Daveduck

Well, that was all pretty, uh, weird. As someone once falsely labelled as Fake A, I was curious to hear today that he had finally been identified. (Although it had been so long since I logged on that I'd forgotten the password. Surprised the account is still here!) Cheers.

The blog is offline for the moment. The scenery is excellent. Get it here: http://forums.x-plane.org/index.php?autocom=downloads&showfile=7034&st=10

Well, the Org link to the package is now gone, but the files are still available from Thierry Damman (i.e. "Lebelge")'s site, as posted in the blog entry above. He's now offering what he calls version "1.1." It's a pretty major step up, though, with nearly triple the resolution of the original textures, which were already incredible. Unfortunately, he's packed them into a single 4.1 gig RAR, so you're best advised to use a downloader that can resume if interrupted. The download went fine and relatively fast for me using Speed Download for the Mac.

I'm sure I'm not alone in being curious about which a/c is at issue here. You've gone halfway toward the public-service goal of a review. Your writing it up as a full article, with illustrations to make your case, would be most welcome.

Not without its problems, but hugely attractive: http://plainlyxplane.blogspot.com/2009/08/closer-look-tenerife-photoreal-scenery.html Cheers.

I realize I'm behind the curve on this one, but in case you didn't notice it either when first posted to the Org, here you go: http://plainlyxplane.blogspot.com/2009/08/freeware-gem-zvartnots-international.html Cheers.

Most sound in XP seems to be omni at the moment anyway. I've run across very few stereo files. As long as one of those 256 slots can be triggered by N1...

Only need one for my turbine grind...

Based on their inherent unattractiveness, I've never been an Illyushin fan generally. But I just took a look at the pics at the link above, as well as others on Picasa, and man, that's some nice modelling work. I also see that the download is something like 115 mb. Wondering whether there's much of a FPS hit...

Wow.

Chase View Deluxe View-enhancing plug-in. US $3.99 from Shade Tree Micro Aviation, distributed via the XP.org store. Requires XP 9+, any OS Summary Adds a fantastic new view option to X-Plane. A handy utility for designers and video makers, a huge source of fun for the everyday pilot. Easily worth its asking price. 5 out of 5 stars For the complete review, including video demonstrations, walk your mouse to: Plainly X-Plane Cheers. Edit: Repaired link

After discussing much of all this by email with an X-Pilot member and with Ben Supnik, I've been blessed with a flash of insight: both of these men were putting their words together in coherent sentences. Here are my lessons-learned from the "shit-show," Nick: 1. In future, try harder to let Palin-esque language mangling (Sarah not Michael) pass like water off a duck's back; and 2. Let the blog speak for itself as much as possible. To that end, I've unburdened your eyes with previous posts here. I've also eliminated any reference to Eric's partner in the sidebar. While the partner's website was previously RealScenery's owner, and details about both sites are now concealed from public view, in retrospect I can see how mentioning the partner could be misconstrued as simply an irrelevant personal detail. It was imprecise phrasing, no one's fault but mine. Cheers.

MODERATORS NOTE: The below thread was a long, drawn out and heated debate between Daveduck and several members of this forum. You will note that many of the replies appear to be out of place, as this post disintegrated under its own weight after about 17 postings. Because we believe in freedom of choice and non-censorship, Daveduck elected to delete his own postings from this thread. The moderation staff of X-Pilot.com had no part in this decision. If you'd like to see the explanation from Daveduck on his reasoning for deletion, please refer to the following post by CLICKING HERE. A review of RealScenery Oregon, extensively documented with examples: http://plainlyxplane.blogspot.com/2009/07/product-review-realscenery-oregon-for-x_23.html Cheers. UPDATE: Based in part on the discussion below, I've updated the Review Principles post at Plainly X-Plane to include mention of "Pros & Cons" and business anonymity: http://plainlyxplane.blogspot.com/2009/07/xp-add-on-reviews_25.html As a new visitor to this thread you'll find it useful to know that "Cameron" is the owner of X-Aviation.com and the sole distributor of RealScenery products.

I click. I wait. I see nothing.

So far, 50% try betas, and 50% would never go near them, according to the responses to a similar poll question on my blog: http://plainlyxplane.blogspot.com/ See upper right corner. And vote!

Hi Folks: I'm putting together a review of the Oregon scenery package and am looking for additional input from other buyers. Kindly contact me at david.daveduck@gmail.com Thanks!

Do you also plan a photo-real 2D cockpit (I hope)? If so, please, I'm beggin' ya, DON'T use a flash to take the cockpit photos. It never, ever, ever looks remotely correct in the finished model.

My god. What a disaster. Imagine the same happening to XP.org...sure hope they have their backups in bloody good order.

DA-20. Definitely. It's new--and it's the future. Plus an older version is what I trained on, so I'm biased...

Yeah. I keep meaning to modify the "screaming tires at 4 mph" sound file, too. What a distraction.

Yes, he is. I was in a rush before and forgot to add the link: http://marginal.org.uk/x-planescenery/tools.html "SketchUp2XPlane"

Interesting topic and discussion. I was also an MSFS simmer first, then real-world pilot, then XP simmer. (Both sims are equally good and bad in their own ways.) I'd have a hard time buying a non-pilot engineer's assessment of a given simulated aircraft's realism. However, a pilot with aeronautical engineering skills will obviously have an even more accurate opinion than just us a plain ol' pilot like me. (And former pilot at that.) Flying a sim is a lot harder than flying an actual plane. I think it's easy to get a little caught up in these discussions on minor points of realism (especially in the XP-vs.-MSFS debate) and lose sight of the giant, inescapable, central unrealism--that no matter how "realistic" these programs claim to be, they are still running on PCs firmly anchored to a desk, off in the corner of the living room or bedroom or basement. Little or no peripheral vision. No G-forces. No deafening engine noise and spine-tingling vibration. So, in that sense, an engineer's assessment based on numbers is as valid as a pilot's based on gut instinct and actual flying experience--as long as we remember that we're talking about flying desks, not actual planes. :

Don't forget the far easier to learn, and quite capable (see Heron Island, Mont Blanc Tunnel packages ) and free "SketchUp" 3D authoring program from Google. There's also an XP import/export plug-in for it maintained by Jonathan "Marginal" Harris. Cheers.

Wow. Magnificent. (Why do I get the feeling that I'll be using a lot of superlatives on this new site...)

Wow. Does this mean that there really is intelligent life in the XP universe? Congratulations, gentlemen. You've clearly thought about your goals and how to achieve them. And the site has a refreshingly clean design--parece levemente español... I'm honored to be among you.