At 08:35 PM 25/04/2012, you wrote:
Or you can use XCSoar and configure all those items to your own preference :-)
Scott
There is a new PNA device available shortly called a V1. Essentially
the same as the new Oudie with the same screen (you can get your old
Oudie upgraded). 950 nits brightness and non glare coating so the
thing is sunlight readable.
About $300.
If SeeYou Mobile is your thing, buy a new Oudie. That or a V1 make
custom hardware very questionable on any price/performance comparison.
If you want the same sort of device able to run any of the glide
computer software then get a V1 and run your choice of WinPilot,
XCSoar or LK8000 or SeeYou Mobile. I've got a couple on order for me and Ron.
The 5"Dell Streak isn't in production and the 7"devices are too large
for comfortable use in glider cockpits. There certainly is a problem
with those in the US where Smartphones are banned in contests because
the new ones can be used for instrument flight in cloud and to
collect data for outside help.
All of the glide computer software will converge. Any really good
ideas will be requested by users for their particular software and as
there is an active development group for XCSoar, Paolo is actively
developing LK8000 and Jerry sells WinPilot and has a commercial
interest in upgrading it, I doubt any of these really useful these
features will be missing from those programs for very long.
There is extra information available on all these programs if they
receive not just GPS data but air data and settings like MacCready,
bugs and ballast from the vario system. This also makes operating the
whole system easier as these only require changing in one place then.
AFAIK our B50 was the first vario that implemented this back in 1995
when I realised that the vario and glide computer only required
connection by a simple well defined serial data stream. We have
carried this over to the B500 and now B800 and have distributed a
B800 simulator (it is also on our website now) that runs on Windows
PCs to help developers of glide computers. The B800 main unit is also
capable of accepting MacCready, bugs and ballast from the glide
computer program so hopefully, soon, this will be implemented in the
major glider computer programs.
Getting hung up on vario average data etc is probably a mistake. The
real question always is "should I leave now and try for something
better"?" Of course there's always that little voice saying "are you
feeling lucky? Well are ya, punk?" :-)
We've tried to make that decision as easy as possible in the averager
display in both the B700 and B800. Look it up. No need to clutter the
glide computer display with this.
We're also working on a new Total Energy system that is insensitive
to horizontal gusts and should be very easy to install with little to
no tuning. A test flight a few weeks ago showed that our sensor
package is up to the job.
You will likely want to blend Flarm data with the data stream for
display on the PNA and there are various devices on the market to do
this including ours.
BTW there's been another mid air in Europe between Flarm equipped
gliders where the Flarms allegedly were working. Fortunately the
damage was relatively minor (loss of 0.5m of wingtip and hole in D
nose of wing of other glider) and there were no physical injuries and
both pilots landed safely. Can't say any more.
Mike
Borgelt Instruments - design & manufacture of quality soaring
instrumentation since 1978
www.borgeltinstruments.com
tel: 07 4635 5784 overseas: int+61-7-4635 5784
mob: 042835 5784 : int+61-42835 5784
P O Box 4607, Toowoomba East, QLD 4350, Australia
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