ORBX announces Great Britain series

[Erich]

http://www.orbxsystems.com/forum/topic/ ... ntry339556

England due end of 2012. Great news.

Erich

[DaveB]

Just what I need Erich.. another way to spend money Thanks for the HU

ATB
DaveB

[DogTailRed2]

Does this pose a problem for freeware like the latest Duxford?
Or is VFR scenery, VFR scenery in terms of precision, object placement etc.
In other words will I need to upgrade everything else in order to accommodate this?

I like the idea of good quality UK VFR with some 3d objects (trees etc) but concerned this might be the upgrade tip of the iceberg.

[DaveB]

Hi DTR2

They're very loaded questions mate and not easy to answer. FS9 UK, according to Bill and the boys, did not fit precisely with UKVFRPhoto which should have been more accurate so the likes of Gary Summons (UK2000) had to modify/reposition very many of the airports in his UK series to fit UKVFRPhoto. I don't think UKVFR was that far out.. more that he'd had to work to the world according to Microsoft.
VFRPhoto for FSX has been much better as the FS world is now a sphere although how this compares to the default UK I don't know. The VFR series traditionally sit over/on top of the default world and kill off things like autogen.. can't remember if this is the same in FSX but I think it is so.. a way around that was to try and use the old 'inferior' VFRPhoto trees or go the way of payware and buy the Tree sets that coincide with each UKVFR scenery area. These aren't autogen tree's.. they're accurately placed objects referenced from the latest OS maps but as you've suggested, they're an additional cost. While they're not important, they certainly add to the overall effect.

How would ORBX work with Horizons VFR Photo?? I don't honestly know but I fear that one would obliterate the other. For non Horizon VFRPhoto users, the ORBX scenery would replace the default but if you already have the Horizon software, there seems little point in buying that from ORBX as it would, I feel, make it redundant. I could be wrong mind you.. I have been on many occasions before

ATB
DaveB

[GHD]

The Orbix products just redefine the landclass for a particular area. It bears little relation to reality in that the ground textures will repeat in the same way as the default.

Orbix will not coexist with photo-scenery, so if you have Gen-X it will be a waste of money.

BTW. The ACG Duxford should be ok with Orbix, it includes photo-scenery only for the immediate vicinity of the airfield, but I have no idea what the boundaries might look like.

[DaveB]

Thanks for clarifying that George

ATB
DaveB

[Paul K]

I wonder if VFR London will be compatible. If that and ACG's Duxford are so, then Orbx UK is definitely on the shopping list.

[rohan]

The Orbix products just redefine the landclass for a particular area. It bears little relation to reality in that the ground textures will repeat in the same way as the default.

I'm afraid that these statements are incorrect. The Orbx FTX series replace both landclass and ground textures and include their own mesh files and autogen textures. Obviously, FSX does use Orbx files in the same way as any other scenery product.

Historically, there have been very few other scenery products, either freeware or payware, which "work" with an Orbx FTX region, though efforts are made during development by Orbx to accommodate some existing products - the Flight1 GEX series being one such. However, these efforts are more likely to take place for scenery products covering larger areas rather than single airports / airfields.

Personally, while I welcome the news that Orbx will be releasing a set of UK regional products, I doubt very much whether I'll invest in them having already bought the Horizon FSX VFR England and Wales series ... Scotland may be a different matter depending on pricing,
Hope that helps,
Ro

[TSR2]

Cheers for that Ro.

I don't really 'get' this product. Id have thought that most folk would opt for a VFR type package, or UTX / GEX for areas where they fly less often. I'm just confused by it as I don't understand what it offers over the other long established products, or is it just an alternative.

[DaveB]

I join your uncertainty Ben

I've always considered it (based on the Oz releases) an 'alternative' being under the impression it was a 'full' package.. ground tiles 'n all as explained by Ro. Screenies of the Oz stuff does look very impressive and if, as Ro suggests, it comes with it's own autogen e t c.. it may be a 'cheaper' option for those in two minds over which product to buy. The ORBX stuff isn't cheap but if it comes with all bells and whistles, it may ultimately work out cheaper than having to buy Horizon VFR plus the tree packs

ATB
DaveB