Guest jimfish1963 Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 Hi all and a very happy new year ,, I really need some help info as this is all new to me . I have always wanted to get into flight simulation , Especially as im an ex paraglider pilot and had to do all my airlaw exams ,, Ok heres my problem ,, I was already about to purchase a flight simulator think it was fl2004 , Now i have windows 10 and have read nothing but problems . It is a laptop with AMD 8 processor , no mouse just touch pad , Of course i do understand i will have to purchase a usb joystick etc plus other controls , But just seems pointless if the program is not going to run in windows 10 ,, Im inpatient now and am busting to get into this hobby ,,, Please Please all you experienced sims give me some advice ,, much appreciated kind regards jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmatt569 Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 Jim, Glad to have new blood here on the forums, welcome, sir. Just my opinion, but, I have a fairly low end laptop myself. I have used, at one time or another, everything from MS Flight Simulator 98 to what I'm now using FSX Gold. FSX Gold seems to run fine on my little computer. My thoughts on which is best, I like the FSX although FS9 runs a real close second. What I have learned is that once you have one of the flight sim programs that you AND your computer like, stick with it. I'd hope that others with different platforms respond with other view points. The good thing about FSX is that there are thousands of add-ons, both freeware and payware. To me it only makes sense to have a large variety of these to help enhance my simming experience. I might also add that joining one of the virtual airlines is a good idea. Many have flight training that will be a great help to you to get started. I have both a joystick and a yoke and throttle control. Mostly I use the joystick due to space limits. My joystick is probably 10-12 years old but still works flawlessly. It's a MS Sidewinder Precision Pro. It has just enough bells and whistles to make MY flight simming simple and fun. And that's what this hobby is all about for me. Hope this helps a bit. Cheers, Bill Bill Mattson [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC] Airspeed, altitude and ideas, bad to run out of all three at the same time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longbreak754 Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 Hi Jim, As Bill has pointed out, you can run both FS2004 and FSX on a laptop. I currently run FSX on two laptops (both Intel based CPUs- an I5 and an i7). The i5 is obviously the weakest of the two but I still get a good experience. Most people, I suspect, will state a preference to using a desktop or tower, as they offer more configuration/update routes and offer more options when it comes to choosing a CPU. It is worth saying here that FSX is CPU heavy in use and so a good CPU is essential to get the best out of it. FS2004 is less CPU heavy so will suit lower powered CPUs. Without details of the actual AMD 8 processor model (and other specs like RAM and GPU etc) you have its hard to determine how good the experience you will get in FSX or FS2004. If its an equivalent model to a Intel i3 you will be still be able to run FSX but will need to use low settings WRT to Win 10 - Yes there are a number of issues that affect both FSX and FS2004 but all are now well documented on this site (and others) and are easy to overcome. WRT the version of FS - FS2004 is still popular and relatively easy to buy. FSX is also still popular but a lot more difficult to buy in its original forms and can be expensive (BTW there are three acknowledged versions of the original FSX - Standard, Deluxe and Gold). However, a slightly updated version of FSX (called FSX-SE) is available on Steam (the SE stands for Steam Edition) and is a very reasonably priced and is often on sale for a fiver. The SE version is basically equivalent to FSX Gold. Many 'legacy' FSX products can be used with the FSX-SE version and most new products are also compatible with it. My suggestion would be to initially go for FSX-SE (wait until its on sale) and see what sort of performance you get from your laptop. If its good then you can look progressing with it or if its crap, you can either try and get a refund, accept the loss of a few quid and keep the product (it will remain available in your steam account so you could download it again if you get a new rig sometime in the future) and then look at FS2004. Once you have chosen a sim the initial item to consider buying is a joystick and/or a mouse. In theory, both sims can be flown just using the keyboard but it is very difficult to do. IMO, don't consider buying other controls (such as throttles, rudder pedals or yokes etc - these items are very expensive) until you are sure that you really want to go down that road. For many users, myself included, a good joystick that has a integrated throttle lever/slider and a twist grip for rudder control is sufficient. My final comment is regarding addons - both sim versions have a wealth of addons available in both freeware and payware formats. Such addons take various forms, such as aircraft models and repaints, ground and terrain enhancements, airport scenery enhancements and so on. Before rushing out to buy expensive payware addons get to know the default sim and explore the various types of addons available by looking at freeware - the library on this site has loads of stuff. Regards Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScatterbrainKid Posted January 15, 2017 Share Posted January 15, 2017 I was already about to purchase a flight simulator think it was fl2004 , Now i have windows 10 and have read nothing but problems . It is a laptop with AMD 8 processor , no mouse just touch pad , Of course i do understand i will have to purchase a usb joystick etc plus other controls , But just seems pointless if the program is not going to run in windows 10.. 1- you live in Devon so if you want a spare joystick and mouse of mine come on over and collect them, no charge. I live in Plymouth. I can also boot up my FSX and you have a go to see if you like it. Drop me a private message and i'll tell you my address if you like. 2- FS2004 (also known as FS9) is still popular, but FSX:SE is the latest version of FSX which everybody is buying nowadays from Steam, so that's the one to go for. I play the older FSX Gold with 10-year-old disks and Win 7. 3- I'm a PC dummy and can't help you on the technical side, all I know is that FSX runs fine on my PC, so if I can do it anybody can. 4- FSX can be as easy or as hard as you want it to be, for example I prefer the easy way and am a "fun" FSX flyer which means I just jump in the cockpit, slam open the throttle and I'm away, flying with just a few joystick waggles and a dozen key presses which I've easily memorised, yes it's as easy as that. Other FSX flyers like to take a more complicated approach using beacons and ILS and air traffic control and virtual airlines and stuff, that's fine too, whatever floats your boat..:) PS- Like the guys have said, FSX has got years of scenery and aircraft addons behind it, here are my current FSX planes, the vast majority are freeware and I'm adding to them all the time- http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc1_zpspjyzqbir.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc2_zpsguvhezwq.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc3_zpsrsdcs18n.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc4_zps0ommy9m2.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc5_zps8pnesia7.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/airc6_zpsq5ujyyto.jpg~original http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g64/PoorOldSpike/sub2/arc7_zpsru8jabe9.jpg~original Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zswobbie1 Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 Hi all, I have a different take on this. I have an i5 laptop, 4GB RAM, & its about 5 years old. Yes, it is great to have the latest, well, FSX:SE. However... (here it comes....) I'm using FS2004 for the following reasons. It just works all the time. I had endless hassles with FSX. It was slow compared to fs2004. For me, the major & main difference between FSX & FS2004 is the eye candy. & FSX has the ability to aerotow gliders (sort of) I found no major difference between flight models of aircraft in FSX & FS2004. As mentioned above, having a joystick, with a twist grip is essential, as is a mouse. Trying to fly without either is virtually impossible, & will spoil your simming experience. Also, changing views, from cockpit view to scenery etc is as simple as pressing the 'S' key. With FSX, you have many more views so its a combination of 'S' & 'A's. A small thing, but can get confusing to a 'newbie'. FS2004 works perfectly with Windows 10. I have 3 versions of FS2004 running. A normal version, a 'Golden Wings' version & another. What works for me is installing the sim into a directory on my C:\ drive. NOT in the default directory where the sim wants to install. Then I turned the UAC settings right down. This stops the operating system nagging me whenever I want to edit anything. Then I right click the sim's desktop icon & click on "Run as Admin". That's all. So, maybe start off with FS2004 & get to know it. There is a fortune of free addons out there. ( I really support freeware designers). I have to re-itterate, (spelling?) Running FSX or FSX:SE on a 'normal' laptop WILL NOT give you the simming experience you are looking for! Cheers, Robin Robin Cape Town, South Africa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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