Enhance Microsoft flight simulator 10 to allow real VRF flying

Out of the box, with the last SP2 update MS FSX certainly looks and performs much better than the last version of MS FS 2004. Microsoft flight simulator 10 was initially developed to scale with hardware that would appear 2 do three years later after its original release date. Even though Microsoft flight simulator 10 is half a decade old even modern computers nowadays struggle to run it at full frame rate once the performance options are set to maximum.

Despite the fact that updates to Ms flight simulator 10 have ceased, the release of add-ons means that Microsoft flight simulator continues to get more realistic and accurate as time goes on.

One of the primary ways to greatly enhance Microsoft flight simulator is to replace the terrain mesh. The world that is drawn in Microsoft flight simulator is modelled after wireframe meshes. This wire mesh determines how accurately the world is rendered when textures are overlaid on top of it. The terrain mesh data contain specific elevation information for land classes around the world. This mesh data is used to create a 3d model of terrain features such as hills, mountains, cliffs, plateaus, valleys etc.

Although this terrain mesh data can be quite accurate in big cities, when you fly off to the countryside you may notice the world is quite flat. If you are a bush flier than the accuracy of this terrain mesh affects both the realism and enjoyment you get when terrain spotting. Quite simply if you love to fly VFR than a terrain mesh upgrade with a higher resolution will allow MS FSX to depict the terrain elevations more accurately than it already does.

For example, the default mesh resolution for the United States in MS FSX is 38.2m. This basically means that the height of the terrain is measured every 38.2m. You will be happy to know that you can now buy add-ons which improve his resolution up to 10m. This means that the terrain elevation is sampled every 10m. Now instead of flying through smooth mountains you get really jagged cliffs and much more accurately modelled terrain features.

The initial step in finding these add-ons is to visit Google. Because the size of terrain mesh is are generally very large, they are split into geographical regions such as America or Europe. Terrain mesh updates can be downloaded for free on the Internet purchased online at flight simulator stores. Compared to free terrain meshes, paid terrain mesh data is generally of higher accuracy. Regardless of whether you end up buying a terrain mesh finding one for free, the increased resolution will improve the simulation accuracy greatly.

When you have updated your terrain mesh is you may also want to look at improving the default textures used by Microsoft flight simulator. You can either download generic texture updates or even go the route of being real satellite imagery converted for use in MS FSX.

I am an avid flight simmer. Installing MS FSX add-ons is a bit of an advanced upgrade, If you are new to MS FSX than you should start of by making sure you have the right kind of flight controllers. The thrustmaster warthog or the Logitech G940 is great for those that wish to fly jet planes just like they do in real life.

At a little bit of HOTAS action to your joystick

If you currently own a capable joystick but just like me wanted a separate hands on throttle unit then as ch products pro throttle usb might be the solution you’re looking after. At the end of the day I decided to get this pro throttle to sit me out until I could find a HOTAS controller which
I actually liked. Previously, I have owned the CH product fighter stick that so it was a bit of a no-brainer to add this pro throttle on. Also if you look carefully on the market there are actually no throttle units which you can buy separate from the joystick. It is not about unit, however it is missing some cool features that are lot of other throttle unit is already have on them. Probably the biggest glaring difference, is that this pro throttle is a slider and it is only a single axis. I fly DCS warthog and those planes have dual engines on them so dual throttle lever HOTAS is really required. The second biggest problem with the pro throttle is that it does not have any trim knobs or trim axis on the handle of the throttle itself. Although there is an option to use digital trim some analogue pots would have made this unit perfect. Although there are some third-party mods you can do to add these analogue trim pots on I find it annoying to have to resort to modifying my pro throttle. It looks like on the horizon though, CH product may release a dual lever throttle until that comes out I am going to have to stick it out with the pro throttle. To be honest my only other option is to fight the vitally more expensive Thrustmaster warthog controller. I decided to purchase this pro throttle unit and you can be more about my full ch products pro throttle usb review

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Saitek Pro Flight System Thoughts

The Saitek have recently released their Cessna range of flight controllers. At the moment it is actually quite expensive. However previously Saitek have released their own saitek pro flight yoke system which you can pick up for quite a bargain nowadays. The question of course is to go with the new Cessna yoke or save a little bit of money and get something slightly older are just as good. I’ve had a good look at those products, in my mind there are some differences but it’s more a question of trade-off. Both yokes have advantages and disadvantages. Firstly the Cessna yoke is the only Saitek yoke that fully supports 90° of rotation on both the left and right side. For some reason yokes previous to this only supported up to 45° angle. Compared to a real joke having 90° on your flight controller brings you see much closer to a realistic set up. In practice how ever 45° is adequate to give you the kind of control you need. Similarly, the Saitek pro flight yoke has a embedded clock on the yoke itself which the Cessna yoke does not have. In terms of performance both are made using a steel shaft. Indicators are that the internal mechanisms are probably the same except for the extra rotation degree on the Cessna yoke. Apart from those differences, both come with a flight throttle quadrant. In terms of pricing the older Saitek pro flight system will save you at least $50. I guess it was me I would probably go with the new assassinate yoke just so that I can give you 180° of turning freedom a go. If you have the choice of which would you choose? I found a really good saitek pro flight yoke system review on this website, I think they did a Cessna your reviews too but I am not sure.

Resource Links
The Flyers Blog

Building my own home cockpit. How do I mount my monitors?

Ever since I got myself some flight controller gear, it’s been a constant struggle trying to see how to set up all this gear in a manner that would make flying more enjoyable. I have a computer table at the moment which on their sets three LCD monitors. The setup is in great as one of these monitors is actually touchscreen. What I wanted to do was put the 23 inch touchscreen under my main 27 inch Dell monitor. In programs like DCS warthog I want to push all the flight instruments down on to the touchscreen and reserve the upper main screen as the HUD. The problem comes with the fact that my computer table does not allow me to place my 23 inch monitor under my 27 without investing in some serious LCD mounting brackets. Alternatively I’ve noticed that Saitek have recently released a whole bunch of flight panels such as the. saitek pro flight switch panel the greatest thing with the flight panels is that it slots on top of other Saitek hardware. The flight panels themselves are not very big so if I went and purchased a flight panel I could just mount it straight on top of my computer desk. However it would be great if I could just find a way of feeding in my touchscreen monitor. That way whether or not I play a civilian or military simulator I always have a touchscreen that can act as an interactive panel. Back to the drawing board, I saw some holes in my desk before ever spending too much money on proper LCD mounts. If by chance you happen to be interested in getting some Saitek flight panels I found a review of one of them here saitek pro flight switch panel review

Resource Links
The Flyers Blog

MS Flight Simulator For Pilots Review

I recently got my grubby mits on the MS FS X for pilots real world training book. In short its a good solid book for those who are serious about using ms fsx for pilot training.

MS fsx already has a flight training module in the learning centre, done by rob and it is by itself a very good tool to get started learning about general aviation. However the lessons are not particularly long and detailed enough in some areas, such that it can be frustrating to keep failing lessons repeatedly.

This is where this book comes in. It starts all the way from the beginning an gives you not only flying lessons

Why I decided to go for Saitek instead of CH products for pedals

I spent ages searching on the Internet to decide which of the two flight rudder pedals I should buy. It was a hard decision to make and I spent many hours pouring over review websites and forums to make the best informed decision. On one hand I wanted a CH products rudder pedal because it would integrate perfectly with my other CH product gear. If you ever have used CH products control software you know just how great it is to be able to use that program to switch between flight profiles. One of the biggest advantages is that you can combine three controllers into one virtual control. You’d be surprised even in this day and age developers still release video games they can only support one controller at a time. At the end of the day I ended up getting the Saitek flight combat rudder pedals. The main reason was that it had a adjustable tension spring, and according to reports on the Internet the spacing between the pedals was much more generous. The biggest factor however was that the Saitek rudder pedals allows you to rest the balls of your feet on the ground. This is by far a much more realistic simulation or flight rudder pedals in real aircraft. With ch products pro pedals your foot actually rest suspended on the pedal at all times, this is neither realistic or ergonomic as having your foot propped up over time can make it tired. Now that I have the Saitek flight rudder pedals I am happy with my purchase. Although I wish that I could combine it with my other CH product gear into one virtual controller the only game that so far I wish it worked with is battlefield 3. All other video games especially flight simulator is tend to support more than one controller at a time which means I generally don’t have problems. If you are still interested to find out more and then may appoint you choose this great review ch products pro pedals review

I really enjoy flying with my new CH product eclipse yoke

Previously I had been flying Ms flight simulator utilizing a crappy aged joystick. The joystick cost me about $20 and I first got it in my local video game retailer. I do not really understand why but after around 30 minutes of flying on that thing my hands would get so sore. The reason why? The springs on the joystick was way too powerful. Since switching to a suitable flight yoke my own flight experience has become wonderful. The only really thing that the CH Products Eclipse Yoke is those rudder pedals. They are meant to be utilised by your own thumb. In practice I have found them entirely unreliable. Not to mention they’ve got a weird calibration problem where the control value spikes and also the pedals have issues saying centred. Nonetheless the CH eclipse yoke is a great flight yoke. Not Long Ago I was on the Internet, and I found that it is possible to buy specialised springs to change the tension on the yoke. Right now at the extremities the yoke takes a lot of force. When flying a jet you normally want to be up to make tiny speedy adjustments with just one hand. Because the springs on the eclipse your car a bit too strong it’s hard to get full deflection unless you use both hands. I’ve not installed the springs yet as removing the sticker boys your warranty, I wait maybe another year before I open the baby up. If you wish to learn more please read my CH Products Eclipse Yoke review.

What is the cheapest HOTAS controller on the market?

I was looking around for the cheapest and most usable hotas controller on the market. I did a comparison of many types of controllers and so far after having read the saitek x52 pro review it gets my vote as the cheapest out there on the market. At the same time it has everything you want in a HOTAS however it seems to be plagued by some real quality issues. Cheap at a price.

I have read a lot of reviews on amazon and on the internet about users that have both loved and at the same time complained bitterly about the saitek x52 pro flight control system…

Unfortunately if you decide to not go with the saitek brand than the next logical choice would be to have a look at the Logitech G940

however, the g940 is much dearer than the saitek x52 pro. But the extra you pay for gets you force feedback… and in fact if you want force feedback the g940 is really your only option!

I know that force feedback is really good with racing games, yet im not entirely convinced of its usefulnes in flight sims. Although i have read that having a ff enabled controller on a flight sim gives you tactile feedback on the flight dynamics, ie being able to feel the airframe shake just before a stall.

My last ff controller was the logitech ff wingman. It worked, but had a terrible centre and deadzone and made a terrible noise as the ff motors kicked in. For now ill stick to a non ff stick thanks!

I finally managed to a a sit down play through on the new TM steering wheel

Today I went down to the nearby Personal computer shop today, I was shopping for a brand new Liquid crystal display monitor. It so happened that the place I went to actually had the new thrustmaster t500rs out for a playtest on an eyefinity set up! Wow, I couldn’t resist so once i got what I needed at the service counter I nicely inquired whether it was ok to play test the set up. Interesting. Regrettably I could not get the FF generators to work but besides that the build quality of the steering wheel impressed me somewhat! Shame since i have still use a Logitech G27 at home and was wondering whether it was time to upgrade.

Going to Japan

I’m contemplating about going to Japan sometime later next 12 months, most probably in The spring. I’m not sure why, but everytime I go to Japan I always miss out on cherry blossoms. It seems that I have a bad habit of leaving Japan just before they begin. Going back to Japan this time around I can’t wait to check out the new fashion. If you’re thinking of going to Japan for some shopping, then I suggest you consider Shibuya. If you are male then you might want to check out Shibuya 109-2. Be ready, the majority of the price ranges within the outlets are very high. If you go in December clothes can be quite cheap due to sales. Otherwise you can always have a hunt around for smaller shops in Shibuya that offer clothes at a much more competitive price point. I found last time shopping in Japan finding the right size can be a bit of a challenge especially if you are bigger than the normal Asian. Also I have updated my gyaru web site, which hasn’t been updated in rather some time I must acknowledge.