its basically an imitation of a real life plane cockpit with controls, gauges, the works. but designed to run flight sim software such as fs2k4. atleast thats whats in my mind. someone else can explain it a bit better.

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Your'e not alone, I thought it had something to do with an airborne micro-brewery! 

Will + all,

More on the general "software hunt" for the simulated homebrew cockpit:

I found a freeware program on the Project Magenta (payware) site that is called PMsound.  Like the other PM stuff, it is set up to run as a stand alone program running minimized on one of the networked computers on the system using FSUIPC and WideFS.  It adds various sounds relating to what is happening in the simulator....based on the data stream that fsuipc is accessing.  I found that it could be run at the same time as the other freeware flight instrumentation gauges are running.

The thing that will make this setup kinda' unique is that the sound is now being generated on a different machine from the "stock" stereo FS2004 sounds.  So you can "locate" the source of that new sound differently in the cockpit environment.

One of the sound sets is "callouts" by the copilot.  So if you output the soundcard playing that sound to a speaker in the cockpit located over toward the right seat side...... the sound will come from over there.  It will sound more like the copilot talking.

Then you can run a different version of the PMsound program on one of the other computers driving the "glass cockpit" gauges (since you'll likely use at least two additional machines).  Because you can select which sound files get played in the PMsound setup...... you can then have another speaker coming from another location in the cockpit...... like say from the panel somewhere for the alert horn sounds.

If you are running a third machine for another flight instrument gauge you could then add a third directional sound location for something like the gound avoidance sounds that PMsound does.

This simple audio stuff will certainly increase the realism effects another notch.

This gets more interesting to me all the time  .  And so far not a lot of expense........ "junk" computers running this extra stuff.


best,

................john

Professor,

Yes... that kind of stuff is what I am talking about.

That might have been an $80 well spent on the StarWars leftover.  Could have formed the basis for a reasonable home flightsim cockpit setup.

If you go to Google and do a search on simulated cockpits and such....... you will likely be AMAZED at what you find that people have done or are doing.

If you go back a few messages in this thread I posted a link thjat shows a fighter cockpit.  It is pretty sophisticated... but by no means the most sophisticated stuff that is being done.

I am having a lot of luck in getting the basics in line for this idea.  The small network thing and using a couiple of junker type PC's to power flight gauges seems pretty easy.

best,

.................john

Is it possible to run just one simulation (eg CFS2) onto 5 different monitor, giving the five different views I mentioned?
I imagine you'd have to use one of the 'addon' programs you've been talking about here. I don't know anything about Pc's or electronics etc. I have the ArrCabb carrier addon and run FSUIP, so I know that it allows two 'otherwise incompatible' programs to run with each other. Is that a reasonable assessment?

Anyway, I know they have Government auctions here evrey few months and you can pick up a package of say......6 monitors (probably older style, but working) for about $100-00.
I'd say getting all the manual contols and switches to 'control' the Sim features would be the most difficult thing. 

I dunno, but I reckon if I had one of those old video game 'compartments with the seat' etc and I completely shut the outside world out, it would make for a better sim experience even with just the one monitor like I have now.

(Listen to me, I'm going on like a little kid with a toy........................hang on........that's what the Mrs ays all the time....................My God, I'm turning into my mrs............................ahhhhhhhhhhhh)   

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Professor,

Yes, it is possible to do that from what I have read so far.  It appears that there are a few ways to "skin that cat". 

One very slick but kinda expensive ($400+/-) solution to get three FAST displays is to use a Matrox Parahelic video card that effectively is three parallel video processors.  You put that card into the agp slot of the machine that is the real "workhorse" of the system..... and it will run the center 12 oclock, and then two other views... like the 1 o'clock and the 11 o'clock.

Most higher end 128M agp "regular" video cards will drive two displays already.

Another way is to add a second "regular" PCI video card to the machine.  But the PCI interface may slow things down... and the display is only as good as the weak link in the chain.

A third way is to use the FSUIPC program that I am running with both WideFS as well as WideView.  Unfortunately you will also need a copy of the FS you are using on EACH of the machines that you want to "drive" a monitor view.  With that setup you use multiple machines to drive multiple views.  The problem with this approach is that ALL the inflight video display machines will have to be powerful enough to run the sim at a good frame rate.  So that solution would probably get expensive.

My own goal is to get a 12 o'clock, 1 o'clock, and 3 o'clock view set up eventually.  Probably go with the triple monitor video card.  That should cover your entire field of view from the pilot's vantage point....... and make things much more lifelike.  Possibly thinking of adding a fresnel lens to this setup also.  But that is way down the road for me still  .

The fresnel lens idea has promise for even just one monitor.  I've been looking that up on the net.

And yes...... it is really like a kid with a game.  Me too. But what is wrong with playing a bit?        Life is short.

best,

..................john

What happened to that Time's article on that one bloke who's building a B737 cockpit??? I could have sworn it was here in the General or Cafe boards, but for the life of me I can't find it.

Also, even though it would be really cool to have one of those, If I had an extra $30,000 dollars to spend, I would finish flight school