Instruments freeze-up, FS2004, Cessna 310.

[mikeyb]

Hi:

This is my first posting, so, forgive me if I don't get things exactly as desired.

I have the CD version of the Cessna 310, using it with FS2004 version 9.1 (the "patched" version), with Abacus' "Extreme USA" terrain-mesh enhancer and several of the "Meagscenery" add-ons from Flight-1 running in the background. The PC is a 3.0 GigHz Pentium 4, with 1 Gig. of 333-DDR-RAM, an NVidia 6800 "Ultra" Video Card with 256K videio-memory on AGP 8X, using XP Professional, and there's about 80 Gig of HD space on two IDE hardrives.

Anway, the problem is that I get very random freeze-ups/hang-ups of all the Instruments on the 310, but the rest of FS2004, so to speak, is progressing right along. The plane is still flying, the sound is going OK, I can steer, change mixture/prop./throttle, and the like, even the frame-rates are completely unchnaged, but, for no (apparent) reason, the instruments will hang/freeze, for about a minute, two minutes, plus or minus, then, they'll come back. It happens in both 2D and 3D/"virtual" cockpit-modes, using either default or real weather settings, and happens at seemingly random/different locations (i.e., on the ground at different airports, in the air transiting/climbing/landing, etc.) Again, FS9-proper is not hanging/freezing/crashing; just the 310's instruments are periodically hanging-up.

I do notice that when I try to point at anything on the instrument-panel while these freeze/hang-up's are occuring, I get a stuttering of the mouse-prompt, the "stutter" being a 1 to 2 second flashing between an hour-glass and the mouse-arrow, as if there's some type of bottleneck going on in the background in the rendering of the instruments.

I have the lastest Nov.2004 Nvidia drivers, my BIOS is up-to-date per the M'board manufacturer, and I've studied a series of recommended BIOS settings for the Nvidia GForce series, so, I don't think that my BIOS settings are the culprit.

ANY ideas, suggestions, recommendations, would be GREATLY appreciated.

[jlwoodward]

I had posted this in a different forum, but since the upgrade the airspeed is reading about 20 kts high. It froze up one time but hasn't done it again. If FS9 is paused during flight, when you come back and restart the airspeed indicator is missing from the 2d and VC views. However, cycling through the views restores it. My suspicion is that it is a video card or driver issue. So far, I am just ignoring it.

[ToddNicholson]

It could be video driver or even a sound driver issue. Possibly even a directx issue. From what you describe about the mouse pointer, it could also be an add-on panel window issue. It could be related to pushing Shift+9 key combo. When you notice your mouse flickering, press Shift+9 and see if it stops. If that doesn't help, I'd look into updating your video and sound drivers.

[mikeyb]

Todd:

That seems to have been the cause, the Shift-9 issue!

Question, if you don't mind the imposition. Is this "Shift+9" issue isolated to the Cessna 310, or does it happen with other add-on aircraft? I've never seen it happen with the FS2'4 default aircraft (maybe I've just been lucky!).

[ToddNicholson]

It can happen to other add-on aircraft that feature a panel window "opening" for an add-on gauge. I know that DF has been doing this for awhile to make it easier for customer to add something like a weather radar, GPS, etc. It only happens if there is no add-on gauge there. Once you put a gauge there, the Shift+9 simply opens and closes the gauge.