FlightSim.Com FS2000 FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
1. AIRCRAFT
HOW DO YOU EDIT AIRCRAFT TEXTURES?
>I have not edited aircraft textures in the past, so I was just wondering about
>the procedure. Is there any more to it than overwriting the original bmp with
>the modified one? Since the textures in FS2K are read only, I'm sure I have to
>make a copy before saving any changes. Do you then replace original with
>edited copy? Will that do it, or leave me with textureless airplane.
>
>Qui Gon Jay
You can switch the read-only status by modifying the aircraft.cfg file. For
each plane entry, the bottom line reads "editable=0". Change the 0 to a 1, and
the plane is no longer read-only.
John
HOW DO I REPAINT AIRCRAFT?
>If anyone can tell me how to paint an aircraft please do!!!!!. Please keep in
>mind that i am not a computer programer(speck to me in dumb form, so I can
>understand) if there are programs needed please tell as well.>
> Thank-you for all that respond......
Look in the files area here and download REPTUTR2.ZIP - it's a tutorial on
repainting.Art
HOW DO I START FS2000 WITH THE ENGINES TURNED OFF?
>When i start a flight in FS2000 , the engine is already running.
>How can i start the simulation with the engine(s) off so i can start them
>manually without shutting 'm down first.
Cut off fuel, Ctrl/Shift/F1, then save this situation as default.
Peter Sydney Australia
ARE FS 98 PLANES COMPATIBLE WITH FS2000?
Yes. I have added planes I have used in FS98 to the FS2000 fleet. Add them in
the same way that you added planes to FS98 and then use the converter that
comes with FS2000 Professional Edition. Convert the *.air file. I have also
found that some FS98 panels will work in FS2000. The planes I added to FS2000
have all been moving parts planes. I have not tried any of the others yet. Good
luck!
Just want to emphasize clearly that
FS98 planres are to be just copied or moved to respective folders in the FS2000
with relevant bmp and gauge files also from the FS98 folders or from the zip.
They are Not to be put through the FS2000 Converter
The fs2000 converter is to be used only when you want to install the FS5/FS6
planes directly from their zips for the first time. If you already have them in
your fs98 after conversion, do not try to convert them again for fs2000. There
is no need.
Bala
THERE ARE NO AIRCRAFT SHADOWS. HOW CAN I GET THEM?
In the latest patch (download it at http://www.microsoft.com/games/fs2000 ) Microsoft
has added the shadows again. You also have the possibility to turn them off (on slower
machines).
Martin
EDITING FLIGHT DYNAMICS IN FS2000
>I've been experimenting with the Aircraft editor in FS2000 Pro. I've been
>trying to modify the flight dynamics using the "simple" slider controls.
>The troble is I can't find out what the various settings mean and what effect
>moving a slider to say 0.5 or 2.0 will have. Does anyone know of any
>documentation which explains the various settings (such as Pitch stability,
>Roll Stability, Parasite Drag, Induced drag, Elevator Effectiveness and
>so on).
>The Help file supplied just explains that to modify a setting you just
>move the slider (I reckon I could have worked that one out!), but I can't
>find any explanation of the effect moving any of the sliders is supposed
>to have.
But I don't want to discourage anyone from experimenting with flight models.
Trash the FS2000 editor...it isn't worth the effort they put into it.
Get the Abacus Flight Dynamics Editor (free).
The best thing to happen to FS since Ian Donahoe's ADE98.
Also check the Abacus site for a lot of good information to
help you figure out what is known about flight modeling in FS2000.
To download Flight Dynamics Editor, click here
THE REALISM SETTINGS CHANGE TO STANDARD EVERYTIME I START FS2000
>Could anybody tell me how to stop FS2000 from Automatically changing some
>of the aircraft realism settings each time I start the program?
>I would appreciate any help.
Some of the aircraft realism settings do not save after sim is shut down,
as you've discovered. The way I fixed this was to set up a flight with all
my preferences, from aircraft and location, to panel status and realism
settings. Save it as the default flight (or just as a selectable flight for that
matter) and the realism settings are saved along with other parameters.
If it's your default flight, then realism settings are as you left them
when you restart the sim.
May the Force Be With You,
Qui Gon Jay
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRUE/INDICATED AIRSPEED?
>First what should I use. True airspeed or Indicated airspeed?
>In FS98 I always used Indicated airspeed. Problem is this,
>When flying a B757 I should be able to reach minimum of 450-500knots, right?
>Why does the maximum speed indicator decrease as I gain altitude..
>As I approach 23000 feet the max speed drops. By the time I reach 25000
>I can only fly 300 knots without an overspeed indication.
>What causes the drop in airspeed as you climb?
>I climb at thesuggested 1800-2000
As you gain altitude, the air becomes less dense. With less airmolecules
entering the pitot tube (routes air to the airspeed indicator) the indicated
airspeed will read lower, but your over the ground speed will be muchhigher,
unless your fighting major headwinds.
Compare your GPS ground speed with your indicated speed.
If you were to land an aircraft at a higher altitude airport such
as Evanston, Wyoming which is over 7,000 msl altitude, & flew downwind for landing
at 90 knots, you would actually be covering more ground than you would at a
sea level airport doing 90 kias. Your pattern would actually be larger&the
runways are usually longer to make up for this.
TUTORIAL ON INSTALLING NEW AIRCRAFT IN FS2000.
How to add planes in FS2000 ;-
In your main Fs2000 root directory you have a file "aafconv" which is used to
convert third party aircraft and adventures before FS98.
FS98 planes and Fs98 adventures should be used as it is with no conversion.
I have made ashortcut in my Shortcut Folder to this aafconv file so that I dont
have tp keep coming here everytime.
Also, in the FS2000/aircraft folder , you will see a folder called,"FSconv".
In that fsconv folder, utilising the framework of the basic Cessna, Lear and
737-400 panels, ready made 1,2,3and 4 engine panels for light, medium and heavy
varieties are placed. This allows third party aircraft designers to just create
the plane ,model or texture portion only and upload it with it's panel and sound
files referenced to one of the standard set of panels or sounds that are already
presentin the "fsfsconv" folder. Cool Idea, Huh!
If we want to change it to something later , it is our prerogative.
But, the designer just assigns these readymade panels, the ready made sounds
already with the stock planes, and their gauges already there in the Gauges folder.
So, it is obvious that you must have the stock planes, their panels, gauges and
the FSconv folder existing if you want those third party planes to show up even
if they say they are FS2000 planes. So, removing/deleting/relocating the stock
planes, sounds etc is not advisible anytime unless you know what you are doing.
You never know when a plane that you downloaded is requiring some files from
the stock planes.
That is how some planes are only 100kb in size because all the ready made
panel, sound and the gauges for it are already there.
Some planes will come with all files tailor made for that plane and their size
also obviously very big since they will come with their own gaugefiles as
well, and you got to then load all relevant files in their respective folders.
The typical layout of an aircraft folder in FS2000 remains the same as shown
below. If they are FS98/FS2000 planes, after unzipping them into an empty
folder, you load them in your FS2000 folder following the folder format for FS2000
..For example a AI747 plane,will look like this:
AI747/.............with the files ......aircraft.cfg
AI747.air
/model .,.....with the files.......AI747.mdl
model.cfg
/panel........with the files.......panel.cfg with some particular
bmp files etc for thepanelif ithas
it's own unique panel
OR
If it is going to use the FSconv panels
then only a panel.cfg file which will
reference the plane to that particular
panel.AI747 panel in the FSconvfolder
in the main FS21000/aircraft folder.
/sound ........with the files.......sound.cfg and may be with some.wav
files if the sound cfg is unique to
this plane or it would just have
one sound.cfg file referring to the
sound folder of any of the stock
planes.
/texture........with the files.......will have 5 or more .af files
which give the plane their in this
case AirIndia paint.
But, if it is a FS5 or FS6(called FSFW95 also at times)plane,it will have
slightly different type of files when you unzip which can not be used directly
in the FS2000 folder. You got to put all those unzipped files through the
FSFSConverter (Remember the aafconv file in your fs2000 rootdirectory) which
will create the Fs2000 type folders automatically in the FS2000/aircraft/....folder
and this plane's air file wouild have been converted forFS2000, it's livery textures
maintained, and the panel and sound files created to refer to the standard ones
in the fsfsconv folder.
To do this, unzip the contents of your intended plane, into a temp folder.
It should have an .air file which is what we are going to convert to FS98
format. It should also have some texture files .afx etc etc
Then go to Fs2000/aafconv and double click on it. when that opens up, select
from there ,aircraft option and and direct it to the temp location where the
.air file is located and open or double click it. The converter then
automatically converts the air file into a FS2000 aircraft folder withi t's own
model,panel,texture,sound folders and installs it in theFS2000/aircraft folder.
If you now go to the explorer and you can see it installed in the FS2000 format
along with other planes out there. You have converted a FS5/FS6 planefor
FS2000. It will just have those ready made panels, sounds etc etc which later
you can change to your choice if you want.
(After converting, if you look in the explorer straight away you will not see
your plane. Dont Panic just jet.. The explorer has not seen it yet. Hit F5 and
now the explorer will take fresh stock and you will see your plane out there.
You must hit F5 if you want to see the change that has taken place since
otherwise the explorer will show you what was before only and you will be under the
impression that the plane is not showing up in the Explorer ;-)
REMEMBER, that you should'nt convert a FS98 plane or a FS2000 since...well! It
is obviously futile. It is already a FS98/Fs2000 plane.
If you see a nice FS4 plane , forget it. You cant convert a FS4 plane.
Even if it is a FS5 or FS6 plane, if it's air file has undergone some
modifications for LLAD etc then also you cant convert them into FS98planes.
In such cases just leave it aside and go for other similar looking planes etc.
They can't be converted, period.
Once you are clear on this, you can even make use of the Folder options to
unzip the aircraft directly into your aircraft folder in one go. But, I must
caution you here that unless you can see what is in those files dont do it
since in my experience, despite good intentions, the authors themselves have
not put them in proper order in the zip and so when you unzip them into your
FS2000 they go and settle down in godforsaken corners giving you sleepless
nights as to why the plane is not showing up. Retrieving them is more of
a headache than just unzipping them in a temp folder and putting them in their
proper places.
It will take you time to understand it initially but once you got it,
it is a piece of cake ;-)
Enjoy.Bala
WHAT DOES THE .AIR FILE DO, AND CAN I CHANGE IT?
>Please tell me what does the AIR file do?
Essentially it provides the data that makes the airplane "fly" within
the Fs environment. It contains various parameters that can be adjusted by a
talented designer/engineer, often known as a Flight Dynamics Editor. These
parameters span the range from where the landing gear is located, to engine
horsepower / thrust, etc. Even the autopilot comes under its jurisdiction.
It has always been my belief that to have a good panel, you need a
good .air file to go with it, and Steve Small does some of the best around.
Proper adjustment of this file will allow gauges to provide the proper
readings under various power settings, and in various flight configurations.
If you'd like to experiment with it, download a program (available
here) called AirEd. It allows you to open the file and change the data within it,
or just see what is contained within one.
Add: The best air file editor right now is the Abacus Flight Dynamics
Editor. It is freely available from abacus.
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