Posts by John Hargreaves

Just logged on to steam and there is a 3.6Gb update downloading. Looks intriguing.

I've been looking at this sim for a while, and it is currently on sale on the steam store. Something that would make it stand head and shoulders above the competition would be VR support. So, question is, seeing as VR support on FS2 is as good as anything on the market, would there be any prospect of RC7 getting VR support in the future?

Sounds pretty good for a default plane, nice works chaps.

I'd love to see helicopters in AFS2, I think it would really allow the detail and design of the environments to shine. It would take a while to do properly though, even though they might be part way there with the physics. The bar has been set very high between DCS and X-Plane 11, so they would need to do a proper job, which they undoubtedly would do.

It wouldn't be a direct choice between ATC or helicopters, as those tasks would mostly be done by different personnel, but overall in terms of resources and manpower, IPACS will need to get the best return for the investment of time.

I'm sure helicopters are on the to do list, and to those guys that aren't keen on them, give it a try - it's the most engaging flying experience there is IMO, you really 'wear' the aircraft and constantly have to interact with the controls, but there can come a point where it feels like you are controlling it with your mind, it's like surfing on air.

Maybe think of it less like backing a horse, more like rearing a foal.

Also, you can manipulate the view a bit in VR, so if you squat down and back a bit in your chair and hit the reset button, when you sit up straight you'll be up and forward of where you were. Comes in handy to get a better view.

Can't see any problem keeping your powder dry, just keep developing and refining features, fixing bugs, then when it's ready it will speak for itself and you will have something to market. Those of us that get the idea of early access/in development will have the satisfaction of knowing we were in here first and helped support it and shape its future.

I have the non pro surface 3, and it will run F1 2012, Far Cry on (lower but acceptable settings) and other stuff from that generation, which I was amazed by when I got it. I never expected anything like that kind of performance. The Surface pros are a fair bit more powerful, so I wouldn't be surprised if it were possible. As to how good the experience would be, I can't imagine it could compete with a proper gaming laptop but it might not be too bad. There is bound to be someone out there who has tried it.

I saw that, but I was just thinking that as the forum grows, which it certainly will, that's going to generate a long list of unread posts. Most forums you just tend to be interested in certain threads, so it's handy to keep an eye on a thread and find the unread posts just within that area.

It's no big deal, some forums have it, some don't, but it's a really useful feature if it can be switched on.

Quote from drhotwing1

If anyone sees any glitches please let us know.

Not so much a glitch, but do we have a button for 'go to first unread post' in any given thread, and is there any indication as to which threads we have posted in?

Wow, you go away for a bit and everything changes. We now have a like button, yippee. All looks very modern and new-fangled. Is it true that the average age of flight simmers is 16?

Not only a like button, but a whole new set of smileys too.

Definitely, anything above about 800ft or so is fine, so you can kind of see what they were aiming at. The ironic thing is, as the detail in the buildings and environment get better, you want to come and have a closer look, which is when you start to pick up those jaggy pixels.

Hi Jim, Yes, I was just sharing a point of view for discussion really, don't get me wrong it's a very impressive piece of work and I appreciate the skill and effort that goes into these things. I was trying to present a relatively objective view though regarding the pixel size of the underlying photo scenery. Now that might be for performance/memory reasons, who knows, but if you compare what you can make yourself in XP11 to the Innsbruck valley wider area, and how it looks at 300ft, then I think it's worth discussing at least. One of the reasons for an early access release is to get feedback, and to make sure that Af2 stands up well or better against its contemporaries.

My comments are meant in terms of hopefully constructive feedback, certainly not criticism, so a suggestion to allow an option for the base photo layer to be higher resolution is something I think could improve an already impressive product.

Oh, by the way, the Opening Post video was from Ben there, and yes, it's a lovely piece of work, (nice one Ben) credit where it's due

Edit: what is striking is the framerate that FS2 maintains with that level of quality; if you compare it to current/last gen sims, then performance at well over 100fps is very impressive and perfect for VR.

Just had chance to try LOWI this afternoon, and my first impressions are a bit mixed. Over 800ft or so and it does look lovely, but if you drop below that, I'm finding that the photo scenery layer underneath in the broader valley area is surprisingly low res. The pixels are very visible and blocky. The area within the airport is very impressive though, and there is lots going on if you taxi around where you probably shouldn't to get a better view.

I didn't feel that the surrounding valley stood up that well though against say homemade Ortho4XP XP11 scenery, but the buildings variety and placement was really good. I'd like to see a higher res option for the base photo layer, I don't feel it quite matches the quality of the 3D parts personally.

Just got this on my youtube recommended feed and watched it before I popped in here, nice video looks great.

Thanks for the info Ray, personally I'd prefer an accurate description of what's there so I have a realistic idea of what I'm getting, but I don't think it's fair to criticise OrbX too much here. Sure they are going to make their product look and sound good, that's their job. The extra 12000km of scenery is over and above the other (FSX/P3d) versions of Meigs I believe, so fair enough if it's a bit placeholder.

Looking good there Ray, nice shots. How is the surrounding area do you think? OrbX said something like 12000km2 of photoreal imagery -some are raving about it, some are saying they are disappointed. Is it more just flat photoreal for now, or is there much by way of autogen? Some posts have said it isn't quite as good as the IPACS terrain. It seems the Chicago city autogen is coming shortly as an update rather than being in the initial release. I'll get it anyway at the weekend from steam, but I wanted to have realistic expectations.

Quote from aarneson

Shame on them..

Really? If you are trying to make things better by providing feedback, do you think you could be a bit more positive. Give 'em a break.

Jeff you are absolutely right, I was just trying to explain to Taranakian how his post might have come across, I get the impression he doesn't hang out in internet forums all that much. When I first read his post in the other thread he started, I would have done the exact same thing as you did.

To be fair to whoever closed your original post, you do get quite a lot of grumpy over entitled people posting on forums, and the moderator would have most likely interpreted it as the start of a potentially disruptive argument. If you have heard the term 'Troll' in the context of the internet, this is partly what they do. Once you had chance to explain yourself, everyone became much more understanding, but your original post did seem like a bit of a troll type post, hence the misunderstanding. You weren't to know that, so that's probably the source of confusion.
There are some very experienced and clever people in this forum (not me), and you can learn a heck of a lot here.