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Junji Hirayama 's Home Flight Simulator

hifiandrew writes "I love seeing home mockups of cockpits for Flight Simulator like the recent Slashdot article of the person who used 13 Monitors and 9 PC's. But this one takes the cake for cockpit coolness! While doing a Google search for 747 cockpits, I ran across a web site of a person in Japan who has the coolest home cockpit for Flight Simulator I've ever seen. It has a perfect built-to-scale layout, backlit panels and even a projector for the scenery! All running on relatively modest PC hardware. I'm envious!"

211 comments

  1. .deb packages? by Debian+Troll's+Best · · Score: 0, Troll

    Does anyone know if this flight simulator will be relased for Debian?

    1. Re:.deb packages? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Does anyone know if this flight simulator will be relased for Debian?

      Yes, apt-get install fs2002 fucktard.

    2. Re:.deb packages? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      OK so my post makes sense and is modded down and the troll trying to be funny is still modded up. Oh yeah. Slashdot moderation works really well.

    3. Re:.deb packages? by mausmalone · · Score: 1

      I was under the impression he was using MS Flight Simulator... but since it's been slashdotted into an alternate dimension, I have no way of checking that.

      --
      -=-=-=-=-=
      I'd rather be flamed than ignored.
  2. heh!! by krisp · · Score: 0, Funny

    I'm envious!"

    I'm a geek and it shows!

  3. With only 5 comments posted.... by pclinger · · Score: 0, Redundant

    the site is already /.ed. Wow.

    --
    /. editors made it impossible to link to file:///c:/con/con in my sig. Please just type it in
  4. Only in Japan... by ArmenTanzarian · · Score: 5, Funny

    could this guy do this and still have a wife at the end of it.

  5. Cool...but would we get in trouble? by chia_monkey · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Ok...that was cool as shit. I want one (well I want a big house, enough money to build it, some time...).

    But...would we in the US get in trouble for building such thing? "It could be used to train terrorists". Life used to be fun...

    --

    "He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lampposts...for support rather than illumination." - Andrew Lang
    1. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by Cpt_Corelli · · Score: 0, Redundant

      I was going to post something about how long it would take before some american shouts "terrorist training facility" but someone beat me to it.

      Might just as well outlaw driving simulators too. And hey, have you seen the new The Sims game?

    2. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by arkane1234 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Might just as well outlaw driving simulators too.

      Everyone knows that Grand Theft Auto is really a terrorist training software. :)

      --
      -- This space for lease, low setup fee, inquire within!
    3. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by mnemonic_ · · Score: 2, Interesting

      No, you won't get in trouble. There are plenty of simulation cockpit projects going on by sim players in the U.S. One of them is actually being built using an old F-15 cockpit. Building 'pits is fairly well known in the sim community, and I don't think I've ever heard of people being worried about getting into any kind of trouble.

      Outlawing the construction of cockpits for flight sims would be ridiculous, and is something I highly doubt will ever happen.

    4. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by Becquerel · · Score: 2, Funny

      Outlawing the construction of cockpits for flight sims would be ridiculous, and is something I highly doubt will ever happen.

      You might have said the same about renaming french fries a year ago....only in America.

      --
      My spelling isn't bad, I'm evolving the language
    5. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by Metal_Demon · · Score: 1
      But...would we in the US get in trouble for building such thing? "It could be used to train terrorists". Life used to be fun...

      We can still have knives and guns, those could train terrorists too. Hell I could train somebody to kill people with an egg beater. The government can't just go around making things illegal and what not just because it COULD be used for naughty things.

      --
      Trust Your Technolust
    6. Re:Cool...but would we get in trouble? by fireman+sam · · Score: 1

      DMCA v's DeCSS / Mod chips

      --
      it is only after a long journey that you know the strength of the horse.
  6. wow by CowBovNeal · · Score: 5, Funny


    You know you've been slashdotted when your cockpit simulator crashes without even taking off.

    --
    Bush is on fire and its not good for my lungs.
    1. re: wow by ed.han · · Score: 1

      i guess this would be the appropriate time to remmark:

      "all your bandwidth are belong to us!"--slashdot

      ed

  7. With us or... by CGP314 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Rummy to Bush: Looks like a terrorist training cell to me.

    Bush: Let's get 'im.

    1. Re:With us or... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

      Mod parent up. He is right on target -- we all know bush is a war monger and that rumsfield is an idiot.

  8. Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by Mantrid · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is truly amazing! I can't imagine how many hours something like this must've took. They even used it for a TV show according to his site. I wonder what his real job is? Maybe it should be set designer...

    (too bad about that website of his though, it's a shame really...)

  9. Wow... by Pig+Hogger · · Score: 1, Funny

    Now imagine a beo... Nah. Wouln't be good, given the current slump in the airline industry...

  10. What are your favorite flight sim games? by ACK!! · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Come on, I have been out of the scene for awhile.

    So, give it up.

    What is the best game for the money out there today?

    --
    ACK /ak/ interj. 2. [from the comic strip "Bloom County"] An exclamation of surprised disgust, esp. i
    1. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Aahz · · Score: 1

      IL2 Forgotten Battles, Of course I cant stand boring ass civilian flight sims. "Let me set my autopilot and go to sleep." "When I wake up I can land in Cleavland." Boooooring

    2. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sex With The Flight Attendant II

      Some female flight attendants are just so sexy!

    3. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Cpt_Kirks · · Score: 3, Funny

      Mmmm, a RealDoll in a 60's style stewardess uniform...

    4. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by FluxCapacitator · · Score: 1

      Okay, now that is just plain wrong. How much are they? ^^

    5. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Oliver+Wendell+Jones · · Score: 3, Informative

      X-Plane. Period. Available here. It does it all, it's hackable, there are tons of free data files on the 'net you can download - new planes, scenery, etc.

      For a few dollars more you can get the Mars scenery discs and fly a plane on Mars.

      And the price is very reasonable compared to some other offerings.

      Dang, just checked the site and saw that there is a version 7 out, guess I need to upgrade... again...

      --
      A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
    6. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by arkane1234 · · Score: 1

      Then don't set autopilot, geez...

      That's about like buying a lamborghini (with cruise control.......?), getting up to highway speed and setting cruise control, then complaining because it's a boring drive.

      Live a little, take it off autopilot ;)

      Then get up to 30k+ altitude, drop the nose to 50+ degrees negative, and watch the land scream up to you in realistic graphics. Everyone knows that's what you do on a flight sim.
      =)

      --
      -- This space for lease, low setup fee, inquire within!
    7. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Zerbey · · Score: 1

      Oh alright, I'll bite. Falcon 3.0 was excellent, the best flightsim I've ever played (very dated now of course). Falcon 4.0 was a disappointing buggy pile of doo doo.

      The latest MS flight simulators are very impressive as well, and that's coming from a Linux user :-)

    8. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by The_K4 · · Score: 1

      Ok, now I understand that all it's really changing the is scenery, but "fly a plane on Mars"? The atmosphere is WAY too thin for that, most planes would never get off the ground! :( That's why I stopped playing flight sims, the all had no respect for physics. The lift/thrust/drag ratios are the same at sea level and 50K feet which just isn't true. I want a game with a REAL physics engine (and a space flight sim that really knew physics would be even better).

    9. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by iMMersE · · Score: 1

      It has a realistic physics engine - You can't just fly any plane on Mars, as Austin Meyer, author of X-Plane, writes himself ... Get more of the hard sell of the flight engine here.

      --
      codegolf.com - smaller *is* better.
    10. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by mnemonic_ · · Score: 1

      Falcon 4.0 isn't buggy anymore with the 1.08 patch and the latest version of the SuperPak project. It also has better graphics (trees, filtered 32-bit object textures, improved models and textures), runs faster (SSE, memory leak fixes, general optimization), and a lot more features (all flight models tweaked, much more detailed avionics, etc.).

    11. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by mnemonic_ · · Score: 1

      Not everyone likes civilian sims. Most people want some combat, and X-Plane's combat features are extremely rudimentary to say the least.

      And what "other offerings" is X-Plane priced more reasonably than?

    12. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by hal9000(jr) · · Score: 1

      do you have a current URL for the latest pathces and the development team? I used to follow it, but rl got in the way, now I lost them.

    13. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Zerbey · · Score: 1

      Is it happy in XP? And what's the URL? I'm willing to give it another chance.

    14. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by mnemonic_ · · Score: 2, Informative

      "Best" means different things for everyone. The "best" simulation might be the easiest one to learn, or the most realistic one, or the one with the best graphics, or the one which has the most accurate representation of an F-16, or a million other things.

      Il-2 Sturmovik FB is probably one of the "best" combat simulations in terms of accurate flight modeling, AI, graphics and selection of aircraft. It's not so hard to learn due to it being a WW2 sim, no complex avionics or procedures. You will have to practice though before getting your first kill.

      For a modern combat sim the best is probably Falcon 4.0 with SuperPak 4 (a user-developed patch using the game's full source code, authorized by the game's publishers). It takes months to become proficient at it though (i.e. be able to operate everything in every mode in your sleep).

      A good helo sim is Enemy Engaged: Comanche vs. Hokum. It's widely accepted that it is by no means "hardcore", with sacrifices to realism made at every turn for the sake of gameplay, but it's very fun and has moderately detailed systems simulation. The 4 year old Longbow 2 is probably the most realistic helo simulation every made, its graphics aren't too bad for a 5 year old game either. You can find it on ebay.

      For a civilian simulation, you might want to look into MS Flight Simulator 2004 or X-Plane.

    15. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Glock27 · · Score: 1
      I'm willing to give it another chance.

      I had trouble getting it to work ~1 year ago, but that was before these latest patches were available. I'm pretty sure that they are XP-friendly.

      I need to find the time to give it a shot again myself. :-)

      --
      Galileo: "The Earth revolves around the Sun!"
      Score: -1 100% Flamebait
    16. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      X-Plane is proprietary. And there isn't a version for Linux.

      So FUCK X-Plane.

    17. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Oliver+Wendell+Jones · · Score: 1

      Last I saw in a store, the MS Flight Sim 2003 Professional Edition was going for something outrageous like $79.95 which is a lot of money in my opinion. It's probably available cheaper, but $80 for a game published my Microsoft?

      --
      A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
    18. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Xerithane · · Score: 1

      Ok, now I understand that all it's really changing the is scenery, but "fly a plane on Mars"? The atmosphere is WAY too thin for that, most planes would never get off the ground! :( That's why I stopped playing flight sims, the all had no respect for physics. The lift/thrust/drag ratios are the same at sea level and 50K feet which just isn't true. I want a game with a REAL physics engine (and a space flight sim that really knew physics would be even better

      You can fly a plane on mars. See here.

      There are quite a few things to worry about while flying on Mars, the most notable is the speed of sound differences. You have to have a plane that can fly supersonic while travelling at ~180 knotts. That's fairly difficult to manage, but it is very possible.

      --
      Dacels Jewelers can't be trusted.
    19. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by NickFitz · · Score: 1

      If you look here, you'll find that XPlane has FAA approval for use in pilot training - the only consumer-level flight sim so far to achieve this.

      And just to add to the fun, it can get real-time weather info off the net and add that in to your scenery :-)

      --
      Using HTML in email is like putting sound effects on your phone calls. Just say <strong>no</strong>.
    20. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      IL2 Forgotten Battles, Of course I cant stand boring ass civilian flight sims. "Let me set my autopilot and go to sleep." "When I wake up I can land in Cleavland." Boooooring

      Obviously, you don't fly real planes. Try spinning (flying an uncoordinated stall) in a real plane like a Cessna 172 -- with an instructor. Then, fly the spin in the simulator. I bet it will be exciting! Most pilots will kick around looking for nonexistant rudder pedals when the simulated plane spins. :-)

    21. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Moose4 · · Score: 2, Insightful
      MS Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight is going for about US$55 in stores now. FS2004 has pretty damn nice eye candy and an interesting selection of historic aircraft (Spirit of St. Louis, Douglas DC-3, Lockheed Vega 5, DH.88 Comet, Vickers Vimy) along with the usual FS collection of Cessnas, Learjet 45, Boeing heavy iron, etc. The weather and default terrain are impressive.

      X-Plane's flight model pwns FS2004's in terms of realism, but you can head down to the store and pick up FS2004 now for less as opposed to X-Plane, which you have to get via snailmail. (Both programs require the CD in the drive for copy protection.) The global scenery for X-Plane is $20 extra, and Mars is $10 over that, so a full X-Plane install is almost $90. (You can download the global scenery if you want to, but their servers are throttled to 2-3 kb/s, if they're even up.)

      X-Plane's interface, not to put too fine a point on it, blows. It is very difficult to use compared to FS2004, it's very non-Windoze-standard. FS2004 owns it on graphics quality as well. Both sims can use real weather downloaded off the Internet (built-in w/FS2004, requires a downloadable utility for X-Plane). The big plus for X-Plane is that it comes with world scenery and aircraft builder tools, which FS2004 doesn't.

      FS2004 is (IMO) the better buy for those who just want to pretend they're a pilot. X-Plane is better for the hardcore pilot who wants maximum flight model realism, the "what if" hobbyist that wants to design and try out their own aircraft, and for folks who aren't scared off of a clunky interface. And, a big plus, X-Plane works on OS X.

      You can check out x-plane at www.xplane.com. You can download the 122 MB program there, it's the full program but unless you have an X-Plane CD in your drive, (a) it's limited to the Southern California area, and (b) it disables your joystick after 6 minutes.

      --
      "Settle down, Beavis. We've got an experiment to do."
    22. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Aahz · · Score: 1

      No I am not a real pilot but I am a flight sim geek. The problem I have with civilian flight sims is there is nothing to do but fly around and do things like intentional spins. I spend hours a week flying WW2 combat flight sims. The fact of having a set mission and something to do besides fly makes it much more interesting to me. And a real pilot wouldnt have to kick around looking for the rudder pedals they are right under my desk. Give it a shot you might find it enjoyable. http://www.ubi.com/US/Games/il2forgottenbattles/

    23. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Oliver+Wendell+Jones · · Score: 1

      And as always, there are cracks available, at least for X-Plane, that will let you play without having the CD in the drive. Not that I would ever suggest or use such a crack, but I *hate* having to find a key disc just to play a game, especially since there are times I'll go for 3 or 4 months between playings, which means I have to dig through layers and layers of crap on my desk.

      I purchased X-Plane v5.x at a used-book store that carries new and used software as well. They had multiple, unopened copies of X-Plane for $10.00 each, but they were the older v5.x. I sent an e-mail off to the makers of X-Plane and got a very reasonably priced upgrade plus the global scenery discs, which when added to the $10 I had already spent was about equal to the $55 price you quote for MS.

      Yeah, MS FS has a more Windoze type interface (well, duh...) but I thought the whole point of Slashdot was to hate Microsoft and everything Windoze-like and root for the better, but maybe not as pretty underdog(s)...

      --
      A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
    24. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by CracktownHts · · Score: 1
      X-Plane. Period. Available here. It does it all, it's hackable, there are tons of free data files on the 'net you can download - new planes, scenery, etc

      It's also buggy as hell: plane spontaneously changes its attitude whenever you transition to a new scenery area (every hundred miles or so), and it's not uncommon for the program to crash altogether.

      Don't get me wrong - I love X-plane - the physics model is unsurpassed and there's no substitute when it comes to add-ons and sheer nerd appeal, but somehow for $70 USD I expected a more finished product. And he wants $30 for an extra scenery disc? Maybe if it was a little more polished, but not if the existing scenery has buildings floating in the Hudson River.

      I also second the IL2 Sturmovik recommendation. It's beautiful, immersive, painstakingly detailed, and could easily stand on its own as a pure flight simulator were it not for all the guns and bombs. It's like two games rolled into one.

    25. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by Will_Malverson · · Score: 1
      I want a game with a REAL physics engine (and a space flight sim that really knew physics would be even better).

      You'll love Orbiter. It's even free!
    26. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by sandman935 · · Score: 1

      I also spend a few hours a week flying WWII combat sims, specifically Aces High. In addition, I spend a little time flying FS2K2 simply because it's different. Rather than focus on fighting, with FS I enjoy other challenges, navigation, route-finding, etc.

      The newer versions of FS all have a very nice GPS simulator, but I really try not to use it. Navigation via VOR and/or NDB is much more challenging.

      --

      Defecation occurs.
    27. Re:What are your favorite flight sim games? by The_K4 · · Score: 1

      Ok, that looks really cool. Thank you. I guess i'm spending this weekend getting a windows box up and running for that. :)

  11. google cache by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    thumbnail images and the (pretty lame) webpage

    1. Re:google cache by seizer · · Score: 2, Informative

      Alternatively, the Wayback Machine has it with some images, but much older:

      http://web.archive.org/web/20020219202626/www.waka yamanet.or.jp/jun/fs/glareshield-main-e.html

  12. Google Cache! by KiranWolf · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here's a Google Cache for it.

    --
    "Think about how stupid the average person is, then realize that half of 'em are stupider than that!" - George Carlin.
    1. Re:Google Cache! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      That's not informative or even slightly helpful.

      Pictures. We want pictures, not one paragraph of text.

      Here's the entire history of the website. For whatever good that does anyone.

  13. Microsoft flight sim by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    Currently I'm contracting for NASA doing flight sims and we use the microsoft flight sim as a reference for the layout of our 777 cockpit. I mean its as real as your going to get without being in a real cockpit.

  14. Modest Hardware? by Yebyen · · Score: 5, Funny

    Looks like the flight simulator isn't the only thing running on fairly modest hardware... slashdotted already :)

    --
    Restating the obvious since nineteen aught five.
  15. Suspicious by Agamous+Child · · Score: 3, Funny

    Anyone know why Andrew was looking up 747 cockpits? Seems like a surefire way to set-off the begin_full_tracking() function at TIA.

    --
    I had a sig, but /. ate it. My Web Site
    1. Re:Suspicious by Joseph+Wharton · · Score: 1

      Maybe he was working on some cockpit graphics for X-Plane.

      --
      Quality or Quantity, don't tell me they're the same.
    2. Re:Suspicious by glassesmonkey · · Score: 1

      I like the jump on the bandwagon name change from "Total" to "Terrorist"
      for DARPA's Terrorism Information Awareness program
      (formerly "Total Information Awareness")


      Reading these pages will put you on the Dept. of Homeland Security's watch-list almost
      as quickly as Howard Dean's Stop Ashcroft Petition

    3. Re:Suspicious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      So what func calls begin_full_tracking()? sniff_every_borderrouter() or sniff_searchengine_queries()?

      TIA only makes sense if it's always in "full tracking" mode.

    4. Re:Suspicious by GunFodder · · Score: 1

      Maybe he was trying to divert attention away from his homemade fusion bomb.

    5. Re:Suspicious by hifiandrew · · Score: 1
      Wanna know the honest to god truth why I was looking up 747 cockpits? I was watching Airport 75 (one of the classic cheezy 70s movie was with George Kennedy).. the one where a little airplane collides with a 747 and kills or knocks out the crew and they have to hoist a new pilot in on a helicopter.. anyway I was just bored and dorky enough to wanna see if the cockpit layout on the movie was the same as a real 747.. including the autopilot controls. Amazinly enough, the cockpit controls on the movie did match a real 747 .. of course I still like Airport 77 the best, one of my personal favorites of the classic the cheeze plane thrillers.


      However, I'll let you know if I see any black helicopters coming.. I'm sure TIA and Eschelon have had me marked for awhile now that I sent in the posting. And I guess the men in black will never buy my excuse for looking up cockpits ;)

  16. I have my 747 simulator too by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 5, Funny

    I duct-taped my window to leave a very small oval hole about 1m off the ground, put 3 uncomfortable, too narrow chair right next to it, put a large cupboard 30cm in front of them, cranked up the A/C to 15 degrees, and put the stereo's volume at maximum on an empty radio frequency.

    To simulate a flight, I sit on the chair immediately by the window for eight hours, ask an overweight friend to sit right next to me, and ask my wife to come around every two hours with a trolley to serve us shitty coffee.

    It's a very accurate simulation of a 747, and it's much cheaper than all those fancy computer displays and joysticks.

    --
    "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    1. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 1

      oh, and I forgot the deluxe version where I push the cupboard 50cm further away and write EXIT in big letters on the duct-tape ...

      --
      "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    2. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by operagost · · Score: 5, Funny

      Mine is like yours, except I occasionally have my friend put a towel on his head and try to hijack my "plane", armed with a nail file.. Then I kick his ass.

      --

      Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
    3. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mod Parent Up! Too damn funny!

    4. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You dumb bastard!!! Trying to ride the coat tails of this guys joke. Just had to throw some anti-Arab type shit in there. Come up with your own jokes, retard. I was enjoying the laugh until I read your post.

    5. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by spu · · Score: 2, Funny

      You forgot about the screaming kid behind you that should be kicking the back of your seat.

      --
      The pen is mightier than the sword... ...just not quite as intimidating.
    6. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And to complete the effect, I place a small television set at the other side of the room and show my least favorite video on it.

    7. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah! Everyone knows Arabs don't strap dynamite to their chests to blow up jews, or hijack planes to fly them into buildings in the name of Allah.... oh wait... thats right, they do...

      You're the dumb bastard, please take this test... perhaps it'll refresh your memory on hhistorical events.

    8. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by smithmc · · Score: 1

      cranked up the A/C to 15 degrees

      Yeah, I wish. Seems like the air on flights these days keeps getting more and more stale... :-/

      --
      Downmodding is the refuge of the weak. Don't downmod, make a better argument!
    9. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Mine is like yours, except I occasionally have my friend put a towel on his head and try to hijack my "plane", armed with a nail file.. Then I kick his ass.

      And mine is also like his, except I'm spending most of the 8 hours with his wife.

    10. Re:I have my 747 simulator too by Nosher · · Score: 1

      That's because since smoking was banned on (all?) flights, the airlines have turned off the aircon scrubbers that they used to have to use to clean smoke particles from the air - hence it really is "staler" than it used to be :-)

      --
      It's too late for me to die young
  17. The best bit about flying it by lewko · · Score: 5, Funny
    You can join the Mile High Club in the adjacent double bedroom with ensuite and walk-in wardrobe...

    --
    Do you or your partner snore? - Visit www.snoring.com.au
    1. Re:The best bit about flying it by arkane1234 · · Score: 1

      Yep..that's exactly right ;)
      you can change clothes in the middle of the flight!

      --
      -- This space for lease, low setup fee, inquire within!
    2. Re:The best bit about flying it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mile-high club? Aren't you forgetting that this is Slashdot? Mile-high club of one......

  18. temp mirror by abhisarda · · Score: 4, Informative

    Projectj. Its only the main page.

  19. Flightgear by nuggz · · Score: 1

    For the money, flightgear.
    Hard to argue with free.

    I just need a decent video card to handle it properly.

  20. co-pilot? by sputnikid · · Score: 0

    couldn't access the recently /.'ed site...

    but i wonder if he has a co-pilot... you know just in case he blacks out, has a heart attack or something.

  21. Aggggghhhh! by eyepeepackets · · Score: 2, Funny


    The sound of the previously happy flight simulator person as his little server takes a ***CRUSHING*** blow from half a gazillion /.ers!

    Goodbye little server. *sniff* R.I.P.

    --
    Everything in the Universe sucks: It's the law!
    1. Re:Aggggghhhh! by jonnyfivealive · · Score: 1

      your comment was no doubt funnier than his, but this other guy posted like 6th and was the first to say something about it being /.ed, but he got redundant while you got funny. how does that work?

    2. Re:Aggggghhhh! by eyepeepackets · · Score: 1


      "...but he got redundant while you got funny. how does that work?"

      I truely don't know. Chalk it up to the /. Gods smiling favorably upon me at that particular moment.

      --
      Everything in the Universe sucks: It's the law!
  22. The real deal? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In February of this year I was finishing an IT internship with a local aerospace company. As a going away present, they gave me an hour in one of their CAE full motion simulators.

  23. fantasy flight simulators by nounderscores · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Wow, well done.

    Now what would happen if somebody took that concept and applied it to parsec or the wing commander style flight sims?

    I know mech warrior had a nifty little cockpit sim for mall arcade action, but nothing ever had an emersive screen that made your eyes focus on the middle distance.

    Throw in 3d glasses, a big subwoofer and hydraulics from an old massage bed while you're at it.

    1. Re:fantasy flight simulators by Quarters · · Score: 1

      Actually, the BattleTech Center pods (the last generation---the roundish ones) passed their display output through the same optics used in F16 HUDs. The purpose was to impose a psuedo 3D effect on the output so that you would focus on things that were 'deeper' into the screen. It worked amazingly well, actually.

    2. Re:fantasy flight simulators by danila · · Score: 1

      I have an even better idea. Take a robot from Aliens in which Ripley fought the queen, make it somewhat operational (no need to actually walk), so that you can get in it and control it. Place a concave screen in front of you, stereo glasses, good sound system and hydraulics. There is no need to put the player inside a pod, he should be as close to the simulated action as possible.

      It's still quite difficult to simulate actual walking experience, although some have come quite close, so may be my idea is a good compromise for the time being.

      --
      Future Wiki -- If you don't think about the future, you cannot have one.
  24. MAYDAY! by GodHead · · Score: 5, Funny

    Slash-deaded.

    I wonder if a face mask just dropped from the celing..

    --
    Just wait till some crappy band steals your nic.
  25. Gogle is /.ed! by axxackall · · Score: 1

    I cannot belive, but Google cannot answer! Wow! Finally we've managed to /. Google! Who's next?

    --

    Less is more !
    1. Re:Gogle is /.ed! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, I don't think google cached the images, it gets it from the actual server.

  26. good and free GPL software: flightgear and gl-117 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    http://freshmeat.net/projects/gl-117/?topic_id=80% 2C85
    http://flightgear.org/

  27. Better yet..... by UnkyHerb · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Think of the possibilites using xinerama with 4 LCD Projectors, a round white room, and a special version of Vice City!!!!

    --
    Your Momma's so fat she makes emacs look like nano!
    1. Re:Better yet..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Now that would be cool. I dont know about most "casual" gamers, but I always found Flight Sims (Flight Simulator, any of the Jane's series) Just too complicated. I dont want to sift through a 200+ page manual just to know how to lift the landing gear. But it sure looks cool.
      jeff

    2. Re:Better yet..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's called CAVE.

      http://www.visbox.com/cq3a/

    3. Re:Better yet..... by aceAzza · · Score: 1

      This is what I'm talking about! Vice City simulator would be the best game ever. Let's get working on this one. Smash a guys head and watch blood spurt all over the screen. :)

  28. go at it yourself by cr@ckwhore · · Score: 4, Informative

    If you're a flight sim nut and want to build your own home cockpit, start at www.projectmagenta.com

    --
    Skiers and Riders -- http://www.snowjournal.com
  29. pathalogically geeky by tiled_rainbows · · Score: 4, Funny

    of all the many flavours of geekdom, I think flight sim geeks seem to be the most pathalogically geeky. There was this guy at my university who had a website where you could book flights on his virtual airline. He'd designed the livery of this airline and had made skins for his fleet of planes. If you booked a ticket (don't know if anyone did) he would fly the route and, if you wanted, give you a VHS tape of the view from the seat, to prove that he'd done it. He was one of the scariest people I'd ever met.

    1. Re:pathalogically geeky by CdnYoda · · Score: 1
      Nothing, you have seen! :-)

      My X-wing fighter will run circles around your planes.

      Of course, sometimes I don't even need a plane!

      The power of the imagination is more powerful than any computer simulation.

      Spoken, I have!

      --
      -- "May the Source be with you!"
    2. Re:pathalogically geeky by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That was me you insensitive clod! :-P

    3. Re:pathalogically geeky by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I knew a guy in college who would memorize flight plans. Why? No idea.

    4. Re:pathalogically geeky by ediron2 · · Score: 2, Funny
      There was this guy at my university who had a website where you could book flights on his virtual airline. He'd designed the livery of this airline and had made skins for his fleet of planes. If you booked a ticket (don't know if anyone did) he would fly the route and, if you wanted, give you a VHS tape of the view from the seat, to prove that he'd done it. He was one of the scariest people I'd ever met.
      Post this pAirline's URL... let's see how he handles being slashdotted. Nothin' like 20,000 requests for flights and videotapes to force him back to reality. Or postal.
    5. Re:pathalogically geeky by sanchny · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Just like every hobby, some people will take it more seriously than others. I could give a million examples of geeks in their respective hobbies- video games, Fantasy cosplaying, computers, programming, Britney Spears, TV shows (Simpsons geeks come to mind), movies, cars, Slashdot, science- anything. You name it- if people derive entertainment value from it, there will be some who are geekiers than others.

      And it's a matter of difference of opinion whether someone's obsession is pathological. You think Joe Six-Pack around the office doesn't think his co-worker's obsession with computers is amusing?

      I think what the guy did is pretty cool. There are too many options on flight plans in flight sims, and having someone else set it for you brings a challenge. Plus, he probably thought that people would derive some enjoyment/relaxation out of being on a fantasy flight.

  30. flight simulators & terrorists by fireduck · · Score: 0, Troll

    don't know about terrorists, but we can definitely lump flight simulators into the same category as all those FPS games that lead to violent behavior...

  31. Nooo! by FrostedWheat · · Score: 4, Funny

    I am building Boeing 747-400 type "My Cockpit " for flight simulators

    "My Cockpit"? I bet he has a briefcase with the label "My Documents" on it.

    1. Re:Nooo! by MojoMonkey · · Score: 3, Funny

      Just be glad he didn't name it "Super Happy Fun Cockpit"

      --

      ----- "Blame the guy who doesn't speak English." -- Homer J. Simpson
    2. Re:Nooo! by richie2000 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Do not taunt the Super Happy Fun Cockpit!

      --
      Money for nothing, pix for free
    3. Re:Nooo! by yRabbit · · Score: 1

      If he doesn't mind defaults, it's probably actually called "New Briefcase"

    4. Re:Nooo! by tlotoxl · · Score: 1

      English loan words in Japan can be funny like that, taking on a meaning all their own. 'My' in Japan now means "one's" or "personal", and is used even when refering to other people, as in:

      "Jun, you have a 'my car', right?"
      =
      "Jun, you have your own car, right?"

  32. Macintosh Flight Sim 1.0 by WC+as+Kato · · Score: 2, Interesting

    What's with geeks now-a-days? I used to fly with MS Flight Sim on my Mac Plus which had 1mb of RAM, 1 floppy drive and no hard drive. Looking back at that, it seems amazing that a flight sim was even possible. It had 1-bit color but it was high res (in comparison to CGA or EGA graphics)!

    --
    --- I'm Green Hornet's sidekick not Inspector Clouseau's!
    1. Re:Macintosh Flight Sim 1.0 by operagost · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      Your Mac Plus had 512x384 resolution. EGA is 640x350 in 16 colors. Sorry, you lose.

      --

      Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
    2. Re:Macintosh Flight Sim 1.0 by ralmin · · Score: 1
      Your Mac Plus had 512x384 resolution. EGA is 640x350 in 16 colors. Sorry, you lose.

      My Mac Plus has 512x342 resolution, not 512x384.

    3. Re:Macintosh Flight Sim 1.0 by cranos · · Score: 1

      Luxury!!!
      /yorkie/ When I was a lad I had to get up mornin, write code out by hand and then read it out loud to family while Da beat me round head with clue stick. And I was happy for it

  33. off topic by Flabby+Boohoo · · Score: 0

    Does anyone know why Microsoft's website is down?

  34. Some Photos by Noctilux · · Score: 5, Informative

    I don't normally have anything to contribute to Slashdot, but I have some detailed photos on my website of a 747-400, including the cockpit. Enjoy.

    1. Re:Some Photos by lks_aus · · Score: 1

      That doesn't really look like a 747-400... Yes I've seen the picture with the 747-400 freighter on it, but i didn't think the passanger and freight would vary so much. The upper deck is much smaller, closer to the size of an earlier versions of the 747 (the -100 or -200), but i can understand that as the larger upper deck isn't as useful in a freighter then in a passanger. You can see the larger upper deck in the -400 in some of the other photo's (the one with the qantas plane for example.)

      --
      Warning: Excessive usage of stupidity may be harmful to your health
  35. Uh oh by davew2040 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Bad news for this guy. His ISP's going to demand that he commit hari kari now :~(

    1. Re:Uh oh by randyest · · Score: 1

      FYI, it's "hara kiri". Harry Carey (which you oddly spelled "hari kari") was a baseball announcer.

      --
      everything in moderation
    2. Re:Uh oh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    3. Re:Uh oh by randyest · · Score: 1

      Ar-e? Nihongo wa hanasemasu ka? Nihonjin desu ka?

      If so, you'd know that both "hara-kiri" and "seppuku" are the same, with no distinction whatsoever in Japanese, not even in politeness levels, as is oft misreported.

      In fact, they are Japanese palindromes. I'll spare you the mess of ASCII-art Kanji, but there is one character that can be read as "hara" or "se" depending on context, and another that is read as both "kiri" and "puku". Put them together one way, they are pronounced "hara kiri"; swap them and they are pronounced "seppuku", but the mean exactly the same in both cases (at least in Tokyo and Awaji, maybe in other areas there is a difference? But I don't think so.)

      Besides, the original poster said "hari kari", and that's hard to confuse for "seppuku". I think he was going for "hara kiri" :)

      --
      everything in moderation
  36. Re:Queue Jokes by Dan-DAFC · · Score: 1

    Why do we have to queue them? Can't we have them all at once?

    --
    Suck figs.
  37. Mech Simulator? by Channard · · Score: 1, Funny

    If only this guy got working a mech cockpit, to go with the X-Box's Steel Batallion game. Now that'd I'd definitely go for. Half of the work's already been done with the ludicrously complicated controller that comes with the game.

  38. Yeah, right. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    "... All running on relatively modest PC hardware. I'm envious!"

    in other words,

    "I'll teach you to show off. Take THAT, webserver!"

  39. "Good Luck" by The+Wing+Lover · · Score: 4, Informative

    The drama that used his simulator in the set, "Good Luck!", is being posted, one episode every couple of weeks, in alt.binaries.multimedia.japan. They're subtitled in English.

    --

    - In Capitalist America, law violates YOU!

  40. Re:Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by FluxCapacitator · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Yeah, I watched the Japanese TV show it was in. The cockpit featured in nearly every episode. I actually thought it was either an extremely expensive prop, one of those flight training simulators, or part of the real thing. Little did I know it was made by some dude in his backyard ^^;

    Actually, this is Japan so it was probably takes up his whole living room...

  41. Would this... by Zebra_X · · Score: 3, Funny

    slashdoting of an international server be considered an "international incident". The server in question is to some extent being 'violated'.

  42. Re:Queue Jokes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You're thinking smarter; not harder!

  43. Pictures of other homemade cockpits by emilng · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Links to other projects

    Tons of pictures of other pretty cool looking homemade cockpits.

  44. Relatively modest by Virtex · · Score: 4, Funny

    All running on relatively modest PC hardware. I'm envious!

    No need to be envious. For a small sum of money, you too can be running on relatively modest PC hardware!

    --
    For every post, there is an equal and opposite re-post.
    1. Re:Relatively modest by hifiandrew · · Score: 1

      touche ... well done, I'll have to make better use of pronouns in the future :P

  45. Re:Queue Jokes by fenix+down · · Score: 1

    No you fool! You'll kill us all!

  46. Il-2 Sturmovik by c3rb · · Score: 1

    No prop-era flight sim comes close. Sadly, it's Windows only, with no port in sight. Due to some odd Java dependency, even a Wine port is unlikely. Hooray *cough* for dual-booting.

  47. Google caches the text only! by heironymouscoward · · Score: 1

    And it is (surprise) the images that cause the server to die.

    --
    Ceci n'est pas une signature
  48. How about a real cockpit by Ro'que · · Score: 2, Interesting

    These guys have a real 747 cockpit they're using as a flight simulator.

  49. META/MOD: +1 funny, -1 overrated by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Please, please don't mod down funny moderations for users posting at +1.

    Funny moderations don't add to your karma, negative moderations do kill your karma. Modding down "funny" comments from relatively new users is a sure way to get them posting at 0.

    Please, only mod down these comments if they're flamebait or trolls. If they are, you should mod them as such, but don't mod them overrated if you think they're not funny. That's lame and unfair punishment for the poster.

  50. Is real flying too scary? by woom · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Why don't all these guys who spend b i g bucks on a flightsim mock-up just get a pilots licence? It's way more fun, 100% real and much cheaper. Heck, some of these guys could actually buy a real plane for less than they spend on the computers alone.

    1. Re: Is real flying too scary? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But can the real plane fly from any airport in the world at a moment's notice? Or better yet, from a historical location such as Pearl Harbor's Ford Island as it was in the '40s? I think not.

    2. Re: Is real flying too scary? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's like when I play NASCAR on PS2 and drive backwards on the track. It's fun to crash! With this simulator, you can crash the pla...

      ** Message interrupted by the FBI : nothing to see here **

    3. Re: Is real flying too scary? by JimPooley · · Score: 1

      woom, you took the words right out of my mouth. Spending loads of money on a flight sim is just too sad for words (I'll excuse them if they have some major illness, disability or a pathological fear of flying).

      More people should try flying. It's cool, it's challenging, and you can actually go places without getting stuck in traffic!

      --

      "Information wants to be paid"
    4. Re: Is real flying too scary? by krisstuart · · Score: 1

      A lot of guys who already fly real planes are the ones who build these. The guy who builds the ones at Motionsim.com has a twin engine that costs about $100 an hour to fly (fuel, etc) so these are just off load some flying urge. But if they have planes already why not spend the money on crazy flight sims!

    5. Re: Is real flying too scary? by blincoln · · Score: 1

      Not everyone is interested in flying the type of plane a regular person can afford.

      --
      "...always new atoms but always doing the same dance, remembering what the dance was yesterday." -Richard Feynman
    6. Re: Is real flying too scary? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Real flying is too expensive. At $200 australian pesos an hour, the projected cost for a private pilots licence here is $14k. For daytime, fairweather flying.

      I did about 35 hours and enjoyed every minute of it, but I have other financial priorities.

      Even if it costs $25k to build a very decent sim (and not many people go to that extent), it's still only initial outlay. With a pilot's licence, it still costs $150 to hire a Cessna 172 for an hour.

      Oh, and I think a lot of enthusiasts don't build them just to recreate the flying experience, they build them for similar reasons people do model railroads: the fun of building it. The satisfaction of showing your friends (well, your ubergeek friends).

    7. Re: Is real flying too scary? by Zaffle · · Score: 1
      Why don't all these guys who spend b i g bucks on a flightsim mock-up just get a pilots licence? It's way more fun, 100% real and much cheaper. Heck, some of these guys could actually buy a real plane for less than they spend on the computers alone.

      Sheesh!

      Cheaper than real flying?

      Its betweeen $60-$100/hr to rent a cessna to fly. And thats just a piddly single engine job.

      Flight Sims have their definate place. There a a HUGE number of reasons why you would spend this much on a flight sim. If I were to bet, I would say that some of these "mega" flighsim buffs either are private pilots, or have been. And I bet a few were airline pilots.

      Oh yeah, and you can't just drive to your local airport and RENT a 747 to have a few fun flights in. They don't really do that.

      If you believe that its much cheaper to get a pilots license, then you haven't tried. If you want to go the cheap path, join the airforce, they PAY you to learn to fly.

      --

      I use to have a funny sig, but slash cut it off, and I forgot what the punchline was.
    8. Re: Is real flying too scary? by woom · · Score: 1

      Still, flying a "piddly single engine" irl beats anything you can do with flight simulator (atleast indoors). It's like comparing pr0n with the real thing (a really really bad comparsion considering this is slashdot...).

    9. Re: Is real flying too scary? by Zaffle · · Score: 1
      Still, flying a "piddly single engine" irl beats anything you can do with flight simulator (atleast indoors). It's like comparing pr0n with the real thing (a really really bad comparsion considering this is slashdot...).

      Agreed, however, when you're sick of forking over large chunks of your paycheck for said engine, you can return home and sit up front in the cockpit of a 747-400 and fly from New York to London. All for arround the same price as a couple of hours of real flying.

      I use to fly, but got too expensive, or rather, my other hobbies got too expensive. So now, I fly from the comfort of my home PC.

      This is where, in some cities, these Fligh Sim places can really, er, fly. (excuse the pun).

      I'm more than willing to fork over a few dollars an hour to sit in a "real" flighsim and have some fun there... only wish I could, none in my City :(

      --

      I use to have a funny sig, but slash cut it off, and I forgot what the punchline was.
  51. Envious? by winkydink · · Score: 1, Insightful
    ...I'm envious

    You really need to get out more often

    --

    "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

  52. Very Cool Flight Sim Cockpit by LoneStarGeek · · Score: 1

    I am a flight simulator junkie and this must be the Holy Grail of all home flight simulator cockpits. Just beat the /. effect to see it. There is nothing on the market I have seen that could come close to what this guy has done. Very cool. Now if I could just win the lottery I would make one for a Jet Fighter.

    Hopefully he will never sell this neat homemade cockpit but if he did maybe the CIA could buy it and post it on Ebay for sale. What better way to track down the remaining Al Qaeda terrorists wanting some simulated stick time in an airliner. Osama you are high bidder and win a one way ticket to the federal pen and hopefully a lethal injection as a bonus prize.

    1. Re:Very Cool Flight Sim Cockpit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Osama you are high bidder and win a one way ticket to the federal pen and hopefully a lethal injection as a bonus prize.

      Lethal injection? No way, that's too humane.

      For him, I think we should let the punishment fit the crime-- let's chain his ass down in the middle of a lower floor on a building that's going to be imploded... like some old housing project high-rise. Train a video camera in a hardened cage on him, put it on live pay-per-view, and push the button, baby! Oh, yeah! There's your Homeland Security budget for a few months! :-)

    2. Re:Very Cool Flight Sim Cockpit by LoneStarGeek · · Score: 1

      Oh I agree with you completely. Reality TV that everyone would pay to see.

  53. You better watch the taunts --- by joda · · Score: 1

    or he will come and use his evil japanese skills called "My Karate" and whoop your ass.

    --
    Buy all your crazy japanese videogames from
  54. You were overpampered by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    FS existed for C64, if my memory serves me right the specs for this machine are:

    - 6502 Motorola (running at the dizzying speed of 4.7 Mhz)
    - 64 Kb of RAM
    - 1 Floppy
    - 320x240 screen res, with 16 colors.

    The thing was unplayable, granted. But it existed.

    1. Re:You were overpampered by homer_ca · · Score: 1

      Sublogic Flight Simulator for the Apple II:

      1Mhz 6502 (I think the C64 was also 1Mhz)
      280x192 with 6 colors
      1 copy protected floppy with no backup (you ran the original and if it failed, TS)

      Graphics were simple, but playable. A few years later they made another flightsim called Jet! with an F16, but framerates were a joke on the Apple II (barely 1 fps).

  55. Motion for the the flight sim here by krisstuart · · Score: 1

    Motionsim.com has the motion part for setups like these. I've tried one personally and they are great. The maker is a pilot so they are as close to the real thing as i've seen.

  56. Re:I'm a Republican! by Brahmastra · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    This may be offtopic but it's a 5!

  57. Mess with him by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If he pissed you off, you could have booked a bunch a flights between Los Angeles and Tokyo overnight. And then kept on bugging him for the tape. Do this everynight.

  58. X-plane is the sim for you then. by ScottGant · · Score: 3, Interesting

    They explain all this about Mars in their sim...which is why you can't fly just any plane there. Most of the ones are rocket powered.

    They even include a shuttle re-entry from true orbit down to the landing at Edwards...including the wild "S" turns to slow down.

    Plus X-plane is Open-GL based and works both with OSX and WinXP/NT.

    Their flight model is by far the best.

    Be sure to check it out, they also have a downloadable demo.

    --

    "Music is everybody's possession. It's only publishers who think that people own it." - John Lennon.
    1. Re:X-plane is the sim for you then. by kalidasa · · Score: 1

      If it works on Linux too, I'm hooked. I SO want something at least as good as MSFS2K2 for Linux and OS X. Please say it at least works on Wine.

  59. 4 important questions by phorm · · Score: 1

    a) How much did it cost (component-wise). Geeze even a decent flight-style joystick is still expensive nowadays.

    b) How long did it take to make?

    c) What do you do for a living (running with "b", to see what skills he had to make this)

    d) Will you design private cockpits, and for how much??

    1. Re:4 important questions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      questions for the motionsim.com or the article?

  60. Dear Sir with 747 simulator... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


    Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Achmed "Smith" and I have $20,000 USD in untraceable bills and would like to rent time on your simulator. I only need to learn how to fly it. No take off or landing simulations required.

    Thanks.

  61. Don't ask why that site's down by Bananenrepublik · · Score: 2, Funny

    Maybe I'll get killed for telling you, but there are truths more important than my life:
    The slashdot effect has now officially become a means of ensuring national security. In fact, the submitter works for the Department of Internet and airspace security.

  62. Holy Fucking Shit! by Microsift · · Score: 1

    Assuming the linked-to article is true, doesn't it seem inexcusable that 19 people got on to U.S. airliners with knife-like implements two years later?

    Before 9/11, most rock concerts had better security than airports.

    --
    My other sig is extremely clever...
  63. I once knew a cockpit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Here name was Elaine.

  64. Re:Terrorists Train at home by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Off topic? How does that work? With the 9/11 terrorists supposedly registrating for Flight Schools and using computer flight simulation software, that's what our government said they did, then this is just another tool for them.

    It's not off topic it talks about flight simulators and it's use.

  65. Dupe by teklob · · Score: 1

    does anyone remember that this was posted a few months ago link

  66. What's New... by nempo · · Score: 1

    'I took photos of my new cockpit recently.'

    BIG mistake ;0

    --
    --- No, english is not my mother tongue.
  67. Re:Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Don't forget, the land of Japan is full of assholes like this one.

    Now you're going to tell us you have big cocks too

  68. Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by DG · · Score: 3, Insightful

    All the talk about flight sims used to help train terrorists - at least, for the people not just joking - is mostly wasted worry.

    Here's why: no way, no how will that tactic of "hijack plane, crash into structure" ever work again.

    The only reason it worked the first time was that it was so unexpected. Previously, the MO of a plane hijacking was to fly to some remote location and hold the passengers for ransom. As such, your best chance for survival as a passenger was to lay low, not attract attention to yourself, and wait for either rescue or for the hijackers to get what they wanted.

    The more passive you were, the better things were likely to turn out for you.

    But those days are now irrovocably GONE. Now anybody who even makes the slightest move towards the cockpit is likely to be dogpiled by every passenger on the plane, no matter what weapon the hijacker might be carrying.

    In fact, the days of the "passive hijackee" were over before all the 9/11 planes were out of the air. The news of the change in tactics spread SO quickly that the passengers on Flight 51 (?) prevented the final plane from reaching its target.

    The only way a hijacker can get ahold of a plane these days would be to buy/rent it - and you can be damned sure that the people holding the keys are being VERY dilligent about who can get their hands on something large enough to cause any real damage.

    That's a trick that would only work once.

    DG

    --
    Want to learn about race cars? Read my Book
    1. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by Cytotoxic · · Score: 1
      and you can be damned sure that the people holding the keys are being VERY dilligent about who can get their hands on something large enough to cause any real damage.
      One would think so, but believe it or not: back in May a 727 was stolen in Angola. It still hasn't been found. Speculation is that it was stolen to be resold and used for transport in the sometimes shady air industry of the region. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/14/10605885 23649.html
    2. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That still leaves several variations where a legitimate airline pilot is a "mole". Either an established airline pilot is coopted/blackmailed, or a young one was coopted in childhood.

      Then the scenario can play out like a Tom Clancy novel, except that it won't be an old Japanese pilot remembering the Good Ol' Days before WWII, and the airliner will be full of people...

    3. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by br0ck · · Score: 2, Informative
    4. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by TheVampire · · Score: 1

      If they hijack a regular passenger plane. If they hijack a CARGO plane, then that's a different story!

      Also, what if one of the pilots does it intentionally?

      Never say never.

    5. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was Flight 93. http://flight93.org/news.html

    6. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by Cytotoxic · · Score: 1
      The 727 was found on June 28.
      Actually, it was spotted on June 28, sporting a partial repainting. It has not been seen since.(as the article linked to in the parent points out)
    7. Re:Flight Sims as Terrorist Training Tools by br0ck · · Score: 1

      There is now an updated article that says that the plane that was spotted was not the missing plane after all. The article also provides fuller background information.

  69. Oh yeah? Well in MY day... by ThinkingGuy · · Score: 1

    The first computer game I ever owned: Microprose Flight Simulator II for the Apple II.

    Similar specs to the C64, except
    - 6502 ran at ~1 MHz
    - 280x192 screen res, with 8 colors.

    Usually ran about 1 frame per second, depending on the amount of scenery. Sound consisted of a sparse click....click...click sound that let you know the motor was running.

    And I played it for hours and hours at a time.

  70. childhood simulator by chocolatetrumpet · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I actually used to do this with my friends as a kid... we'd set up a bunch of chairs in a row, and get a little cart with plastic wrapped trays for meals.

    For the cockpit, the Apple IIe would run whatever weird "simulation" menu things I would make up in BASIC, and the best part: a set of 3 sliding dimmer switches in a housing my dad made up for me, connected to 3 shop vacs. Instant jet!

    --
    Spoon not. Fork, or fork not. There is no spoon.
  71. /. effect... by FurryFeet · · Score: 1

    I think his server crashed and burned...

  72. Re:HES A TERRORIST by Trolling4Dollars · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    And you're a racist jackass. The only terrorism I've seen lately was the "War on Iraq" perpetrated by the criminal government of the Bush administration.

  73. One word: Freedom. by sanchny · · Score: 2, Insightful
    There are a lot of reasons why people build such simulators, and none of these have to do with money. The main reason is freedom. With simulators, you have the freedom to do whatever you want without consequences.

    - Freedom to fly from anywhere you want, instantly.
    - Freedom to fly whatever plane you want.
    - Freedom to disobey as many rules and laws as you want: FAA regulations, laws of physics, any international laws.
    - Freedom to stop whenever you want, from the comfort of your own home. If you suddenly feel like stoppping and taking a nap, it's pretty hard to do that in a real plane.
    - Location. Yes, real flying gets you somewhere. That's not exactly the main purpose for (most) pilots- the actual flight is. It would be a major inconvenience to end up halfway around the world if you just wanted to fly, and it wouldn't be much fun to just limit yourself to flying around your city/state.
    - Freedom to fly whenever you want for as long as you want. No need to spend time going to the airport, setting up your flight with the airport or FAA (however that's done, I'm not sure). No need to go through too much hassle to fly.
    - Safety. Make a mistake in a flight sim, no big deal. Make a mistake in real life...
    - Partially, money. Sure, the initial investment might be bigger than when buying a plane, but the maintenance costs of a real plane would be bigger than a simulator. There's fuel, labor costs, mechanical costs, airport/FAA costs (if there are any, I'm not sure).

    Oh yeah, IANAP. :)

    1. Re:One word: Freedom. by woom · · Score: 1

      Actually, unlike real planes, simulators don't fly at all... ;-)

    2. Re:One word: Freedom. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Freedom"? Are you kidding?

      The points you make are all valid, but call it something else. The word "freedom" took on an entirely new definition for me the first time I flew a real plane. The sense of FREEDOM I got was unreal -- not just sitting in front of a computer cooped up in my apartment, but actually sailing through the air, this two thousand pound object that somehow is graceful as a bird and can go in any direction I point it. This view that is so familiar from my years of being an airline passenger - yet, such FREEDOM, just touch this little piece of plastic, and the entire machine moves in any direction at your whim.

      Fly over the convoluted streets that never go straight to your destination, over the traffic that's always stopped on the 405, play amongst the clouds, pass birds who can't fly nearly as high or as quickly as I can. That's freedom, in my book.

      Don't get me wrong. I like simulators. I still use them. It's fun to try to land the space shuttle or try to do a short-field takeoff from a grass strip in a 747. It's useful to familiarize yourself with instrument procedures before you're actually flying. But ever since I tried my hand at being a real pilot, the last word I'd use to describe sims is 'freedom'.

      You should try it -- and you can! For a mere $50, most local airports will give you a 1 hour introductory lesson (YOU sit in the pilot's seat, YOU fly the plane with an instructor at your side). If you have even the slightest interest in aviation or have spent more than 10 hours of your life playing flight simulators, I guarantee you this will be the best $50 you ever spend - even if you never take another lesson again. You will forever look at the world differently. You will tell the story of That Time I Flew A Real Plane to everyone who will listen. Here's a directory of airports that will do such demo flights.

      Try it, my friend.

  74. Re:Obligatory by The+Clockwork+Troll · · Score: 1

    Rocky Mountain Low?

    --

    There are no karma whores, only moderation johns
  75. The only way a hijacker can get ahold of a plane by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Buy, rent.. or steal it. Like the Boeing 727 converted to a fuel tanker that was stolen from Luanda airport in May.

    Missing 727

  76. Motionsim.com is loved by slashdot'ers by krisstuart · · Score: 1

    Motionsim.com must be liked by the slashdot crowd. They make flight/motion simulators that work with any games and they are getting hit pretty hard.

  77. Not pathologically geeky by No+Such+Agency · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Where's the bad? The guy was having fun (I assume), and had the extra realism & challenge of not choosing where he was flying to (if anyone took him up on the offer that is). "Pathological", maybe, but only if you think that a very weird hobby = disease. It's not like he was out raping nuns or something.

    --
    Freedom: "I won't!"
    1. Re:Not pathologically geeky by tiled_rainbows · · Score: 1

      Fair point, and this reply applies equally well to sanchny's similar post.

      I wouldn't want to stop this guy (or other guys with similarly weird hobbies) doing their thing, let alone slashdot his site (as someone above suggests) to "punish" him for his socially unacceptable pasttime. If that's the way you floats your boat, then that's the way you floats your boat.

      However, all this is fine in theory, but I found actually meeting the guy and being confronted with the sheer obsessiveness of his obsession a little unsettling and, well, freaky.

      Don't know if this is relevant, but I met him when he came over to install Dune 2 on a friend's machine so they could play over the Uni network. He never installed Dune 2 in the end, I think it was just a ruse, a way of meeting people so he could talk about his planes. For those interested, google Cyberconian Airlines. Don't know if it's still running.

  78. Do Not Eat by PhoenixOne · · Score: 1

    >BattleTech Center pods (the last generation---the roundish ones) > They also look a lot like giant pills, which is why the techs put a small "Do Not Eat" sign on each one. Great system however (even if somebody does eat you ;)). Anybody make a home system for B-Tech?

    --
    Spell cheek you've failed me four the last thyme!
  79. Re:Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Umm, did I _SAY_ I was Japanese, you stupid fuck? I just happen to be LIVING here, fuckie.

  80. Re:Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by El_Froggo · · Score: 0

    wow, an AC war....this is going somewhere....

  81. Re:Wow cool! (Sorry 'bout that website though....) by FluxCapacitator · · Score: 1

    Wow, and I live in Japan too! What a coincidence! It's nice to see another gaijin posting on /. Nice to have met you.

    I hope that apartment is not costing you too much. My apartment is only 38 sq m. Most of my Japanese friends who actually live away from home are in 1K apartments. They don't even have a living room.

    If you look closely at the pictures you will see that the projected image isn't too far from the cockpit. Also, everything to the left and right of the cockpit look like they are against walls. How much would you like to bet that there is not much else in the room?

    And guess what? I'm not American!

  82. begin_full_tracking() by Phronesis · · Score: 1

    That's cool. Then when his shares on the terrorism futures market spike, he can IPO.

  83. A 727 simulator for passengers, too by LSD-25 · · Score: 1

    You jest, but one guy will actually include passengers in his simulator. The July 2003 of the Smithsonian's Air & Space magazine has a feature on home-brew simulators. One guy, Joseph Maldonado, is building his from the front section of a scrapped 727; it includes 15 feet of first class seating. "The Hatillo, Puerto Rico cardiologist plans on recreating the entire flying experience; when the simulator is finished, passengers will be able to watch scrolling terrain from their windows - or opt for an in-flight movie - as pilots fly the jet on a simulated route."

  84. Looks nice, but... by sandman935 · · Score: 1

    Can it simulate this?

    --

    Defecation occurs.
  85. Speaking of simulators... by Catharsis · · Score: 1
    Virtual Racer X

    Simulators for the rest of us...

    --

    "The wise man proportions his belief to the evidence." -- David Hume