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AI Addons work but don't last (Read 1830 times)

Oct 24^th, 2008 at 1:28pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

I've been getting my feet wet with FS9 AI Addons using Traffic Changer 601. They seem to work fine for a day or so and then 'no show'. I try to use frame rate friendly aircraft by Mike Stone (Not strictly AI aircraft). FS2002 AI aircraft from Cal Classics don't show at all. Any suggestions to help Addon traffic to work better would be greatly apreciated.

P.S. How does the traffic percentage slider effect add-on traffic? Embarrassed

Embarrassed

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Reply #1 - Oct 24^th, 2008 at 2:52pm

dave3cu Offline
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Procrastinate now, don't
put it off.
3CU, Northern Wisconsin, USA

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Traffic Slider: each ai flightplan has a % value: AC#1,ZH101,

1%

,WEEK,IFR,0/03:58:43,0/10:00........

Any flight plan with a % value less than or equal to your slider % value will activate. Any flight plan with %value higher than your slider will not activate.

For those 'no shows'. It may simply be the flight plan schedule. Flight plans on a 'week' schedule interval may not fly the same schedule every day. For those on daily (hour) schedule interval, it may be a matter of 'right place-right time'. Remember that all flight plans use UTC time.

A good tool for tracking/trouble shooting ai traffic is the Explorer tool in the MSFS 2004 Traffic Toolbox SDK, available here: http://scenery.org/tutorials_fs2k4_SDK.htm

Dave

« Last Edit: Oct 25^th, 2008 at 10:55am by dave3cu »

At that time [1909] the chief engineer was almost always the chief test pilot as well. That had the fortunate result of eliminating poor engineering early in aviation. Igor Sikorsky

I intend to live forever....so far, so good. Steven Wright

You know....you can just rip up a to-do list.

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Reply #2 - Oct 25^th, 2008 at 1:29pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

Thank's for the good advice, Dave. As for the for the traffic percentage the slider is set between 40 and 50%, my flight plans are set at 5% so that should'nt be an issue. All flight plan intervals are at 24hrs, I was starting the sim at the correct GMT time, I'm not sure how to determine UTC time. I still can't explain why there appearing one day at a specific GMT and gone the next. will these flights delete themselves if there is a flaw in the flight plan?

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Reply #3 - Oct 25^th, 2008 at 10:38pm

dave3cu Offline
Colonel
Procrastinate now, don't
put it off.
3CU, Northern Wisconsin, USA

Gender:
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GMT and UTC have (essentially) the same meaning, and are used interchangeably.

Reference the flights disappearing the next day:

Are you (1) jumping ahead 1 day in a current FS session?....or, (2) they work ok 1 day, but go missing when you start the sim the next day?

If it's (1), the problem could be in your leg sequence. Improper sequence can cause a flightplan to initially appear, and then go missing until you restart the sim.

The first leg in any flightplan must be the leg that departs earliest in the day (soonest after 00:00:00 GMT). In lesser intervals (1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12 hrs) no leg can cross over into the next interval. If the total time for all legs exceeds the interval, you must use a longer interval.

In your 24 hr interval the last leg can cross over (can arrive after 00:00:00)...but the total time to complete all legs must still be less than 24 hrs.

You can refer to the TTools help file, 'Readme.htm', Section 21, Leg Sequencing, for a more complete explaination.

Or maybe you could post a flightplan or 2 that are 'disappearing' (from the TTools decompiled 'flightplans*.txt' file)..

Dave

At that time [1909] the chief engineer was almost always the chief test pilot as well. That had the fortunate result of eliminating poor engineering early in aviation. Igor Sikorsky

I intend to live forever....so far, so good. Steven Wright

You know....you can just rip up a to-do list.

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Reply #4 - Oct 26^th, 2008 at 4:40pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

Thank's Dave, Here are some flight plans I've filed and aircraft I'm using. The flights/aircraft will appear the first few times I start the sim but a day or so latter (real time) there gone, same airport, same GMT. If I edit the flight plan, say by one second, it will restore itself only to disappear again latter.

AC#65,PR-CMA,5%,24Hr,IFR,14:05:00,00:00:00,150,R,722,KSFO,20:05:00,00:00:00,150,
R,722,KSEA
//2· (10/6/2008 10:47:11 PM) Plan entry above: 727 Cargo Seattle to San Francisco daily

AC#60,N501PA,5%,24Hr,IFR,10:35:00,00:00:00,125,F,1990,KORF,18:35:00,00:00:00,125
,F,1990,KBOS

AC#61,N6937C,5%,24Hr,IFR,11:35:00,00:00:00,75,F,1957,KORF,19:35:00,00:00:00,75,F
,1957,KBOS
//2· (10/6/2008 7:16:02 PM) TWA Connie Boston to Norfolk daily

AC#62,N90944,5%,24Hr,IFR,15:05:00,00:00:00,125,F,1956,KPDX,20:35:00,00:00:00,125
,F,1956,KBFI
//2· (10/6/2008 10:13:59 PM) Plan entry above: B377 Stratocruiser Boeing Field Seattle to Portland daily

AC#63,N366FE,5%,24Hr,IFR,12:05:00,00:00:00,100,F,404,KJFK,19:05:01,00:00:00,100,
F,404,KLCK
//2· (10/11/2008 1:22:56 AM) Plan entry above: Fed-Ex DC-10 Rickenbacker to JFK daily

AC#65,PR-CMA,5%,24Hr,IFR,14:05:00,00:00:00,150,R,722,KSFO,20:05:00,00:00:00,150,
R,722,KSEA
//2· (10/6/2008 10:47:11 PM) Plan entry above: 727 Cargo Seattle to San Francisco daily

AC#68,1714,5%,24Hr,VFR,03:35:00,00:00:00,35,F,1714,PHLI,08:35:00,00:00:00,35,F,1
714,PHNL
//2· (10/17/2008 12:01:51 AM) USCG C-130 Honolulu 2 Lihue daily

AC#69,N36644,5%,24Hr,IFR,13:05:00,00:00:00,75,F,1965,KPIT,17:05:00,00:00:00,75,F
,1965,KCMH
//2· (10/18/2008 3:52:29 AM) Plan entry above: C-119 Phoenix 1965 Port Columbus to Pittsburgh daily

AC#60,400,"Lockheed L-1011 Pan Am" //Mike Stone
AC#61,240,"Lockheed Super Constellation" //Mike Stone
AC#62,220,"Boeing 377 Stratocruiser Pan American" //Cal Classics
AC#63,375,"DC-10-30F Federal Express"    //SGA
AC#64,375,"DH106 Comet 4C BOAC"    //David Maltby
AC#65,400,"Boeing 727-200F" //Erick Cantu
AC#66,240,"Douglas DC-7 Conair"    //Cal Classics
AC#67,210,"C46A Flying Tiger"       //Milton Shupe
AC#68,230,"Lockheed C-130 USCG"    //Mike Stone
AC#69,210,"Fairchild C-119 Phoenix 1965" //Mike Stone

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Reply #5 - Oct 27^th, 2008 at 2:11pm

dave3cu Offline
Colonel
Procrastinate now, don't
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3CU, Northern Wisconsin, USA

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I see no problems in the flightplans and they compiled correctly. I did have to substitute ac as I don't have the same as you..but that shouldn't make any difference. All flights/aircraft are where and when they should be. Though I haven't had time to check over several days, the flights do show over several sim restarts.

I can think of no reason the flights would 'no show' based on the compiled .bgl.

One reason I can think of is that, somehow, the traffic*.bgl is (unintentionally, while running Traffic Changer??) being removed from the sim or modified so it no longer contains the flightplans in question.(...\Scenery\World\scenery\TrafficChangerMyGroup#.bgl).

The next time they 'no show', check to see if the file is missing, or has changed (check file date) before you run Traffic Changer again. Further support for this 'theory' is that the flights show again after you edit/recompile......

If that isn't the problem, we'll have to look further..

Dave

« Last Edit: Oct 28^th, 2008 at 11:43am by dave3cu »

At that time [1909] the chief engineer was almost always the chief test pilot as well. That had the fortunate result of eliminating poor engineering early in aviation. Igor Sikorsky

I intend to live forever....so far, so good. Steven Wright

You know....you can just rip up a to-do list.

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Reply #6 - Oct 28^th, 2008 at 11:34pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

I think your 'theory' is right-on but is there a solution? Maybe its the aircraft I've chosen, I'll experiment with some less detailed AI aircraft and see if they're more reliable. It's a shame because those flyable models sure looked great. Thank's again for the help. Undecided

Undecided

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Reply #7 - Oct 30^th, 2008 at 10:11pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

Is there anyone out there who has read these posts that can shed some light on this phenomenon??????????

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Reply #8 - Oct 31^st, 2008 at 12:50am

dave3cu Offline
Colonel
Procrastinate now, don't
put it off.
3CU, Northern Wisconsin, USA

Gender:
Posts: 3077

I'm trying to 'shed some light..', but it's difficult if you 'keep me in the dark'.... Wink

Wink

As your's is an unusual problem, it works best to eliminate possible causes, one at a time.

Did you follow my earlier suggestion to check on the traffic*.bgl file when the flights go missing??..what did you find?

Check that the file is still there (...Scenery\World\scenery\.. folder) and that it has not been modified (check the file date/time stamp and/or decompile the traffic*.bgl file with Traffic Tools to see if it contains the proper flightplans).

Working with Traffic Changer....if you have more that 1 plan .bgl in a group, TC will overwrite the current .bgl in the sim when you send another to the sim from the same group. To send more than 1 .bgl in any group to the sim, you must 'merge' the plans, before sending the .bgl file to the sim.

Dave

« Last Edit: Nov 1^st, 2008 at 9:57am by dave3cu »

At that time [1909] the chief engineer was almost always the chief test pilot as well. That had the fortunate result of eliminating poor engineering early in aviation. Igor Sikorsky

I intend to live forever....so far, so good. Steven Wright

You know....you can just rip up a to-do list.

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Reply #9 - Oct 31^st, 2008 at 7:36pm

Kevin Jarvis Offline
Colonel
Morgan Co Illinois, USA, Earth

Gender:
Posts: 292

Jaypee Dippel wrote on Oct 30^th, 2008 at 10:11pm:

Is there anyone out there who has read these posts that can shed some light on this phenomenon??????????

Do you have any other AI packs installed? Such as PAI, WoAI or MAIW?
If so check them to see if they are still there.

I've never used Traffic Changer so I can't comment on that.

Have you installed anything into the sim since installing your AI?

But suffice to say the advice you have been given is right on track.

I fly

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Reply #10 - Nov 1^st, 2008 at 3:48pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

Thank's for the replys, Dave, Kevin, I will check my flight plan bgls. I have only one group, when I had two or three groups they just looked like a duplicate lists so I deleted them. I don't know how to 'merge' the plans into one group but I think you're on to something.
As for other AI programs/utilitys, no, I have just Traffic Changer 601, My chosen Aircraft are 'flyable' models but I try to choose not so 'heavy' files for better sim performance. I understand AI traffic does not use the panel file so fixed views and pop-up bmps should'nt be a factor, I think.
I will investigate a little further and let you know what I find. Due to my busy schedule it may take a day or so to reply, Thank's again J.P.

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Reply #11 - Nov 1^st, 2008 at 6:12pm

dave3cu Offline
Colonel
Procrastinate now, don't
put it off.
3CU, Northern Wisconsin, USA

Gender:
Posts: 3077

J.P.,

If you are indeed sending more than 1 .bgl file from your group to the sim, only the flightplans from the last one you send will be in the sim.

'Merge' is available from the TC menu-Text Plans>Merge Flight Plans, and is explained in the 'merge.html' document in the ...\Traffic Changer\docs\... folder.

One other way to get all of your plans into the sim is to do it manually, though I guess this kind of defeats the 'group' concept of TC.

After you have 'Run TTools' on your 'Text Plans', close Traffic Changer. In Windows Explorer, navigate to the ..\Program Files\Traffic Changer\BGL Traffic\.. folder.

You'll find all of the (appropriately named) 'traffic_* .bgl' files for your flight plans. Copy any or all of these files to the ...\Flight Simulator 9\Scenery\World\scenery\... folder. These files will not be overwritten by TC as it uses a different file name when sending plans to the sim (TrafficChanger<groupname>.bgl).

Dave

At that time [1909] the chief engineer was almost always the chief test pilot as well. That had the fortunate result of eliminating poor engineering early in aviation. Igor Sikorsky

I intend to live forever....so far, so good. Steven Wright

You know....you can just rip up a to-do list.

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Reply #12 - Nov 1^st, 2008 at 6:34pm

ShaneG Offline
Colonel
I turned into a Martian!

Posts: 10000

I'm sorry if I'm butting in here, but is there a certain reason you are doing your AI this way? Huh

Huh

It seems that it would be much easier and less hassle to just use PAI,WOAI, and MAIW for AI traffic. These packs take all the pain and frustration away and fill airports to the brim with lovely AI. Wink

Wink

And they are always there with no disappearing. And in most cases improves the default airports they are at as far as parking and such. And the installers take care of all the bgl compiling for you.
If you are just after that sense of accomplishment then I completely understand and wish you luck! Wink

Wink

Just wondering.

Wink

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Reply #13 - Nov 4^th, 2008 at 6:41pm

Kevin Jarvis Offline
Colonel
Morgan Co Illinois, USA, Earth

Gender:
Posts: 292

Jaypee Dippel wrote on Nov 1^st, 2008 at 3:48pm:

My chosen Aircraft are 'flyable' models .

This is the first thing I would change.
Flyable models sometimes do very strange things when used as AI.

I fly

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Reply #14 - Nov 4^th, 2008 at 11:18pm

Jaypee Dippel Offline
Colonel
Hello!
Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Gender:
Posts: 77

I think I've got a handle on it now, I deleted my previous plans and filed each of them in a separate group. Now they remain. I don't want to fill my airports with add-on AI, just see some more interesting aircraft like some old propliners. The AI models I've found are poorly detailed and frankly, not worth viewing.
But Kevin is right, the flyable aircraft I'm using occasionally do weird things.
Thank's Dave, Kevin, Shane P.S. If anyone knows of any sites of good quality classic aircraft for AI please send it my way

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