[Rebuilding the DX11 Shader Cache ...]

Surely there's no point in deleting the cache unless it has become corrupted. It is used by many programs on your PC, so regularly erasing it might slow down loading for other apps (my current PC is about 4 months old and the cache is already >60MB, lots of games). Asobo introduced a setting in the last update for off-screen terrain pre-caching, which may well achieve a more significant effect on camera panning performance if you have the GPU resource available.

[Milviz Corsair engine failure]

Hope it’s okay to post this here, being an Orbx partner product…

Anyway, I recently got this aircraft, been taking it for a few test flights without really knowing what I’m doing, and about 10 minutes into one such flight - boom! - the engine spewed oil all over the windscreen and fuselage, and the propellers stopped.

My first thought was, this is awesome, I never knew this could happen in MSFS. My second thought was, oh fiddlesticks, I’m going to crash.

But as I was searching for a nice field to glide into, I realised I could still hear the engine noise, at low revs, and I hadn’t actually lost all power. I could even gain a little altitude. So I flew about 5 miles and landed nicely at an airport, opening the canopy and sticking my head out the side to see past all the oil.

So my question is, what setting in MSFS is conflicting with the Corsair’s engine failure and allowing me to fly home under low power? I want that to happen again, but next time with real jeopardy.

[MSFS 2020 will not update.]

1 hour ago, wolfko said:

That WUs have to be downloaded and installed seperately is a fact since the beginning (WU1, Japan).

Reading all these posts now, I am curious, how many of us really have all 6 WUs installed. 

 

Edit: maybe a reason why some are experiencing issues with MSFS, which others don't.

It's not an obvious thing at all, a couple of times I've made the mistake of jumping into a new world update without actually downloading the scenery first.

 

Flight Simulator started out being quite easy to manage, but now that the third-party ecosystem is in full swing, my updates come from six sources - MS store (manual check, for the base .exe), FS launcher (automatic, mandatory files), FS in-game download manager (manually check to update scenery and some third-party stuff), Orbx Central (manual check for anything I bought there), PMDG Ops Centre (manual check for one add-on aircraft), flightsim.to (manual checks for a few freebies I got there).

 

I'm sure I could make it even more complicated if I find any more sources for add-ons. What happened to the marketplace being the source for all this stuff? It still beats having to uninstall parts of the program to update P3D, but it's turning into a confusing process.

[MSFS 2020 will not update.]

8 minutes ago, wolfko said:

 

That is, because of the many complaints being forced to install a WU although not interested in a certain WU area. Thus you are only forced to install mandatory updates, like today's first 2,67 GiB. Then it is everybody's personal decision if he also wants to download and install WU6 itself. I personally like that it is you own choice to download or not.

There are three parts though - first you must update the app via the store, then launch the app to update it again before you even get to the optional scenery files.

[MSFS 2020 will not update.]

14 minutes ago, boetie said:

Spoke too soon mate. Now the download is downloading the same files over and over again. I'm going to bale out and try another day. Hopefully M/S will have it sorted by then.

I didn't use the Xbox app at all. Just updated the Flight Sim app via the Microsoft store, then launched it to download a further 2.5-ish GB, then got the rest of the world update files from the marketplace. I don't know why they can't just provide the whole lot in one package.

 

Maybe open the MS store and check that your version of the sim is correct - mine says 1.19.8.0

[Improving performance on multi-screen gsync + non-gsync setup]

I recently built a new PC, with Flight Simulator in mind, specced out as hard as my wallet could stand. I kept my two existing monitors, since one is fairly recent, but I was a bit disappointed to see that performance wasn't a massive leap over what I'd been experiencing before. The old rig was i7 3770K + GTX 1080, the new one is R9 5900X + RTX 3080 Ti. I could turn everything up to max and get a few extra fps, but it was still not exactly smooth.

 

Anyway, I figured out what was causing the stuttering - the monitors, specifically the combination of gsync on the main one and no gsync on the secondary. I always have things like the navlog and map permanently popped out on the second screen, but it turns out that has the effect of disabling gsync and knocking a large chunk off the framerate.

 

I guess it makes sense - the graphics driver seems to have problems running windows from the same app at 60 fps in one screen and variable 40-144 fps in another. It's a fairly specific setup, so not likely to be of benefit to everyone, but just in case you have a combination of variable / non-variable refresh rate monitors, and you're wondering why Flight Simulator is still jerky and the screen keeps tearing, perhaps this might help.

 

Running a third-party map such as Navigraph in the second screen is fine, as long as it's not in focus, it's just that you can't have any popped-out Flight Simulator windows on there. I've stopped putting windows on the second screen until I can get a matching variable refresh monitor (I assume that would do the trick). If you want to see if gsync is behaving correctly in your multi-monitor setup, set the option below before starting Flight Simulator, then look for the green indicator in the top right.

 

[Orbx Alaska mesh video]

They need to release a video with before / after comparisons. That looks nice, as does all the standard scenery, so I would certainly like to see exactly what has changed.

 

I've always enjoyed getting a new Orbx region for P3D because the difference the upgrade makes is like night and day, but MSFS starts from a much higher level. I'll probably get this anyway, but are there any comparison scenes available?

[X Box Series X and S - question]

1 hour ago, John Heaton said:

 Easily solved for a few bucks with this gadget - note the mouse control stick - clips to the controller

Simpler still but a few bucks more - whats wrong with a wireless mouse

I use a controller - mouse - Keyboard - headphones - all wireless - but I'll admit the Hotas controller needs a long USB cable extention

That's an interesting gizmo / ergonomic nightmare... It specifically says it doesn't work with the Series S/X controllers (fourth bullet point - Microsoft's naming system is not helpful) but you can use the previous generation controllers with the new console, so it might be okay.

 

Peronally, what I want from Flight Sim for the Xbox is a tailored Xbox experience. I want it to work instantly, with everything optimised for an Xbox controller, like a more realistic version of Pilotwings. Instead, when I did manage to start a flight I found it hard to even take off because of the way the rudders are set up (they're sticky rather than pressure-sensitive, which is weird and possibly something to do with the control sync problem).

 

I'm a long-time user of both flight sims and Xboxes, and enough of a tech-nerd to build my own PCs, but I could barely get off the ground with this thing. I noticed that a friend to whom I'd recommended this a couple of weeks ago has only clocked up 15 minutes of play, so I don't think he got very far either.

 

What they've done is allow you to use an Xbox as a budget PC for Flight Sim, rather than make Flight Sim for Xbox. Good for simmers, not so good for gamers. When you can't play a console game without buying a gadget or plugging in a mouse, it's not really a console game anymore.

[X Box Series X and S - question]

14 minutes ago, paj said:

Create multiple profiles per control? So for your Xbox gamepad you need one profile for PC and another for console.

That’s a good idea. My long term solution is just to uninstall the Xbox version, since it doesn’t really offer anything over the PC version for me. 
 

Even with the controls set up correctly it requires a mouse for operating the cockpit, which kind of negates the purpose of a console game (couch play).

 

Still, Xbox would definitely be a great value option if I didn’t already have a PC, since there’s no way you’d get this level of performance from a £450 computer. Fast 8-core CPU and RTX 2080 level GPU. 

[X Box Series X and S - question]

6 hours ago, wain71 said:

Yeah I agree with your comments above..one thing I have found is if you fly Xbox the next time you open PC version it syncs information, not a problem but I found as I have Xbox controller for drone camera it also syncs my controller settings...any ideas if I can avoid this?... No problems with syncing flight info etc...

I don't think it can be prevented. I have a similar problem, the other way round, where it's trying to sync my PC controls to the Xbox. This is probably why I can't select some of the menu items without plugging a mouse in. They didn't really think this through, if you swap between PC and Xbox it causes a lot of problems.

 

Check out the button labels at the bottom of this screenshot. It's completely messed up, so I can't move the globe, select an airport or start a flight.

 

[X Box Series X and S - question]

I just looked and there are currently around 60 items on the marketplace for Xbox, but only one from Orbx so far. If you want to compare it to your current PC, I took some London pics from the Series X version, below. This is with no third-party add-ons, only the free World Update III activated.

 

The main differences I've noticed:

- The draw distance is shorter than on PC, so London turns to fields in the far distance, but the city density and buildings are the same.

- Colours seem to look richer than they do on PC, but that might be because my TV beats the pants off my monitor.

- Framerate is more consistent than on (my) PC, and you get pretty much the same 30 fps everywhere. No stuttering.

- Photogrammetry seems to take a bit longer to resolve on Xbox, although that's something that might depend on network conditions.

- Controls on Xbox are fiddly, and I can't use my Virpil and VKB gear. It requires dedicated Xbox compatible controllers, and that's the main reason I'll be sticking with the PC version.

 

Overall, though, it's a lot better than a mid-range PC. No mid-range PC will get you 30 fps at 4K resolution. Also, if you're using Game Pass, Series X is really good for that, as it keeps multiple games suspended on the SSD and you can flip between them and pick up where you left off in a few seconds. Bonus!

 

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

8 minutes ago, wain71 said:

would the fact I currently have it plugged into my monitor maybe mean that it's different? monitor I have doesn't do HDR10.....haven't tried TV yet as I am using it in the office / spare bedroom on top floor of our house...

Yes, that would explain it, I assumed you were connecting to a TV. Anything that your monitor doesn't support will not be available as an option in a game. It should just auto detect whatever you plug it into and give you the optimum settings, but sometimes (like on my TV) you have to use a particular port to enable all features.

 

Incidentally, the difference between the Series S / X models is a lot more than just the blu ray drive - X has a faster CPU, 60% more RAM, double the storage space, and 3x the GPU power.

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

2 hours ago, wain71 said:

I am not seeing the large boxes though either in PC or Xbox so I can't understand why you are.

That's bizarre! Do the boxes in the bush flights menu show the % completion stat for you? (That would indicate they're the 'new' versions at least.) They're super wide for me on Xbox and PC. Can you share a screenshot?

 

Regarding HDR10, have you got it set up correctly on the Xbox? Some TVs only support it through a particular HDMI port. If you look in the Xbox settings, General > TV & Display, you can check if the Xbox thinks your TV supports HDR10, and there are a couple of things you can edit there to persuade it to work, such as enabling 4:2:2 compression. If the option can't be selected in the game it's because the Xbox isn't seeing your TV as HDR10 compatible.

 

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

On 8/1/2021 at 9:29 AM, wain71 said:

hopefully will get to try this after having some breakfast, just had email to say Xbox arriving after 3pm UK time so plenty of time to try the updates on the PC, will post back if I see the big icons...

How are you finding the Xbox version? I don't think it's particularly console-friendly so far, I couldn't even select menu items to start a flight using the controller alone, I had to plug in a mouse. I'm not likely to pursuade my non-simming friends to give it a go in this state.

 

It seems to be trying to sync my control schemes from the PC version, and then sync back again when I reload on PC. It's basically identical to the PC version with a few tweaked graphics settings, and the PC version has been tweaked to match - the draw distance as I had it set before is noticably shorter in densely populated areas.

 

For reference, this is how the menu items used to look before they turned into those full-width rectangles (pic from the official forum). The % completion stat added to each one is new (and also incorrect, since it has marked the Rijeka flight, which I got the achievement for almost a year ago, as only 93% complete).

 

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

1 hour ago, Nick Cooper said:

Hello,

there is a new slider.

Options\General\Accessibility\Interface Scale.

Use that to choose the interface scale that you prefer.

Hi Nick,

I'm pretty sure that option was in there from the start - I already had it turned down to 80 to get rid of the oversized text.

It only affects text, so here's what happens when I turn it down to 50. Text is small but the boxes are the same size as before.

 

Interestingly, they made the size of the boxes in the aircraft selection screen much smaller with this update. Previously the aircraft were in large boxes on a single line, now it's smaller boxes in a scrolling list. So perhaps this is an oversight rather than an attempt to make the sim accessible to the visually impaired.

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

1 hour ago, wain71 said:

just a quick comment about gamers, I am one as well as a simmer, not all kids you know I game and now mid 50's, we don't use 14 inch portables, they went out decades ago....and no I don't know how to resize box.....

Yep, I'm aware that nobody uses 14" TVs any more, it was a joke. I have an Xbox Series X, which I use on a 55" TV, and those menu items are even more ridiculously massive on that screen than they are on my computer monitor.

 

It's a bizarre way to rework the front end of the sim, unless they're optimising it for mobile phones. It was already quite console-friendly in its previous guise, there was no need to do something so eye-searingly offensive. I'd ask on the official forum but it's a raging torrent of threads at the moment.

[Giant menu items, post Xbox update]

Has anyone figured out how to resize the items in the Activities menu? They used to be chunky squares but now they're enormous rectangles. Perhaps they're catering for a subset of Xbox gamers who play on 14" portable TVs. On my desktop monitor these boxes are now almost two feet wide, right in front of my face. I have a long list of bush flights but can only read two of them at a time.

 

[Orbx and X Box MSFS 2020 ??]

2 hours ago, paulk said:

Thanks for the info. He actually uses my account on his Xbox so I’m hoping it should work. I have also noticed the small MSFS file show in my Xbox app on my phone so I’m thinking all may be good here. 
 

Yes I have the Airbus Thrust Master joystick so would love it to work also.

 

But I still won’t be happy because I will then want all my Orbx add-on’s to work on the Xbox as well from day 1. 
 

We Flight Simmers are a tough crowd to please aren’t we?

Good news about the download! Regarding the Xbox account, one benefit of giving your lad his own login is that you'd be able to fly online together, assuming they let Xboxers share the same airspace as PC players. Most other Microsoft games have cross-platform play, so I don't see why not, but you'd probably need to be logged in separately to meet up on Xbox Live.

 

Also, maybe this is just me, but I'm quite protective of my logbook and most definitely would not want somebody racking up air miles and unlocking achievements on my account. If you set it as your home Xbox, anyone else who logs in will get Game Pass and Xbox Live, if you have them, plus access to your game library, and they'll be able to start from scratch and make their own progress.

[Orbx and X Box MSFS 2020 ??]

On 7/7/2021 at 9:28 AM, paulk said:

 The Xbox X and 32” 4K TV have arrived and are all setup. I am so jealous of my sons setup. I don’t have a 4K monitor or a 4K TV in the house so this has blown my mind. The quality and realism of some of the games and watching 4K videos of flights over London in YouTube. I really hope MSFS is going to be great on XBox X and many Orbx add ons will work. If MSFS Licence does not transfer I think it’s worth buying as a stand alone for the XBox X due the quality. If anyone is interested the whole setup cost me £850 which is a bargain compared to a new PC. Hurry up 27th July.

I hope they allow some peripherals to work with Xbox for MSFS - it's not going to be ideal with an Xbox controller.

 

If your Microsoft account does have an MSFS licence tied to it (no idea if that's what will happen for DVD versions) then you would need to have the console set as your 'home' Xbox in order for your son's account to have access to it. You can delete your account from the Xbox after doing that. The pre-download of MSFS (just a small file) has been available for a while now, for anyone who has access to it via Game Pass or through the PC version, so you could probably check.