Chip: Special Di Besten Simulation/Chip_Special-Die_besten_Simulationen.iso/FLIEGEN/FS40/RMMFP/FSFPHELP.HLP

Text File | 1990-12-01 | 28KB | 577 lines

********
*General
DESCRIPTION
-----------
RMM FP is a Flight Planning package designed expressly for the
Microsoft/SubLOGIC brand Flight Simulators (FS) and matching scenery
disks (SD).  As such, the package will not overwhelm you with useless
navigational aids and waypoints that are not available in the FS world.
Only FS and SD data are built into the package.  Real world navaids and
airports that are not part of the FS world are not included.

These help screens are contained in an ASCII file named FSFPHELP.HLP.
You may print it to a printer or even add comments to it if it helps you
use the product more efficiently.  However, do not delete/change (1) any
of the lines that begin with an *, (2) any part dealing with
registration of this software, or (3) the about section.




MS refers to Microsoft Corporation.  MS, Microsoft, the Microsoft logo,
Microsoft Mouse, and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Microsoft
Corporation.

A&SD is a product put out by and copyright by Microsoft Corporation and
Bruce Artwick Organization, Ltd. (BAO).

Flight Simulator is a registered trademark of Bruce Artwick
Organization, Ltd. (BAO).

SD's are scenery products put out by SubLOGIC.







Major features offered by this version include the following:

PLANNING
--------
Manual as well as COMPUTER GENERATED flight plans (just specify the
Origination and Destination points and RMM FP will plot an entire flight
plan for you).  Flight plans are automatically computed to take into
account: (1) Wind effect on heading and speed and (2) Additional time
required during climbs and descents due to slower speeds (the altitude
from airport to cruise is also a factor).

COMPUTER GENERATED flight plans allow you to tailor the algorithm used
to search for points to place in your flight plan.  You can set the
search engine to find only VOR's (IFR), mainly VOR's - airports may be
included (IFR*), Airports only (VFR), or Both - gives (usually the
shortest) flight plan that does not select points based on type, only on
the basis that it reduces the distance to go the most (taking into
account the search range).  You can also set what the search range to
use will be (in miles).  The default is 60 miles which is the distance
that a *standard* VOR in FS will reach.

Note: On computer generated plans, it is recommended that you first
create them with no wind.  Then use the EDIT command to add in a wind
effect.  This is recommended because RMM FP selects points based
partially on which one gives a heading with the least deviation from a
straight line.  Hence, wind may fool the auto generator due to headings
being different from the true flight path (wind effect).

REPORTING
---------
Detail reporting of flight plans to printer or file, summary reporting
to screen, and high-resolution on-screen color plotting complete with
VOR symbols, and Prefix/Frequency labels.  The program will
automatically detect the type of video hardware you are using
(CGA/EGA/or VGA) and use the best resolution available.  This can be
over-ruled by providing a /C, /E, or /V (respectively) at the command
prompt level (ex. FSFP.EXE /E will run RMM FP and show plots in EGA
mode).

UTILITIES
---------
Utilities to calculate (1) Wind correction headings and effective ground
speed; (2) when to start descents given alt, descent rate, and speed;
(3) at what rate to descend given alt, distance, and speed.

There is also an option to allow you to temporarily jump to the DOS
prompt.  This way you can do a directory to see (for example) what
databases or flight plans you have on the disk.  To jump back to RMM FP,
type EXIT and press ENTER.

DATABASE EDITOR
---------------
Complete database editor with ability to (1) display current database
points/locations to the screen/printer sorted by either prefix or
description; (2) Plot a map of all navaids or just those within a
certain number of miles from a given location; (3) Add/Edit/Delete
information in the databases; (4) Re-sort/index the database (required
when changes have been made).

NOTE: The evaluation version of RMM FP has the Add/Edit/Delete disabled
and includes only the SD-9 and FS Default scenery areas.

OPTIONS/DEFAULTS
----------------
Program defaults can be changed and stored for individual user
tailoring.  Defaults include Pilot's name, Aircraft, Climb speed/rate,
Descend speed/rate, Cruise speed/altitude, and the database to use.  All
this information is used to compute ETE's as accurately as possible.

In addition to the above, you store how you want to select menu items -
single keystroke or keystroke and ENTER.

To accommodate the many types of printers on the market, the user can
store their printer's setup strings for regular and compressed printing.
The two different print styles are used for the Detail Flight Plan
printouts, to enhance the quality and maximize the amount of printed
information concerning each waypoint in the plan.

WIND
----
Wind can be entered as a component in the flight plans.  If entered, the
flight plans will show new headings and ETE's due to the effect of Wind.

REGISTRATION
------------
If you have not registered your copy of RMM FP, please read the help
section entitled REGISTER for information on how to do so.  There are
several incentives to registering and they are listed in the HELP-
REGISTER screen.
***************
*How To
The menus in RMM FP follow the Windows and IBM SAA standard for menu
contents and selection method (except that these are vertical menus
instead of horizontal-pulldown).  Hence, All commands found under FILE
are as one would intuitively expect, Next is EDIT, ..., with HELP as the
last item.

As in Windows applications, EXIT is in the FILE menu.

All menu items are selected by pressing the indicated letter - the one
with the parentheses () around it.  You can set (in the OPTIONS-DEFAULTS
menu) how menus are selected; either with a single keystroke, or the
keystroke and ENTER.  The program initially defaults to requiring ENTER.
To jump out of ANY menu, command, or screen;  back to the main menu,
press the ESCAPE key.  If you hear a beep, then you have pressed a key
that is not one of the expected keystrokes by the package.  The bottom
line of the screen will display the available keystrokes you can use
when in non-menu screens (such as Edit, Help, etc.).

When asked for a point/location, the package always expects the 3-5
letter prefix.  The prefix can be entered in upper or lower or mixed
case.  If you do not know the prefix, press ESCAPE and select DATABASE-
LIST by Airport to lookup the prefix of your desired location.
All entries regarding altitude are to be entered in feet above sea
level.

All entries regarding climb/descend rates are to be entered in
feet/minute.

During input or edit of a flight plan, if you make a mistake on one of
the general entries (pilot name, A/C, etc.), make a mental note, proceed
with the remaining entries and then press the key to save.  Then choose
EDIT from the main menu and correct your previous mistake.

During any editing of data, if you want to keep the field unchanged and
proceed to the next field, then press (ENTER).  You do not need to re-
key the data for the field.
All references to a filename should follow the standard DOS file naming
convention (1-8 chars plus a 1-3 character extension, no spaces, etc.).

If you ever see the message "Current Database not sorted..." or "New
Database or not sorted...", then your very next command should be a
DATABASE-SORT.  RMM FP depends on there being a valid, sorted index for
every database (.FPD).  If an index is missing or has become invalid
(due to modifications to the databases w/o re-sorting, or some other
reason) RMM FP will attempt to catch this condition and warn you with a
message as such.  If you continue and try to generate flight plans,
etc., then RMM FP may halt execution and return you to the DOS prompt.
To correct the situation, merely execute a DATABASE-SORT command.

When specifying a database to use (OPTIONS-DATABASE), you do not need to
enter the default .FPD extension.  RMM FP automatically appends .FPD to
all database files.  To assist you in choosing the correct database
name, RMM FP will display all the databases you currently have stored on
your disk.
When specifying a flight plan to use (FILE-OPEN) or save (FILE-
NEW/EDIT), you do not need to enter the default .PLN extension.  RMM FP
automatically appends .PLN to all flight plan files.  To assist you in
choosing the correct flight plan name, RMM FP will display all the
flight plans you currently have stored on your disk.
*********
*Printing
When selecting the Print Detail Flight Plan to Printer option from the
REPORTS menu, several steps must be in place for the command to execute
correctly.

    (1)  You must have previously entered the Printer Set-up string for
REGULAR and COMPRESSED print via the OPTIONS menu.  Below are the
correct strings for an HP Laserjet and for an Epson dot-matrix printer:

     HP Laserjet - REGULAR    - \027\038\107\048\083
               COMPRESSED - \027\038\107\050\083

     Epson       - REGULAR    - \018
               COMPRESSED - \015

Other printers should have the codes listed in their manuals.  The
syntax is \xxx where xxx is the 3-digit decimal code for the character
required by the printer.  Separate each code with a \.  Be sure to use a
zero, and NOT an oh (o).
    (2)  Your printer must be set to the top-of-form and should be set
to 66 lines per page. (HP Laserjet users will need to change theirs,
since a Laserjet defaults to 60 lines per page)

    (3)  Your printer must be turned on, and on-line.

Due to the amount of detail that RMM FP provides you in the printed
reports, COMPRESSED printing is used to maximize the use of paper.  RMM
FP assumes that with the compressed setup string, it will be able to
print 132 columns on 8-1/2 x 11 size paper.

RMM FP has no provisions for capturing or printing out either the maps
or the plots. However, this is quite possible to do with shareware and
commercial programs running as terminate-and-stay-resident utilities.
Two popular screen "grabbers" are FRIEZE and GRAB.  These programs, and
others like them, can literally capture the screen; it is then up to you
to print that screen as best you can, in most cases from the "parent"
program.  Another popular grabber has exactly that name, GRABBER, and is
shareware written by Gerald Monroe. A demo of it is available in library
10 of the GAMERS forum on Compuserve.  For both grabbing and printing in
the same program, Pizazz Plus (version 1.2 or higher; Applications
Techniques, Inc.) is most useful. The advantage of Pizazz Plus is that
one can grab the screen, save it to a file (several options available
here), and/or print it directly to a printer. An additional advantage is
that one can vary one or more colors after grabbing and before saving or
printing. This is especially useful in toning down the black backgrounds
of the maps and plots generated by RMM FP.
*************
*Use of Color
Color is used through out the package to help make the product easier to
use and more visible to the user.  The following tables list the colors
used and their significance...

GENERAL
-------
Cyan is used for prompts and descriptions.
Yellow is used for user input.
Green (flashing) is used for options at the bottom of the screens and
also for the notice to re-sort the database (when needed).

EDIT/NEW-MANUAL/SUMMARY REPORT
------------------------------
Dark Green if the point is an Airport
Bright Green if the point is an Airport with a VOR
Lt. Blue if the point is an airport, where a landing is scheduled
Magenta if the point is a VOR/NDB.

PLOTS
-----
CGA------------------------------------------------------------------
| Airports | Landing |  VOR   | Radial |  VOR   | Course  |   Text   |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
| lt Cyan  | White   | Lt Mag | Lt Mag | Lt Mag | Lt Cyan | White    |
 --------------------------------------------------------------------

EGA/VGA--------------------------------------------------------------
| Airports | Landing |  VOR   | Radial |  VOR   | Course  |   Text   |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Green    | Lt Blue | Mag    | Yellow | Red    | White   | Br White |
 --------------------------------------------------------------------





DATABASE LIST TO SCREEN
-----------------------
Dark Green if the point is an Airport
Bright Green if the point is an Airport with a VOR
Magenta if the point is a VOR only
Brown if the point is an NDB (not supported currently)
*********
*Database
The database editor allows you to List, Add, Edit, Delete, and/or Sort
the points stored in the current database (the current database is set
by the user in the OPTIONS menu).

Each record in the database has the following information stored in it
about the point/location:

Prefix (3-5 letters) with an appended * or # if required (* for
unofficial prefixes, and # for a VOR prefix which is the same as an
airport), Full name (up to 20 characters), State (2-letter
abbreviation), Scenery disk name (up to 8 characters, ex: SD7, HAWAII,
etc.), North and East coordinates (as listed in the scenery disks -
example: Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) is at 13510N, 13248E), Altitude (feet
above sea level), Cant degree (taken from the map supplied with the
scenery disks, entered in +/- degrees - example: Japan scenery disk is
canted +26 degrees), Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) (up to 50 characters),
frequency of VOR (or NDB if point is an NDB - NOTE: NDB's may be input,
but are not supported at this time), ATIS/Control Tower frequency, is
Fuel available (Y/N) (if the point is an airport), is VASI approach
lighting available (Y/N) (if the point is an airport), and [Up to seven
of each of the following] Runway Number (using (L)eft, (R)ight, or
(C)enter letter identifiers for multiple runways with the same heading),
length (feet), ILS approach frequency, Inner/Middle/Outer marker
distances (in miles).

LIST - This command will list the points in the current database by
their 3-5 letter prefix/identifier.  All VOR's that have the same prefix
as an airport will have a # appended to the prefix (Example: Dallas-Ft.
Worth's VOR would be called DFW# and the airport would be DFW).  All
unofficial prefixes will have an * appended indicating the prefix was
guessed and may be incorrect.  After the first screen is displayed, you
can select (C) to continue to the next page (if there is anymore data),
(R) to restart the list from the beginning, or (A) to show the list
sorted by Airport Name (rather than prefix).  Note: If you choose (A),
then the option becomes (P) to enable you to go back and see the data
listed by prefix again.
PLOT - This command allows you to plot a map of NavAids.  You can select
to plot (1) all available NavAids in the current database, or (2) only
those within a given radius of miles from a given point.  If you select
the option to plot only within a given radius, RMM FP will prompt you
for the prefix of the point to center on -and- for how many miles from
that point to select plot objects (ex. To see all NavAids within 50
miles of Chicago O'Hare, you would first supply "ORD" and then "50").
Next RMM FP will generate a plot identical to the plots of flight plans,
except that there are no lines representing flight paths.  If your
screen is too congested to read, then select a smaller radius (same
effect as zooming in).  To see more (zoom out), supply a larger radius.
This option is offered to allow you to graphically see where NavAids are
in respect to the point you give.  This can be a help in manually
creating flight plans, or for editing Auto-Plan generated flight plans.
After the plot is done, press any key to return to the main menu.

ADD - This command allows you to add a point to the database.  (NOTE: AT
ANY TIME DURING THE ADD SCREENS, (ESC) WILL ABORT AND TAKE YOU BACK TO
THE MAIN MENU).  If you want to add to a new database or to an existing
database, select this command.  You will be asked for the name of the
prefix to add.  Enter a 3-5 letter identifier for the point.  Always try
to use the current real-world prefix.  If you do not know the prefix,
then enter a best guess but append an * to the prefix.  This will allow
you and others to know that the prefix may not be correct (Example:
Treasure Cay in the Bahamas could be guessed to be TCY, and you add the
asterisk to get TCY*).  For VOR's with the same prefix as an airport,
append a # to the prefix.  The program will then search the current
database to be sure that there is not a listing with that prefix already
entered.  If not, you will be presented with a screen in which to enter
the data about the point.  When done entering you will be given the
option to (C)hange the inputs just made or to go ahead and (A)dd the
point to the database.  If you choose (A)dd, the point will be added,
but then the database will need to be re-sorted to ensure that database
lookups will work correctly.  You will receive a flashing notice on the
main menu to remind you.  The notice will stay there until you re-sort
the data with the DATABASE-SORT command.
EDIT - This command allows you edit a point in the database.  (NOTE: AT
ANY TIME DURING THE EDIT SCREENS, (ESC) WILL ABORT AND TAKE YOU BACK TO
THE MAIN MENU).  You will be asked for the name of the prefix to edit.
Enter a 3-5 letter identifier for the point.  Remember that unofficial
prefixes end with an *, and VOR's with the same prefix as an airport end
with a #.  The program will then search the current database to be sure
that the prefix exists.  After it finds the point, it will display it on
the screen.  If you are sure this is the point you want to edit, then
press (E).  You may change any part of the record.  To keep the current
value of field, just press (ENTER).  The last value will remain and the
cursor will jump to the next field.  Make your change(s) and/or press
(ENTER) to keep the old values until you have done all the fields on the
screen.  You will then be given the options to either (E)dit the data
again, or (S)ave the changes.  If you choose save AND you changed the
prefix of the record, you will receive a flashing notice on the main
menu to remind you that the database will need to be re-sorted.  The
notice will stay there until you re-sort the data with the DATABASE-SORT
command.
DELETE - This command will delete a point from the database.  (NOTE: AT
ANY TIME DURING THE DELETE SCREENS, (ESC) WILL ABORT AND TAKE YOU BACK
TO THE MAIN MENU).  You will be asked for the name of the prefix to
delete.  Enter a 3-5 letter identifier for the point.  Remember that
unofficial prefixes end with an *, and VOR's with the same prefix as an
airport end with a #.  The program will then search the current database
to be sure that the prefix exists.  After it finds the point, it will
display it on the screen.  If you are sure this is the point you want to
delete, then press (D).  The point is then assigned a delete code of
(zzzzz) in the identifier.  You will receive a flashing notice on the
main menu to remind you that the database will need to be re-sorted.
The notice will stay there until you re-sort the data with the DATABASE-
SORT command.  When you do the re-sort, the point will then be
physically removed from the database.  Hence; if you wish to un-delete a
point, locate the prefix zzzzz (five z's) and change the prefix back to
the desired identifier (This will only work if you have NOT re-sorted
the database yet!).

SORT - This command does the following steps:

       (1) Sorts the current index
       (2) Saves out sorted database to temp file and
       removes records flagged for delete
       (3) Renames old version with .BAK extension
       as a backup
       (4) Renames temp file to new .FPD database file
       (5) Creates new index for sorted database with
       deleted records removed.

Always execute this command if you get the flashing message at the main
menu about re-sorting.  After execution of SORT, the flashing message is
removed.




CREATING YOUR OWN SCENERY AREA DATABASES
----------------------------------------
To CREATE a new scenery disk database, you need to follow these four (4)
basic steps:

(1)  Set Default Database to the name of the New Database (OPTIONS-SET
DATABASE command).  You will get an error message saying the file is new
or has not been sorted.  This is OK, just continue by pressing ENTER.

(2)  Add points to the database (DATABASE-ADD command).  The best
references for the information that goes into each point are the scenery
disk documentation, the AOPA Airport directories, and Sectional
Aeronautical charts.  I recommend you view a point from an existing
database to see the type of information that is entered (use the
DATABASE-EDIT command, but when the point is displayed; do not press (E)
at the flashing (E)dit Point message, instead press (ESC)).

(3)  Edit any mistakes (DATABASE EDIT command).
(4)  Delete any unwanted points (DATABASE DELETE command).

(5)  Sort the database (DATABASE-SORT command).  You may want to
periodically sort the database (try every 5-10 points) to ensure that
you are not getting any duplicate entries.  ADD can only detect
duplicates accurately, if the database has been sorted.

COMBINING DATABASES
-------------------
If you wish to create a flight plan that traverses two or more
databases, you can combine them into one new database.  This will allow
you (or Auto-Plan) to generate the entire flight plan in one file.
Follow these steps to create combined databases:

1) Decide which databases you want to combine and write down their
filenames (ex. SD-9.FPD, SD-11.FPD, SD-12.FPD).

2) Decide on a name for the new database (ex. CHI-BOS.FPD).
3) Issue the following command (from the DOS prompt)...

   Copy <file1>+<file2>[+<fileX>...] <newfilename>

   Example: Copy SD-9.FPD + SD-11.FPD + SD-12.FPD  CHI-BOS.FPD

4) Your database has now been created.  NOTE, your original databases
are STILL intact!  This process does not delete, rename, or change them
in any way.  All it does is create a NEW database that has all the info
from the databases you combined.

5) When you select this new database from the OPTIONS-DATABASE command,
you will get a message that the database is not sorted.  Your very next
command should be a DATABASE-SORT command.  When the sort is done, your
new database is ready to use!
*********
*MS A&SD
Microsoft's Aircraft & Scenery Designer (MS A&SD)

This information is preliminary and subject to change, since I have not
yet obtained MS A&SD.  I believe that any airports and/or VOR's that you
create with MS A&SD can be added to the databases of RMM FP.  MS A&SD
uses longitude/latitude coordinates and RMM FP uses north/east
coordinates.  To convert your MS A&SD scenery to north/east coordinates,
follow these steps:

(1) Create your scenery with MS A&SD.
(2) Load FS4 and the new scenery.
(3) Place yourself in the center of your new scenery
(4) Select FS menu 5-Nav/Com, Option A-Position Set.  The screen will
then display the north and east coordinates of your scenery.
(5) Write down the rounded north and east coordinates (RMM FP uses only
the whole number (no decimals) coordinates).
(6) Repeat the above for each new scenery that you want to add to RMM FP
databases.
If you create interesting visual scenery that is not an airport or
navaid (such as cars, buildings, etc.), you may edit RMM FP databases to
include references to these in the NOTAM field (Notice to Airmen). The
NOTAM field is a 50 char text field designed for letting the FS pilot
know about interesting and/or vital information concerning the point
being flown to/from.
*********
*Register
Version EVAL-90.1201 of RMM FP is distributed as a shareware product.
The evaluation version has the database editor code removed and includes
only the SD-9 and FS-Default scenery.

If you find RMM FP to be useful and would like to add it to your
collection of FS enhancements, you must register the package by:

    (1)     Sending $15 US (RMM FP license fee) to

        Christopher & Mathieu MacKay ( <== checks payable to )
        RMM Consulting
        977 N. Rustic Circle
        Dallas, TX 75218   USA

    (2)     In addition, include a return mailing address, user's name &
        company (if applicable), CIS ID (if you have one), telephone,
        preferred disk size, & the program that you are registering.

Registered Users will receive an uncrippled version (i.e. the database
editor is enabled) and as a bonus, the scenery areas included on Scenery
Disk #4 (Added especially for the Flyin III to be held on Compuserve
1/21/91).

All software and databases are sold as is and do not carry any
guarantees of any kind as to accuracy/completeness of data or liability
due to this product.  Sorry folks, this is merely a program to help you
have more fun with your flight simulation software.  It can not (and is
not to) be used for real-world planning and/or navigation.

The next screen gives additional scenery pricing and special package
offerings...





Additional RMM FP scenery areas can be ordered at the following prices:

    (1) Scenery 1-6.   : $10 for the RMM FP set.

    (2) Scenery 7,11   : $7.50 for the RMM FP set.
         8,10,12   : $5.00 each (RMM FP Disks should be available
             3-5 weeks after release from the manufacturer
             (at this time: SubLOGIC).

    (3) Scenery Europe,: $5.00 each.
           Japan, &
         Hawaii

    (4) Package #1     : Scenery 1-6, 7, 9, 11, Europe, Japan, and
             Hawaii.  The whole RMM FP set for $30.00.

    (5) Package #2     : Package #1 plus the License, all for $40.00.

All software is mailed via US MAIL 3-day delivery.  Include disk size
3.5 or 5.25L/H needed.  For faster delivery include an additional
note mentioning the method desired and the following amount of $ US:

    (1) Std US Mail  - $ 2.50 surcharge per order.
    (2) Express Mail - $15.00 surcharge per order.
    (3) CIS Electronic Mail - $6.00 per order.

All payments should be made with check or money order.  Direct all
questions concerning the software to me via either CIS Mail or Gamer's
forum on section 10/12.

Thank you,     Robert M. MacKay ... CIS ID# 71641,2321
           RMM FP author

Special thanks to Jim Ross for help with the scenery databases and to
all who were involved in the beta testing.
******
*About

      Program    : RMM FP
      Description: Flight Simulator Flight Planning Package

      Version    : EVAL-90.1201
      Author     : Robert M. MacKay
      CIS ID     : 71641,2321


      Copyright (c) 1986-1990
      RMM Consulting
      All Rights Reserved


      Please see the Help section entitled REGISTER for information on
      how to properly register this product.
*******