P3D airborne

[Vancouver]

I think I am correct that V2 will be an all new purchase and not a free upgrade. A bit like X-Plane upgrades. I am reluctant to do too much by way of additions to P3D.

[TSR2]

P3D v2 will be a new product and it isn't clear what (if any) backward compatibility there will be with FSX. I'd suggest if you have something or want to buy something for FSX then go ahead and add it to P3D. If you're buying something exclusively for P3D, it probably has 12 months of life if your going to upgrade to V2. If your sticking with 1.X then you'll be grand

[Vancouver]

Noted. Another thing to consider especially if V2 can use older FSX type addons, how confident are we that LH will not refer back to the expensive $400 release and ditch the Academic one which for most is at least affordable. Call me paranoid if you will but I trust no-one.

[TSR2]

I'm pretty sure they stated on their forum somewhere that the academic version would be staying

[speedbird591]

I think I am correct that V2 will be an all new purchase and not a free upgrade. A bit like X-Plane upgrades. I am reluctant to do too much by way of additions to P3D.

Also like Microsoft Flight Simulator 95, 98, 2000, 2002, 2004 and FSX

Ian

[Vancouver]

I think I am correct that V2 will be an all new purchase and not a free upgrade. A bit like X-Plane upgrades. I am reluctant to do too much by way of additions to P3D.

Also like Microsoft Flight Simulator 95, 98, 2000, 2002, 2004 and FSX

Ian

Not strictly an accurate or fair comparison, MS if you were really lucky tended to maybe on occasion have one update per release, whereas X-Plane issue oodles of improvements and fixes within a given marque. I'm no lover of X-Plane and haven't had an copy since version 6, but I believe credit where credit is due, something the corporate fiends MS could take a lesson in.

[SkippyBing]

I think I am correct that V2 will be an all new purchase and not a free upgrade. A bit like X-Plane upgrades. I am reluctant to do too much by way of additions to P3D.

Also like Microsoft Flight Simulator 95, 98, 2000, 2002, 2004 and FSX

Ian

Not strictly an accurate or fair comparison, MS if you were really lucky tended to maybe on occasion have one update per release, whereas X-Plane issue oodles of improvements and fixes within a given marque. I'm no lover of X-Plane and haven't had an copy since version 6, but I believe credit where credit is due, something the corporate fiends MS could take a lesson in.

I used to find X-Plane's continual updates annoying as they seemed to constantly break things that'd been working in the previous versions. It generally meant waiting for an update of any add-ons I'd got not to mention meaning I had to rework anything I'd been developing.
At least with MS one or two updates per version you had a stable base to work on.

[guym-p]

I used to find X-Plane's continual updates annoying as they seemed to constantly break things that'd been working in the previous versions.

It still happens, but it is much improved with proper delineation between "beta" and "release" versions. Anyway, upgrades are entirely voluntary, with a tick-box to opt in to betas, or just wait for the releases. Those who opt to download every tiny beta can be in for a rocky ride! I usually delay upgrading until there is some feature or fix I had been particularly looking forward to, and watch forums closely until any teething problems have settled down.

If you want to see the rate of change, have a look at the release notes:
http://wiki.x-plane.com/Beta

Develper blog (especially the post about "Beta Bounce"):
http://developer.x-plane.com

[Benedettini]

Can someone tell me how many frames does P3D add over FSX ? Some say its better frames, some say it only changes visuals and can be no different FPS, some say its smoother...Im unsure.

Thanks

[speedbird591]

I'm unable to do a comparison as I installed Prepar3d v1.4 directly on to a new computer. I have also installed FSX on to the new computer to store FSX scenery files but I don't fly in it because P3D is so smooth.

You can read a more scientific comparison here: http://kostasfsworld.wordpress.com/fsx- ... omparison/

The majority of people do say that frame rates are a bit better in any given situation but what really sells it is its smoothness compared to FSX. But a few people with very powerful systems have complained on the P3D forums of poor performance. But they seem to be a minority.

Some developers are working closely with Lockheed Martin and have approved products with joint FSX/P3D installers, notably Carenado, ORBX and REX. But most FSX add ons will work in the current version although we are seeing problems with FS9 aircraft. The biggest problem is with licenses (P3D is not licensed for entertainment and some add ons are licensed for ONLY entertainment) and installers which will only install to FSX. There are simple ways around this.

Your decision as to buy it will probably be based on whether you are an FSX user and would like to see a smoother flight experience. Some of us are also hoping that the next version, perhaps next year, will be a great sim so we are getting acclimatised early. If you're happy with what you've got then wait and see what happens.

Ian