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Post by Admin on May 23, 2022 20:50:43 GMT
[update 05-SEP-22] About 4 years after I started working on Air Manager instruments I'm delighted to preview a big update of my 737-200 cockpit for the FlyJSim 732 TwinJet Professional. Below is a composite image showing the layout and look of the panels. Many more features are now included, such as being able to change instrument options "on-the-fly" with a simple mouse click. This image shows some of the instrument options available as illustrated by different Captain and First Officer avionics fits. These updated panels require the FlyJSim 732 TwinJet Professional to be upgraded to at least Version 3.41, otherwise some functionality (eg speed bugs) will be lost.  Known Issues as at 03-Sep-22: -Improve night visibility of white speed bugs -Complete night lighting for panels on the upper overhead done-Re-write code for fuel used calculations -Panel lights not linked to X-Plane 11 (the FlyJSim datarefs are not writable). Change light levels using the knobs within Air Manager. -Flood light knob not working. Planned for later: - Improve graphics for switch lighting. |
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2022 13:15:06 GMT
I got a few minutes in the cockpit of an old 737-200 last week. Not as long as I'd have liked, but I've got several good images to make improvements to the visual quality of some of the panels. If I get a similar chance in future I'll do some preparation work and build a to-do list. To start with I've looked at the landing gear lever and this also shows the new format I'll be working to with annunciators. The old image is on the left, new on the right.  |
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2022 14:23:22 GMT
I've now upgraded the push button guard images and here's the Cargo Fire panel, including the new improved annunciator image style. As with the gear lever this will also improve the Boeing 727 graphics.  |
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2022 18:04:37 GMT
And the rudder trim panel looks a little less boring!  |
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Post by Admin on Jul 25, 2022 16:25:27 GMT
Some more updates today, to the MIP (showing different instrument configs available) and the centre pedestal. That leaves the overhead, which initially at least will involve improvements to annunciator and switch guard images. Once that's done I'll clean up the instrument packages and we'll be ready for X-Plane 12 when it arrives (assuming FlyJSim are fairly quick with an XP12 update!!)   |
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Post by Admin on Jul 25, 2022 16:38:57 GMT
And here's the MIP at night .................  |
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Post by Admin on Jul 26, 2022 17:57:59 GMT
I wasn't sure if I'd got suitable images for the overhead switches. However with the magic of Photoshop I have cobbled some together. They're not perfect, but I think they're a big improvement over what I previously had in Air Manager, and next time I get a chance to photograph a 732 or Classic cockpit I'll be sure to get some better higher definition pictures. So here's the revised lights switches panel on the overhead, old image at top, new improved version below (and the landing light switches bar now does its job properly!)  Once I've completed this initial visual update I'll look to improve backlighting, primarily for switches, and also incorporate more shadows to the panels to try and give a better feeling of depth. |
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Post by Admin on Jul 26, 2022 18:55:10 GMT
And another overhead panel updated .......... this time the Pressurisation Gauges Panel. This is a combination of adding extra visual details as shown by my photos of the real cockpit and adding little nuances, like the transparent segment of the Differential Pressure needle, so that the Cabin Alt needle can be seen behind it.  |
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Post by Admin on Sept 2, 2022 17:28:07 GMT
After a few weeks away helping my daughter move I better get these panels to the point of release. Rather than keep hanging on and making incremental improvements and waiting for X-Plane 12 I think I'll work on this tomorrow (rain forecast) and then just make them available. That may leave a few cosmetic issues ( some night lighting graphics will probably be the worst) and I'll address those as quickly as I can together with fixing any bugs found by users. There'll be things like preview images which may not be correct, but those do not affect the usability of the instruments or panels. Today I figured out extracting the Weather Radar using XTextureExtractor. You can now scroll up or down through the pedestal (no throttle quadrant and associated controls) with a click side bar.  |
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Post by Admin on Nov 28, 2022 17:46:58 GMT
I've been messing around with how to expand the "real-estate" available for displaying panels. The initial result is a revised Captain's Panel for the 737-200, with an image height of 2450 pixels, rather than the 1440 I'd previously used to fit standard 16:9 monitors. This now allows the full panel to be available, though not all visible at once. I have incorporated either a hidden scroll bar at screen edge so you can drag the panel up or down, or a hidden knob at top-left corner, which allows use of a Knobster or simple mouse key presses to scroll the panel up and down. I'll try and do a video on it in a couple of days to show this in action, it's really quite effective. Hidden click-spots move with the panel so you still have full control over all instrument functionality and over selecting different instrument options. The idea can be rolled out across the rest of the cockpit (eg for the overhead) and across the other aircraft - though it won't work where 3rd party software is used to display weather radar or EFIS screens.  |
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