i’m on depression…

in an effort to extend the life of my aging PC, i went ahead and upgraded the video card a few steps further. after reading numerous positive reviews, i made my way over to the nearest Best Buy and picked up the Visiontek Radeon X1950PRO 256MB AGP. now, the X800XT was no slouch of a card, but i’m hoping to get a little more out of the X1950PRO.

when i got home, i was eager to tear the box open and get the card installed as soon as possible. upon further inspection, the card itself uses a 6-pin PCI-e power connector. this leads me to believe that is a direct port of the PCI-e version. for my 2-year-old power supply, which lacks any 6-pin connectors, the package came with an adapter that converts the 6-pin connection on the card into two 4-pin molex connectors. quickly realizing that i had no more 4-pin connectors available, i remembered that i had just installed a new 550W PSU in my HTPC. the best part is that it has a couple 6-pin connectors readily available.

swapping power supplies turned out to be a bigger chore than i would have liked. my gaming rig needed a good cleaning, and the HTPC is so small that i basically had to take the whole thing apart. by the time i got the X1950PRO installed and both PC’s put back together, it was getting late and i had other things to do. so i booted up once just to make sure everything worked and called it a day. i’m hoping to test it out fully over the weekend.

Wilco has announced yet another addition to their Pilot In Command and Luxury Aircraft collections: the Cessna Citation X.

• Highly detailed First class business jet: Citation X by Cessna
• Citation X is the world’s fastest business aircraft and also the world’s most aerodynamic jet ever built: aerodynamic shape, swept back 37° wings…
• Luxury VIP/Executive interior
• New specific FSX camera definitions (gear, wing, cabin, overhead…)
• Multiple business liveries and the official Cessna livery
• Realistic flight dynamics created and tested by an active Citation X pilot and based on manufacturer’s specifications. The plane operates extremely close to the real plane’s specifications.
• Truly immersive sound experience with the real plane digitized sounds: engine, APU, batteries, air conditioning, passenger signs, clicks…
• Realistic animations: hydraulic suspension, flaps, slats, spoilerons, speed brakes, thrust reversers, landing gear, passengers door, cargo hatches, stairs…
• Nose wheel steering limited over 40kts
• Rear-mounted Rolls-Royce turbofan engines: 3900 miles at Mach .92
• Reflective textures, dynamic shine, night lighting…
• Frame-rate friendly
• Wingview
• Easy-to-use Paint Kit to create your own liveries

For more info, head on over to Wilco’s product page.

this flight was scheduled for service from KLAX to KSFO. i got as far as getting off the ground, but again, the rest of my daily life had caught up with me. so i had to call it quits shortly after takeoff.

Aircraft:
PSS 757-200

Scenery:
SimFlyers KLAX
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

well, there’s not much to this one. it’s a rather short video of a takeoff sequence from KCLT. the planned destination was KPHL, but time was short and i was not able to finish. in the end, it basically turned out to be an exercise in familiarizing myself with the 737 and DBS Walk and Follow camera utility.

Aircraft:
Wilco/Feelthere 737 PIC

Scenery:
ImagineSim KCLT
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.

this is just a quick flight around the KDAB area. having gone to Embry-Riddle, i was happy to find this scenery created by TropicalSim. the campus is very well-detailed and the buildings are easily identifiable. the Daytona Speedway and KDAB terminal are also part of the scenery package. overall, it is very well done and a joy to fly around if you know the area.

Aircraft:
Flight 1 Cessna 172

Scenery:
TropicalSim KDAB
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.

Delta Airlines
Flight 211
KATL to KBOS
BOEING 767-300

Aircraft:
Level-D 767-300

Scenery:
SimFlyers KATL
George Grimshaw’s KBOS
Scott Gridley’s FreeFlow New England
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.

Delta Airlines
Flight 1197
KCLT to KMCO
BOEING 767-300

Aircraft:
Level-D 767-300

Scenery:
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.

Delta Airlines
Flight 1789
KATL to KPHL
BOEING 767-300

Aircraft:
Level-D 767-300

Scenery:
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.

Delta Airlines
Flight 963
KATL to KPHL
BOEING 767-300

Aircraft:
Level-D 767-300

Scenery:
Flight Environment
Ground Environment Pro
Real Environment

the cold and dark cockpit…

another busy day at hartsfield…

departing runway 9L…

climbing out of KATL…

the view from the flight deck…

cruising at FL340…
 

descending into philadelphia…

lined up for landing on runway 9R…
 

sorry, didn’t get any shots of touchdown. even though i didn’t crash, FS2004 decided to when i tried to open up a replay.

F/A-18E Super Hornet Gold - Digital Integration
this is actually an older sim called F/A-18E Super Hornet Gold. it was developed by Digital Integration as a recruiting tool for the US Navy. i remember seeing it on store shelves when it was first released and, luckily, i was able to find a copy online for a more than reasonable price. despite its age and lack of support, it still has a decent following and i really enjoy it a lot. the carrier ops, complete with moving deck crew, is one of its key features. the detailed cockpit and systems are also top-notch in my book. it lacks a campaign mode, but the many missions and enemy AI are challenging enough to keep me interested.

VIDEO DOES NOT START AUTOMATICALLY.
PLEASE CLICK PLAY BUTTON.