Pete Dowson

Yes. You'd have to put that logic into a Lua plug-in. The axis would be assigned to that Lua plug-in, which would automatically receive the raw uncalibrated axis input as variable "ipcPARAM". In the plug-in you would test a user offset to see how to forward the axis using ipc.control. The best control values to use are the "direct to FSUIPC calibration" ones, lists at the end of the added controls list in the FSUIPC advanced user's guide. The user offset (eg 66C0) would be updated by your button using offset byte cyclic inc, so the value there cycles between however many values you want, or if only the two, use offset byte togglebits with a value of 255 so it alternates between 0 and 255, Regards Pete

Well, yes, probably. Please write to me at petedowson@btconnect.com. Do you really need long double precision? Sounds extreme. Nothing I know of in FS itself uses anything bigger than a normal double 64-bit, 8 bytes), and most things are accurate enough with the 32-bit (4-byte) floats. Using those would bring your need down to 42 bytes, which would be much easier to fit in. Regards Pete

Thanks. I'll modify the references in the Download Links subforum to add this useful info. Pete

Version 4.86 is the currently supported version. Since I don't know LINDA at all, I cannot really advise. Can you ask in their Support Forum? I don't think you can upset it by adding new stuff. However, if you are worried, please just make a back-up copy of your FSUIPC4.INI file, from the FS Modules folder. It contains all your settings. Regards Pete

Sorry, I do NOT know much at all about Linda. I am aware it uses some Lua, but it is also a program in its own right. And it is by others, not by me. TOGA operation is dependent on the aircraft you are using. I don't know which control you'd need for that. The same may apply to A/T disconnection. But if you have programmed these already on your buttons then you can add the additional controls for throttles off and throttles on to the same buttons by adding a line for each in the INI file. The format for these is described in the FSUIPC Advanced User's Guide. I'll happily answer specific questions on this, but you need to look things up yourself and make an effort. Meanwhile, try assigning a separate button, keypress or switch, and check that you can make it all work before going to more trouble. I'm afraid that in a few hours I will be departing on holiday without Internet access, and will be back on Monday 18th February. If you still need assistance I hope others can jump in to advise. Regards Pete

Hmm. I didn't know it allowed any authority. That's interesting. I've rarely used FS's autopilot being a very long-standing Project Magenta user. Apart from relieving FS itself of the duty of managing pitch control, as probably several of the more sophisticated add-ons (PMDG, iFly, etc) do, I really don't know. If you must use a default aircraft you could try using FSUIPC's rather experimental feedback control faciities. Regards Pete

Yes, that's how it works -- I think the "lock" is merely a mechanical device to hold the pressure, and pressing the pedals relieves the tension on that. I have the parking brake on the 737NG cockpit operating this way. But by default FS doesn't work like that, It does release the parking brake when you press "brakes" (eg the '.' key), but when you have toe brakes it doesn't do it, which is why it was added (by request, actually) to FSUIPC. As you said, I was merely quoting you, viz: "BrakeReleaseThreshold=75 Set to 0" I was pointing out that this parameter can be used seaparately for each aircraft or profile. If it appears in the separate [JoystickCalibration] section for that aircraft/profile it overrides the general setting for that aircraft/profile only. This change is in the recent versions (4.86). Oh, right. I don't remember. I expect I just suggested trying it in a process of elimination. ;-) Pete

BrakeReleaseThreshold is there to allow the parking brake to be automatically released with dual brake pressure, as happens in Boeings and many light aircraft. It shouldn't result in a decrease in the pressure being applied to the toe brakes thenmselves. That's a fault of the add-on model you are using. You could just leave the default setting alone and set the zero value in the [JoystickCalibration] section for the one aircraft or profile affected. In current FSUIPC versions it is already automatically disabled for Airbus's in any case (they don't exhibit this action) -- though this only occurs if the ATC Type in the Aircraft CFG file begins with "Airbus". Pete

There are no "commands" for "differential braking" as such. The message only means that there is a different pressure on left and right brakes, that's all.The difference could be very small -- it would only matter if they caused an unintended swerve. Separate left and right braking can be effected on the keyboard (I think by default the keys assigned are F11 and F12), or by assigning to BRAKES LEFT or BRAKES RIGHT, or using the brake axes, as used for proportional braking with pedals. Pete

Not sure how your second paragraph relates to the first one, with the quotation, but, yes, though I've never used it myself, I wouldn't have thought Linda supported anything but normal joystick buttons. I don't think it even deals with Axes, does it? Why did you think otherwise? Regards Pete

Just 3.999? No letter at the end? The earliest supported version is now 3.999z. Please update if you are not using this. The "Brakes" control is the exact same one assigned in FS by default to the '.' keypress, so test that and compare it. All FSUIPC can do is send the command to FS in exactly the same way, though probably its default repeat rate (20 per second) is faster than the default keyboard repeat rate. I've no idea how you get "differential brakes" using this control as they don't come into it. If you ever want to see what sort of controls are being sent, and how often, just enable the Event logging in the FSUIPC logging tab, then look in the FSUIPC.LOG file which you'll find in the FS Modules folder. Regards Pete

If it was the same with all aircraft I would say that you had the pedals in some strange mode, but if it is with just one add-on aircraft I'm afraid the only way to get it sorted out would be to ask their support. Regards Pete

Unless you write your own way of doing things, yes. WideFs doesn't work without registration. Pete

It won't be FSUIPC causing the problem. From what you say it is a classical "out of memory" error. You'll need to turn some settings down, else it'll certainly happen again. I think the crash is only coincidentally occurring in FSUIPC4. Could be anywhere once memory expires as things get corrupted by FSX using bad heap pointers. Recent versions of FSUIPc4 incorporate an OOM check which warns you of an impending OOM. You would also do well reading through the OOM threads on the AVSIM FSX forum. Tomorrow night I'm off on holiday -- back on Monday 18th. Regards Pete

You need to take positions at regular intervals (say once a minute for an airliner, probably more often for a small GA aircraft), and compute the small distances, adding them to a total as you go. Obviously not all flights are just one straight line! Pete

Please install the currently supported version, 4.86. Pete

Start - Control Panel - System - Device Manager Select Universal Serial Bus Controllers, then for every device listed there described as any sort of 'hub', right click on it, select Properties, then Power Management, and uncheck the option to allow the computer to turn off that device. The other thing I've noticed from other messages about Saitek is that they need more power than some, and should be either plugged directly into a PC USB port, or if not then certainly into a powered external hub. Regards Pete

Apart from a very few supplied by FS (like engine fire) there are no commands as such for making failures or consequences happen. You'd need to work through the offsets where such provisions may be found. To program offset changes to a button or switch you could use the "Offset" controls which are assignable. For the spoiler the disconnection is bit 2^1 (value 2) in offset 32F8. You can set that by Offset byte setbits with offset 32F8 and parameter 2 and clear it with Offset Byte clearbits. You could toggle it with togglebits if you only have a pushbutton. If you install the currently supported version of FSUIPC (3.999z or 4.86) you will find the Offsets list in your FSUIPC Documents folder. Regards Pete

You are welcome! Pete

I fly a PFC 737NG cockpit. They don't make them any more -- I think they only made about 15 or so. It's a full dual control 737NG cockpit in a proper shell, with nice leather seats, the works. The scenery is projected on a 10 feet wide screen viewed through the front window. I should have 3 projectors so I can have side views too, but the room isn't big enough. There a 6 PCs involved, one running FSX and providing the outside view, one providing pilot and copilot PFD and ND, one for EICAS, one for the piots CDU, one for the copilots CDU, and one for ancillary programs like Radar Contact, IYP, and so on. The Overhead was originally PFC but I've replaced that with a Cockpitsonic one, but i am now considering changing the aft overhead for a Sismo one. The software is mostly Project Magenta, but with the systems simulation, PFDs and EICAS replaced by Thomas Richter (TSR) software, plus my own MCP and overhead drivers. And of course the PFC hardware is controlled by my drivers too. One of these days I'll post some pictures someplace. Oh, I also have an Aerosoft (Australia, not the German company) Piper Arrow III cockpit, one of only 5 thery made, for VFR flying. That only has a 40" screen and I use TrackIR with it. Again, it is my own software driving that cockpit. Regards Pete

Hmm. I still don't understand what was happening on your system. Pete

The easiest way is to have a button or keypress to action the Throttles Off and Throttles On controls. They are in the drop-down assignments list for both key and button assignments. There's also a Throttles toggle control in case you one have a single normal button. Really you want the throttles disconnected when you enable the AutoThrottle, and re-enabled when you disable A/T. You could do that by assigning both the A/T and the throttles controls to the same switch. To do that you'd need to edit the INI file because the dialogue only allows one assignment per switch on and switch off actions. Even more sophisticated would be a Lua plug-in which did the throttle disconnection only when A/T modes were active (SPD, FLCH and VNAV modes). FS does this itself for default airliners. I think the PMDG 737NGX does it for the regular "Axis ThrottleN Set" controls (the ones with no reverse zone). To use those in FSUIPC you need to calibrate with "No Reverse Zone" set and the "UseAxisControlsForNRZ=Yes" option set in the relevant Joystick Calibration section of the INI. Regards Pete

For a motion platform, yes, the aceleration values are the best source, because the pilot only feels accelerations, not velocities or angles. But you said you were expecting it to be between -50 and +50 degrees. Accelerations are not angular measurements like that. Such a project seems rather advanced for someone without programming experience. 0578 is the pitch value, and that is an angle, and furthermore it is an integer. it represents the pitch in FS's own internal units. The conversion formula is provided in the offsets list. They are Pitch, Bank and Heading, in offsets 0578, 057C and 0580, and all in the same units. So that is easy. but I don't know what you think you'd do with them to drive a platform. If you want the platform merely to adopt those angles, then it will be much like one of those toy motion devices which are designed to amuse children rather than a proper motion simulator. I'm pretty sure that the correct way is to use scaled versions of the accelerations to determine speed and direction of lift and drop, follwed by a period of "wash-out" to let things level out again without the pilot noticing, ready for the next accelerations. However, I'm certainly no expert on the matter, only explaining what i believe and have read. You need to do your own research. But I do know it isn't easy, and can involve some sophisticated programming. Regards Pete

What do you think that would do? Assigning an action to a button or a key is not like that at all. I don't know any software which does that! Pete

Er, sorry, ask "the PMDG" what? Please re-phrase this question as it makes no sense to me. Keyboards are NOT the same as Joysticks! If your device behaves as a keyboard how can it be seen as a joystick? You make no sense! Why would it be easier? assigning the special PMDG controls to key presses or to buttons is IDENTICAL! There is no difference! One cannot be easier than the other, why do you think this? Pete