Monday, August 31, 2020
Saturday, August 29, 2020
The Real Startup: Squirrel Tutorial #1 - Getting Started - Microsoft Flight Simulator
This is the real startup. Beware of some of his recommendations. He does not commit himself but better use whatever he uses.
Use Afterburner. It is the best.
It is best to follow all his tutorials especially when you have no access to the Flight Simulator.
Thursday, August 27, 2020
Airport Gateway Maps for Pilots
You need a map for the airports.Otherwise we got lost looking for the gateways, looking for fuel trucks.
Use the drone camera to look around the airport from above. Press R to go up.
Just press insert to go into drone mode.
https://screenrant.com/drone-camera-user-guide-microsoft-flight-simulator/
Below is the gateway map of Narita Airport, Tokyo. There are other airports in this airportguide.com.
https://airportguide.com/airport/info/NRT#maps
Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Tuning Display using On Screen Display of MSI Afterburner
Best for you to enable GPU, CPU1 to CPU8, Framerate.
Sunday, August 23, 2020
Settingup Facetracknoir for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020
Just install it as required and it works. Just use the default settings. It took me hours to work this out.
The trick is to enter the key <end> to start or stop the head tracking.
<home> is to centre the view because it drifted a lot.
The short cut keys are in one menu. The default that are set are just <end> and <home>.
<end> is also the default key for MSFS2020 toggle view mode internal or external.
No need to add any assignment in MSFS2020 controls. The TRACKIR device is just a dummy.
The clue is given by this video:
He simply mentioned that it just works but need to enable the face tracking. He assigned the key to enable and disable the face tracking to his joystick keys. It can be found in the shortcut keys menu of Facetracknoir.
Installing Cheap Webcam based Face Tracking
Watch this on how to setup a cheap webcam based head tracking. It used to be free but now you need to pay EU3.5 to download. However, once downloaded, there is no copy protection at all. It simply delays the installation process. If you go to the website, you shall realise how important it is for us to support the developer of this package.
The video above explains how to setup facetracking for various software. He explains the latest version of this software.
I had problems with installing it at first. You actually need to run the software in administrator mode. But you also need to download the plugin also. Actually explained below but I thought it was as easy as most software.
http://facetracknoir.sourceforge.net/manual/installation.htm
In the download page:
The core software needs to go through the payment system. You can pay using paypal or credit card.
FaceTrackNoIR v201
The required plugins which must be downloaded also.
Plugin-Pack for FaceTrackNoIR v203a
POI Points of Interest that are marked yellow
POI Points of Interest that are marked yellow
in Microsoft Flight Simulator
NORTH AMERICA
Empire State Building
SOUTH AMERICA
Christ the Redeemer
ARABIA
Great Mosque of Mecca
Burj Khalifa
ASIA
INDIA
Taj Mahal
Faisal Mosque
Potala Palace
SRI LANKA
Ruwanwelisaya Stupa
Wat Pot
CAMBODIA
Ankor Wat
CHINA
Oriental Pearl Tower
Forbidden City
JAPAN
Sky Tree
AUSTRALIA
Urulu
Sydney Opera House
EUROPE
Hagia Sofia
Acropolis of Athens
Hungarian Parliament Building
Mont Saint Michel
Houses of Parliament
Atomium
Moscow State University
Saturday, August 22, 2020
How to change weather, time of day
Flight Simulator weather explained: How to change weather, time of day, and enable live weather conditions
How to change weather on the fly, as you fly.
Flight Simulator's weather is one of many impressive aspects of the 2020 simulation game.
Not only can you adjust any location's time and weather to your choosing - from sunny skies to overcast, to snow and storms - you can also set it to real conditions taking place in that part of the world.
All of this can be done before you fly, or in the middle of a flight - with this page explaining how.
On this page:
Knowing how to change weather and time is useful for completing certain Flight Simulator Achievements.
How to change weather and time of day in Flight Simulator
Changing weather in Flight Simulator can be done at pretty much any time - whether during flight, or when you set up your flight plan from the World Map. Here's how you can do it from either point in the game:
Changing weather mid-flight in Flight Simulator
If you want to tweak your weather settings during a flight, then go into the toolbar at the top of the screen, and select Weather.
It's recommended you do this on the runway, or if you are mid-flight, activating Active Pause first- otherwise you might risk losing control of your aircraft!
(If you cannot see the toolbar and weather options, then you might be in a specific mode - such as training or landing challenge - where weather is fixed for the activity at hand.)
Doing so will open a dedicated window with various settings.
The dropdown box provides a variety of preset options, including:
- Clear Skies
- Few Clouds
- Scattered Clouds
- Broken Clouds
- High Level Clouds
- Overcast
- Rain
- Snow
- Storm
As well as these, you can also tweak the specifics of the snow depth, aerosol density, precipitation and more.
You can also change the time of day, too, if you prefer to change to night time or dawn flying.
Being able to change weather - and see how it looks instantly - is perfect if you want specific conditions for your Flight Simulator photos.
Changing weather before your flight in Flight Simulator
As well as mid-flight, you can set your weather before you set off - which might be a preferred option if you like to have all your settings lined up so you can concentrate on the flight itself.
To do this, from the World Map screen, select the Flight Conditions button in the upper right.
From here is a variety of settings - with Weather and Time at the bottom, which offers a number of presets and custom settings.
As mentioned above, once you are taking your flight, you can always change them along the way if you aren't satisfied with your choices.
How to activate live weather in Flight Simulator
Live weather is one of the options seen in the above two methods of setting weather in Flight Simulator.
As part of the weather toolbar, you'll find it at the very top, under the Live Weather option.
Meanwhile, from the World Map's Flight Conditions screen, you can set select it under the Weather and Time option at the bottom.
This latter one might be preferred if you want the entire flight - alongside other settings such as live traffic - to emulate as close to real world conditions as possible.
Live weather is also a requirement for playing in Flight Simulator's Live Players multiplayer mode.
If you were wondering what live weather entails, this official video goes into specifics - including how it takes 60 layers of cloud data (including fronts and density data) and 20 layers of other data (including pressure, humidity, temperature, wind speed) and inserts it into the game engine:
How Do You Create Flight Plans in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020?
It is better to follow the rules in flying from airports.
First create a flight plan. Next, we need to communicate with traffic controllers, but AI can help us there.
Climbing mountains using Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020
Mount Everest, using a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX Turbo Prop. Rated to have a maximum altitude of 25,000 ft but I managed to reach higher than 27,000 ft to fly over a mountain, that I presume to be Mount Everest.
Mount Kilimanjaro using Icon A5 that is rated to have a maximum altitude of 15,000 ft but this is higher than 17,000 ft when I crossed over the top of the mountain.
Mount Kinabalu in my home state of Sabah, Malaysia.
Friday, August 21, 2020
The Best Joysticks for Flight Simulators
Best Joystick
The best advice is from a real pilot who does Flight Simulation.
Stefan Drury recommends the Logitech Extreme 3D and I agree with him. I have owned a few Logitech products and they last the longest, even better than Razer.It is similar to Panasonic in the cosumer electronics. Probably Logitech uses lasting plastics instead of cheap plastics that do not last long.
Logitech Extreme 3D Pro
As Mr. Drury commented, it is better to use this joystick rather than the more expensive ones and save for gas to enjoy real flights. It could mean that the joystick feeling is reasonable. At RM150 from PCIMAGE, it is a bargain. One important characteristic is the lack of dead zone at rest. This is what differentiates the realistic feeling from the cheap joysticks. The more expensive joysticks mmay be more accurate but they are not worth the realism as far as flying is concerned.
Real Joysticks are Inferior
The more expensive joysticks such as the Hall effect switches used by Thrustmasters HOTAS WARTHOG because they try to emulate real joysticks but I notice that they are limiatioins, rather than advantages. We are trying to emulate the weaknesses of real joysticks as commented by this video, in this Linus Tech Tips channel. Real joysticks are heavy and slow. If you use them in competitions, you may be at a disadvantage.
Because modern vehicles are flown by wire, we can use joysticks to reduce space.We should use joysticks for cars as well. The Radio Control hobby world is far more advanced than real world technology and manufacturers are still behind RC hobbyists. In video games, gaming hardware could be more advanced than real hardware and manufacturers should emulate these gaming professionals because vehicles are now flown by wire.
Hobby controllers may not be as durable but they perform better and cost much less within their expected life. If they pass that life, just replace them. Performance is more important than life time. The reasons that pilots and users are more familiar with tradional controllers, is not valid because they can be retrained and younger generations are already trained in video games to use optimal controllers. Airbus is an example of a forward looking manufacturer. Car manufacturers should follow.
One reason why car manufacturers shold folow is the versatility of the joystick. This Logitech joysticks as well as others, have a Z-axis that is implemented by just twisting the joystick. The Logitech Extreme 3D PRO even has a slider that can be used as a throttle, just like many others.
Cheaper Joysticks
I had used a cheaper joystick, Genius F-31U with vibration. Unfortunately the vibration does not work in Windows 10 64 bit. Its major problem is the lack of centering ability. It wonders off, making it difficult to keep my hands off the joystick.
 |
| Genius Maxfighter F31u |
Adjusting Joysticks
Because cheaper joysticts have more deadzone and does not centre well, the dead zone adjustment of Microsoft Flight Simulator should be adjust to accomodate it.Listen to the advice given by Old Guy Geek Tech Tips channel. However, he does nto elaborate on how to adjust.
I suspect we need to increase the dead zone allowance for joysticks with erratic centering so that the aircrafft can fly by itself without us touching the joystick, just adjust the trim once in a while. It will certainly reduce the stress of flying.
For sensitive planes such as aerobatic planes, we should reduce curving the response curve downward. For airliners, it is best to increase sensitivity by curving the curve upwards so that small joystick movement can cause a large change in control surfaces. This is an example of how cheap joysticks are not really a problem for modern vehicles because they can be compensated for.
I didn't do it for my Genius F31U which I should have done fully. I tried to play with the sensitivity adjustments but decided to give up and buy the Logitech joystick instead.
Realistic Joysticks
The best way to make realistic joysticks are to make them look like real joysticks, like Thrustmaster Warthog and have devices to adjust the hardwardness of the inputs by changing springs or adding tightening screws.
The above is a good video of how rudders make flight simulators more realistic without breaking your budget. He even advised Thrustmaster to invest a little more by adding grease for the rails.
To be even more realistic, you can watch this video of Thrustmaster TPR. One comment is that real Cesna pedals are vertical. At MYR 4,179.96 ( US$1000 )it is just too expensive. The cost is in making them realistic instead of just functional.
Getting Started with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020
Get it
https://www.flightsimulator.com/
Get it from the above.
You can also get it from Steam but it is more expensive there.
How to get the best game at the moment, Microsoft Flight Simulator for us$1 or actually rm32, for a month. get a us address from comGateway. Put that address into your microsoft account. buy xbox MYR 41.72 ( MYR 41.72 ( MYR 41.80 ( $10 )))gift for rm32 from kk gamezone in Shopee. He will send a redemption code within minutes in the chat, and use it to pay xbox pass by redeeming. Do not enter any backup payment. If you had, like me, remove them first.
I just want to experience
Microsoft Online gaming experience. It is very bad compared to others.
The best is still Steam. GOG is good for complete games, untouched by
any protection but little online, although GOG Galaxy is attempting to
beat Steam.
Steam can share games with 4 others but cannot play at the same time. xbox app, may need to setup family accounts.
Although downloading 100GB it was reported to take 3 hours even with 500Mb/s line like mine. It was an hour, still downloading.
How to control the planes
https://www.shacknews.com/article/119877/microsoft-flight-simulator-2020-controls-and-keybindings
https://www.shacknews.com/article/119877/microsoft-flight-simulator-2020-controls-and-keybindings
How to find interesting places
How to get points
https://stevivor.com/guides/microsoft-flight-simulator-achievements-list/
How to view and take photos
https://flightsimulator.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360016003159
Photogrammetric Cities
https://se7en.ws/all-341-photorealistic-cities-in-microsoft-flight-simulator-2020/?lang=en
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