Hi Ajver. I haven't tried Custom Panel Designer myself. As it's a commercial product it might be best to contact the distrubutor which I believe is Abacus.

Most of these utilities work in much the same way. I've always used CfgEdit which is freeware & available here at SimV. There is also a payware version named FS Panel Studio including more features. If CPD can't detect the gauges on a default panel my first thought is that you didn't set the options or preferences correctly.

PS. I just checked out the Beech Baron panel. It uses gauges contained in beech_baron.cab which is an XML gauge. This makes me suspect that Custom Panel Designer cannot read XML gauges & like CfgEdit is not fully compatible with FS2002. I suggest you contact Abacus product support as there might be a patch or update.

Lots of luck with abacus I returned a program to them that I think was the same thing you have but can not remember. It would not read the XML gauges either I than went and bought  FS PANEL STUDIO DESIGNER.
Like Hagar said it is CFGEDIT'S Big brother It works great it will read and even make a XML gauge. It will work for just about all of the flight simulators by microsoft.
Check out their site
www.fspanelstuido.com
8)

If you're interested in panel design it won't cost you anything to try CfgEdit. Look on it as a free trial version of FS Panel Studio if you wish. The main difference is that CfgEdit can't recognise those XML gauges. This is easy enough to overcome if you're familiar with Panel.cfg. If you wish to use XML gauges on your panel use conventional gauges to size & position them. Then swap the gauges for the correct ones by manually editing Panel.cfg. Alternatively, use conventional gauges on your panels. There's plenty out there. Then if you decide that panel designing is for you & you wish to take it up seriously, purchase FS Panel Studio.

I don't think Abacus would advertise Custom Panel Designer for FS2002/4 if it wasn't fully compatible. http://www.abacuspub.com/_cart/main_fs.htm Quote:

I don't know where you got the software but it's possible you have an earlier version. First make sure that there's no update available for it. If you think you've been misled I would seriously consider complaining to the supplier. Unless you got it direct from Abacus this is hardly their fault.

Hi Ajver. Panel designing is possibly the easiest to learn of all the design aspects of this hobby. Please take my tip & try CfgEdit. I've been using it myself since it was first released & I swear by it.  It's posted in the Panel Design section right here. http://www.simviation.com/fsdesign_panels1.htm
OR the developer's own site here. http://www.cfgedit.com/index-cfgedit.html
I think both versions are the same as it hasn't been updated recently.

First set the preferences by pointing the FS2000 option to the FS2002 or FS9 main directory folder, whichever one you're using. Start off by modifying a default panel. You will soon get the hang of it. I wouldn't recommend the Baron or other panel using XML gauges to start with.

I use cfgEdit on FS9 panels all the time.  For whatever its missing there are work arounds.  Now, if only I can ever get a handle on MS Paint then nothing will limit me.  I wish I could remember how to do screenies right, I always forget because I don't often do them.  I would love to upload some screenies of my Jetstar 2 just to show what can be done with cfgEdit.  I have even figured out how to modify VC's with it but a lot of that depends on how the original designer rendered the VC.  Some are simple, only a few windows and others VC's show a window for each gauge.  Some VC read their textures off of bmp's that resemble decal decal sheets.  I have never been able to crack them.  Most of the default MS planes render their VC's that way. If I could figure out how to work with them, my baron and moony would have the excellent Don Kuhn freeware GNS 530/430 navcoms installed in both the VC and 2d windows.