Thanks for coming to my rescue - I was starting to feel like an inferior pilot :helpsmilie:
I started mine in 1996 but had to take some time off and then finished up in 2001. I wasn't that far from you. I flew out of kgai in Montgomery county MD.
I think you're right ethereal, it must be different continents. We'll get the altimeter setting from the tower or from the weather recording and we set it on startup. I've always used msl or QNH and never zeroed the altimeter to the field elevation. Now this is all in a 172 ( from the 1970's no less) so it isn't the most hi-tech airframe out there. I have been given barometric pressure from ATC and the tower but it's always MSL (at least in my case as a VFR pilot).