shooting and position

[meinshnake]

i am having a real hard time aiming and keeping the crosshairs on their plane. what i want to know is where is the best position to shoot from and any other tips on getting that first kill

sorry and another thing is when I am flying i will hit the G key and my gear will go up like normal but when i hit it again to bring the gear down they never do why is that?

also is there anyway of playing online without a joystick because I am training to become a pilot and my dad is a pilot so we would like to fly against eachother but we only have one joystick

[Scca]

I was having the same trouble at first and found out that it was because I PC was too slow.  Hit ctrl-I and watch your frame rates.  I was down to 11-12 in a fight and that's too slow.  I bought a new machine and my frame rates went up to 60.  In one night I doubled my fighter kills for the entire tour.  Any position is best as long as you can hit them

For most planes the gear won't come down above 150 or so, the F4U is one example of the exception.

My advise, get another joystick, decent ones can be had for $30.  While it is possible to fly with a mouse, it's really hard.  

I am sure others will comment...

[Widewing]

Go the the Training Arena. Find someone who will fly as your target.

Hit Ctrl-tab to turn on the lead computing gunsight (this is only enabled in the TA). Tab through until your partner's plane is highlighted.

Note the green crosshair that will appear. Align your gunsight with the green crosshair. Shoot. You will score hits if aligned properly. This will help you to learn deflection shooting and how to gauge lead.

My regards,

Widewing

[blackdog68]

Originally posted by meinshnake
i am having a real hard time aiming and keeping the crosshairs on their plane. what i want to know is where is the best position to shoot from and any other tips on getting that first kill

sorry and another thing is when I am flying i will hit the G key and my gear will go up like normal but when i hit it again to bring the gear down they never do why is that?

also is there anyway of playing online without a joystick because I am training to become a pilot and my dad is a pilot so we would like to fly against eachother but we only have one joystick

I practiced gunnery on the drones in the offline version.

Landing gear will only come down when you are slow enough for it to deploy without being ripped off by the drag.  Typically below 180mph for most planes.  I always get a notch or 2 of flaps extended before I think of landing gear.

Buy a second flight joystick.  Logitech makes a cheap one that has worked great for me after I decided on a whim to retry online combat flight sims, and my former joystick was a CH.

[bozon]

don't buy logitec

[Lusche]

Buy any stick but NEVER logicrap.

[blackdog68]

Originally posted by Lusche
Buy any stick but NEVER logicrap.

For ~$20, with a view hat, 12 buttons, and throttle along with 3 axis, I find it hard not to recommend for the person starting out who may or may not continue.

And for all the whining I hear about it, it has served me for 3 months with no issues.

[hapvodka]

a better choice for a stick imo is the saitek 290 pro from wally world. comming in at a whopping 19.99 this stick works great. i have had no problems with it at all. the it has 6 buttons, an 8 way hat switch, and thorttle control on the base of the joystick behind the stick itself.  it has the twisty rudder which is a bit sensitive i think..but still it allows u some control over how much rudder you use.  good hunting

Hap

[Hedworx]

I've used my logicrap for 1.5 years.  Mainly flying in BF2 until finding AH.  I know there isn't as much flying in BF2, but I think for the price and what it offers (8way hat, 12 buttons & throttle), the logitech is good enough for learning and deciding if AH is what you want to do.  It beats playing with a mouse or keyboard.  Just my 2 cents.

[Krusty]

Actually logitech is counter-productive to learning. It won't center properly, causing pilot to always input, overcorrect, correct, input, constantly to stop the spikes. The throttle spike is so bad that you can't keep WEP on most of the time because it drops below 100% every other second. The rudder spikes as much as 20% deflection WITHOUT touching it. Moving the stick on any ONE axis spikes all 4 axis (I tested this, using only my THROTTLE it spiked all 4 axes horrible, using just rudder it spiked throttle and pitch/yaw).


Logitech is pure s***. Get some other $20 stick. There are plenty to choose from. Just avoid Logitech. You won't progress in learning, and in fact it will retard your learning.

[blackdog68]

Originally posted by Krusty
Actually logitech is counter-productive to learning. It won't center properly, causing pilot to always input, overcorrect, correct, input, constantly to stop the spikes. The throttle spike is so bad that you can't keep WEP on most of the time because it drops below 100% every other second. The rudder spikes as much as 20% deflection WITHOUT touching it. Moving the stick on any ONE axis spikes all 4 axis (I tested this, using only my THROTTLE it spiked all 4 axes horrible, using just rudder it spiked throttle and pitch/yaw).


Logitech is pure s***. Get some other $20 stick. There are plenty to choose from. Just avoid Logitech. You won't progress in learning, and in fact it will retard your learning.

Nope, none of the issues you describe.  Centers fine.  WEP 100% accurate.  No spikes.  Until it breaks (which any cheap stick inevitably will) it has functioned well.

Saitek seems to be a safer choice for $20, based on others experience however.

[Coshy]

I had a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro, never had any of the issues other people have associated with Logitech sticks. It lasted me for 3 years of daily playing X: Reunion, and about 2 months playing AH. I purchased a Saitek X52 HOTAS and the difference is night and day, but then thats comparing a HOTAS setup to a non-hotas setup, apples & oranges.

However, having said that ... since the cons seem to outweigh the pros, and since the cheapo Saitek stick has nearly as many functions, and is in the same price range, I'd go with the Saitek stick. Just to be safe.

To your questions:

Having a hard time keeping the crosshairs in place sounds like a problem with your mouse sensitivity, a cheapo joystick will most likely resolve this. Practice offline with the LCG (Lead Computed Gunsight ... Ctrl-Tab) and practice shooting the circling drones. This will give you an idea of the 'sight picture' needed to land hits.

This discussion will eventually lead to convergence and firing distances, but I'll leave those topics to those with more experience.

[Blagard]

Originally posted by meinshnake
i am having a real hard time aiming and keeping the crosshairs on their plane. what i want to know is where is the best position to shoot from and any other tips on getting that first kill

sorry and another thing is when I am flying i will hit the G key and my gear will go up like normal but when i hit it again to bring the gear down they never do why is that?

also is there anyway of playing online without a joystick because I am training to become a pilot and my dad is a pilot so we would like to fly against eachother but we only have one joystick

The bounce effect that happens when you are aiming needs getting used to. Using the advanced option on the controller in AH and scaling your control inputs may help some. The default scaling is a good place to start before you tweak it to suit yourself. The best place to shoot from when fighting fighters is generally from the rear quarter or right on there six!. Shots from the side need a lot more allowance for deflection. When shooting bombers you are better to shoot from the side, top or bottom, even head on. They are all more difficult (except the HO). But if you shoot from the rear you make an easier target for the tail gunner - that's why it is not a good spot to shoot from!

Answer to problem getting gear down already given - slow down!

If you are training to be a pilot, a joystick is essential anyway and less than the cost of half an hour in a real cockpit. Real pilots may have fly by wire on some types, but even they have not sucumbed to fly by mouse! In fact anyone with asperations to flying full size wants to get some pedals as well.

As for Logitech comments by others - I just (today) got a perfect Extreme 3D pro on ebay for 1p (about 2 cents)! - Postage was a few pounds (I'm in the UK). Now I am going to rip it apart for the electronics! But before I start I have tried it. The centering springs are way too strong! - My CH stick is like a feather to move in comparison. - I would suggest something with a lighter feel if you have a choice!

[meinshnake]

dont worry i have been to the uk before... I may even be moving there... onto the point my framerate is around 31 which I know is not very good but it will get me by. I will try out all the other things

I fly with a mircosoft force feedback 2 my favourite joystick but am going to be moving to ch yoke and pedals in the near future.

it costs me 100 dollars an hour to rent a cessna 152

[Blagard]

The Yoke is an obvious choice for prospective pilots but let me say that having flown both stick and yoke full size I have never encountered any problem with co-ordination or "feedback" switching between them. Control input seems to be second nature whichever I use. The only downside to a Yoke with a PC is the space it takes up and you can only use all buttons with both hand on!

In practice a Pro-throttle and Stick is better for a PC because you need more button access than full size - Well at least you need more at your finger tips.

As you may be aware, full size approach will have you with one hand on the throttle and the other on the Yoke, only occassionally taking the hand off the throttle for flaps and/or other levers and switches. You also have time to organise and operate the controls.

In AH, you are often in a combat situation where rapid access to controls is necessary plus you have to use your view hat to compensate for views your head does in full size. Maybe investing in TrackIR would be a good balance with a Yoke but I have never tried it.

Bottom line advice is think twice about a Yoke for flight sims. Think about the practical application.