VonS

One more post for this thread that might be interesting for casual jet-jockey FlightGear fliers - I recently discovered that there is an old (maybe abandoned) MiG-21bis model available in the official FG_Addon hangar for the flight sim (Addon models may be downloaded standalone at this link, by the way). While there are newer forks of that abandoned aircraft, such as the fully-JSBSim model available here, and an avionics-upgraded YASim model featured here - I was more interested in converting the abandoned model in the official Addon hangar into a "stripped war surplus" and/or "privately owned" variant. Also, the other models appear to feature a combination of GPL and non-GPL files and sub-models so I wasn't interested in tinkering with those. The obsolete model that I have revamped, from the official FG_Addon hangar, is fully GPL compliant. On that note, several changes were implemented, some of which include: - removal of the JSBSim flight model that remained incomplete and of JSBSim code interspersed throughout several files (strangely the model featured two flight models, one JSBSim and the other YASim) - light recoloring of some textures, such as afterburner, cockpit, pilot, etc. - removal of the gunsight and radar entirely from the aircraft - removal of all weapons - removal of wing pylons for a cleaner look - enabling of animation of wheels while rotating - enabling of fully functioning air brake (previously only the front, not the rear, air brakes would deploy in my install for example) - removal of the brake "chute" entirely - removal of the external fuel tank - removal of the strange ejection feature that would keep the ejected pilot hovering about 30 meters above the aircraft, etc. - extensive re-tweaking of the YASim flight model to increase drag and stall values, to decrease empty weight and lift values, to increase top speed, to de-sensitize control surface movement, also re-working of landing gear values, etc. - modification/transplantation of several sounds (I found that the stock sounds were not very representative of an early, fast jet aircraft) Main controls are now: -----> ctrl + b (to deploy/retract air brakes) -----> shift + q (to cut fuel flow to the engine) -----> to turn off lights, press the forward slash (" / ") on your keyboard to access the property window/browser in FG, and then scroll to "controls/lighting" General performance stats. are now: - stall speed with gears extended and full flaps, about 160 kts - stall speed with gears retracted and no flaps, about 190 kts - take note that stalls sometimes occur as high as 250 kts or so, depending on turn tightness, angle of attack, etc. - land at about 200 kts - takeoffs are good at around 250 kts - top speed with full afterburner tested at around 25,000 to 30,000 feet alt., attaining 1330 kts (2460 kph or so); the MiG-21 historically can attain similar top speeds at alt. of 2300-2400 kph, but be prepared for a short flight (fuel runs out in less than 5 mins. that way I think) - glides well enough if speed above 300 kts or so; watch for pancaking drops if below 250 kts approximately (may not be aware of the dangerous transition if not paying attention to climb rate/descent, etc.) ----- The modified (YASim) MiG-21bis ("stripped/civilian variant") is available via the link included below the pic that follows (click on the pic to access a test flight/demonstration video, if interested). MiG-21bis.zip Good flying to you in early, noisy, high-powered jets,

Brief update to this thread -- an Enhancement Package (with minor shader tweaking, improved FPS, etc.) has been released recently for the "Unfriendly Skies" upgrade to WoTR BoF. Recommended is to check over this lengthier post for more info., and to follow the links contained therein to download the relevant package. Cheers & good WoTRing to you (in unfriendly skies),

Hello Tonci, excellent catch there with those strange .mos files -- perhaps that will be the ticket for using newer versions of the AMD DLLs with the WoFF series. Here's hoping that it all pans out well. In terms of .mos files themselves, I haven't researched how the WoFF (CFS3) engine actually uses them, but .mos usually refers to "Leaf camera raw file" (i.e., raw camera binary format developed by Leaf Imaging). To convert .mos files to other image formats, check over the program called Filestar* (the free version seems capable enough --- see this link). NOTE: see Pol's response below mine -- the .mos files used in the WoFF series are not raw image files, but instead data files that control texture overlays and other related details. (Thanks Pol for the clarification.) Cheers,

Glad that it solves the problem with the PWCG. Unfortunately I can't help with stock career oddities in RoF -- my various mods were only tested in quick combat mode in RoF, as well as using ver. 16.x.x of the PWCG. It's possible that incompatibilities emerge between my AI mod(s) and the stock career options in RoF, as well as with the newer/beta ver. 3.x.x of the PWCG. If flying using the stock career options, recommended is to avoid using the AI mod(s), but the DM mod should be fine to use. Cheers,

Hello Rwmierzwa, look for the entries called "MaxTurbulence" and "MaxWind" in the "RofCampaignSpecific" files provided in either of my RoF-mods packages that are available under the first post of this thread. Those values can also be changed from within the settings panel of the PWCG for RoF - but recommended, especially if running my "Version 3" modulations files - is to change the numbers for any entries manually (from within the "RofCampaignSpecific" files themselves). Cheers,

Hello Hiuuz, the AI takeoff problem is largely linked to strong winds and/or turbulence. Might be the case that some of the weather values in my AI mods are making it difficult for the AI-flown aircraft to operate always (and consistently) in very rough weather, especially with the Albatroses for some reason. Recommended is to reduce the turbulence value to 2 or 3, also wind speeds to less than 8 or 9 m/s (such values are close to stock) - in order that the AI always takes off easily. It's unfortunate that the AI is so limited in its takeoff routine by stronger weather values in RoF - also troublesome are AI landing procedures even with stock weather (I don't know if landing routines were ever improved in the FC series since I never bothered with the latter). If I ever decide on tinkering further with an AI mod for RoF - I will see if anything more is possible with the AI behavior. My general observation at this point in time is that nothing further can be done with the AI because the sim is so locked to more extensive (and much needed) modding. Cheers,

Linux-Related Public Service Announcement for This WoFF Support & Mods. Thread (Oct. 16, 2024; info. updated Nov. 26, 2024) As per this post, the Dual CPU X79 build continues to chug along handsomely but is now running Linux Mint 22 (LTS version, Ubuntu-based). A GUI front-end to "sensors" (the latter available via the terminal command window) was found in the form of the program "Psensor" and that is available in the Mint repositories (see detailed pic. below). Fan speeds, as well as observed temps., continue to function well, with no peculiarities noted. Also found in the meantime was the wonderful program "LACT" (that is a somewhat new and easy-to-use GUI for AMD GPUs on the Linux side of things). "LACT" may be found at this link and provides fan curve support, GPU over-clocking, etc. Other tweaking and tuning was also done, as per some of the helpful suggestions located under the Easy Linux Tips Project page (especially tips for selecting a more efficient windows compositor, reduction in frequency of RAM swap, streamlining of the minty repo-ed version of FireFox, etc.). Install flat-pack versions of programs at your own discretion, by the way - I have found that most of what I need is already in the Mint repositories or available via the Mint software panel. See the illustrative pic. below for a full-desktop snapshot of the bare-metal LM22 install that is now running on the X79. Eventually - no promises when - the BH&H2 generation of WoFF will be installed in Linux Mint once I tinker more with WINE (on Mint). Ideally, I would also like to find a way of lowering the video LOD value to -1 on this setup. There is no "ATISetLod" utility equivalent that I am aware of available for Linux, but perhaps there is a command line tweak that is possible. For those who are wondering why Windows 10 (version 22H2) with the Enterprise ver. 19.x DLLs for AMD has disappeared, to have been replaced by this minty fresh Linux install - suffice it to say that some oddities with the ver. 19.x AMD DLLs were at times noticed over the last few months - such as the crossfire option disappearing from the AMD GPU menu. An attempt to remedy with removal and re-installation of the AMD DLLs resulted in total inability to reboot either into the BIOS or Windows itself. I therefore removed the SSD from the X79 build, reformatted it, and installed Linux Mint instead. (I do have an installation USB handy with the venerable ver. 1809 of Windows 10 Pro, as well as the excellent ver. 17.x DLLs for AMD GPUs - that I have running on the 2013 Mac Pro - should I ever decide to "re-Window" the X79 build - but I will most likely leave this box "mintified." I won't bother with the 22H2 ver. of Windows anymore because it doesn't allow installation of the ver. 17.x AMD DLLs, supporting nothing earlier than the ver. 19.x generation.) Take note also that the OTT (Over the Top) Addon Package for WoFF BH&H2 has been released recently. As noted by OBD, several older-generation mods. are not compatible with OTT. My FM tweaks packages for the BH&H2-era of WoFF might not be compatible with the OTT Addon. I will most likely not bother upgrading the FM packages to be compatible with OTT and future patches/updates to the WoFF series because such FM tweaks no longer appear to be needed, or at any rate are not as popular as during the UE/PE-era of WoFF. In terms of the various GPU Tuners/Enhancement Packages that are available - the one for WoTR has been updated recently for the "Unfriendly Skies" Addon (see relevant post above in this thread); for WoFF OTT, on the other hand, please see the note included below regarding a beta version of the Tuner/Enhancement Package. I am currently unable to provide anything better than a beta package for OTT since I don't have that expansion; perhaps I will tinker with a more thorough enhancement package for OTT sometime next year (time-permitting of course). NOTE (Oct. 20, 2024): for those interested in increasing average FPS in your OTT Addon for WoFF BH&H2, you might wish to try out the JSGME-friendly file(s) located below. Simply unzip the package and place into the "MODS" folder for WoFF, load via JSGME and go fly. The file(s) provide a further, more rigorous series of tweaks to the previously released "FrankenBHAH Enhancement Package" and "FrankenMiniTuner" files and are intended only for the OTT Addon to WoFF. For non-beta mods. and tuners, etc., for earlier versions of WoFF - see the relevant post located above in this same thread. If you prefer that the beta tuner improve only FPS without tweaking shaders, delete the "shaders30" folder and "shaders" xml file before loading the package via JSGME. Recommended is not to delete the "preload" xml file since that may help with overall quick(er) loading of clouds and other items. BetaGPUtunerForOTTexpansion_VonS.zip Cheers all,

While I don't care much for "big iron" aircraft and have always preferred single-engine, piston-powered contraptions in the various flight sims out there (e.g., FE2, the WoFF series, RoF) - I do appreciate the classic Boeing 707 that I have downloaded for FlightGear, as well as the handsome tri-jet that is/was the DC-10. On that note I have downloaded the standalone install for the DC-10, a model created by Ryan Miller several years ago for FG. The model is as well available via the main launcher (in the sim) but I prefer the standalone route that allows me to place aircraft into my "custom aircraft" folder in FG. While the DC-10 is technically in beta stage, with some details missing from the cockpit - the autopilot, flight model, external 3D model, etc., are all complete. The aircraft can be found at this link. Please find included under the representative pic. that follows further below a zipped file that contains an improved sounds folder, as well as a modified FM file for the DC-10. In stock form the aircraft was too twitchy, requiring de-sensitization of several values. It is now more comfortable to fly, with takeoffs and landings being more manageable. The sounds folder has borrowed some sounds from the 707, and mixed them with those of the DC-10 - for a more noticeable rumble, especially when listening externally to the DC-10's engines as they whine and roar. Internal sounds are now also somewhat smoother. The supplied, modified FM is only for the standard DC-10-30 provided by Ryan Miller (no modifications were done for the tanker and cargo variants). If you prefer to fly cargo, it's easy enough to re-name some of the supplied skins so that a cargo skin is visible when flying the modified DC-10-30 FM. Also, because the aircraft was (unfortunately) left in beta stage, there is no in-cockpit way to turn off the engines. Instead, to turn off engines, do as follows: a) press the forward slash (" / ") on your keyboard to access the property window/browser in FG b) scroll to "controls/engines" c) choose "controls/engines/engine" and highlight the option called "cutoff" (change the stock value of "false" to "true," and click "Set") d) repeat the same procedure outlined in step (c) for the other two engines called "engine1" and "engine2" ("engine1" is the middle engine, by the way, underneath the tail section of the DC-10) To turn engines on, choose "auto-start" from the in-sim menu. EDIT: June 21, 2024 - have uploaded a further revised FM file for the DC-10-30 that includes slightly less thrust for the engines, a slightly reduced empty weight, as well as a more historical cruise alt., and less fuel capacity (the second, central aux. fuel tank has been removed that was standard on the DC-10-30ER); the FM file now more accurately represents the non-ER version of the DC-10-30. (Picture displays a slight modification of the 'CP Air' livery for the 'DC-10' in 'FG,' done by Emmanuel Savage; such livery was used in the 1970s and 80s on the now defunct airline.) DC10_30_FMnSoundTweaksVer2_VonS.zip Happy flying,

For those who (like me) have recently discovered the excellent Cessna 170B that is available for FlightGear, you might be interested in downloading the small zipped file that is linked to under the representative pic. below. Files included in the package are organized according to correct folder placement/hierarchy; simply unzip, copy over/replace to your C170B folder, and the modifications are implemented. Modifications are minor. A few values have been tweaked for the JSBSim FM of the 170B (e.g., increasing drag values for extended flaps; reducing lift capability slightly for the elevator, as well as for extended flaps; de-tuning of aileron and rudder movement slightly for less twitchy and sensitive behavior; slightly increasing friction nos. for the wheels to minimize risk of perpetual roll on tarmac with engine idle and/or off; slowing of flap extension speed for more natural/hydraulic behavior; etc.). EDIT: June 21, 2024 - since stumbling onto the excellent 170B project, I have managed to tweak the JSBSim FM further for myself (to desensitize the aircraft a bit more), as well as re-colored the skins, changed the engine sound file, and tweaked the beacon light to fit better the re-colored skins (as well as lowered the pilot seating/view position). The finalized update (located below) also includes four engine variants for the C170B: the standard Continental O-300-A, a Lycoming O-320, the Continental IO-370 upgrade, as well as a Franklin O-350 option. The O-300-A and O-320 engines are now linked to a fixed pitch prop set to 25 degrees. The IO-370 and Franklin O-350 are now linked to a slightly improved prop (compared to the stock version), but with no blade pitch specified. Further tweaked as much as possible has been fuel consumption rate (was too high previously); also included now are realistic (historical) degrees for min/max control movement of rudder, ailerons and elevator; and ram air intake has been enabled on the various engine types provided, to increase top speed by a few knots. The different FM files now operate as a pop-down window when the Cessna 170B is installed into the "custom aircraft" folder of FlightGear, for your convenience (simply choose the engine variant you wish to from within FlightGear, load the aircraft, and go fly). Approximate (revised) performance stats. per engine type at full throttle, as per the Version 6 package that is available below the representative pic.: 124 knots (230 kph) at 1000 feet alt. with O-300-A (145 HP); climb about 750 feet/min at 65 knots speed* 125.7 knots (233 kph) at 1000 feet alt. with O-320 (150 HP); climb about 1000 feet/min at 65 knots speed* 142 knots (263 kph) at 1000 feet alt. with IO-370 (195 HP); climb about 1400 feet/min at 70 knots speed** 145.5 knots (269 kph) at 1000 feet alt. with Franklin_O-350 (220 HP); climb about 1550 feet/min at 70 knots speed** * prop pitch fixed to 25 degrees in the stock prop file ** prop pitch not fixed/specified in the improved prop file My tweaked FM for the C170B/Super 170 uses (very) slightly increased coefficient/friction nos. for the left/right and tail gears; recommended, if taking off from grass, is to lift the tail as soon as possible to build enough speed. The "Version 6" package contains my final set of revisions for the C170B (all revisions are based on the stock C170B FM that was kindly provided for the project by A. Fernández; all revisions also include more realistic basic drag and induced drag values suggested by "Ysop" of the FlightGear forums). To keep track of future FM revisions/additions, please see the official link for the C170B located at the top of this post. The revisions linked to below are attempts to recreate historical/recorded performance brackets by tweaking the stock FM file as best as possible. Thank you to Adrián Fernández for the original model and textures for this fine (retro) aircraft. C170B_EngineOverhaulVer6_VonS.zip Good flying to you,

One more small update for this thread before I retreat temporarily into work mode - as per relevant info. in my previous post, have now done further tests and it is indeed possible to load DDS terrain files directly into FE2 (simplest is to point to relevant DDS files from within the general data ini file that resides in the "Terrains" folder). Having said that, one peculiarity about loading of DDS terrains, instead of BMP ones - is that trees, buildings, other objects, etc., do not show up anymore. Once DDS files are converted to BMP format, on the other hand (as seen in the pics. in my previous post) - trees and buildings once again nicely come through. So, unlike FlightGear that siphons in PNG-to-DDS converted satellite imagery (when its photo-scenery option is set up), FE2/SF2 would require conversion of DDS to BMP files, so as not to smother out the added immersion of objects and trees already present in/on the ThirdWire terrains. Couple of pics. below with DDS ortho/photo-scenery being tested in the Mesopotamian theater in FE2. Graphics look quite good to me but unfortunate is the loss of trees and whatnot - so it's back to conversion to BMP format. Also, as evident in the pics. below, with careful choice of satellite photos the effects are not too jarring between different tiles when all are placed together. Not too bad for initial, manual placement of tiles - but very tricky to place correctly once you get towards rivers, seas/oceans, shorelines, and so on. The job of a terrain modeler is not an easy one - virtual drinks on the house for all terra-formers, also for object-placement ini file crunchers. One thing I particularly like about the satellite photo-scenery options in FlightGear is that, if you like, you can set things up in such a way that the scenery downloading/siphoning mechanism follows your aircraft as you fly, and nicely drops correctly placed terrains below, around, and in front of your flying path. Such a feature requires, once the photo-scenery siphoning system is set up, that you make sure to feed the following command/property to FlightGear itself: --telnet=5000 The photo-siphoning mechanism then connects to local IP no. 127.0.0.1 (i.e., "localhost") on port 5000 and "feeds" satellite imagery to FlightGear as soon as terrain images are downloaded. Such an automatized process makes unnecessary the hassle of manually attempting to place photo-scenery tiles in correct places and positions. (Scenery can also be saved locally, for later offline use - without always having to re-download images.) While there is no multiplayer capability in FE2 - theoretically, if the "telnet=5000" command could somehow be fed to the FE2.exe itself - then a simple re-duplication of one of the more accessible photo-siphoning mechanisms used by FlightGear (e.g., the Julia programming app linked to a photo-scenery Julia add-on) - might work for FE2 too. Will post further thoughts in this thread if I find that there is any way to get the photo-scenery siphoning system to "talk" (establish a telnet connection) with FE2. Otherwise, it will be a very slow process of manually picking through, and choosing, satellite tiles - and that will be called up via the general data ini that's in the terrains folder. Cheers all (& good dreams about auto-loading of satellite imagery in FE2),

Hi All, Have been doing a bit of tinkering lately with my FlightGear install (see this thread for more info.) - and results are pleasing enough in what is a free, open-source flight sim. Managed eventually to get accurate photo-scenery working in FG, which is a noticeable improvement over the stock (dated) scenery that has been available in that sim for years on end (see pic. below for photo-scenery at work in FG, in this case in the Mesopotamian/s. Iraqi area; the Alb. D.I is a re-skin and FM-overhaul of a model done by Lester Boffo). On a hunch, I then converted a bunch of the photo-tiles from FG (stock format is DDS) to BMP format - so that they become visible in the FE2 terrains folder - and it does indeed work - but would require careful, aesthetic choices regarding what tiles to replace in the terrains folder, such as farms, cities, deserts, etc. - for best cohesion and not too many jarring disconnects between tiles. Nice to see that stock trees and buildings are populating over the satellite/ortho-terrains too, in FE2. Photo-scenery is simply an improved "satellite" carpet that covers the stock scenery and terrain framework in FlightGear - and by extension works the same way in the ThirdWire sims but requires manual conversion to BMP format and manual placement in the terrains folder (perhaps the DDS format would work too, but I didn't bother tinkering with the various settings/text files this time around in the terrains folder). The other good thing about FlightGear is that it is fully under the GNU GPL (General Public License; i.e., "copy-left" license) - so there are no copyright problems that I know of if one borrows such ortho-scenery for FE2 too (haven't bothered to test with SF2). And if working on such a terrain swap as a personal project - that is of course even simpler. A few representative pics. below with just a few ortho-scenery tiles placed over Stephen1918's upgrade of the Mesopotamian theater for FE2. Results look pretty good, particularly when flying higher up, and I haven't noticed any FPS drop with the photo-scenery tiles loaded. Some old tiles are still in place in the pics., for comparative purposes. Any empty areas are where I didn't bother to load tiles. Anyway - I hope you find this post interesting - it's perhaps the "cheapest" way of upgrading tiles across the various theaters available for FE2. If I find enough free time I might tinker further with this side-project; will post comments if the results prove particularly successful. Cheers & good flying,

Quite pleased with how my (ReShade ver. 4.9.1) shaders profile for FG is functioning on my rig, I began thinking about how to improve the ave. FPS further in the sim, beyond the tips located in the top post of this thread, for AMD-vid rigs running the sim. Finally, I stumbled on an odd little tweak that works well enough and is worth sharing in this post. The tweak requires that you download the OPENAL64.DLL file hosted over here on the DLL-Files.com website that has been around for at least a couple of decades. Once you download and unzip the DLL rename it to "OpenAL32.dll" (without the quotation marks). Then, navigate to your FlightGear "bin" directory (the actual sim folder located somewhere in your c_drive usually, not into the folder that hosts downloaded aircraft, custom aircraft, and whatnot). Once you are in the relevant "bin" directory (see illustrative pic. below), find the file called "OpenAL32.dll" and save a backup of that DLL somewhere - after that, replace/overwrite the DLL (that is ver. 1.x.x, a fairly old one) - with the one that you have downloaded and renamed identically. On average, I am noticing an FPS improvement in FlightGear with the OPENAL64 driver masquerading as OpenAL32 - an improvement of anywhere from 5 to 20 FPS (or so), depending on cockpit views, angle of views, as well as weather details and photo-scenery loading rates. The driver replacement also cuts down satisfactorily on any possible stuttering when FPS occasionally do drop. Your mileage may vary - but from what I've seen on my AMD-vid rig the results of this little tweak are good enough to improve overall smoothness and quality of flying in FlightGear. (NOTE: the driver-replacement tip mentioned in this post *may not* be as helpful on Linux, considering the possibility that you are already perhaps running newer OpenGL drivers in your Linux-variant FG installation. The tip will most likely be of greatest help on Windows systems and/or "Wintosh" hybridizations where Windows is installed on a Mac. Can't say anything regarding Mac OS X/macOS because I don't have FG installed on the Mac OS side of my computer.) Some representative pics. of FlightGear ver. 2020.3.19 follow below, with photo-scenery, my "pseudo-HDR" shaders profile loaded (via ReShade), and the OpenAL driver replacement tip at work. The flight was around Naples, Italy, at about 10,000 feet alt. (with take-off from the LIRM airport). The Morane-Saulnier Type N used in the pics is a re-skinned and FM-overhauled version of the non-GPL model originally done by Lester Boffo and located here. I am also thinking of re-skinning and FM-overhauling his Albatros D.I, perhaps to be done up in Ottoman livery so that I can do some photo-realistic flying above the Mesopotamian front (c. 1917). The Boffo model overhauls are only for my private use since they follow various types and sub-types of non-GPL licenses. Download those yourselves from the non-GPL FlightGear repositories and tweak to taste, if so inclined. Good flying to all,

Have recently tinkered with a Fokker E.II (mid-production batch) FM conversion for Emmanuel Baranger's excellent E.III for FlightGear - the FM changes are now offered as an option in E. Baranger's FG Hangar. While testing the FM, I also updated my WoFF series shaders profile (for ReShade ver. 4.9.1), so that it works well with FlightGear too and creates a "pseudo-HDR" effect, among other things. The shaders file is included in zipped format underneath the video link (to the Fokk. E.II tests) that follows. You may have good luck with vers. 5.x.x or 6.x.x of ReShade too, but for convenience please find relevant download links to the venerable/stable ver. 4.9.1 under this thread. Take note, when installing ReShade for FlightGear, to choose "OpenGL" as the API option; then install the default shader package, as well as the Fubax and Astray packages. Necessary filters to activate, after installation of the shader packages, are: Vibrance, DPX, FXAA, LumaSharpen, Smart_Sharp, and Clarity. Also don't forget to select "performance mode" in the ReShade options. The video below (click on pic. to open link) is with my FG shaders profile activated and with satellite photo-imagery being siphoned into FlightGear; see instructions in the previous post, above, for how to enable photo-imagery in your FG installs on AMD-vid rigs, etc. (NOTE: Various rotary engine sounds in the video linked to below are © OBD Software, copied over for personal use from my WoFF UE/PE-era install, and are not supplied with the Fokk. E.II FM modification that's available via E. Baranger's FG Hangar.) FGshadersVonS.zip Happy flying,

One more friendly public service post under this thread, regarding FlightGear. Many thanks first of all to Emmanuel Baranger for pointing me in the right direction for how to enable photo/ortho-scenery in this fine, open-source simulator. Most of the important details regarding photo-scenery and proper installation of packages, programs, etc., in order to have everything function properly - are available under the "Julia Photoscenery Generator" tutorial. Thank you "abassign" for the original instructions, coding, and tutorial. Also many thanks to Manuel who has done a video run-through of the main components of that tutorial. I wish, however, to draw attention to a few peculiarities that are likely relevant only to Intel-era Macs and/or to specific "Wintosh" combinations such as I am running, and perhaps others are running too. Tips and directions below are for the stable ver. 2020.3.19 of FlightGear, by the way. Five important things to keep in mind: a) when downloading necessary applications to enable photoscenery, as indicated in the tutorial, such as the "Photoscenary" files, the Julia compiler, and the ImageMagick application that converts images to the DDS format, make sure to download the *actual installer* for ImageMagick (indicated with an .exe extension) - it is fine to download the portable version of the Julia compiler, but do *not* download the portable version of ImageMagick; the full installer for the latter is necessary; furthermore, while installing ImageMagick, make sure to select the two options for "set system path to files/program installed," as well as for "legacy converters"; also important is to install the Visual C++ Redistributable Package that is linked to near the bottom of the main ImageMagick website - only with all of those details followed does ImageMagick work properly on an Intel Mac b) once all of the necessary programs and files are installed, go into the "Photoscenary" folder, open the two text files titled "conn" and "args" - delete the contents of both - and paste in *either* of the following two sets of commands into *both* files (don't forget to save once the information is entered): option one, for great photo-imagery quality and decent FPS, even if flying in multiplayer: --connect 127.0.0.1:5000 -s 5 -r 30 --attemps 3 --over 1 --sdwn 2 option two, once again for fine photo-scenery quality and good FPS, even in multiplayer (but perhaps slightly better for lower-end rigs): --connect 127.0.0.1:5000 -s 4 -r 40 --attemps 3 --over 1 --sdwn 1 c) while still inside the "Photoscenary" folder, right-click on the "photoscenary.jl" application and select the option to open it with Notepad; once the application is opened in Notepad, scroll to the following code: julia -t 10 -p 2 photoscenary.jl and change, for example, to: julia -t 8 -p 2 photoscenary.jl (the suggested change reduces slightly the no. of threads that the "photoscenary" application uses to download satellite imagery for FlightGear; the general rule of thumb is to set the no. of threads to 75% or slightly less of your total no. of processor threads available; furthermore, the "-p 2" command references the no. of processor cores to dedicate to photo-imagery downloading; a sensible no. for the cores is no more than 50% of the total cores that you have -- anything higher than such percentages devoted to ortho/photo-siphoning is excessive and will not improve tile-download smoothness or overall FPS in FlightGear -- from my tests, I have noticed that I am getting very good results either with 8 or 9 threads and either 2 or 3 cores, devoted to the tile siphoning/download process; the total no. of threads on my system is 12, and the total no. of cores is 6, by the way) d) make sure, before running the "photoscenary.jl" application (i.e., before double-clicking it so that it begins to fetch photo-scenery for FlightGear), to unselect any custom scenery that you might have installed in FlightGear and that is visible under the "Add-ons" menu; then run "photoscenary.jl" and it will proceed to set up a default "Orthophotos" folder at the following directory path - \FlightGear\Downloads\TerraSync\Orthophotos e) last, it is vital directly to select the created "Orthophotos" folder as your custom scenery folder in FG's "Add-ons" menu; otherwise, photo-scenery will not be visible while flying in FlightGear; if you have other custom terrain folders, you may re-select them at this point, but make sure that the "Orthophotos" folder is always at the top of the hierarchy (see illustrative pic. below) NOTE 1: "photoscenary.jl" will on its next run set up another "Orthophotos" folder within the one that we have already locked to FlightGear, but that is fine; allow the directory structure to exist as \TerraSync\Orthophotos\Orthophotos (and feel free to delete any other folders that may have been created in the meantime in the first "Orthophotos" folder of the directory path, right after "TerraSync") NOTE 2: if running the application OSArmor (or the older variant "NoVirusThanks OSArmor"), make sure to *disable protection* before running "photoscenary.jl"; otherwise, blocked process warnings will pop up with every photo-scenery download and will likely disrupt operation of the whole photo-scenery fetching mechanism NOTE 3: if your photo-scenery is sometimes being broken, patched and/or over-ridden by the stock TerraSync terrains, while flying, recommended is manually to place the main "Orthophotos" folder in the following directory path -----> C:\Users\UserName\FlightGear\Downloads\Orthophotos (don't forget to adjust accordingly under the "Additional scenery folders" setting in FlightGear too, after having done this, and once again to keep the new directory path at the top level of your scenery folder list; see pic. above for illustrative purposes) Below follow several representative pics. of photo-scenery functioning properly in ver. 2020.3.19 of FlightGear on an Intel Mac. I have not noticed any drop in FPS with photo-scenery enabled; on the contrary, my overall FPS seems to have improved by a few frames when compared with flight over stock TerraSync terrains in FG. While there are so many wonderful things about photo-scenery, one of the details worth mentioning is that the terrain now overlaps very closely with what is seen on the "mpmap" if you enjoy tracking your flight's progress that way too. Take note, for example, of the subtle depression in the grass where the Piper PA-28 B Model has been parked, and also of the location where it sits on the Google maps pic. (great stuff). As well please find included, below the pics., a small attachment that includes a few ALS shader tweaks for FlightGear, to improve graphics crispness and/or to stabilize FPS further on AMD-vid rigs. FlightGear_ALSshaderTweaks_VonS.zip Good flying to you,

FM tweaks available in relevant aircraft folders in E. Baranger's FlightGear Hangar. (The WACO S-220 conversion is based on the SIAI-Marchetti S.205R that's available there, by the way. All Von S FM tweaks for FG fall under the GNU GPL.) Brief, approximate performance specs. per type: Bleriot XI 1909 Model - max 42 / cruise 39 kts Egerton & Mann 140-HP SPAD 7 - max 103.6 / cruise 97.2 kts Piper PA-28 B Model 150-HP - max 120 / cruise 110 kts Early Grumman AA1 - max 125 / cruise 120 / never exceed 169.5 kts AA1 150-HP Conversion - max 142 / cruise 137 / never exceed 169.5 kts WACO S-220 - max 161 / cruise 152 / never exceed about 175-180 kts Tips: - use opposite-to-turn rudder on the Bleriot and SPAD if you are falling into a side-slip and/or spin; also good for tight turns - watch speed on the Grummans owing to the early variant "hot wing" on them; unexpected sharp stalls pop up sometimes below about 85 knots, sometimes at higher speeds too for added excitement - WACO, similar to the S.205R, lands best when close to stall speed a foot or two above a runway - about 10% front-stick is required on the Grummans while on the ground, to control steering (transition smoothly to about 10% back-stick while accelerating to take-off; takes practice) - about 10% back-stick during take-offs (to get the nose up) on the WACO; will "fly itself" once it passes about 80-85 knots Representative clips: - various flight tests available further below (simply click on a pic. to open the relevant clip hosted on DropBox; clips average 7 - 10 mins. in length approx.) - airport where flight tests recorded is near Grazzanise, Italy (airport code: LIRM) - all clips recorded via Game Bar (on Windows 10) and further compressed via VLC Player - version of FlightGear used for flight and tests is the stable ver. 2020.3.19 (which is recommended for AMD video, particularly on Intel Macs; newer, nightly versions of FG may not be stable on AMD vid. and/or on Mac setups and "Wintosh" hybridizations for now; experiment as per taste) - Bleriot model visible in the relevant clip is a mixed/hybrid combination of old and new files and model components, taken from the main aircraft launcher/hangar in FlightGear and also from E. Baranger's hangar, for personal testing; a newer model is available in E. Baranger's hangar - Anzani and Hisso sounds for the Bleriot and SPAD are extractions from my FM/Realism package for First Eagles 2 - landing rate add-on visible upon landing in the flight test clips is a customization of the one available here; an earlier edition for older vers. of FlightGear may be found at this link Cheers all & good flying in FG, EDIT - Nov. 11, 2024 - a few more YASim FM tweaks have been provided (see info. in the pic. below) for E. Baranger's FlightGear Hangar. This set of additions wraps up my FM contributions to the excellent, open-source FlightGear flight simulator.