renault

So the last time we met, we were on our way back to LA. Winds and sea state were good and we thought , whoppee , we'll have the rest of the weekend off. But just as we were going out the door, our boss caught up with us. "Would you mind, going back out to Santa Catalina? We have a new night camera system and it would be an ideal place to test it out. Game on ? So the story unfolds Cheers Pete (official scribe ) Avalon My copilot is furiously reading the instruction manual on the way out, often muttering words which sound a different language to me. We come up to Love Cove and she says, just do a hover. This camera is rather neat. It s a drone , made by a French company called Asobo, but it does say in the manual its compatible with Windows 10 if that helps. (I'm already starting to shake, and it's not with excitement). So they installed it underneath, I'll fire it up she says , I got this little wireless control which she waves at me. Strange it looks just like the XBox one my nephew uses for Robolox and Minecraft. It will transmit back to us, so I've got it on record. It will also track with us when we're flying. It looks pretty cool ..... My only comment. Just don't dump it in the water.!! It's transmitting .... well the darn thing actually works It is kinda cool to see us from down there ... Amazing I'm fascinated .... Never knew that they had this here ... Well that seems to work really well. She says we're done , so back to KAVX . We're going to stay the night. After what we saw with the drone it should be a fun time. We'll just set down to my left. Basically where we started from this morning .... Don't get bored as we come down. I have a bit of a surprise in store .... And we're down, right by the pylon My partner. She's the one who ran the drone. First time too. I think she did pretty well with it. Well it looks like we're pretty much done for the evening now Thanks for coming with us. And the surprise .... Please don't tell my bosses, but this was the first time for me too. Picked a landing spot, hovered and gently touched down It was great . Hope it wasn't too bumpy for you Tell next time !!

Cheers Pete Normally if the weather is reckoned to be a bit of a problem we come over just to lend a hand if needed. Possibility of a bit of a breeze a bit later this morning. We just came in, had a brief break and are now ready to go. And we're off .... We headed out to the north end and came around on the west side. Nothing much , pretty much the same as here. That's Edison Pebbly Beach just off the the left. But coming up to Abalone Point, it might be a bit dicey Yep, I guess that's why we're here. We've checked and there don't seem to be any folks on board any of the smaller boats, which I suspect might be a good thing. Abalone Point just ahead , actually doesn't look that bad Well define bad I guess , but we've seen worse, much worse. That's the Casino Ballroom up ahead. It's a historic cinema and art venue. And Lovers cove off to the left. Not showing a lot of love right now though But we're not here to be tourists. The big ships & larger boats will be fine. Its the little ones we worry about Now this isn't looking good at all. Thankfully everyone's off. We'll just stick around here a bit .... This is when you want a very steady, calm hand on the controls. And our pilot ... well she's one of the best. Well we survived that one, but this one looks like it might be more trouble. Makes you wonder where they all come from. But they don't last , a few hours from now you'll never know there was a problem. Not good , not good at all folks. Time passes and we're back on station. Hard to believe what happened earlier Life is back to normal. Must be the magic of simulation .... I think there was a "nice ending" button turned on . It's the big red one down at the bottom. It's pushed in. Good job too ! And from all of us to all of you , Cheers !! , we're back to LA. and may we all get the chance to fly another day

Outstanding! Possibly Citroen had a hand in it perhaps? . I can see a resemblance , design philosophy wise to the 2CV Cheers Pete

RTX 2060 Super here Tim I lock my fps to 30 and with everything on ultra works perfectly for me. Also a good used GTX1080 tii also works well based on Dadtom65 's experience @Dadtom65 Caveat for me is i am on 2K. Cheers Pete @Tim Harris

Devine Adam, simply Devine The "cloud master" is alive & well All the best Pete

One word , which doesn't due it justice WOWSERS! Cheers Pete Finally !!!! Palm trees that look like real Trees. Priceless

So I try to pass the time as best I can. I just liked this one, but it begs the question for me. If I turned the lights off, would the fellow take his sunglasses off. Just asking for a friend you know .... Cheers Pete Orbx KSBA

I really do like Adam's screenshots @adambar. They are both very enjoyable and inspiring His most recent one at Shoreham was just neater than neat ! So I decided to give the ole "V" key a bit of exercise and see if I could capture the typical gloom of a rainy British day. Here is my interpretation of "Shoreham In the Rain" Cheers Pete I think it's just too wet out for these old bones so that's what a drone is for .... right? It's tired and shabby and has seen better days , as we all do. But it is a bit of history and the Orbx Mandarins did this one proud I think. And it looks like its starting to clear ..... Everything looks good after the rain .... don't you think? And there is a Gochers IRL at Shoreham. They're a commercial laundry. I love the the attention to detail

Just a few snaps ..... Cheers Pete

You know my feelings on the subject . Yes my friend, I would like to seem them improved. But this is as real as I can get, anything better I have to go outside. But then no sim Cheers! Pete

Hi Roger @Rodger Pettichord After you have had a look at the above , you may find the following helpful Custom Camera Views » Microsoft Flight Simulator This is a package from flightsim.to for all camera views for all aircraft in the Deluxe version of MS2020, which will cover the standard version as well. So aside from setting up the keyboard mapping , you will instantly have all the views you would like. It is what I use and have found no need for anything more. Although the videos mentioned are really helpful, I found the following one to be the simplest to follow in setting up custom key mapping which is all you need to use the above camera package. Custom Wing Views for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 | Save any view you want | Easy Tutorial - YouTube Cheers Pete PS - I agree with Michael @pmb with respect for the need of additional surveys . MS2020 is still under very active development and I suspect that if you are a user that is not comfortable with that at the moment, you will wait to purchase/use until it is stabilized. As such I would tend to think that any survey right now would not really be representative. PS - I am using XPlane and MS2020 and am very happy with both. They are different products and each have their good and bad points. The world is far from a perfect place and I am happy using both to give me the most enjoyment from this wonderful hobby. The constant "glue" though is Orbx - it makes both very worthwhile.

Thanks John Cheers Pete Thanks Adam The more I fly in NZ the more I am impressed with the Orbx mesh implementation. Initially it seemed to be almost too subtle, however what I have found is it is extremely good at enhancing the small scale detail which really makes the experience much more immersive I hope that Orbx will continue to expand this concept to other geographical areas. It is extremely well done and for me is now a "must have", don't leave my virtual home airport without it ! Cheers Pete Thanks Martin! That as well, but I didn't think about that. It is such a great product. As I said to Adam, a "must have " Cheers Pete Thanks John Cheers Pete Thank you Mike Much appreciated See you Pete Thanks Iain Cheers Pete

The postage due .... second mortgage time

Where, well New Zealand of course ... It's on my bucket list to visit. Can't wait Cheers Renault Seasons ..... This spring ... just starting to melt a bit This summer .... Last Winter .... I know it doesn't look good, but its clearing up .... Trust me on this one I love it when a plan comes together ..... Just gorgeous .....

Stunning Cheers Pete

Enjoy OND Cheers Pete

Thanks ! You're right. It is fantastic Just didn't recognize it from the back See you Pete

Sorry to read you are having problems. This note i posted recently may be of interest to you. Cheers Pete

Outstanding, simply Outstanding Craig I knew you would like it. BTW what's the new wheels? It shows really well here. See you!

Truly beautiful Adam Cheers Pete

Thanks John It is really well done. When you first use it , it is very subtle , but it very rapidly grows on you and you realize that it makes a very big difference in how the scenery looks. I hope the concept really takes off I'm pleased you enjoyed it! See you Pete You won't be disappointed Craig Cheers & thanks Pete Thanks Adam Cheers Pete Thanks Iain Cheers Pete I'm pleased John. Glad you enjoyed it See you Pete Now that would be cool Cheers & thank you ! Pete Thanks John You and me both But the mountains (different ranges and names ) go from all the way from South America up to Alaska. Let's think big my friend! The possibility to spend our lifetime just Mountain flying in many different countries awaits! Now we just need to get Orbx on board with our clever "plan" It will simply be a bit of awesome!!!!!!!! Cheers Pete Thanks Mike! See you Pete Thanks Martyn I gather irl that doesn't happen very often from what I was reading Cheers & thank you Pete

Thanks there Sir John Cheers! Thanks Adam See you Pete Thanks Iain Old XPlane still has some great "moves" Cheers Pete Or an empty one Cheers! Pete Thanks Graeme I'm pleased you enjoyed it. It is a really neat aircraft to fly. Landing , well, not so much. At least for me Don't know if it was that way IRL Cheers Pete It has yellow stripes . Does that mean I have 'Jack beginner status"? Cheers Gerold Thanks John I did mine with my eyes close because I was "word(s) not allowed" He would do it , just for the fun of it. He's a pro at this sort of stuff. Me , it was more like a OMG what happened and then a "that was actually fun!" moment Cheers Pete Thanks Mike Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers Pete Thanks Martyn Now that would be fun I've always enjoyed ocean fishing. See you Pete

Nice ones John Cheers Pete

I hope that the following may be of use to fellow members who are having issues with display perspectives ,basically the "fish eye" effect in MS2020. Although all my description is for external views this change also will work for internal cockpit views as well. You may have to adjust your zoom levels slightly from the values that I describe. This was a "bug" in previous versions of MS2020, and it was fixed around 2 updates ago I believe. Interestingly it is a standard problem in real life drone photography because the lens field of view is wider than the camera sensor. Normally correction of the visual distortion in the recorded drone video is done in post procession photo editing software. I hope this is is of interest/help to you Cheers Pete The correction involves two steps; 1) Editing the FlightSimulator.cfg file entry "WideViewAspect=0" by changing the value of 0 to 1 2) Secondly adjusting the zoom levels in both the External and Showcase (drone) view when you start MS2020. This setting is designed for wide view aspect monitors (21:9) , but I have found it also works nicely with a standard 16:9 aspect ratio monitor. Some users have reported that the change is not permanent and that it resets either when exiting from MS2020 or when changing any graphics settings in MS2020. I have not encountered either of these issues personally , but of course individual mileage may vary. Step 1 Changing the setting Locations of FlightSimulator.cfg MS Store Version DRIVE:\WpSystem\S-1-5-21-1087062051-3801548924-420289015-1001\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache or C:\Users\<userid>\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache And for Steam users C:\Users\<userid>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft Flight Simulator The parameter is on line 30 of the FlightSimulator.cfg file as shown below. Simply change the parameter value from 0 to 1 ,save the file and exit. Step 2 Camera Settings Although the above modification works well with the default zoom settings of 50%, I've found that changing them slightly for me was preferable. Unfortunately , I have not been able to find a way to permanently save these these settings. Worse yet, they will revert back to default settings if one terminates a flight and starts a new one without shutting down MS2020. I have reported this to the Microsoft Flight simulator Zen desk. I should mention that these settings should be viewed as starting points. You may like them or wish to change them slightly depending upon your personal preference. A) External View For external view I found a zoom setting of 60% works very well , eliminating any tendency for visual distortion due to the wide viewing angle, except under screenshots where the camera is placed at ground level and facing upwards. This distortion can be controlled by increasing the zoom level slightly. These were taken on a standard 16:9 aspect ratio monitor. EGLC - London City Airport KSBA - Santa Barbara Airport Taken to illustrate complex aspect ratio character Viewing angle is not affected by light levels as shown below Please note that some distortion occurs in external view depending on viewing angle. This does not occur in the showcase (drone) view This still can be corrected by increasing the zoom factor to around 65-70% , or simply by raising the camera viewpoint slightly For showcase views I found a zoom setting of 70% gives me a result I am happy with. However, the showcase (drone) camera works slightly better than the external view camera and even the default zoom value of 50% works well. In this case, once the zoom level is set, I use the second joystick to zoom in and out. Please remember to turn the drone Autofocus setting on when using a joystick toggle to zoom in and out. In this case, I have found the camera works perfectly with no visual distortion regardless of the actual zoom setting. The following screenshots illustrate this scenario. These two screenshots illustrate a basic zoom out in showcase (drone mode). Autofocus is on and the actual zoom level is set at 70% The joystick toggle is used to control zoom level. No visual distortion is present These are alternative views at the zoomed location, obtained by simply panning the drone camera at the last zoomed location And progressive zooms using the drone camera at a constant zoom setting of 70% These next two screenshots show that at 50 % zoom (showcase default) there is no visual distortion. In the showcase (drone) view, the configuration file setting is the controlling parameter for setting the aspect ratio. Personally, I prefer the visual look at a 70% zoon and using the joystick controller to move the camera away from the subject. However, the combination of the two settings gives a lot of versatility to the actual perspective and there is no right or wrong answer. This is a screenshot at the same physical distance, as above, but with a different zoom value 50% (default) increased to my preferred 70% value Lastly just some perspective screenshots , which again illustrate the lack of visual distortion Viewing angle does not introduce distortion in the showcase(drone) camera view as it does in the external view

Old guys If you're male, and you're lucky you will have a chance to become one as well The transformation doesn't occur over time. Its a bit like, you're standing at the bathroom mirror one day and you put your glasses on and your reaction is "Who is that old git staring back at me" A panic call to your partner and all you get is "You've looked like that for years dear.... get over it!" PS- its a lot of fun. It's not a question of how much time you have left .... it's how you choose to use your time that matters. Cheers Pete