VAICOM PRO plugin for VoiceAttack

[TBarina]

Cannot even image of flying such a great simulator and approach to the carrier while hitting F keys to send messages to marshal or LSO. It would completely spoil immersion....

I don't think it would be too difficult to fix VAICOM source code (it's a program written in C# .Net Framework).

The problem is the UDP communication interface between VAICOM and DCS because they don't dialogate any more. The rest of the code is not probably affected by the chages in 2.8 like it was not affected at the time of 2.7

ED could byy the licence from Hollywood and amend the interface or could preserve 2.7 inferface within 2.8 for addon backward compatibility.

In any case we must make a strong petition all togheter to ED for a quick ATC solution maybe in the form of an immediate Early Access release with a minimal bunch of functionalites with the intent to progress in the future months.

Surely I'm not going to  buy any other modules from them until they don'f fix this issue.

To tell the truth, I'm fed up with countinuous relaeses of new aircrafts and scenarios. I'd rather have them pay more attention and effort to safaguard the flight  and combat immersion.

 

2 minutes ago, dburne said:

Well he ( or someone) did in April to get a new update out, whilst being absent from the forums since early Jan. Which was pretty odd.

Can it happen again? 

Let's hope so.

[TimSell75]

Sorry if it sounds stupid, but I never used voiceattack without vaicom. So I am wondering what is not possible now with voiceattack without vaicom?

I have seen a voiceattack profile for jester which seems to cover most commands including Lantirn. 

I have also seen a video of somebody doing a jtac nine line with voiceattack solely.

Wingman and tanker commands also seem to be possible. 

I know that vaicom brought some additions like hiding player voice or the jester wheel, but maybe there are workarounds for these.

Thanks for your feedback!

Edited October 29, 2022 by TimSell75

[MAXsenna]

Sorry if it sounds stupid, but I never used voiceattack without vaicom. So I am wondering what is not possible now with voiceattack without vaicom?
I have seen a voiceattack profile for jester which seems to cover most commands including Lantirn. 
I have also seen a video of somebody doing a jtac nine line with voiceattack solely.
Wingman and tanker commands also seem to be possible. 
I know that vaicom brought some additions like hiding player voice or the jester wheel, but maybe there are workarounds for these.
Thanks for your feedback!

If you completely remove VAICOM from DCS and VoiceAttack, it's sort of duable.
To get rid of voice and text, you can bundle the files that VAICOM changes and push them with a mod manager. That's easy enough.
I really wish ED would implement this into the sim with keybinds in the UI layer to toggle on/off though.

Sent from my MAR-LX1A using Tapatalk

[TimSell75]

vor 12 Minuten schrieb MAXsenna:

If you completely remove VAICOM from DCS and VoiceAttack, it's sort of duable.
To get rid of voice and text, you can bundle the files that VAICOM changes and push them with a mod manager. That's easy enough.
I really wish ED would implement this into the sim with keybinds in the UI layer to toggle on/off though.

Sent from my MAR-LX1A using Tapatalk
 

Ok, so this sounds like the basic functions like talking to wingmen, atc, carrier, jtac or your backseater are all doable without vaicom just using voiceattack. So it basically just made things more comfortable to handle. I am a bit less frustrated now

 

[MAXsenna]

Ok, so this sounds like the basic functions like talking to wingmen, atc, carrier, jtac or your backseater are all doable without vaicom just using voiceattack. So it basically just made things more comfortable to handle. I am a bit less frustrated now
 

Yeah, all commands that have keybinds. Those that don't won't work obviously, and the ingenious way VAICOM handled the radio menu. That's gone, so your mileage may vary.

Sent from my MAR-LX1A using Tapatalk

[Ala12Rv-Tundra]

Only thing that comes to my mind is voiceattack with bailey's or similar profiles

[ollk22]

3 hours ago, TBarina said:

Cannot even image of flying such a great simulator and approach to the carrier while hitting F keys to send messages to marshal or LSO. It would completely spoil immersion....

I don't think it would be too difficult to fix VAICOM source code (it's a program written in C# .Net Framework).

The problem is the UDP communication interface between VAICOM and DCS because they don't dialogate any more. The rest of the code is not probably affected by the chages in 2.8 like it was not affected at the time of 2.7

ED could byy the licence from Hollywood and amend the interface or could preserve 2.7 inferface within 2.8 for addon backward compatibility.

In any case we must make a strong petition all togheter to ED for a quick ATC solution maybe in the form of an immediate Early Access release with a minimal bunch of functionalites with the intent to progress in the future months.

Surely I'm not going to  buy any other modules from them until they don'f fix this issue.

To tell the truth, I'm fed up with countinuous relaeses of new aircrafts and scenarios. I'd rather have them pay more attention and effort to safaguard the flight  and combat immersion.

 

Let's hope so.

Post it and I'll back you for starters!

 

Listening to his video he sounds dutch, I think? What do others reckon? Maybe leave a message on yourtube?

[Dangerzone]

3 hours ago, MAXsenna said:

Yeah, all commands that have keybinds. Those that don't won't work obviously, and the ingenious way VAICOM handled the radio menu. That's gone, so your mileage may vary.
 

This is encouraging, but I might be missing something, as I can find "Ready Precontact" but I can't find "Request Rejoin / Approaching for Refueling". 

Likewise "Inbound", "Request Landing Clearance", "See You at 10", "Kissoff", "Request Startup", "Request Taxi Clearance", "Request Take off" are a few others that appear be missing from the FA18 for starters. (I don't fly the F14 to know how much is missing from the Jester wheel). 

Would it be worth working together to list all of all the missing options, and then petition ED to add these as communication options in the controls?

Another option I can think of requesting is adding "No Auto-Menu", so that the menu won't pop up automatically. (With ED making more changes with integrity checks - having these options native within the application is becoming more of a requirement). 

I don't want to start a new 'wish list' thread without having a list of all the things missing first, (or by looking like a dingbat and requesting stuff that already exists), so maybe we can work together here to get a list of all the options we need, and then start a wishlist thread. The more +1's on it as well - hopefully the more attention it would get by ED. 

[Shiroka]

23 minutes ago, Dangerzone said:

This is encouraging, but I might be missing something, as I can find "Ready Precontact" but I can't find "Request Rejoin / Approaching for Refueling". 

Likewise "Inbound", "Request Landing Clearance", "See You at 10", "Kissoff", "Request Startup", "Request Taxi Clearance", "Request Take off" are a few others that appear be missing from the FA18 for starters. (I don't fly the F14 to know how much is missing from the Jester wheel). 

Would it be worth working together to list all of all the missing options, and then petition ED to add these as communication options in the controls?

Another option I can think of requesting is adding "No Auto-Menu", so that the menu won't pop up automatically. (With ED making more changes with integrity checks - having these options native within the application is becoming more of a requirement). 

I don't want to start a new 'wish list' thread without having a list of all the things missing first, (or by looking like a dingbat and requesting stuff that already exists), so maybe we can work together here to get a list of all the options we need, and then start a wishlist thread. The more +1's on it as well - hopefully the more attention it would get by ED. 

Hmm so this got me thinking, what happens in the lua files for those radio commands with keybinds? People have added keybinds for missing commands before (see Quaggles DCS Input Command Injector and the community keybinds) - does it say activate an argument that you could mess around with to see if a different value is a different command that isn’t mapped? Not at my PC now but may be worth a play.

[MAXsenna]

Hmm so this got me thinking, what happens in the lua files for those radio commands with keybinds? People have added keybinds for missing commands before (see Quaggles DCS Input Command Injector and the community keybinds) - does it say activate an argument that you could mess around with to see if a different value is a different command that isn’t mapped? Not at my PC now but may be worth a play.

Yes. Somebody was thinking this in another thread, and if memory serves me right, someone was gonna take a look. It should absolutely be doable, and then even tracks would work.
It's a better nothing solution of course.

Sent from my MAR-LX1A using Tapatalk

[Legs]

Man, not having this sucks. Really hope something can happen in the future

[nessuno0505]

I read some nonsense here. Of course I'm really sad that vaicom stopped working, but "ED should buy vaicom license", "l'm not buying more modules until...", "ED should immediately add at least basic functionality" are totally absurd. Vaicom is a mod, it's not up to ED to think on how make a mod keep working. It's obviously not the same thing but you can map F1 to F10 to your voiceattack profile and use ED's communication menu. You definitely do not need to press on a keyboard if you fly VR.

[tomcat_driver]

The thing with VAICOM is that it was really well done. Even the VA profile, making heavy use of wildcards, allowed for the sentences to be recognised from normal speech. For those that play around with VA profile, know that it's definitely not easy to create a good workable profile. And then how the software interfaced directly with DCS via Export.lua and UDP transport layer protocol to set actions without a need for keybinds.

As an alternative, if ED could provide an extensive list of new keybinds for Communications Shortcuts, we could even try and use VAICOM's VA profile without the need for the interface plugin.

 

[Goliathus]

Well yeah, some arguments are just pure verbalized frustration. You can´t buy something that is not for sale, or when its owner isn´t here anymore or is not available... You can´t just steal the mod with whole know-how and continue its development just because someone dropped its support.

At the moment there is no future for Vaicom Pro until there is an official update, which probably won´t happen.

In this forum it is obvious, that there were a lot of Vaicom Pro users and that it was important part of DCS experience for many of us. Now we can call it a gap on the market, which can be filled by anyone else, who is able to do so. Maybe Eagle Dynamics will fill this gap someday, but I´m not sure if this will happen at all as we can see they´re busy with modules they already sold, and that it takes years to finish modules that were in early access. They have limited resources, so they must use it wisely. We´re still lacking other important stuff as well, such as (official) dynamic campaign... But aircraft simulators aren´t the main focus of the gaming market, we are not that big community, and there is no way that any company could keep itself alive just from us buying a single modul years ago. This can´t finance the support for this very single product in the next few years, so they must divide their resources between old modules and new ones (new market opportunities) and can´t focus on big new tasks and try to finish them in just couple of months. 

So I´m not being very optimistic and won´t expect the ED to do about Vaicom Pro issue anything, it´s not their business and building a new similar mod would cost resources. But - it is a new business opportunity, I´d definitely buy it   

Edited October 30, 2022 by Goliathus

[Magoa]

Hello.

Indeed this incompatibility between Vaicom and 2.8 arouses many reactions. Remember that ED has no commercial link with this mod. So if an update must be made, it is only by the third party(ies) who have received remuneration.  more generally this invites reflection on the obligations of results and over time when we buy software (and there comes the subscriptions …).  Then the alternative of mapping F1, F2,… is the workaround.  but sincerely realism and the like with "arco, request rejoined". And that's really what we lost, the immersion.

Making the code open source for the community would be a solution, but it means losing a substantial sum. It would also be necessary not to leave the code on sale since 2.8.

In the meantime like others I deleted Vaicom and mapped the F keys with a tear of nostalgia that evaporates in the magnificent clouds of 2.8 when I refuel.

Edited October 30, 2022 by Magoa

[Hive]

It would be great if ED implemented a simple solution to use the comms-menu with your HOTAS. All it needs are three buttons: navigate up, down and select entry. Much better than using F1-F12.

[Horns]

If vaicom is to be saved, I think our best bet - albeit still an unlikely one - is that the person who now controls the vaicom IP sells it to a party who can maintain and develop it. Unless someone can figure out a way to identify Hollywood and track down his executor (or the Dutch equivalent), all we can do is cross our fingers that the new owner finds out.

[tigayot228]

7 minutes ago, Hive said:

It would be great if ED implemented a simple solution to use the comms-menu with your HOTAS. All it needs are three buttons: navigate up, down and select entry. Much better than using F1-F12.

Or a radial menu like Jester.

[Griefhard]

An ATC overhaul is much needed and I heard in the making or at least planned. But I don't know anything more about this.

With an ATC overhaul though, we might get new options and maybe new functionality. But ED should really think about what to implement and what not. The long called VOIP solution is in, but everyone uses TS and SRS. So development on that part could maybe have been used ... wiser. It might be a first step towards the ATC overhaul, though.

Also a real ATC module would be something I would greatly appreciate and instantly buy.

Mapping keys with VoiceAttack works quite well. But it's not the same.

About Hollywood I guess something bad and unforseen happened to him. Sadly, because he was very active and surely didn't want to abandon his work. But it is this way now.

 

Edited October 30, 2022 by Griefhard

[TBarina]

1 hour ago, Hive said:

It would be great if ED implemented a simple solution to use the comms-menu with your HOTAS. All it needs are three buttons: navigate up, down and select entry. Much better than using F1-F12.

Better do that by using voice commands by means of VoiceAttack. Very easy to do in the same way as Vaicom did (Options, Take 1, Take 2, etc.).

[tomcat_driver]

1 hour ago, Griefhard said:

An ATC overhaul is much needed and I heard in the making or at least planned. But I don't know anything more about this.

With an ATC overhaul though, we might get new options and maybe new functionality. But ED should really think about what to implement and what not. The long called VOIP solution is in, but everyone uses TS and SRS. So development on that part could maybe have been used ... wiser. It might be a first step towards the ATC overhaul, though.

Also a real ATC module would be something I would greatly appreciate and instantly buy.

Mapping keys with VoiceAttack works quite well. But it's not the same.

About Hollywood I guess something bad and unforseen happened to him. Sadly, because he was very active and surely didn't want to abandon his work. But it is this way now.

 

 

The Comms Menu Overhaul is part of the grand ATC overhaul project. IMO, the first step, one that is prioritaire and long due, is the Comms Overhaul. It's desperately needed now that VAICOM is officially dead. Once this base is set, that is, the human interface with DCS through the new Comms Menu, then everything else will fall down into place in time and without need for rush.

I would even say that the grand ATC overhaul project should be part of Grand Grand integral DCS Voice Interface project.

2 minutes ago, TBarina said:

Better do that by using voice commands by means of VoiceAttack. Very easy to do in the same way as Vaicom did (Options, Take 1, Take 2, etc.).

The problem is that with the current system, limited by keybinds, you are always at some point, inevitably forced to press or voice an F-key:

VHF Radio > ATC > F-Key to choose between variable various ATCs entities > Inbound.

[TBarina]

2 hours ago, nessuno0505 said:

I read some nonsense here. Of course I'm really sad that vaicom stopped working, but "ED should buy vaicom license", "l'm not buying more modules until...", "ED should immediately add at least basic functionality" are totally absurd. Vaicom is a mod, it's not up to ED to think on how make a mod keep working. It's obviously not the same thing but you can map F1 to F10 to your voiceattack profile and use ED's communication menu. You definitely do not need to press on a keyboard if you fly VR.

Those are not nonsense to me. Imagine what could have happened to all the add-ons (take a tour in www.aerosoft.com) if Microsoft made modifications to FSX without guaranteeing compantibillity.

We are a small community and since ED has limited resources it's crazy not to open to the community and create valid partnerships with those the have proved to be able to develop very useful an robust add-ons.

Frankly, I say again, I'm fed up with rainbows, moving clouds, new similar aircrafts once a day that nobody will have time to learn and fly.

I'd rather spend money on other things that add global immersion (Supercarrier is a real examples that demostrates how they can really respond to community requests. It's Early Access, I know and more has to come even if it will require monts or years. But was it not desolating to take off or land on empty deck?

Same is with ATC.

We have been getting away with VAICOM so far but it's crazy to cut it out.
On my side, I can easily build VA profiles and, since I'm a C# developer I could even integrate VA with a plugin) but let VAICOM die is stupid. It can be a valid alternative until ATC is relaeased by ED, if they will.

27 minutes ago, tomcat_driver said:

The Comms Menu Overhaul is part of the grand ATC overhaul project. IMO, the first step, one that is prioritaire and long due, is the Comms Overhaul. It's desperately needed now that VAICOM is officially dead. Once this base is set, that is, the human interface with DCS through the new Comms Menu, then everything else will fall down into place in time and without need for rush.

I would even say that the grand ATC overhaul project should be part of Grand Grand integral DCS Voice Interface project.

The problem is that with the current system, limited by keybinds, you are always at some point, inevitably forced to press or voice an F-key:

VHF Radio > ATC > F-Key to choose between variable various ATCs entities > Inbound.

Surely VA is not the same as VAICOM but you can setup a bunch of voice command in VA like "Take 1", "Take 2" .... "Take 12"  binding them to F1, F2, ... F12.

[Hive]

37 minutes ago, TBarina said:

Better do that by using voice commands by means of VoiceAttack. Very easy to do in the same way as Vaicom did (Options, Take 1, Take 2, etc.).

Yeah, I used that before VAICOM, but I am not really a fan of that. And it still requires a third party app with VoiceAttack.

[Griefhard]

4 minutes ago, TBarina said:

We have been getting away with VAICOM so far but it's crazy to cut it out.

On my side, I can easily build VA profiles and, since I'm a C# developer I could even integrate VA with a plugin) but let VAICOM die is stupid. It can be a valid alternative until ATC is relaeased by ED, if they will.

Look ... it was not supposed for Vaicom Pro to die. Something real bad must have happened to Hollywood, since he was super active and always updated his project. And with "real bad" I mean terminal, dead, coma or something else real disastrous. He even cannot check the forums, which he did.

So. Vaicom Pro died an unexpected death and we now have to deal with it. One can play DCS without it and it is not the responsibility for the devs to keep an outdated mod running. It's the responsibility of the developer to upgrade. 

It is very unfortunate, but my guess is, neither will Vaicom Pro receive any updates, nor will the sourcecode be passed on.

But maybe there is someone out there, that can make stuff like this happening. As I said, the DCS Bios / Flightpanels guys do something similar to switchboards, but not ATC, yet. 

But I think it's kinda dumb to make ED responsible for not keeping their code aligned with an outdated mod.

And for the Supercarrier ... That's your opinion. Read about it, a lot of people complained for the Supercarrier to be a paid module at all. And I like the addition of moving clouds and rainbows, because it's freaking awesome!

[Dangerzone]

28 minutes ago, TBarina said:

We have been getting away with VAICOM so far but it's crazy to cut it out.
On my side, I can easily build VA profiles and, since I'm a C# developer I could even integrate VA with a plugin) but let VAICOM die is stupid. It can be a valid alternative until ATC is relaeased by ED, if they will.

Honestly - I have serious doubts about ED stepping in to provide any assistance. 

The most basic and least amount of effort would just be for ED to release helpful information about how we can recreate what VAICOM did. But this was requested nearly 2 years ago. (Look at Rurounijones's request from early in 2021. RJ is the developer of OverlordBot - another well used and excellent feature that adds to the immersion). 

Expose APIs for F10 radio transmissions (Especially new Marianas ATC). - DCS Core Wish List - ED Forums

Not a single response from ED or a show of any sort of interest in his thread, and nothing since then - so I'm guessing they're not really interested.

Who knows whether this is to protect and try and 'encourage' people to drop these great mods to go across to their own internal (and limited) internal voice communications feature. 

If they've treated RJ's request like this (considering his contributions with Overlordbot) - I sadly have low expectations and expect that our requests to have the information to replicate what VAICOM did will fall on deaf ears as well.

(This also makes me wonder now if VAICOM was developed with 'leaked' API information and it's been a bit 'on the nose' for ED and they'd rather see it gone. Because no one seems to know how Hollywood got the information to be able to implement it in the first place, and ED has shown a lack of willingness to give any sort of hint to anyone in the community regarding these particular functions, - which stands out to me as strange - because normally ED's reps here are pretty active when it comes to giving feedback, but on these issues it seems to be as though they've got a gag order). 

Edited October 30, 2022 by Dangerzone