Hello Guys,
The reality may be even a bit worse than you all are thinking.
Not only are folks still flying the original Combat Flight Simulator that was released around 1999, Some of us are still developing for it.
The SDK I am using is not for FS9, it is for FS98 as in 1998 with most of the actual source dating around 1997.
A Little Bit of Background Information:
Abacus Aircraft Factory 99 is the most commonly used design tool for Combat Flight Simulator aircraft. It is actually a fairly capable design package but with some significant limitations which some of us try to address via SCASM.
Unfortunately, the Assembly Process in AF99 is not very intuitive and most folks don't understand it well enough to build models without serious bleeds.
The B-25C Mitchell was a project I built a LONG time ago, probably around 2006 or 2006. It was intended as a demonstration that a good twin engine aeroplane could be built within Aircraft Factory 99 without any significant bleeds. As a model, it was entirely successful but was never released because I could not build a proper panel for it. (Lack of a good set of Dual Gauges.) I believe it is quite a nice looking model and deserved a much better fate.
Last year, I decided to try a more complicated project with Aircraft Factory 99 as a design study. It was a P-38 which I have never seen treated properly in Combat Flight Simulator. The project actually turned out much better than I would have expected but again, the limitation was the fancy set of Dual Gauges, especially for the P-38J.
The gauge limitation was something I tried to address here a couple years ago even before the P-38 Lightning Design Study but the lack of a good working compiler was the limitation.
A few weeks back, while looking for installation media for my brand new laptop, I came across a VERY old stash of CDs which had installation disks for MS Visual Studio which addressed the compiler limitation. A few weeks later, with a fair amount of searching and experimenting, we are here.
Current Status is that I still cannot get the actual Dual Gauge to work properly even though I have coded the plist variables as well as I understand them. I actually have an extraordinary cheat in mind to avoid the situation entirely. I will continue the project even if it works, but the immediate need for a real Dual Gauge won't be as pressing.
The P-38 Lightning Design Study is described here:
http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php?90998-Lockheed-P-38-Lightning-Design-Study
This link shows a fellow designer's work, but has a couple screenshots of my B-25C Mitchell on Post#94.
http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforu...ht-AT-9-quot-Jeep-quot-Work-In-Progress/page4
- Ivan.