Minimizing heads down

Ok.

Fri13.......How does that work exactly? How do you flip a switch that's not on your HOTAS?

Move a hand and flip it in the cockpit. Little similar way than with a mouse, except I don't grab a mouse but a Touch Controller and then I reach the switch with my hand from its position.

This creates the muscle memory and teaches quickly the cockpit layouts, and especially process what you can operate on left or right hand, as you need to let go off the stick to operate the right side of the cockpit as you can't reach something on right side with your left hand.

It will teach to how operate the aircraft at different manner. Example:

In a AV-8B Harrier you do not have possibility to fire a TPOD laser by stick trigger like in Hornet, but by pressing a OBS button on MFCD to fire the laser and turn off the laser.

But you don't either need to activate the laser after each firing from right side panel like in Hornet.

By default the TPOD video is put on your right MFCD, so if you want to fire the laser you need to use your right hand to press the button on right MFCD to do so.

And it becomes fairly annoying to actually fly a turn away when you need to use right hand at proper time to start lazing for just dropped GBU-12.

Very quickly with requirement to move hands around, you will learn that having the TPOD on the right MFCD is not wise, so you learn to place the TPOD video to the left MFCD. Now you have your right hand on the stick all the time and you can fire the laser with the left hand when it is more free (you do need your left hand to operate TDC on throttle).

In other situations you learn what is better layout for them at different way than if you would just press HOTAS buttons or use a mouse.

Ok, I see. However, the hands can't feel, so don't you still need to look to see what switch you're flipping?

Yes, but it is time saving as gear lever is so visible at your left that you see it with corner of eye easily. You do not need to look away from HUD when landing as you see both same time.

Difference is that you are not hunting your mouse cursor as your hand is the operator. So you know that the landing gear lever is just next to your left knee, you move your hand there, you just check by glancing the lever before you flip it down/up.

You do not focus to mouse cursor or anything like that.

At early days it was joystick + keyboard + mouse.

Later it became HOTAS + Mouse + Keyboard, but HOTAS binds were more for everything.

Then TrackIR made keyboard less required but still there.

After VR made keyboard less wanted, but it was HOTAS + Mouse and it was possible scratch display from setup.

Finally the VR with virtual hands in cockpit made possible remove mouse and keyboard, so you have just HOTAS, and HOTAS has just real functions. Of course HOTAS needs all bindings in FC3 aircrafts, but in clickable cockpits it is without any extras.

The ultimate situation would be that your hands are detected and you could just use your physical HOTAS and your hands would follow properly in the cockpit without extra controllers.

But that with the fingers without gloves, so you actually just push things with your finger in the air.

The difference is huge, as you don't need to memorize the HOTAS binding combos or modes or anything like that. In heat of action you don't search mouse cursor or try to keep your head steady or anything like that at all.

For me flying FC3 aircrafts is boring and not so immersive as I am constantly pulled out from the virtual reality when I need to think the binding combo, when I see the function in the cockpit itself and I can't touch it.

The ultimate would be to build a cockpit with all switches, guages, and MFD's as the real plane.

That takes a ton of money though and way too expensive for my budget.

The ultimate would be to build a cockpit with all switches, guages, and MFD's as the real plane.

 

That takes a ton of money though and way too expensive for my budget.

This setup cost me $250CAD off Amazon (Talking about the Cougar MFDs and makeshift "UFC")

Im using it with VR. With a little muscle memory, and peaking under my headset occasionally, it really changed the way I interact with the cockpit. No more fiddling around with the mouse for most critical tasks, especially in the middle of a fight.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B076LRJ528/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ZPJyFbJ2ENNT4

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B002HH9TRY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_yQJyFbP2HTJBK

This setup cost me $250CAD off Amazon (Talking about the Cougar MFDs and makeshift "UFC")

Im using it with VR. With a little muscle memory, and peaking under my headset occasionally, it really changed the way I interact with the cockpit. No more fiddling around with the mouse for most critical tasks, especially in the middle of a fight.

 

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B076LRJ528/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ZPJyFbJ2ENNT4

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B002HH9TRY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_yQJyFbP2HTJBK

What you have is way better than what I have. I was thinking more like this one. I know it wasn't cheap.

https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=199801

What you have is way better than what I have. I was thinking more like this one. I know it wasn't cheap.

 

 

https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=199801

Haha yup a little out of reach for me right now but I'm eventually hoping to build a full pit like that

Ok I think I want one of those Koolertron keypads to turn into a hybrid F-16 and F-18 UFC panel.

I have a Logitech G-13 I keep next to my throttle that I have the top right most key programmed to "G" for the gear lever.

In the Ka-50 I also have the Targeting mode panel as g18, g19, g21, and g22 and the thumbstick for cycling the cannon modes (fixed/moving etc) and one of the buttons next to the thumbstick as the targeting mode reset.

I know we aren't talking the Ka-50 here, but the g-13 offers quite a bit of functionality and you can make a profile for any aircraft you fly in DCS, and is easy to feel for button locations. Unforunately, Logitech discontinued the thing quite some time ago and i don't know what I'd do really in terms of a replacement, as you can only find them used and priced rather high.

Razer has a couple of options but I despise the synapse software. I've considered buying the AULA Excaliber for the invetible day my G13 poops the bed.

Anyway, food for thought for more options you might be able to navigate without looking at it.

The ultimate would be to build a cockpit with all switches, guages, and MFD's as the real plane.

 

That takes a ton of money though and way too expensive for my budget.

Not really.

Sure there are whole cockpits built on motion platforms, but with hand tracking (btw, thanks Facebook from implementing it to Oculus Rift, or not...) one would get very cheap a acceptable motion platform + really correct cockpit in VR.

One doesn't need much movement from the motion platform to experience a lot of the movements in proper timing and manner, of course it is nothing like a real thing but your mind can be so much fooled with small movements.

Example think about this kind thing for a DCS in VR?

Remove the display, remove the wheel, but you have the pedals HOTAS and hand tracking...

The simpit always requires you to have a solution for the surroundings. A large TV at front is not enough. I have been there, not a nice thing compared to VR. Give a 270 degree projector cockpit, it is getting there but still you will get out of immersion when you look around and you can't have all that weight on cheap motion platform. Military can have them...

with one large display again... And just HOTAS.... 19 million and nothing to spare for a full simpit and proper projectors?

No give them the top end VR...

Not really.

 

 

Sure there are whole cockpits built on motion platforms, but with hand tracking (btw, thanks Facebook from implementing it to Oculus Rift, or not...) one would get very cheap a acceptable motion platform + really correct cockpit in VR.

 

One doesn't need much movement from the motion platform to experience a lot of the movements in proper timing and manner, of course it is nothing like a real thing but your mind can be so much fooled with small movements.

 

Example think about this kind thing for a DCS in VR?

Remove the display, remove the wheel, but you have the pedals HOTAS and hand tracking...

 

The simpit always requires you to have a solution for the surroundings. A large TV at front is not enough. I have been there, not a nice thing compared to VR. Give a 270 degree projector cockpit, it is getting there but still you will get out of immersion when you look around and you can't have all that weight on cheap motion platform. Military can have them...

 

with one large display again... And just HOTAS.... 19 million and nothing to spare for a full simpit and proper projectors?

No give them the top end VR...

Yes, but I have no interest in VR. So, what I showed in the link is perfect for me. The immersive killer for me is having to use the mouse.

The one negative would be having to commit to just one plane. Not so bad really. I could do that if I had a nice cockpit.

@falcon_120 You should try the STEP PB19 in SA page its really helps a lot to get info from your enemy.

Just saw this Biga42. Indeed its one of the function i use most in my hotas. It gives you a clear picture of the incoming enemy (is he higher than me, coming fast or slow...)