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FlightGear FAQ Cameron Moore cameron@unbeatenpath.net
Introduction Welcome to the FlightGear FAQ. ようこそFlightGear FAQへ。 Here you will find the answers to some questions that are frequently asked on our mailing lists. ここで、あなたは私たちのメーリングリストで頻繁に行われる質問の答えを見つけるでしょう。 If you have a question that is not answered here, feel free to ask us on our mailing lists. Enjoy ここで答えられない質問がありましたら、私たちのメーリングリストで私たちに遠慮なく聞いてください。
Table of Contents 目次 1 - The FAQ
1.1 - Where can I get the latest version of this FAQ? 1.1 - FAQの最新版はどこにありますか?
1.2 - Who do I contact if I have comments about this FAQ? 1.2 - このFAQに関してコメントがあるなら、私はだれに連絡すればよいのでしょうか?
1.3 - How old is this document? 1.3 - このドキュメントはどれくらい古いですか?
1.4 - What other important documentation should I read? 1.4 - 私は他にどんな重要なドキュメンテーションを読むべきですか?
2 - Distribution 2 - 配布 2.1 - Where can I get FlightGear? 2.1 - どこでFlightGearを入手できますか？
2.2 - What is the password for the FTP server? 2.2 - FTPサーバーのパスワードは何ですか？
2.3 - Why won't the FTP server let me in with the right login info? 2.3 - なぜFTPサーバーにログインできないのでしょうか？
2.4 - Where can I find the latest development source code? 2.4 - 最新のソースコードはどこで入手できますか？
2.5 - What is SimGear, and why do I need it? 2.5 - SimGearて何ですか？必要ですか？
2.6 - Where can I fly and where do I get the scenery? 2.6 - 私はどこを飛べますか？シーナリはどこで入手できますか？
2.7 - Where can I get different 3D models for my plane? 2.7 - 他の航空機モデルはどこで入手できますか？
2.8 - How current is the data in FlightGear compared to the real world? 2.8 - 実際の風景と比較してどれくらい良く見られますか？ 2.9 - Where is the moving map? 2.9 - ムービングマップはどこですか？ 2.10 - Why don't you charge money for this? 2.10 - なぜ無料なのですか？
3 - Compiling 3 - コンパイリング 3.1 - Why won't FlightGear compile? 3.2 - I'm using RedHat 7, and ...? 3.3 - I'm using MSVC 6.0, and ...?
4 - Configuring 4.1 - How do I install new scenery? 4.2 - How do I setup my joystick(s)? 4.3 - What format should my personal .fgfsrc file be in?
5 - Running 5.1 - Why do I get an error loading libopenal.so.0? 5.2 - Why do I get "ssgInit called without a valid OpenGL context"? 5.3 - What happened to the panel, keyboard, etc? 5.4 - Why doesn't audio work properly under Irix? 5.5 - Why is FlightGear so slow? 5.6 - Why is my SGI machine so slow? 5.7 - How do I see the frame rate? 5.8 - Stuck upside down after "crash"? 5.9 - Why does FlightGear die on startup saying "time zone reading failed"?
6 - Hacking 6.1 - What language is FlightGear written in? 6.2 - Is there any source code documentation? 6.3 - How do I design a flight dynamics model for a new aircraft? 6.4 - How do I import planes from Microsoft Flight Simulator? 6.5 - How do I import BGL scenery from Microsoft Flight Simulator? 6.6 - How do I design or modify a panel? 6.7 - How do I place objects, like buildings, into FlightGear? 6.8 - Where can I learn 3D programming and how do I get involved? 6.9 - How do I add an airport? 6.10 - How do I generate my own scenery?
7 - Flying 7.1 - Where can I learn about instrument flying and navigation? 7.2 - What is the difference between Aileron and Rudder? 7.3 - Is there support for multi-player flying? 7.4 - Is there support for any military scenarios like dog fighting or bomb dropping?
8 - FlightGear v0.9.0 8.1 - Why do I get an error saying 'uiuc_getwind.h' isn't found?
9 - FlightGear v0.7.6 9.1 - Why do I get an error in viewer.cxx about `exit' being undeclared?
1 - The FAQ 1 - FAQ
1.1 - FAQの最新版はどこにありますか? http://flightgear.org/Docs/FlightGear-FAQ.html
1.2 - このFAQに関してコメントがあるなら、私はだれに連絡すればよいのでしょうか? First contact the author. If you get no response, send your comments to the FlightGear-Users mailing list. 先ず最初に作者に連絡してください。もし回答が無ければFlightGear-Users メーリングリストへ連絡してください。
1.3 - このドキュメントはどれくらい古いですか? See the About This Document section at the end of the FAQ. FAQの最後に更新日がありますので、そちらをみてください。
1.4 - 私は他にどんな重要なドキュメンテーションを読むべきですか? Most FlightGear documentation is linked to from http://flightgear.org/Docs/. Definitely check out the FlightGear Installation and Getting Started document available from the aforementioned location. ほとんどのドキュメントはhttp://flightgear.org/Docs/にあります。「FlightGear Installation and Getting Started」は確実に目を通してください。
Also see the FlightGear/docs-mini/ directory in the source distribution for various other helpful documents. また、他のドキュメンテーションは配布プログラムの中のFlightGear/docs-mini/ディレクトリにあります。
2 - 配布 2.1 - どこでFlightGearを入手できますか？ The official download page is http://flightgear.org/Downloads/. Source code is our primary form of distribution, but precompiled binaries are available for Windows and SGI IRIX. 公式ダウンロードサイトはhttp://flightgear.org/Downloads/です。主にソースコードを配布していますが、WindowsやMac os X、SGI IRIXはプレコンパイルした実行ファイルも配布しています。
Alternatively, FlightGear is packaged for Linux by SuSE, Debian (sid), and Mandrake (Cooker) and can be directly installed through those distributions. LinuxのSuSEやDebian (sid),Mandrake (Cooker)にはパッケージされています。
2.2 - FTPサーバーのパスワードは何ですか？
The FTP server uses standard anonymous login procedures. Login with the username "anonymous" and use your email address as the password. Most FTP clients and web browsers will do this automatically for you. FTPサーバーは匿名で利用できます。ログイン名をanonymousに設定し、ご自分のメールアドレスをパスワードに設定してください。ほとんどのウェブブラウザやFTPクライアントは自動的に接続してくれるでしょう。
2.3 - なぜFTPサーバーにログインできないのでしょうか？ This generally means that the server is at it's capacity. You should receive a message saying such, but your FTP client may be hiding it from you. Your options are to keep trying until a slot opens up or try connecting to one of our FTP mirrors listed at http://flightgear.org/mirrors.html#ftp. 一般的にはFTPサーバーが混雑していると思われます。時間をおいて再度接続を試みるか、他のミラーリングサイトを試してみてください。ミラーリングサイトはhttp://flightgear.org/mirrors.html#ftpで紹介しています。
2.4 - 最新のソースコードはどこで入手できますか？ The latest development code is available for everyone through our CVS repository. See http://flightgear.org/cvsResources/ for details. 最新のソースコードはCSVデポジトリとして利用可能です。詳細はhttp://flightgear.org/cvsResources/を見てください。
Otherwise, you can get relatively up-to-date snapshots of the development tree at ftp://flightgear.sourceforge.net/pub/flightgear/Devel/Snapshots/. その他は、定期的にftp://flightgear.sourceforge.net/pub/flightgear/Devel/Snapshots/でアップデートされたソースコードを配布しています。
2.5 - SimGearて何ですか？必要ですか？ SimGear is a library of supporting code. SimGear is only needed if you plan on compiling FlightGear -- it is not needed to run precompiled binaries. For more information see http://www.simgear.org/. SimGearはFlightGearのソースコードのライブラリです。ソースコードからコンパイルするのであれば必要です。WinやMac osX, IRIXの実行形式ファイルを利用するのであれば不要です。詳しくはhttp://www.simgear.org/を見てください。
2.6 - 私はどこを飛べますか？シーナリはどこで入手できますか？ While the base package only comes with scenery for the San Francisco Bay area, you can currently fly just about anywhere in the world. See the "Additional Scenery" section of http://flightgear.org/Downloads/ for more information or go directly to our graphical downloader at http://flightgear.org/Downloads/world-scenery.html. ベースパッケージにはサンフランシスコベイエリアが入っています。更にシーナリを追加する事で世界中を飛ぶ事ができます。追加シーナリはhttp://www.jp.flightgear.org/Downloads/scenery.html/からFTPインターフェースやグラフィカルインターフェースを利用して入手できます。
Also visit our "Places to Fly" section of the website (http://www.flightgear.org/places.html) for some help navigating to some awesome locations. 更に、http://www.flightgear.org/places.htmlではすばらしい風景のシーナリを配布しています。
2.7 - 他の航空機モデルはどこで入手できますか？ While we are working toward building our own 3D models, we have been given permission by several people to convert their models (which where originally intended for use with Microsoft Flight Simulator) to use with FlightGear. See Wolfram's Hangar (http://home.t-online.de/home/Wolfram.Kuss/) for a list of what we currently have available as well as information on how to convert models yourself. FlightGearではhttp://www.flightgear.org/Downloads/aircraft/で沢山の航空機モデルを配布しています。この他のモデルを作成している間は、他のフライトシミュレータ用モデルを変換して公開しているモデルを利用してください。 http://www.aae.uiuc.edu/m-selig/apasim/Aircraft-uiuc.htmlにもいくつかのモデルがありますので、インフォメーションや利用方法をよく読んでからご利用ください。
2.8 - 実際の風景と比較してどれくらい良く見られますか？ We use the same navaid and airport dataset that X-Plane uses. The current dataset can be found in the $FGROOT/Navaids/ and $FGROOT/Airports/ directories. If you have updates or corrections to the dataset, see http://flightgear.org/Docs/AirNav/AptNavFAQ.FlightGear.html for instructions on contacting the database maintainer. FlightGearではX-Planeの空港データを使います。プログラムのデータセットは$FGROOT/Navaids/ と $FGROOT/Airports/にあります。もしも空港のデータセットをメンテナンスするのでればhttp://flightgear.org/Docs/AirNav/AptNavFAQ.FlightGear.html を見てください。
2.9 - ムービングマップはどこですか？ A popular moving map display is available under a separate project called Atlas. See http://atlas.sf.net/. 一般的なムービングマップとして、現在開発中のAtlasが利用可能です。http://atlas.sf.net/をみてください。
2.10 - なぜ無料なのですか? We could do that, since the initial download is about 25 megabytes. Especially for people who have to pay per-minute charges for internet access, buying a CD is a convenient and possibly cheaper option. Although we offer that service (see the website), we encourage other groups to redistribute it for their users, especially within an operating system distribution which makes installation even faster and easier for new users. 初期の配布ファイルが約25MByだったので（オンライン配布が）可能でした。現在は70MBy近くありますが、インターネットの高速化によりオンライン配布が可能になっています。しかし、ナローバンドユーザーも多い事は理解しています。そういった方々には便利でことによるとより安い、有料のCD配布も用意しています。私達はユーザーのために他のグループがソフトウェアを再配布する事を推奨します。
3 - Compiling 3 - コンパイリング
3.1 - Why won't FlightGear compile? 3.1 - なぜコンパイリングできないのでしょうか？
Well, that depends. First make sure you are using the appropriate versions of FlightGear, SimGear, plib, zlib. If any of the packages are out of sync with the others, compilation may fail. そうですね、一概にはいえませんね。先ず最初にFlightGear,SimGear,plib,zlibの適正なパッケージを使ってください。パッケージのバージョンが指定のものと異なっているとコンパイルできないかもしれません。
The FlightGear Downloads page (http://flightgear.org/Downloads/) should tell you what versions you need if you are trying to compile the latest stable release. If you are using a development snapshot, make sure all three packages are up-to-date. もし、最新版をコンパイルするのであれば、ダウンロードページ(http://flightgear.org/Downloads/)でライブラリの必要なバージョンを調べる事をお勧めします。最新のソースコードを使うのであれば、他の3つのライブラリを常に最新にしてください。
Also ensure that you have some implementation of OpenGL with glut support with the appropriate header files. Linux users with nVidia cards should make sure you have the latest drivers from nVidia. Other Linux users make sure you have Mesa3D (http://mesa3d.org/) and your X server installed correctly. Windows users see http://www.x-plane.com/SYSREQ/v5ibm.html, and Mac users see http://www.x-plane.com/SYSREQ/v5mac.html. また、OpenGLのインプリメンテーションを適切なヘッダーファイルでサポートしてください。nVidiaカードを持っているLinuxユーザーはドライバを最新にしてください。又、他のLinuxユーザーはX サーバーとMesa3D (http://mesa3d.org/)を確実にインストールしてください。Windowsユーザーはhttp://www.x-plane.com/SYSREQ/v5ibm.htmlをMacユーザーはhttp://www.x-plane.com/SYSREQ/v5mac.htmlを見てください。
If your problems persist, subscribe to our FlightGear-Users mailing list and let us know what problem you're having. See http://flightgear.org/mail.html for help with this. それでも解決できないのであれば、FlightGear-Usersメーリングリストに加入し、質問してください。詳しくは、http://flightgear.org/mail.htmlを見てください。
3.2 - I'm using RedHat 7, and ...? 3.2 - RedHat 7を使っています。そして・・・？
Update your gcc packages. See http://redhat.com/errata/ to fix it and http://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/gcc-2.96.html for an explanation why. gccパッケージをアップデートしてください。http://redhat.com/errata/とhttp://www.gnu.org/software/gcc/gcc-2.96.html を参照してください。
3.3 - I'm using MSVC 6.0, and ...? 3.3 - MSVC 6.0を使っています。そして・・・？
Ensure that you have all Service Packs installed for MSVC. MSVCのサービスパックを確実にインストールしてください。
4 - Configuring 4 - 設定
4.1 - How do I install new scenery? 4.1 - どうやってシーナリをインストールすればよいのですか？
The scenery archive files (ie. w100n30.tar.gz) should be untarred into the Scenery/Terrain directory in your $FG_ROOT. シーナリファイル（例 w100n30.tar.gz)を解凍し、FlightGearインストールファイルの下のScenery/Terrainへインストールしてください。 Windowsユーザーはこちらを御参考ください。 http://www.jp.flightgear.org/workshop/index.php?%A5%B7%A1%BC%A5%CA%A5%EA%A1%BC%A4%CE%A5%A4%A5%F3%A5%B9%A5%C8%A1%BC%A5%EB
4.2 - How do I setup my joystick(s)? 4.2 - どうやってジョイスティックの設定をすればよいのですか？
FlightGear should come with a helpful program called `fgjs` that can help configure your joystick. Run `fgjs` and then copy the dot file it created into your home directory or add its contents to your existing rc file. FlightGearのfgjsというプログラムが設定を手伝ってくれます。fgjsを起動し、作られたドットファイルをホームディレクトリにコピーするか.fgfsrcファイルにコピーしてください。
Also, see the README.Joystick file located in the FlightGear/docs-mini/ directory of the source distribution. This document is mirrored at http://rockfish.net/fg/README.Joystick. また、FlightGear/docs-mini/にあるREADME.Joystickをみてください。 http://rockfish.net/fg/README.Joystickでも見られます。
4.3 - What format should my personal .fgfsrc file be in? 4.3 - .fgfsrcファイルはどのようなフォーマットで書かれていますか？
Your .fgfsrc file should simply be a list of command-line options with one option per line. The file is not an XML file. .fgfsファイルはそれぞれのオプションに対し、1行ごとのコマンドラインであるべきです。 XMLファイルではありません。
If you would rather use an XML configuration file, you can add something like the following in your .fgfsrc もしも、XMLによる設定ファイルを使いたいのであれば、.fgfsrcに
5 - Running 5 - 実行
5.1 - Why do I get an error loading libopenal.so.0? 5.1 - なぜlibopenal.so.0のローディングエラーがでるのでしょう？
With the default installation, libopenal.so.0 is installed into /usr/local/lib.
You need to ensure that that path is listed in /etc/ld.so.conf, then run `ldconfig`as root.
デフォルトではlibopenal.so.0は/usr/local/libの中にインストールされます。 /etc/ld.so.confにパスを確実に書込み、root権限でldconfigを実行してください。
5.2 - Why do I get "ssgInit called without a valid OpenGL context"? 5.2 - なぜ "ssgInit called without a valid OpenGL context"がでるのでしょう？
In short, your GL libraries are broken. So far only Red Hat 7.x users have experienced this (see http://www.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=18867). The only solutions are possibly complicated ones: you can either change distributions (most of us prefer Debian) or upgrade/downgrade your Mesa libs. ようするに、GLライブラリが壊れています。今のところRed Hat 7.xユーザーに限られた事象です。（こちらを参考にhttp://www.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=18867) 唯一の解決策はちょっとめんどうです。ディストリビューションを他のものにするか（私達はDebianを好んでつかっていますが・・・）Mesaライブラリをアップグレードするかダウングレードしてください。
Why do some other GL applications work though? Well, Steve Baker (Mr. PLIB) has explained this on the plib-users list (http://www.geocrawler.com/lists/3/SourceForge/1867/0/6470648/). ではなぜ、他のGLアプリケーションは動作するのでしょうか？それについてSteve Baker さん(ミスター PLIB)がplib-usersメーリングリストで以下のように解答しています。(http://www.geocrawler.com/lists/3/SourceForge/1867/0/6470648/)
5.3 - What happened to the panel, keyboard, etc? 5.3 - パネル、キーボードはどうなりましたか？
The problem is almost certainly that your base package is out of sync with FlightGear. Many configurable parts of FlightGear are defined in XML files contained in the base package. この問題は、ほぼ確実にFlightGearベースパッケージに関係しています。 FlightGearの多くの設定ファイルはXMLで書かれてベースパッケージに付属しています。
5.4 - Why doesn't audio work properly under Irix? 5.4 - なぜIrixではオーディオが適切にうごかないのでしょうか？
FlightGear (as of June 2001) uses the Portable Libraries (PLIB) for playing audio. The audio queue implementation of PLIB is far from optimal (in fact it's just wrong). This seems to work on other platforms quite well, but Irix expects things to be programmed properly. FlightGearはオーディオの動作にPLIBを使っています。PLIBのオーディオキューの実行は適切な物ではありません。（実際はそれは間違っています。）これは他のプラットホームではうまく動作しているように思われますが、Irixでは今後適切にプログラムされるでしょう。
There has been discussion about using OpenAL (http://www.openal.org/) for the next release of both PLIB and FlightGear. Tests show that the OpenAL audio implementation does the job right, meaning that these audio problems should be gone by then. In the mean time it is best to disable audio on Irix completely (by adding --disable-sound either on the command line or to your $HOME/.fgfsrc file). PLIBとFlightGearの次のリリースに向けて、OpenAL(http://www.openal.org/)で議論されています。OpenALオーディオにおけるテストはうまくいっています。それはオーディオの問題が解決される事を意味します。その間はオーディオ機能を止めておくことをお勧めします。（ホームディレクトリの.fgfsrcファイルに --disable-sound either コマンドを追加してください）
5.5 - Why is FlightGear so slow? 5.5 - なぜFlightGearは遅いのでしょう？
FlightGear supports hardware acceleration, but it seems not to be activated. Make sure you have OpenGL libraries installed and configured properly and make sure you have the latest drivers for your video card. FlightGearはハードウェアによるアクセラレーションをサポートしていますが、それがうまく実行されていないように思われます。OpenGLライブラリをインストールして適切に設定し、ビデオカードのドライバを最新にアップグレードしてください。
Linux users: If you are an nVidia user, follow their directions on getting your card working. For most other users, make sure Mesa is installed property and ensure that you have the appropriate kernel device drivers for your card. Most people (and distributions) use modules for their video card device drivers; run `lsmod` as root to see what modules are loaded. You should also make sure that you are loading the appropriate modules in your XF86Config and that your video device section is correct. Now try running an OpenGL application (other than FlightGear) to see how it performs. You can try the gears demo from Mesa or something like Quake3. Linuxユーザー：もしnVidiaユーザーでしたら、カードベンダーの説明を見てください。その他の多くのユーザーはMesaライブラリとビデオガードのカーネルデバイスドライバを確実にインストールしてください。ほとんどの人（ディストリビュータ）が、ビデオドライバのモジュールを使っていると思います。rootでlsmodコマンドを実行し、何のモジュールが読み込まれているか確認してください。XF86Configがビデオデバイスセクションを確実に読み込まれるようにしてください。あなたは、MesaやQuake3のデモを試してみてください。
5.6 - Why is my SGI machine so slow? 5.6 - なぜ私のSGIマシンは遅いのでしょうか？
First of all, one of the most common mistakes on SGI hardware is to forget to specify --fog-fastest. On most SGI machines the EXP2 shading model isn't hardware supported resulting in frame rates below 1 frame per second (fps). まず、SGIマシーンで最も多い間違えは--fog-fastestを指定するのを忘れる事です。一般的なSGIマシンは、EXP2シェーディングモデルの１フレーム/秒以下はサポートされていません。
FlightGear makes extensive use of the OpenGL z-buffer feature,which on most older SGI hardware is only supported in software. This means that the CPU has to do all the z-buffer calculations in addition to the other tasks FlightGear involves (flight dynamics, scenery tracking, pushing commands into the graphics queue, etc). The following features are software rendered on low-end SGI machines (like Indy and Indigo):
stencil and accumulation buffer depth queuing and depth buffering fogging, lighting, clipping and transforms texturing This means that running FlightGear with the following options may not even get the desired result:
./runfgfs --fog-disable --shading-flat --disable-skyblend \
I could even imagine that adding --enable-wireframe doesn't work on these machines (I would be happy to be proven wrong though).
On a machine like O2 the following options give an acceptable result:
./runfgfs --fog-fastest --disable-sound Since I don't have access to other SGI hardware I can't tell which options would be appropriate for your situation.
5.7 - How do I see the frame rate? There are two ways. One way is to hide the panel without the HUD showing. To hide the panel, use Shift+P; To make the HUD disappear, use H. The second way is to use the alternative HUD by Shift+I (Use I to switch back).
5.8 - Stuck upside down after "crash"? In his infinite wisdom the FlightGear Grand Master decided that planes were to valuable to allow them to be destroyed by novice pilots who seemed to crash a lot. The fact that nobody has bothered to model crashes may have something to do with it too. :-)
The result of this as you have noticed is that with a little practice an ingenuity you can trim the ship to fly inverted along the ground.
The quick answer is to hit Ctrl+U (with the default key bindings) to warp the plane up 1000ft.
For the stubborn people out there: The trick to learn is to roll back to normal (non inverted) do this by nursing the elevator to get to about 500 feet or so and use the ailerons to snap roll 180*. This is all good avionics except for the plane not destroying itself. Remember the controls work in reverse when you are inverted and keep that airspeed up!!!
5.9 - Why does FlightGear die on startup saying "time zone reading failed"? This is probably caused by a line-ending problem in the timezone files. Win32 users can resolve the problem by downloading a DOS to UNIX conversion utility available at http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/~eazdluf/d2u.zip. Run as `d2u *.tab` from within the timezone directory to fix your timezone files.
6 - Hacking 6.1 - What language is FlightGear written in? Mostly C++ with some supporting C code that's primary contained within SimGear.
6.2 - Is there any source code documentation? FlightGear does not use a source documentation system (such as doxygen or DOC++). What documentation we have is available at http://flightgear.org/Docs/. There is also some useful documentation in the source tree under the docs-mini/ directory.
SimGear uses doxygen documentation, which is available at http://simgear.org/doxygen/.
Also, the JSBSim FDM uses DOC++. The latest version of that is viewable at http://jsbsim.sf.net/JSBSim/.
The only other documentation we have is the comments in the code. Depending on the programmer, some code may even be self-documenting.
6.3 - How do I design a flight dynamics model for a new aircraft? To define an aircraft for FlightGear's primary FDM (JSBSIM), see http://jsbsim.sf.net/.
If you want a simpler FDM to work with, try your hand at YASim, an alternative FDM. For a guide on creating a YASim aircraft, look in the FlightGear base package for Aircraft-yasim/README.yasim.
Another FDM that is based fundamentally on conventional aerodynamic coefficients and stability derivatives (like JSBSim) is the UIUC Aeromodel. Examples of those aircraft are ones that have the "uiuc" in the file name in the base package Aircraft directory (e.g., Fokker Dr.1, Sopwith Camel, ASW-20, and Airwave hang glider). Additional information on the UIUC Aeromodel can be found at http://www.aae.uiuc.edu/m-selig/apasim/Aircraft-uiuc.html
6.4 - How do I import planes from Microsoft Flight Simulator? You can import the 3D model and textures, but the flight dynamics (the .AIR file) must be completely redone for FlightGear. See http://home.t-online.de/home/Wolfram.Kuss/ for help importing .MDL files and textures.
If you wish to import a model made with gmax, you will need to convert it to .MDL format using Microsoft's MakeMDL SDK which is available at http://zone.msn.com/flightsim/FS02DevDeskSDK08.asp.
6.5 - How do I import BGL scenery from Microsoft Flight Simulator? See http://chiangt.virtualave.net/BGL/bgl_index.html.
6.6 - How do I design or modify a panel? See the README.xmlpanel file located in the FlightGear/docs-mini/ directory of the source distribution. This document is mirrored at http://rockfish.net/fg/README.xmlpanel.
6.7 - How do I place objects, like buildings, into FlightGear? First, ensure that you have v0.7.7 or later, the scenery files where you plan to place the object, the actual model, and the longitude and latitude where you plan to place the object.
Now get the altitude for your point. If you don't want to calculate this yourself, start FlightGear at your location and take note of the altitude. Here's an example command:
fgfs --lat=45.50 --lon=-75.73 2>&1 | tee fgfs.log
The altitude is probably in feet, so divide the starting altitude by 3.28.
Search the output log file for the first occurrence of the string "Loading tile" and take note of the filename. In the above example, the output line looks like:
Loading tile /usr/local/Scenery/w080n40/w076n45/1712601
Copy a 3D model in a format that Plib understands to the same directory as the tile file. Edit the text file in that directory consisting of the tile name with the extension ".stg". The file will already exist if there is an airport on the tile; otherwise, you can create it from scratch. In our example, the filename is:
/usr/local/Scenery/w080n40/w076n45/1712601.stg
At the end of the file, add a new entry for your object, consisting of the word "OBJECT_STATIC" followed by the model name, the longitude in degrees, the latitude in degrees, the altitude in meters, and the heading in degrees. In our example the line looks like:
OBJECT_STATIC Towerax.ac -75.73 45.40 60 0
Save the changes to the .stg file, restart FlightGear, and enjoy.
NOTE: The above information was taken from the following mailing list post: http://www.geocrawler.com/archives/3/11854/2001/6/0/5991409/. See that page if this one doesn't make sense.
An alternative approach using PPE is described at http://mail.flightgear.org/pipermail/flightgear-devel/2001-December/002239.html by Norman Vine.
6.8 - Where can I learn 3D programming and how do I get involved? Contributing to the 2D panel doesn't require any coding at all, just a minimal knowledge of XML syntax (i.e. five minutes' worth) and good skills with drawing and/or paint programs. Every instrument on the current panel, with the partial exception of the magnetic compass, is defined entirely in XML with no custom C++ code. If you want to get started, take a look at John Check's excellent intro (http://rockfish.net/fg/README.xmlpanel).
Likewise, if you want to create a 3D cockpit for FlightGear, or to create buildings, external aircraft models, etc., your help is *desperately* needed. The only rule is to go easy on the triangles -- a model with 50,000 triangles probably won't be usable in FlightGear, and one with 5,000 triangles, only marginally. If you can design a nice 3D cockpit interior for a Cessna 172 (for example) in a 3D design program such as ac3D or ppe, we have coders who will be happy to add the support code in the C++.
If, on the other hand, you really want to get your hands dirty with C++ coding, you'll have to buy a good OpenGL book eventually. However, FlightGear uses a high-level library, plib, that hides most of the details of OpenGL. To get started with 3D C++ coding, you can take a look at the plib documentation and learn only as much OpenGL as you need, when you need it.
6.9 - How do I add an airport? You can add your airport to the $FGROOT/Airports/default.apt.gz file, but to get the airport to show up visually, you will have to rebuild the scenery around the airport. The format of the default.apt file is documented at http://flightgear.org/Docs/AirNav/AptNavFAQ.FlightGear.html.
6.10 - How do I generate my own scenery? FlightGear's scenery generation is handled by a sister project, TerraGear. For more details, see http://terragear.org/.
7 - Flying 7.1 - Where can I learn about instrument flying and navigation? http://www.navfltsm.addr.com/ is a very good site for learning techniques for navigation. Also see http://www.monmouth.com/~jsd/how/.
7.2 - What is the difference between Aileron and Rudder? There is a bit of info on aileron vs. rudder here: http://www.monmouth.com/~jsd/how/.
7.3 - Is there support for multi-player flying? We have an initial stab at this that is incomplete and only seems to work under Linux. We'd love to find someone to pick up the slack here and develop this further. Plib now has some low level networking support for multi-player games. It would also be nice to develop support for the DIS protocol.
7.4 - Is there support for any military scenarios like dog fighting or bomb dropping? No, we do not currently support combat. Most of our developers are primarily focused on civilian aviation. We aren't explicitly excluding these features -- we just haven't had anyone who seriously wanted to develop these areas.
However, FlightGear does contain several military aircraft, albeit without munitions.
8 - FlightGear v0.9.0 8.1 - Why do I get an error saying 'uiuc_getwind.h' isn't found? This error was caused by a packaging blunder. Please upgrade to v0.9.1.
9 - FlightGear v0.7.6 9.1 - Why do I get an error in viewer.cxx about `exit' being undeclared? This error cropped up after the release of v0.7.6. To fix the problem, add "#include <stdlib.h>" to the top of viewer.cxx.
About This Document FlightGear FAQ $Revision: 1.10 $ $Date: 2004/08/08 11:34:35 $
This document was generated from XML using Sablotron.
Cameron Moore cameron@unbeatenpath.net
