Good friend and fellow Eaglesoft Development Group 3-D artist Bob Hayes has joined the bandwagon and started a new spaces live page. He already has a pretty good start of things on its first day of inception, including some pictures of him taken with Barrington Irving. Make sure to bookmark or add his RSS feed to your favorite reader. 🙂
As reported earlier this week, the promised SP1 performance patch for FSX has been released to beta testers, myself included. Though they are still working on a few things that did not make this pass, it shows great promise for being the breath of fresh air for FSX everyone has been asking for. I cannot go into details until I am released from NDA, but I am seeing a drastic improvement in performance – the ultimate goal for the service pack. Stay tuned for more info when I am able to talk about it.
The latest TrackIR newsletter hit my email inbox today, so for those of you who do not subscribe to it, here is a summary: Kevin Fox reports that they have updated the software for TrackIR including a beta build driver for Vista. Some other highlights include a YouTube page for TrackIR demonstrations, TrackIR at this year’s Game Developer Conference, and a brief mention about the Shockwave Productions B-17. I’ve used the TrackIR extensively since taking ownership for both enjoyment of flying in FS, and as a development tool. It is great for getting up close to objects I am working on to make sure they … Continue reading TrackIR Update
There is a new (or relatively new) community site focusing on flight simulation called FS-FBO managed by FSGenesis developer Justin Tyme. Justin is using PHPizabi‘s social networking platform, which seems to be gaining in popularity worldwide. Since FS-FBO opened its doors in early March, there has been a steady increase in FS enthusiasts around the world signing up. If you have not joined, I would encourage you to do so – it is 100% free. Features include a photo gallery, mini-blogs, forums, and member profiles.
There has been quite a bit of "buzz" going on in the FS Community lately. If you haven’t been paying attention, here is a summary of a few hot topics. SP1 Phil Taylor has been fielding several inquiries regarding SP1 in the AVSIM FSX forum. One user asked about file size, which spurred a pretty good thread. Another asked about how SP1 will affect the popularity of FSX. This is an interesting question, as I think FSX is certainly already very popular as the latest incarnation of FS. What this thread has become is more about popularity of FSX add-ons. I have first hand … Continue reading The latest buzz…
What an honor! The FS team has posted excerpts of my MVP visit and more pics blog posts on the FSInsider website. Thanks much for the kind words gents! I was delighted to read that Z, Hal, and Kevin were involved with the Aviation Learning Center curriculum committees. It looks like it is a first class program, and I’m sure the kids who have experienced it are thankful for your involvement!
Inspired by my flight last week, I’ve recreated Alex’s Columbia 400 paint scheme for the version we are working on for FSX. I show the EVADE heat strips for visual asthetics only. I’m pretty sure that we’re not planning on simulating the EVADE system in our version.
The first event was a technology expo, where we all could meet up with our MVP Leads and get introduced to fellow MVPs within each technology group. From left to right, MVP Lead Tyler Welch, myself, and fellow G4W MVP, Ho Yin Au. Bill Gates giving his Key Note address on Tuesday morning. The MVP party was held at the Museum of Flight. The entire place was reserved for this gathering, and food & drinks were plentiful! Probably the closest I’ll get to space walking. The flight simulator lab in the Aviation Learning Center. Eaglesoft donated the Cirrus SR-20 G2 software used within … Continue reading More pictures from the MVP Summit
Alex Hopmann, webmaster for Club Columbia, was kind enough to give me an aerial tour of the Pacific Northwest on Thursday afternoon, after the MVP summit adjourned. He needed to get his plane up to Skagit to have an MFD looked at that was not communicating with his GARMIN 430s. Alex keeps 45K at the Wings Aloft FBO on Boeing Field. With a quick tug, the aircraft was out of the hangar and ready for pre-flight inspection. The Columbia 400 is quite impressive sitting still, with those oversized cowling intakes, and scimitar Hartzell props. His aircraft is equipped with the EVADE de-icing … Continue reading Columbia 400 flight over the Pacific NW
C400 @ KBFI
