Crescendo

It seems to me that a lot of the talk regarding the next DCS module is about playing favourites and anomaly hunting (looking for updated models, website registrations, whatever.). Has anyone with relevant industry/military knowledge about US fighters actually weighed in on this issue? To elaborate, we have a precedent regarding how DCS modules are 'selected' for development: Military contracts. A-10As were slated to be upgraded with the Precision Engagement modification, and thus pilots required familiarisation with the new avionics and HOTAS system. Enter ED. So, couldn't we infer something similar regarding the next module? (Maybe not?) Is anything interesting happening with the major fixed-wing fighter programs that might require or benefit from a desktop simulation for pilot training? I admittedly know little about the inner-workings of the US military, but from my naive perspective this might be a better way of approaching the 'problem' of the next DCS module, as opposed to favouritism and wish-fulfilment. Anyone more knowledgeable than myself care to step in suggest some possibilities based on real-world upgrades and pilot training needs? :) Caveat: I've only read the last 30 or so pages, so forgive me if this has already been bought up.

I made a track of my attempt at "ghostriding the A-10C". :D I don't know if flaring is considered 'cheating', but the aircraft still actually lands 100+ metres from the ejection point. Watch the track in it's entirety without adjusting the view — I tried to make it cinematic. You can always mess around with the views later. :P cres_ghostride_the_A-10C_cinematic.trk

Plus at present you can barely even see the position lights and anti-collison lights, which makes it strange that the AI can see you so much better with external lights on. The way the aircraft light sources are modelled makes them seem 'dead' and lacking in 'volume' and intensity, for lack of a better description. I think it's because the lights are just 2D sprites or something similar. I live near an airport and I can often clearly see position lights and anti-collison lights (anti-collision especially) at 1-1.5nm, such that my eye is drawn to them even if I am not specifically looking for an aircraft. At similar ranges in DCS I can barely even make out an A-10 on landing approach, even if I know where to look! Sorry to hijack your thread, but I wish ED would fix the aircraft light sources and make them truly 'bright' (again, for lack of a better term).

I thought your video was cool. As much as we all espouse realism on the forums it's still fun to mess around. I like to see someone having a good time and letting their hair down. ;) Keep it up, Humanvegetable. :pilotfly:

If you're using Windows Vista or Windows 7, the tracks are saved in the following directory: "X:\Users\yourname\Saved Games\DCS Warthog\Tracks\Multiplayer" If you use XP or an earlier OS it should still be roughly similar to the above.

I've personally never had an issue with turbulence, but if you set the throttle too low eventually you will bleed airspeed as the autopilot tries to unsustainably maintain present attitude. Eventually the angle-of-attack will increase to the point where it exceeds the paramemeters of the autopilot, which then promptly disengages. However, even if you're negligent with your speed you'll eventually hear the AoA stall warning tone, so you can always just throttle back up.

By the way, you can also try increasing your MFCD resolution in the game settings. Doing this will make blurry targets become sharper and thus easier to see with the TGP. I use 1024, but a minimum of 512 is good enough. Increasing the display MFCD resolution isn't strictly realistic, but I rationalise it as acceptable because the FLIR modelling in this game is currently pretty horrible.

I think kamui231a is mainly talking about finding targets, not engaging them. The main way to find targets is to fly your aircraft in a manner favourable to finding things, and then to be persistant and thorough with the TGP. Flying the aircraft favourably for finding targets: Be some distance from the target area, in the order of 10-20nm. I personally find that 15-20nm is usually best if I have no idea where the targets are (other than say a very general area of terrain). The further you are away from the target the more area you can 'see' with the TGP, and the easier it will be to slew around that area. If you're too close, you will have to slew the TGP larger and larger distances to cover smaller and smaller areas, and your field-of-view will also become smaller and smaller. If it helps, imagine a cone extending from your TGP — at longer ranges the base of the cone is large and thus covers large areas, whereas at short ranges the base of the cone is smaller and thus covers smaller areas. Fly high above the target area, in the order of 10-20k feet. The higher you are the more you will have a 'bird's-eye view' of the target area, and so targets will tend to be spread out over larger areas. If you fly too low, you will be looking 'through' the houses, trees, various terrains, and targets all mixed together. Find a secure area and initate a gentle orbit using the "ALT" autopilot mode. This will fly the plane in a circle that is anchored around a fixed point on the ground. This allows you to fly 'hands-free' and focus on searching for targets. Consider throttling back so that your TGP has visibility of the target area for the longest possibly time before becoming masked. Alternatively, you could try flying towards and away from the target area and iniating "ALT/HEAD" autopilot as necessary. However, if you choose the latter method, try not to fly too close to the target area, and consider throttling back when heading towards the target area to slow your encroachment. Alternatively, if you don't think there are many SHORAD threats around (SAMs, MANPADs, AAA etc.), you could try flying low and slow (<3000ft and say <220knots) and using your own eyes and the game's zoom function to find targets. Look for smoke, dust, muzzle flashes, and weapon tracer effects and so on. This method is risky, but it works. Using the TGP to find targets: Set up your "GAIN" and "LEVEL" settings using the OSBs when in the WHOT or BHOT infared TGP modes. GAIN increases and decreases the contrast of the display, which makes objects 'pop' against the terrain and become more visibile. LEVEL increases and decreases the brightness of the display, which makes it easier to see things. I typically use a GAIN setting of 6 and a LEVEL setting of 2, but play around with it and find what you prefer. Also, remember to adjust GAIN and LEVEL as necessary to meet the conditions of the particular mission you are flying, as there is no 'right' setting for all circumstances. Find an area of terrain were you suspect targets are. Mentally section-off that area based upon some prominent landmarks. For example, think to yourself I'm going to search the area from this forest to this lake and After that, I'm going to search from the forest to the town. Once you've defined the area to search, slew the TGP left to right and front to back until you've covered the entire area. This is your search pattern (for clarity, refer to the diagram). I usually try and thoroughly cover one sectioned-off area on each 'pass' of my orbit. If you don't have a search pattern or some form of repeatable method, finding targets will simply be a matter of luck. More often then not you will not find anything, and you will spend a lot of time looking at the same areas again and again. This is a recipe for frustration and makes people think that finding targets is magic, when it really comes down to technique and persistance. As you are flollowing the search pattern, change FOV as necessary with China Hat FWD Short (CH F S), and zoom in and out with DMS as necessary. Further, regularly change from BHOT to WHOT, because sometimes targets 'pop' more in different modes. If you get confused about where you are looking, switch to CCD mode, zoom all the way out, and change to wide FOV to get your bearings again. It bears repeating: The most important thing when it comes to finding targets with the TGP is to have a rigorous search pattern, to be thorough with zooming and camera mode switching, and to be patient. In short: Fly far away from the target Fly high Fly slow Estabilish a good orbit or approach Configure your infared TGP modes Observe landmarks Create and follow a search pattern Constantly change levels of zoom and constantly flip TGP camera modes from BHOT to WHOT. If after all this you are still having trouble, don't fret: Finding targets is often hard and tedious, even with a good plan and an aircraft that is designed to loiter for long periods. This is why bossy JTACs exist. :harhar: Finally, here is my horrible drawing:

There are a few techniques available to get the TGP to look at the ground directly beneath an elevated steerpoint. Take at two posts I have previously written on this subject: http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1185493&postcount=16 (Two methods of slewing to the ground beneath a waypoint.) http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1230218&postcount=6 (A more detailed description of the "Technique 1" in the first link.)

Thanks for the information guys. The price for that eBay listing isn't horrible, but I think I might wait for the new edition. :thumbsup:

As suspected, both of those sellers are out of stock. :(

Thank you very much. I'll give this a try too, and maybe mix-and-match with the soundpack that theOden suggested. Thanks for the confirmation that AF works in Windows 7, and for the version explanations. The extra information makes my choice easier — I think for now I'll just use a vanilla AF install and experiment with the mods and addons that have been suggested. If I want to get 'deeper' into it I'll check out OF and FF. Thanks again all. :thumbup:

Thanks for the reply. I will also look at your suggestion. What exactly makes Open Falcon 4.0 a "a more hardcore Falcon"? It seems like there are many options when it comes to playing Falcon in 2011. So, is there such a thing as a Falcon community generally accepted 'best practice' regarding which products to install? For example, do roughly 75% of people play Allied Force, and the remaining 25% play the other versions? Or is the community more evenly split and there is truly no 'best choice' or 'majority choice'. :helpsmilie:

That looks pretty simple, thanks. So Allied Force is the way to go? That's fine, I don't mind spending money for quality. However, a few things are concerning me. First, the Lead Pursuit website (the Allied Force programmers) has not been updated since January 2009. From a newbie's perspective this doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Second, the checkout page for Allied Force on the Graphsim store says "***NOTE: Not compatible with Windows 7". Do you have experience with the software working normally on Windows 7 64-bit Pro?

Hi all, I'm looking to get back into playing Falcon 4.0. My problem is that I have not played since 2002, and I have not kept up to date with all the different versions and patches and third-party mods. I have also never played Allied Force. Basically what I'm looking for is an "idiots's guide" to getting a typical Falcon 4.0 installation (whatever counts as typical in 2011) up and running on a modern OS. I am using Windows 7 64-bit Professional. I have looked around, but I can't seem to find a clear, concise post that outlines exactly what a new pilot needs to know in 2011. Do I need to buy Falcon 4.0 again? Do I need to buy Falcon 4.0: Allied force too, or is it a standalone game? What patches, if any, do I need to download? What the hell are OpenFalcon, FreeFalcon, RedViper and what relation do they bear to Falcon 4.0 and Falcon: Allied Force — should I install them instead? What is "hitiles", what is with all the cockpit modifications, and so on and so on etc. etc. I would be very grateful if someone who has "been there, done that" could write a short how-to. Perhaps something like the following: Step 1: Buy X and Y Step 2: Install X, then Y Step 3: Download and install Z patch Step 4: Download and install mod A because it's generally agreed that it makes the game look 10X better Step 5: Download and install mod B because it improves this aspect of the game that I think is important Thank you for reading. :P

No problem. :thumbup: Last few of the Hog:

Here are some A-10 pictures/wallpapers that I 'made' (read: found, resized, colour-corrected if necessary :P): I have some more that I will post later, but I'm sick of uploading for now.