FlightSim.Com Review: FSAssist

FSAssist by Lago

Better Frame Rates & More For FS2000?

By FlightSim.Com Staff(22 September 2000)

You can save this picture as a box if you wish, but you don't get any real boxes here with the downloadable product :)

hile at the great MicroWINGS convention back in May, I had the pleasure of speaking to Ugo and Mathijs from Lago. I was most excited about their announcement of a new product coming out to help those FS2000 pilots suffering with poor frame rates. As in many driving car simulations, they told me there would be a device built to automatically adjust frame rates on the "fly". The frame rate would be set to whatever minimum value you desired. The result would be smooth flying, wherever you wanted, whenever you wanted. This would be the best product ever devised, I told them! At least in my mind. We're all angry that FS2000 runs so choppy and stuttery with poor frame rates. Only finally throwing money at a new processor to 850 MHz, have I enjoyed FS2000 again. But, how is FSAssist? Is it the best thing in the universe for FS2000 users?

That depends who you ask. For some people, especially on slower machines like 600 MHz and less, it will really help. For others, on faster PIII equivalents, maybe not. It really only comes down to one thing in my mind. I was shocked by my own answer because I thought I'd love anything that keeps frame rates steady to a value you set. I was wrong. FSAssist will shut off a variety of objects and items to achieve the frame rate you set. I understand that. It will also shut of scenery textures (unless you learn how to not have this done, in the config file). That's the hard part. It seems to always want to shut off scenery textures. I guess that's the biggest frame rate killer. It's also the most ugly feature FSAssist gives you. When flying around, targeting a frame rate of 20 let's say, not only does the sim stop for a second (maybe worse on a slower machine) when adjusting, the scenery around you goes to plain "green". And it may stay that way. Sure enough, your frame rate is up there, but gosh, it looks so ugly, you'll be asking yourself "do I really like this better now?" I didn't. And then, when you look around any view, the entire program will have to change the display properties again. So you may briefly get textures popping in again, then off again, etc. It's very annoying. Stoppage is minimal. But the outside world going off and on again is horrible.

The FSAssist setup screen with easy options.
You can certainly select which phases of flight will be modified. But whether I chose small numbers or big ones for the minimum, it still shut off scenery, in each view, back and fourth to get the frame rate you wanted. So, you must realize, this will be done many times in a normal traffic pattern, where you're looking around you all the time!

I guess if you have a slow machine, this benefit of frame rate steadiness may be of great value. Even at the cost of losing scenery. However, for most of us, I believe you'll be better off visually, by just taking the time to set the sliders where you want them, right in FS2000. Keep in mind, the terrain texture distance slider, being the most important on overall frame rates.

A friendly ramp agent will see to it that all your pushbacks go well!
FSAssist comes with a handy GPWS system that you load separately. It is an excellent GPWS (Ground Proximity Warning System) based of the MD-80 series jets. It's the same one that came with Mad Dog. Also included in the system is a really neat pushback system with a cute little ramp guy (cartoon looking) who will talk to you and push you back. While this may seem "toyish" in a way, it is a nifty way to bring life to the standard pushback gauge we have all seen so much now.

You can use a random traffic generator that will build in moving aircraft throughout the skies based on altitudes and headings. They will become airliners on eastbound "tracks" wherever you fly, at the right altitudes, like FL370, eastbound. This is a nice feature. It's a piece of the technology found in FSTraffic - one of the true best add-ons I've ever seen!

The latest version 1.1 was released last week. Here's a list of features to be found in the latest update from Lago:

1) Corrected an incompatibility with FSUIPC, by avoiding un-subclassing the FS window proc when the unregistered time expires. Rather, the time down-counter is used as flag to stop processing window messages for keys and mouse.

2) Bug corrected: the visual settings are correctly restored to the user selected values when FS shut down. Previously, the settings were incorrectly restored if the FRO did not run at all for the entire FS session or if the FRO was running at the shut downtime.

FSAssist:

1) Three different modes of operation have been implemented:
a) AUTOMATIC: it is the same of the previous operation mode.
b) SEMI-AUTOMATIC: the user may change the current visual level, however this is only a suggestion to the FRO: it will try this level but will revert to more suitable if it is found to be out of the current frame rate limits.
c) AUTOMATIC: the user may change the current visual level and the FRO will not touch at it. The FRO will continue to run to get further user input but is practically disabled.

2) The FRO dialogue has been changed to accommodate mode and level selection.

3) Key combinations have been added for quick level selection: a) SHIFT-CTRL + 1 to SHIFT+CTRL + 7 will force levels 1 to 7 and switches into semi-automatic mode if current mode is automatic (if current mode is manual it is not changed).
b) SHIFT-CTRL + 0 switches into automatic mode, if not current. The level is not touched, but the FRO will gain full control of it.

4) All the keys (scenery density and level selections) are now configurable through CFG file items. The included CFG has some details.

5) A menu item has been added to link to the FSAssist Registration web site.

Enroute Traffic:

1) Modified the interface from a sub menu to a dialogue.

2) This also allowed to introduce two preferences: whether to display the traffic message or not and whether to play the "Ding!" sound or not.

3) The operating limit has been changed from 5000' MSL to 5000' AGL. This is to avoid an endless loop when launching planes in areas with high ground altitude: it could happen that none of the 4 altitude slots be acceptable (none of them is at least 3000' AGL) and then the DLL would go crazy (for details on the altitude slots and on the 3000' AGL condition, see below "Enroute Traffic Doc" under Version 1.0.2 notes).

Conclusion

Overall, I found frame rate optimization to not be as grand as I had hoped. With all the adjusting that goes on around you, it just doesn't look as nice outside. I just guess I was expecting frame rates to be enhanced without scenery dropouts. I guess in race car sims, there is nothing but a background that is fixed, and you'll not see it as you would in a flying sim. With a faster machine at hand, and a lot of time tweaking settings, I'd rather just take in my outside world at the same detail level, in all views, at the same time - with a constant but predictable frame rate and scenery level. For others, on really slow machines, scenery textures dropping out at various points but having better frame rates, may be just what the doctor ordered. FSAssist does exactly what it is supposed to do. There is no doubt, Lago has again delivered a clever and innovative product. My only problem with it, is that I was not ready to lose ground textures so often, and found out personally that that is worse to look at than lower frame rates with more constant scenery.

If you're willing to spend the time learning the ins and outs of the config files (aren't we all by now, since we've had FS2000 a year now!) you can come up with some nice custom setups to share with others. You have to realize, Lago never promised to speed up frame rates as new hardware would do, but only to maintain desired ones during certain phases of flight. With lots of flexibility contained within FSAssist, for some of you suffering with PIIs and slower PIIIs, it will be an absolute must. A very clever idea, one that the FS2000 team should learn from for next time - hint, hint :)

I rate FSAssist, an 82 out of 100 possible points, based on my personal findings. For others, it may bring a lot more value. Add 10 points to this review, if you're not going to be getting a hardware upgrade anytime soon!

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