Problem with Hot Button Camera View in FSUIPC4

[rojo2021]

I hope someone can help.  I'm using FSX SE, FSUIPC4 and an Alabeo Aztec.  The aircraft comes in various registrations and paint jobs all in the aircraft.cfg

I have developed various camera views and use hot buttons (FSUIPC) to select them when needed.  The camera definitions are also in the aircraft.cfg file (the problem one is Cam Def .003 Fuel Select & Cowl Flaps - a view otherwise obscured by the side of my seat).

If I load FSX and the a/c version F-BALY I get all the views as I want them but if I then change to aircraft version WHITE (no registration) they all work except the one I mention above.  It is much too close and to the left.  If I then change back to F-BALY I have the same problem.  If I reload FSX the same pattern is repeated.  The button press is the same for each aircraft in the ini file and  using the same Cam Definition.  Very odd.

(I will mention that I have purposely set up a separate profile for each aircraft although I can't see that that would affect the camera view.)

I attach the aircraft.cfg and FSUIPC.ini files.

Help much appreciated as ever.

aircraft.cfg FSUIPC4.ini

[aua668]

Hi,

Some observations - but not related to the specific problem:

Your INI file shows some error in the joystick configuration. You should correct this to avoid other problems:

[JoyNames]
AutoAssignLetters=Yes
A=Saitek Pro Flight Quadrant
A.GUID={3C53B7E0-BA58-11EB-8001-444553540000}
C=Alpha Flight Controls
C.GUID={98AE71F0-B7F2-11EB-8002-444553540000}
D=Alpha Flight Controls
D.GUID={3C53B7E0-BA58-11EB-8001-444553540000}
E=Saitek Pro Flight Rudder Pedals
E.GUID={502347D0-D007-11EB-8001-444553540000}
1=Saitek Pro Flight Rudder Pedals
1.GUID={502347D0-D007-11EB-8001-444553540000}
0=Saitek Pro Flight Quadrant
0.GUID={3C53B7E0-BA58-11EB-8001-444553540000}
2=Alpha Flight Controls
2.GUID={98AE71F0-B7F2-11EB-8002-444553540000}
B=<< MISSING JOYSTICK >> << MISSING JOYSTICK >>
F=<< MISSING JOYSTICK >> << MISSING JOYSTICK >>

You said, that you have setup seperate profiles by intention. What is the reason for that. It's always the same aircraft model and panel behind the scenes. So why not use the same setting for all variants?

You have set the parameter ShortAircraftNameOk=Substring for profiles. This would allow you to use one single profile for all of your PA23 variants. In your case this could look like this:

[Profile.Alabeo PA23 Aztec F 250]
1=Alabeo PA23 Aztec F 250

[Axes.Alabeo PA23 Aztec F 250]
RangeRepeatRate=10
0=AX,256,D,4,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Throttle }-
1=AY,256,D,5,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: PropPitch }-
2=AZ,256,D,6,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Mixture }-
3=AU,256,D,5,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: PropPitch }-
4=AV,256,D,6,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Mixture }-
5=EX,256,D,7,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: LeftBrake }-
6=EY,256,D,0,8,0,0	-{ DIRECT: RightBrake }-
7=ER,256,D,3,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Rudder }-
8=CX,256,D,1,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Aileron }-
9=CY,256,D,2,0,0,0	-{ DIRECT: Elevator }-
10=CP,0,F,66416,0,0,0	-{ TO SIM: PAN_VIEW }-

[JoystickCalibration.Alabeo PA23 Aztec F 250]
AllowSuppressForPFCquad=Yes
ExcludeThrottleSet=Yes
ExcludeMixtureSet=Yes
ExcludePropPitchSet=Yes
SepRevsJetsOnly=No
ApplyHeloTrim=No
UseAxisControlsForNRZ=No
FlapsSetControl=0
FlapDetents=No
ReverserControl=66292
Reverser1Control=66422
Reverser2Control=66425
Reverser3Control=66428
Reverser4Control=66431
MaxThrottleForReverser=256
AileronTrimControl=66731
RudderTrimControl=66732
CowlFlaps1Control=66162
CowlFlaps2Control=66163
CowlFlaps3Control=66164
CowlFlaps4Control=66165
SteeringTillerControl=0
MaxSteerSpeed=60
Elevator=-16287,-512,512,16319
Throttle=-16384,16255
PropPitch=-16254,16255
Mixture=-16384,16383
Aileron=-16159,-578,512,16383/8
ElevatorTrim=-16380,-512,512,16380
SlopeElevatorTrim=-12
SlopeAileron=-3
LeftBrake=-16384,16383/16
RightBrake=-16384,16383/16
Rudder=-15610,-512,512,15807
SlopeLeftBrake=-8
SlopeRightBrake=-8
SlopeRudder=9

[Buttons.Alabeo PA23 Aztec F 250]
12=RA,1,C66243,0 	-{INC_COWL_FLAPS}-
38=RA,0,C66244,0 	-{DEC_COWL_FLAPS}-
48=PC,0,C66856,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_6}-
49=UC,0,C66851,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_1}-
52=PC,3,C65561,0 	-{PAUSE_TOGGLE}-
53=PC,10,C66858,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_8}-
54=UC,10,C66851,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_1}-
58=PA,3,C65758,0 	-{FLAPS_INCR}-
60=PA,4,C66079,0 	-{GEAR_UP}-
61=PA,5,C66080,0 	-{GEAR_DOWN}-
62=PA,2,C65759,0 	-{FLAPS_DECR}-
63=RC,7,C66855,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_5}-
65=PC,6,C66857,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_7}-
66=PC,11,C66859,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_9}-
67=UC,11,C66851,0 	-{VIEW_CAMERA_SELECT_1}-
72=PC,28,C66052,0 	-{STROBES_ON}-
73=PC,29,C66053,0 	-{STROBES_OFF}-
83=PC,1,C66579,0 	-{TOGGLE_CABIN_LIGHTS}-
84=RC,5,Cx42000BC0,xC0010100 	-{offset sword decrement, offset 0BC0 (Decr=256, Limit=-16383)}-
85=RC,4,Cx32000BC0,x3FFF0100 	-{offset sword increment, offset 0BC0 (Incr=256, Limit=16383)}-
86=PC,22,C66237,0 	-{FUEL_PUMP}-
87=PC,23,C66237,1 	-{FUEL_PUMP}-

In that profile the WHITE and the F-BALY would be covered by the same profile. And by that you only have to configure your axis, buttons, etc. only once. And if it works in one variant, it works for all variants. Btw.: Your configurations differ quite a lot between the WHITE and the F-BALY profile. So you are using axis assignments for missing joysticks in parallel with axis assignments for the same axis for existing joysticks. No idea, what your intention you had here.

This doesn't solve your problem, but any error in a configuration could lead to other errors. So I would first try to eliminate those errors.

Rgds
Reinhard

 

 

 

[rojo2021]

Evening Reinhard,

Thanks for your interest.  Profiles?  Yes, I have something specific in mind and maybe it won't work although it seems to at the moment, apart from 'the problem'.

I have set up one variant of the aircraft using its old fashioned IFR panel and I have used various camera settings to achieve views that help with a stable and clear view of the instruments and some controls otherwise difficult to see.  The ini reflects this where hot keys select the views.   Some of these views are retained in the other variant but here I use Air Manager and a GTN750 on separate screens.  I have also reassigned two of the buttons to 'fine' elevator trim instead of views I no longer need for that variant.  If the two variants used the same profile I don't think I could achieve all that - if I made a change to one variant it would affect the other and I might not want that.   I know that is moving back to aircraft specific but it suits my purpose and - apart from the current problem - it all works.  It seems that using profiles would restrict how I want to use the variants available; really that I have a choice of the same aircraft with different paintwork/regs but all the same in the cockpit.  Incidentally I only use a handful of different aircraft so I can keep track of what's what.

I hope I've explained all this satisfactorily.  I would be really interested in your reaction.  Maybe I'm publicly displaying my ignorance but, hey I've only been doing this for a few months and I'm learning thanks to the help from guys like you, Pete and John.

I take your point about Joystick assignments.  I think that comes about because I have to disconnect from time to time.  I need to tidy it up!

Regards,

Roger

[aua668]

21 minutes ago, rojo2021 said:

I have set up one variant of the aircraft using its old fashioned IFR panel and I have used various camera settings to achieve views that help with a stable and clear view of the instruments and some controls otherwise difficult to see.  The ini reflects this where hot keys select the views.   Some of these views are retained in the other variant but here I use Air Manager and a GTN750 on separate screens. 

Hi Roger,

Ok now your intention is clear. I wonder, how you assign different panel variants, as you reference in both variants in the aircraft.cfg the standandar panel entry:

panel=

If you have different panel variants, why don't you have here distinct panel references? Are you just not showing the GTN750 in the first variant?

Rgds
Reinhard

 

[rojo2021]

Morning Reinhard,

I guess this is to do with the Alabeo model which comes with a very limited GNS530 but ready to integrate a Reality XP750 which I did (many thanks to Jean-Luc and Bert Piet).  So I have the original panel albeit resized for the 750.

I use the 750 (in this instance) as my Com/Nav1 and Xpndr thus replicating all that I had when I flew this aircraft.  I leave the screen on the home page.  I use NpC to select frequencies on the 750 using the keyboard.

As a matter of interest I have a third variant of the Aztec which does not use any of the camera views I set up. Again this would change the ini file for the other two variants if they were in the same profile so it will be a unique one-aircraft profile. With this one I will be getting used to head tracking where I can look in all the places the cameras went.  This will be a largely VFR experience and very handy for taking those quick looks to the side to see where the runway is (or went to!).

What do you think?  I am not using profiles as Pete intended but I'm not actually misusing them so I don't think I'm piling up problems for the future.

Sadly we have strayed somewhat from the original problem which I still have, although variant 3 will not suffer from it as it will not use Cam Def .003.

[aua668]

Hi,

You can of course define differnt profiles for individual aircraft variants. That's not against the concept of profiles. The profiles (especially with the ShortAircraftNameOk=Substring) are useful, if you want to have the same settings in sync for a lot of variants of your aircraft, as assigning and calibrating is a lot of work to keep it consistent.

But also your use case is valid for profiles.

For your original problem I have no idea, why this happens only for that camera definition. I also use a lot of different camera views in the VC. But I have only one camera definition and set the position and view direction in a LUA program. I have two touchscreens below my curved monitor fo the outside view. On these two monitors I set different views of this special ockpit camera (with no outside visualization) according to a table, which I define per aircraft type. That's just some code pieces out of other functions to give you an idea how to solve this by using LUA.

AC.CameraUpCoordL			= {}           
AC.CameraUpCoordR			= {}           

AC.CameraUpCoordL[1]		= {  14.0 ,   0.00 ,    0.00 ,  -0.26 , -0.35 ,  0.3 }
AC.CameraUpCoordR[1]		= {  14.0 ,   0.00 ,    0.00 ,   0.26 , -0.35 ,  0.3 }

AC.CameraUpCoordL[2]		= {  -29.70 ,  0.00 ,    0.00 , -0.2 ,  0.00 ,  0.00 }
AC.CameraUpCoordR[2]		= {  -29.70 ,  0.00 ,    0.00 ,  0.2 ,  0.00 ,  0.00 }

AC.CameraUpCoordL[3]		= {  -52.00 ,  0.00 ,    0.00 , -0.2 , -0.11 ,  0.00 }
AC.CameraUpCoordR[3]		= {  -52.00 ,  0.00 ,    0.00 ,  0.2 , -0.11 ,  0.00 }

:
:

-- set cockpit camera for VC

function setCameraL ( lCameraCoordList )

	ipc.writeSTR ( 0x8680 , "Cockpit Camera - View 01" )		-- select cockpit camera
	ipc.writeStruct( 0x86A0 
		, "6FLT" 
		, lCameraCoordList[4] 	-- X
		, lCameraCoordList[5] 	-- Y
		, lCameraCoordList[6] 	-- Z
		, lCameraCoordList[1] 	-- Pitch
		, lCameraCoordList[2] 	-- Tilt
		, lCameraCoordList[3]	-- Heading
		)

	ipc.sleep(100)
		
end


function setCameraR ( lCameraCoordList )

	ipc.writeSTR ( 0x8680 , "Cockpit Camera - View 02" )		-- select cockpit camera
	ipc.writeStruct( 0x86A0 
		, "6FLT" 
		, lCameraCoordList[4] 	-- X
		, lCameraCoordList[5] 	-- Y
		, lCameraCoordList[6] 	-- Z
		, lCameraCoordList[1] 	-- Pitch
		, lCameraCoordList[2] 	-- Tilt
		, lCameraCoordList[3]	-- Heading
		)

	ipc.sleep(100)
		
end

:
:

function setCameras (lPanel)
	setCameraL ( AC.CameraUpCoordL[lPanel] )
	setCameraR ( AC.CameraUpCoordR[lPanel] )
end

:
:

-- sample call for first camera setup
setCameras (1)

Maybe this is a better method instead of using different camera definitions. And by that you are not limited to the number of hotkeys.

Rgds
Reinhard

 

[rojo2021]

Thanks Reinhard,

First for putting my mind at rest regarding my remarks about profiles.  But also as you suggest I have run out of hotkeys so your method looks very interesting.  I'll have to study it before commiting myself to it!  My old brain needs that kind of respite.

All the best to you and your flying.

Roger