I have Not Logged in Flighsim.com in a while, i just visit time and time to see what is new , then I saw the front page article on “ sketchup lesions “ So It hit a great interest once again. But first let me take the subject further on other possibilities for Developer or enthuses and conceptional.
I started to use Sketchup maybe a year ago and tried many different 3d software and the best free once on the market i found is sketchup and Blender.
The pros and cons depending what you want to do. Blender is on a high learning curve where sketchup after watching a few YouTube videos make is so simple to use and a lot of fun where Blender my god you need great memory to remember where everything is. I am coming up to my 50s not as sharp to take all that information in anymore but at the same time we forget and youtube is great from quick reference .
I never built anything for any flight sim but i still use it once in a while but now i have taken interest in building once again as i know i am capable just need to learn the prose’s.
But let go a bit further into Virtual reality world for people who like to chat about and would like to show off their builds or concepts .
Development in the OpenSim world has really advance. Open Simulation project is open source and the software is for free plus they have a new system called sim on a stick where anybody can create a a privet virtual world right on their computer.
I am not that tech savy so i joined a grid called “ The Great Canadian Grid “ and i am renting a 256x256 meter world for 10.00 Canadian for the Americans this is a great deal as our dollar is week.
In this world you can import Mesh objects and building or the building tools in-world are easy to use as well. But as a community people can voice or text to each other it is really fun and have to watch out can be very addictive. You can use the same viewers such as people use in Second Life . but you must use the open Grid version.
Are the open simulators world like second life. Yes it is hard to tell the difference but Second life has market more towards Relations and meeting people the great Canadian grid is more on community.
But anybody can rent out many sims and connect them for a low cost per month 10.00 Canadian vrs 350.00 usa dollars a month . If anybody had a good server at home they can install open simulator and start their own grid is you wish. I more than happy to pay so i don’t have to worry.
Simulated Forced landing In The Arctic
There are many world all set up to join and they all have different rental prices but the best so far and support is the Great Canadian Grid.
(Conceptual airport for the adventure sim with animated Dash 8 flying above and radar turns. SO simple to do.)
So you can build in a world, import mesh and builds from various software. Make live meet ups then log onto flight simulators, do your missions then log back in to have a open conversations.
Myself i am creating a adventure sim for visitors were you crash land in the arctic. Long project ahead . For anybody interested in the virtual world, it is free to join , it is free to build at the local sandbox , free scripts clothing ect . Just so many free stuff to build a sim . Verses second life there is a cost to upload anything and sims cost a fortune .
Links Free version of sketchup is called now . Sketchup Make then there is pro version. Take the Make just as good.
http://www.sketchup.com/products/sketchup-make
Blender https://www.blender.org/
Open simulator project site . http://opensimulator.org/wiki/Main_Page
The Great Canadian Grid And instructions how to join.
http://www.greatcanadiangrid.ca/
