cannot reproduce and missing track file display readability

[Pirate1]

I'm new to the DCS Hornet. I find the DDI's and MPCD to be almost unreadable without zooming in. It's as if I have to lean forward in the cockpit. I tried the Display Readability mod -- when I activate it the DDI's are blank. When I deactivate it they're back. What am I doing wrong? Is there any plan to improve the displays?

[SharpeXB]

Zooming in is a realistic solution since the real cockpit is much larger than your screen and the pilot is sitting closer to them. Think about how easy it is to read the displays in your car. The real world has a higher resolution than any screen.

 

Also these glass cockpit displays IRL are very bright, look at a real airliner cockpit compared to what we see in sims.

 

The displays can’t be “improved” and still be realistic. They are what they are.

[Pirate1]

I understand what you're saying. But in the real F18 I flew I could just glance down and read the display while sitting in a position that is matched in the sim. The whole point is to keep looking outside for threats or targets while operating the aircraft (or the sim). Of course the real solution is the helmet mounted "VR", but that was before my time. Also, there are other Hornet sims that have better display graphics. Not perfect like in your car but better.

[Shadow KT]

Unless you are in VR, it is a Field of View issue

 

zPWgndvi8XE

 

This video should give a good explenation to what you are experiencing

[Mumby]

I'm new to the DCS Hornet. I find the DDI's and MPCD to be almost unreadable without zooming in. It's as if I have to lean forward in the cockpit. I tried the Display Readability mod -- when I activate it the DDI's are blank. When I deactivate it they're back. What am I doing wrong? Is there any plan to improve the displays?

 

No problem here. Could you provide a screenshot to show the problem? And maybe one of the graphics settings?

 

Mumby

[Pirate1]

But isn't changing field of view actually another name for zooming? In my scenario, as I lean forward in the cockpit (zoom in) my FOV relative to the instrument panel decreases. The display graphics become larger relative to the FOV and are thus more clearly displayed. The same applies in the bomber scenario -- you've decreased the FOV relative to the opposite coast making the bombers larger and easier to see.

[Shadow KT]

You are missunderstanding. If you lean forward your relative fov to the panel might change, but your overall screen fov is the same. As you can see in the video, he is not leaning in, he is zooming (changing the fov). You might place your position in the cockpit and fov to match irl, but you are squeezing it in a small screen.

[Brun]

But isn't changing field of view actually another name for zooming? In my scenario, as I lean forward in the cockpit (zoom in) my FOV relative to the instrument panel decreases. The display graphics become larger relative to the FOV and are thus more clearly displayed. The same applies in the bomber scenario -- you've decreased the FOV relative to the opposite coast making the bombers larger and easier to see.

Forget display screens and think about it in more simple terms. Our eyes have a fixed field of view, so the only way to make something appear larger is to move closer to it. If you're sitting in a cockpit this will have a dramatic effect on things in your immediate vicinity but absolutely none on anything further away. Leaning towards a target a mile away isn't gonna make it any easier to see.

 

'Zooming' requires something which modifies the focal length of the eye, i.e. binoculars.

[Pirate1]

You're right, field of view is an angle. It's fixed in our eyes and fixed in the sim by the display. Here we're saying FOV when actually we're talking about the percent of the world that is visible within the field of view. When you move closer to something the percentage decreases and things get bigger to fill the field of view, more so with nearby things. TrackIR models this. When we “zoom” in the sim we're not moving closer like we do in the real world. We're just making things appear bigger, which has the same effect on both distant and nearby objects.

 

 

Anyway, the technical reason doesn't matter. The displays should be legible at the normal sitting position, and I think they're marginal at best.

[SharpeXB]

You’re supposed to use the zoom view for exactly this reason. That’s why the feature is in this and every other flight sim. It’s not a view command unique to DCS

There’s no realistic way to make the displays larger unless they just fictionally model the aircraft which isn’t the way ED does things.

[Brun]

Anyway, the technical reason doesn't matter. The displays should be legible at the normal sitting position, and I think they're marginal at best.

 

The technical reason actually matters a lot. Depending on variables such as monitor size and its distance from you, the displays are probably rendered *much* smaller on screen than they would appear in real life. The problem with sims is that if you narrow the FOV enough to replicate reality, you end up effectively looking through a letterbox with no peripheral vision.

[SharpeXB]

On a 4K screen they’re readable at a wide FOV. That’s a solution.

[wilbur81]

On a 4K screen they’re readable at a wide FOV. That’s a solution.

 

Agreed.

[HILOK]

You're right, field of view is an angle. It's fixed in our eyes and fixed in the sim by the display. Here we're saying FOV when actually we're talking about the percent of the world that is visible within the field of view. When you move closer to something the percentage decreases and things get bigger to fill the field of view, more so with nearby things. TrackIR models this. When we “zoom” in the sim we're not moving closer like we do in the real world. We're just making things appear bigger, which has the same effect on both distant and nearby objects.

 

 

Anyway, the technical reason doesn't matter. The displays should be legible at the normal sitting position, and I think they're marginal at best.

 

from what you are saying, when using TRACKIR, i'd also recommend a big screen, preferably 4k. works great for me, no readability issues.

you won't see more percentage of the world in 4k compared to 1080, but it will be sharper. on the other hand also more demanding hardware-wise...

[Kervinou]

On 8/9/2020 at 2:43 PM, Pirate1 said:

I'm new to the DCS Hornet. I find the DDI's and MPCD to be almost unreadable without zooming in. It's as if I have to lean forward in the cockpit. I tried the Display Readability mod -- when I activate it the DDI's are blank. When I deactivate it they're back. What am I doing wrong? Is there any plan to improve the displays?

 

To solve for F18, look at this : https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/fr/files/3301897/

 

It's a real issue with high resolution monitor since long years but everybody says that it is normal !! incredible !

There are same issues with A-10C, F16 but the worst is in F18 and AV8B

[HammerUK9]

On 8/9/2020 at 11:35 PM, Brun said:

 

The technical reason actually matters a lot. Depending on variables such as monitor size and its distance from you, the displays are probably rendered *much* smaller on screen than they would appear in real life. The problem with sims is that if you narrow the FOV enough to replicate reality, you end up effectively looking through a letterbox with no peripheral vision.

 

I tried this earlier this year with my (now old) 21 inch monitor. At the distance I have my screen, there's just enough room for the HUD on it, at a realistic FOV.

 

The absurd thing is how 'unrealistic' that then feels.

[SharpeXB]

3 hours ago, Kervinou said:

 

To solve for F18, look at this : https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/fr/files/3301897/

 

It's a real issue with high resolution monitor since long years but everybody says that it is normal !! incredible !

There are same issues with A-10C, F16 but the worst is in F18 and AV8B

I have a 4K monitor and the displays do not appear blurry. Far from it. I don’t know what “problem” this mod is trying to solve. 

[DD_fruitbat]

49 minutes ago, SharpeXB said:

I have a 4K monitor and the displays do not appear blurry. Far from it. I don’t know what “problem” this mod is trying to solve. 

 

Same here.

[CBStu]

I have an Aleinware 27 monitor running at 1920x1080. I set my camera position so the side mirrors are just barely on the screen. (I don't actually have the mirrors on but that is a reference) Sometimes I zoom in slightly like when setting up bombs on the left DDI, or using the moving map. I can zoom in a lot more and everything is well defined so I don't see a need to go to 4k which is nice for my wallet.

[SharpeXB]

The default wide FOV is too wide IMO, it seems like it’s set for triple screen. I narrow it to about 70% on all modules. That results in a normal FOV of about 70 degrees.