Announcing a new(ish) iPhone DCS companion app

For sometime, many of the DCS community with iPads have been enjoying the free app YAWC (Yet Another Warthog Checklist). This app was launched by community member Camel. The app provides users with checklists from the community as well as reference charts and diagrams for emergency procedures, weapons profiles, JTAC handling and many other useful quick references.

At the same time, TigersharkBAS began development of the ambitious DCS CoPilot. Designed to connect to the DCS universe in real time it had the goal of reading mission information and presenting it in highly graphical and intuitive ways to enable busy pilots to instantly understand their mission and all the surrounding variables such as weather, radio frequencies, flight composition, etc. It also had the goal of including several reference tools but to have them as interactive and easily updated databases of information rather than static PDF files.

We are pleased to announce a partnership between these 2 app developers that intends to merge the best features of both products and unify them into a single look and feel.

Our first release will be a re-imagining of the User Interface (UI) for the functionality you currently enjoy in YAWC. In addition, the release will remain free.

As you can imagine, quite a bit of work goes into apps like this and whilst we are pleased to offer the basic app for free we are looking to get some reward for our time. To aid in this, we will periodically release several modules offering extra functionality to the app that will be made available via In App Purchase (IAP).

Examples of some these modules that will be available for purchase:

- Startup trainers for various aircraft.

- A module that enables multiple people to make and view graphical "plans of attack" on a map of Georgia.

- Dropbox hosted user made checklists

As well as many others we are investigating and doing proof of concepts for.

The app will be a universal app with support for iPad and iPhone.

For the moment we are looking for expressions of interest to how commercially viable this is for us. It will require a lot of work (the artwork alone takes many man hours) and we are hoping the IAP model strikes a balance for free and paying customers. We have analysed the install base of YAWC but the number of initial installs is different than the currently active user base.

Please use this thread to give your impressions, thoughts, questions and feedback.

We really need to get an indication if this is worth our time so please indicate if you are supporter/potential customer.

I have both iPhone and iPad so I would be willing to pay, even for a base product if it's good enough, however the IAP model is very attractive as it allows people to "try before you buy".

YAWC is an excellent app and anything building on this can only be positive in my mind.

Thanks for the reply. We are committed to keeping the base product for free so you should get everything you got in YAWC (or almost everything) with a little more polish.

An example of where we might head with the IAP.

The base product would have the caution panel like you have now in YAWC. Press a panel item and you will get a description of the fault/warning.

An IAP might add the ability to have the caution panel connected to DCS and automatically pop up descriptions of the lights as they go off in the sim.

I would love this. To be able to have something like this on my iPhone is something I've wanted for a long time since I don't own an iPad.

I would definitely be interested in this app, and willing to pay for IAPs.

+1

++++1:thumbup:

+1 using both!

+1 as well :)

+1

+11

Announcing a new(ish) iPhone DCS companion app

+1 also would pay gor such app

Hey, good idea. Have you guys thought about contacting Sabre-TLA ?

I think this would integrate really well with the documentation provided with the Maple Flag missions like Mission Data Cards, maps and specialized checklists.

+1 Would gladly pay for such features. Using both iPhone and iPad.

Thanks for the feedback gents.

Just an update. Camel has successfully gotten 2 clients to connect together using Gamecenter and separately the code to draw on a map of Georgia is up and running. Next step is to get a couple of clients connected to draw together.

The proof of concept is looking good for our first IAP the "plan on a map" module.

Due to Gamecenter it is retricted to 4 players being connected together for the moment.

Yep I'd pay for a DCS app. Have already payed for iControl DCS, unfortunately it doesnt help me much in the Black Shark. I would love some kind of datacard / map type thing. Airport charts and ATC frequencies would be nice too.

count me in.

So...update on our proof of concept for map planning.

Camel and I have successfully connected our devices from remote locations and were able to draw on a map of Georgia.

The screenshot below shows a working prototype of the code. It uses Apple maps to zoom in on Georgia. You can zoom in and out use pinch gestures and can then draw and all parties see in real time the markings of others.

There is still some work to be done and we plan to able to add pre made markings and such but at least we have a proven concept. Now to refining it.

Count me in as well, this will be excellent, well done. I have both an iPhone and iPad and would willing pay for the app(s)

nice

waiting for it

Sorry TS, I somehow missed this thread. I'm all in for any and all iOS apps that will help me with DCS! It's great that there's a partnership, as it means the burden won't all fall to one person. Now if someone (wish I could!) could only make a tutorial app. Some kind of instructional app for learning, let's say, different weapons systems and dropping ordinance and the like. But I'm excited on what your doing here, too!

Well Done !!!

+1

Does anyone know where the A10C Startup Checklist app has gone? I know I had downloaded it a year or so ago...used it... deleted it... and now that I need it again, It doesn't show up in the App Store???