source: doc/manual/en/index.html@ 303:8d5607e36aed

version_0.6
Last change on this file since 303:8d5607e36aed was 285:18596b688f06, checked in by István Váradi <ivaradi@…>, 12 years ago

Added information on the callout editor
File size: 42.2 KB
Line 
1<html>
2<head>
3 <title>MAVA Logger X User's Manual</title>
4 <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />
5</head>
6<body>
7 <div align="center"><h1>MAVA Logger X User's Manual</h1></div>
8
9 <h2><a name="overview">Overview</a></h2>
10
11 <p>
12 MAVA Logger X is an application that monitors the execution of a
13 Malév Virtual flight, and collects data that can be sent to
14 the <a href="http://virtualairlines.hu">MAVA website</a> for further
15 evaluation. This manual describes how to use this program. To be
16 able to use all features of the program, you need to have a working
17 Internet connection, even if you don't fly on-line on VATSIM or
18 IVAO. However, it is possible to perform a flight completely offline
19 as well.
20 </p>
21
22 <p><a name="flightRating"/>
23 While monitoring your flight, the program continuously checks if your
24 airplane's configuration is always within the parameters prescribed
25 by the airline's operating procedures. For example, you have to turn
26 on or off the various lights of your aircraft according to rules,
27 you cannot exceed certain weight or speed limits, and so on. Any
28 deviation from the expected parameters, also known as a fault, can
29 result in points subtracted from the initial 100 points (or
30 percentage). The result is your <i>flight rating</i>. Some
31 deviations are so serious, that they are deemed <i>NO GO</i> faults
32 and result in the rejection of your flight.
33 </p>
34
35 <p>
36 Besides the faults the program also monitors many other parameters,
37 which are recorded in a textual <a href="#logTab"><i>log</i></a>.
38 This log is sent as a part of your PIREP
39 (<b>PI</b>lot's <b>REP</b>ort), and will be analyzed, and possibly
40 commented on by more experienced pilots of Malév Virtual. This way
41 you can perfect the way you execute your flights.
42 </p>
43
44 <p><a name="flightStages"/>
45 The application breaks up your flight into
46 several <i>stage</i>s. The advancement from one stage to another is
47 detected automatically. These stages and the conditions under which
48 they are entered are as follows:
49 <ol>
50 <li><b>boarding</b>: This is the initial stage when you start the
51 flight.</li>
52 <li><b>push-back and taxi</b>: If you release the parking brakes
53 or your ground speed becomes 5 knots or greater during the
54 boarding stage, your flight enters this stage.</li>
55 <li><b>takeoff</b>: If you turn on the landing and/or the strobe
56 lights or your ground speed exceeds 80 knots during taxi or after
57 a rejected takeoff (RTO).</li>
58 <li><b>climb</b>: When you retract the gears or you reach 3000
59 feet altitude AGL with a positive climb rate after takeoff.</li>
60 <li><b>RTO</b>: If you switch off both the landing and the
61 strobe lights, and your speed is reduced below 50 knots while on
62 the ground during takeoff.</li>
63 <li><b>cruise</b>: When the aircraft's altitude is within 2000
64 feet of the cruise altitude and you are climbing.</li>
65 <li><b>descent</b>: If the altitude decreases to more than 2000
66 feet below the cruise altitude during cruise.</li>
67 <li><b>landing</b>: If the gears are lowered and the altitude is
68 less than 2000 feet AGL during descent or go-around.</li>
69 <li><b>go-around</b>: If you retract the gears during landing.</li>
70 <li><b>taxi after landing</b>: When the aircraft is in the
71 ground and its ground speed is below 50 knots after landing.</li>
72 <li><b>parking</b>: If the parking brake is activated after taxi.</li>
73 <li><b>end</b>: If the N<sub>1</sub> of the turbines becomes
74 less than 0.5, or the RPM of the piston engines becomes 0 during
75 parking. This is the final stage.</li>
76 </ol>
77
78 <p>
79 To enhance the simulation, the program can play various
80 <a href="#prefsSounds">sound</a> files
81 during the various stages of your flight, such as the announcements
82 made by the flight attendants. These files are supplied with the
83 application, and they can be played automatically, or when you press
84 a certain hotkey in the flight simulator. You can also organize
85 pre-recorded sound files
86 into <a href="#checklistEditor">checklists</a> for the each aircraft
87 type, and these files can also be played back one-by-one when you
88 repeatedly press a key combination in the simulator. See
89 <a href="#prefsSounds">below</a> for more information on this.
90 </p>
91
92 <p><a name="onlineACARSSystem"/>
93 Malév Virtual have implemented an <i>Online ACARS System</i>, which
94 displays the status of the flights in progress. The data appears on
95 the front page of the <a href="http://virtualairlines.hu">MAVA
96 website</a> and also on a
97 <a href="http://virtualairlines.hu/acars2/show.html">map</a>.
98 </p>
99
100 <p><a name="onlineGateSystem"/>
101 Malév Virtual have also implemented an <i>Online Gate System</i>
102 which maintains a database of the aircraft in the airline's fleet
103 and their location. An aircraft may be parked at the Budapest
104 Ferihegy Airport, in which case the number of the gate or stand it
105 is located at is recorded in the database. If so, this number is
106 <a href="#connectPage">displayed</a> to you when starting your
107 flight from Ferihegy, and you are recommended to place your aircraft
108 at the indicated gate or stand in the simulator. If your flight
109 begins at Ferihegy and the aircraft is away (usually due to someone
110 else's flight), you can <a href="#gateSelectionPage">select</a>
111 from which gate or stand you start your flight. The database of the
112 Online Gate System can also be <a href="#gatesTab">displayed</a>
113 by using the application.
114 </p>
115
116 <p>
117 These online systems can only be used when flying online.
118 </p>
119
120 <p>
121 The program can automatically update itself. When it starts up, it
122 checks if there is a newer version available. If so, it downloads
123 its files and replaces the program's current files with the new
124 ones. Then the program is restarted so that you can use the new
125 version. Besides acquiring bug fixes, updating is also important,
126 because the program can be extended with new checks or more refined
127 checks, and if you are using too old a version, the PIREP reviewers
128 may refuse your flight.
129 </p>
130
131 <h3><a name="gui">Graphical User Interface</a></h3>
132
133 <p>
134 The GUI of the application is made up of traditional building blocks
135 (buttons, checkboxes, lists, text entry boxes, etc.) found in other
136 applications as well. Many such controls have informative tooltips
137 that supplement the contents of this User's Guide in helping you
138 using the application. Many controls are also accessible by pressing
139 the <b>Alt</b> plus the underlined letter in the control's label.
140 </p>
141
142 <p>
143 The most often used part of the program is the main window, to be
144 described in detail below. When you minimize or close the window, it
145 disappears by default, but the program continues to run. You can
146 redisplay the window by clicking on the tray icon of the program,
147 which looks like the one on the picture below.
148 </p>
149
150 <div align="center">
151 <table>
152 <tr>
153 <td>
154 <img src="statusIcon1.png" alt="The status icon" hspace="20"/>
155 </td>
156 <td>
157 <img src="statusIcon2.png" alt="The status icon menu" hspace="20"/>
158 </td>
159 </table>
160 </div>
161
162 <p>
163 If you click on the tray icon when the program's window is hidden,
164 the window will be displayed. If you hover the mouse pointer over
165 the icon, the flight stage and the current rating will be
166 displayed. The tray icon has a right-button menu as well with the
167 following items:
168 <ul>
169 <li><b>Show main window</b>: displays or hides the main window.</li>
170 <li><b>Show monitor window</b>: displays or hides the
171 <a href="#monitorWindow">monitor window</a>.</li>
172 <li><b>Quit</b>: quit the application. A confirmation window will
173 be displayed.</li>
174 </ul>
175 </p>
176
177 <p>
178 You can also quit the application by selecting the <b>File/Quit</b>
179 menu item, or by pressing <b>Ctrl+Q</b>.
180 </p>
181
182 <p>
183 If you start the application, when it is already running, the main
184 window of the already running instance will be displayed instead of
185 starting a new instance of the program.
186 </p>
187
188 <h2><a name="mainWindow">The Main Window</a></h2>
189
190 <p>
191 The figure below depicts the main window of the application. The top
192 of it contains the usual menu bar, which will be described in more
193 detail later. The content area consists of several tabs the use of
194 which is described below.
195 </p>
196
197 <a name="mainWindowShot"/>
198 <div align="center"><img src="mainWindow.png" alt="The main window"/></div>
199
200 <p>
201 The bottom of the window is a status bar. Its left side contains the
202 icon indicating the status of the connection to the simulator. Since
203 the application continuously monitors the parameters of your
204 aircraft, it needs to communicate with the simulator. The icon's
205 colour indicates the health of this communication channel.
206 </p>
207
208 <p>
209 If it is grey, the program is not connected. This is normal before
210 and after the flight. If it is green, the connection is alive and
211 working properly. If it is red, the connection is broken. In this
212 case a dialog window is displayed. The most likely cause for such a
213 disruption is the crash of the simulator. If this is the case,
214 restart the simulator and try to restore the flight to a state as
215 close to the one before the crash as possible. Then click
216 the <b>Reconnect</b> button, and the program will try to
217 re-establish the connection to the simulator. It preserves all data
218 of your flight, so you can continue where you left off easily.
219 </p>
220
221 <p>
222 If the reason for the failure of the connection is something else,
223 do whatever is needed to be done to restore it. Of course, it is
224 possible that the logger application itself fails, in which case
225 you, unfortunately, have to restart the flight. Do not forget to
226 notify the author if this happens. In this case, try to copy and
227 save the <a href="#debugLog">debug log</a> and send it with your bug
228 report.
229 </p>
230
231 <p>
232 If you click the <b>Cancel</b> button in the reconnection dialog,
233 the logger will be reset as if it were stopped and restarted.
234 </p>
235
236 <p>
237 To the right of the connection status icon, you can see the current
238 <a href="#flightStages">stage</a> of the flight, if the monitoring
239 has begun. Otherwise it is a single dash. It is followed by the
240 simulator time, if the program is already connected to the
241 simulator. Then comes the current <a href="#flightRating">flight rating</a>.
242 </p>
243
244 <p>
245 The right of the status bar is normally empty, but if there is some
246 potentially long operation going on (typically communicating with
247 the MAVA servers), information about the operation is displayed
248 here. This is accompanied by the cursor becoming that of signaling
249 a busy state and most parts of the main window becoming
250 unresponsive.
251 </p>
252
253 <h3><a name="tabFlight">The Flight Tab</a></h3>
254
255 <p>
256 The flight tab is the most important tab. It consists of a sequence of
257 pages similar to wizards found in many programs. The first several of
258 these pages guide you through the various steps of the preparations
259 for your flight, while the last pages allow you to enter some
260 information about your flight necessary for its evaluation and to
261 send the PIREP (Pilot's Report) assembled by the program to the MAVA
262 server.
263 </p>
264
265 <p>
266 Each page has a title at the top indicating the purpose of the
267 page. There is a short text below this, which describes what the
268 page contains and/or what is expected from you to do with the page.
269 Below the text you can find the main information and possibly data
270 entry areas for the page. Finally, you can find the button row at
271 the bottom.
272 </p>
273
274 <p>
275 Most of the pages contain two buttons: <b>Next</b> and
276 <b>Previous</b>. These help in navigating between the pages. In most
277 cases you can go back to previously visited pages by using
278 the <b>Previous</b> button, although you cannot edit the contents of
279 some of the pages once finalized by moving to the next page using
280 the <b>Next</b> button. There are a few exceptions though, as
281 detailed below.
282 </p>
283
284 <p>
285 Many of the pages also contain a <b>Cancel flight</b>
286 button. Clicking this button will allow you to cancel the flight and
287 go back to the <a href="#flightSelectionPage">flight selection</a>
288 if you have logged in to the MAVA server, or to the login page, after
289 a confirmation of your intent.
290 </p>
291
292 <h4><a name="loginPage">The <i>Login</i> Page</a></h4>
293
294 <p>
295 The program starts with the Login page (see the
296 <a href="#mainWindowShot">picture</a> above) where you can enter the
297 your pilot's ID and password for the MAVA website. Both data are
298 given to you when joining Malév Virtual. The pilot's ID usually
299 starts with the letter <q>P</q> followed by three digits.
300 </p>
301
302 <p>
303 If you check <b>Remember password</b>, the password will be saved by
304 the program, so you don't have to enter it all the time. Note,
305 however, that the password is saved in a readable form into a
306 configuration file, so you this possibility only if your home
307 directory can be accessed only by people you trust. The pilot's ID
308 is saved anyway.
309 </p>
310
311 <p>
312 If you are about to perform the entrance flight, check
313 <b>Entrance exam</b>. In this case you don't have to (and cannot)
314 enter the password, as that is not needed for the entrance exam.
315 </p>
316
317 <p>
318 The login to the MAVA server, and proceed to the next page, press
319 the <b>Login</b> button.
320 </p>
321
322 <p>
323 If you would like to fly without an Internet connection, use
324 the <b>Fly offline</b> button. This immediately takes you to the
325 next page, without trying to log in to the MAVA server.
326 </p>
327
328 <h4><a name="flightSelectionPage">The <i>Flight selection</i> Page</a></h4>
329
330 <img src="flightSelection.png" alt="The Flight selection page"/>
331
332 <p>
333 This page displays the list of the flight you have booked previously
334 on the MAVA website, if you have <a href="#loginPage">logged in</a>
335 properly. If you chose to fly offline, the list is empty.
336 </p>
337
338 <p>
339 If you have selected a flight, you can also save it by using
340 the <b>Save flight</b> button. This is useful when planning to fly
341 offline at some later time. When preparing for that flight, you can
342 properly log in to the MAVA server, and acquire the list of your
343 booked flights. Then you can save the flight you wish to perform
344 later offline, on which occasion, you can load the saved flight.
345 </p>
346
347 <p>
348 You may need to refresh the list of flights. For example, you notice
349 that you have forgotten to book the flight you want to perform. Then
350 you can book the flight on the MAVA website, and press
351 the <b>Refresh flights</b> button to update the list.
352 </p>
353
354 <p>
355 You can also load a flight from a file by pressing the <b>Load
356 flight from file</b> button. This displays a file selection dialog
357 where you select the flight file (usually with a suffix
358 of <code>.vaflight</code>). This is mostly useful when flying
359 offline, or during the entrance exam.
360 </p>
361
362 <p>
363 Select a flight from the list, and press the <b>Next</b> button to
364 proceed with that flight.
365 </p>
366
367 <h4><a name="gateSelectionPage">The <i>LHBP gate selection</i> Page</a></h4>
368
369 <img src="gateSelection.png" alt="The LHBP gate selection page"/>
370
371 <p>
372 This page is displayed after the flight selection page only if your
373 flight starts at the Budapest Ferihegy Airport and the number of the
374 gate or stand at which your aircraft is located cannot be
375 determined.
376 </p>
377
378 <p>
379 Select a number from the list presented, and press <b>Next</b>.
380 </p>
381
382 <h4><a name="connectPage">The <i>Connect to the simulator</i> Page</a></h4>
383
384 <img src="connect.png" alt="The Connect to the simulator page"/>
385
386 <p>
387 This page displays some important information about your flight,
388 such as the type and tail number of the aircraft to use, the
389 departure airport and possibly the gate.
390 </p>
391
392 <p>
393 Select the aircraft indicated and park it at the departure airport
394 in the simulator,
395 then press <b>Connect</b> to establish the connection with the
396 simulator. If the connection cannot be established, a dialog will be
397 displayed about it, and you can <b>Try again</b> the connection
398 or <b>Cancel</b> to go back to the flight selection or to the login page.
399 </p>
400
401 <p>
402 Note, that after a successful connection, the monitoring of your
403 flight does not begin immediately, but some data can be queried by
404 the logger at this stage.
405 </p>
406
407 <h4><a name="payloadPage">The <i>Payload</i> Page</a></h4>
408
409 <img src="payload.png" alt="The Payload page"/>
410
411 <p>
412 This page displays the components of the flight's payload and the
413 calculated Zero-Fuel Weight (ZFW). You can enter here the cargo
414 weight you determined for your flight. You can also press the <b>ZFW
415 from FS</b> button, which queries the ZFW from the simulator and
416 displays the retrieved value. If the ZFW calculated from the payload
417 data differs too much from the queried one, the calculated value is
418 displayed in red. This the right time to set up the payload in the
419 simulator. If you forget about it, it will be a NO GO fault.
420 </p>
421
422 <p>
423 If you have finished with this page, press the <b>Next</b>
424 button. At this point, the <a href="#helpTab"><i>Help</i> tab</a>
425 becomes available, which you can use if you have failed to set up
426 the correct payload in the simulator. See a more detailed
427 description of it <a href="#helpTab">below</a>.
428 </p>
429
430 <h4><a name="timePage">The <i>Time</i> Page</a></h4>
431
432 <img src="time.png" alt="The Time page"/>
433
434 <p>
435 This page displays the departure and arrival times of your
436 flight in UTC. Press the <b>Time from FS</b> button to query the
437 current UTC time of the simulator. To be able to simulate the real
438 lighting circumstances of the flight, the simulator's time should match
439 the time of the flight according to the schedule. Therefore you are
440 expected to set the simulator's time properly. It is recommended to
441 set it to about 15 minutes before the departure at this stage so
442 that you have enough time to set up your flight.
443 </p>
444
445 <p>
446 When you have set the time of the simulator properly, press
447 the <b>Next</b> button.
448 </p>
449
450 <h4><a name="fuelPage">The <i>Fuel</i> Page</a></h4>
451
452 <img src="fuel.png" alt="The Fuel page"/>
453
454 <p>
455 This page contains a graphical representation of the fuel tanks of
456 your aircraft. The yellowish colour represents the current level of
457 the fuel in the tank, and turquoise slider is the expected level,
458 which is also displayed numerically (in kilograms) below each graph.
459 </p>
460
461 <p>
462 You can enter the requested amount of fuel numerically, or you can
463 set it by the turquoise sliders, though this method is less accurate. The
464 lever can be moved by clicking withinin the fuel tank's representation,
465 and you can drag it if you keep the button pressed. If your mouse
466 has a wheel, that can also be used to modify the expected level. To
467 use the wheel, keep the mouse pointer within the fuel tank's
468 graphic. Each click of the wheel increment or decrements the amount
469 by 10 kilograms. If you hold down the <b>Shift</b> key, the
470 increment will be 100, if you hold down the <b>Ctrl</b> key, the
471 increment will be 1.
472 </p>
473
474 <p>
475 When all tanks have the correct amount of fuel set, press
476 the <b>Next</b> button. This causes the pumping of the fuel to
477 start. The progress is represented by the yellowish fuel bars
478 growing or shrinking (fuel may be pumped out of a tank as
479 well). This is a relatively quick process and should finish within a
480 few seconds.
481 </p>
482
483 <h4><a name="routePage">The <i>Route</i> Page</a></h4>
484
485 <img src="route.png" alt="The Route page"/>
486
487 <p>
488 This page displays the cruise level and the flight plan route. The
489 cruise level starts out at FL240, but the route comes from the
490 booked flight. Set the cruise level to the one you have calculated
491 with, and modify the flight plan if needed. For example, if you will
492 enter some airspace that will require you to change the flight
493 level, you should add that here.
494 </p>
495
496 <p>
497 When satisfied with the information on the page, press
498 the <b>Next</b> button to advance. Note, that these data can be
499 edited later as well if you come back to this page.
500 </p>
501
502 <h4><a name="briefingPage">The <i>Briefing</i> Pages</a></h4>
503
504 <img src="briefing.png" alt="The Briefing page"/>
505
506 <p>
507 These pages display the NOTAMs and the METAR for the departure and
508 the arrival airports. You can edit the METAR if your network
509 provides a different weather, or you do not fly with real
510 weather. The METAR of the arrival airport will be updated when
511 entering the landing stage, unless you have edited it before. The
512 METARs can be edited during the whole duration of the flight. If you
513 do so, please, comment on it in the <i>Comments</i> section of
514 the <a href="#flightInfoTab"><i>Flight info</i> tab</a>.
515 </p>
516
517 <p>
518 On the second briefing page (that of the arrival airport), confirm
519 that you have read the briefing and are ready to start the flight by
520 clicking the button. This begins the monitoring of your flight with
521 the boarding stage.
522 </p>
523
524 <h4><a name="takeoffPage">The <i>Takeoff</i> Page</a></h4>
525
526 <img src="takeoff.png" alt="The Takeoff page"/>
527
528 <p>
529 On this page you have to enter the name of the departure runway, the
530 name of the Standard Instrument Departure procedure you follow after
531 takeoff and the takeoff V-speeds. While you can edit these data
532 anytime, it is recommended to do so before takeoff.
533 <p>
534
535 <p>
536 Note that if you are flying one of the Tupolev or Yak aircraft, the
537 page will look different, as speeds will have to be entered in
538 kilometres per hour.
539 </p>
540
541 <p>
542 You can proceed to the next page after takeoff, and if all data has
543 been entered, by pressing the <b>Next</b> button.
544 </p>
545
546 <h4><a name="landingPage">The <i>Landing</i> Page</a></h4>
547
548 <img src="landing.png" alt="The Landing page"/>
549
550 <p>
551 On this page you have to enter the name of the STAR and/or
552 transition you planned to follow (even if you get a different one,
553 or simply vectors from ATC, in which case add a
554 <a href="#flightInfoTab">comment</a> about it),
555 the approach type (e.g. <q>ILS</q>, <q>VOR</q>, <q>VISUAL</q>,
556 etc.), the name of the landing runway, and the landing reference speed,
557 V<sub>ref</sub>. You can enter this data during the flight, or after
558 you have landed, at your discretion. Note, that if you fly one of
559 the Tupolev or Yak aircraft, the speed will have to be entered in km/h.
560 </p>
561
562 <p>
563 When you have entered all data, press the <b>Next</b> button. It is
564 active only, if the flight has ended.
565 </p>
566
567 <h4><a name="finishPage">The <i>Finish</i> Page</a></h4>
568
569 <img src="finish.png" alt="The Finish page"/>
570
571 <p>
572 This is the final page of the flight wizard. It contains a summary
573 of your flight: the rating, the flight and block times, the distance
574 flown and the amount of fuel burnt.
575 </p>
576
577 <p>
578 You also have to provide a few pieces of information. You have to
579 select the type of the flight from the list provided (scheduled,
580 old-timer, VIP, charter) and whether it was an online flight or
581 not. If you arrive at the Budapest Ferihegy Airport, and are using
582 the Online Gate System, you also need to specify the number of the
583 gate or stand you have parked you aircraft at.
584 </p>
585
586 <p>
587 With all data entered, you may want it review your flight (i.e. the
588 earlier pages or some of the other tabs), then save or send the
589 PIREP created from it. These can be accomplished by pressing one of
590 the buttons at the bottom. A saved PIREP can be loaded later and
591 sent, if the sending fails for some reason. When a PIREP is sent, it
592 becomes available for review by the designated PIREP reviewers of
593 Malév Virtual.
594 </p>
595
596 <p>
597 You can also start a new flight using the <b>New flight</b>
598 button. If you have not saved or sent the PIREP, you will be asked
599 to confirm your intention. When starting a new flight you are taken
600 to the <a href="#flightSelectionPage">flight selection page</a>, if
601 you have logged in to the MAVA server, or to
602 the <a href="#loginPage">login page</a>, if your flight has been an
603 offline flight.
604 </p>
605
606 <h3><a name="flightInfoTab">The Flight info Tab</a></h3>
607
608 <img src="flightInfoTab.png" alt="The Flight info tab"/>
609
610 <p>
611 This tab allows one to enter some additional information about the
612 flight, if necessary.
613 </p>
614
615 <p>
616 The <i>Comments</i> text area should contain any general information
617 that you would like the PIREP reviewer to know about. For example,
618 why you changed the METAR, why you lowered the gears accidentally
619 (i.e. pressed the wrong key on the keyboard), etc.
620 </p>
621
622 <p>
623 The <i>Flight defects</i> text area should contain information about
624 any problems you encountered with the plane during the flight. For
625 example an engine stopped and why (if known), that flaps could not
626 be extended or retracted, etc.
627 </p>
628
629 <p>
630 In the <i>Delay codes</i> area you can mark one or more reasons why
631 the flight was delayed, if it was. The options are self-explanatory.
632 </p>
633
634 <h3><a name="helpTab">The Help Tab</a></h3>
635
636 <img src="helpTab.png" alt="The Help tab"/>
637
638 <p>
639 This tab provides some help for calculating and setting the payload
640 weight of the aircraft. It can be used once the
641 <a href="#payloadPage"><i>Payload</i></a>
642 (i.e. the cargo weight) is finalized. To use this tab, check
643 the <b>Using help</b> checkbox. It causes the page to become
644 sensitive and filled with data. Note, that the fact of using the
645 help is <a href="#logTab">logged</a>, so the PIREP reviewers will
646 know about it.
647 </p>
648
649 <p>
650 The most important information is after the <i>Payload:</i> label,
651 which is the payload weight of the aircraft. This value should be
652 set in the simulator as the airplane's payload weight. By pressing
653 the <b>Simulator data</b> button, the data coming from the simulator
654 can be queried and displayed. If the data is out of the tolerances,
655 it is displayed in red, otherwise in green.
656 </p>
657
658 <p>
659 The gross weight is also displayed with some maximum weights of the
660 aircraft, so it can be checked or estimated if you will remain within
661 those maximums during the flight.
662 </p>
663
664 <h3><a name="logTab">The Log Tab</a></h3>
665
666 <img src="logTab.png" alt="The Log tab"/>
667
668 <p>
669 This is the main log of your flight that will be analyzed by the
670 PIREP reviewers. Its contents is generated automatically by the
671 program, and most lines are prefixed by the simulator times the
672 information in the given line belongs to.
673 </p>
674
675 <p>
676 While the log's contents is mainly useful for PIREP reviewers, it
677 can come handy when things start to happen very fast, and you have
678 no time check each fault message passing by (if you have enabled
679 such messages at all). Later, when things calm down, you can check
680 the log to see what happened exactly, so that you know why so many
681 fault points have been awarded. For example, you may even decide to
682 abort the flight, if you think some of the faults are too
683 embarrassing :) For quick identification, the lines containing the
684 fault messages are highlighted.
685 </p>
686
687 <h3><a name="gatesTab">The Gates Tab</a></h3>
688
689 <img src="gatesTab.png" alt="The Gates tab"/>
690
691 <p>
692 This tab displays information retrieved from
693 the MAVA <a href="#onlineGateSystem">Online Gate System</a>.
694 If the program needs to retrieve data, this tab's contents
695 are refreshed automatically, but you can also refresh them manually
696 anytime using the <b>Refresh data</b> button.
697 </p>
698
699 <p>
700 The left side of the tab contains the fleet information. The tail
701 number of each aircraft is listed with the plane's status, as known
702 by the Online Gate System. The two major statuses are <i>LHBP-nn</i>
703 and <i>AWAY</i>. The former indicates that the aircraft is parked at
704 the Budapest Ferihegy Airport at gate or stand <i>nn</i>, while the
705 latter one denotes that the airplane is parked at another
706 airport. Another possible status is <i>PARKED</i>, which means that
707 the airplane is parked somewhere at the Ferihegy Airport, but we
708 (or at least the Gate System) don't know where. It may happen that
709 several aircraft are parked at the same gate or stand at
710 Ferihegy. In this case the tail numbers and the statuses of those
711 airplanes are displayed in red.
712 </p>
713
714 <p>
715 The right side contains the list of the numbers of the gates and
716 parking positions. A number is black if no aircraft is positioned at
717 the corresponding gate or stand, and it is orange, if the location
718 is occupied.
719 </p>
720
721 <h3><a name="debugLog">The Debug log</a></h3>
722
723 <img src="debugLogTab.png" alt="The Debug log tab"/>
724
725 <p>
726 This tab is not visible by default, but can be displayed by
727 selecting <b>View/Show debug log</b> or by
728 pressing <b>Ctrl+D</b>. It is another kind of log, which is mainly
729 useful for debugging. If you experience some problem with the
730 program, please, include the contents of this log with your bug
731 report. It can help a lot with finding a solution to the problem.
732 </p>
733
734 <h2><a name="loadingPIREPs">Loading PIREPs</a></h2>
735
736 <p>
737 Saved PIREPs can be loaded and sent by the program. This can
738 become necessary, for example, if you cannot send a PIREP due to
739 some network problem right after your flight, or when you
740 deliberately performed a flight without connecting to the Internet.
741 </p>
742
743 <p>
744 To load a PIREP select the <b>File/Load PIREP...</b> menu option or
745 press the <b>Ctrl+L</b> key. A file selection dialog appears, from
746 which you can select the PIREP to load. If you select a valid PIREP
747 file, it will be loaded and a new window will be displayed with the
748 most important data of your flight. By clicking <b>Send
749 PIREP...</b>, the PIREP will be sent (or at least an attempt will be
750 made at sending it). A dialog window will be displayed about the
751 results of the attempt.
752 </p>
753
754 <div align="center">
755 <img src="pirepLoaded.png" alt="The loaded PIREP window"/>
756 </div>
757
758 <p>
759 You may also want to view a saved PIREP, for example, if it is a
760 PIREP about an entrance exam flight. To do so, click the <b>View
761 PIREP...</b> button. This displays the PIREP viewer window, which
762 groups the data into three tabs. The <i>Data</i> tab contains the
763 itemized data of the flight. The <i>Comments & defects</i> tab
764 displays the comments and or flight defects entered by the
765 user. The <i>Log</i> tab contains the flight log.
766 </p>
767
768 <div align="center">
769 <img src="pirepViewer.png" alt="The PIREP Viewer"/>
770 </div>
771
772 <h2><a name="checklistEditor">Editing checklists</a></h2>
773
774 <img src="checklistEditor.png" alt="The Checklist Editor"/>
775
776 <p>
777 The checklists are lists of audio files. When checklist playback is
778 enabled (see the <a href="#prefsSounds">description</a> of
779 the <i>Preferences</i> window below), and there is a checklist for
780 the type of the aircraft used for the flight, the files constituting
781 the checklist can be played one-by-one by pressing the checklist
782 hotkey repeatedly.
783 </p>
784
785 <p>
786 The checklist editor window allows for editing the checklists. It
787 can be displayed by selecting <b>Tools/Checklist Editor...</b> or
788 pressing <b>Ctrl+C</b>. The top of the window contains an aircraft
789 type selector.
790 </p>
791
792 <p>
793 The files making up the checklist for the currently selected aircraft
794 are displayed on the right. You can move a file up or down by
795 dragging it with the mouse. You can also select one or more files
796 from the list. Then you can remove them with the <b>Remove</b>
797 button, or move them up or down by pressing <b>Move up</b>
798 and <b>Move down</b>.
799 </p>
800
801 <p>
802 To add new files to the checklist, select them in the file selector
803 on the left, and press <b>Add to checklist</b>. The file(s) will be
804 appended to the end of the checklist.
805 </p>
806
807 <p>
808 Note, that any changes you make are effective only if you press
809 the <b>OK</b> button when having finished the modifications. If the
810 flight has already started, no changes made to the corresponding
811 checklist have any effect during the flight (i.e. you will still use
812 the old checklist, or no checklist if there was none).
813 </p>
814
815 <h2><a name="calloutsEditor">Editing approach callouts</a></h2>
816
817 <img src="calloutsEditor.png" alt="The Approach callouts Editor"/>
818
819 <p>
820 The approach callouts are audio files specific to aircraft types, that are
821 played back during approach when passing certain altitudes. The
822 approach callouts editor window allows editing the list of these
823 callout files for each aircraft. The window can be displayed by
824 selecting <b>Tools/Approach Callouts Editor...</b> or by pressing
825 <b>Ctrl+E</b>.
826 </p>
827
828 <p>
829 The top part of the window displays the selector of the aircraft
830 type. Below it, you can find two buttons on the left, and the list
831 of the callouts with the altitudes they belong to on the right. The
832 list displays only the filename portion, but the if you hover the
833 cursor above an item, the full path will be displayed. The list is
834 always sorted according to the altitude, but you change the order
835 from descending to ascending.
836 </p>
837
838 <p>
839 The <b>Add new callout</b> button shows a file selection dialog
840 window. After selecting a file, it will be added to a list with some
841 altitude, which can be edited immediately. If the name of the file
842 contains a number that is possible as an altitude, that will be used
843 as the altitude given to the file, otherwise some meaningful default
844 is selected based on the lowest or highest altitude.
845 There can be no two files with the same altitude. If you set an
846 altitude, which is already present in the list, a dialog box will be
847 displayed, and you can choose to replace the old file or to continue
848 editing. To edit an altitude already in the list, select that row,
849 and click on the altitude again.
850 </p>
851
852 <p>
853 If you select one or more items in the list, the <b>Remove</b>
854 button becomes available, and pressing it will remove the selected items.
855 </p>
856
857 <p>
858 Note, that any changes you make are effective only if you press
859 the <b>OK</b> button when having finished the modifications. If the
860 flight has already started, no changes made to the corresponding
861 list of callouts have any effect during the flight.
862 </p>
863
864 <h2><a name="prefs">The Preferences Window</a></h2>
865
866 </p>
867 The Preferences window can be displayed by
868 selecting <b>Tools/Preferences</b> or by
869 pressing <b>Ctrl+P</b>. Here you can set options that you usually
870 don't have to change for every flight. This window consists of
871 tabs grouping the options logically.
872 </p>
873
874 <h3><a name="prefsGeneral">The <i>General</i> Tab<a></h3>
875
876 <img src="prefsGeneral.png" alt="The General Tab of Preferences"/>
877
878 <p>
879 These are some general settings for various parts of the
880 program. The <i>GUI</i> frame contains options regarding the
881 behaviour of the graphical user interface. The <i>Language</i> combo
882 box can be used to selected what language the program should
883 use. Currently English and Hungarian are supported. The value
884 of <i>system default</i> means that the operating system's default
885 language is used if it is one of the supported ones or English
886 otherwise. Note, that the program must be restarted for the change
887 to take effect if you modify this setting. If the <b>Hide main window
888 when minimized</b> checkbox is checked, and you minimize the window,
889 it will actually disappear completely (i.e. not appear among the
890 other minimized windows). You can make it appear by using the tray
891 icon. If the <b>Quit when the window close button is clicked</b>
892 checkbox is checked, the program will quit, after you have confirmed
893 it. Otherwise it will just disappear, and you can use the tray icon
894 to display it again.
895 </p>
896
897 <p>
898 The <i>MAVA Online Systems</i> frame contains settings related to
899 the online systems of MAVA, the <a href="#onlineGateSystem">gate</a>
900 and the <a href="#onlineACARSSystem">ACARS</a> systems mentioned
901 above. It is recommended to enable these for normal operations.
902 </p>
903
904 <p>
905 The <i>Simulator</i> frame contains settings for how the program
906 interacts with the simulator. Most options are self-explanatory, but
907 the ones related to smoothing requires some discussion. Flight
908 Simulator is known to produce wind speed changes that are not
909 entirely realistic and can result in the simulated aircraft
910 experiencing some very high indicated airspeeds, which in turn can
911 also cause the autopilot to suddenly increase the climb rate to
912 counter the high speeds or other erratic behaviour. Since these
913 phenomena are difficult to protect oneself against without buying
914 extra products, like FSUIPC, the logger provides the possibility to
915 average the IAS and/or the VS over a few seconds so that spikes in
916 these values are smoothed. The <b>Enable the smoothing of IAS/VS
917 over N sec.</b> options allow controlling this feature. The number
918 of seconds may need experimenting with, but note that every change
919 for which you press the <b>OK</b> button is taken into account
920 immediately.
921 </p>
922
923 <h3><a name="prefsMessages">The <i>Messages</i> Tab</a></h3>
924
925 <img src="prefsMessages.png" alt="The Messages Tab of Preferences"/>
926
927 <p>
928 The program can display messages about certain events in the
929 simulator and/or it can play a warning sound when those events
930 occur. The tab allows configuring this.
931 <p>
932
933 <p>
934 The categories of the message are listed on the left. These are the
935 following:
936 </p>
937
938 <ul>
939 <li><b>Logger Error Messages</b>: error messages about the
940 internal working of the logger.</li>
941 <li><b>Information Messages</b>: informational messages about,
942 e.g., the flight stage, the end of an audio checklist, etc.</li>
943 <li><b>Fault Messages</b>: messages about the non-NO GO faults the program detects.</li>
944 <li><b>NO GO Fault Messages</b>: messages about the NO GO faults the program detects</li>
945 <li><b>Gate System Messages</b>: messages related to the
946 <a href="#onlineGateSystem">Online Gate System</a>. For example,
947 when you have landed at Ferihegy, it can display the list of the
948 available gates so that you can choose where to park, if there is
949 no ATC available.</li>
950 <li><b>Environment Messages</b>: other messages, e.g. the welcome
951 message when the flight has ended.</li>
952 <li><b>Help Messages</b>: help messages, e.g. warning about
953 entering the V-speeds into the Takeoff page before takeoff.</li>
954 <li><b>Visibility Messages</b>: messages about the visibility
955 during descent and landing.</li>
956 </ul>
957
958 <p>
959 There are two checkboxes associated with each messages category. If the
960 left one (<i>Displayed in FS</i>) is checked, the messages of the
961 category will be displayed in the simulator. If the right one
962 (<i>Sound alert</i>) is checked, and a message of the given category
963 is about to be displayed, a warning sound will be played. It is
964 mainly intended to accompany the text messages, but the two options
965 can be controlled separately, so you can select the sound alert, but
966 not the displaying of the messages. This may be useful if you don't
967 want these messages to clutter up the windscreen of your aircraft,
968 but still get some notification that some problem occurred.
969 </p>
970
971 <h3><a name="prefsSounds">The <i>Sounds</i> Tab</a></h3>
972
973 <img src="prefsSounds.png" alt="The Sounds Tab of Preferences"/>
974
975 <p>
976 This tab controls how the sounds are played by the application.
977 </p>
978
979 <p>
980 The top part is for the background sounds. These are pre-recorded
981 sound files that are played when certain conditions hold during the
982 flight. Typical examples are the various announcements the flight
983 attendants make during the flight. The <b>Enable background
984 sounds</b> checkbox controls whether such sounds are enabled at
985 all. If the <b>Pilot controls sounds</b> checkbox is enabled, the
986 pilot should start the playback of these sound files by pressing a
987 hotkey in the simulator. Note, that you should still be in the right
988 flight stage (and sometimes fulfill other conditions) to be able to
989 play the sound files. Also, one file can be played only once. If you
990 enable this option, the hotkey to press in the simulator can be
991 selected below. You can choose one of the alphanumeric keys (0-9,
992 A-Z) optionally combined with one or both of the <i>Ctrl</i>
993 and <i>Shift</i> modifiers. If this checkbox is not checked, the
994 sound files will be played automatically.
995 </p>
996
997 <p>
998 If the <b>Enable approach callouts</b> checkbox is
999 checked, and you have also <a href="#calloutsEditor">set up</a>
1000 approach callouts for the aircraft being used, you will hear those
1001 callouts during approach.
1002 </p>
1003
1004 <p>
1005 If the <b>Enable speedbrake sound at touchdown</b> checkbox is
1006 checked, you will hear a distinctive sound when the spoilers deploy
1007 automatically after touchdown.
1008 </p>
1009
1010 <p>
1011 The lower part, named <i>Checklists</i> contains some settings
1012 related to the audio checklists belonging to the aircraft. They are
1013 available only if the <b>Enable aircraft-specific checklist</b>
1014 checkbox is selected. In this case another hotkey should be
1015 specified. If you press this hotkey, the next file from the
1016 checklist will be played.
1017 </p>
1018
1019 <h3><a name="prefsAdvanced">The <i>Advanced</i> Tab</a></h3>
1020
1021 <img src="prefsAdvanced.png" alt="The Advanced Tab of Preferences"/>
1022
1023 <p>
1024 This tab contains some settings that you normally should not
1025 change. Currently, these settings are related to the automatic
1026 update. If the <b>Update the program automatically</b> checkbox is
1027 not checked, the automatic update at program start-up will be
1028 omitted. The <i>Update URL</i> text entry field contains the URL
1029 from which to download the updates. Occasionally the developers of
1030 the application may tell you to change this something else, e.g. to
1031 test some development version. Or it may need to be changed due to
1032 organizational reasons, such as moving to a new server, etc.
1033 </p>
1034
1035 <h2><a name="monitorWindow">The Monitor Window</a></h2>
1036
1037 <img src="monitorWindow.png" alt="The Monitor Window"/>
1038
1039 <p>
1040 The monitor window can be used when debugging the program. You can
1041 display it by selecting <b>View/Show monitor window</b> or by
1042 pressing <b>Ctrl+M</b>. It displays the various parameters from the
1043 aircraft as read from the flight simulator. During flight, it is
1044 updated once per second. If something is not detected properly by
1045 the logger, this window can be used to determine if the problem is
1046 in interpreting and translating the data read from the simulator, or
1047 when the translated data is being evaluated by other parts of the
1048 program.
1049 </p>
1050
1051</html>
Note: See TracBrowser for help on using the repository browser.