P1IC
03-09-2009, 11:01 PM
Love 'em, hate 'em you just can't do without 'em. Not even if you are a purist!
Which I think I am, although I'm bound by a budget, which means that I'm a purist so far, and no further. So I'm starting on a 767 cockpit (because of the Level-D product) despite my earlier resolution to build a Cessna 172. All that instrument building for the 172 is really time-consuming, so the onscreen instruments, eg. EHSI and EADI in the 767 save me a lot of work! Lazy? You bet.
So there is a central decision to be made about monitors and their deployment. Looking at the specs for the MIP, it seems that three 22' standard format screens will do the job, covering the captain's instruments, the EICAS and the FO stuff (although who cares about the FO, right? I'll fly solo).
Have you ever found a 22" standard 4:3 monitor recently under $200 each? Have you even seen a 22" monitor on sale anywhere which isn't widescreen? See, even if you did, I'm just not going to shell out that kinda malookah for monitors.
So it was time for a re-think. I discovered that the nVidia card I have, in common with most nVidia cards apparently, allows the screen to be flipped 90 degrees - so that provided me with some flexibility in screen deployment.
And I think I have found the perfect arrangement for the 767 MIP. I'll use two 17" and one 15" in portrait mode. See attached.
I have acquired the required monitors locally on Kijiji for a total cost of $40. I also got a 12" monitor for $5 locally on Kijiji which I may use in the CDU, but let's ignore that for the moment!
So instead of spending $600 and then worrying about placement of switches etc, I have spent $40 with no worries. At least, not so far...
Which I think I am, although I'm bound by a budget, which means that I'm a purist so far, and no further. So I'm starting on a 767 cockpit (because of the Level-D product) despite my earlier resolution to build a Cessna 172. All that instrument building for the 172 is really time-consuming, so the onscreen instruments, eg. EHSI and EADI in the 767 save me a lot of work! Lazy? You bet.
So there is a central decision to be made about monitors and their deployment. Looking at the specs for the MIP, it seems that three 22' standard format screens will do the job, covering the captain's instruments, the EICAS and the FO stuff (although who cares about the FO, right? I'll fly solo).
Have you ever found a 22" standard 4:3 monitor recently under $200 each? Have you even seen a 22" monitor on sale anywhere which isn't widescreen? See, even if you did, I'm just not going to shell out that kinda malookah for monitors.
So it was time for a re-think. I discovered that the nVidia card I have, in common with most nVidia cards apparently, allows the screen to be flipped 90 degrees - so that provided me with some flexibility in screen deployment.
And I think I have found the perfect arrangement for the 767 MIP. I'll use two 17" and one 15" in portrait mode. See attached.
I have acquired the required monitors locally on Kijiji for a total cost of $40. I also got a 12" monitor for $5 locally on Kijiji which I may use in the CDU, but let's ignore that for the moment!
So instead of spending $600 and then worrying about placement of switches etc, I have spent $40 with no worries. At least, not so far...