Why not make an in depth Tutorial for the simulator ?
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a glossary is already in the works.
As a reminder, most of the acronyms are explained in the manual the first time they are used. So acronym explanation is there for those who search
That being said a list easily accessible is much better and compliment the above perfectlyWhat we have been discussing as well is to make a training mission zero to setup BMS
Take a new guy totally unaware of BMS and guide him through all the steps necessary before actually flying (explaining Callbacks, what’s needed for basic joystick assignation, TIR or not, ….The trick to that is where it starts and where it ends as there are hundreths of possible combinations and i’m sure some may be forgotten. I plead guilty in advance for already knowing I will omit the guys trying to fly BMS with a keyboard or a PS controller
Not an easy task either -
I very much like MorteSil’s idea about a familiarization section. However, I’d like to put forward another similar idea. No one teaches themselves to fly. It’s not possible. So in falcon you are pretty much thrown so far into the deep end that many give up and drown instantly. I think this is due to the fact that newbies have no idea where to begin with the manuals. The documentation is top notch but I do think it isn’t 100% user friendly if a pilot is brand new. So I think a stopgap is needed. Like MorteSil mentioned, a section would be good. But what if someone created a document similar to what a flight instructor would be. Just a short word document perhaps that a new pilot could open and it would tell them what each document is and how they are laid out. A glossary can be included with each acronym and abbreviation. This would allow new pilots to first understand what the documents are and where they can find relevant information for any question they might have. I’m not thinking of making a new 100 page manual. But a simple 2-5 pages that is more of an introduction to the sim that also has a FAQ section built from the forums. I do feel this will also reduce the amount of initial questions that are asked on the forum. Just my two cents.
Drowning is an understatement, I think I discovered a new fish
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@Chu:
Drowning is an understatement, I think I discovered a new fish
Well brother, you got to man up if you want to sim with the big dogs…this sim is a hardcore vetting machine…;)
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I +1,000,000 to the suggestion of Glossary. RD, if you need any help with that, I would like to offer my services. We could make a thread here with all the terms on it and occasionally release a PDF version for easy access.
As I have done a newbie install guide, I might do a newbie setup guide as well. We’ll see how much time the new year brings!
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So I have created a small document that I think may help new pilots get there bearings when they first start falcon. It’s only about a page and a half word doc but I’ll just paste what I’ve come up with here. Let me know what you think and if it’s something that could help the community.
"BMS Starter Guide
Hello and welcome to Benchmark Sims Falcon 4.0. BMS is the most in depth F-16 simulator currently on the market and has thousands of players around the world. This document is designed to get new pilots started in BMS. So without further ado let’s begin.
One of the most asked questions on the forums is “Where do I start?”. BMS is very complex and models almost all the Viper systems to a tee. With that in mind BMS has an extremely steep learning curve. Thankfully, the BMS devs have created top notch documents that contain a plethora of information that you will need to employ the F-16. It is important to note that all manuals are searchable so that finding certain topics is quite simple.
In your install is a docs folder that contains the BMS manuals, airport charts, cockpit diagrams, key files, operational manuals, and several other documents. You will want to start in the BMS manuals folder as this manual will only cover those manuals.
The first document is the “BMS User Manual”. This manual explains BMS as a whole. It contains instructions for install, configuration, multiplayer, and other topics related to the configuration of different settings within the sim.
Next is the “BMS Training Missions” manual. There are several Tactical Engagements or TEs already created in the sim for you. A TE is a user created mission that is more or less on rails. This manual contains all the information you will need to understand and fly the training TEs. TEs include everything from ramp start to weapons employment.
Next we have “BMS F-16CM-1” also known as the “-1”. This will be your starting point once you are ready to begin learning the aircraft. It will guide you through each button and switch in the cockpit as well as take you through very detailed procedures both normal and abnormal. This document is broken down into four sections: Section I Description and Operation, Section II Normal Procedures, Section III Abnormal and Emergency Procedures, and Section IV Flight Characteristics. Read this manual to learn how to operate the F-16.
Moving right along we finally have the “BMS F-16CM-34” or “-34”. This is your guide to all the F-16 systems and weapons. Once you have learned how to start up and fly the F-16 come here to begin learning how to employ the jet in combat. Once again this manual is broken down into chapters. Each chapter describes a different system or weapon.
Though all of these manuals are different the topics they cover generally overlap and you will need to study them all too really understand the sim. For instance while reading the -34 you may come across and acronym or abbreviation for a button or switch that is not explained. This is because section 1 in the -1 will have already explained said switch.
To avoid much confusion it is strongly recommended that you read and understand the -1 before moving onto the -34. It will make your life much easier and help you understand things better."
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That glossary is going to save lives
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Indeed! I was quite surprised when I realized there isn’t one. I was thinking about the BREVITY guide so I was confused and surprised when I realized there isn’t a glossary!
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An extremely steep learning curve….sometimes Falconeers like myself who have lived and breathed this sim for decades forget the learning curve. . I’m very much in a Zen state, one with my virtual mount, when I fly.
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@Red:
a glossary is already in the works.
…
What we have been discussing as well is to make a training mission zero to setup BMS
Take a new guy totally unaware of BMS and guide him through all the steps necessary before actually flying (explaining Callbacks, what’s needed for basic joystick assignation, TIR or not, …The trick to that is where it starts and where it ends as there are hundreths of possible combinations and i’m sure some may be forgotten. I plead guilty in advance for already knowing I will omit the guys trying to fly BMS with a keyboard or a PS controller
…I think this is a fantastic idea. Especially the callback comment. That word is very common in responses to a newer player asking about setting up the keyboard or a controller. For people with no BMS or programming experience that word may as well be farfalanginsnips. Or, we as a community should shift it to be called “commands” instead of callback. Callback is the term used in development parlance which apparently leaked through, but really you are assigning a key/button/POV/Hat to a command. But that’s not the point I suppose, I think what you describe would be a good idea, and very beneficial to a lot of players.
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Yeah, before getting to communication it would be rather splendid if I understood the actual plane and it’s systems. You start out thinking it’s all fun and games, open the manual, 5 lines into it in some foreign announcer voice you read to yourself “The heart of the onboard system is provided by the Up Front Controller (ICP & DED) and the 2 MFDs”. And then it hits you… “I have no idea what an ICP is or what a DED is or what a MFD is…” (well i got the last one relatively quick)
What follows is a little scroll through the pages just to see whats up and then you feel like you need a manual for the manual. A glossary would damn near kill that problem. should it include brief 1-2 line explanations, it might just kill it completely.
For example MFD- Multi functional Display - The screens in the cockpit that can display a variety of things such as the radar and weapon stores.
ICP- Integrated Control Panel - (well i clearly can’t explain this one too well) “Some main interface that is right under the HUD” Which brings up another point, when using an acronym in a line used to explain say… another acronym, it’s probably a safe bet to have the explanation of said acronym right before the other. So i’d explain HUD right before ICP and the DED right after that as something like
DED- Data Entry Display - The LED display to the right of the ICP ( by now I already read what an ICP is so seeing the acronym wont throw them off even for a second)
And keeping things simple without going through the details which would be shown in parts of the manuals. And the glossary could be put in a manner that places acronyms relevant to each other together. for example anything related to the Air to Ground can be clumped together as it might be more likely to be seen together when reading the manual/performing anything Air to Ground and so on…
It’s a lot of work, but for complete beginners that do seek some realistic Fighter Jet simulation, it could be the difference between dropping it or going through with it. The newbies (seen plenty bitter comments from the past to be honest) see such an insane, authentic simulator and end up giving up filled with regret, but at the same time it’s so inaccessible that they feel like they cant do jack about it.
Just imagine the community if all the people who were interested in a genuine F-16 simulator could go in, learn the thing and start improving on a steady-ish basis. A whole lot of fun is what I can see. But of course, everything is easier said than done.
Oh and the Wiki also has heaps of acronym lists in alphabetical order, but since it’s not really 100% aircraft/F-16 specific it’s still kinda scrambled.
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As I said before, knowing that ICP is “integrated control panel” isn’t as important as knowing where the ICP is and what it does. Aside from telling a newbie what an ICP means, I don’t think anyone refers to it as anything else aside from ICP. Doing a document search for “integrated control panel” won’t get you much hits as well, but do it for “ICP” and you’ll find all you need to know.
So don’t sweat it if you come across an acronym that you don’t know what the letters mean. You will, eventually, but what’s more useful is knowing what that part of the F-16 does and what it’s good for. CCIP? CCRP? You’ll rarely, if at all, find anyone talking about bombing modes and mention “continuously computed impact point” or “continuously computed repease point”, but they’ll all be talking about CCIP and CCRP.
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I understand what you’re saying, and I agree that knowing where it is, what it does, when to use it and the such is more important by far. But when reading a chunk of information and seeing all the acronyms, not knowing anything as of that moment, throws me off. It only really takes one time and an occasional refresh for a certain (low) amount of time to get what it stands for then I can go on and understand the functionality. Lets say all I’ve seen so far is ICP and what it stands for. Well, I know its a control panel in the cockpit, I can keep reading now and not have to think too much yet. But when I don’t even know what it stands for, it’s as if the sentence is being cut off because i’m unable to fill identify what im reading. It’s like a new language entirely if i don’t even know what it stands for.
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Yeap all those references are confusing but they are vastly used. It takes time and practice.
After years u will still find your self not understanding some hard core simmers or real pilots…
Then comes brevity on flights… Oh man the horror…
So it needs a substantial time and practice to keep up in the loop… If u let it go, it gets away…
So GOTS.
RTFM
GOTS.
RTFM
And I believe u got what comes next.
At some point u master the basics, then u advance to advanced staff… Tactics and becoming an efficient fighter.
Then you will say the same to new guys.
Just to clear out I still consider my self a newbie.
I see (few) v pilots that are really hardcore and they are humble and still believe they have many to learn still. The field is so vast that you will always learn and will have room to get better.
Needs talks reading participation, listening to lectures mostly on TS.
Best ways to learn is the debriefing. For me a good squad is the one that does debriefings. I miss those long talks after the main debriefing that we were analysing and talking about till Dawn. It’s so thrilling and stimulating.
No one will sit you down and upload the knowledge in your brain. Seek for it. Piece by piece. Digest it, master it, go on.Στάλθηκε από το MI 5 μου χρησιμοποιώντας Tapatalk
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Try reading it as a word and not as an acronym It’ll be much easier that way especially when you get to the more advanced stuff.
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Here is a place to start… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._Air_Force_acronyms_and_expressions And http://www.f-16.net/glossary-A.html
You’re getting overwhelmed with the small stuff. There are other sources outside of forums in a lot of cases. Just need to relax and realize that you’re not going to be Ace level in a week or two. The elephant can only be eaten one bite at a time.
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@Chu:
Drowning is an understatement, I think I discovered a new fish
I just starting with Falcon BMS not 2 months ago and I was in a hurry to kill something. I skipped around the manuals and training missions and got really confused and frustrated. I wanted to learn the Mavricks and I skipped to that training mission but it uses the terrain following radar and didn’t fully explain how to use it and I came on here asking questions only to get chewed out by Red Dog about not paying attention to the training missions and going through them in order. Apparently there is a training mission just for TFR! I went back, did them in order, took the time to sit down and read the -1 and -34 and I learned it. Just realize it’s going to take months to truely learn this thing. I still don’t get a lot of it.
One thing that has really helped me is I have a decent amount of experience in other flight sims and even in real life. I feel like Falcon assumes you already have some experience and know the basics. I definitely wouldn’t recommend it to someone for their first flight sim. It would be cool if some form of basic flight training could be incorporated into BMS for the true newbies to flying because it can be overwhelming looking at all those switches and buttons and you don’t even know how to fly a basic traffic pattern.
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Just realize it’s going to take months to truely learn this thing.
Months? Some would argue it would take years!
It would be cool if some form of basic flight training could be incorporated into BMS for the true newbies to flying because it can be overwhelming looking at all those switches and buttons and you don’t even know how to fly a basic traffic pattern.
Does the first few TEs not cover basic flight training?
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Chu - honestly - it will take you years to get up to a proficient level, that said you only get out what you put in - this is a sim (the best sim in the world) NOT a game !!!
Sorry, but that’s just the way it is - listen to all the advice you have been give and get on with it - we did !!!
Don’t let my gruff Yorkshire manner put you off ;0)
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I must be an idiot…what’s GOTS an acronym/slang for??
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I must be an idiot…what’s GOTS an acronym/slang for??
Get On The Stick!
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