REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

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REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Flacke » Sun Aug 11, 2019 9:31 pm

Hello, I fly in "Real Weather" on FSX all the time.
I am wondering if that feature is in ACTIVE SKY addon program. If so, how do you get into or set up active sky to use real weather by default. Thanks for any info.
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby ftldave » Sun Aug 11, 2019 9:49 pm

In AS16 for FSX, Wx Control page has three settings: Live Weather, Historical Weather, or Custom Weather. Click on Live Weather and "Live Weather Mode is Active" displays in BIG text, and stays there unless you change to one of the other two settings.
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Daube » Mon Aug 12, 2019 2:19 am

Indeed, if you set Active Sky (which has to start automatically when you start your sim) to live weather mode, it will automatically set the weather to current live weather of the place you are flying.
You don't even need to select anything in your sim. Active Sky will automatically take over. It will look at where you are on the globe, will download the corresponding real weather, and will apply it in the sim within a few seconds.

The other interesting mode is the historical weather.
It works exactly like the "live" mode, excepted that it will also consider the date you chose for your flight.
It will then download the live weather of the place AND the date you chose.
This is practical if, for example, you'd like to make some flight with winter weather, although we're currently in summer.
For example, if you create a new flight located in Anchorage somewhere around the 1st of January 2018, Active Sky will recognize this and will download the real weather conditions of Anchorage on the 1st of January 2018.... which means you'll most likely get some cold temps and snow :)
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby garymbuska » Mon Aug 12, 2019 6:35 am

If you want to see some awesome clouds you need to get Active Sky Cloud Art. this program allows you to set up any weather you want. I use a theme called Global Active and what it does when you file a flight plan it will automatically put the weather in every single waypoint in your plan along with the correct clouds to go with it. Just the other day I was flying a flight out of KDEN (DENVER) to KMEM(MEMPHIS) I took off under partly cloudy skies than a little later flew into a storm from hell Lightning and turbulence to boot then flew out of it into a clear sky.
So if you want to see real world weather just as it is at the place you are at you need to get Active Sky 2016 and Active Sky Cloud art.
Active Sky 2016 will even use cloud textures from another program like ORBIX
Check out the link https://hifisimtech.com/?title=Welcome%2520To%2520HiFi
and watch some of the videos just be prepared to get blown away as to what these programs will bring to you.
They are worth every penny.
I have seen thunderheads at flight levels 310 and higher which is what you would see during the summer huge anvil shaped clouds
Active Sky 2016 even has a Gauge it will install in every single aircraft in your fleet if you want it too real color radar so you can see what to avoid just as the real world pilots do.
To me this is the only way to fly. Even if it means landing in what is called a category III or category II landing.
There is nothing more thrilling than to be 500 FT above the runway and have a gust of wind blow you completely off course or have the wind shear alarm go off.
This is when you find out just how good or bad you are. 8-)
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby garymbuska » Mon Aug 12, 2019 6:42 am

Flacke wrote:Hello, I fly in "Real Weather" on FSX all the time.
I am wondering if that feature is in ACTIVE SKY addon program. If so, how do you get into or set up active sky to use real weather by default. Thanks for any info.

The real world weather in FSX is a joke and no where near as to what is actually there even though it states it will update it will not be no where near as accurate as Active Sky 2016 is.
You have not seen real world weather without some kind of addon weather program like Active Sky 2016. ORBIX has a similar program but I have not hear that much about it. Active Sky has won several awards it is made by a company called HIFI Simulation 8-)
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Roypcox » Mon Aug 12, 2019 9:55 am

Caution on Active Sky in Steam FSX. If you buy it in Steam FSX it will only work in that system,[so I have been told]
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Daube » Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:54 am

Concerning ActiveSky Cloud Art (also known as ASCA), I'm not so convinced yet.

On the paper it's perfect. It is an extension that allows Active sky to build and draw the clouds much more precisely.
But in reality, I have yet to see a single screenshot of clouds that look GOOD with that software.
I get a bit the same feeling as I got with REX soft clouds, for example. A lot of marketing and noise everywhere in the forums... and in the end, just blurry ugly clouds.
I had bought Active Sky Next for my FSX and my P3D and I was very happy about it, but I could never find the motivation to buy ASCA...
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Flacke » Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:42 pm

Thanks a lot to each of you who took the time to answer my query. Really excellent info. that perfectly provided the details that I needed before I spend money on Active Sky. It appears to be the one that I like at this point because flying in real weather is all I do. The Historical Weather will be very useful for me as well because I refly on my Simulator flights that I have actually been on IRL. Thanks again for your time.
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby garymbuska » Tue Aug 13, 2019 9:54 am

Daube wrote:Concerning ActiveSky Cloud Art (also known as ASCA), I'm not so convinced yet.

On the paper it's perfect. It is an extension that allows Active sky to build and draw the clouds much more precisely.
But in reality, I have yet to see a single screenshot of clouds that look GOOD with that software.
I get a bit the same feeling as I got with REX soft clouds, for example. A lot of marketing and noise everywhere in the forums... and in the end, just blurry ugly clouds.
I had bought Active Sky Next for my FSX and my P3D and I was very happy about it, but I could never find the motivation to buy ASCA...


I have been flying one version or another of Flight Simulator and trust me there is a huge difference between the default clouds and the ones ASCA renders.
The one thing that really sets them apart is when you fly through a cloud using default clouds it is like flying in an area obscured you can not tell that you are in a cloud.
But when you fly through a ASCA created cloud you get the feeling that you are actually flying through a cloud as you can see it through your windscreen the cloud actually parts and each cloud has distant definition.
The screen shots on there web page does not do them justice at all and I could see where you would be doubtful. The clouds look just like what you actually see in the real world of course you need to have a descent graphic card to show the detail. But the clouds do look just like the screen shots on the web page
The other factor is it will reproduce the turbulence associated with thunder heads.
I will post some web shots of clouds that were created by ASCA and you be the judge
I am at work now so it will be after 6:00 PM EST before I can attempt to capture some cloud shots. 8-)
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby Daube » Tue Aug 13, 2019 10:07 am

Well, to be fair, any cloud is better than the default cloud textures ;)
(ok, excepted a few of the REX clouds which are like the ugliest I've ever seen)
I was using the HDEv2.1 cloud textures (freeware by Pablo Diaz), which were giving very good results.
Wasn't it ActiveSky that produced a special effect (small cloud puffs going along the windshields) when flying through a cloud ? Isn't that the effect you were talking about ?
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Re: REAL WEATHER IN " Active Sky" or not?

Postby garymbuska » Tue Aug 13, 2019 6:07 pm

Daube wrote:Well, to be fair, any cloud is better than the default cloud textures ;)
(ok, excepted a few of the REX clouds which are like the ugliest I've ever seen)
I was using the HDEv2.1 cloud textures (freeware by Pablo Diaz), which were giving very good results.
Wasn't it ActiveSky that produced a special effect (small cloud puffs going along the windshields) when flying through a cloud ? Isn't that the effect you were talking about ?


Sounds like it I took some screen shots but can not figure out how to shrink them down so I can upload them
Some of the videos at HIFI show some of the effects. I have tried a few other cloud textures but I think these are the most realistic.
check out the link below go down to the last picture.
These clouds were a good bit away from me but if you notice the flattened tops of the clouds directly above my fuselage and the ones just in front of the nose of the plane.
AS it states I was at FL320 when I took these. It is clouds like these you will see on a hot summer day just before the bottom falls out.

https://panamericanvirtual.boardhost.co ... php?id=624
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