FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
flight, dog, shadow - simulate the flight of any of several aircraft
flight [ -h ] [ -O ]
dog [ -h ] [ -O ] [ -i infile ] [ -o outfile ] [ -b ] [ -I ifaddr ] [ -T
ttl ]
shadow [ -i infile]
Flight is an interactive flight simulator. One large viewport shows the
world; several smaller ones simulate instruments. The world is shown
from the cockpit of an aircraft or from a control tower. The mouse and
keyboard control the aircraft and its environment.
If the -h option is selected a "heads-up" display is used instead of the
instrument panel. This kind of display is commonly used in the military.
It allows for a larger view, which results in a slower update rate. The
-O option causes the old 2D style instrument panel to be used.
Dog is a multi-player version of flight that allows players on two or
more networked IRISes to battle each other in a ``dogfight.'' Several
times a second, each workstation sends status/location packets to the
other machines using UDP multicast packets, and receives the other
planes' packets. All known planes in the current field of view are
displayed on all systems. Pilots may cooperate by attempting formation
aerobatics or compete by trying to shoot each other down. The coordinates
of projectiles are included in the packets, hits are detected, and
scoring is maintained.
If either -i nor -o is selected, the status/location packets are read
and/or written to files as described later under Airshow Option. Otherwise,
the broadcast medium is the Ethernet. Older versions of dog on the
IRIS 3000 series and IRIS-4D IRIX releases before 3.3 use broadcast packets.
To have a dogfight with those systems, start the program with the
-b option. (Note: using dog in broadcast packet mode may be harmful to
other computers on the same network. Try to use the default multicast
mode if possible.) Players on several networks can fight each other if
the network gateways are configured to route multicast packets. See the
IRIX Network Administration Guide and mrouted(1M) for details on setting
up gateways and multicast routing on IRIS-4D machines. The -T option
specifies the maximum number of times the multicast packets can be forwarded
between networks. For machines with multiple network interfaces,
the -I option specifies the outgoing interface by its Internet hostname
or address.
Shadow allows passive observation of the dog environment. The shadow
operator sees a full-screen view of the world from a selected aircraft or
of a selected aircraft from the control tower.
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
Flight provides two pages of help information. The first help page
briefly describes the program. To freeze the action at any time and
display the first page, type h. Read the first page and press any key to
continue. The second page offers descriptions of five or more aircraft:
one two-place trainer (Cessna 150), one heavy transport (Boeing 747), and
at least three fighters.
Type 1 to select the Cessna 150. The view you see is from the cockpit of
the Cessna. Type d to see the Cessna from the control tower. Type x a
few times for a closer view. Type d to return to the cockpit and strike
s three or four times to advance the throttle. The aircraft will start
to taxi towards the runway. Type F twice to raise the flaps - Cessnas
normally take off that way. When the plane is almost on the runway, tap
the right mouse button five or six times to apply right rudder. The
plane will start to turn right. The left mouse button moves the rudder
one increment to the left; the center one sets the rudder to zero. Move
the mouse till the cursor is centered on the bottom edge of the
windshield and tap s until the thrust indicator shows full thrust. When
the airspeed indicator passes 50 knots, move the mouse smoothly toward
you. The cursor should be in the upper center of the horizon indicator.
When the rate-of-climb indicator shows positive climb, you are flying!
Congratulations!
Now turn around and land.
Flight is controlled by the mouse, the mouse buttons, and the keyboard.
The mouse holds the primary flight controls.
Rightmouse and leftmouse move the rudder one increment to the right and
left, respectively. middlemouse centers it. The rudder position is
shown by a small red triangle at the lower edge of the artificial horizon.
The rudder is used primarily to maneuver the aircraft on the
ground. Airborne turns are made, as in real aircraft, by coordinated application
of aileron and elevator.
The mouse X and Y valuators control the ailerons and elevator, emulating
a control stick. Left-right motion controls roll; forward-back motion
controls pitch. The stick position is indicated by a square cursor.
Both controls are at their neutral position when the cursor is centered
at the bottom of the windshield. Stick position for level flight is
slightly below center.
The s key increases the throttle setting; the a key decreases it. Thrust
goes to zero when the plane climbs through 50,000 feet and the engine
flames out. It can be restored by descending and applying throttle.
Thrust also goes to zero when fuel goes to zero. Fuel can be restored
only by making a safe landing.
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
Secondary flight controls include the landing gear, flaps, and spoilers.
To raise or lower the landing gear, type l. To increase or decrease the
flaps, type f or F. To increase or decrease the spoilers, type c or C.
Flap and spoiler ranges are determined by the aircraft. The Cessna has
no spoilers and its gear is down and welded.
The landing gear has two functions: to protect the fuselage from the
ground and to add drag. You may lower the gear to slow the plane down
and make handling easier.
Flaps and gear are structurally unsound at high speeds. They fall off if
you exceed approximately 400 knots while they are deployed. Missing
flaps make good landings difficult. Missing gear makes a good landing
impossible.
Flaps increase lift, increase drag, and decrease stall speed. Takeoffs
are normally made with partial flaps; landings are made with full flaps.
Spoilers decrease lift and increase drag dramatically. They are most
useful in dissipating excess altitude without increasing speed. While
spoilers are deployed, it is difficult to recover from a stall.
Display Controls
Several controls allow the viewer to alter his view of the world.
The left-arrow and right-arrow keys rotate the pilot's point of view 5
degrees to the left or right respectively. The viewing angle is
displayed on the windshield. The up-arrow and down-arrow keys can be
used to quickly set the view to front or rear respectively. The keys are
useful for looking around, but remember to set the view back to the front
for any but the simplest flying.
The d key switches the viewpoint from the cockpit to the control tower or
back. The control tower always looks toward the plane. The x key decreases
the tower's field of view, effectively magnifying the aircraft.
The z key increases the field of view. If there is doubt as to whether
the view observed is from the cockpit or the tower, observe the center of
the window: an orange cross marks the cockpit view.
The W key switches the viewpoint to that of an imaginary wingman. The x
key moves the view toward your aircraft. The z key moves the view away
from your aircraft.
The n key changes the time of day from daylight to night or back. There
is an interesting city visible at night NNW of the airport.
The m key switches the viewpoint from the cockpit to just above and
behind your missile or back. The view automatically switches to the
cockpit after the missile explodes. If you don't have a missile in the
air, this key has no effect. Missile view is not available on the
GT/GTX/VGX version.
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
PI/G Version Instruments
This section describes the instruments on the panel from left to right.
In the bar indicators, blue denotes a positive value and red a negative
value.
The thrust indicator shows thrust as a percentage of full throttle. Reverse
thrust is possible only on the ground and is used for braking.
The airspeed indicator is calibrated from 0 to 1000 knots. (100 knots is
about 118 miles per hour.) Negative airspeeds can happen during such
acrobatic maneuvers as hammerhead stalls. The numeric display at the
bottom of the band displays the exact speed.
The climb indicator shows rate of climb in feet per minute. Note that
the fighters (in normal operation) and the civil planes (usually while
crashing) can exceed the 10,000 fpm maximum rate displayed. The numeric
display at the bottom of the band displays the exact climb rate.
The G-meter indicates vertical acceleration. Each aircraft has maximum
stress limits. If they are exceeded, the attitude indicator shows the
message ``G-LIMIT.''
The artificial horizon helps orient the plane when the real horizon is
not visible. The triangular indicator at the bottom edge shows the
rudder position. If the maximum angle of attack is exceeded, a ``WINGSTALL''
message is displayed and a warning bell sounds. The more severe
the wing stall, the less control you have over your plane. Very severe
stalls may throw your plane into a violent spin.
The heading meter displays a combination compass and radar screen. The
compass rotates and indicates your heading. Your plane's location is always
at the center of the radar screen. The radar screen shows the positions
of the runway and planes that are within a few miles of your aircraft.
The blue line indicates the position of the runway. In dog(6D),
other planes are shown on the heading meter as red blobs if they are
above you or green blobs if they are below you.
The fuel gauge shows remaining fuel as a percentage of a full tank. To
reduce fuel consumption to zero (for tests only) type ~. Note that this
forfeits all your missiles and is considered cheating.
GT/GTX/VGX Version Instruments
The GT/GTX/VGX version of flight now support a three dimensional analog
instrument panel.
The thrust indicator shows thrust and throttle as a percentage of full.
Reverse thrust is indicated by the REV light and is possible only on the
ground and is used for braking.
The airspeed indicator is calibrated from 0 to 700 knots. (100 knots is
about 118 miles per hour.) Negative airspeeds can happen during such
acrobatic maneuvers as hammerhead stalls. Since wind is not simulated,
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
airspeed = groundspeed.
The mach meter is used to show speeds greater then 700 knots.
The climb indicator shows rate of climb in feet per minute. It has a
range of -6000 to 6000 fpm.
The G-meter indicates vertical acceleration. Each aircraft has maximum
stress limits. If they are exceeded, the the G-LIMIT warning light will
come on.
The WING STALL warning light comes on if the maximum angle of attack is
exceeded The more severe the wing stall, the less control you have over
your plane. Very severe stalls may throw your plane into a violent spin.
The artificial horizon helps orient the plane when the real horizon is
not visible.
The heading meter displays a combination compass and radar screen. The
compass rotates and indicates your heading. Your plane's location is always
at the center of the radar screen. The radar screen shows the positions
of the runway and planes that are within a few miles of your aircraft.
The blue line indicates the position of the runway. In dog, other
planes are shown on the heading meter as red blobs if they are above you
or green blobs if they are below you.
The fuel gauge shows remaining fuel in pounds. When fuel is below 10
percent the fuel warning light will come on. To reduce fuel consumption
to zero (for tests only) type ~. Note that this forfeits all your missiles
and is considered cheating.
The landing gear indicator show the current state of your landing gear.
Green indicates that your gear is down and locked. Yellow and black
stripes indicate that your gear are up and locked. Red is shown when
your landing gear is retracting or extending. Red is also shown if your
gear has been ripped off or otherwise damaged.
The stores indicator shows your current load of sidewinders and rockets.
The flaps/spoilers meter shows the percentage of flaps and spoilers
currently deployed.
A good landing is a landing on the runway, with gear down, a descent rate
of less than 600 fpm, and wings level. Good landings are rewarded with
scores from 0 to 100 points. Points are subtracted from a perfect score
of 100 based on touchdown location, descent rate, roll, heading, and
drift. For every point scored, fuel on board is increased by 1% of total
capacity until your tank is full. For every ten points scored you receive
a missile up to the plane's limit.
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
Landings with the gear up, descent rate, roll, or drift too high, but not
disastrous, count as crash landings. You can keep flying, but get no
more fuel nor ordnance.
Landings off the runway are ``crashed into the swamps'' landings. Landings
with excessive descent rate, roll, or drift are ``EXPLODED ON IMPACT''
landings. In either case, all you can do is look at the wreckage
from the tower or restart the game.
Your plane is destroyed if it crashes, taxis too far off the runway,
raises the gear while on the ground, or is shot down. After your plane
is destroyed, r, R, u, or U reincarnates your plane and restarts the game
at the second help page. You then choose which type of plane you want to
fly. These different restart options are included to make it easier to
restart in intense dog combat. Without them, some pilots simply hang
around the runway and blast new planes as they appear.
The r key restarts you at the original starting location. The R key restarts
you at the south end of the runway. The u key reincarnates your
aircraft at a random location in the sky with some randomly low airspeed
and full throttle. The U key is similar but starts your plane at a fixed
location beyond the hills.
Flight models aircraft weight accurately. Ordnance and fuel have substantial
weight. As you fire weapons and burn fuel, your plane becomes
lighter and more maneuverable.
Fighters are armed with rockets, sidewinders, and cannon. The number of
rockets and sidewinders available on each type of fighter are indicated
on the help display. Landings replenish missiles as well as fuel. The
number of missiles replenished depends on the quality of the landing.
Ammunition for the cannon is inexhaustible.
Each weapon has a different kill radius. Weapons detonate themselves when
they are within their kill radius of a plane other than the one they came
from. All planes within the kill radius of an exploding weapon are destroyed.
The q key fires a rocket. Rockets have about ten seconds of fuel and
follow ballistic paths after the fuel is exhausted. They explode when
they strike the ground, come within range of an aircraft (except the one
they came from), or are destroyed by their owner. Rockets have the largest
kill radius of all the weapons.
The w key fires a sidewinder. Sidewinders are like rockets but track, or
steer themselves towards, other aircraft if they are ``locked on''.
Sidewinders are locked on if they are fired while a target aircraft is in
the orange tracking rectangle or if locked on with the t key. The t key
identifies the target and locks a sidewinder onto the target for one
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
second without firing the weapon. This is useful for identifying other
planes as friend or foe. Sidewinders will not lock on aircraft lower than
150 feet, but once they are locked on, they will track a plane below 150
feet. Sidewinders stop tracking and follow ballistic paths when they run
out of fuel. The Cessna 150 does not generate enough heat to attract
sidewinders. A good pilot can usually outmaneuver a sidewinder unless
his plane is traveling slowly with a heavy load. Sidewinders have a
smaller kill radius than rockets.
The e key fires a cannon round. The cannon has a limited range-each cannon
shell exists for only one second. Cannons have the smallest kill radius.
The r key destroys the current missile. Any aircraft in range of the explosion
is destroyed. Each aircraft can have only one projectile in the
air at a time. Missiles may take a long time to fall back to the ground
after they have run out of fuel. It is therefore wise to destroy missiles
that are out of fuel, allowing new ones to be fired. In flight, or
in dog with no competition, strafing the airport can be good practice for
the real thing.
The O key toggles target box mode on and off. In target box mode, each
enemy plane and missile is surrounded by a small yellow square. Target
boxes are only visible in the forward view from the cockpit. Target box
mode defaults off because it is considered cheating. This mode is not
available on the GT/GTX/VGX version
dog keeps track of victories and defeats. A pilot scores a ``won'' when
a projectile fired by his plane destroys another aircraft. A pilot
scores a ``lost'' when his aircraft is destroyed by a projectile or
crashes.
Each pilot's score is displayed on his instrument panel. The scores of
all the current players are shown to each new player when he joins the
game and when he reincarnates himself after destruction.
When a player joins the game, an announcement is broadcast to all
players. Messages are also broadcast whenever a player quits, destroys
another plane, or is destroyed.
Airshow Option
The -o option will record the path of your aircraft on outfile rather
than broadcasting it to the network.
The -i option replays a recorded flight. You will be in another aircraft,
able to join the other recorded planes in formation or shoot at,
but not really destroy them (your missile will explode, but the other
plane will continue flying).
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Specifying both the -i and -o options replays a recorded flight and produces
an outfile containing your aircraft's path as well as the other
planes' paths. infile and outfile cannot be the same file. Repeated use
of the command can make formations of many aircraft.
In the GT/GTX/VGX version the time of day is set according to when flight
is started up. As the real time changes so does the position of the sun.
The n key adds five minutes to the time of day. The N key subtracts five
minutes from the time of day.
Flight plays sound effects on machines capable of Indigo quality sound.
Currently, this includes the Indigo and the 4D/3x with the audio option.
The S key switches between three sound modes. By default, all sound effects
are played. Pressing S once causes all sound effects except thrust
to play. Pressing a second time turns off all sound effects. Pressing S
a third time turns on all the sounds again.
By setting the environment variable FLIGHTSOUND to a path with sound effect
files, a user can override the default sounds. The following list
gives the filename and description of each sound effect. Each file
should be an AIFF file with the sample data in a SSND chunk. The data
should be two channel, 16 bit wide, 16 kHz sound samples. No warnings
are given for missing or corrupt files.
cannon.aiff cannon fire
die.aiff your plane exploding
explosion.aiff any other explosions
jthrust.aiff jet engine maximum thrust
lock.aiff locked on
missle.aiff missile being fired
AUTHORS and CREDITS
Original version by Gary Tarolli.
Current version by Rob Mace.
Contributors Barry Brouillette and Marshal Levine
Network communications Dave "ciemo" Ciemiewicz and Andrew Cherenson.
New instrument panel by Marshal Levine and Rob Mace.
F16 and P38 geometry by Barry Brouillette.
F14 geometry by Rob Mace.
F18 geometry by Thad Beier and Rob Mace
727 geometry by Marc Ondrechen and Rob Mace
Software Systems' Multigen was used to create instrument panel plates and
to enhance several aircraft models.
Sound effects by Chris Perry and Chris Schoeneman
/usr/demos/General_Demos/flight/data/sounds sound files
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FLIGHT(6D) FLIGHT(6D)
Flight and its offspring are continually being improved. Improvements
may be documented in the program's help display before this document is
updated.
The Cessna is too difficult to bring out of a stall.
In the GT/GTX/VGX version, the F15 looks like a F14 with the wings swept
back.
The G/PI version only supports the old instrument panel currently.
F14 and 727 are available only in the GT/GTX/VGX version.
Collision detection is not done with the buildings. This was done on
purpose because it is fun to fly through them.
The cannon ammunition should be finite and the cannon should overheat and
jam if used too often.
There is no propeller engine thrust sound.
Many other sounds should be added and existing sounds improved.
PPPPaaaaggggeeee 9999 [ Back ]
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