Successor to FSNav FSTramp released

[Kasper 14]

Helge Schroeder of FSNavigator fame released the successor to FSNav for use in FSX, FSTramp.

If you have missed FSNav in FSX go to the site and check it out. You can try it for free for 20 sessions.

http://www.fstramp.com/

[EDIT]

I just had a quick look and you can not use it as a flight planning tool. It takes the plan loaded in FSX. I am confused about what possible use this program has that makes it worth 30 euro's?

[\EDIT]

[mutley 4,487]

Thanks for the heads up Kasper, checking it out now.

[rob16584 42]

He could've thought of a better name for it!

[stu7708 244]

I guess it could be used as "In-Sim" VFR Charts, or even IFR sectional charts, with the added bonus that they match what's in your sim rather than what exist in the real world....

But still, €30 is a bit much...

As for the name, oh well.. it will stand out i a crowd at least

[allardjd 1,853]

It's a pity. I loved FSN for FS9 but the flight plan building capability was a key part and I don't think I'd be willing to pay for it without that. I see the original developer's name on the site but also someone else.

[wtr49p 0]

I agree, the flight plan was the seal a deal for me also. I loved FSNav in FS9. I use FSC now, but it's just not the same.

I think I tried the auto pilot in FSNav one or two times, but it was being able to make very good flight plans for extensive radio nav work that I enjoyed the most.

I just wrote the author letting him know that no flight plans would be the thing that keeps me from purchasing and asking if there might be an udate in the near future for it.

here's hoping,

wtr49p

[allardjd 1,853]

It appears to be free here but may just be the 20 free sessions demo - not sure.

 

http://www.fs2000.org/downloads/doc_details/34696

 

John

[wtr49p 0]

I'm very disappointed not getting a reply from the author of FSTramp about what they may do in the future about an update to adding flight planning.

I have talked to quite a few people and they all feel the same. They will not purchase for that reason alone.

It's such a shame that they would come back with such a beloved program and not include flight planning. It's beyond my understanding why they would do this.

Oh well, guess I'll stick to FSC and Plan G.

John

wtr49p

[needles 1,010]

Hi John,

I don't think you can go far wrong using Plan-G.

I use it and find it has everything I need for flight planning and it's excellent at following your your course as you fly.

I open Plan-G on a second monitor and follow my progress with it.

A shame Helge Schroeder hasn't returned your email.

All I would say on that is, it's his loss if guys aren't buying FSTramp due to it not having what you want in the software.

Stick with Plan-G.

Regards

Brian

[allardjd 1,853]

There was a story around the time FSN went dormant that Helge Schroeder had an accident (auto?) and was badly injured and incapacitated. There was no word at the time whether the effects were temporary or permanent. At the time he was working on taking FSN to FSX but it was nowhere near complete.

 

The new FSTramp site has his name and that of someone else on it. I hope Schroeder has made a full recovery and is fully involved but can't help wondering if he or his agents have simply lent his name to something that is now entirely the work of someone else.

 

John

[brett 2,284]

I looked this over and can't see a reason to spend that much money on it. It actually looks like something that used to be freeware at some point. I only use a moving map(PlanG) once in a while and rely on my flight plan(PlanG) and navaids to fly. I can understand why folks would want it and is convenient looking to have in a small window(Integrated Module) while flying but without an included flight planner, from what I see on their site, it is useless to me for that price. Except for being able to readily move about the sandbox while still in freeflight, a few extra clicks and FSX does the same thing. Not sure what "Autopilot frontend" means or "Automatically flies flight planned routes and holdings." Isn't that what my AP already does.

It looks cool, nice map and such, but what is it that I do not see here? I agree that the name was a poor choice but wouldn't want to hold that against them. This was all mentioned already and my intention is not to put down something that I'm not sure of, just need some more information on why I would need this program. I never used the older version mentioned nor do I fly in multiplayer. Am I missing something?

[wtr49p 0]

That makes sense John, about the accident. Because I could never understand why someone wouldn't carry over a program like FSN from FS9 to FSX. Being the wonder of it all. Out of all other programs I have had, FSN was to me the best. I missed that the most.

FSC (Flight Sim Commander), is a good program also, but I'd take FSN hands down if I could. Plan G is also very good.

Hi Brett, if you haven't ever used FSN, it's kind of hard to explain it's usefullness and likeability. Don't know if I spelled that right, LOL... May John could explain it better than I can.

John

wtr49p

[wtr49p 0]

Maybe John could explain it better than I can.

John

wtr49p

[allardjd 1,853]

I considered FSN to be one of the few examples of that programmers touchstone - elegant. There were no frills, it just did three things really well - flight planning, a moving map disply and an autopilot function for AC that didn't have one. As I recall there was one unfinished thing that had some promise, incorporating SIDs and STARs into flight plans. It was intuitive to use and very stable. It could create, load, save and edit FS9 flight plans and did that with ease - in my use of it, that was the centerpiece function. It allowed VORs, DMEs, NDBs, airports, and intersections to be set as waypoints as well as easily defined user waypoints.

 

Navaid lookups were a piece of cake and I still use it for that sometimes. Occasionally it would say that there were too many entries to display following entry of a search term, but the desired one was always right there at the top of the list. The map was on the rudimentary side but very fast - in fact, everything it did was very fast.

 

I speak of it in the past tense but I still have FS9 and FSN loaded, though admittedly don't use it much any more. I've squirreled away a copy of the download on CD along with a copy of the purchase e-mail with the unlock code, which still works - I installed it on a new PC earlier in the year.

 

I was hopeful when I saw FST mentioned here, but after looking at it, I get the feel that Herege's hand is not in it. I hope I'm wrong but I think it's possible he's there in name only. I won't buy it as it is but haven't given up hope that it's a work in progress and that it may yet become what it's predecessor was for FS9.

 

To be fair - Plan-G and FSC do much more and do most things very well. I have both and have no beef with either. If there's any problem in my mind, it's that they almost make FSX seem subordinate to them instead of the other way around. I recognize that there may be an element of nostalgia in my view of FSN, but if it appeared as an exact FSX clone of the FS9 version and did nothing more than it did before, I'd be very tempted to buy it.

 

I suspect that, even if it did everything the FS9 version did, it would have little appeal for folks who didn't know and love it in FS9 - it's not in the same league as FSC and Plan-G in terms of features. It was just a warm and fuzzy app, which is a damned hard thing to put in a features list.

 

John

[wtr49p 0]

Well, there you have it in a nutshell Brett. John hit it on the head.

One of the things I miss in FSC from FSN is that part of just being able to put your mouse on a VOR or NDB and get all the info about it, including how far away it was and how far the signal traveled, which was very useful in planning and tracking with radio sytems alone when flying. I really miss that.

I enjoyed being able to make plans and include cross references of different VOR's and NDB's as to where I should be watching for a degree heading to know exactly where I was without watching the map. I guess I still like flying the old fashoned way a lot of times.

I really hope it is a continued work, I know I would make a purchase if it worked like John mentioned for FSX.

John

wtr49p

[brett 2,284]

Darn it, must have deleted all my comments on this and it was to much to remember to type in again. Anyway......

Thanks for explaining everything to me John and your comments John. Hope to see them improve on this in the future with a flight planner and then they will get my order. I like the integrated moving map and program inside FSX but need more to justify getting it. JMO

[Jeff Naismith 0]

I agree with pretty much all that's been said here.  I too liked FSN better than every other add-on of it's type by far!  It's simplicity and accuracy is amazing!  It really makes FS for me.  I just found FStramp and almost had heart failure.  Finally!

Sorry to hear about the developer but very glad he's back. The buttons are all the same.  Simple and THEY WORK!!  Unfortunately, they didn't bring back the whole program.  The planner is a must and one thing that has not been mentioned here....

One was able to enter the aircraft and it's charateristics.  Also the cruising altitude andspeed.  This in itself is no big deal, but the program somehow uses this info and also FLYS THE DECENT AND VNAV COMPLETELY ACCURATLY RIGHT DOWN TO THE DEAD CENTER OF THE RUNWAY USING ALL THE WAYPOINTS IN THE PLAN!!!!!!  So easy, smooth and ACCURATE. There has never been another like it.  That is the feature which makes this program stand out for me. Many programs fly a flight plan.  None of them are as accurate and SIMPLE.

 

Now, FSTramp....  It's all ready to go. The map is beautiful. the buttons are simple and the same. What happened to the rest of the program???  Gotta have it or it's really nothing special at all except for the ingame convenience which I still really like.  I too sent questions to technical support asking what's coming just today.  I'm dissapointed to here there has been no reply from anyone.  I will post if I get a response. Also, I mentioned that the flight plan is not followed accuately in the new version.  I fly from KSNA to KSAN rwy 27 and one the plan turns inland the plane goes off course and is useless.  In FS9, FSNAV flys this plan perfectly!!!!

 

Let's hope they get this together. I have to say though that I'm really tired of waiting and won't pay $42.00 until these concerns are addressed by the developer.

 

Jeff

[brett 2,284]

Hi Jeff and welcome to Mutley's Hanger. One can always hope.   Since you brought up an older post it would be interesting to hear if anyone has any new input on this program or if it has fallen by the wayside.

[Jeff Naismith 0]

Thanks Brett. I sent another email to FSTramp right after my post here expressing the concern and interest in their product.  I think that they could make some money here but I'm not a marketing guy.

It will be interestiing to see if anyone else can shed some light on this mystery.  It is somewhat mysterious, no?

I'll keep an eye on this topic and will definetely let you know if I hear anything.

 

Thanks again Brett,

Jeff

 

 

[allardjd 1,853]

Thanks for your comments, Jeff.  Let us know if you get ANY kind of feedback from them.

 

John

[Jeff Naismith 0]

Brett, John and all,

How about this?

 

3/1/13

Dear Sirs,

First of all I'd like to say that FS Navigator is by far my favorite FS9 add-on and I was thrilled to find FS Tramp. It took me a long time to find this new program. It needs to be advertiised better. I have been spending the last few years looking for a replacement for FSNav in FSX, but nothing comes close. FSNav was a solid, accurate trouble free program that did EXACTLY what I wanted for my flightr simulating needs. I can't stress this enough!.

There are a lot of prgrams that follow a flight plan out there but none of them also follow the decent vnav and deliver the plane right to the end of the runway dead center and accurately every time without problems. Also, the point and click flight planner was simple and fantastic. Just to merely right click on a fix, "Send to plan" and fly was the best! FS Navigator did these things beautifully.

So, now to FS Tramp. It looks fantastic!! It has the simplicity of FSNav and has the makings of my FSX dream come true.

1, Will you be adding the decent Vnav capabilities and auto speed control? They are missing.

2. Will you be adding the same fight planner?

3. Will you be adding the airplane information?

4. Will you be adding the altitude and speed info?

Are you planning to have FSTramp work exactly like FSNAV? At least with the above mentioned features?

I would much appreciate an answer to all the above questions so I know what's coming. I know that many are asking for it to work in full screen mode. That would be nice but it's way down on my list.

Now, I noticed that FStramp is not as accurate flying a flight plan.

My test flight for flight plans is from KSNA to KSAN rwy 27. There are some turns and interesting decent rates. The plan looks like this:

KSNA rwy 19R - NEWPO - TORIE - RYAHH - VYDDA - REEBO - FICWO - RWY 27. In FSNAV this route flys flawlessly. It's smooth, accurate and the vnav decent is perfect. Unbelievable!!!!! the best!!!

In FSTramp, not so much. Obviously, no vnav but also starting at RYAHH the plan is not followed correctly. It takes a very wide turn heading for VYDDA and never recovers! From that point on it zig zags and loses the path.

I know that this is only ver 5.1. I'll be patient.

My question: Will FSTramp have the same features as FSNAV???

Thank you for your time and I really would very much appriciate specific answers to all my questions. I will gladly pay for the product to support your efforts if I can know what's coming.

Great job guys and thanks for coming back,

Jeff

 

3/2/13

Hi Jeff!
For your specific questions, I have no answers now. I find this only when I'm working on these topics.
Their positive assessment of the automatic flight by FSNav is amazing for me. I was never satisfied,
because determining the aircraft data was very complicated and time consuming. Therefore, I got
many emails on this topic.

The next FSTramp upgrade expanded the world map once more with additional elements. Drag the
map with the left mouse button will work then. At the same time, it is the shooting down of the topic
world map. The development in the direction of flight planner then follows in several stages.

Please send me in the future the FSX flight plan file. Only in this way, I can find the error.

Helge Schroeder is the program developer of FSTramp and FSNav. Enno Laverman is translator
and Chief of the beta testers.

Best Regards,
Helge Schroeder
Team FSTramp

 

3/2/13

Mr. Schroeder,

First of all, thank so very much for your quick response to my email. I really appreciate your interest in your customers and fans.

It sounds to me like you are a perfectionist! Of course, that is wonderful. Please understand that your efforts have been appreciated by so many people. It may surprise you, as you say, but you deserve it. Please remember that it is the simplicity and accuracy of your work that is so much admired and enjoyed. We all would be happy for you to only produce the SAME program for FSX as you did for FS9. I know I would.

I'm very happy that you will be including the flight planner. Please keep it good and simple as before.

Two more questions and I'll leave you alone.

1. Will you please include the decent vnav part of the program?

2. May I post your email to me so that others may know your intentions? I think that it will be much appreciated and welcome.

 

Thanks Again,

Jeff Naismith

 

3/2/13

FSTramp support

4:27 PM (1 hour ago)

 

to me

 

> 1. Will you please include the decent vnav part of the program?
 

I'll try my best.

> 2. May I post your email to me so that others may know your intentions? I think that it will be much appreciated and

Yes

Best Regards,
Helge Schroeder
Team FSTramp

 

OK. So, that's a response. Quickly!  What do you think??

 

[allardjd 1,853]

Great news that Helge is in fact the programmer.  Very happy that the rumors that he was incapacitated were not true. 

 

All that looks very promising.  I hope someone gives it a try on P3D as well, since I believe that's were we're all going to end up ultimately.

 

I won't buy FS Tramp right now, absent the flight planner, but certainly would when it becomes fully functional, if for no other reason than nostalgia.

 

Thanks for running that down, Jeff.

 

John

[mutley 4,487]

He Jeff,

 

Thanks so much for keeping us up to date. FS NAV was one of my must haves for FS2004 and like you, I was disappointed that FS Tramp wasn't a FSX port over.

 

It has a lot of potential, I am sure the developer has plans, I was a bit shocked after purchasing that it was lacking in so many areas.

 

Still, I am optimistic that with some development it will be a fine product.

Regards,

Joe 

[allardjd 1,853]

Resurrecting this old thread with some new info, posted here...
 
http://forum.mutleyshangar.com/index.php/topic/16032-are-you-doing-it-oooh-err/
 
....by user falcon409
 

When FSTramp was released I jumped on it. Some time this month he is supposed to release the last update which is the "drag n' drop" function for producing flight plans like FSNav had back in the day.

 
If true, this is great news.
 
John

[flydaddy 0]

so, nothing yet?