SmoothFlight

Microsoft/Asobo has claimed that they already do what SmoothFlight does, and so this project has taken a back-seat to more pressing projects.

At this point I don't see any reason to keep chasing a moving target, as Microsoft has stated that they are essentially already doing this type of performance mod - but only for XBox users, and that to bring it over to PC would be fairly easy.     ~ and that sounds like they'll do it sooner rather than later.     So, on one hand, it appears that we have done what we set out to do - and that is to get MS/Asobo's attention that we need dynamic scenery.    On the other hand, it feels like we're the pawns in a much larger battle when they said:  "Oh yeah, we already do that.  It works very well".

I'll admit it's a bit depressing to see that this project won't have a long life after all.   So we'll continue to use this as long as we can - but no  promises as to longevity.      There may come a day (and soon) when I'll no longer be able to keep this working.   Thanks to ResetXPDR for offering me his code to do a "sanity check" on the memory locations and data.   It will help keep this around a bit longer.

Also, I'm very appreciative of all who donated to this project.   I was able to pay the programmer I hired and I feel pretty good to be able to give him something for his time.   But now that Microsoft has essentially cut the legs off this project and plans to include their own version of it in the sim, I don't feel right in accepting any donations for a tool that could just stop working any day now.    So thanks ever so much....  but feel free to check out some of my other creations.   There are 30+ race tracks to play on if you want a good challenge.  

Check these out:   Aircraft/ helicopterTracks , and also you can see the Vehicle Racing tracks on  FlightSim.to: JuiceGoose tracks on FlightSim.to 

I made a  couple small changes and am releasing build 58.  This adds 3 small indicator lights to the "Mini-Mode"...as well as some other small tweaks.   If Smooth Flight has trouble mapping memory locations, just restart it.   It appears to be fine upon a re-try.   I hope it continues to work for you for many months to come.  I still use it every flight, although it tends to be the size of a post-it-note on the dash somewhere.   In VR it's very un-obtrusive.   Shrink it down to post-it-note size and stick it on the A-Pillar.    It's like it was designed to go there.  

And if you're still unsure about the "best way to set it up"....   try this.    

1.  Set your FPS range so that you can easily hit the TOP number when flying in a easy-to-render area.  That way, SmoothFlight will turn your Terrain LOD settings up where you want them and essentially leave you alone on a normal flight, as intended / designed.  You won't notice any difference between this and not running SmoothFlight... because there won't BE any.

2. Then go into the "Limits" section and set your upper limit for Terrain LOD to what you like to set your TLOD to.    This doesn't waste any horsepower on ultra-high LOD settings that you can't enjoy anyway.

3. Set the lower LOD limits to 10 so that SmoothFlight can turn them down when you get into FPS trouble.   

4. Go fly.   Adjust as necessary, but just remember, SmoothFlight isn't a magic pill.  It's not going to give you power that your GPU and CPU don't have.     If your system can't hit 55 FPS on a clear day with a tailwind, don't set it up like the picture.   Pick a reasonable value.

It does essentially 3 things, and understanding this will really help you if you can grasp the concept:

4. 1. It leaves you alone when things are going well and you're flying in an easy-to-render area.  It will make sure your TLOD is up where you want it, so you don't have to keep fiddling with it.   

   2.   Then, when you get close to a major metropolitan area or approach a thunderstorm with clouds on High, or join up with a large  multiplayer group, it turns down some graphical load when things are getting choppy.

   3.  And if there is a bit of magic going on, it's this:    SmoothFlight gives your CPU/GPU just a little bit of "headroom" so that normal stutters can be absorbed.   If your system is running at 100%, even micro-stutters are going to give you noticeable artifacts.   But when your system is running at 97%, it has a greater chance of absorbing these minor inconveniences without you seeing them.    And without you noticing how it's done.    This is the real power of SmoothFlight.

OH... one more thing:   SmoothFlight depends on your sim telling it how many FPS it's actually getting. It can't do that if the sim is lying to it.     So if you're using any kind of ASW, Frame Generation, Motion reprojection...half-framerate spoofing, it can't function properly.    If the sim always reports 45 FPS, it can't work right.    It will either keep turning your graphics down or up depending on where you set your thresholds.  So please, at the very least TRY it as designed before you give it an ill-informed review.

So this is best suited for those who want to get rid of ASW for good and all the artifacts that are associated with that.    Don't be fooled by the numbers.   You don't need to hit 65 FPS to get a nice flying experience.   You might be completely surprised at how smooth and fluid 42 FPS looks with no ASW.  I sure was.