 4 years with the pro clip. Even though I was without incident for the first 3 of those years I somewhat recently broke the first pivot where it attaches near the clip. I was able to "fix" it by rolling up a piece of paper and jamming it in to make a new hinge! Actually works better than before.

You're probably delirious, that makes sense. BTW, congrats on the Beta Kyle.

I'm looking to P3D v2.0 personally. They have made public their efforts to maintain backwards compatability with older BGL's and for this they will definitely get my money. It's quite possible that v2.0 could be the FSX we've all dreamt of for years. DX11 compatible thus removing a lot of the CPU cycles required to render what you see on your screen. Could be a major game changer.

Are you OK Kyle? I think I know what happened, that T7 beta has made you soft, that must be waht it is. :ph34r:

Great video. I purchased OMDB a few months ago specifically for the PMDG T7. I have yet to fly there, still waiting patiently to use that scenery.

Another wonderful read, thank you.

Happy B-Day Captain Rob.

Carl, Thank you for sharing your experience with us so eloquently. Your words flowed off the page so effortlessly that I swear I experienced the immersion. I was there. It's amazing how carefully crafted words can invoke emotional responses that even a skillfully made video can't reproduce!

Can't think of anyone else more deserving! Congrats Luke. B) Luke, I'll be watching your tutorial videos once they're ready, looking forward to those.

Very cool feature for those that want to experience all the fun parts of the long haul with out the long haul! Nice, thanks for sharing.

That has already begun!

Who's low-level @ PMDG? :-D I guess maybe Ryan! J/K Ryan

Very sad indeed to see such behavior.

Thank you for the post, look forward to seeing your screen shots. *EDIT.. I see them and wow! Thanks for posting.