Herr Prop-Wasche

Has anyone guessed "a white bunny, riding a new mountain bicycle while using his iPad?" That's what I would ask for if I were 5 again...

Can you identify this aircraft? Actually, identifying the aircraft should be fairly easy, but can you tell why it has Belgian markings?

Sssssssh! I know someone who knows someone!

Ding, ding, ding, ding!! Lou, you Barmy old goat! I should have excluded you from the contest as a courtesy to the other people on the board! From the Belgian website where I grabbed the pic: http://www.belgian-w...t_1910_1918.htm For your prize, do you prefer Cognac or a Cuban cigar?

If you aren't using OFFice and you don't mind not having ace skins in the game, OFF lets you choose how much fuel to load in the briefing screen before you start your mission, if I recall correctly.

I am pleased to announce a couple of updates to my damage model. The new version is 1.3.1 and contains the following updates to version 1.2.5: 1.3.1 --Decreased wing-tip hit point values for the Fokker EIII. --Slightly decreased engine hit point values for the Alb DIII early. --Decreased engine hit point values for the Hannover CIIIa. --Slightly increased engine hit points for the Alb DVa 200. 1.3 --Engine threshold values adjusted again to reduce chance of engine fires and the "forever flying flamers" bug. You should see less fires than in version 1.2.5 but more than you get using Buddy1998's damage model. --Engine hit points reduced somewhat on two-seaters and "pusher" types (DH-2 and Fee's) for better game balance. --File structure revised in order to comply with Lothar of the Hill Peoples Offbase program and proper placement of JSGME inside the OBDSoftware game folder. --Added HPW UltimateDM.exe self-installer program created by Lothar. Installation is easier than ever, thanks to Lothar's automatic self-installer program. Simply download the zip file and then click on the HPW UltimateDM.exe program, which will search for your OFF and JSGME installation and install the mod to the correct location on your computer (HPW UltimateDM file is also included for those who wish to install the program manually). Please leave any feedback about the mod or any questions you have about installation in this thread. The update is available here: http://combatace.com...hpw-ultimatedm/

The update to my FM mod is now ready for download, pending approval from the moderators. FM 3.1 corrects the "craft invalid" error which prevented some friendly and enemy aircraft from properly loading and appearing during some campaign missions. All aircraft currently available in HITR should now appear in your campaign as originally designed. The update also adds upgraded engine version of the Sopwith Pup, Sopwith Tripe, Spad VII, and Spad XIII aircraft. For instructions on how to install and use this update, including information about the alternative airplane versions, please see the full readme included in the HPW FM and EW Campaign Mod zip file. Please direct any questions or comments about the installation or use of this mod in this thread, not the old 3.0 FM thread. As always, feedback about the mod is appreciated. Finally, thanks again to OBD Software for their help and support in the development of this and all other mods. Cheers!

Glad to hear it!

Thanks, Lothar. Should I provide two versions--one for those who don't use Office (horrors)--and one for those that do? It may be confusing for some if I have two versions on the download page. RTFM, though, right?

Very pretty models. Good job.

Go to Workshop and click on the graphics config button. Click file and exit. Restart OFF. Hopefully that will take care of the problem.

Blecchh! I just noticed that the readme file included in the zip file for FM 3.1 has a couple of errors that may be causing some confusion. The main problem is the following statement: The above quote should read "Important! This version is only intended to be used with Jonesoft's Generic Mod Enabler and should not be intalled unless JSGME has already been installed into your OBDSoftware folder." Please note the difference in the placement of JSGME. If you are using Lothar's OFFbase program to install JSGME, it should automatically be placed in the correct folder. The correct readme file is attached below. Sorry about the error. HPW FM and AI EW Mod 3.1 for JSGME readme.html

FM 2.0 is an old version of my mod. The current version is 3.1. If you use OFFbase, Lothar's program should automatically download and install the correct version of the mod. Glad you like my Camel! As for trying to keep up with your squadmates, some of it is because I could not increase the empty weight of the AI planes too much without causing them to crash on takeoff, so they still have a bit of a weight advantage over the human player. The other part is learning the correct climb angle, speed, and fuel mixture settings for your particular aircraft. Unfortunately, even rookie AI pilots always know the exact settings to get the optimum performance out of their airplanes, so that is another advantage they have over us, I'm afraid.

JSGME should be located in the OBDSoftware main folder, not the OBDSoftware\CFSWW1 Over Flanders Fields subfolder. The confusion stems from back in the early days of modding for OFF3, when I incorrectly started making mods that were installed in the OBDSoftware\CFSWW1 Over Flanders Fields subfolder. After awhile I realized my mistake, but I was too lazy to go back and fix all of the mods I had already worked on using the incorrect file structure. However, in order to get Lothar's OFFbase program to work correctly, JSGME and its associated mods need to be installed in the OBDSoftware folder, so that is where you should put it. Unless I am mistaken, I think Lothar has created an installer that automatically puts JSGME and OFFbase in the correct folder, so you don't even need to worry about if, at least as long as you use his program.

Well, that seems a little excessive to me!

I'm referring to the mission types and loadouts that are contained in each plane's .xdp file, not the loadouts you can select in the briefing screen--although I'm fairly sure the loadouts you can select in the briefing screen are determined by the loadouts that are specified in the .xdp file. To illustrate, I copied this from the .xdp file for the Camel: <Loadouts> <Loadout Name="Clean" MissionType="Escort,CAP,Intercept,Sweep,Nothing,Bomber_Intercept,CAS"/> <Loadout Name="(4) 25lb Cooper Bombs" MissionType="Strike"> <Hardpoint ID="0" PylonType="off_cooper_rack" PayloadType="OFF_cooper_25lb_bomb" Quantity="15"/> </Loadout> <Loadout Name="(8) Le Prieur Rockets" MissionType="Strike"> <Hardpoint ID="1" PylonType="off_leprieur_rack_r" PayloadType="OFF_leprieur_rocket" Quantity="15"/> <Hardpoint ID="2" PylonType="off_leprieur_rack_l" PayloadType="OFF_leprieur_rocket" Quantity="15"/> </Loadout> </Loadouts> Note that the mission type for a bomb loadout or a rockets loadout is "strike." In CFS3, there is also a mission type named "search and destroy" that is not available in OFF. I'm wondering if perhaps this small difference has any effect? I'm not sure if this is the case. When I checked this box and started the mission, my squadmates also had bombs under their fuselage. However, the "bombs" are very hard to see, so it is easy to miss them unless you get the perfect angle.

I just listened to an interview with the author of the book, who wrote about the incident based upon interviews he had with both 2nd Lieutenant Charlie Brown and German BF-109 pilot Franz Stigler, who finally met and talked face to face about their encounter on December 20, 1943 above northern Germany. Here is a video which tells some of the story of their encounter and their "reunion" almost 50 years later in Seattle, Washington. I found some other interesting info about Stigler, which may help explain his actions on that day: before the war, Stigler was a professional, civilian pilot with Lufthansa. He had grown up flying gliders. Perhaps significantly, he had considered becoming a Monk before deciding to become a pilot. His family was also anti-Nazi and did not vote for the National Socialists before they seized power in 1933. When the war began, Stigler was in his mid-twenties, so he began the war as a flight-instructor. Ironically, he helped train his brother as a night-fighter pilot. When his brother was shot down and killed on his first mission, Stigler, seeking revenge, immediately sought transfer to a fighter squadron. By the end of the war, Stigler had flown 487 missions, had 28 confirmed victories and had been shot down 17 times! His decorations include the Iron Cross 2nd Class, the Iron Cross 1st Class, and the German Cross in Gold. Franz was nominated for the “Knight’s Cross”, but the war ended before he received it. Stigler and Brown both had heart attacks and died in 2008, six months apart. Stigler was 92; Brown, 87. In their obituaries, each was listed to the other as “a special brother.” They also refer to each other as brothers in the video. The author also discussed a few other incidents of chivalry which occurred during the war, including two separate incidents where the captain of one Japanese sub refused to torpedo a "training ship" and another captain who discovered, just before firing his torpedo, that he was aiming at a hospital ship. Of course, for each incident such as this or Stigler and Lt. Brown's, there are probably hundreds of examples of atrocities that were committed by all sides during the war. The author's point is that even in war, where horrible things happen to thousands of people, there is still room for human compassion and that good men do not have to be corrupted by the horror of war. Another point he made is that even in war, for some it is important that they fight with honor and as much humanity as possible. It's the only way they can live with themselves if they survive. Notably, Stigler continued to fly up until the end of the war, ending up as a jet fighter pilot in the Me-262.

Thanks, Dave. I can't wait to see the Shuttle simulator! Too bad the museum didn't get one of the actual Shuttles.

Cavaliere57, Try posting this in the main forum. Visits to the site are down since many are waiting for WOFF, so maybe they haven't seen your post. I think that Olham probably has some templates he would give you if you let him know. I would help you, but I do not have the skill or patience to do aircraft skins, so I don't know where to start to help you.

Congrats, D! To paraphrase Homer Simpson, "Windows is the cause--and solution, to all of our computer problems."

Do you have all of the latest Microsoft Service Packs installed, Davy?

Andy's 3.1 update is ready for download. Just follow this link or go to the third party mods thread.

Super work, Andy. Looking forward to hearing how life at the front and in the air has changed!

Been there, done that (many, many times). But, I'll try it again as you said, with the increased text size. One thing about the Dell that I've noticed and also seen commented on on the web: the Ultrasharp is a very bright monitor. I've had to turn the brightness settings down to 15% or so or it is almost blinding--even in the middle of the day! Perhaps I need to turn down the brightness even more?