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#                                                                      #
# RCBgh50A.zip: Icon / Window switching for Groundhandling gauges V5.0 #
#                                                                      #
#                        By Rob Barendregt                31 Oct 2006  #
#                                                         Release 5.0A #
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PLEASE, READ THIS MANUAL CAREFULLY BEFORE INSTALLING & USING THESE GAUGES.
Not only it avoids installation errors, it also contains some tips about
Controller Calibration in FSX.

TO PRINT:
Open this file in Notepad, and select charactertype: FixedSys, Normal, 9 dots

This package is an optional addon to archive rcbgh-50.zip, and contains a
solution to Open/Close the Groundhandling window via a permanently visible
Icon. Prior installation of rcbgh-50.zip is required !

I had many requests from users to have the old Icon back, through which you
could Open/Close the Groundhandling panel window.
I initially decided that an Icon wasn't very usefull, for the following reasons:
- A lot of people prefer to fly in the VC these days; and adding visible gauges
  (i.e. this Icon) to an existing aircraft-VC is simply not possible.
- If the Groundhandling window is visible, switching to another view will close
  the window again automatically (unless undocked).
- From experiance, I know a lot of people still have problem to add a visible
  gauge (like an Icon) to an existing window in the panel.cfg.

Now, I think this solution will solve these problem, and will be appreaciated
(I hope) by many of you.
What it does in detail:

- In the panel.cfg, you define a new window with the Icon gauge only.
  This little Icon window is ALWAYS open, in ANY view.
- And via this Icon you can Open/Close the Groundhandling window at ALL times,
  in ANY view.
- If the Groundhandling window is Open, it will remain forced open (even after
  a view change) untill you close it via the Icon.
  This works in both Windowed-mode and FullScreen-mode.
- This means you never have to Open/Close the Groundhandling window via the 
  menu again; in fact, you even can't :-)


2. Installation
===============
Note: "FSX" is shorthand for your main FSX folder.
(default: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Microsoft Flight Simulator X\ )

Extract all files to a temporary folder, and then:

1. Move files RCB_WindowStatus.gau AND rcb_groundhandling5.cab to folder
   "FSX"\Gauges\. Overwrite the old .cab file.
   IMPORTANT: DO NOT UNZIP THIS .CAB FILE !!

2. Add the gauges to the panel of your aircraft.

Placing the extra gauges in your panel is done by adding some lines to the panel.cfg
file of your aircraft, located in folder "FSX"\SimObjects\Airplanes\"your aircraft"\Panel\.
The simplest way of doing that is by using Notepad, and Windows Copy/Paste.
*** MAKE A BACKUP OF YOUR panel.cfg FIRST ***


- In the [Window Titles] section, add the line:

Window**=Groundhandling Icon

Replace '**' with the next free number.
For e.g. the default FSX 737_800: '**' is 11 (Groundhandling was 10)


- Add a new panel window for the Icon:

[Window**]
size_mm=19,19
visible=0
window_size= 0.01,0.03
window_pos= 0.5,0.02
background_color=16,16,16
ident=10061
nomenu=1
gauge00=RCB_Groundhandling5!Icon, 0,0,19,19

Replace '**' with the same number as used above.


- Change the Groundhandling Window you created with rcbgh-50.zip, by adding the
  following lines before gauge00= :

ident=10060
nomenu=1


- In any VC window, add:

gauge**=RCB_WindowStatus!window_status, 0,0
gauge**=RCB_Groundhandling5!WindowToggle, 0,0

where '**'are the next free gauge numbers.

For e.g. the default FSX 737_800: add them to the [VCockpit01] section, with '**'
is 29 and 30.
If you don't have a VC in your aircraft, you can also add them to a 2D window.

That's it.

Note:
You can easily change the position of the Icon gauge if you want.
E.g. when it is "covered" by another window.
You do this by changing the line:

window_pos= x, y (default: 0.5,0.02, the top-center of the screen).

where x and y are values between 0.0 and 1.0, defining the top-left corner of
the window:
- 0.0, 0.0: the top-left position on the screen.
- 1.0, 0.0: the top-right position on the screen.
- 1.0, 1.0: the bottom-right position on the screen.

And of course you can change the location of the windows runtime, by click/drag
on a non-clickable spot in the Icon or Groundhandling window (i.e. a spot where
there is no "hand" visible").
Warning: do not drag it to a position on the FSX menu line, otherwise the 
clickspot does not work !


Known problems / Controller Calibration tips
============================================
After I released rcbgh-50.zip, I had several support requests from people (using
toebrake pedals) why the Taxispeed gauge failed to accelerate the aircraft.

In all cases this was due to ill-calibrated pedals and/or wrong axis Sensitivity
settings; since this has (again *sigh* ) changed in FSX.
Causing the Taxispeed gauge to set Idle throttle, because it saw "brakes" being
applied after users pressed their toebrakes once.

In FS2002/2004 you could easily correct a non-perfectly calibrated, or slightly
"jittering", axis-without-logical-center (like a throttle or toebrake axis) by
adding a small "dead-zone", by moving the "NullZone" slider a bit above the MIN
value. To avoid problems like "thrust reverse doesn't work" or "hanging toebrakes".
Unfortunately, this doesn't work anymore in FSX.

If you now increase the NullZone slider in Options-Controls, FSX still creates a
"dead-zone" for the axis, but not at the min. position of the axis, but at it's
none-existing "center". Even worse, the Sensitivity slider for these type of axis
not only influences the "range" of the axis, but also shifts this "zero" point.
This new 'feature' (??) makes the calibration functions in FSX for this type of
axis completely useless IMO.

So what you should do:
- First and foremost, make sure that your controllers are calibrated as best as
  you can in the Windows Controllers program.
  For a "jittering" axis, you can create a small "dead" zone at the min. position
  of the axis, by not reducing the axis fully when you calibrate it.
- Always make sure that, for such axis-without-logical-center, the Sensitivity
  slider is set to MAX, and the NullZone slider is set to MIN.

Alternatively, you can use external ControlManager type-of-programs (delivered
with your stick/yoke/pedals) or use the registered version of FSUIPC.

NOTE:
For axis-with-logical-center (like Elevator and Rudder), this still works the same
as in FS9.
So:
- Increasing the NullZone slider creates a small dead zone around the logical
  center of the axis. E.g. for centering of the Rudder pedals.
- By default, the Sensitivity slider, controls the "speed" at which FSX reacts
  to axis changes:
  - MIN makes the reaction time very sluggish.
  - MAX makes FSX to follow axis changes instantaneously.
- If you add the line
  stick_sensitivity_mode=0
  to the [Controls] section of the FSX.cfg file, the Sentitivity slider controls
  the range of the axis:
  - MIN makes limits the min/max values at full deflections of the controller axis.
  - MAX doesn't limit these value (so uses the values as dictated by the calibration)


Copyrights and Disclaimer
=========================
This gaugeset is freeware, NOT Public Domain, and it is available for your
personal use.
Without my explicite permission, it may NOT be sold, re-distributed and/or 
uploaded to another website or bulletin board (in ANY shape or form).

If you want to bundle (part of) this gaugeset with your (freeware !!) panel, 
you may ONLY do so AFTER my explicite permission and inclusion of this
README file AS-IS.

And obviously, installing & using this gauges is at your own risk !!


Credits
==========
- Doug Dawson, for his great WindowStatus gauge that allows me to read the
  Open/CLosed status of panel windows in XML.


Closure
==========
I hope you enjoy using these gauges.
And I'm always open to questions, or suggestions for improvement (no
guarantee that I will make them though).
But PLEASE PLEASE, before asking me questions or report "bugs", make sure that
the answer can't be found in this README file; I have spent considerable time
in making this README, just to avoid wasting both YOUR time and MINE with
trivial questions and "issues".
HOWEVER, FSX is as new to me as it is to you, so I might have missed something :-)

Rob Barendregt, The Netherlands
Email: rc.barendregt@planet.nl


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