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Is it possible to get or add a compass in locked spot view when you're in free flight without having to go back to the virtual cockpit to see where you're heading to. I kind of like the locked spot view for a long trip. For information, I have FSX Steam Edition installed for the last few weeks now so I'm kind of a newbie. I'd like to see something similar like the compass in the pic from the attachment. Thank you

Shift-Z will place text info; altitude, airspeed, wind info, mag heading.... at the top of the left of the screen. It's not a spiffy as a gauge, like the one in your screenie, but it's better than nothing.

Yeah, I know about the Shift+Z key. I was looking for something like the same compass that you see in mission. It didn't have to be as sophisticated as the one shown in the pic. Thank you for your reply

If your aircraft has a compass in a pop-up window you can activate it in Spot View with the appropriate Shift+ key command.
For example, in the default Beech King Air 350 press Shift+7. (If the gauge is in the wrong position on the screen you can drag it to wherever you wish.)

I just tried the Beech King Air 350 with the shift+7 key and that's exactly what I'd like to see. Most of the time I fly the Cessna Skyhawk 172 (In the past, I had hundreds of hours flying that plane). Is there a way to transfer that compass, by modifying the aircraft file, into the Cessna. You guys know a lot more than me about that stuff

It wouldn't be added to the aircraft.cfg, rather the panel.cfg file.

To add it to the default Cessna 172, as follows:

Open the Kingair panel.cfg.

Under the entry "[Window Titles]" you will find "window06=Compass". Copy this line. Leave the panel.cfg for the Kingair open.

In the Cessna 172 Panel folder, open panel.cfg. In the entry "[Window Titles]" find the last entry number and copy over the info from the Kingair Panel file. You should end up with:

Code: Select all

[Window Titles]
Window00=Main Panel
Window01=Radio Stack
Window02=GPS
Window03=IFR Panel
Window04=Landing View
Window05=Mini Panel
Window06=Compass

Now return to the Kingair Panel.cfg. Find the section titled "[Window05]". Below this entry section, copy and paste section [Window06] from the Kingair Panel CFG to the Cessna 172 Panel CFG. Save the file and exit. You should now be able to call the window up from the "View" menu in FS.

"...Under the entry "[Window Titles]" you will find "window06=Compass". Copy this line.........."

Which line? This is what I got from the Kingair panel


[Window06]
size_mm=102,103
position=2
visible=0
BACKGROUND_COLOR=0,0,0
ident=COMPASS_PANEL
no_luminous=1
gauge00=KingAir!Magnetic-Compass, 0, 0, 102, 103

Got it...thank you for your help

I you add

Code: Select all

type=special

in your [WindowXX] section,
your Compass will stay visible even when changing the view !

To hide it, you only have to press the corresponding number (XX+1) key.

That's a great undocumented parameter !

Gérard