Hello, new member looking for some assistance.

Hi, my name is Bill. My 12 year old daughter is Emily. She wants to be a pilot. She joined the Civil Air Defense in December and has been promoted twice. Tomorrow is her first flight. I would like to set up a simulator for her as we plan to hold off on flight lessons until she turns 15. I have done a little research but honestly have no idea what I'm doing or how to set this up. She will be flying in a Cessna, not sure which one. I looked at Saitek Cessna Yoke, Throttle and Peddle package. Not sure if this is ideal. Would like to get as realistic as possible, but on a budget. Is this a good setup and if so what would be the best software to use with it. If not, please feel free to offer recommendation and/or advice. Here is the specs to her laptop:

http://www.amazon.com/MSI-PE60-2QD-060US-9S7-16J214-060-15-6-Inch/dp/B00WENH3BU/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1459541530&sr=1-2&keywords=msi+prestige

but I would also like to be able to use our wide screen tv as a monitor if possible.

Again, any advice would be appreciated.

Best,

Bill

Welcome aboard! A 2.6 GHZ lappie may be a bit sluggish, but I'm running FSX on a 2GHZ/2GB memory desktop. I'm just not so sure it will drive a big-screen TV monitor plus yoke and pedals. FSX-SE Steam Edition is or was on sale for about $8. Pretty cheap!

Let us know what you decide on for your simulation.

A quick lookup on Ark, showed that the processor is 2.6Ghz base frequency, but can also run at a 3.6Ghz turbo frequency. For FSX that aint half bad! especially when flying a cessna (low and slow.)

With fast jets the difference in image from one second to the next is great, and the cpu has to work hard. With slower planes it doesn't need to work so hard, and the image is much smoother. Flying is much smoother too.

A processor will start running at lower speeds if it gets too hot. It regulates that itself.

For laptops there are supports to place it on that have an inbuilt fan blowing air at it from below. That may help get the best from your processor and laptop.

Hi, my name is Bill. My 12 year old daughter is Emily. She wants to be a pilot. She joined the Civil Air Defense in December and has been promoted twice. Tomorrow is her first flight. I would like to set up a simulator for her as we plan to hold off on flight lessons until she turns 15. I have done a little research but honestly have no idea what I'm doing or how to set this up. She will be flying in a Cessna, not sure which one.

Is that Civil Air Patrol? If so, and if it's a typical orientation flight, it'll likely be a Cessna 172, though that may vary a little from Wing to Wing. One thing about using a computer sim, try to do your best to see she doesn't practice bad habits (have her go through the lessons in the sim).

Best of luck.

Oh, yes, my bad, it is Civil Air Patrol.

Okay, thanks for the information from those that replied.

...I would like to set up a simulator for her as we plan to hold off on flight lessons until she turns 15...

Hi Bill, firstly which simulator are you going to use? FSX is the most popular around here followed by X-Plane and FS2004.

Secondly find out exactly which plane she'll be flying in, if it's a Cessna 172 I know there's one in FSX and probably the other two sims as well.

Thirdly, yup you'll need a yoke/pedal setup just like the real C172...:)

Yoke, throttle and rudder pedals are often sold separate. There are many models available, ranging in price from just over 100$ for each, to much much more.

In short, they are expensive. For a full set you will probably have to pay over 300$ at least.

They can also be very difficult to set up. Configuration menu's sometimes don't work well. And many advise using a paid software (FSUIPC) to set them up just right.

FSUIPC is great, has many many options and ajustments avalable, but is at the same time something that can take a long time to set up right.

So, for some instant enjoyment from the sim. Getting to know it. And use it. Buy a simple joystick instead.

Something like a Logitech 3D extreme will do very nicely.

That way you (/she) can test drive the various planes. Have a look at them in outside view, and enjoy.

Plenty of time to start thinking about what the perfect controller is later.

just install the simulator in the default location without additional yokes and rudder pedals to get a view of the route. Forget the additional costs that the folks here seen to think is required for a person who is just starting out. FS works just fine on a laptop. I've used one for twenty years.

Joystick or yoke, along with pedals, is certainly not required, but it simplifies things a LOT, for old heads, as well as new folks, when it comes to controlling the sim. And it doesn't have to be expensive. A $10 used joystick and having autocoordination (or autorudder) checked will make it 20 times easier than trying to use the keyboard (or mouse) for flight controls, even though a few people like it that way.

And installing the sim in the default location, especially with Win 7 or newer, can cause problems with permissions, especially for those not strong on Windows administration. Keep it out of the Programs or Programs(86) folders, to minimize problems with add-ons or with many kinds of configuration changes.

Like I said, A first install for a new user does not require any thing but to be installed from the installer default, in the default location. I wonder how many Flight Sim users end up not using the program because of the to "Must buy third party" posts? A 2.0 notebook and it's keyboard are perfectly fine.

What you feel is fine for you may not be fine with others. People are more likely to be scared away by poor performance then the price of controllers. I would never use a laptop. I have been simming since 1986 and if my sim is dropping below 30FPS then it is just not worth flying a slide show. I have not seen a laptop yet they could run a sim acceptably. Now FS9 may run fine on a new laptop but that is about it.

Flying without a controller sucks. Flying a sim that putts along at 20fps sucks. Always build your own system or find a friend who knows how. I Have been building computers to run FS for over 20 years. If you want your daughter to have a real way to practice then she needs the tools that will actually help her, not discourage her.

Like I said, A first install for a new user does not require any thing but...

What's this "first install" thing? The only reinstall I've ever done is when I got a new computer. This computer has been running FSX (and now P3D) since 2010 (when I bought the computer) with a single install. If I'd put it in the "default" location, I'd have been fighting the permissions system trying to work with add-ons.

What you advocate is fine for you, because that's what you want. But although there may be a few individuals who would thrive on your style, a large percentage would instead be turned off and abandon the program, just because of difficulties, both of control and of add-ons and upgrading.

So it's fine to note your way as an alternative, but don't say it's the only way -- and for most people it's not the best way, either.

..Forget the additional costs that the folks here seen to think is required for a person who is just starting out. FS works just fine on a laptop. I've used one for twenty years.

Also, re the expense of a yoke and pedals, I've used nothing but simple joysticks for flight sims for the past 30 years, and some people even use just the keyboard, I keep meaning to get a yoke and pedals but have never got round to it.

But for anybody who wants to seriously learn to be a real live pilot on a plane that uses yoke and pedals like the C172 they're an absolute must to make training as realistic as possible.

Ideally, flight simmers could have a joystick AND yoke/pedals, and plug them in according to what type of sim plane they're flying, e.g. a joystick when flying a Piper Cub, and yoke/pedals when flying a C172.

PS- I haven't got a yoke/pedals and am no expert but if I was buying one I wouldn't worry about it having lots of built in fancy buttons, I'd just get a simpler cheaper one with hardly any buttons and just use it for flying the plane, and use my keyboard buttons for other functions. For example this guy is using a keyboard with labelled buttons-

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/FSX-K132_WWII_keyboard_mod_zps6lihwodc.jpg~original

http://dangerdogz.com/forums/topic/7194-keyboard-mod-diy-flight-sims/

Hello again everyone, and thank you for the discussion. Emily had her flight on Saturday and they were flying a Cessna 182. She got control for about 15 minutes of the 1 hour flight and.... lots of pictures. She LOVED it and simply expanded her enthusiasm.

After doing some more looking, I am going to go with FSX software. I have a friend who's college age son has been simming since third grade and has offered to assist us with set up and calibration, etc. He also using FSX. He will be attending a flight school this summer.

I also plan to purchase a cheaper set of flight controls, yoke, pedals, from http://www.mypilotstore.com/MyPilotStore/sep/5362m, although not sure about that software "steam", help please.

I do want this to be as realistic as possible and there seems to be some debate about yoke versus no yoke, but I do want to get that. There seems to be some disagreement about downloading the software, but again, I will be relying on my friends son. I plan to read about files and such next weekend when I have more time, and will explore this site much more. Oh, and I have decided to use our desktop instead of the laptop. It is 16g, I7 that runs at 360hz and has a 22" inch screen. The graphics card is not as updated as the one on her laptop, but I think it will be okay.

I just want to say, my daughter has already accomplished quite a bit in her young life and I wouldn't be bothering with this venture if I didn't know for a fact she can learn how to fly. Again, we plan to put off actual flight lessons until she turns 15, but think this is a good starting point. So being the proud papa, let me add.....she is already doing advance algebra II at an 11th grade level (she is in 7th). She is a member of the National Junior Honor Society. She is also a drummer in a band and has a nice following on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/kinsjon (if your interested)

Basically, what I'm saying is when she puts her mind to something, something gets done.

Once again, thank you all for your help. I am not the most computer literate person in the world, so your advise is most appreciated.

Best wishes,

Bill

Welcome! And to your daughter too. I raised 3 of them. Got a really good shotgun to keep the "boys" in line :)

My stepdaughter (2 of those, too...sheesh!), and step-son, both made the rank of Major in the CAP. It's a good organization. Just make sure "politics" doesn't get too deep in you local CAP org. It can ruin the whole experience. It ruined the experience for my step children.

Steam is the company that bought the rights to sell the FSX software from Microsoft. They made a few changes, and the Steam version actually seems to run better than the box version. So there is FSX, and FSX-SE (Steam Edition), but 99% of what works for FSX will work for FSX-SE.

If you don't like Steam watching you fly over your shoulder, you can go into an "off-line" mode, so they are pretty much out of the equation. Be aware, however, that they periodically publish updates to their version of FSX, so it's a good idea to let Steam back on-line occaisonally.

Does that answer your question about Steam? They have frequent sales of FSX, so their version is usually cheaper than a boxed version, which are getting a bit harder to find since Microsoft quit supporting it.

You might consider, to give your daughter a leg-up in her flying, to get her her glider license. She can do that at 14. I went that route. Worked as a line-boy, as they are called, at the glider-port in Calistoga, CA., and converted my work time into flight time. Challenged ground school, so that was out of the way, and a week after my 14th B-Day, I solo'd.

When I was 16 I got my powered license, promptly lost it at 17 for flying inverted over a few herds of cows at about 50' AGL.

Anyway, I found that powered flight was entirely different, yet very similar, at the same time, to gliding. I definately felt that I had the advantage of familiarity with the basics of aircraft, controls, the physics involved, and all that, starting out for my powered license.

Perhaps it would help your daughter gain an early advantage to her CAP career.

Just a thought. So many ignore gliders when it comes to flying, yet they are an incredibly enjoyable way to fly. You have more time to LOOK at the world around you, it's very quiet and peaceful, and you learn how to keep an unpowered plane in the air. You learn how the air and plane interact in a much more...intimate fashion than most powered planes give you. May come in handy someday, in an emergency situation :)

Have fun, no matter what, and I hope your daughter can be a great pilot someday! Maybe she could go Navy/MC and be a great fighter pilot :D THAT is real flying!

Pat☺

Pat makes a very good point about gliders -- you learn very valuable lessons about aircraft control, especially glide angles and the interaction between aileron and rudder (it's more complex than a lot of people realize), in addition to learning how "micro weather" affects flight, even for powered aircraft. Plus, you get over dependence on an engine (even a Cessna can glide, though not as far as purpose-built gliders/sailplanes).

And, CAP has a very good glider program, including glider orientation flights, even a glider solo encampment.

Plus, done right, the Cadet Program achievements leading to the Mitchell award make for a very good introductory ground school, just not quite as deep as that for a pilot's license, but excellent nonetheless.

While I'm not sure where you are, Colorado Wing has one of the best flight programs around, for Cadets, and most others have a much better program than when I was a Cadet lo those many years ago.

Hello,

My name is Matthew and I am a 15 year old boy wanting to get my pilots license. My suggestion is to not wait to start on pilots licenses lessons. I have shown interest since I was about 10. Now I'm to busy and worrying about a driver's license. Plus my dad now says that it is too expensive to do both, and I have to have a driver's license to get to school. I wouldn't wait and just go for it. But still setup a sim to help practice.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

Good for you, Matthew!

May we call you Matt? I'm a lazy typist :)

Never give up. Once you get your drivers license, you might consider going to the company at the airport offering lessons, and ask them if maybe you can WORK for them, for your flight time. Washing planes, polishing canopies, whatever. Don't be afraid to take the menial stuff. Sweep floors, vacuum the office or hangar,make coffee, ANYthing to earn flight time. That takes the burden of the cost of lessons off your father. And just perhaps they NEED someone like that to do what no one likes to do.

It won't be "fun" or "exciting", but it does work. My father is rich as hell, but he made me do that when I went for lessons. I was a line-boy at the Calistoga Glider Port, running my tail off in the summer heat, pushing gliders around (not easy for a scrawny 14 y/o kid!), hooking the tow rope up, polishing canopies every morning, you name it, I did it. As I recall, 2 hours work for 1/2 hour dual flight instruction time, 1 hour solo time. It got to where it was well worth it for the simple fun of flying solo. I didn't ENJOY the work, but I knew if I really did my level best at work, I got the reward of being able to soar free in the sky, flying the ridge, soaring thermals with the vultures and hawks, whatever. THAT, my friend, was payment in plenty! At 14, that is something indeed. I couldn't even drive yet, but I rode my bike back and forth :D

I hope you get into the air, however you do it. It is a real feeling of excitement to beat almost ANY other, when you pull back on the stick and feel the seat pushing your butt into the air!

Have fun, and good luck to Matt, and Emily! I am sure we all look forward to hearing how thing progress :)

Pat☺