JBalsa

Well, I will make a .LIT texture along with my livery and see how things go. Thanks for all of your help though!

Our DA20 Eclipse does not have a glass cockpit. Have a look at the pictures. The cessna 152 has the newest avionics system, including electronic tachometers, and a garmin 430.

Thanks for all of the input guys! I really appreciate it! By the looks of it, I will probably go with the 152. It's Ironic, the 152 at the EFC is the oldest running 152 in Western Canada, but yet has the most modern panel in all of Western Canada. The 152 it is! Thanks! - Jman

Well, it seems that when I copy and paste the "thumbs.db" from another livery folder into mine, it makes MY livery work. Without the thumbs.db file in MY livery folder, the livery does not load. It seems that the thumbs.db is actually the .LIT texture. When I load the other livery's thumbs.db into my livery folder, the livery works, but once I turn down the sun, and engage the .LIT textures, the .LIT textures of the default aircraft appear. This DOES NOT happen when I DO NOT have the thumbs.db in MY livery folder.

Hey guys, I'm 13 years old right now, and I am in ground school at the Edmonton Flight College. I am starting training on my PPL hopefully this month. I need to choose one of 3 aircraft to train on. -Refurbished Cessna 152 (http://www.edmontonflyingclub.com/PAGES/c152.cfm) Least expensive -Brand new DA 20 Eclipse (http://www.edmontonflyingclub.com/PAGES/c-1.cfm) In between -New(er) Cessna 172 SP (http://www.edmontonflyingclub.com/PAGES/c172.cfm) Most expensive So I was wondering which plane is best for me to train on. I particularly like the DA20 because it has a joystick, and is not the most expensive plane. Some say the 152 is small, and responsive, and would go best with me, and some say that the 172 SP is the easiest and most high-tech to fly. So I was wondering about your opinions.

I did a bit more experimenting, and I tried adding the "thumbs.db" file to my custom livery. It made the livery work, but when the .LIT textures kicked in, the livery changed. So obviously I need to make a thumbs.db folder accustomed to my livery in order to make the livery work. Anybody know how to make a thumbs.db file? JGregory, the livery I am talking about is not downloaded, it is one that I am making.

So I took my first shot at making my (first) livery for the Mu-2B 60. I made the images in photoshop, and saved them in the same format that the .psd paint kits were, made a folder, and put the 3 files in the "Objects" folder. When I launch the livery in X-Plane, the default livery appears. Do I have to make a .LIT texture for it? Do I have to change the file format? I noticed in the other folders, there is a file called "thumbs.db" do I need that file for it to work? And what exactly is the thumbs.db file? Fill me in here! :-\ - Thanks!

That's a great looking little gem. I've been looking for a nice Van's RVx. Will that be featuring a 3D Cockpit? My shots for the day: Just exploring some beautiful geography near Alaska in Nils beautiful Hawker Hurricane! (Click for bigger images)

Isn't it amazing? 8) I'm not quite sure how my flight school managed to put a working mag compass on their flight sim that actually moved realistically!

The only video settings WITHIN X-Plane is the resolution. I use iMovie to do all of my editing, and then encode the video in 720P H.264 Codec. If you don't want to post videos on the internet, you can use lossless encoding, which takes up tons of space, and basically preserves the video without any codec (Video compression) If you plan to publish to youtube or something similar, .mp4 or H.264 would be the best video compression codecs to go by. Happy landings - Jman

Try turning on FSAA (full screen anti aliasing) to at least 2x, this fixed a number of issues with QT movie recordings in the past. If this persists, send a bug report to Austin. This has been happening to me too, it's just I don't record videos enough to care. Happy landings - Jman

Taconce, I highly doubt Austin will do any real hard work on X-Plane (desktop) for a while now. Like I said in my post above, Austin's focuses are currently on the iPhone, and he plans on releasing several new iPhone apps before starting major development on X-Plane. I'm not saying that he is shoving X-Plane completely off to the side right now, it's just that his interests are currently on something different. Not to mention that he is also quite busy with other things, like X-Plane congress for example. Happy landings - Jman

I was lucky enough to meet Austin a couple of weeks ago, and I asked him about all of the Garmin nav stuff. As you all may know, Austin needs to make money, and right now, the most money to be made is with the iPhone, agreed? So, Austin is currently focussing on the iPhone, so he can get the most sales. In the future, (When the iPhone buzz looses it's fizz) Austin's intentions are to eventually make a functional Garmin 430, 530, and 1000. Along with that, he wishes to take some time off to make a Columbia 400 for X-Plane. There are other features which he is working to add in the future, (which I am not allowed to tell you) but currently the sales equal: Garmin 430, 530, 1000: A few more sales, iPhone: 4000 times MORE sales So for now, Austin is focused on the iPhone. On a different note, I would like to see some new ground physics, such as runway friction with tires, and helicopter "sliding" And a feature that we all want, (Hey, admit it!) AI Traffic, is (supposedly) in development, but there are still no promises about it being implemented in X-Plane any time soon. That's about all I have (Allowed ) to say for now! -Jman

If you do not wish to post attachments to use up precious attachment space, you can go to a website like photobucket or image shack, and embed your images into the page.

I agree with Nilsh on that one. There are 2 plugins for FF, one in development for windows, and another one made for X-Plane V6 that only works on PPC models. I bought a Cyborg Evo Force a long time ago, and then found out that X-Plane didn't support FF. A waste of $120 Perhaps FF could be included within X-Joystick? :

Just wanted to add a note: The difference between X-Plane in a box (By Graphsim) and X-Plane in the paper cases, is that the disks in the paper cases are made for all three Operating Systems (Mac, Windows, and Linux) The disks by Graphsim are only support single operating systems. (One box set can only run on one operating system) Happy buying! - Jman

Okay, so I finally bought a joystick. The source had this joystick for $20, So I bought it. The controls are VERY stiff. It's actually quite difficult to push the stick all the way forward! Just the way I like it. I'l admit, the joystick is actually a knockoff of my Saitek Cyborg. Look at the resemblance: An answer to my second question is still appreciated! Thanks! - Jman

Wow! Buying a new joystick altogether is cheaper! I think I'l just go to memory express and buy a $16 signal converter... I understand that the chip you suggested would be a good learning experience, but I just don't have the money to buy any of those chips. :-[ -Thanks for the reply!

Ok, so I did a bit of thinking, and remembered I had an old top gun thrustmaster, I want to buy a converter for the port, but does anyone know how to MANUALLY convert 15 pin gameport to usb? I am not afraid to get down 'n dirty with a soldering gun. (I have had past experience with soldering) -Thanks! (Click for bigger images)

The flight dynamics for me are always first. Unfortunately, there are numerous gaps in which X-Plane lacks realism. When taking off on a crosswind in a 172 SP, you are supposed to turn your ailerons into the wind, and steer with your rudder. What happens when I do that in X-Plane? Well, a huge wing strike! I find the best thing, is to download planes that have been reviewed by pilots who actually fly them.

I'm pretty sure it will run on 32 bit processors, it just says on their site that it will "extend 64 bit capabilities" nothing about dropping 32 bit. If they dropped 32 bit support, they would lose about 85% of their sales! :-\

I think the aviator is what I'l go with. Ordering it from X-Plane.org is probably the best price, but if I can't do that, I will probably go with the ST90. Thanks for the reply. Any answer to my 2nd question anybody?

Hello all, So I'm planning on buying an el-cheapo joystick to run along side my good Saitek cyborg evo force. I want to have my good Joystick run control surfaces throttle etc, and a second one to control interior viewing and/or moving. Is there a way to run the mouse click as the trigger on the 2nd Joystick? That way, I can have my mouse centered on my screen, move the view to the instrument, and pull the trigger. (I have tried viewing with my good Joystick, and it's very nice, and easy to control) So that's question #1, as for my second question, is there any joystick that you guys recommend I buy under $60 Canadian? ($41 American) I was thinking about getting either one of the Saitek ST 290's, or a Saitek aviator. Thanks in advance! - Jman

Snow leopard is already out, and is a free upgrade! It's marked 10.5.6 on the update list. Leopard is well worth the price. I don't understand hy you would hate leopard's user interface? ??? I think it's one of the best available! I don't use leopard for X-Plane though, the last ATI Drivers were from 2005, and I get WAAAY better performance with new drivers on Vista.

Ok, thanks for this Cameron! I may end up buying the craft in the future, but right now, it isn't very high on my priority list. There are so many things I want to buy, but so little money to buy it with!