P3D v4 Radar Contact / WideFS Question

[Gabe_62]

Hi all.

Long time since I ran P3D.

I've installed WideFS and Radar Contact on a client PC... but have forgotten how to get the little text window on my server/sim PC showing the Options such as 1 for Make Contact, /  for Repeat etc.

Please advise.

[Pete Dowson]

3 hours ago, Gabe_62 said:

I've installed WideFS and Radar Contact on a client PC... but have forgotten how to get the little text window on my server/sim PC showing the Options such as 1 for Make Contact, /  for Repeat etc.

Radar Contact takes care of that automatically, but make sure you are allowing 'Information Text' to show. It's a P3D option, normally defaulted 'on'.

Pete

 

[Gabe_62]

Cheers.

BTW... have you any idea if RC can be made to work in MSFS ?

[John Dowson]

41 minutes ago, Gabe_62 said:

BTW... have you any idea if RC can be made to work in MSFS ?

The issue with RC with MSFS is the use of the SimConnect_Text function that is used to display multi-line text and menus. This is now documented as "deprecated and cannot be used in Microsoft Flight Simulator", so unfortunately it cannot be used. See the following post for more info:

John

[Gabe_62]

OK.

Thnx.

For what it's worth, I can run RC4 from my client PC and have either the text Window on the sim PC and/or the text in Showtext on the client PC.

If MSFS issue is text not showing up, surely it could just be used with Showtext on the client... or is Showtext only displaying the text relayed from the server ?

That's what I'm guessing ... and apologies for calling you Shirley.

🤣

[Gabe_62]

BTW... the AdvText/ShowText plugin seems to inabsentia from your "main" website.

I found 1 link to it and it still works great in P3D v5.

Good to be back !

I'm sure many more will be retro-P3Ding ...

 

[John Dowson]

I am not familiar with ShowText - that is user contributed by Rob van der Wiele. I am not sure how that works and so don't know if it is compatible with FSUIPC7 / MSFS. I will look into this when time permits.

John

[Ray Proudfoot]

On 12/21/2022 at 10:34 AM, John Dowson said:

I am not familiar with ShowText - that is user contributed by Rob van der Wiele. I am not sure how that works and so don't know if it is compatible with FSUIPC7 / MSFS. I will look into this when time permits.

John

Hi John. If you can get ShowText to interface with RC4 / MSFS you’ll make a lot of frustrated MSFS pilots happy. ATC is always neglected by sim creators.

[Gabe_62]

Hi Ray, my convos with JD on this and other threads have established that John is indeed keeping an eye on how MSFS progresses with view to getting it working.

(Hopefully one day it will be doable.)

 

However, FYi... In the meantime I'm using "Proflight 3" (PF3) from OnCourse software.

Now... here's the thing... their text boxes DO work in the sim... and/or can be displayed on a client PC. The number press responses are again made on the client PC, even if networked.

The "client display" is done using their 'own software' ... not WideFS. They do allude to the fact that it is based on the same principles as 'ShowText' which we all use with WideFS and Radar Contact.

On the server side I'm not sure what it uses... but it does rely on JD's Makerways.exe to create the runways.txt file.

PF3 is just...  'OK.'

....BUT despite its limitations RC4 is 11.5 x better. Yes... eleven point five. 😁

I was suggesting that if JD (probably the only person capable of doing it) could get it working, the possibility of someone taking over the development of RC4 would become at least a "possibility." After all, a great set of voices is already there so it just needs expanding and maybe SiDs and Stars developing.

However, he knows we are keen, and I dare not keep banging on about it... !

So I will continue to use PF3 and just keep an eye out for any announcements...👍😎

[Ray Proudfoot]

Hi @Gabe_62, John Dekker doesn’t have any interest and the source code is not available. RC monitors your position based on lat/lon, altitude, speed and heading. Same for all Ai too of course.

If the MSFS SDK had all that info that could be collected by SimConnect and made readable by RC4 I suppose it might work.

Lots of imponderables though. It will require the skills of John and Pete to see if it’s possible.

I integrate SIDs and STARs into the plan I feed RC4 but of course at 40nm out those are replaced by RC ATC.

[Gabe_62]

John has stated he will periodically check to see if he get the necessary stuff working.

I didn't say JD would develop RC... just suggesting that the possibility... in theory...  of taking it over would then exist.

It is pretty much abandonware given its free.

I'm sure for the right price it could be acquired.

Or just use it "as is" ... still better than any other alternative.  That's a fact.

[Ray Proudfoot]

Use P3D for your IFR flights and MSFS for your VFR ones. 😄 No ATC needed when you’re just sightseeing. 😉

Best of both worlds. 👍 That’s my opinion. Others may disagree.

It is possible to reverse engineer an executable but it’s time consuming, expensive and requires a lot of skill. Such a pity JD didn’t make the source code available. 😔

[John Dowson]

@Gabe_62 & @Ray Proudfoot: someone has RC4 working (more-or-less!) with MSFS, using ShowText for the menus. See the following post: 

 

[Ray Proudfoot]

@John Dowson, very informative and congratulations to @Soundman1 for his efforts.