CapnSplat

Is that the new Stationair? Looks great! Check out the normals on the glareshield! The view outside is nice too!

Windowed mode does seem a little wonky. I see about a 10% decrease in framerate if I run the sim in an 800x600 window as opposed to 1920x1080 fullscreen. I wouldn't ever fly at 800x600, but that does seem a little off to me. (For what it's worth: v10.30b8, Win 7 64-bit, 760 OC 4GB, 340.52)

Definitely fun to fly, but seems a little twitchy to me, especially when it comes to rudder input. I don't know whether this is realistic behavior or not, so I'm hesitant to adjust the axis curves and saturation. :unsure:

Japan is lookin' good with the new HD Mesh; I need to fly there more often! I can't speak for scotchegg's particular set-up, but I do know that Real Terra Haze affects the water colors to be a bit more blue.

Here's what's already been said on the matter: As I understand the wording, PMDG will not be releasing any of their current products as their initial offering for X-Plane. (The B1900 is the only product-line that wasn't mentioned by name, but this presumably falls under the "legacy products" exclusion.) The 737NGX and 777 may come in the future (fingers crossed!), but their first simulation for X-Plane sounds like it will be something totally new. As for it not being an "antiquated piece of junk," well, to each their own.

Speaking of overcast, I took a few other screenshots yesterday and had some interesting results. There was some poor weather around Cincinnati yesterday so I loaded up the sim at KCVG with X-Plane's default real-weather enabled. Here is local map and weather info, followed by a pair of shots facing the NNW. 1) Default XP real-weather, default XP clouds 2) Default XP real-weather, Skymaxx Pro 2.0 I enabled UltraWX moments later. The local map isn't much help with distinguishing the cloud formations since XP is drawing the overcast layer across the entire map (something it doesn't usually seem to do with its built-in engine (see the above map)). 3) UltraWX, default XP clouds 4) UltraWX, SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 This time the weather source data for both UltraWX and X-Plane's real-weather appeared to be very close to each other, as reflected in the screenshots using default clouds (images 1 and 3). What's particularly interesting, though, is that while using UltraWX, the injector appears to be able to substitute SkyMaxx's stratus clouds (image 4; I believe this is also the same as the "low" quality overcast in the SkyMaxx options) for the "patchy" cumulus overcast that SkyMaxx depicts under the default real-weather engine (image 2). Also, here is the actual METAR data from the airfield at the time: METAR KCVG 101552Z 11006KT 8SM SCT013 OVC100 25/20 A3003 RMK AO2 SLP157 T02500200

:mellow:

Nothing other than "work continues" (Aug. 3, 2014). Things have been pretty quiet since they posted the demo flight videos.

Nice shots! Love that downtown Toronto scenery. Along side the CYTZ and CYYZ packages, Toronto's easily one of the best looking cities in X-Plane. Almost makes me miss living there!

Owing to ohsirus' recommendation and my own curiosity, I decided to do a four way comparison between X-Plane's default weather engine and UltraWX (included with EFASS) with both default X-Plane clouds and SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 taking care of the visuals. First up, my X-Plane rendering settings just in case anyone should find them relevant. Note that I'm using 50% cloud puffs when it comes to the default clouds. After popping around from airport to airport trying to find a location with clear-cut cloud formations, I happened across Innsbruck (LOWI). I forced a weather update to make sure I had the latest data available to X-Plane. Here's is the local map with the relevant weather overlays. The images that follow were taken from directly over the aircraft (in the center of the map) facing nearly due west. 1) Default XP real-weather, default XP clouds 2) Default XP real-weather, SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 As you can see, the western cloud formation is neatly rendered while using default clouds, but SkyMaxx draws broken clouds across the entire scene. Here are my SkyMaxx rendering settings. I forgot to deselect the "force cirrus layer" option. Switching over to UltraWX: due to UltraWX's data being either more or less up-to-date compared to X-Plane's, the view to the west will be much different. 3) UltraWX, default XP clouds 4) Ultra WX, SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 It seems that SkyMaxx yields similar results regardless of the weather engine used, the main difference being that the clouds in image 4 are more scattered as a result of the sparser coverage in the UltraWX source data. It is also worth noting that since SkyMaxx is in both cases drawing more individual cloud formations than are called for in the weather source data, with my particular settings the net result is decreased framerates compared to default clouds. Playing with the sliders could perhaps mitigate this effect, but there does generally tend to be more "stuff" on the screen while using SkyMaxx. Since there were clearly large differences in the weather data between X-Planes real-weather and UltraWX, I'm still not content with the precision of the comparison. Hopefully these images are nevertheless informative in some way. In the meantime, I've found a location with better continuity between the two data sets; I'll be posting those images shortly.

How's everyone enjoying the Dora so far? I've just gotten to the point that I can get her in and out of the air without breaking anything; time to build a gun range and try out the weapons!

Nice! I haven't been around the ED forums in a while so I'm out of the loop when it comes to third-party modules. The P-40 is a cool bird; hopefully we'll eventually get a Mediterranean theatre and some tropicalized Bf 109s to go with it!

Good thought. When I get the chance I'll try and put together a four-way comparison between X-Plane's and UltraWX's real-weather with both default and SkyMaxx clouds.

The Dora is a great plane indeed! Having a lot of fun with it so far, though it's got me itching for the Bf 109K now!

I know, right? Just looking at that throttle quadrant makes me want to wash my hands--excellent texturing work! If the rest of the textures are up to that standard, this aircraft ought to be a real visual treat.

Many thanks for your reply, John. I suspected that this was an issue with the SDK, but I'm pleased to hear that Laminar are working to open things up for third-party interaction. I'm also glad to hear that real-world WX improvements are in the development plans for SkyMaxx and I look forward to seeing SkyMaxx fronts and squall lines in a future update. Hey, they said cloud shadows couldn't be done, but here we are! Keep of the great work! Thanks for corroborating my observations. This is the predicament I find myself in as well. I'll probably be alternating flights with SkyMaxx and default clouds for weeks to come!

Having completed my first successful* flight in the newly released DCS: Fw 190 D-9, I think it's safe to say that I am already an expert pilot and well on my way to becoming an ace. Herewith the photographic proof. * read: "non-lethal" Beginning the takeoff roll and feelin' good: As I pick up speed, I perform what I like to call the "bicycle takeoff". Deliberately, of course. It's like a wheelie for planes. Once in the air, I fly the runway heading* and set the power to climb. * +/- 15 degrees I vaguely recall a myth about a fellow named Icarus. Can't remember the details. I'm sure it's not important. Ignore those weapon arming lights. I wasn't firing the guns for fun or anything like that. Vroom! On my second circuit (the first ended up as a missed appr--I mean, low pass). Coming in for a landing! Like a glove! I decided to use the grass instead. The runway is too mainstream. Didn't need that. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how it's done! I hope you all have enjoyed this masterclass in flying the 190. Don't worry if it takes a while to get the hang of it; even a pro such as myself had to start someplace*. * i.e., at the bottom of a smoldering crater

I haven't seen any mention of this project on these forums yet, but it looks like it might be one to keep an eye on for those interested in airliners. Rotate, a development team of four people (some of whom worked on the ATR 72-500), are working on a simulation of the MD-88. There's some info on their website, but the juiciest bit is the list of features. WIP eye candy below.

Like many others here, I was awaiting with bated breath the arrival of SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 and its numerous improvements. The new HD puff textures are great, the cloud shadows add depth to the overall scene, and the lens flare is a nice, cinematic touch. However, I seem to be having issues when it comes to SkyMaxx's representation of real weather. To be clear, I fully understand that SkyMaxx is not a weather injector in the vein of Active Sky or Opus and I fully understand that SkyMaxx can only work with the information that is provided to it by X-Plane. That said, when using X-Plane's built-in real-world weather feature, it seems that either X-Plane is unable to communicate all of that information to SkyMaxx or that SkyMaxx is unable to parse all of it. (Alternatively, this could be a problem with my sim setup.) The result is that when using SkyMaxx, the clouds that I see out the window often do not match what I'd expect to see based on X-Plane's weather maps. Here are some screenshots to illustrate what I mean. First, I loaded up the sim at KSNA and set the weather to "grab real-weather from the net". Since I had SkyMaxx installed already, I first took some shots of the clouds provided by the add-on, one from about 1,000 feet up, one from just over the cloud tops, and one from a few thousand feet above. Here's the weather map that X-Plane drew upon downloading the real-world data: For clarity, here's a zoomed-in view of the local map with the cloud overlay enabled. Note the cloud cover boundaries and the aircraft's heading toward the southeast. 1) SkyMaxx, facing SE, low altitude: 2) SkyMaxx, facing SE, cloud tops: 3) SkyMaxx, facing SE, high altitude: For comparison's sake, I exited the sim, uninstalled SkyMaxx, and loaded back up at the same place and time of day. Unfortunately, the master weather servers X-Plane uses for its real-world data updated during these few short minutes, so the cloud boundaries had moved to the southeast and the overcast covered KSNA: 4) Default, facing SE, low altitude: 5) Default, facing SE, cloud tops: 6) Default, facing SE, high altitude: Due to the weather server updates, this is an imperfect comparison, but in image 6 you can see that the X-Plane overcast covers most of the coast and begins to taper off over the mountains. SkyMaxx appears to fill the whole scene with clouds (see image 3) regardless of the cloud boundaries/formations (see the local map above, according to which images 1-3 should be nearly devoid of clouds). Here's a better comparison. This morning a storm was blowing through central Arkansas. I loaded up at an airport just outside of Little Rock and forced a real-weather download. This is the local map with the cloud and precipitation layers enabled. Please note again the cloud cover as drawn by X-Plane. Images 7 and 8 below are using the exact same weather data (no unintended update this time), and were taken with as close to the same angle and altitude as I could manage. The only difference between them is that 7 uses default clouds and 8 uses SkyMaxx clouds. 7) Default, facing NE, high altitude: 8) SkyMaxx, facing NE, high altitude: So, all of this to say that SkyMaxx Pro 2.0 doesn't seem to be fully compatible with X-Plane's real-weather data; it appears to be able to use cloud type and height data from real-world METAR reports, but then draws clouds into the environment as if it were using the "set weather uniformly" feature of X-Plane's weather engine. These are my observations about SkyMaxx's interaction with X-Plane's real-world weather data and I'd be curious to hear other users' as well. I have seen nothing but glowing reviews for the new version and I too want to love this product, but I can't help but feel a little frustrated that the clouds out the window may not be very accurate. Any insight into this? Have I missed an option somewhere or borked my install? Or is this just a limitation of SkyMaxx and/or the X-Plane SDK?

My thoughts exactly. I know a lot of people are eagerly anticipating PMDG's X-Plane projects precisely because they (along with the IXEG 737 Classic) are assumed to raise the bar when it comes to high-fidelity simulators available on the platform.

We're not? :mellow:

Leg 21 Depart: Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria (DAAG) Arrive: Mostépha Ben Boulaid Airport, Batna, Algeria (DABT) Aircraft: Douglas DC-3 (Leading Edge Simulations / X-Aviation) Flight Plan: DAAG ALR BTN DABT Distance: 163.0 nm Scenery: DAAG - Algiers International Airport, Algeria (8.6+) I've been keeping myself on the ground for a few days, waiting to see whether the winds coming off the Mediterranean would calm and hopefully make things a little easier for me. It seems, however, that I'll have no such luck. And as great a city as Algiers is, I'm getting antsy being stuck on one place. Adventure awaits! Time to press on to Batna, a city to the southeast which lies roughly on the geological border between the Tell Atlas and Aurès mountain ranges. We should be in for some more stunning views of the landscape as we pass over head. After my engine troubles at Oujda, I've been eager to get the DC-3 back in the air, so we'll be making the one-hundred-sixty-odd mile trip in this lovely plane. The DC-3 is quickly becoming one of my favorite payware planes available for X-Plane: it's a lot of fun to fly and very hands-on, beautifully modeled and textured inside and out, tough, fast, and just exudes that classy, old-school vibe. I highly recommend it to anyone who happens to be a fan of vintage aircraft. The big radial engines roar to life on the apron. No more problems there, it seems, but I carefully double check all the gauges and levers lest we lose an engine on takeoff this time. I taxi her out to runway 27 and steadily open the throttles. There's a crosswind incoming from the northwest that gives me heck on the takeoff roll (though X-Plane's exaggerated weathervane effect isn't doing me any favors), but I manage to keep the plane on the runway and lift off into the air. After retracting the gear and picking up some speed, I climb toward the northwest and begin to turn back around toward the airfield. Beneath us pass the city of Algiers, the old citadel, the Bay of Algiers, and the airport again. The engines chug along as we leave Algiers the White beneath the clouds. We settle into a cruise of 11,000 ft and I take especial care to treat the engines kindly by adjusting the throttle, prop, and mixture handles for an economical flight. Once I've finished squinting at gauges I can sit back and take in the sights. Below us is the stunning Djurdjura Range of the Tell Atlas. Seems like a nice place to do some hiking; evidently there's also skiing in the winter. Snow skiing in Africa--those are two things I'd never put together in my mind before! From time to time the cloud cover obscures my view of the world below, but wherever there's a break in clouds there's a sweeping panorama of the Tell Atlas to be had. (The eagle-eyed among you may notice a difference in the clouds and atmospheric effects in these screenshots compared to my previous flights. A few weeks ago, the developers of EFASS introduced UltraWX implementation into their program. UltraWX is a highly configurable real-world weather injector and so in a lot of way a big "first" for X-Plane. Since I mainly use EFASS for planning and monitoring my progress on airline flights, I haven't really touched it in a while, but decided to give it a go to test drive UltraWX.) Batna sits at about 2,700 feet above sea level so we've got a significantly shorter way to descend than we had to climb. Looks like the airfield is reporting-- wait a minute, that can't be right! 41 kt winds?! (Let's just chalk this up to a bug in UltraWX, shall we?) I consider diverting or even returning to Algiers; however, I notice that the wind doesn't seem to be gusting and that it's coming out of the southwest. Against my better judgement, I decide to attempt a landing on runway 23. Matters are made worse by the clouds near the ground. Let's play "Spot the Runway"--it's there somewhere! The runway becomes clear as I get closer. Even though the winds are strong they seem steady, so I decide to go for it. I pass over the threshold in what feels like slow motion and touchdown daintily with the two fore gear. The aircraft rolls forward a short distance, the tailwheel comes down, and we slow to a stop. Success! Welcome to Batna! (Here's a close up of the main instrument panel just after the aircraft came to a stop on the runway; just under 40 kts IAS. Wow!) Next leg: Mostépha Ben Boulaid Airport, Batna, Algeria (DABT) to Cheikh Larbi Tébessa Airport, Tébessa, Algeria (DABS)

Yup, that's just X-Plane's default 747-400. All the payware models that I've seen which feature wingflex are a lot less, erm, avian.

Leg 20 Depart: Chlef International Airport, Chlef, Algeria (DAOI) Arrive: Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria (DAAG) Aircraft: Beechcraft A36 Bonanza (Carenado) * Flight Plan: DAOI DAAG Distance: 95.2 nm Scenery: DAAG - Algiers International Airport, Algeria (8.6+) This afternoon's flight will take us from the sleepy town of Chlef to Algiers, the largest, most populous city of Algeria. The weather around Chlef has improved somewhat with lower winds and better visibility, but I'm expecting thick cloud cover over the mountains and our destination in addition to diminished visibility on the ground. Between the weather and Houari Boumediene's status as one of the busiest airports on the African continent, I'd be more comfortable taking something with some IFR capabilities, just in case. To this end, I'll be flying the Beechcraft A36 Bonanza, a thoroughly modernized variant in Beechcraft's venerable Bonanza line of aircraft. Equipped with Aspen EFD1000 avionics, KFC225 autopilot, and Garmin GNS 430 units, the A36 is a massive technological leap ahead of the spartan aircraft we've been flying so far across the skies of northern Africa. The Bonanza's suite of high-tech features should be more than capable of shooting an IFR approach should the need arise. Oh, and my favorite feature of the Bonanza? Those big windows. Great views from this plane. But for all the technology crammed into the A36, it's a real pleasure to hand fly. Takeoff is as smooth as can be, as is the standard rate turn toward the northeast, and the climb to altitude. As expected, the atmospheric conditions begin to deteriorate as we enter the skies over the Tell Atlas mountains. There are some thick clouds ahead, so this view of Lake Ouled Mellouk and the adjacent national forests may be one of the few landmarks we'll be able to discern during this leg. While cruising above the clouds it's extremely difficult to catch a glimpse of anything down below. I tune the navigation radio to ALR, the VOR nearest to the our destination airfield. Once we've drawn closer to Algiers, I begin the descent. When we break out of the clouds, visibility is only about five or six miles. I continue flying toward the VOR until the airport comes into sight. There's a 14 kt wind coming from the northeast, so I line up for runway 05, glad that I'll finally be able to perform a landing without having to deal with excessive crosswinds. The landing is as smooth as silk and, boy, does it feel good to put the plane down without worrying you're going to go careening off the runway. Landing on a tricycle gear is also a nice change of pace from the conventional undercarriage arrangements that we've had since coming to Africa. Relieved, I taxi to the apron and shut the plane down. Welcome to Algiers! Next leg: Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria (DAAG) to Mostépha Ben Boulaid Airport, Batna, Algeria (DABT)

Leg 19 Depart: Es Senia Airport, Oran, Algeria (DAOO) Arrive: Chlef International Airport, Chlef, Algeria (DAOI) Aircraft: de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk (Khamsin Studio) * Flight Plan: DAOO DAOI Distance: 101.4 nm Scenery: Default Today's flight will take us up the northwestern coast of Algeria to the city of Chlef. The plotted course is a straight line between Oran and Chlef, but in actuality I'm planning on flying over to the Arzew Gulf before turning inland and flying along the river valley to our destination. Visibility this afternoon isn't the greatest and we'll have a 12 kt crosswind from the Mediterranean to deal with during takeoff. Although I've had to consign the Hurricane to the hanger after the last flight, I've still got an itch to take up another warbird; therefore, today's aircraft is the de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk. Introduced just after the Second World War, the "Chippie" was used extensively as a training aircraft by the RAF and RCAF and many restored examples are flown by pilots today. Khamsin's virtual replica of the Chimpmunk is modeled after the British-built T.10 variant with its 4 cylinder, 145 HP Gipsy Major 8 engine; compared to the speeds attainable with the Hurricane's V12 Merlin, today's flight will be rather leisurely. As I expected, the crosswind pushes us around a bit on the takeoff roll, but the winds feel less noticeable once we a few thousand feet up. The hazy weather over the Algerian coast makes identifying landmarks a bit more difficult. After a few minutes of flying, however, the Arzew Gulf comes into view. I fly along the curvature of the gulf before turning inland toward Chlef. Well, what do you know? Algeria is fond of artificial lakes too! After following the river valley below into the haze for what feels like ages, I'm finally able to make out the lakes Merdja Sidi Abed and Gargar which lie near the town Oued Rhiou. Chlef should come into view any minute now. I descend between Chlef and the airport to the north. The field is reporting 8 kt crosswinds from over the mountains. Hmm, I'm detecting a trend here. (Also, just look at that lovely cockpit. Khamsin is, in my opinion, one of, if not the best texture artist working with X-Plane today. If I'm not mistaken, Khamsin is responsible for the textures in the virtual cockpit of Flight Factor's 757 and the reason that many consider that aircraft's interior to be much more beautiful than the earlier 777.) I circle around and line up with the runway. It very quickly becomes apparent that this landing will be no simple task. In the slight frame of the Chipmunk, those 8 kt crosswinds feel much more like twice that. I hold my speed fairly high to keep from being blown south of the airfield as I crab my way toward the runway. I cross the threshold with a rather large angle of deflection, but I hope I can straighten out just in time. Kicking left with the rudder, I point the nose of the Chippie down the centerline. Unfortunately, my speed is too high and I float in the ground effect as the wind pushes me over the edge of the runway. Going around! This time I turn wide of the airfield as I line myself up for final approach, hoping that I can get my speed down as the wind puts the aircraft inline with the runway so that I can crab my in the last few hundred feet.* * I have since learned that this is not necessarily a "good idea." I've also learned of the wing-down method, which I hope to try at my next opportunity. It mostly works. As I straighten the craft out, my right wing gets lifted up and I touch down with the left wheel before I can get the rest of the undercarriage on the tarmac. It's a squirrely landing, but at least the Chipmunk is all in one piece! Welcome to Chlef! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to study up on crosswind takeoffs and landings! Next leg: Chlef International Airport, Chlef, Algeria (DAOI) to Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria (DAAG)