X-Plane 11

[Deleted]

As I'm 'confined to barracks' so to speak, I thought that I'd fire up the X-Plane 11 demo again, and what a surprise when I did. I found that they've updated it yet again and sorted out things like the shadow problem. They've also made it compatible with and able to run smoothly on less powerful CPUs with the result that the program is now absolutely stunning.

I'm running an inexpensive (relatively) AMD FX-8350 8 core 4 GHz processor that I've modestly overclocked to 4.24 GHz in Windows 10 64-bit Pro with 8GB RAM and a Nvidia GTX950 graphics card. Even so, I've got all of the X-Plane sliders maxed out resulting in awesome 3D static and dynamic autogen and amazing lighting effects but with super-smooth frame rates like I've never experienced before with FSX.

The moving autogen traffic is awesome and I especially like how, as shown in the video that I made below, the aircraft's landing light lights up the 3D autogen (buildings and moving vehicles) in a highly realistic and totally convincing way.

This has completely transformed my 'flying low and slow' experience and made it incredibly close to real life and if payware and freeware designers get behind X-Plane 11 as they did for FSX, the prospects for transforming the whole PC flightsim experience are, I think, almost unlimited.

For example, Orbx created a dynamic 'people' library which has contributed enormously to bringing airport and other sceneries to life in FSX. If they or another developer were to do the same for X-Plane 11, I think we really would be getting incredibly close to 'as real as it gets'.



The only problem for me was that after deciding to purchase X-Plane 11 I had to cancel the download as it would have taken over 100 hours, if at all, for me to complete the installation. So now I've had to pay extra for the DVDs and am waiting for them to be delivered before I can experience the whole program.

Roger

[sgtmajor]

Hey Roger....I too am thrilled with how X-Plane is coming along. I'm sad to say I don't give it the attention I should....but it truly is a remarkable program and I agree....I think it would really develop into something if some of the major developers would come on board. Carenado does a pretty good job of supporting it.....and PMDG has done a nice job with their DC-6. Hopefully in years to come a few others will also support. I did purchase the Cessna 172 from Airfoillabs..... www.airfoillabs.com/ which I like and they did a good job.

A couple months back I picked up the Oculus Rift VR headset, however, haven't yet figured out the XP-11 connection. There was a demo version of a program that allows you to use Oculus with FSX....and also a demo for XP-11. I've tried several times to get the demo program working with XP but haven't had much luck.....although FSX demo worked very nicely and I ended up purchasing the program. SO.... I have been using Oculus with FSX and have found it amazing!!

Eventually I will try to work out the bugs with XP-11....just haven't had the time but with a VR headset you really get a very nice experience. The only down side......the Oculus is EXTREMELY expensive.....and the only reason I picked it up is because I receive "Points" when traveling and they (Priority Club) happened to have it listed one month and I had the points needed so went that route. Is it worth the price.......Yes it is....IF...you're willing to spend the money. (Last time I checked you can find them listed for about $500 - $600 US.)

Once you get everything up and running....I'll be interested in hearing your reviews of your XP-11 flights in your neck of the woods to see how realistic they are. I'm very impressed....especially with the night lighting. In my opinion XP does a much better job in that area than FSX, hands down!!

Cheers,

[Deleted]

As I mentioned previously, because I couldn't download X-Plane 11 I ended up paying extra and ordering the DVDs instead. They have just arrived - all 8 of them!

I have no idea what they all contain but later on today, as I'm still confined to barracks with low white cell count, I'll be installing them and firing the proper 'global' system up.

In the meantime, I've been playing around with my current install, which is basically just a small 'partial' download. In the meantime I've come across one or two gems and in particular I found that I have Dallas Fort Worth on my PC. What can I say - the experience of 'flying' over and around it is stunning. I shot a short video and I'll try to get around to editing it later - my problem is not so much that but then having to upload it to Youtube to share it, which takes hours and hours.

What was so good about it? Well, for default scenery it makes FSX look totally amateurish. ALL of the scenery is full 3D including all of the vehicles and cars in the car parks and with even a fraction of the AI aircraft that are parked there, FSX would be running in low single figure frame rates, whereas even on my modest PC I could fly around quite smoothly and even shoot video. And the lighting as darkness falls is SO realistic IMO that you could take stills and pass them off as real life.

On the other side of the coin, X-Plane 11 ATC sucks. I am sure that the developers know that and with X-Plane 11 now poised I think to make its big breakthrough, I think that it will be a priority for either them or an independent developer to overcome that. The same goes for AI traffic I gather from the fora but I think that the same applies for that and both of these areas I think will be subject to major improvements in the near future. I'll be surprised and disappointed if they're not.

In the meantime what can I say but if you haven't already, get the X-Plane 11 free demo. You'll be surprised and amazed. It's a totally new flightsim experience that will reopen your eyes if they're jaded by years of the same old same old MSFS experience.

Roger

I just took some stills off the Fort Worth video and I'll post them later. I've got to go out now - before I start pulling out what's left of my hair (very little) or screaming the walls down.

[beana51]

Hi Roger...Good To hear From you..Great Reports ,If Ever? you will have helped..Great Your "FLYING"..that insatiable appetite has to be appeased.some How..Like Ground school ..soon You will be up and there..Good luck My friend!

[Deleted]

Thanks Vin, I'm remaining optimistic

Here are some of the Dallas Fort Worth shots that I mentioned.













I still think that they're stunning.

I fired up the system this afternoon and flew out of London Heathrow, the scenery of which matched any of the payware that I've seen for that airport in FSX. London was far more recognisable as a proper city than in FSX but lacked well known features included in FSX like Tower Bridge, The Dome, Big Ben, The Millennium Wheel and so on. Maybe enthusiastic third party developers will get around to adding these when X-Plane 11 makes the market breakthrough that I think is imminent but we'll have to wait and see.

Roger

[Deleted]

This flightsim just keeps on giving.

I just did a flight out of Sarlat-Domme, a local airfield that isn't even included in FSX. I was amazed to find that the terrain, landclass, elevations, local roads, villages etc, are infinitely superior than in FSX, which is mickey mouse in comparison. I was also very surprised to find that although the airfield buildings are incorrect they are all included and in the right positions, so they've tried very, very hard to get it right within reasonable limits.

And not only that, even Castillonnes in the Lot et Garonne, where I was signed up for my French licence, is included in X-Plane 11 and although the scenery is a bit sparse and the local terrain not quite right, both of the airfield's hangars, although not right, are there in their correct positions as well as the windsock and the road that passes the airfield.

In my book, this sim has the potential to become really great because these are very early days for this version. I don't see how FSX can possibly compete.

Just came back to add that although both Saumer St Florent and Abbeville, both of which I know, are included, they're only runways with no buildings. So ripe for development as at least their surrounding terrain and landclass are not bad, especially Saumur which is pretty well represented but lacking its chateau. Same goes for Perigeux Bassillac, again runway only in rather sparse terrain. But at least the nearby city of Perigueux, which is totally absent in FSX, is well represented albeit without its real landmarks (such as its ancient Moorish cathedral).

[Deleted]

OK, couldn't resist it. Ran benchmarks on my PC and although they said it's performing above expectations, they said that upgrading my Nvidia GTX950 to a Nvidia GTX1060 would boost my gaming score from 33% to 58%!

Well, how can you possibly resist an offer like that! I can't boost my processor, which it also said is performing great so if a graphics card upgrade will work a bit of magic, gotta go with it

Ordered and on the way. Stay tuned to this station.....

[Deleted]

X-Plane 11 never ceases to amaze me. For a start, I can't believe how many small local airfields here in the Dordogne and beyond are included in the sim and the lengths that they have gone to to make them as 'accurate' as possible. That's not totally possible of course, but in most cases they've done a pretty good job making them plausible even if the buildings etc don't quite match real life. And that doesn't include the ones that have been created by 3rd party developers, of which there are quite a few.

For example, the other evening I did a flight in a Skyhawk from Aurillac (which I've landed at) to Bordeaux and I was amazed at the level of realism - much higher than was ever possible in FSX, which is very poor for this area. Mind you, I'm still far from convinced by the X-Plane ATC or its AI, which I still haven't looked into yet. Not at all impressed seeing a Delta 747 and an American MD80(?) taxying and taking off at Aix-les-Bains!

But X-Plane makes up for things like that in other ways. I was surprised to see that a small local airfield, Condat sur Vézère, which I know well is included. It's notable because it's located on the side of a fairly steep slope and you land uphill and take off down. It's there but not modelled in detail and the surrounding terrain is also rather poor with the river flowing up the hillside in places. However, what astonished me was that when I took off, I could clearly follow the road to Montignac, which is also included, and from there the road, to the village of Thonac, which is surprisingly accurate with its twists, turns and adjacent wooded areas.

There are no houses at Thonac (quite easy to add using X-Plane's free World Editor software, but that's for later) but the bridge over the river is shown. Now I know that if you turn onto 151 degrees at Thonac, that heads you straight towards the runway at Galinat. Galinat isn't included but I was amazed that there ahead of me on the hillside was the exact shape of the trees and terrain that you see as you approach the runway. So I landed on the upslope and when I checked afterwards, I found that I was parked within spitting distance of the location of Galinat's real life runway, which seems to suggest to me that they've used what is actually visible in Google Earth to create the X-Plane terrain. Stunning.

Yesterday I tinkered a bit in World Editor to lay a runway to recreate Galinat. I'm not there yet as I'm still learning the ropes, but after placing the runway at its exact position in X-Plane as given by Google Earth, I was stunned to find that it fits exactly where it should at the junction between two small local roads - and that cars were running on the roads in X-Plane!

[sgtmajor]

Roger........This is EXACTLY the type of reviews X-Plane needs!!! I too find it remarkable, however, my real flying days are long gone and I didn't have enough time in the cockpit to notice all the "little" things pilots with more hours would.

Keep us updated on your progress with the World Editor etc. If I can't come for a visit in real life......perhaps I can in X-Plane. (smile)

Cheers!!

[Deleted]

Steve, I'm being a bit over-critical about the ATC, one of the reasons being that there seems to be only 2 voices, a male one for ATC and a female one for you and all the other pilots. However, it did work pretty well the other evening flying from Aurillac to Bordeaux.

From what I can tell so far, it seems that it's best to file a flight plan from your original airport to your destination and if you do, you get sensible ATC notifications to change frequency when required, headings to steer and heights to fly at without the constant silly nagging that you get in FSX to change frequency, then immediately change back again, to change heading and then immediately change back again and so on.

Mind you, if you fly 'outside of the limits of ATC' it cancels your flight plan and gives you a telling off! But you can refile it if you want to once you're nicely established in the air and on track. I know.... ahem....

Roger

[beana51]

LOTS DOWN LOADS AT FLIGHT SIM .COM

[Deleted]

Hi again all. Haven't been around because as you might expect, I've had other priorites to deal with. Just quickly on the health front, the news is good because I was told on Tuesday that the lymphoma is responding well to treatment and abnormalities are no longer visible. Treatment will continue into October, however, as the aim is to be really sure that I'm totally clear. Another problem has been spotted in the meanwhile which they will have to check out, so it looks as though it'll be a game of two halves.

But onto more important things - X-Plane 11. I'm still totally immersed in it as working and playing on my computer is just about the only thing I can do. The first thing is that I've now upgraded to a Nvidia GTX 1060 graphics card and I'm amazed at the results. I've got wall-to-wall realistic 3D autogen and 35 fps, something I've never seen anything near on my rig with FSX. By way of comparison, I flew today from Heathrow over London in both sims and the best I got over high density scenery in FSX was a slightly jerky 15 fps. This compared to a super-smooth 35 fps in X-Plane and a much more realistic experience due to autogen, roads, vehicle traffic and ground vegetation that FSX could only aspire to.

Downsides - X-Plane ATC and AI are streets behind what you get in FSX and also there's no seasonality, so you fly in perpetual summer. I'm sure that these will be dealt with in time but for now I can live with them as I'm not a fan of flying over long distances in cigar tubes from large airports and prefer pootling around low and slow goggling at the accuracy of the X-Plane roads and scenery, much as I do in real life.

News for Steve - I've now almost finished an X-Plane scenery for our home airfield at Chateau Malbec. It has a sloping runway and is placed exactly where it should be in X-Plane next to the road leading down to the chateau itself, which X-Plane thinks is much busier than it really is, of course, with cars going up and down the whole time. Although the default terrain shape and slope is not quite accurate, I'm amazed at how uncannily visually realistic it is when you come in to land on the short 160 metre runway, and you have to use exactly the same skills that we do in reality to control height and speed to land safely without running off the end. I hope that when I've finished you'll enjoy the challenge

BTW, there's an X-Plane ultralight Icarus C42 available which matches the envelope of the Savannah pretty well and I do much of my local flying in X-Plane in it, and all of my scenery testing. And as a bonus, I'm also nearly finished making a scenery for Castillonnes in the Lot et Garonne, the airfield where I was signed off for my French licence. I'll make sure that both can be downloaded at the same time when I've finished them. I've also begun work on Galinat where I used to keep the X-Air, but although I think I'll be able to make something acceptable, although the airfield is in the right place, the angle and slope of the terrain are quite a bit different to what's actually there.

Anyway, that's all for now. It's good to be back again and best wishes to all.

Roger

[sgtmajor]

Aug 31, 2017 13:42:23 GMT -5 rollerball said:

News for Steve - I've now almost finished an X-Plane scenery for our home airfield at Chateau Malbec.

Great to hear from you Roger.....I've been wondering how things are going but always hate to be a pest too. Great news on the treatment side.....I'll continue to keep you in my thoughts and prayers!!!

As far as X-Plane.....I haven't been in there in several weeks now. Just been too busy around here and then I've also had a slight detour with Farm & Train Simulator. (smile) However, I'm anxiously looking forward to your scenery creation for a couple reasons. First off.....I've never tried any "add-on" scenery for XPlane so yours will be the first.....but more importantly. If you're creating fields and territory you're familiar with than I can rest assured that it will be as accurately portrayed as it could be.

Thanks again for posting an update......always great to hear you're doing well!!!

Cheers,