A question about reducing "select aircraft".

[olderndirt]

As I add each aircraft model, I'm also adding several/many variations (liveries) of each aircraft. What's the best method for removing most of these from the 'select aircraft' file yet still retain them for possible future use. Seems to me it should reduce game load time - a nice plus.

[Marvin Carter]

I make a back up folder in my aircraft folder, and copy my cfg file in it, then with the org, cfg, open it and delet the entries of the paints or model you don't want. later if you want one of the missing ones use your copy as a referance, to bring it back. But all ways make a "COPY" of the org, to begin with!!!!

[Mach3DS]

Within your FSX "...\Simobjects\Aircraft" folder you could add another folder titled "000_Aircraft Not In Use" or whatever you choose. Then move all the aircraft you don't use often into this folder. Just remember that if you move AI aircraft or default FSX aircraft your AI won't appear. I did this with the MAIW (military AI works) addons as they added literally hundreds of aircraft to my folder and it took FSX over 10 mins to load!

EDIT -- Someone beat me to it! :)

[olderndirt]

Thanks guys.

[Sieggie]

Another option is to put a - in the panel name space of the aircraft.cfg for those liveries you do not want to see. this will keep them from showing in the selection box.

[fltsim.1]
title=OV-10A_USMC
sim=OV-10A
model=
panel= -
sound=
texture=usmc
kb_checklists=
kb_reference=
atc_id_color=0x00ffffff
atc_id=55417

keeps the usmc texture livery from displaying but allows other liveries of the model to show. If there is a name there already just put the - at the end of the name.

Dave

[danyboy21]

See this link : http://jacky.brouze.ch/Main.php

With the soft "JABX", you can manage your planes, scenes, and many other things... Change thumbails, for example.

http://nsm06.casimages.com/img/2011/11/11//11111107523169709033868.jpg (http://www.casimages.com)

[P38man]

That jabx is in french and you need to register and it needs to not be an email address like gmail, hotmail etc etc.

Not for me.

[OleBoy]

Another option is to put a - in the panel name space of the aircraft.cfg for those liveries you do not want to see. this will keep them from showing in the selection box.

[fltsim.1]
title=OV-10A_USMC
sim=OV-10A
model=
panel= -
sound=
texture=usmc
kb_checklists=
kb_reference=
atc_id_color=0x00ffffff
atc_id=55417

keeps the usmc texture livery from displaying but allows other liveries of the model to show. If there is a name there already just put the - at the end of the name.

Dave

Your method is as I have been doing. And the easiest. This allows me to eliminate completely, the paints I never fly. Not an issue, but a great way to save hard drive space if need be.

[falcon409]

That jabx is in french and you need to register and it needs to not be an email address like gmail, hotmail etc etc.
Not for me.
Yep, he has designed a lot of good utilities, but has no intention of doing English versions of anything. . . .as he mentions, when the major download sites (Avsim, Flightsim, etc) design a version in French, then he'll do his in English, lol. It's his site, guess he can do what he wants.:salute:

[Naismith]

That jabx is in french and you need to register and it needs to not be an email address like gmail, hotmail etc etc.

Not for me.

It's an inoffensive registration, many of the Q's don't even need answering, plus the program aint too difficult to understand. There is this pervasive attitude that MSFS must be in English, most notably I see in complaints about Russian a/c using Cyrillic. This is a worldwide sim and I see no reason why English should reign supreme. If I offend I apologise.

[RobM]

Threads like this are always interesting. Everyone seems to come up with a
different method.

I use a method for selecting liveries (I guess more properly "variations") that is
not neat or easy, but does allow me to have all liveries available, or only my
selected liveries available, with a single mouse click. I've been using it for awhile,
and I like it, but as said I'm sure it's not for everyone. It is a bit messy to set up.

When you go to the select aircraft sceen, at the bottom is a small box, "show all
variations", the default setting for which is ticked to show all variations. If you
untick that box, it shows maybe only one or two liveries of each aircraft. Ever
wondered how that worked, or how you could select exactly which variations
appear when untick the box? Here's how:

The key are the three entries in the aircraft.cfg files, "ui_manufaturer=", "ui_type=",
and "ui_variation=". From what I see, when the show all variations box is ticked,
FSX arranges the thumbnails alphabetically using all three categories, eg, it arranges
alphabetically by ui-manufatuer=, then within each ui-manufaturer=, arranges
alphabetically by ui_type=, then within each ui-type, arranges alphabetically by
ui_variation=.

When you untick the show all variations box, FSX only displays ahabetically using
the first two categories, ui_manufacturer= and ui_type=. If there are two exactly
identical ui_type= descriptions withing a ui_manufaturer=, then FSX displays only
the first variation of that ui_type= in the aircraft.cfg list, typically the one at
[flightsim.0]

So if all the ui_type= descriptions for a sim are identical, as for example with almost
all Carenados, then when the the "show all variations" box is unticked, only the thumb
nail for the plane at [flightsim.0] will show in the select aircraft screen.

So If you want a particular livery to show when you untick the box, you just cut and
paste it's aircraft.cfg entry to the [flightsim.0] position in the aircraft.cfg list. If you
want a second livery to show as well when you untick the box, just add a number or
letter or symbol to it's ui_type= description, such as b. And then if you want a third
livery to show add a new letter or number symbol, such as c. And so on. And because
these additional variations now have a unigue ui_type= description, they will show
when you untick the show all variations box.

So what happens if a dev puts a different ui_type description for each variation, or more
than one variation, as some do? Well, you guessed: I go through and rename to get an
identical ui_type description all the way through the aircraft.cfg list. Usually this is just
cutting and pasting a part of the ui_type description into the ui_variation, but, yean, it
can be tedious.

That's it in a nutshell. There are some additional subtleties, but nothing important.
I supopse this is only something I would do, with all the cutting and pasting in the
aircraft.cfg list, my own little piece of FSX nuttiness. But I do this with every new
plane sim I add, it does work, and it does have the additional advantage of slightly
speeding up load times with the box unticked.

In any case, even if not useful, maybe just fyi about how a certain little bit of FSX,
the "show all variations" box, works.

Thanks - Rob

PS : sorry, I should add if that after cutting and pasting in the aircraft.cfg list, you of course need to re-number the [flitsim.*] entries accordingly.