TOMCATZ

Good morning Barthek! So far I ever used my own Caucasus textures because the original ones were pretty ... comic style to me. But on Facebook I saw your textures and so I decided to give them a try. So ... wow! You made an really impressive job. The textures looking brilliant to me and should be standard. I really like the "no snow" variant. I combined them with Taz trees and yes - DCS looks very nice now. Thank you so much for all your hard work. All the effort you put in was totally worth it. Hope you could do the same for Syria one far day. (looks too painted to me and I would like to see it more photo realistic - but just an idea) Very well done!!! Cheers TOM

Hi, Offline mission F14A - back to carrier - 30NMs out - freeze for the third time of the same mission. Maybe something with the tanker? Just guessing. Cheers Tom

Hallo ich habe mir die Quest 2 gekauft. In den Jahren davor war ich stolzer Besitzer der Rift und ich war total glücklich. Aber seit ich die Oculus Quest 2 gekauft habe - ist alles im Arsch. Erstens: Ich habe die Quest 2 gekauft, alles angeschlossen (Linkkabel original oculus), die App auf meinem Handy installiert, das oculus Programm auf meinem Computer gestartet, die alte Hardware (rift s) aus dem Programm entfernt. Die oculus Software erkannte das neue Headset (Wireless , Link-Kabel), alles war auf grünem Licht aber: Dann habe ich versucht, DCS zu starten - keine Hardware gefunden. Habe versucht, einen Videoplayer zu starten - keine Hardware. Trotzdem war die Verbindung auf grün- im Headset war ein Bild und die Verbindung wurde im Setup angezeigt. Ich habe alle Ordner gelöscht und die Oculus Software von meinem Computer deinstalliert und alles wieder von vorne angefangen. Neuer Download von der Firma, neue Installation, wieder ... gleiches Ergebnis. Alles wurde grün angezeigt, die Verbindung wurde hergestellt, aber es war nicht möglich, einen Videoplayer oder den DCS-Flugsimulator zu starten. Also beschloss ich, auf meine alte Oculus Rift zurückzugreifen. Ich richtete alle Kabel neu ein, HDMI-Kabel nicht gefunden. Ich installierte die komplette Oculus Software neu, Kabel, Setup ... HDMI-Verbindung nicht gefunden. Also habe ich den Hardware-Manager überprüft - "Zweiter Monitor RIFT ist angeschlossen" - also - er ist definitiv da, online und funktioniert. Das Kabel ist korrekt, original und funktioniert. Alle Anschlüsse und USBs sind aktualisiert und funktionieren. Ich habe eine Windows-Wiederherstellung durchgeführt - die Oculus-Software kann meine HDMI-Verbindung zum Headset immer noch nicht finden. Ja- USBs rein und raus, Reset, Neustart, HDMI-Kabel rein und raus in der Reihenfolge ... Ich habe alles gemacht, was ich in den Internetforen und youtube-Videos gefunden habe ... Ich habe einen i9 Prozessor, Win10, 3090Ti und 64GB RAM - sollte also mehr als genug sein. Alle Treiber aktualisiert- alles funktioniert einwandfrei bis auf jede Hard- und Software von Oculus. Okay - ich hatte eine funktionierende Oculus Rift Software. Ich kaufte die Meta 2, die nicht funktioniert, schloss meine Rift-Ausrüstung wieder an und diese funktioniert nicht mehr..... Am Ende des Tages möchte ich nur DCS in VR spielen - mehr nicht. Daher wäre ich für jede Art von Hilfe mehr als dankbar. Danke TOM Übersetzt mit www.DeepL.com/Translator (kostenlose Version)

Hi If this is not the right section- please move this to another topic. Thanks I bought the Quest 2. In the years before I was a proud owner of the Rift and I was totally happy. But since I bought the Oculus Quest 2 - everything fucked up. First: I bought the Quest 2 , connected everything (link cable original oculus) , installed the app on my mobile, started the oculus program on my computer, removed the old hardware (rift s) out of the program. The oculus software realized the new headset (Wireless , link-cable), everything was on green light but: Then I've tried to start DCS - no hardware found. T have tried to start a video player - no hardware. Still the connection was on green- in the headset was a picture and the connection was shown in the Setup. I deleted all folders and deinstalled the oculus software from my computer and started all again from scratch. New download from the company, new installation, again ... same result. All was shown on green light, connection was established but it was not possible to start a video player or DCS flight simulator. So I decided to go back to my old Oculus Rift. I set up all the cables again, HDMI cable not found. I reinstalled the complete oculus software, cables, setup ... HDMI connection not found. So I checked the hardware manager - "Second monitor RIFT is connected" - so - it is definitely there, online and working. The cable is correct, original and working. All ports and USBs are updated and working. I made a windows restore - Oculus software can still not find my HDMI connection to the headset. Yes- USBs in and out, reset, restart, HDMI cable in and out in order ... I did everything what I found in the internet forums and youtube videos ... I have an i9 processor, Win10, 3090Ti and 64GB RAM - so should be more then enough. All driver updated- everything is working fine except every hard- and software from Oculus. Okay - I had a working Oculus Rift software. I bought the Meta 2 that is not working, reconnected my Rift equipment and this is not working anymore..... At the end of the day I just want to play DCS in VR- nothing more. So would be more then thankful for any kind of help. Thanks TOM

Sir, Yes- I'm afraid that you are right. But the trouble started after the 2.8 update. In 2.7 VR centering worked well. So maybe there is a small little ... how can I say .... <profanity> up in the new update. Thank you very much and let's hope for the very best. Kind regards and cheers TOM Post scriptum: DST I've tried but still with no success. But thank you very much and I'm happy that it works well for you. Have good flights

Congratulation. But not for me. Thanks and Cheers TOM

That doesnt work for me. ED ...please fix it. Thanks and Cheers Tom

Same problem here. I`ll wait for a fix....

Hi, re-center is not possible anymore. That makes VR pretty useless! Even setting the keys again doesn´t work. Oculus too. If it is not possible to calibrate the view for VR- we have a serious problem. Thanks and Cheers TOM

Thank you very much for the given answers, Gentlemen. Helps me a lot to clarify the situation. I can not decide, if this is a bug or not. But obviously the Flanker can guide there missiles even was the lock was broken for some seconds. That is very interesting. Thanks again and Cheers TOM

Hi, last night I flew in a self created mission in Single Play. In TacView I saw following Problem: One FA-18 was engaged by a Flanker. The Flanker shoot a R-27 (radar guided- No ET or IR guided) against the Hornet (both AI) and the Hornet answered with a AMRAAM. The Flanker was able to defend the AIM-120 but turned cold so that it was not possible to hold the lock on the Hornet. After the Flanker was clean, the Flanker turned hot again and her R-27 hit the Hornet. So my question is pretty simple: Can the Flanker lock after launch in order to guide the missile? (Please- Only what is fact in DCS. No comparisons to RL). Thanks and cheers TOM

Well - I don't have that much experience. All I can say is: Textured polygons in large masses are still a problem for the CPU/GPU and its memory. Mipmapping makes for faster rendering- but it has to be completely loaded into memory first. Because it is still one Texture. You notice it when you fly online to an aircraft carrier and another aircraft spawns on the deck. You can't really see it yet, but you notice a lot of lags and stutters. The Marianas generally have too many polygons and the players rightly complain about heavy judder, stuttering and interruptions. Because ground objects also need very well-made LODs. So yes - a too high polygon load still has glorifying effects! But as I said: I don't have much experience with it. I just hope that it will get better in the future. Cheers TOM

Hm... Why not? For me, the JF-17 is one big wonder. The stand-off weapons and even the air-to-air missiles are quite theoretical to me. Nevertheless, it can do everything and the weapons are accepted in the community. There is clear evidence that the Tomcat can carry at least 2 AMRAAMs and could use them. Over 200 missiles were fired during the development phase over white sands. However, I have to say that the radar software had to be changed and I don't know if Heatblur would take that much work. I think they have more interesting projects that would certainly bring in more. (Phantom, Eurofighter, Carrier) Cheers TOM

Okay - Yes. I tried your advices. Shorter range (I really do not like it but ...) Feels more like AMRAAM shooting to me. But yes - 30NM`s works well against fighters, so .... All I can say is thanks for this fantastic support!!!! Have a great bandit day and cheers TOM (I still think the AI is wrong, but ... who cares). Tacview-20220606-195014-DCS-Through_The_Inferno_SYRIA_v3.zip.acmi

Trolling? No - First - you need experience and training to do what the rookie AI can do right now. And they do it in the dark, in the clouds and everywhere and perfect. Thats not realistic but acarde. Second- the AI is flying still into the ground. Entertaining - indeed. Third - less then 30 percent of pilots would do <profanity> like that in RL. But yah - I will try.

I really appreciate your kind words. I have mentioned on other forums that the new AI is exhibiting behavior that is not correct. When even a "trainee" shows perfect scores in the right time and breaks every lock while still being aggressive, that is a top pilot with years of combat experience and not a rookie. But in DCS now, everyone and even the worst aircraft and least experienced pilots dogging the AIM54 like pros. So yes ... I am very grateful for the coming updates for the AIM54's. And yes - I would change my tactics again. But I will not change my decision making and start gambling just because the AI now behaves like players in hyperlobby. So - my Tacview I uploaded here shows a typical day now... Yes- Old tactics against new AI. So I have to find the golden key... Cheers and thanks TOM Tacview-TimeTrimmed-20220524-200231-DCS-Through_The_Inferno_PG_v3.zip.acmi

Hello, I'm sorry to say that I'm really at a loss at the moment. Before the last AI patch, the AIM54 was running fine. I could shoot from 40 thousand feet and 70 miles away and the enemies were mostly hit. Everything was fine. After the last patch, the AIM 54 doesn't hit anything anymore! Either: The enemies turn away early or make 4 to 5 g turns and the missile immediately loses all its energy and sinks to the ground. Or: The enemies go on beam early and the missile loses its lock-on. If the missile loses lock, it should automatically fall back on the data from the mother radar. But this does not happen. The missile turns and tracks the target in a way that looks like an emergency stop. And in the end game it is again so un-maneuverable that it does not hit a 4g pulling target. All this means that I haven't been able to get a shot off with the AIM-54 for 2 weeks. Not against MiG21, MiG23, F-5. Even Su-24 are hardly to hit. With opponents like MiG29 or Flankers, I can only flee. I don't know what happened. But Eagle Dynamics has turned one of the most successful fighters in history into one of the most worthless modules! Because: AIM 54 - hits nothing AIM 7 - hits nothing AIM 9 - hits but you also get hit. What a disgrace! Cheers TOM PS: I am firmly convinced that HEATBLUR has done a top job. I love this module - for me, the best module in the DCS world! That's why my disappointment is so big right now.

Hello, Okay - after a few days of testing, I have now come to the following final opinion: The new AI's behavior is a bug! Short explanation: The AI dodges the missiles too well. Explanation: The AI shows a behavior under fire that requires a lot of experience and long training. The maneuvers shown here can only be trained and perfected in years. If you set the AI to "inexperienced", it will still fly almost perfect beam maneuvers, go for the notch or pull at the right moment. Not to mention newer designs like the Flanker or comparable machines. Certain missiles, like the Phoenix, have no hit probability at all - even against inexperienced AI pilots in very old aircraft like the MiG-21 or F-5. Consequences: The AI is never tired. It is not affected by poor visibility, weather or stress. Now that it perfectly avoids enemy missiles, success for the user is almost impossible. In the best case he returns to his own base without weapons, without firings but still alive. In the worst case, a user is shot down over and over again. What does that lead to? Experienced users who have known this simulator for decades will be happy to have to master new challenges. But they have had many years to train certain things in order to succeed. If necessary, through high-risk maneuvers and a lot of risk, which hardly corresponds to real world experience. New users are very quickly overwhelmed, frustrated and could prefer to devote themselves to other simulators and hobbies. So- The programmer of the AI made an impressive, a brilliant job in that special part. But he made it too good. Thank you very much. Cheers TOM

Hi, The new AI shows a lot of good things. First of all, that the enemy planes from now on actually want to survive and do not pursue their target until the last fuel and then eject with the ejector seat. I also like that they use the crank maneuver well and also turn cold when under fire to fly the energy off the missile. BUT: In the last few days I have unfortunately had to watch all enemy aircraft dogging missiles. MiGs and Flankers were able to dodge 3 to 6 missiles without any problems and then achieve aerial victory themselves with an infrared missile. No matter if in the deepest night or in the densest clouds. It is simply disgusting! Now one could argue: But online players in multiplayer mode also show this behavior! Yes, exactly: Online PLAYERS! Such behavior has nothing whatsoever to do with realism, is absolutely unbelievable and turns my DCS into a dogfight simulator because the missiles have obviously become worthless. In the end, there were a number of interesting improvements. I hope that ED will continue to develop artificial intelligence and neutralize this arcade behaviour. Cheers TOM

Just my two cents ... I will have the highest possible realism- that is why I support DCS since "Su-27 Flanker"-days. During the winters I trained with DCS aircraft handling and used that skills in real life. Clean smooth and controlled inputs on stick and rudder can make a big difference and separate the good pilots from the ...rest of them. G-load will not help you to fly better. In reality you have to use the instruments because your feelings can be totally wrong. Stick and rudder force would be nice but ... not everything is possible. (Warbirds) For me DCS is a tool but not a game and yes - That is why I really enjoy it. So from my point of view the direction of Eagle Dynamics is right. Thanks and Cheers TOM

Well - Of corse above 20 thousand. My tactic is to make the enemies shadowing my actions. That means I normally speed up and climb so that the oponents were forced to do the same. The perfect condition is that the AIM54 is on the way while the enemy is in climb, hot, high AND very slow. But even when they stay low- if the missile comes out of space with still mach2, there is mostly no direction to escape because the missile comes from above. Only the Flankers with ECM and Chaffs making my efforts very hard. Cheers TOM

Hello Mike, finally I understood (hopefully) the new missile model. First: I got the trust back about my AIM54 missile. As long as the missile has speed- everything works fine and even the guidance is doing her job. I think there is still a g-limit but I can deal with it. So- Great job- very well done!!! (my 2 cents) I got my fun back with that wonderfull brilliant masterpiece. One question please: In case, the seeker is loosing the target because of limits or notching- does the missile receiving the update from the Tomcat radar in order to fight the way back on track? Is the missile logic a part of Heatblur or ED? Cheers a (very happy) TOM

Hi trenchfeet, I found out that it is possible. Yesterday I was able to kill bandits twice out of 80NM. I was in 43 thousand feet with 0.9. I lifted the nose up to around 15 degrees. It was more a try to see what will happen. Interestingly the missiles climbed up to 90 thousand feet and felt down like a piano but still with Mach 2. And the missiles still were tracking the target. One of the KI Enemy tried a lazy turn with 3g's and was hit from above. The Other MiG23 still moved forward and catches a direct hit- so there was not that much to do for the Phoenix. I still in the position, that the guidance is broken or the logic is not correct. But for the flight model of the missile is pretty cool. So I decided in that way: If I'm below 20 thousand, I only do a shoot under 20 NM's. And even that is highly optimistic. But if I'm above 35 thousand (And that is were I want to be in a Tomcat), I start my missiles in 60 miles or sooner. But from my point of view: If the missile is active and the seeker has no contact, the missile should be updated by the Tomcat radar if the Cat is still illuminating the target. So the outflying of the bandits out of the seeker limits of the missile and even notching the missile should not be possible. But that is, what the AI in DCS is doing with highly success. And the missile take not much g. How much g's can the AIM 54 take? (I just ask for a friend ) Cheers TOM

Hallo Mike, yes- all of these were online. Unfortunately I deleted my TacView folder a week ago but I hope that these last flights show a little bit my problems with. Thank you very much. TOM

Hi, For me, the steering control, or better the logic behind it, makes absolutely no sense anymore. During the cruise flight, the Phoenix does not receive any updates. The only sense to stay hot for the target is that the AIM54 will get the signal to switch active at some point. However, this is useless if the target has moved. Often, even at short ranges, an incredible loft is executed which renders the missiles completely useless. In the endgame, opponents often try to go for the beam. However, they remain on the Tomcat's radar. However, these updates do not get to the missile, which makes no sense. But even if the lock is preserved, the missile does not pull more than 6g. Yes sure- it is very big and heavy but in the end game it burned the fuel and it has extremely large control surfaces. From my point of view, this flying body is much more flexible and maneuverable than this free-falling brick here. But (!) : The new aerodynamic model is really very well done and fun. If only the steering and control logic would be improved, I would be totally happy again. In any case, thanks to the team for your hard work and pioneering achievements.