DickDastardly

Hi m8, I had the same problem when making my TB profile. I even tried reassigning the command to a different key in the sim but still no joy. I think this is a bug in Black Shark hopefully it'll be fixed in the patch. Cheers, DD

If you're using XP, try "Horizontal Span" mode instead of dual view. The important thing is that you need to be seeing 1024x768 pixels on each monitor. The "lomac_data_file =" line is in the copy of the touchbuddy.cfg included in my download, at the end of this section: # Active "plugins" # # Active Plugin update rate # On tabs that have active plugins (The Lomac TEWs for example), this value determines # how often window updates happen. The value is in number on 0.1 seconds to wait between # updates. A vaue of 10 will give you 0.1 x 10 seconds delay (or 1 second). # WARNING: Decreasing this value increases the CPU time that TouchBuddy will use. Ideally # anim_update (above) and active_plugin_update should be the same value, but they dont have to be. active_plugin_update = 10 # filename of the data file exported by Lomac # NOTE: THIS ENTRY IS JUST A DEMO ENTRY!!! Remove this and enable the entry below #that is commented out!!! #lomac_data_file = .\touchbuddy-export.dat #this is the REAL location of the data file, the above line is just to demo #the active Lomac TEWS plugin. lomac_data_file = C:\Sims\Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\touchbuddy-export.dat (The line in bold is the one you want to change, then drop the edited version into your Touchbuddy folder, overwriting the default cfg file). Cheers, DD

Glad to hear you guys like the profile :). I've updated the link in the first post to a new copy which has a couple of minor improvements and fixes, and I've now also finished a version for those with only 2 monitors. You can see this new version in action in this video. The process to install it is as follows: Installation 1. Download and install Touchbuddy. (The current version is v1.3.0, Revision 18, don't confuse it with the Touchbuddy Toolkit which is just above it on that download page). 2. Backup the following files: Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\BlackShark\data\scripts\options.lua Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\FUI\Common\StartImage-2.bmp Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\Config\Export\Export.lua TouchBuddy\touchbuddy.cfg 3. Download this file to a temporary directory and unzip it. You should see four folders (BlackShark, Config, FUI and profiles) and a touchbuddy.cfg file. Copy and paste the BlackShark, Config and FUI folders to your Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50 folder, overwriting the existing files (which you've already backed up in the previous step). Then copy and paste the profiles folder and the touchbuddy.cfg to your TouchBuddy folder, again overwriting the existing files. 4. In your graphics card control panel, set your monitors to Dual View mode and both their resolutions to 1024x768. 5. Check in Windows desktop properties that your primary monitor (which will display the view out of your cockpit) is immediatelyto the RIGHT of your secondary monitor (which will display my Touchbuddy profile and the Shkval and ABRIS). 6. Open the file touchbuddy.cfg in your Touchbuddy folder with Notepad and scroll down until you see the following line: lomac_data_file = C:\Sims\Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\touchbuddy-export.dat Edit the path to match the location of your Ka-50 folder and save your changes. 7. Launch TB and load whichever profile suits the mission's starting conditions (either DCS-DickDastardly-prestartup-2mon.tbc or DCS-DickDastardly-inflight-2mon.tbc). Then click the "Let's Go" button and the panel should appear on your secondary monitor. 8. Launch the sim and select "Options" then "Controls" and change the key assigned to "Expedite Emergency ATGM Launch" to "J". Now load a mission and you should see a test card on your Shkval monitor during mission loading if everything is setup correctly. Once you unpause, the Shkval, ABRIS and payload strip should all be live and you'll be able to touch (or click) any of the buttons to trigger the appropriate key presses. N.B. The monitor on which I display the ABRIS is actually 5:4 rather than 4:3. If your monitor has a different aspect ratio then the image will be slightly stretched. Again, I've only tested this setup in Vista and the English version of DCS so I can't promise it'll work in XP or the Russian version (though I think it will). Cheers, DD

Might soon have some good news there too....;)

1. There's a forum over at TouchBuddy which discusses different touchscreen h/w. Personally I bought a 19" touchscreen conversion kit from Hong Kong (via ebay) which works great and was about £40 iirc. 2. I don't have TH2G myself but if I understand how it works then you should just be able to set your windows desktop to 3072x768. 3. The touchbuddy.cfg file will be in your Touchbuddy folder once you've installed it. Then just overwrite it with my version (after you've backed up the original). The "TouchBuddy Toolkit" is an app which helps you design TouchBuddy profiles - you don't actually need it to run my profile. The download you want is the TouchBuddy program itself: TouchBuddy v1.3.0 (Revision 18 - full build).

Hi, You might want to check out this thread :). Cheers, DD

EDIT: This post describes how to use my TouchBuddy profile with a three monitor setup. See my later post further down in this thread if you only have two monitors. Hi all, I've been doing a bit more tinkering with my multi-monitor setup and have managed to get the view forward on one screen, Shkval on another and this: ...on a third (touch) screen. Thanks to TouchBuddy, all the buttons and switches are touchable (or clickable with a mouse if you don't have a touchscreen), and they all have the same effect as their VC counterparts. I've uploaded a short video here so you can see the profile in use (apologies for the quality, it was taken on my phone's dodgy camera). If you have three monitors and would like to try the setup yourself just follow the instructions below. If there's sufficient demand I might make a version for two monitor setups too. Finally, a big thank you to Zorlac for creating the excellent TouchBuddy and Wild Bill Kelso for his TouchBuddy Toolkit. Cheers, DD Installation 1. Download and install Touchbuddy. 2. Backup the following files: Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\BlackShark\data\scripts\options.lua Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\FUI\Common\StartImage-2.bmp Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\Config\Export\Export.lua TouchBuddy\touchbuddy.cfg 3. Download this file to a temporary directory and unzip it. You should see four folders (BlackShark, Config, FUI and profiles) and a touchbuddy.cfg file. Copy and paste the BlackShark, Config and FUI folders to your Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50 folder, overwriting the existing files (which you've already backed up in the previous step). Then copy and paste the profiles folder and the touchbuddy.cfg to your TouchBuddy folder, again overwriting the existing files. 4. In your graphics card control panel, set your monitors to Dual View mode and all their resolutions to 1024x768. 5. Check in Windows desktop properties that your monitors are arranged in a horizontal row with the ABRIS monitor on the LEFT, main monitor in the center and Shkval monitor on the RIGHT. 6. Open the file touchbuddy.cfg in your Touchbuddy folder with Notepad and scroll down until you see the following line: lomac_data_file = C:\Sims\Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\touchbuddy-export.dat Edit the path to match the location of your Ka-50 folder and save your changes. 7. Launch TB and load whichever profile suits the mission's starting conditions (either DCS-DickDastardly-prestartup.tbc or DCS-DickDastardly-inflight.tbc). Then click the "Let's Go" button and the panel should appear on the monitor on which you'll be viewing the ABRIS. 8. Launch the sim and select "Options" then "Controls" and change the key assigned to "Expedite Emergency ATGM Launch" to "J". Now load a mission and you should see a test card on your Shkval monitor during mission loading if everything is setup correctly. Once you unpause, the Shkval, ABRIS and payload strip should all be live and you'll be able to touch (or click) any of the buttons to trigger the appropriate key presses. N.B. The monitor on which I display the ABRIS is actually 5:4 rather than 4:3. If your monitor has a different aspect ratio then the image will be slightly stretched. Also, I've only tested this setup in Vista and the English version of DCS so I can't promise it'll work in XP or the Russian version (though I think it will). Limitations 1. It doesn't seem to be possible to obtain the state of most switches and button lights via lua so TB can only deduce what state they should be in by knowing their initial position and keeping track of the number of times they've been pressed in TB. This means that if you click a button in the virtual cockpit then Touchbuddy won't know about it and will get out of synch. (If this happens you can either continue clicking in the VC until the positions match up again or press the "Reset button status" command on the *TB* tab). 2. The CMS display can only show the currently selected program as the number of flares remaining per side isn't obtainable via lua. (The total number of flares remaining is visible in the payload strip, however). 3. The PVI-800 display doesn't change, again due to a lack of data from lua. Hopefully the forthcoming Physical Cockpit Interface Package will give us the ability to export things like the nav display and keypad lights, along with the CMS display and EKRAN (ideally in the same way that the Shkval and ABRIS are currently). 4. The button to change the Nav/INU fixtaking method (labelled NAV TG SHKVL on my version of the Nav keypad) doesn't work. This seems to be due to a bug in the sim whereby no matter what keys you assign to this function, they have no effect. The only way to trigger it is by clicking the switch in the VC.

Just forked out for a reconditioned 8400GS to allow me to run 3 monitors from the same PC so I've made a new version of my config files to support this setup. My main monitor displays the outside view, second monitor shows a 1024x768 Shkval image and the third monitor displays this: If you'd like to try this config then the process of setting it up is very similar to the one I described for my 2 monitor version ie: 1. Backup Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\BlackShark\data\scripts\options.lua and Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\FUI\Common\StartImage-2.bmp. 2. Download this file to a temporary directory and unzip it. You should see three folders: BlackShark, Config and FUI. Copy and paste them into your Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50 folder, overwriting the existing files (which you've just backed up in step 1). 3. In your graphics card control panel, set your monitors to Dual View mode and all their resolutions to 1024x768. 4. Check in Windows desktop properties that your monitors are arranged in a horizontal row with the ABRIS monitor on the left, main monitor in the center and Shkval monitor on the right. 5. Fire up Black Shark and everything should be working once you unpause. N.B. The monitor on which I display the ABRIS is actually 5:4 rather than 4:3. If your monitor has a different aspect ratio then the image will be slightly stretched. Again, I've only tested this setup in Vista and the English version of DCS so I can't promise it'll work in XP or the Russian version (though I think it will). Cheers, DD

@Acedy - The "Physical Cockpit Interface Package" certainly sounds interesting. Looking forward to seeing what it will contain. @soup55 - The setup you describe is pretty similar to what I use (but I only have 1 projector). You can display a "No-cockpit" view by pressing LAlt+F1. @AlphaInfinity - I haven't ventured online yet - I wouldn't want to inflict my dodgy flying on some unsuspecting wingman until I've had a bit more practice ;). Cheers, DD P.S. I've been doing a bit more tinkering with my current setup and have managed to get the following displaying on my secondary monitor: (The Shkval and ABRIS are functional, the message box and no-cockpit-view lamps kinda work, and the weapons and Nav panels are just for decoration atm). If anyone else would like to try this two monitor setup, here's how to get it working: 1. Backup Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\BlackShark\data\scripts\options.lua and Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\FUI\Common\StartImage-2.bmp. 2. Download this file to a temporary directory and unzip it. You should see three folders: BlackShark, Config and FUI. Copy and paste them into your Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50 folder, overwriting the existing files (which you've just backed up in step 1). 3. In your graphics card control panel, set your monitors to Dual View mode and both their resolutions to 1024x768. 4. Check in Windows desktop properties that your main monitor is positioned immediately to the right of your other monitor (so that if you move your cursor off the left edge of your main monitor it appears on the right edge of your secondary monitor). 5. Fire up Black Shark and everything should be working once you unpause. N.B. My secondary monitor is actually 5:4 rather than 4:3. If your monitor has a different aspect ratio then the image may be slightly stretched. Also, I've only tested the setup in Vista and the English version of DCS so I can't promise it'll work in XP or the Russian version (though I think it will). Cheers, DD

I have Vista too and get satisfactory performance atm running the shkval and ABRIS on another screen (with a less than stellar rig). I'm not sure exactly what you meant by "the horizontal span has to be fixed before we can go beyond displaying ABRIS and shkval video". If you're referring to the lack of a horizontal desktop span mode in Vista then I don't understand the problem -everything seems to work fine with Dual View mode. If you're referring to the current necessity of defining extra width for a phantom third monitor then part of the reason for the suggested format changes in 1a/1b above is to remove that requirement (which will hopefully result in increased fps). Any additional modules I've suggested would be entirely optional so if, for example, your rig can only cope with 1 camera + shkval then you could just omit the proposed new sections for EKRAN, LWR, Nav display etc from your monitor setup file. Cheers, DD

Hi all, As a home cockpit builder, my favourite feature of Black Shark is its ability to draw the Shkval and ABRIS on different monitors. My sincere thanks go to the ED team for responding to community pleas to enable this extremely useful capability. However, as noted in other threads, there are a few problems which arise when using multi-monitors so I've come up with a few suggestions as to how they could be addressed: Problem 1 The multi-page threads in this forum (and others) in which people have struggled to get to grips with the monitor setup files suggest the current format isn't very intuitive for many people. It also generally requires quite a bit of file editing by the user to get everything set up satisfactorily. Suggestion 1a Change the format of options.lua to allow the width and height of each screen to be defined individually. For example: ["screen_1_width"] = 1280, ["screen_1_height"] = 1024, ["screen_2_width"] = 1920, ["screen_2_height"] = 1080, ["screen_3_width"] = 1280, ["screen_3_height"] = 1024, (The numbering of each screen should correspond to their numbering in the Windows Display Settings). Suggestion 1b Change the format of the monitor setup files by adding a line to each section which defines the screen on which that item is to appear. Screen.width and screen.height in that section should then refer to the appropriate definitions in options.lua for that individual screen (rather than the total size of all screens as they currently do). For example, if the options.lua was as above and the Shkval definition in the monitor setup file was like this: Shkval = { screen = 3; x = 0; y = screen.height * 0.195; width = screen.width * 0.5; height = screen.height * 0.5; } ..then the Shkval would be drawn on screen 3 at position 0,200 with a width of 640 and a height of 512. This format is, imho, more intuitive and, more importantly, it also makes it much easier to write a monitor setup file which will work with any combination of screen resolutions. This would enable (a new set of) default setup files to work without requiring any editing by the user, thereby making the process of setting up multi-monitors much more straightforward. Problem 2 The locations at which the comms menu, message box, no-cockpit view lamps and multiplayer GUI are drawn isn't definable, resulting in them being placed in inappropriate positions when multi-monitors are used. Suggestion 2 Allow the locations of these items to be defined in a monitor setup file in the same way as the Shkval and ABRIS. For example: MP_GUI = { screen = 2; x = 0; y = 0; width = screen.width; height = screen.height; } (N.B. As in the previous example, screen.width and screen.height refer to the values for that individual screen, as defined in options.lua). Problem 3 Although having the ability to draw the Shkval and ABRIS on other monitors is very useful indeed, there are several other vital systems which aren't currently displayable (or at least not without extensive knowledge of LUA). Suggestion 3 Create additional modules for these systems and make their positions definable in the monitor setup file. For example, with a two monitor setup we might want the non-main screen to be laid out like this: ..which would look as follows when running: ..and be defined in a monitor setup file something like this: Description = 'Cam, SP GUI & MP GUI on screen 2, everything else on screen 1' Viewports = { Center = { screen = 2; x = 0; y = 0; width = screen.width; height = screen.height; viewDx = 0; viewDy = 0; aspect = screen.aspect; } } SP_GUI = { screen = 2; x = 0; y = 0; width = screen.width; height = screen.height; } MP_GUI = { screen = 2; x = 0; y = 0; width = screen.width; height = screen.height; } LWR = { screen = 1; x = 0; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.084; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Master_caution = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.084; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.041; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Caution_lamps = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.125; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.178; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Warning_lamps = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.303; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.255; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Message_lamps = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.558; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.368; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Counter_measures = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.926; y = 0; width = screen.width * 0.074; height = screen.height * 0.153; } Shkval = { screen = 1; x = 0; y = screen.height * 0.195; width = screen.width * 0.5; height = screen.height * 0.5; } ABRIS = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.5; y = screen.height * 0.156; width = screen.width * 0.5; height = screen.height * 0.8; } Comms_Menu = { screen = 1; x = 0; y = screen.height * 0.681; width = screen.width * 0.191; height = screen.height * 0.245; } EKRAN = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.195; y = screen.height * 0.681; width = screen.width * 0.106; height = screen.height * 0.196; } Nav_display = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.305; y = screen.height * 0.681; width = screen.width * 0.195; height = screen.height * 0.122; } Weapons_display = { screen = 1; x = screen.width * 0.305; y = screen.height * 0.803; width = screen.width * 0.195; height = screen.height * 0.122; } Message_box = { screen = 1; x = 0; y = screen.height * 0.931; width = screen.width * 0.5; height = screen.height * 0.039; } (Other modules which would be particularly useful include the Autopilot panel and the Nav keypad). Problem 4 Parts of the loading screen remain visible on monitors after a mission has loaded unless they're completely covered by the camera, Shkval or ABRIS. Suggestion 4 Add a step during mission loading which draws a black background on each monitor or, even better, allow the user to specify a background image file to be used for each monitor. Problem 5 Several panels (like the nav pad or ABRIS) are ideally suited for display on touch screens. Even for those without touch screens, it would be much easier to be able to operate these controls with a mouse on a secondary monitor than in the virtual cockpit. Suggestion 5 Add modules which have clickable hotspots in the appropriate places for e.g. ABRIS buttons, Nav keypad buttons etc. These would enable something like the following to be displayed: I'd be very interested to hear from any of the ED guys if any of these suggestions are technically feasible, or from anyone else who uses the multi-monitor feature if you'd find the proposed changes useful (or have any other suggestions of your own). Many thanks, DD

Ah nevermind, have stumbled across the answer myself. If anyone else wants to do the same thing, just open Eagle Dynamics\Ka-50\Config\View\SnapViews.lua with Notepad++ and change this line: Snap[9][13]["vAngle"] = -15.592758472369 to Snap[9][13]["vAngle"] = 0 (This fixes the default head angle in both the cockpit and the no-cockpit views). Cheers, DD

Hi, I'd like to change the default head angle so that when I center my TrackIR I'm looking directly at the center of the HUD. Is there any way to do this? (It was possible in LockOn by changing a value in a config file). I found a thread in this forum in which Alex O'Kean of ED describes how to change the HMS reticle so it's in the center of your screen and I presume the procedure he describes is similar to what I'd need to do to fix the default head angle, but I can't find the appropriate file/value to change. Can anyone give me a pointer? Many thanks, DD

The A-10 shot looks superb Ruggbutt. Do you plan to make stuff like the weapons panel active in the same way as the F-15 payload panel? (i.e. reflecting data from the sim). Cheers, DD

Slightly off topic, but those of you who have an interest in this kind of stuff and also fly EECH might want to check out this thread: http://www.simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2202885&page=1#Post2202885 It describes how to display working cockpit gauges, warning lights and fully functional MFDs on a second PC. Cheers, DD

Looks superb m8 :) can't wait to try the new version. Cheers, DD

I'm pretty sure there's some kind of exemption which covers designs which have to have certain features in order to attach to another product. As I understand it, you would be okay legally. Cheers, DD (Disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer)

Why not take a break from TB coding by getting cracking on some more active plugins instead? A change is as good as a rest, as they say. ;) Mmmmm radars, Russian RWR, A-10 style TEWS, Autopilot indicator lights.....<pauses to wipe drool from monitor> Cheers, DD

Sounds great, can't wait to see what you and Mnemonic come up with next. :) Cheers, DD

Yep the TEWS works for all planes and displays all types of target. If you fly the F-15 mission from the main menu you should pick up a MIG-29 on it almost immediately. Cheers, DD

In that case, don't worry about the "client stuff" section, iirc by default it's set up correctly for running locally. You will need to edit the "lomac_data_file =" line, though, to enable TB to get the exported data from LOMAC. Cheers, DD

Check your touchbuddy.cfg file and make sure you've added the appropriate IP address in the "client stuff" section, and edited the "lomac_data_file =" line in the "Active plugins" section. That last one tripped me up when I first installed TB. Cheers, DD

So long as you have a spare monitor you don't need either a touch screen or a 2nd PC (although with only 1 PC your fps in the sim may suffer). Cheers, DD

Hi all, I've been tinkering a bit more with my profile with the very handy touchbuddy toolkit (thanks Wild Bill) and I've come up with a new version. The first tab is the same as the one mentioned above i.e. payload, MCP and TEWS with a transparent background for use with Virtual Panel: I've also added a Maps tab (a cannabilized version of the one from Zorlac's profile, redesigned for my 1280x1024 screen): ..a Keys tab which lists all the sim's key commands: ...a Manual tab which displays the FC manual: ...and a Training tab which shows TekaTeka's html version of all the training missions, along with links to movies of them: To install the profile, download it here and unzip to your touchbuddy profiles folder. Then download TekaTeka's training stuff from here. Once you've downloaded all the training stuff and unzipped it you should have a folder called LOFC_Training (which contains a movies subfolder into which you should have placed all the movie files). Drag the entire LOFC_Training folder into your Lomac-DD-01 folder. Finally drag a copy of your Flaming Cliff's manual there too. The end result should look something like this: Then just replace your LOVP.ini file with mine, and you should be good to go. To use: -Run TB in server mode on your main PC. -Run TB in client mode on your 2nd PC and launch my "Lomac-DD-01.tbc" profile. -Run Virtual Panel on your 2nd PC, right click and select "fullscreen". -ALT+TAB back to TB and the payload, MCP and TEWS will appear around the VP gauges. You can then click on the TB tabs to switch between the cockpit, maps, keys, manual and training. Cheers, DD

I've uploaded the touchbuddy profile and virtual panel ini file I used in the above screenshot in case they might be of use to anyone: http://www.mikesteven.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/lomac/LOMACTBVP01.tbc http://www.mikesteven.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/lomac/LOVP.INI They're designed for a 1280x1024 display but feel free to edit them as you like for incorporation into your own profiles. Assuming you have both TB and VP installed and working, just follow these steps to use them together: 1. Run TB in server mode on your main PC. 2. Create desktop shortcuts to both touchbuddy and VP on your client PC (in the lower half of your desktop). 3. Launch TB on the client with my LOMACTBVP01 profile. 3. Launch VP on the client then right click on the grey background and select fullscreen. 4. ALT+TAB back to TB and the TB stuff should appear on top of VP. 5. Launch LOMAC on your main PC. As soon as you start a mission and unpause, TB and VP should start responding to data from the sim. Cheers, DD