Exporting MFDs

Hi Guys,
Has anyone had any success exporting the MFDs to another monitor since the 1.16.0 update ?

I've just upgraded my pit system and the sim is running well, but when I set up the export MFDs I have a problem.

although it does export them, the text and symbols are huge. I run both monitors at 1280 x 1024 (as I did before).

Settings are:

export_mfd=1
export_mfd_adapter=0
export_mfd_screen_width=1280
export_mfd_screen_geight=854
export_mfd_left_pos=20,183,560,740
export_mfd_right_pos=695,183,1240,740

In the above I assume the numbers are = left,top,right,bottom for each MFD

These are the settings I used in my sim with version 1.11.5 and that worked.

Any advice would be great and much appreciated.

Cheers,

Andy

Sorry Andy, I don't think very many people have exported the MFD's. I haven't either.

Hi Javalin,

Thanks for at least replying. I think I've managed to sort it out.

I was using a program called MaxiVista Pro to export the MFDs across a network lead to another PC where it allowed me to create a custom resolution. That's why it worked before.

Unfortunately I'm now using 64 bit and MaxiVista won't work with it, so I was exporting to a second screen on the same graphics card (GeForce 8800 GTX).

I did a lot of playing about with the numbers in EECH.ini yesterday and eventually got what I think is a working system.

Cheers,

Andy

Nice cockpit, Andy!

Thanks for that.

It's been a WIP for a lot of years.

As far as I know only GrizzlyT and myself have pits based on the Comanche.

One of these things that will never be finished. I already see bits I can improve on !!!

Luckily I have an understanding wife who thinks it better than spending the time in the pub......

Cheers,

Andy

Hey Andy, I have a question about the MFD output. Does the output image include the MFD buttons surrounding the center image?
i.e. Could I use a touch-screen and have the buttons displayed already as a part of the exported image?

Your cockpit is influencing my psyche.

Hi Javalin,

Unfortunately it's only the screen contents that are exported.

You could get the effect by using a Thrustmaster Cougar with a screen behind them. Or make a bezel as I did with tactile switches fitted.

Hope that helps your psyche .....

Cheers,

andy

Maybe I could put a background screen on the monitor with the labels and buttons, then overlay the MFD's on top of that.
If I use a 16:9 touch screen 10 or 11" diagonal, it would be about the right size and provide a nice clean solution.
I have a spare monitor (not the right size though) that I can test on, then decide what to do afterwards.
The Thrustmaster Cougar MFD's are nice too, it's just that they aren't quite the right size to fit a standard monitor cleanly.
Thanks Andy.

Hi Javalin,

What I did was to take the plastic bezel off an old 17" lcd monitor and fix it to the back of a thin piece of MDF.

I then marked and cut out where the MFDs were displayed. I then screwed the MFD switch bezels to the thin MDF,

How about printing a photo quality picture of the switch bezel and cutting out the centre, then sticking it to the monitor screen around the MFD.

Would the touch function still work through a piece of photo paper ?

Cheers,

andy

Hmmm, It might work through photo paper. I'll try that after I select and purchase a small monitor.
Javelin

Hi Andy,

nice to see you here again. Sadly, at the moment I have not much time for my hobby

Nice to hear that you are converting your pit to Windows 7 64bit. I hope you can help me a little bit with the interfacing for my pit to EECH next year, after my move to the new location. The last year I had not much time for doing it and now the move to the new location makes it impossible.

The interfacing for Falcon BMS and the FSX is mostly done, but I still have to make EECH and DCS working.

For some DCS-Modules an interfacing-software exists, but EECH is a real nightmare to get it working with the pit

Cheers,

Sven

Hi Viper,

The swap over to 64 bit Windows 7 has been a bit of a nightmare. Because I was originally running XP, most of the programs like MaxiVista and L4SCRunner won't install so I've had to find ways around this. On the plus side it's re-introducing me in to the sim and coding again. The new graphics and performance make it all worthwhile.

Of course I'll help you in any way I can. That's what the forum is about.

Cheers,

Andy

Thank's Andy!

I will not be able to work at the pit before next summer, I think. There is a lot work to do at my new home-location, but luckily I have an understanding wife now, too. She even helps me with the pit, if she is able to do so.

I'm going to renovate the whole flat, so that we have a nice "nest" for the coming years

I was able to get the interfaces for Falcon BMS, FSX and some modules of DCS working with W7 64 in my universal pit. Only testing, no real flight for now.
I was also looking for another way to get EECH working with the pit, cause of the problems with MaxiVista. There exists a newer version which should be compatible with win 7, but sadly they stoped selling MaxiVista.

Cause of a lot of other troubles once again in my life, I had not much time to get much deeper into interfacing EECH to the pit. Another nightmare would be Strike Fighters Project 2, which I also planned to use with my universal homepit.

I hope that I have a lot more time next year, after the whole move is finished and the renovation of the flat is done.

Hi Guys, I have my MFD's exported now to a mini monitor and the Thrustmaster Cougar MFD's.
My mini monitor is a 16:9 11.6" 1366 x 768 monitor. It's exactly wide enough for both Cougar MFD's side by side, and has a bit of extra height. I got the Koolertron monitor for $50, I found the Cougar MFD's for $60, less than buying an equivalent touch-screen monitor for $180. I just want the MFD's for now, I'm not trying to build an entire cockpit.

Exporting an MFD has a few requirements I wasn't aware of. _________________________________________________________________________________

1. The MFD monitor has to be the Windows #2 monitor, it has to be to the RIGHT of monitor #1 in the Windows config, and the top edge of the two monitors have to line up. Once I met these criteria, the MFD screens would export.

2. The X-axis values for the exported screens work just fine, the Y-axis values do not.

3. The Y-axis has some scaling issues. I ended up using an mfd_screen_height of 1500 (not 768) to get the Text to scale correctly without getting cut off here and there. That gave me about 256 pixels in height for the actual image on the MFD and the text on all screens looks nice and clear.

My final values are as follows:
export_mfd=1 # enables MFD export on multimon systems (0 = off, 1 = on) (def = 0)
export_mfd_adapter=0 # graphic adapter for MFD export screen (0 = first, 1 = second, ...) (def = 0)
export_mfd_screen_width=1366 # resolution of export screen (n = pixels horizontally) (def = 640)
export_mfd_screen_height=1500 # resolution of export screen (n = pixels vertically) (def = 400)
export_mfd_left_pos=0,30,590,291 # left MFD position (def = 0,0,256,256)
export_mfd_right_pos=770,30,1366,291 # right MFD position (def = 384,0,640,256)
export_mfd_single_pos=770,30,1366,291 # single MFD position (Havoc, Hind and Black Shark only) (def = 0,0,256,256)

I need to make a custom monitor stand so I can move the MFD's back, closer to my main monitor.
I'm also in the process of making some graphical labels to go around the outside of the buttons.
The Cougar MFD frames are double-sided adhesive stuck onto a piece of plexiglass, which is then velcro'd onto the monitor frame.
This way I can take off the Cougar MFD frames and use the monitor as normal.

Hi Javalin,

Very nicely done!

I seem to remember I had to mess around with e Y axis sizes as well.

You'll eventually get the bug to build a pit. Once you take that first step it's all downhill from there.....

Nothing to beat the realism of flicking switches or pressing buttons around the MFDs and seeing things happen.

Cheers,

Andy

First, having the external mfd's is really nice. It makes it a LOT easier to keep track of things when I can always glance down and see the Navigation screen and the Radar/Threat displays.

I've been playing around with the different helos and the exported mfd's, but several don't function.
The Ka-50 and Mi-24 don't export anything. I've dug around in the code a bit and they should export something. It's in there, it just doesn't work.
Has anyone ever looked at this?

Hi Javelin,

As I remember it, the last line of the "exporting MFDs" section of the EECH.INI file is the settings for the single MFD which is used in the Russian helicopters. I think you need to set this up separately from the two above it. It won't just default to one of the first two.

Cheers,

Andy

Hi Andy,
I checked it and it's set to export to the MFD #1 position. The Havoc exports to the #1 MFD and works just fine. The Ka-50 Blackshark and the Mi-24 Hind are the only ones that don't work at all, hence my question.

I made some button labels for my MFD's, printed on heavy paper then laminated, cut out, and double-sided taped onto the MFD's outside the buttons. Print it at 300 dpi to get it the right size. The horizontal strips match the width of the horizontal buttons, the vertical strips are wider since the vertical Cougar MFD buttons are narrower for some reason. I didn't resize the vertical button icons, I just used them as is. It costed me about $1.25 to have them printed and laminated at a local print shop.
Cheers!

I've been working on MFD export to external monitors, the Hind and the Blackshark don't work in 1.16.0, nothing exports.

I have the right mfd Mi-24 Hind Map working now (the resolution is off, though). I'm looking at adding a gauges mfd for the left one.

The Ka-50 Blackshark is giving me trouble, I haven't been able to get anything to export on any of the mfd's yet.

That helps. Something is missing on a fundamental level, maybe starting with the Ka-52 I can figure out what it is.