Flight Simulator FSX Scenery Tutorial 2

Adjusting Settings

When you install your add-on scenery, you need to take into account how fast your computer and graphics capability are. The rate at which the screens are updated while you fly affects how smooth the view outside of your cockpit will be.

The higher the resolution setting, the slower the view updates will be accomplished. The view update rate is also known as "frame rate". Standard USA television frame rates are actually about 30 frames per second. If your computer can support that rate, you will get nearly flawless views. A high end computer today with a high end graphics card can drive the view at this frame rate in High Definition (1920 by 1080) with all scenery settings at their highest settings.

Additional Considerations

If you also buy (aircraft) traffic generating add-ons such as Ultimate Traffic X, the processing load goes up considerably, and a faster processor and hard disk will help keep the simulation running at full speed with no affect on frame rate.

Traffic generators create airline traffic and general aircraft traffic at large airports. In my case, the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport is simulated with the complete airline schedule with "MegaScenery X Phoenix" providing the scenery on the ground, and Ultimate Traffic providing the airline traffic including ground traffic, autos on the freeway, etc. Ultimate Terrain provides the roads and other enhancements to Phoenix, so that it looks like a real city, especially at night.