Flightdeck Solutions, Ltd (FDS) announced today that Sim-Avionics, suppliers of premier Avionics Software packages for the B777, B737NG and B747, will be joining the FDS Team.

This strategic move allows FDS and SIM-Avionics to combine resources, knowledge and strategic planning in the further development of Higher Fidelity FBPTs and related products.

“Sim-Avionics has pushed very hard over the past 6-7 years in developing a solid base product that suits our trainers and individual components very well. We felt strongly that working directly with SIM-AVIONICS our Sales, Marketing and Product Development strengths would bolster their solid efforts in Avionics Software development. We see great things happening with our two teams working on the same path and pushing forward on increasing the fidelity of our respective products” said Peter Cos, President (FDS).

“We at Sim-Avionics are extremely excited to be combining talents with market leader Flightdeck Solutions. This logical step forward, provides us with the opportunity to enhance and streamline our services to both new and existing customers by offering a complete solution with seamless hardware and software integration, improved support and an expanding range of detailed software products” said Mark Hastings.

Congrats to Peter and Crew and the Sim-Avionics Group..

My cheque book is ready for a big splash out at FDS....the conversion of my sim to Sim Avionics, FSX and some new FDS hardware is imminent, can't wait!!! Gwyn...

Has anyone heard anything about the future pricing of Sim-Avionics yet?  I purchased it late last year after evaluating all choices but now with the FDS acquisition there is no pricing.   I asked about support updates subcription pricing on the support forum but those far there have been no response.    There is one user on the forum who posted a claim that the pricing was going to be quadrupled now.     Dont know where the individual got this information from so I dont really trust it but was wondering if anyone else has gotten any word?    All I can say is that if it is infact going to be that expensive then I am sure glad I bought it when I did!

Yep its more expensive, just got a price list for from PC.  Still cheaper than PM but nearly 3 x more than previous.  I guess SA's pricing always said "Introductory" so it was bound to happen.  Would have been nice to have some warning though and a chance to buy before the hike.  They are listing the complete systems logic at the top level though which SA hadn't introduced yet if I remember correctly, and it looks as though all packages include both 737 & 777 as there's no distinction between them on the price list.  Ah well just more to save for this insane hobby.

Ken.

luckily I got it when I did then.  Yes, I bought the full package including the systems.

Wonder how much annual support and subscription for updates will be now.....

The nice thing is that if FDS is on board with this you can bet the product will continue improving.

I Tried the demo but could'nt go past:server disconnected.
I want to try it on my internet computer on which I have a copy of FS.
Which IP should I indicate?
JP

If on the same computer as FS I think you just want to specify the loopback address....127.0.0.1

Jack, it's been a while since I had it connected to FS, so if I'm being honest, I can't remember the correct IP to get it working with that.

But I downloaded the demo on this laptop yesterday (to see if much has changed), and it gave me a default IP address of 127.0.0.1 which I accepted and it connected (to what I've no idea).

Once connected, select quick start from the server program and the PFD/ND should spring to live. Once they do, hitting the T key causes the instrument to move.

I'm guessing you'd need to set the IP address of the machine with FS on it to get it to communicate with that. On that PC, go to Network Connections (XP) and click the network connection in use (LAN or wireless), and the left hand pane should list the IP address of that connection.

That's just a guess, can't try it out with my FS PC at the moment, but the demo is working.

Sean

Did you get it working Jack?

127.0.0.1 is called the loopback address and in laymens terms points to the local network interface address of the computer.  So if FS is installed on the same computer it is ok to use 127.0.0.1.   You could alternatively assign an IP address to the network card (I recommend using RFC specified private network addressing such as the commonly used 192.168.1.x where x is .1-.254 and network mask is 255.255.255.0).   If you assign an address then it will stay and you can then use it for the Sim-Avionics config.    If your FS is on a different machine then assign it a static IP address and point to it.    127.0.0.1 should only be used if on the local machine.

Hope that helps.

PS - I am a network engineer by trade so happy to help on networking questions.

Scott

Scott this is engraved in my RAM !! will get back to U 4 sure!!

Well it worked.
The soft has a lot of features that we do not have on PM. A big plus. Small detail but annoying, the graphics , although very smooth, are a far cry from PM quality. Is it Open GL?
(Maybe it is my computer/ card)
What are your comments?

Well I havent run mine in a few months as I have been putting together parts and I never had PMs Boeing suite but I do own PMRJ and always thought it had some of the smoothest graphics.    I think I recall what you are saying but I thought the Sim-Avionics was pretty darned good as well and because I never compared side by side I guess I didnt think much of it.   I cannot comment to much on capabilities as I havent gotten that far yet but when I was testing this and the other from Flight Deck Software I like the server and config portion of Sim-Avionics much better.   

I think for those who can buy it and for those of us lucky enough to get in on the intro pricing, we are in for a nicely maintained and updated package.    The fact that FDS is involved now and they have such a good thing going in the commercial side means that us home enthusiasts are bound to reap the benefits though we are not the bigger market.   Exciting stuff...

Scott

According to PC at this stage they don't intend charging for annual updates.  If a major software change occurs requiring code re-write then he and Mark would look at some compensation but the old annual fee is now absorbed.  Also there's no distinction being made with regard to either version (777/737) so I guess you get both with every purchase.  Just a couple of points to add to the value.  As for the graphics, I demoed both PM and SA and couldn't tell you if one was smoother than the other.  They were both excellent, however its the systems modelling under the hood that you really pay for and I found SA to be such a doddle to setup, just one IP address and your done!

I don't know about you but I'll still be buying it.  The alliance gives the software a huge boost in credibility and confirms what lots of us simply suspected before. As Scott says, the backing of FDS will give the assurity of continued development.

Ken.

Quote from: jackpilot on March 09, 2010, 02:58:23 PM
Small detail but annoying, the graphics , although very smooth, are a far cry from PM quality. Is it Open GL?
(Maybe it is my computer/ card)
What are your comments?

I've ran S-A and PM (and FDS for that matter) side by side and found that too. PM was way ahead of the others in terms of graphic quality. I also found it better represented the displays seen on the real PFD/ND's.

Still running PMDG until I decide which way to go.

hi chaps......
let me see if i've got this right.   the price has increased 3 fold !!   i was hanging on for the NGX before buying this package because i thought it was a great price/performance option.     well it seems that SA has now also become 'elitist by price'.    sad really, it was a great option for me because my two favourite words are 'free' & 'cheap'.       what sticks with me is that there was no warning of this at all otherwise i obviously would have bitten the bullet and parted with the bucks.   ah well, any body want to buy 5 PC's for their setup ))
we have a saying in england about pricing - 'at least Dork Turpin wore a Mask'  ))
back to the drawing board i guess, but i do so enjoy a challenge ))
have a great day chaps......    ian

I have seen PM and run FlightDeckSoftware in my setup. How is the graphics between S-A and FlightDeckSoftware?
By the way, there is a new beta coming up from FlightDeckSoftware taking care of more bugs and finally a VNAV/LNAV that can be used properly. Still som eway to go, but I'll stick to this software.

Has anyone tried the new package from Sismo Solutions yet?

Orion 737NG for 99EUR (usually 299EUR).

http://www.737ngsim.com/

Looks interesting..  Is it a networked system?

I've not tried it yet,  but a quick look at the manual says it is.

TBH, I'm not 100% sure if it works with PM and the like, or is just for Sismo's products.

hi chaps......
i may be wrong, buy my understanding is that it works thru the IOCP server and as such would be 'networkable'.   but the info on the site is a bit 'lean'.
but i guess it must be worth a look.     would be nice if they offered a time limited demo so we could take a look.   i'd like to try it (and find out what it works with) before throwing even more money in the black hole in my garage       i may even mail them and suggest a timed demo......
rgds .... ian