Pete Dowson

All is explained in the User Guide in the FSUIPC4.ZIP which you can download. The sales booths at SimMarket are open now, and your discount will be valid if you bought from there within the last 6 months. Links to the correct SimMarket places are now on the http://www.schiratti.com/dowson page. I will be updating Announcements here to explain more soon (I am exhausted by this week's rush at present), and I will also post more bits and pieces here for downloading. Regards Pete

Good question. I would like to know how to detect that too. I don't know of any FS value I can access, but in any case I assume it would be a video API query, via Windows. If you find out, please let me know. Regards Pete

Right click on the Install FSUIPC4 EXE file, and select Properties and then Digital Signatures. Check all the details there. If it says my signature is good then the file cannot have been tampered with, and your virus checker is giving a false warning. The file is compressed and encrypted and so contains seemingly random sequences which are obviously being misunderstood. You should really contact your virus checking authority and get them to update their data. I use Norton Anti-Virus and it is completely up to date. Regards, Pete

Strange. We were told all the shipped versions were the same (excepting of course the additional Deluxe content -- the one I have here is Deluxe too), though different Language versions will have a different language module. I assume this is with FSUIPC4 version 4.00 Installer? There isn't a message with that exact wording, but two others, one referring to FSX.EXE and the other to SimConnect. I need to know which -- can you give me the actual wording, please? Can you find your FSX folder, find the FSX.EXE file, right-click it, then select Properties -- Version. The "file Version" near the top should read 10.0.60905.0. Next, and this is a little trickier. Please go to the main Windows folder in Explorer, and Search for the file called "simconnect.dll". It should be found, once, in a folder with a complex-looking name. Mine is in: C:\WINDOWS\WinSxS\x86_Microsoft.FlightSimulator.SimConnect_67c7c14424d61b5b_10.0.60905.0_x-ww_429211e9 Can you try to write down where you find yours, please? Then right-click on the simconnect.dll (in that Search window) and do the Properties - Version thing again. It should also show 10.0.60905.0. Finally, did you by any chance try the FSX Beta release at all before getting the final shipped version? If so, did you completely uninstall the Beta first, before installing the new one? If not then I'm afraid parts of the installation may not be correct. The SimConnect part of the FSX system is rather fussy. Regards, Pete

Yes, it looks surprisingly good, but in fact there are weather problems when you delve deeper. However, I hope and expect that these will all get resolved in due course. Meanwhile, good flying! Pete

FSUIPC doesn't see mice. sorry. Pete

FSX? Downloaded? FSX needs Activation, not so much Registration. Folders don't apear in menus. The Modules folder will appear in FSX's folder after you install FSUIPC4. The Menu entry for add-ons in FSX is called "Add-Ons" -- that's a Microsoft decision. Version 3.991 of PFCFSX.DLL is compatible with all FSUIPC4 versions now. I'll be making an official issue (as 4.00) when I have time, but it won't change noticeably. Regards, Pete Bob...

Where did you read this? There's no need to re-register at all. There is an announcement that says IF you purchased your registration this year (2006) or later, then you must use FSUIPC 3.53 or later, as this year's Keys will nto work in older versions. You'll find real aircraft don't have quite the same throttle positions for the same power either -- take a look at a cockpit video some time, the throttle levers are rarely all in a straight line. The point of having separate throttle controls is that you adjust them to achieve your target thrust as shown on your instruments. Don't worry so much whether they are in line. Small variations in the potentiometer resistances, temperature, etc will see to it that they are never quite identical, no matter how well you calibrate. Look on it as part of the realism of your cockpit. Sorry, I don't understand. What's "the mapping section"? For separate throttles there's only one page - it allows you to calibrate up to 4 throttles. If you have only one throttle you can use the first page and map it onto 2, 3, or 4 throttles, of ocurse, but why would you do this if you have separate ones? Fuel cut-off is not controlled by throttles. Can you please explain what you are actually doing in FSUIPC, then I may be able to help. Regards Pete

Ahem. Yes .. I replied in the other thread. Pete

There isn't one, at least not until you install FSUIPC4. Targetting tomorrow (Saturday), as early as I can. I'm hard at it. My FSX DVD's arrived three hours ago! I am finishing off some documents (no time even to proof-read! :-( ), and I need to install FSX from the DVDs for final verification. No, it won't install, or run. The Beta3 is a different animal. Regards Pete

I'm sure they'll all come good, but I am dependent upon SimConnect developments. This is not an area I want to try hacking into again as I've had to with previous FS versions -- it was horrendous to do in FS2004 and it took six months of 100 hour weeks to get to a position I was never that happy with in any case. With FS2004 I at least had those six months of Beta testing and three Beta versions. This time it's all been too short for my liking. Regards, Pete

YesFSX needs Windows XP or Vista. It won't run on anything earlier. Regards, Pete

You cannot, it has not been released yet. The only FSUIPC4 I released was a Beta for the FSX Beta. Please go and read the announcements! Note that I changed the subject of your message to avoid misleading other readers. Regards Pete

I am working as fast as I can. I don't even have a proper DVD-based version yet except for the 9Gb download that us Beta testers put up with, and I've only had that a few days. I'm currently on target for a first release on Saturday 14th October, three days ahead of my original schedule which was based on what MS told us. I don't think you will want to use many if any of the weather facilities yet. Most of that part of the SimConnect interface isn't working very well. We are desperately hoping for an update to fix much of the weather stuff. I have included some facilities, but they are for experimental purposes rather than serious use at present. Regards, Pete

Not FS. It's actually nothing to do with FS. With this manifest system it seems that unless the DLL has a manifest present which matches at least one of the side-by-side installed versions of SimConnect, then the DLL will simply not get loaded. I embed the manifest into the DLL as a resource with a specific ID -- there are different specific IDs for DLLs and EXEs. I think a simpler alternative is to install a .manifest file alongside the DLL or EXE. However, apart from being one more file and one more thing to go wrong, that system seems precarious. I can't see any way to be sure that an external manifest file represents the true dependencies of that specific version of the DLL or EXE. It makes no sense to me doing it with a separate file. The installer has the SAME manifest embedded, but with a different ID which stops it being subject to any version checking. This manifest is used to test out what would happen if the check on loading were really to take place -- a "probe manifest" (apparently). The probe takes place by using those Windows API functions I mentioned. This all took me ages to sort out (time I would much rather have spent doing more interesting things with FSX), and that was with plenty of help from the SimConnnect author himself. Write to me later, when I'm over this hump, and we'll sort something out. Maybe by then you'll have resolved all this for your DLL in any case? I can explain as much as you like, and/or return different codes for different problems in the 'silent install'. But I am still inclined really to try to keep control over the actual FSUIPC4 install. But I may change my mind. Let's see. Regards, Pete

You misunderstood something I think. If it is a DirectInput device then it can provide up to 64 buttons -- Windows and FS9 should be able to see a lot more than FSUIPC, which doesn't use DirectInput. If Windows, FS9 and FSUIPC all see the same handful of buttons, then that is all their driver is emulating as a game type device. It sounds like they intended it primarily as a keyboard emulator not a game device. Regards, Pete

Does it emulate a joystick game device, or come with its own drivers? FSUIPC only handles standard Windows-recognised joysticks, and not via DirectInput, only via the original joystick API. That supports up to 16 joystick/game devices each with 32 buttons, 6 analogue axes and one POV (Hat). DirectInput can I think support up to 64 buttons and two POVs. not sure about the axes. Does FS itself see more of your buttons? It uses DirectInput since FS2002. Specific drivers for specific devices can of course support whatever they like. EPIC, PFC and GoFlight are all examples of implementations which have their own driving software. If the makers don't supply drivers to emulate game devices then really I can't do anything. From what you say it sounds like they designed it to work with their drivers as a keyboard emulator. They could provide a HID (Human Interface Driver) for windows to make their device look like one or more standard game devices, each with up to 32 buttons. This is how it is done in the EPIC. Regards, Pete

Ah, yes. Fine. That's cool. Acually, looking back up the thread I should have been clearer. My comment "I honestly cannot see why you are objecting to spawning my installer" was really aimed at LukeK, who I hope is still following this. Don't forget you can have different versions of FS installed simultaneously. On one of my PCs I used to have FS98, FS2000, FS2002 and FS2004 (oh, yes, and CFS1 and CFS2) all installed and operational. you can only run one at a time of course. On my current machines I only have FS2004 and FSX installed, excepting one remaining still with FS2002. ;-) Regards, Pete

I think it more likely that most folks who've purchased and installed WideFS generally run FS with client PCs running Wideclient too. Once you have at least one client happily connected and remaining connected the "RestartTime" parameter is irrelevant. Your 13-second periodic stutters wouldn't have occurred on systems actually using WideFS even if they would in the circumstances you are presumably flying -- i.e. with WideServer installed but no clients running. Regards, Pete

For FSX there is more to it I'm afraid. SimConnect uses side-by-side installation, with multiple versions possible. FSUIPC4 needs to match at least one of those (preferably the latest, as that would give the best service/facility). Furthermore, SimConnect uses the Manifest system to be sure that it only loads programs compiled to run with one of its installed versions. My installer does these checks using manifest probes. It all seemed rather complicated to start with, but was simplified immensely by upgradng to MSicrosoft Studio 2005 -- the 2003 version I've been use for FSUIPC3 (and still am) does not handle manifests much if at all. All in all these are the steps my installer goes through: 1. Finds the path to FSX via the Registry -- asking the User to locate FSX.EXE if the Registry is not correct in this regard. 2. Checks the Version number of FSX.EXE is adequate. 3. Via the assorted probe manifests built in as resources, uses the CreateActCtx and ActivateActCtx/DeactivateActCtx APIs to make sure the SimConnect part will 'mesh' okay. These manifests are, by the way the Installer is compiled as part of my FSUIPC4 project, always inclusive of the actual run-time checked manifests built into FSUIPC4 itself. [This is where I'm not sure how your installer, built separately from FSUIPC4, could reliably cope. If MS had no plans for any interim updates to SimConnect it wouldn't be such a problem, but I don't think it is the case -- at least I most certainly hope not!]. 4. Checks whether there is already a Modules folder with a later version of FSUIPC4 already installed. 5. Creates the Modules folder if necessary and copies FSUIPC4 in. 6. Finds all of the user APPDATA paths which have an FSX.CFG installed, for each one found either checking an existing DLL.XML file to see if it already loads FSUIPC4 (otherwise inserting the appropriate lines), or, if no DLL.XML yet exists, creating one with the sole purpose of getting SimConnect to run FSUIPC4. 7. Finally copies some documents and other files into the Modules folder too. Now, whilst I am not saying that your installer can't do all these things, I would be concerned especially about steps 3, 6 and 7. I honestly cannot see why you are objecting to spawning my installer, just like most of MS's own installs spawn DirectX and other installers when they are run. If you wish to run it invisibly, with error or success codes returned, that can certainly be done via some command line switch. Why not think about it and say what you need, rather than rush in and complain about the fact that I need to have a little more control on installation with FSX? Regards Pete

Separate packages. The current FSUIPC will stay as it is now, with development slowing down as we concentrate on FSX and the future. I will still support FSUIPC 3 in terms of answering questions and fixing bugs, but I cannot see much in the way of new facilities and especially not new FS data being added when there is so much potential in new FSX products. Regards, Pete

Should this be the case in 3.709? I was assigning the trim functions to two joystick buttons with this version and found them listed as "Elev Tr" and "Elev Trim" in the list. Ooops! Good catch! In my haste (I've had so much to do for FSX of course) I didn't change the lengths from my previous names. They'll be okay in the formal release, 3.71, which I'll get to as soon as I have the first FSX version (FSUIPC4) out the door. Thanks, Pete

If the only relationship it has with FS is the data it gets from FSUIPC, then the answer is yes. If it interacts with some part of FS directly, like, for instance, the scenery files or something, then that depends -- most of the scenery files are different, are named differently and are placed differently. Even a small and silly thing might stop it -- if it actually checks that the version of FS is "FS2004" then it may not like to run with "FSX" simply because it isn't FS2004, even though possibly everything else is okay. I cannot tell these things in advance for programs I don't know. I use a lot of FSUIPC-interfacing programs and FSX + FSUIPC4 works with all of those. Regards Pete

Are you using Squawkbox 3, as if so I don't think that needs AIBridge. Otherwise, there were at least two versions of AIBridge -- one for FS2002 and one for FS2004 I think. The MP stuff is different on each. I think the latest was from Jose's own site -- the link on Enrico's "dowson" page should get it. But the SDK is for programmers. Were you thinking of programming it yourself? Well, either this means he's looked at the facility provided for this in FSUIPC and decided he doesn't want to do it, or he's not really inclined even to look. It certainly isn't complicated at all. Again, this indicates he hasn't really looked into the matter. I don't think Avsim is an on-line flying ATC service in any case ;-). Tegwyn is probably a very busy man and is not interested in finding a solution for what is presumably a minority need in any case. It seems you are not even reading the thread properly. The solution has been in FSUIPC for years and has been in use by Squawkbox and other programs for years too, certainly since FS2002 days. The solution is clearly documented. There is nothing else I can do from the FSUIPC side -- I cannot write Tegwyn's code for him! Please make some sense in your thread contributions! Pete

Lucky you! Wish I had an official version. I am a little worried it may be different from the last one we were allowed to download, a few days ago. The official release date we were told was October 17th, and it looks like that's when us Beta testers and developers will get our copies. All you users getting it so early are vey lucky. I don't know why Microsoft have chosen to do it this way. :-( I am trying to get versions of my software ready for release this week, but it is an awaful rush and a change from the planned schedules. I am not getting much sleep I can tell you! That's the whole idea. There's not much point in me working like this otherwise -- the whole point for the last seven or more years of FSUIPC has been to provide application compatibility across FS versions. But until it is tested on it I couldn't say whether it will work 100% without more tweaks in FSUIPC4. I will need feedback on these things and tweak it until it is 100% compatible. There's no way that has been possible with the couple of Beta versions of FSX we've had I'm afraid, and, as I say, I've only had what may be the Released version of FSX for a few days. Regards Pete