* LeeE -- Friday 02 May 2008: > I am curious about why using the tail location as the visual > reference point is abusing the FDM's internal reference > system but using the nose is not.
That's a misunderstanding. I didn't mean that one place is OK, and another is an abuse. What I meant to say is that fgfs mandating *any* particular internal(!) FDM reference point only for easier positioning is an abuse. The nose isn't used because of that, but rewriting the FDM config files to use the tail would be. (Not all aircraft use the nose, anyway. The bo105 uses the main rotor axis. :-) So, if positioning should be made easier, then not the internal FDM reference point should be changed, but there should simply be an offset from the reference point. That's AFAIK what JSBSim does already, and what YASim could easily do. > Isn't the chase distance, along with the view angle, a user > preference setting? If so, how can we justify saying that a user > preference is set badly? Chase distance isn't (usually) a user preference. It's something that the aircraft developer defines. And I did intentionally say "badly", and not "wrongly". Look at the 737-300, for example. The chase view doesn't exactly "chase" the 737. It almost sits on the tail! You don't even see the whole aircraft at once, can't really follow its movements nicely. The 777-200ER is much better, though still a tad to close IMHO. (AN-225 -> too close :-) Normally it would only be a matter of taste. The aircraft developer defines it how s/he likes it best. But because this is the main indicator for the aircraft size and useful for other view related things, it would be better if used consistently. (Sure, I could also count the number of tanks/wheels/engines/... :-) (Fly-by needs the size for calculating the sideways distance from the "predicted" target point, but also for determining the distance threshold under which the view point shouldn't be changed at all, because the aircraft is hovering, taxiing very slowly, etc.) m. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- This SF.net email is sponsored by the 2008 JavaOne(SM) Conference Don't miss this year's exciting event. There's still time to save $100. Use priority code J8TL2D2. http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;198757673;13503038;p?http://java.sun.com/javaone _______________________________________________ Flightgear-devel mailing list Flightgear-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/flightgear-devel
