News:

Precision Simulator update 10.173 (24 February 2024) is now available.
Navburo update 13 (23 November 2022) is now available.
NG FMC and More is released.

Main Menu

"Smooth transit" upon loading situ

Started by Will, Thu, 10 Sep 2020 02:39

Will

Hi Hardy,

What do you think about a function to disable the "smooth transit" feature in the weather simulation, only upon loading a situ?

I'm asking because when I replay a situ from a previous day, it looks to make a smooth transition from the weather stored in the old situ to the weather in the downloaded METAR file, and that means some extra steps to get the altimeter showing correctly. If I UN-select "Set zones by flight track and downloaded METAR", the weather updates instantly. Another click RE-selects "Set zones by flight track and downloaded METAR" and things are fine after that.

For example, a default situ that I like to use was saved with an altimeter setting of 29.85. Today's altimeter setting at the same airport is 30.17. The smooth transition takes several minutes.

So to save that step, could PSX have an optional instantaneous transit, instead of smooth transit, just when a situ is loaded?
Will /Chicago /USA

Hardy Heinlin

#1
Hi Will,

this feature is already impemented. But you need to allow a certain time limit beyond which any new data injections are to be transferred smoothly. It can't keep the fast mode forever.

I think the time limit is 30 seconds. This limit has been working fine for the past 10 years. Whenever I load a real-world weather situ, I see the PFD altitmeter tape jumps to the current QNH within the first 30 seconds after situ loading.

The METAR website was very slow yesterday. When the latest METARs are downloaded, every following situ file loading process will grab the latest QNH very quickly from the METAR cache on your disk.


Regards,

|-|ardy


When the 30 second delay is too short, just cycle the "Set zones ..." checkbox as you did. This effect is intentional.

Will

I think we are talking about two different things. I see the "30 second jump" you're talking about, and I'm not talking about adjusting that. That's fine.

But after the jump, it can take several additional minutes for the PSX atmosphere to update from what's stored in a situ to what's in the most recent downloaded METAR. (And this is not related to the METAR download speed.)

In my example from yesterday, I start PSX and do some flying. I'm using real-world weather downloaded from the Internet, so there is a valid, current METAR file stored locally.

Then I load a situ to practice takeoffs. The atmosphere in the saved situ had an altimeter setting of 29.85.

I load that situ, with the real-world weather option checked, and after 30 seconds, the altimeter jumps to the current QNH, which in that case was 30.17. This part is fine, so far so good.

But the PSX atmosphere itself goes into the "smooth transition" mode, and can take 5 minutes or so to update from the stored atmosphere to the current METAR atmosphere.

What that looks like is the altimeter tape jumps up several hundred feet too high, and then slowly winds down over 5 minutes to eventually reach field elevation as the PSX atmosphere transitions from the stored weather to the current weather.

It's this 5-minute transition that I'm suggesting be removed (optionally) upon loading a situ.

And only upon loading a situ; the "smooth transition" mode is fine everywhere else.
Will /Chicago /USA

Hardy Heinlin

Aha.

I'll test your suggestion.

(Such a late, sudden change may cause some side effects in other weather parameters as well. When you reset it manually by cycling the checkbox you know at least what's happening.)

Hardy Heinlin

It's been 12 seconds, not 30. I keep it at 12. It's a safe compromise.

I have now added an automatic quickfocus reset that occurs 12 seconds after situ start.

It has the same effect like cycling the checkbox 12 seconds after situ start.

Will

Hardy, that's perfect -- exactly what I was hoping for. Thank you!
Will /Chicago /USA

Hardy Heinlin