Well, I found something new at Beccles Airfield, a IFR simulator dating back to the seventies, I think. :confused: I've had a few goes and it's impressive for the little technology available at the time. It has real instruments and controls, all worked with cables and pulleys with the odd bit of electrical circuit to get everything 'talking' to each other. Me and a fellow employee hope to fix it all up to a computer and enable it to run on Microsoft Flight Simulator with local VFR Photo scenery and my repaint of ZU available to give a sense of flight to pupils not able to fly due to problems. It should be good if it works!

On a random note, I was at the NFL International Series 2008 yesterday, enjoying football as I think it should be, with no Beckham or Rooney in sight, glorious. New Orleans Saints were 'home' as they took on the San Diego Chargers. I went to last year's game as well, watching my favourite team, the Miami Dolphins play the Giants, who were then on their way to becoming champions. If only I could go to more football games...

Once again, I was at Beccles Airfield, doing my bit to help with operations. I went refueling aircraft when needed and practiced radio work under supervision as I don't yet have the piece of paper to say I'm capable of it. I had several complements from the pilots and the owner of Beccles Airfield, saying I sounded very professional. Hopefully I can get that license at some point, hopefully with a PPL thrown in for good measure.

My computer is failing. I tried to fly but at some point in my longhaul flight, my RAM fizzled out. So, I'm stuck with a computer that takes an eternity to do anything serious. Oh well, at least I can start hinting for a new one for Christmas...

I'm not a Mac user. Nor do I ever think I will be. However, I'm turning towards it due to a program, designed for Mac by Apple and now for Windows too: Safari.

Safari, for those who don't know, is an internet browser. Not unlike Internet Explorer, only because Microsoft based the latest version on Safari, I think.

So, why is Safari so great? Well, there's a nice load of features that Microsoft never got.

Apple claim Safari is the fastest browser available. It is. My wireless router is supposed to send data to my computer at a rate of 54 Mbps (Megabytes per second), it usually doesn't. Sometimes, it drops to 48 or 36. But, if I'm really unlucky, it'll go for 1 instead. That's where Internet Explorer fails. Once the speed drops, it takes an eternity to load any page, even if it's been cached before.

Safari is fast no matter what. I ran on 24 Mbps the other day and was still as fast as IE can go on 54. Brilliant!

There's another excellent advantage for Flight Sim enthusiasts who, like me, enjoy some of the great freeware available on the internet. Safari's download speeds are far greater than IE, meaning files are downloaded a lot faster.

Another handy part of the downloading process is the Download window. It shows all downloads you have for that session, with details similar to each download dialogue in IE. Another good idea from Apple. It saves cluttering up the desktop when downloading multiple files. I've included a little screenshot of the download window so you can see what I'm talking about.

I really recommend taking a look at Safari, you won't be disappointed.

http://www.apple.com/safari/download/ is the place to get it, along with other features I haven't mentioned.

I didn't realise how quick I was at repainting aircraft. An hour after I posted last night, I'd finished. I then made some tweaks on it and added a few details.


Here was the original from the first flight for those who missed it on the Screenshot Forum.


Here it is, as of this morning, with sponsorship logos. I'm going to do another repaint very soon on it. :D

I've decided to do another repaint! This time, it's purely fictional. I'm currently painting a Christen Eagle, the one from Long Island Classics. Here is the fuselage at the moment:


It's coming on quite nicely and I'm improving it all the time.

After uploading my aircraft repaint last night, it still hasn't been added. I think they don't do it over weekends. However, I have noticed new files appearing today. So, why hasn't mine? Is it because I used a different technique of uploading files. I'm new to releasing add-ons and I'm not entirely sure about the process. Now, before anyone suggests it, I'm not blaming Flight Sim for anything. I'm just impatient.

Wow, I didn't know this was here. Oh well. How come nobody told me about this one then? :mad: Anyway, my first repaint has been sent to the file library, within the next few days, it should appear. Search for C150ZU.ZIP!

Oh yes. I forgot to mention I will post the goings on at Beccles Airfield when I can! Let's start with today.

When I entered the room, I was instantly told my repaint was excellent. I then proceeded to look at the real thing, just to make sure I got it right.

This sparked off debate over the old sim that isn't in use anymore. Now, I have been commisioned to rebuild it with a fellow worker and use my repaint! Fantastic! My aeroplane being used for training!

That's about it really. Things may get more interesting. I don't know though.