Anyone using X-Plane 9.0?

[PhilipsCDRW]

Dave, if there's no decent addons for X-Plane yet, then you could be the pioneering trendsetter who brings authentic systems simulation to XPlane!

[clavel9]

Hi all

I've been an X-Plane user for about three years. In general v9 seems a large leap forward but it's still buggy compared to the last version (8.64). In addition to a (flawed) comprehensive set of tools for building aircraft, functionality can be extended using a software development kit to create plug-ins or supplementary applications. There are hundreds of add-on aircraft of every category available for download, most of which are free. Also hundreds of custom airfields and scenery elements. v9 also expands the scope for use of 3D animation/modelling. The commercial DVD's come with global scenery covering the whole globe from 70 deg North to 70 deg South. Like someone mentioned above the demo can be upgraded to a full install from v9-9.99. Another of its great advantages is that it's platform independent and comes in versions for Linux and Macintosh OSX.

The FS/XP wars are as entrenched as the Mac/Windows wars. There are plenty in the X-Plane community who will say they prefer FS and others for whom the reverse is true. Have a look at screen-shots on x-plane.org or xplanefreeware.net.

Regards
Brendan.

[Keith Jones]

There is a fairly comprehensive review of X-Plane in the current edition of PC Pilot although I haven't had time to do any more than glance at it (the mag only arrived yesterday).

[bigred1970]

I have xplane 7.0. and my take on xplane in general is that in comparison to FS. its flight model is much better but in graphics and ease of use. it has a long way to go.

oh if any of you want to look at the real bleeding edge of flight simulation. and are real computer savy. look at Flight Gear. a real open source simulater. IE FREE

not for amatures though.. it is not user friendy at ALL.

http://www.flightgear.org/

[SkippyBing]

I do occasionally look at flight gear, but I just know with my propensity to fiddle with stuff it'd soon take over my entire life!

[TSR2]

Very FS98 but not bad for free. Shoot me down in flames here, but I get the impression that many of the guys doing X Plane and this flightgear might be really good developers of software, but lacking in the model making department. i.e. their creative skills are in coding and not in modeling. Just a thought.

[SkippyBing]

i.e. their creative skills are in coding and not in modeling.

May be, bear in mind it'd pretty much have to be your full time job to do the coding and the modelling to the same standard you get in FS9/X. As for X-Plane I think one of the limitations on the detail in the models is that the model is being used to generate the aerodynamics of how it actually flies so there's less room to put on all the little details. I do remember when I used to use X-Plane a lot the helicopter flight dynamics were well in advance of anything FS could offer, in fact in '03 they were better than they are in FSX now, heck I was using X-Plane to practice techniques I was being taught on course at Shawbury which is not something I'd attempt with FSX. I could consistently land a Blackhawk on the roof of a petrol station using the same basics I'd been taught, in FSX I can't get a Jetranger onto a helo pad on a skyscraper because it just doesn't do what it's supposed to. In effect in FS I have to learn how to fly helicopters in FS, whereas in X-Plane they pretty much flew how they do in the real world, apart from the vortex ring...

[clavel9]

Very FS98 but not bad for free. Shoot me down in flames here, but I get the impression that many of the guys doing X Plane and this flightgear might be really good developers of software, but lacking in the model making department. i.e. their creative skills are in coding and not in modeling. Just a thought.

It's only been in the last two years or so that X-Plane has allowed full integration of 3D-modelling/animation. Regardless, it's the Plane-Maker model that is interpreted dynamically for the flight modelling. The freeware 757 model available on xplanefreeware.net has pushed the envelope about as far as possible in terms of modelling and animation and is well worth a look.

[bigred1970]

Very FS98 but not bad for free. Shoot me down in flames here, but I get the impression that many of the guys doing X Plane and this flightgear might be really good developers of software, but lacking in the model making department. i.e. their creative skills are in coding and not in modeling. Just a thought.

well if your talking about visual models then yes, but I think the strength of these two projects is the FLIGHT models. Flight gear in particular is a atempt to make a good Flight sim. bit is doesn't have much nice eye candy. Flight simulator is a good game that happens to be a decent flight sim.

[TSR2]

I'd love to see both of these sims with quality models. Flightgear appears to have more "gameplay" where as X Plane is very much a sim.

The flight model in Gunship for the spectum in the 80's was a more realistic helicopter flight model than FS.