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    The Staff of SOH

  • Please see the most recent updates in the "Where did the .com name go?" thread. Posts number 16 and 17.

    Post 16 Update

    Post 17 Warning

Staying in or go outside... ??

Staying In or go Outside... ??

  • I never use External Views

    Votes: 2 1.4%
  • I sporadicly use External Views

    Votes: 35 25.4%
  • I often use External Views

    Votes: 75 54.3%
  • I never view my take-off/landing in Replay mode

    Votes: 2 1.4%
  • I sometimes view my take-off/landing in Replay mode

    Votes: 16 11.6%
  • I always view my take-off/landing in Replay mode

    Votes: 8 5.8%

  • Total voters
    138
  • Poll closed .

Javis

SOH Staff
Staff member
One of the things i enjoy most with FS is the External View mode i.e. Spotview, Fly-by or Tower view. One of the things i missed most in earlier FS versions was a Fly-By view ( which happend to be present in other, militairy flight sims ) I was therefore bolted over with extacy when Anticyclone's 'Active Camera' was released and, a.o., gave us this ' Fly-By' view. ( i still think AC's Fly-By view is way better than FSX Fly-By view, alas Anticyclone gave up support for AC with FSX...:frown: )

Before going into details ( like f.i. a clever option to get another great AC feature, i.e ' Approach View', back into FSX ) i thought it would be interesting to see how many of you actually use these various External View modes, including Replay. For a long time already i am aware of the fact that it's not exactly "a Law of Medes and Persian's" that every FSimmer uses these options just because the're there...

Many simmers don't seem to care about External Views ( let alone view ones take-off or landing in Replay mode over and over again, like i do.... ) simply because they find it unrealistic, which it is of course.... They prefer to 'stay inside', from boarding their virtual plane to parking it at the destination, like they would with the real thing.

So in what camp are you actually...?? :rolleyes:

Cheers,
Jan
 
I really enjoy the external spot views, especially on landings...... Flying with just internal view is ok, but I truly appreciate looking at the aircraft in flight.

NC
 
I'm definitely an external view, watch replay several times kind of guy. I like to do re-paints so the external view is a must. I fly GA or smaller military exclusively and do usually follow procedures for take off and landing and definitely use the VC during those times but when cruise altitude is reached I find myself in spot view more often. Hey that's part of the fun of FSX being a simulator. I can step out into thin air and fly along!

Mike
 
of course I want to fly the plane from inside the cockpit

and who doesn't want to view their approach and flare to touchdown from outside the aircraft?

how else can you fully appreciate this flight simulator if not to take advantage of that ability?
 
I use external locked spot view during flight, primarily because I take screen shots during every flight (don't ask how backed-up I am with editing all those shots). I also typically replay about 300-500 seconds after parking, again, to take screen shots of the approach and landing.

Why? Well, primarily because all these shots after edit are my screen saver.....and .....well....I enjoy them :wiggle:

It never ceases to amaze me that I can sit and watch all these shots 'go by' when the screen saver kicks in, and I swear, I can almost remember each flight....and these are going back a few years now. Well, at least I think I can....ahhhh....memories....It is also a reminder of my sim in various states, and perhaps some aircraft I have not flown in a while. :kilroy:
 
Dang! I forgat to check the 'multiple choice' option... :redface:

and who doesn't want to view their approach and flare to touchdown from outside the aircraft? how else can you fully appreciate this flight simulator if not to take advantage of that ability?

That happens to be exactly my uhhh... view, but particularly at Avsim i noticed a lot of FSimmers don't give a hoot about an external model. I can imagine this might be different overhere, just thought it might be interesting to check it out..

cheers,
jan
 
I'm stuck to VC as a drunk man to a post!! I only change to an external view in my pushback as if i were a marshal.
I'm recently using the repeat function. Not that i didn't know how to use it or where it was, but now i'm taking the best of it, in conjunction with FSC Flight Analysis.

Best regards,
Ignacio
 
Dang! I forgat to check the 'multiple choice' option... :redface:



That happens to be exactly my uhhh... view, but particularly at Avsim i noticed a lot of FSimmers don't give a hoot about an external model. I can imagine this might be different overhere, just thought it might be interesting to check it out..

cheers,
jan

I suppose I could imagine a very narrow focus flight training simulator where that would be ideal...no option for an external view as it would be unnecessary and without resources being 'wasted' on the external 3d model, more could then be spent on systems and flight dynamics or environments or whatever.

but that is not what FSX is about
 
I often use spot view to get a better look at the scenery and aircraft when flying. Sometimes I will use replay in tower view to watch a good landing or an aerobatic flight. Otherwise I fly in the VC.
 
and who doesn't want to view their approach and flare to touchdown from outside the aircraft?

We'll probabely see when this poll has ended.. :)

But HOW do you view your approach and landing externally ?....

And are you happy with that ?...

cheers,
jan
 
. . . .But HOW do you view your approach and landing externally ?. . . . cheers,
jan
"Tower View" in most cases. I agree that the "Approach View" in AC was the very best, I really missed that along with the VC movements available. Too bad they gave up the ghost with FSX.

I also use the external view, mostly for screenshots, but my total flying time is spent about 90% in the VC. Back in FS9, when I first started flying, I used FSNavigator to fly the approach and landing. . .it was from watching those replays that I learned how to land. After I got beyond that initial "let someone else fly the plane" mode, I started using the Instant Replay to critique my landings. . .it's a great tool for spotting things you are doing wrong on approach or landing.
 
We'll probabely see when this poll has ended.. :)

But HOW do you view your approach and landing externally ?....

And are you happy with that ?...

cheers,
jan

I have a horrible method - I switch to the external fly-by view just as I come over the boundary or fence...

I tried FRAPS but as I have a lower end machine, I cant afford to give up the FPS that it costs...

I would LOVE it if FSX had a track recording system like Il2 had or like RoF has -
seriously - why doesn't it ???
 
When I'm flying, maneuvering, I'm usually in the cockpit. Sometimes when I maneuver, I'm in external view, if it isn't very agile maneuvering, or if I'm pulling sustained G's, since FS has you blacked out at 7g's which is one of my pet peeves with FS.

When I'm taking screenshots, definitely external, when I'm on autopilot, I'm in external view enjoying the look of the aircraft and enjoying the scenery and looking for great lighting for screenshots. I should say, as long as I know I don't have to do any active cockpit work for NAV, etc.

If the exterior of an aircraft I have isn't very well done, I probably won't fly it much because it "bothers" me when it's wrong. But I'm kind of pathological in my appreciation for aircraft. :isadizzy:

I guess for me it's about half and half. Although, I can forgive a not accurate cockpit much easier than I can a not accurate exterior.
 
i'm outside at least 90% of the time, and i almost always view my landing. i like seeing when i do well. it's rare, and that makes it a treat! :icon_lol:

truth is, one of the only planes i fly from inside is piglet's AA-5B.
 
This is a no brainer as far as I'm concerned. So many FS developers both free and payware make amazing internal and external models. If I've paid 20 odd quid for a model why wouldn't I want to use the external view as well as the internal?
 
If you have access to the SDKs and the knowlege and patience to do it, the FSX camera views available in the CFG are almost infinite and can add so much extra to your experience.

You can set up anything from watching the tyres as they hit the deck to great approach angles and unusual viewpoints all around the aeroplane.

If there is a particularly interesting animation on your aircraft, set a camera view where you can see it operate and the airspace around you. The choices are limitless. Camera views can be set for panning or fixed cameras, different lenses and angles of tilt and pitch. It's a lot of fun and a great way to explore your new purchase.
 
I only fly from the cockpit when I 'can be bothered', seeing as it requires setting TrackIR up, and using it, while fun, tends to be a little more stressful. So if I just want to slouch in my chair and have a quick dart about the sky, I'll just settle for locked spot view and the hat switch.

Also, tower view is great for pratting around, working out what looks good in display sequences, and generally admiring the external model of an aircraft. Not to mention viewing replays of stuff you've been doing whilst using the cockpit view.
 
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