Conference hydra::amiga_v1

    
    Day Two...
    
    Falcon totally blows away Interceptor.  End of story.
    
    I got to visit my brother-in-law today.  I tried Falcon on his Mac SE.
    We then came over to my place and I showed him the Amy version. It's
    literally 2-3 X faster, and much enhanced. He left crying.  I'm proud to
    proclaim that THE AMIGA IS A GAME MACHINE!!! 
    
    No luck installing it on the hard drive.  All the files seem to copy
    intact, and I've tried various command files with IconX, but I just
    get the opening screen and then nothing.  I even ASSIGNed the floppy
    volume names.  I'm going to call Tech Support on Tuesday.
                                                  
    Ed.
    

    many thanks, Ed.  I was holding Falcon in my hand at Omnitek yesterday
    Didn't buy it because the box looked like it was a quick port, not 
    Amigatized.  I'd heard great reviews of it on the ibmpc and mac,
    but I didn't want to end up with a colorized version of a monochrome
    game.
    
    Does it do stereo?  (The add-on sticker with the color screen picture
    on the back of the box mentioned that the Amiga and ST versions
    had color, but no mention was made of stereo sound)
    
    Thanks,
    -Dave
    

    
    Yes, stereo output is supported.  The digitized sounds are quite
    good, I might add.  The turbine roar is not as intimidating as in
    Interceptor, but the little digitized transmissions from your base
    are a nice touch.
    
    One area thatthey outdid themselves in is when you get shot down
    by a MiG.  Falcon supports external views, like Interceptor.  (The
    Mac version doesn't, or at least we couldn't find them).  When you
    get hit by a missile, smoke and debris billows from the actual loaction
    where you were hit.  Plus, these MiGs are pretty vindictive. Theyll
    pound you until you splatter into the desert.
    
    Unfortunately, the ejection sequence isn't as good as Interceptor's
    (where you actually see youself blown from the plane).  In Falcon,
    you just sort of 'fade' to a court martial scene.
    
    Ed.

    
    SHIFT-E causes an eject in Interceptor.   CTRL-E causes an eject
    in Falcon.
    
    Ed.

    
    A few new facts about FALCON...  I called their tech support line
    to ask why the program can't be run from a hard disk despite all
    be best efforts.  Both disks are totally non-protected and all the
    files can easily be copied and ASSIGNed to the hard drive.
    
    The tech support person told me that the game was not designed to run
    on a hard drive.  I told her that if all the files copy properly and
    logical assignments are made, that the game should AUTOMATICALLY run on
    a hard drive.  In fact, you'd have to do clever things to PREVENT it
    from running on a hard drive.  She then admitted that they did not want
    the game run from a hard drive, which started to piss me off.  I asked
    her what possible advantage there could be to preventing this?  Since
    the floppies are non-protected, piracy couldn't possibly be the reason.
    She didn't know, since the game was actually coded in the UK.
    
    I've also found out from USENET that FALCON will absolutely positively
    not run on any Amigas equipped with a 68010, 68020, or 68030 processor.
    This is totally unexcuseable, since CBM's programming guidelines
    have made it clear, repeatedly, for three years now, that you must
    provide compatibility with 32 bit Moto processors.  For a large
    company like Spectrum Holobyte to ignore this (they regularly attend
    BADGE and FAUG meetings) is inexcusable.
    
    So, there you have it... a great program senselessly crippled by
    sheer stupidity.  When Amiga people refuse to buy it, SH will just
    say 'See, there really isn't a good Amiga market out there'.
    
    There just ain't no justice.
    
    I don't have it with me today, but I'm going to post SH's number
    here.  If you care to, give them a call and tell them that you'd
    love to buy FALCON, but it must run from a hard drive on a hot-rodded
    Amiga.
    
    Ed.
    

    Ed,
    
    Out of curiosity, did you try loading it from your hard drive while
    multitasking something else to slow down the loading process a bit?
    
    Maybe they use some sort of timing loop like the pinheads who wrote
    the Deluxe Music code.
    
    Could be worth a try...
    
    Cheers!

    
    Nope, haven't tried that yet.  Maybe I'll run DISKPERF.  That ought
    to keep things busy. :^)
    
    Ed.

    maybe those Dealer Demo Units that CBM was pushing for the A2000
    will help settle this issue.  According to Usenet, some dealers
    are returning FALCON as defective, because it won't run on their
    demo computers.
    
    Hopefully Spectrum Holobyte will notice that, not just the mysterious
    lack of sales.
    
    A simple statement that an update will be available sometime soon
    should be enough to resolve this situation.
    
    -Dave

    
    Spectrum Holobyte's USA Customer Support line is
    
    (415) 522-1164
    
    Ed.

    
    According to USENET, Spectrum Holobyte will be sending out free
    updates to all registered FALCON owners. The fixes will include
    support for 68010, 20, and 30 machines and a bug in the joystick
    handling.
    
    By the way, FALCON players can connect with MAC and ST players via
    modem, with some restrictions.  Anyone in the
    Grafton/Worcester/Shrewsbury area care to give me a try?
    
    Ed.

    re:.11
    
    Nice.  And support for installing on a harddisk or ramdisk??
    I'm impressed, looks like they are serious about the Amiga market.
    I guess the next step is to impress them with the speed of Usenet
    news by rushing out to buy FALCON tomorrow, and requesting the
    update when I send in the registration card.
    
    Thanks for the news,
    -Dave

Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Path: decwrl!labrea!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!bloom-beacon!apple!bbn!ileaf!io!carlos
Subject: The scoop on Falcon, and a review
Posted: 5 Jan 89 01:08:43 GMT
Organization: Interleaf, Cambridge, MA
 
There have been some harsh and unfair words said here about Falcon, all of
them by people who have apparently never even played the game. Falcon WAS
released with bugs, it doesn't work with 68020's, you must re-kickstart an
A1000 if you want to play it again after you have played previously (though 
1.3 boots OK), the joystick has a bug (you can't pull back and turn at the
same time), and there are some minor display glitches. But there are many
companies who have released "professional" software with more bugs and
problems than Falcon has who have received fairer treatment here.
 
Did anyone bother to call Spectrum Holobyte and ask them about the bugs? I
did, and they are working on an update right now, that will be sent free to
anyone who has reported problems, or who has sent in their warranty card. They
expect the update to be ready in about two weeks, and yes, it will fix the 
68020 problems, as well as the bugs I mentioned to them. At least they own up
to the problems and are fixing them, and at least they answer their technical
support lines (which is more than I can say for Aegis), and this is just for
a GAME! The way they have been flamed it is as if they said they would not
fix the bugs, hated the Amiga anyway, and would not accept returns!
 
I want to add that in spite of the bugs Falcon has NEVER ONCE CRASHED on me,
nor have I ever been robbed of a successfully completed mission, the way
Interceptor has so often done to so many people. I have had MANY hours of FUN
playing this game. 
 
And the whiny name-calling is not very appropriate for this forum, at least
from anyone who claims to be a programmer. Obviously, their code has never
had bugs in it, or been rushed to market to make some Christmas sales. Such
decisions are rarely in the hands of the programmers working on the project.
 
Instead of cursing Spectrum Holobyte, they should be praised for bringing such
a fine game to the Amiga, and encouraged to fix any existing problems and 
provide an update to those who need it, both of which they have already 
promised to do. Only if they are not responsive to the problems and do not 
come out with the update should they be criticized so harshly.
 
Why do I care? Because Falcon is the best game I have seen on the Amiga, and
is by far the best jet combat simulator. It blows away Interceptor as a 
simulation as completely as Interceptor shot down Jet. I also care because the
programmers of Falcon have done a wonderful job, and the game as a whole is
an AMAZING TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT, and all of the negative comments by people
who have not even played it are very unfair to them.
 
The level of detail and sophistication are amazing. The frame rate is high
enough to give a smooth sensation of flight. The instrumentation is superb,
with real head-up-display simulation instead of the pseudo-HUD Interceptor
used. The enemy aircraft are well detailed. It includes air-to-ground modes
as well as air-to-air combat. No more launching air-to-air missiles at a
"Submersible Aircraft Carrier" and wondering if you actually hit anything.
In Falcon, ground targets show damage when hit. 
 
Some details -
 
The game is copy protected only with a code-wheel. The code must be entered 
only once at boot-up. The disks themselves are not protected.
 
The HUD includes an attitude ladder (sadly missing from Interceptor), airspeed
and altitude scales, G-force indicator, heading scale and more, as the basic
information. There are additional graphics depending on which specific weapon
is selected, which can be air-to-air missile, gun dogfight, air-to-ground
bombing, air-to-ground missile, and gun strafing. Each mode has its own
information displayed, and as best as I can tell in the books I have on 
combat aircraft they are both accurate and complete. This adds a lot to the
quality of the simulation. It also has an ILS (instrument landing system) mode
that makes landing easier.
 
Other instruments include a threat indicator (shows direction to radar 
emissions), missile lock warning, missile launch warning, radar, map plus 
assorted other necessary instruments.
 
The electronic simulation is one of the things that makes this game 
interesting. Your radar has both tracking and boresight modes. You may shut
your radar off to avoid detection by the enemy. You may equip your plane with
and use a jammer, but it will broadcast your position to the enemy. Your
threat indicator will show enemy aircraft and SAM sites if they have their
radar on, but at higher difficulty levels the MIGS may also have their radar
off!
 
The attention to detail is amazing. When you turn on your ILS, you will get
messages from the control tower vectoring you to the correct approach path! A
neat touch is that each message is accompanied by a garbled, staticy fake 
message over the radio! If you are diving toward the ground, a female voice
says "PULL UP, PULL UP" while arrows on the HUD converge on the impact point.
There are real mountains to fly around, ground detail includes roads, rivers,
bridges (which are also targets) airfields, buildings and skyscrapers. Another
nice touch is that here and there along roads are telephone poles, and little
clusters of what look like farm buildings, complete with water towers!
 
But there's more! Replay your flight path with a black box. Dogfight over the
modem! (I am looking forward to trying that!) There is air combat manuever
training... The sounds of bullets hitting your plane will make you jump out of
your seat (or should I say, eject).
 
This IS a TOUGH game. Control is touchy, because the plane is much more 
responsive than Interceptor, where the F-18 was basically crippled. There
are several difficuly modes though, and this can make it easier to get into
the game.  Landing can be very difficult until you get the hang of
it. Dogfighting is tough. You have to be careful not to get shot down while
on your landing approach, or while approaching a ground target. But it is my
favorite game now, and anyone who liked Interceptor but wanted more should
check it out!
 
If you are worried about the bugs, or have a 68020 machine, by all means 
wait until the update comes out before buying it. But don't get the idea that
Falcon is a lousy game, because it is awesome!
 
-- 
			Carlos Smith
			uucp:...!mit-eddie!ileaf!carlos
			Bix:	carlosmith

    
    FALCON just keeps getting better and better.  Last night I was
    cruising at 500 ft in enemy territory when I saw some blockish looking
    objects moving on the ground.  I swooped in for a closer look and
    was surprised to see a convoy of very realistic looking trucks
    traveling along an enemy highway.
    
    I made fast work of them with my AGM65 missiles.  When I hit them,
    they blew up and fragmented into a few large chunks.  A few rolled
    over onto their roofs.  Incredible good fun.
    
    Notwithstanding the criticisms leveled against FALCON, it's probably
    the best bit of software I've had the pleasure to explore.
    
    Ed.

    I have to agree with Ed (and others). This simulator is incredible!!
    I loved Interceptor but it was a closed game (ie: no modem play
    and no mission disks). Falcon has both of these and so much more.
        
    There are features on this game that you will not believe. 
    Like being able to look at my F-16 from a spotter plane and then
    do a smooth 360 degree orbit around it.  You have to see it to believe
    it.
    
    I do wish that it would install on my hard drive. Loading takes
    an eternity sometimes. This game comes on two disks.
    
    My advice is to buy this game if you can find it. I got it for $39.95
    which is an absolute steal.
         
    Chris

    Well I finally bought it.  Guess what, it won't run on my 512K 
    A1000 with 2 disk drives.  It asks for the second disk, but never
    reads it.  I finally tracked down the problem- it will run in
    512K with no external disk drive (I guess that frees up 10-20K it needed
    to fit everything.  Arrrggghhhh 
    
    Graphics are straight from an Atari ST, even the mouse pointer flickers
    as it is being redrawn when something moves under it (haven't they
    heard of hardware sprites??!?!?).  I haven't gotten into the game
    so far, from previous notes it sounds real good.
    
    As to not running off a harddisk, the SOUND file has the file names
    in it with no path in front of them.  So it appears to be looking
    on DF0: for filenames, but I couldn't find any reference to df0:.
    You might want to try FILEZAPing the filenames in the program and
    renaming the files to F:xxxxxx.xxx, where you have assigned F: to
    a directory on your harddisk.  FALCON looks like the same thing
    except for a couple references to DF2:.
    
    -Dave

    
    My manual states that the game is actually published in Europe by
    MirrorSoft, so it's no big surprise that the code is nearly identicle
    to the ST version.  Last time I looked, the ST was still the sales
    leader in Europe.  Funny thing is, I haven't heard about an
    ST version in the Atari notes.
    
    At least they took the time to dial in some stereo separation.
                                  
    Ed.

        re: -.1 I had my copy of Falcon (for my ST) about 1 week before
        you did Ed.  Funny thing - I picked it up at the Atari/Clone shop
        in Abluquerque and they can't keep them in stock.  (I wasn't able
        to play it until I got back to Phoenix a couple of weeks later.)
        
        When I came back to Phoenix, the only Falcon available here at
        the local Atari/Amiga/Clone shop was for the Amiga.  They weren't
        selling all that fast.
        
        I've got no idea as to the availability back east.  I do know one
        of the main Atari dealers in Framingham closed their doors, so
        software availability off the shelves is somewhat limited for the
        ST in that area.  
        
        In fact software availability for both the Atari and Amiga in
        Albuquerque and Phoenix is much greater than anything I ever saw
        when I lived back East.  Out here the concentration of non-DEC
        users of these machines seems to be much higher than back East,
        of course we do have Fred Fish residing out here.
        
        There are two main Atari clubs in the Phoenix Metro area and two
        Amiga clubs in the Metro area.  In Abluquerque there one club for
        each.  Population densities for each breakdown as follows:
        
                Phoenix, AZ metro -     approx. 1.2 million
                Albuquerque, NM metro - approx. 0.55 million
        
        Bob

At the moment, I don't know ANY reasonable place to get Atari stuff out
here.  You can go to Bit Bucket and play list, but other than that,
you are pretty limited to Mail Order.

        It is a great game!  The only problem is that my son (who is
        almost 4) is logging more flight time then I am.
        
        Even when Compu-Club was open, I found that is was cheaper to buy
        software down here.  Seems that the dealers down here (PNO) start
        with a flat 20% discount off list, even special order stuff.
        
        The Atari dealer in ABO sells Falcon for $32.95, which is even
        cheaper than the $39.95 offering price over here in PNO.  So it
        appears that the Albuquerque folks are getting even better deals.
        No real reason to order.
        
        Uh, gee, maybe the Amiga folks would like their conference back?
        
        Bob
        
        (BTW - my Brother-in-law is coming in tonight so I'll be showing
        him Falcon.  He has an Amiga 1000).

    
    	For those interested in loading FALCON to their HD you might
    want to copy F16ICON.ZOO from CGOU01::AMNEW:.  It contains an Icon
    and description of what to do to load it on the HD.
    
    		wayne
    

re. .2, .17

SOME SILLY TRIVIA

   An interesting thing about the Amiga is that it's easier to make sound in
stereo than it mono.  This is because sound channels 0 and 2 are in one speaker
and channels 1 and 3 are in the left speaker.  To do mono sound, you have to 
tell the audio device to link a right and left channel together, 
which takes some effort (not programming effort, but
studying-the-manuals-trying-to-figure-out-what-the-heck-it-says type of effort).

When you've linked the stereo pairs, you end up with only 2 mono channels!

    re: .21
    
    I've tried installing FALCON on my SUPRA harddrive according to the
    instructions in your archive but was still unable to get it to work.
    It would load to a point and then would just freeze.
                                             
    Oh well, I guess I'll just be playing this off of floppies until
    Spectrum Holobryte fixes this shortcoming.
    
    Chris
    

    
    The hard drive installation went fine for me.  I added 'ASSIGN F16:
    DH1:GAMES/FALCON' to the included batch file for IconX and NewZapped
    a few references to DF2: to F16:.
    
    Ed.

    I just talked to Spectrum today and the update to Falcon will be
    forth coming in late February. This update is to be free. To get
    the update they will ask you to send in the originals and they will
    send you the updated Falcon. Great game anyways.
    
    Renis

I just got off the phone with Spectrum Holobyte's support folks. I was not 
impressed.

When I asked about an update the answer was: "In about a month, if we decide
to do one." This is a far cry from two weeks mentioned in Usenet and elsewhere.

When I asked about processor support for 680X0 processors the reply was: "We 
are considering what to support now." But they did cheerfully confirm that
it did NOT work on anything BUT a straight 68000. 

When I pointed out that a 68020 based amiga was a standard commodore 
configuration I got: "Uh Huh..." Sort of like this was news.

When I asked about hard disk support the person suggested that it could be 
installed now. I pointed out that it was hardwired to floppies and got: "We
are considering that too."

When I asked about update policy I got "We are considering what to do about 
that. Call back in mid-Febuary and we can tell you then." I get the distinct
feeling the update will not be free, if at all. Also the person I spoke with 
said "we can not be sure to keep track of who would need an upgrade and can 
not be sure that a notice mailing will occur." This was the basis of "call 
back in mid-Febuary."

When I asked about a exit to AmigaDOS without re-booting I got a "Why is that 
so important?

Overall, I think Spectrum Holobyte will only do the "right thing" with falcon
if they get pressured to by customers and prespective customers. I suggest
giving their customer service folks an earful of what Amiga owners expect and
are willing to SPEND MONEY ON. I think the current falcon is not up to that
standard. Spectrum Holobyte's number is 415-522-0107.

	-SES

    Has anyone used the modem option?  What is the flight performance
    like at 1200 baud? 2400 baud?
    
    Is this option only usable with Hayes compatible modems?  If not,
    has anyone had any luck with the Scholar modems or DF series?
    
    
    					Jim
    

    
    A friend of mine is moving into a new house and has been staying with
    us over the last week or so. We've direct connected our two Amigas
    together (my wife just LOVES coming home and seeing us sitting
    back-to-back dogfighting) and am having a ball dogfighting.
    
    We've tried it at 2400 and doubt it will be usable over modems.
    At 9600 or 19.2 it's smooth and responsive. At 2400 it's sluggish
    at best.
    
    I wish they would allow Migs to show up while direct connected instead
    of forcing the two F-16s to dogfight. We'd like to try some bombing
    runs with the one doing the bombing and the other providing air
    cover but Migs don't show up.
    
    Ray

        re: -.1  In order to have the Migs show up a third computer would
        be needed as a compute server.
        
        Maybe a MicroVAX 2000 would make a good compute server :-).
        
        Bob

    
    I wonder why 2400 baud is so slow... in Jet!, there was really no
    perceptible difference between 1200 baud and 57.6 KBaud.  A friend
    and I direct connected both ways.
    
    Ed.

    What can anyone tell me about running it on my poor old 512K 1000???
    It comes on two disks??  You have to disconnect the external drive??
    Does that mean when I'm in the middle of a good dogfight I'll get
    a window saying "Please insert volume whatever in DFO:"??  Or will
    I have to do without alot of options (like less nifty sounds in
    FA18)?  It sounds like everything that FA18 wasn't, but I still
    don't have the shekels for more memory.  Is it worth it without
    1 Meg???
    
    Thanks,
    
    Stu
    

    Falcon works fine on a 500k Amiga ... the second disk is mounted
    as part of the initial program load and no disk swapping during
    the game is required.
    
    Some features, such as the Black Box flight recorder, are not available
    at 500k but everything significant works well.
    
    Incidentally, I was wondering if I am running the same version as
    is described in earlier replies.  My version comes on two disks;
    the second can be duplicated but the first is protected and I can't
    make a copy of it.  Also I have not noticed any 'joystick bug' when
    pulling back and turning simultaneously.  The game is produced by
    Spectrum Hollobyte.
    
    Regards
    Peter

    I've just bought Falcon and it is without doubt the best flight
    simulator I have *ever* seen. 
    
    I have one question though. I'm running Falcon on a B2000 with just one
    internal disk drive.  If I add a second internal drive is that going to
    cause problems i.e. would I have to open up the box and disconnect it
    to run Falcon or does this only apply to an external drive ?
    
    In the UK the game does not ship with a code wheel, at least one of the
    disks is protected....... 
    
    -Dave.

re: .33    
    >If I add a second internal drive is that going to cause problems

I have a 2000B with two internal floppy drives. Works fine with copies of
the Falcon disks, uses both drives. I've been too lazy to move Falcon to
the hard drive yet.

    >In the UK the game does not ship with a code wheel, at least one of the
    >disks is protected....... 

My copy has a code wheel, but the disks can be backed up (fortunately). So the
above comparison is with a grain of salt, but I don't think Falcon cares
which DFx the disks are in.

John O.

I picked up Falcon last night - forgetting that it doesn't work on
the 68010 yet :-(

Anyone know the latest on the update from Spectrum Holobyte?

John

    Picked up Falcon on Saturday ( seemed a bit pricey but I did get a free
    A500/1084S in the package (8^)  ). Definitely the most impressive piece
    of software I've ever seen on a home machine. 

    The graphics are phenomenal. Memorable moments so far include watching
    from the Control Tower as a Mig swooped between my plane and the runway
    on final approach, pulled round and shot me down on my own runway ! 

    Nice detail touches include the telegraph poles, the variety of views
    from and of the plane and the occasional friendly F-16 you come across
    in the wild blue yonder ; they even appear to tangle with MiGs with you
    sometimes. 
        
    Anyway, some questions...
    
    (Ed)
    
    >> Your land-based controllers actually speak to you via radio.
    >>
    >> the little digitized transmissions from your base

    When do you get these ? All I've had so far is an annoying female type
    repeating 'Warning' as my stricken plane fell apart ! 

    Is this unavailable with 512K ?
    

    (Carlos)
            
    >> Control is touchy, because the plane is much more 
    
    You can adjust the sensitivity of the stick thru five settings. F3
    and F4 keys I think...

    
    It's GURUed once on me and hung up a couple of times... but it's been
    running non-stop all weekend ( my flat-mate's impressed too ! ).
    
    All in all an utterly superb 'game'.
    
    Dave. 

re: -.1

>    When do you get these [digitized xmissions]?    

Whenever you knock out a mig, leave the map area, or turn on the ILS. A little
"menu bar" appears on the top of the screen, telling you about the mig, or
how to get back to the map area, or your heading/distance to base. You should
hear a "garbled" message. It's always unintelligible and always the same, just
a sound, like the "warning". If you don't hear it, you're not missing much.
Too bad they didn't "Amigize" it enough to use the voice library.

   >> Control is touchy, because the plane is much more 
>    You can adjust the sensitivity of the stick thru five settings. F3
>    and F4 keys I think...

Yup, actually 9 levels, 1...9. On 9, you really have to pay attention...

>    All in all an utterly superb 'game'.

You betcha. My only complaint is that bombed buildings look intact until
you're really close, so you have to "check 6" quick to see if you got one.
The "atmospheric" effects (mountains change color from "hazy" to "clear"
as you approach) is a really nice touch.

John O.

    How do you shoot flares?
    
    Is falcon worth playing across the modem at 1200 baud?  Can you
    directly hook up two amigas without using a modem to play falcon?
    
    Is the ST version as fast as the amiga?
    
    Is there anymore games from S.H. coming out for the amiga?
    
              Matt
    

�< Note 2035.38 by GUCCI::HERB >
�                           -< I HATE ST PORTS!!!!! >-

    
�    Is falcon worth playing across the modem at 1200 baud?  Can you
�    directly hook up two amigas without using a modem to play falcon?

        I have not played it this way.  However, I hear from those that
        have that 2400 baud is barely acceptable.  Yes, you can hook up
        direct.  All you need is a null modem cable.  The Amiga, ST, and
        PC all support baud rates up to 19.2 kBaud.  The Mac only
        supports 9.6 KBaud.
        
�    Is the ST version as fast as the amiga?
 
        Yes!  I played on both machines - actually, my 520ST and an Amiga
        2000 and the play action and speed were the same.
        
        Maybe someone else can answer your other two questions.
        
        Bob

    
    Like I said earlier, the game appears to have been coded in the
    UK, originally for the ST and then the Amiga.  Given the same screen
    display and no special use of any Amiga specific trickery, there's
    every reason to suspect that the ST version could even be a bit
    faster, although I doubt if anyone could notice the difference.
    There might be a small hit on the ST for the sound (does the ST
    sound chip slow down the CPU?) 
                                                  
    I am hoping and betting (sorry Bob) that as the Amiga gains popularity,
    there wll be fewer 'ST ports' (which isn't such a horrible thing,
    given FALCON) and more original Amiga development.  
     
    
    

�       < Note 2035.40 by LEDS::ACCIARDI >

        The Atari sound chip can run in the background while the cpu is
        off doing other things.
        
        I wish no ill of the Amiga - you folks want the Tramiel family
        back?  Please!
        
        I just took a bit of offense at the "I hate ports from the ST"
        remark.  You folks had F-18, we didn't.  Until Falcon came along
        I wish we had a port from the Amiga of F-18.  I just don't think
        the remark was called for and both of us (Amiga Users and Atari
        users) now have a superior flight simulator that has decent
        graphics and sound.
        
        If it takes a port to both machines to keep a software house in
        business, fine.  I even based my decision to buy Phasar from
        notes in this conference.  Due to Jeff Lomicka and his CTerm
        implementation in Whack on the ST you now have a multi-session
        terminal emulator for the Amiga.  Lets lay down the verbal
        weapons and get back to enjoying our systems regardless of the
        brand.
        
        Hell, I wish they were more compatible with each other.
        
        Bob

    
    I think the frustration with ST ports is not so much an emotional issue
    as one of a desire to see commercial software utilizing some special
    tricks that the Amiga is extremely good at (and that we paid good money
    for).  For example, we get treated to some simply amazing demos done by
    playing with the Copper chip. Yet, little or no comercial software
    seems as hot as the demos that make the rounds. I think that this is
    because no equivelant hardware trick exists on the ST, and the developers
    want to code for the lowest common denominator.
    
    However, I agree with Bob in that if it takes a combined market
    of STs and Amigas to realize a product, then so be it.
    
    Ed.

>    I think the frustration with ST ports is not so much an emotional issue
>    as one of a desire to see commercial software utilizing some special
>    tricks that the Amiga is extremely good at...

My feelings exactly. F'rinstance, Falcon puts a hard-to-read little message
at the top of the window, and plays the "garbled transmission" sound. That's
okay, but it would be really fun if Spectrum H had seen fit to use Amiga's
speech "device". This probably would not be particularly difficult, and would
be both more realistic and more useful, since I'm usually too busy looking
around to read the little message in time. Of course, it's quite possible
that the speech device would interfere with Falcon in some way, but you can't
help the feeling that they never checked to see if it would work.

I can appreciate the need for low maintenance cost, commonality, etc. I just
want perfection. When I had an old Apple 2+, I was amazed what people did 
with 4 restricted colors, 64K, and 1.-something Mhz. What I'd like to see is
the Amiga's OS and hardware last long enough, and have a large enough market,
for developers to push it as hard as the Apple was pushed. It's frustrating
to see this machine used less-than-optimally, and it's obvious that each new
attempt gets better: FS2 - Jet - Interceptor - Falcon - ???

Long live the Amiga
John O

        Maybe the problem is the tools the developers have to use.  While
        they are getting better, I know of no C Compiler/Environment that
        runs on all the platforms and allows conditional compiles for
        specific features/funtions.
        
        As an example, I understand that there is midi sequencing built
        into Kings Quest IV (if memory serves) and Arkinoid [sic].  But
        how many folks actually have a midi sequencer hooked up?
        
        Adding functionality specific to a machine through conditional
        compilation should not make support any more diffcult.
        Developing for a specific functionality may take longer, but if
        it adds to the sales, then the wait would be worth it.
        
        Bob
        

    re: .41  one small nit
    
    >        notes in this conference.  Due to Jeff Lomicka and his CTerm
    >        implementation in Whack on the ST you now have a multi-session
    >        terminal emulator for the Amiga.  Lets lay down the verbal
    
    multisession and CTERM are two separate things.  Whack doesn't do
    CTERM.
    
    re: ST ports
    The ST also has a bunch of tricks hidden in the hardware that aren't
    taken advantage of.  It just bothers me that when they did the port
    of FALCON they didn't even slightly Amigatize as far as I can tell.
    Simple things like using a hardware sprite for the mouse pointer.
    
    -Dave

To further clarify the nit - Whack uses TDSMP, implemented on the VAX
end by VAX SSU, and in some recent DECServers via the SET MULTI ENABLE
command.  CTerm is a DECNet protocl used by SET HOST.

What makes all ths relevant is that Mike Leibow took the TDSMP module
from Whack and shoehorned it into Mesuguna - a local example of ST
softare ported to teh Amiga.

Meshuguna doesn't do file transfer - whack (for the ST) does I'm doing
an upload on another session as I write this note.  My character echo
is a bit bursty as a result.

    Which is faster:
    
    1.  Hooking up with a ST at 1200 baud
    
    2.  Hooking up a ST to my Amiga with a null cable
    
    
    What does a St have that a amiga can not do (besides built in midi
     and 8Mhz)?
    
              Matt
    

    
    Here's an Amiga game ad in the March AmigaWhirld for a Psygnosis game
    called 'Menace' that's done in extra-halfbrite mode, ie; 64 colors at
    once.  The screen shot looks spectacular, as good or better than the
    new (and as yet unreleased) Sega and Nintendo 68000 based games that
    will be arriving late this year.  I got a sneak preview of these killer
    game systems from Japan from a friend who frequently travels there.
    
    With a little extra programming effort, Amy may yet be able to fend
    off the Japanese attackers.
    
    Ed. 
    
    

    Anyone got any reliable tactics for dealing with the MiGs ? Or is
    it just a case of keeping at it until you can execute the Air Combat
    Maneuvers ( anybody started trying to get these down yet ? ) ???
    
    How do you keep them away when you're on Finals ??? Every time I
    complete a mission I get blasted when I've got no power, no fuel,
    no altitude and no airspeed, barely 1000 ft to go... loadsa medals
    but all posthumous !
    
    Dave.

MIGS?! You have to deal with MIGS? I can't even get the @#&^% landing
gear down! There has to be some secret to the landing gear I'm not
aware of. The first time I put gear down at a Major level, the thing
promptly stalled, and spun in. Ah hah, I think, I need practice controlling
her with the gear down. So I climb up to the operational ceiling, and
slow down, and put the gear down. She stalls. I retract the gear, the
airspeed builds to about Mach1.4, I'm able to stop the spin, but she
is still "stalled". Another big tent peg. So I try it at higher airspeeds,
but she ALWAYS stalls. Lower air speeds. Stalls. NEVER recovers from
these stalls. Very low altitude. SOMETIMES stalls. Being single, I'm
used to women saying "Caution" and "Warning" to me, but this is getting
tedious.

BTW, my guess about shaking the MiGs long enough to land is turn off your
radar, which is electronicly screaming "Here I am! Come get me!" at the
MiGs.

John O.

    Re .50
    
    I've had trouble there too, seems to stall when you drop the gear *IF*
    you're going too *FAST* or too slow... anyone know what the real thing
    does at 500 knots with the gear down ????? Would it actually go
    uncontrollable and "stall" or would the gear get ripped off ? 
    
    Doesn't seem a problem dropping the gear at around 300 knots at low
    altitude though I've not tried it higher up. 
       
    
    >> BTW, my guess about shaking the MiGs long enough to land is turn off your
    >> radar, which is electronicly screaming "Here I am! Come get me!" at the

    Aha ! That sounds likely...I'll try that. They're vicious b*****ds
    at the best of times.
    
    Dave.

    Can you land on the road?  I have put my gear down and lowered slowly
    on the road and I crash.  Can you only land on the two runways?
    
    How do you lock on a enemy?  Does the computer do it automaticly?
     I have got a little square around a mig and shot some missles and
    they totally missed the mig.
    
    What do the "(" and ")" keys do?
    
              Matt
    

>    How do you lock on a enemy?  Does the computer do it automaticly?

Computer auto-locks using the Sidewinders. That's the little square around
MiGs. You have to wait until you're close enough for a flashing diamond to
be superimposed over the square, meaning "in range". "T" will switch between
targets.

Keypad "0" fires flares. Keypad "." fires chaff, according to the manual.

>    What do the "(" and ")" keys do?
    
I'm not sure shift key changes "9" to "(" and "0" to ")". "9" gives you
out-of-cockpit "chase plane" view. ")", according to manual, is weapons
select, but so is backspace, which is easier.

Not sure you can land on roads. I can't land on anything. Sigh...

John O.    

>  Not sure you can land on roads. I can't land on anything. Sigh...

I can't even fly! I have a 68010 :-(

John

    This landing lark is getting tedious... took out both bridges, two SAM
    sites and a MiG then stalled in on landing. Lotsa points but busted !
    
    Hint for dogfighting ; select the Heads Up view - you see much more sky
    and chasing the MiGs is a lot easier. Also, at MAJOR level and above,
    the plane flies much more realistically, gaining and losing energy as
    you'd expect, and, I think, is easier to fly...except of course for
    landing. 
    
    Killing the radar for landing seems to work with regards keeping
    away from the MiGs. 
    
    Spectacular watching a Sidewinder hit and the MiG going down in
    flames... then the *&%!ing software hung !
    
    Dave.
             

    Has anybody sucessfully landed yet? How???
    
    Matt
    

>    Has anybody sucessfully landed yet? How???
    
That's about all I've been trying to do. It's a tedious learning process,
because you start over again every time, talking to Sarge about not wanting
any weapons. 

The manual gives pretty good instruction. After takeoff, turn to 270 and
fly west, gaining altitiude, until you are 10 miles or so from base, and
20,000 feet. Cut your throttle to 65% or so, put down flaps, and slow to
under 300 knots. (Under 300 knots, you can lower your gear). Hit F7 to
turn on the ILS, and turn to 90 in a steep turn. Look at the ILS slope
markers, and fly to them- if you're above glide slope, dive until you're
slope marker is centered. If the vertical slope marker is on the left,
turn to the left and then prepare to turn right when the vertical marker
centers. The further from the base, and the higher altitude you're at,
the more time you have to get on glide slope, so starting 20 mikes out
at 30,000 feet or so is not impractical. Remember to turn off your radar
"R", to avoid attracting enemy MiGs.

Once you're on glide slope, watch your energy (speed). If you get over 
300 knots, you'll have to retract your gear until you get slower. Flaps,
"F", brakes "B" and gear "G" increase drag, slowing you. Avoid going
below 150 knots, you'll stall. (You can usually recover, but you'll
be too low, off the glide slope). Pitch up to slow, also. Use the AOA
lights next to the HUD- if the arrow points up, pitch up. This shouldn't
cause you to climb, because you're already on the "back side of the power
curve". The glide slope is pretty steep, and the view of the runway is
pretty alarming, but if you have correct pitch (green center light on the
AOA) and are on glide slope until over the threshold, you won't get a purple
heart.

It took about twenty tries, with many go-arounds each, before I got one shaky
landing at Major level. Don't get discouraged- because I didn't read the
manual thoroughly, it took 20 or so tries, and this notes file, to get
my landing gear down- see previous notes.

John O.

        At the last user meeting down here a F-15 pilot from one of the
        local bases "flew" Falcon.  He said that, with a couple of
        exceptions, it was a very accurate simulator.
        
        Wish I had been there to see a Pro fly.
        
        Bob

    
    If FALCON is accurate, it's no wonder so many of these things get
    trashed during training.
    
    Ed. (Who'se landed a few times by the Grace of God)
    

    
    I've got a question regarding the ILS indicators. Where is the
    "center"? On my screen the two lines seem to be centered (on each
    other that is) a little to the left and below of the center "pip"
    on the HUD. Each line is divided into sections by cross-lines and
    I'm assuming the center "cross-lines" represent the center of the
    lines and therefore the indicators are centered when those lines
    coincide...
    
    Not that this would really help since I usually hit (literally!) the
    runway pretty well oriented but this has bothered me since day one.
    
    Ray
    

    I have bombed targets,bombed trucks and shot down migs.
    
    What is the object of the game? Will I have to learn to land?
    
    Matt
    

> What is the object of the game?

To find out just what the civilian instructor that you got to date
Sarge looks like. :^)

Actually, it's pretty realistic in it's own way: Collect missions and
receive honors, keep advancing your rank, and stay alive and out of
trouble (busted). Get a Medal of Honor, meet the president, find out
what he means by "a thousand points of light"...

>  Will I have to learn to land?

I guess not, if you don't want to. You can always "end mission" in midair.
I doubt many flight instructors would agree with this.

John O.
(battle hardened == killed more than 100 times in Falcon "landings")

    Re .62
    
    >> I guess not, if you don't want to. You can always "end mission" in midair.
    >> I doubt many flight instructors would agree with this.
    
    Not quite... I get busted when I eject if the plane has not been
    shot up ( by MiGs / SAMS ), same as if I survive an accidental crash.
    
    "battle hardened" ??? Shouldn't that be tenderised and fried John ?
    
    
    As for game objectives, well the game gets tougher and tougher as you
    increase rank so I very much doubt I'll get bored through lack of
    challenge ; I guess the ultimate objective must be to collect all the
    medals ( i.e. complete all missions ) at the highest rank, having
    selected max MiGs every flight... 
    
                   ...if anyone manages this, put it here !
    
    Dave.

    If Falcon is so good, does that mean that we will be able to buy
    a cyrillic keyboard?
    
    Jean
    
    PS Beware of Toys'R'us
    

> I get busted when I eject ...

Hit "escape" key, to get menu, select "end mission" under "file" menu.
This seems to work, and give you the "credits" or whatever for what
you've already done.

> I guess the ultimate objective must be to collect all the medals
> ( i.e. complete all missions ) at the highest rank, having selected max 
> MiGs every flight... 

AND THEN LAND!

John O. 

    Re .65
    
    Aha, velly sly.
    
    
    Last night, off I soared into the wild blue yonder, about twenty
    seconds out FIRE breaks out ( not seen ALL the warning lights in the
    panel come on together before !!! ) so I end up ejecting. Hmm, rather
    unfortunate I think and off I fly again, similar profile, FIRE again !
    So I start again, and again and again and again. Try a different
    mission, different weapons, different throttle settings ; three or four
    more missions end in FIRE after a similar amount of time airborne. 
    
    So, being of a suspicious nature and finding it hard to believe that my
    flying habits are enough to set fire to an F-16 every time I leave the
    ground, I reboot the game... no more FIREs. 
    
    
    Presumably, there is some bug in the programs random number generator ?
    Anyone else encountered this or a similar problem ?
    
    Dave. 

    That was the copy protection at work, if you enter the wrong letter
    from the code wheel you will get machine gunned in the first few
    seconds. 
    
    				Peter
    

    Re .67
    
    Eh ??????????????
    
    I don't have a code wheel !!!! And I've been playing it for two
    weeks. Mine is a French version ; does the U.S. release have code
    wheel protection then ?
    
    If it's a feature then it's an extremely random, unpredictable and,
    I'll bet, unsupported "feature" !
    
    Dave ( astonished of France ! )
    

I called Spectrum Holobyte about the promised Falcon upgrade. It was not real
promising. According to the support person the upgrade would consist of 
scenery and mission disks. No information was available on 68020 operation
(or 68010 or 68030) or hard disk installation. The availability date has been 
moved to "late spring." She also said all "registered owners" (send those
warranty cards in!) would be sent the details of the update including cost
and hassles (like sending original disks back to Spectrum Holobyte).

Once again it seems that the upgrades mentioned in numerous locations and 
numerous times is less satisfactory as time goes on. I suggest that owners
of Falcon call Spectrum Holobyte and let them know there is a dissatisified
customer base and real fixes are needed. Running only under a pure 68000 and
not from hard disk is miserable and unaccaptable.

	-SES

    I just called and they said that the upgrade will fix the 680xx,
    and hard disk problems. The guy I talked with said the developer
    is taking some heat on getting the update out. They are now taking
    names and phone numbers so the S H can personally call to inform
    us of the update.      No date has be made as to when it will be
    released......
    
    Renis
    

    I have not managed to get the two player game working.  The system
    Gurus as soon as I activate the Takeoff gadget on the armament screen.
    Doesn't matter if I have Amiga to Amiga or Amiga to anything else.
    Also doesn't matter if I have another machine (in this case an Atari
    ST) or a modem or nothing hooked up to the serial port.
    
    Any ideas what the problem might be ... do I need more than 512k
    for the two player option or could my software be corrupt?
    
    Any suggestions would be appreciated.
    
    Peter

    Just a tidbit -
    
    Felt depressed yesterday after a visit to the Bit Bucket in Sudbury.
    They had a version of Falcon running on a 386 pc which was written
    with EGA graphics compatability.  This totally blew the Amiga version
    away for both graphics quality and speed.   I don't recall any sound,
    don't know if it was turned down or those machines don't have it.
    The fellow in the store said it runs almost to fast to play.  He
    told me (don't know if it's true) that developers generally won't
    even attempt that level of graphics on Amiga versions of games
    because of the Flicker problem.  
    

    Frank
    

    
    I read a review of Falcon/AT in the last Computer Shopper.  The
    EGA graphics DID look good.  The review claimed that the game would
    not even load on anything less than a 286 machine.
    
    Although I would never expect a basic Amiga to be able to keep up with
    a 16 or 20 MHz 386 PC (which is probably 4 to 6X faster), I still get
    the feeling that someone could have done a much better looking
    simulator (for the Amiga) than Falcon or Interceptor.  I say this
    because of some of the new Amiga-only games I've seen that use 16 or 32
    colors and highly detailed screens.  Sword of Sodan and Menace come to
    mind.  These games have richly colored animated scenery that gets
    moved around very quickly.
    
    You have to admit that, as nice as Falcon is, it's pretty bland 
    looking compared to the Cinemaware games.
    
    Ed.
    
    

        While Falcon could have been made better for the Amiga, you at
        least don't have to pay what the '286 and 386 'owners have to
        pay.  The software store I was in last night had both IBM
        versions side-by-by side.  The XT AT folks pay approx. $35 and
        the PS/2, 286, 386 users have to pay approx. $55.  From looking
        at the box I could see no real difference functionally between
        the two other than the graphics.
        
        Bob

       Though a fast 386 PC undoubtedly has several times the raw CPU power
    of most Amigas, the Amiga's graphics hardware gives it a real advantage
    in this department. My experience is that a stock, 7-or-so Mhz Amiga
    has (subjectively) the graphics performance of a 20Mhz 386 machine, at
    least one using the current adapters (EGA, VGA) popular in the MS-DOS
    market. I'd be hard pressed to believe that a graphics-bound program, 
    which most games are, couldn't be implemented on the Amiga at least as 
    well as on any IBM-class PC.

    
    Are we comparing oranges and apples here (no pun intended)?  I would
    like to see Falcon running on a VGA system.  But, how much does
    a 386 VGA system cost?  $4000, $5000, $6000?  That's easily two
    to three times more expensive than my 2meg Amiga 500 with midi,
    sony monitor, and multitasking OS at no extra charge!
    
    BTW: Does Falcon for the 286/386, need VGA or will EGA do?
    
    =Mike
    

    Just as cost comparison in answer to the question in the last note,
    I just paid $2300 for a 286 AT system with VGA monitor and card,
    40 Meg hard disk, 1Meg memory, 1.2 Meg floppy.  This was from MicroSmart
    in Ashland, Mass.
                          

    
    It's amazing how quickly 286/VGA has become a commodity item in the
    Clone world.  I've seen even lower prices in Computer Shopper. 
    
    To put things into perspective, an 8-10 MHz 286 machine is comparable
    in computing power to a stock Amiga or Atari ST.  A 16 MHz 386 is on a
    par with a 32 bit Amiga or Mac II.  Yet the 32 bit Motorola systems are
    running about 30-50% higher cost than the Intel brutes... obviously
    economy of scale at work here.   The Amiga 500 still looks real
    good price-wise, but the A2500/MacII/x/cx don't seem to be
    on a competitive footing.   Ah well, we can always say the the PCs
    are 'uninspiring' to use.
    
    We're getting away from FALCON here, but I had a few questions on the
    current VGA implementation as used in the Clones (ie; Paradise or
    whatever).  Are they 'true' VGA as defined by the deepest darkest
    hardware and BIOS levels according to IBM?  I don't follow the PCs too
    closely, but I had heard somewhere that true VGA had some hardware draw
    capabilities, much like the Amiga blitter.  Also, is 640 x 480 with 256
    colors part of the VGA standard?  My Amiga dealer also sells Delta Gold
    386/VGA machines with this mode, but it was quite slow and no software
    seemed to recognize it. 
    
    Also, are any games using 320 x 200 x 256 colors?   Can you point
    me to a note where I could find more technical info on VGA?
    
    Thanks, Ed.
    
    
     

    For all you Falconites out there. There is a recent note in here
    somewhere about nib.arc. Nib is another copy program. I noticed
    that falcon was one of the programs in the parameter list. Well
    I re-copied my originals using this program and it removed the code
    wheel protection. This is great since I always had trouble figuring
    out which "symbol" was on the display.
    
    
    Roger
    

       There are a few notes in the IBMPC conference dealing with the VGA.
    I don't remember the numbers, but they're fairly recent (i.e. past
    month or two).
       To quickly answer some of your questions...
    
    1) There are lots of VGA clone boards, most of which are mostly
       compatible with the original IBM VGA. None is *completely* compatible
       (even IBM's VGA board is a little different from the one built into
       the PS/2's), but most of the incompatibilities are visible only to 
       test programs. 
    
    2) 640x480x256 is not a standard VGA mode (too bad), though many clone
       boards provide it. The best standard VGA can do is 320x200x256 or
       640x480x16.
    
    3) The VGA (and EGA) has a handfull of functions in hardware, but nothing 
       like those on the Amiga. Lines, BLT's, etc.. still must be handled
       by the CPU. As a result, it takes a *fast* (like 20Mhz or more) CPU
       to provide the graphics performance of an Amiga in most cases.
    
    4) A few games use 320x200x256 (Flight Simulator, for one), but the
       higher-resolution, 16 color modes seem more often used, probably 
       because the older EGA supports them. 
                                              

    
    
    Would it be possible for me to connect to vaxphone with my terminal
    connect to someone in the states then plug my terminal line into
    my Amiga and play Falcon against someone in the states .  

    This sounds too good to be true , It must be impossible or someone
    else would of thought of it ....
    
    Sure would be great to take on some American , English , Australian
    etc flyers...
    
    Steve
    Ireland
    
    
    

    I just read in this week's edition of New Computer Express (a weekly
    games oriented mag here in the UK) that Mirrorsoft have anounced a new
    mission disk for Falcon, cost �20. Very short piece, says it has a
    larger map area and is "totaly fantastic". Anybody else know more about
    this?
    
    - Scott (a Macintosh Falconist, but thinks the AMIGA is great) 

    that reminds me... any news on an update to the Amiga version
    of Falcon to fix the bugs?
    
    -dave

    Well, I finally went and bought a copy of Falcon.  And fortunately
    before I tried it, I scanned a local BBS.  One of the messages
    on the BBS warned of certain copies of Falcon being infected with
    the SCA virus.  The serial number on my copy did not fall in the
    range noted in the message, but I still checked it out.  And VirusX
    reported that my copy was infected with the SCA virus.  Since Falcon
    does not have a custom boot the problem was easily fixed.  But it
    could have been real nasty.  It's a real bummer when you know you
    can't trust commercial software.  So we have here another testimonial,
    to always use a virus checker on any new floppies.
                    

    I'm confused. My copy of Falcon does in fact have a custom boot block.
    It auto boots and never displays any amigados type windows. (cli, work
    bench)
    
    
    Roger
    

    
    Well, I was able to insert a command line in the startup-sequence of my
    Falcon disk to enable my 16 MHz accelerator.  It works fine, since I
    can certainly see a pronounced speedup.
    
    Ed.

    
    In note something.something or other Ed A. writes:
>    
>    Yeah, and it goes even faster with my 16 MHz CMI accelerator.  Now, if
    					   ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
    			16 bit yuppie!!!
    
>    only they'd fix it to run with an '020 all these 32 bit yuppies could
>    gloat...
					^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
    
    hmmm, well I never really thought of myself as a 32 bit yuppie.  Maybe
    if I cut my hair I might look like one...naw...never...
    
    
    Nancy Reagan says: "16-bits just say NO!!"    
    
    
    brad

    re 86.
    Please ignore my ignorance. My copy of Falcon DOES NOT have a custom
    boot block. Moral of the story, look before you leap!
    
    Roger
    

    As anyone else found the flight characteristics of the F-16, as
    simulated in Falcon, rather strange when you try and roll ?
    
    Falcon was recently reviwed in a U.K. mag and they let a Royal Air
    Force flying instructor at it.  One of his comments was that the
    rolling behaviour for a plane within it's flight envelope was wrong. 
    When you push the stick over hard, the plane should rotate along it's
    fore/aft line.  With Falcon the nose drops away.  I've noticed that
    both Interceptor and FLIGHT do it as the RAF instructor predicted.
        
    Is this a reconised problem with Falcon and does anyone know if it is
    going to get fixed ?
    
    -Dave.

		I think this behavior may have to do with the fact that
	there is no rudder control which would allow you to keep the nose
	up in a hard bank.

					Jim

Ed, is that 16 mhz accelerator from CMI?  Is this thier new one (not the 14
mhz plug in) or an 020 board?

    
    No, it's actually exactly 2X the Amiga clock speed, around 14.4 MHz. 
    Everyone calls it a 16 MHz board since it uses a Thompson 68000 rated
    at 16 MHz.
    
    Ed.

Hmm. I was just curious.  I seem to remember hearing they were comming out
with another version of the 68000 based (not the 020 based midget racer) which
was faster than this one...

John

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From: [email protected] ( Regional Support)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: F16 Falcon on hard disk
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Date: 8 Jun 89 00:18:09 GMT
References: <[email protected]>
Reply-To: [email protected] (Rick Unland - Regional Support)
Organization: Commodore Technology, West Chester, PA
Lines: 31
 
Being a beta tester for the Amiga version of Falcon I have been following 
this thread with interest.  Today I requested and recieved permission to
talk about the difficulties that you are experiencing.  First off the version
of the program that I have is for the 020/030 accelerator boards. I also 
have the standard version but rarely use it.  I can tell you that the new
version for the Amiga should ship in about 30 to 60 days and there are two
ways to obtain it.  The first is to send in your original disk and $2.50
to cover shipping and handling or call and use your credit card to pay 
$7.50.  Obviously you must be a registerd owner to obtain these updates.
 
Now for the info,  The new version has a copy to hard disk routine that 
uses Xicon to copy the two disks worth of files to your hard disk, at this
point you need to make an assignment in the startup-sequence. I used this and 
found the only problem was the default was set to DH0: but you can change this
in the batch file easy enough.  When run, the program came up quickly and 
requested the passletter from the decoder wheel, after that the whole thing 
ran great. I am using this on a CSA dragstrip  with 4 megs on it. I also have 
the CSA 030 board. The program ran extremly fast with this setup. I also
tested it on the CSA Midget Racer and had no difficulties.  The only progblem
that I encountered was a line about four lines high just below the hud running
from side to side.  This disapeared after the game progressed. If you have 
anymore problems dont hesitate to mail me questions I will attempt to answer 
as fast as possible.
 
-- 
******* Rick Unland	Commodore Business Machines ****************************
*	Usenet: uunet!cbmvax!unland  ARPA: [email protected]         *
*       Standard Disclaimer: If I said it, I was drunk!                        *
*		             If I didn't say it, I wasn't drunk enough!        *
* "I thought they said the Commodore could stand up to anything!"              *
*********************************************** Earth Girls Are Easy! **********

    I know this is probably ancient history for all of you, but....I
    just have to complain to somebody.
    
    I've had Falcon for over 4 months now, and probably only logged
    20 hours on it. ( Very low compared to my cycle time on Interceptor)
    The reason is simple... I'm frustrated as $#%@ with the %$#% landing
    parameters.t(  I find it very difficult to believe that you have
    to use the ILS "Glide Path" to land.  Let me explain.  Ay aircraft,
    including a modern fighter, if brought down on the runway, at the
    proper Angle of Attack, at the proper speed, with the gear down
    and locked, WILL LAND SUCCESSFULLY!!!  What I mean is, that I have
    on tens of occasions had everything lined up perfectly, 150 knots,
    gear down and OK, AOA indicator GREEN...absolutely BEAUUUTIFUL
    approach, and .... as the gear touches the tarmac...splat!!!
    I get the nice little pictures showing me what a naughty little
    pilot I've been for brining my plane down off the runway, and am
    summarily busted.  I've always considered myself a simulator jock,
    having mastered everything prior to Falcon with EASE.  So what's
    up I asked??  What is wrong with my methodology, or my understanding
    of the flight characteristics of the F16??
    
    Only one reasonable course of action, thought I...check with my
    trusty father-in-law, B.General R.W. Fentiman C.D. ,ex-Class A Flight
    Instructor, ex-Saber Test Pilot, ex-Wing Commander CF101, ex-search
    and rescue Squadron Commander, ex-Base Commander, current ratings
    on T33, CF101, and CF18 no-less, ex-Deputy Commander NORAD North
    Bay..retired... and guess what...he had also purchased FALCON,,
    on my recommendation from this notes file... and guess what....
    he couldn't reliably land the son-of-&^%*& either!!!
                                                            
    Ron (I'm allowed to call him that now that he's retired) also has
    Interceptor, and while being slow and limited in missions, according
    to him performed "somewhat" like a real aircraft.  However, he had
    less glowing words for FALCON.  
    
    I found it hard to take the realization that maybe I was no good,
    but I began to become a little suspicious when aman who had succesfully
    landed the real thing more than just a few times wasexperiencing
    the same frustrations{  
    
    We began to experiment, watching each other setup, approach, and
    land, and confirmed that on the majority (over 90%) of all landings
    everything looked just fine in the seconds before contact.  Airspeed,
    AOA, gear, positio{ (even checked from outside views), all indicators
    green....and SPLAT!!!  We then switched to a non-ILS runway, used
    the almost impossible to read AOA guage (light doesn't work on non-ILS
    approach of course), and began to experience an over 50% success
    rate!!!
    
    That was a couple of months ago now...haven't pulled the ol' code
    wheel out for some time.  No point in playin if ya can't even even
    keep your majors from gettin busted.
    
    BUT I JUST CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!!  I've got to play...I can
    hear it calling from the second drawer down, "Come on, trust me...I
    won't bust you anymore...you can figure it out...just missing one
    little thing, that's all..." as the voice fades out of my consiousness
    and the Mig runs at me again.
    
    ..no ...no...  I  won't ....  I , I , can't                  {
    
    
    I NEED TO KNOW!!!  WHAT AM I DOING WRONG??             
    
    If anyone is still checking this note, please help....it may be
    my last hope...
    

    
    I have to confess that I've only landed Falcon a few times, and it was
    probably sheer luck...  my ugrade blurb from Spectrum Holobyte implies
    that landings will be much easier with the new software.  I've ordered
    the upgrade, so I'll post my impressions here.
    
    Ed.

    Do the landing parameters change as one progresses through the ranks? 
    I'm new to flight simulators, so I've only gotten as far as Capt., yet
    I've never had any trouble landing with or without ILS.  (Now if only
    I could learn to do a decent snap turn...)
    
    
    John B.

    Re .98 & others,
    
    Yes, the landing parameters change as you progress... they become
    completely random ( if a 90% probability of crashing is your idea
    of random ) at Major and above...  
    
    				(8^)
    
    ...if you want to progress particular characters then, as suggested
    in a previous note, fly low over your base then hit Esc to get the
    menus and select "END MISSION". This still gives you mucho points
    for your successes and allows you to move on to the next mission
    without having to risk a suicide landing.
    
    This, hopefully, will be un-necessary with the upgrade version.
    
    Dave

    Methinks that there is an instrument missing from our falcon which
    might make it very difficult to land. I'm still a lieutenant so I'm
    still crash proof.
    
    However, I think that there needs to be some sort of Verical speed
    indicator/Rate of climb indicator/ sink indicator etc. Please consider
    that it's possible to have a perfect angle of attack but fall like a
    rock (IAS/speed too low) or never get down (speed too high). I would
    suggest some testing at various speeds to prove (or disprove) this
    theory. By way of qualification, I'm not a pilot, but I did work in
    <<real>> flight simulators for abot five years prior to joining DEC.
    
    Glenn

    I'd like to take a crack at refuting your theory.
    
    First of all, I agree that a VSI (Vertical Speed Indicator) would
    be a nice thing, especially if it were more readable than the current
    AOA indicator.  I do not believe however, that it is absolutely
    necessary given the indicators we have now.
    
    The statement I question is "Please consider that it is possible
    to have a perfect angle of attack but fall like a rock."
    
    Let's look at what we have. 
    
    	Airspeed: Indication of speed at which the aircraft is passing
    	through the air.
    
    	Attitude: Angle of aircraft (and wing, assuming the wing incidence
    	is zero) in relation to the horizon.  Indicated on the HUD in
    	increments of 5 degrees.  Put simply, this is where the nose is
    	pointing.  Assuming an appropriate power setting, and proper
    	trim, if the attitude of the aircraft is zero, you remain at
    	a constant altitude.
    
    	Angle of Attack: This represents the angle of the wing in relation
    	to the flow of air.  For example, if the attitude of the aircraft
    	is 20 degrees positive, and you are holding the aircraft at a
    	constant altitude, the angle of attack is 20 degrees.  (Noted 
    	that this is hypothetical, but is achievable.) 
    
    So, given these things, is it possible to have a perfect angle of
    attack and drop like a rock?  If I am correct, it is not.
    
    Given an attitude of 0 degrees, 0 forward airspeed, you would drop
    like a rock, but the AOA indicator should read 90 degrees.  The
    air is passing by the wing from bottom up, perpendicular to the
    plane of the wing, 90 degrees.  (Note, that this is purely hypothetical
    because given the control surface configuration of the F16, the
    aircraft would have a tendancy to nose down once sufficient vertical
    speed were realised.)
                         
    So, on an approach, assuming you had an attitude of 0 degrees, as
    you begin to power back, the wing no longer has enough lift to maintain
    constant altitude.  Your attitude remains 0 degrees, but you are
    losing altitude.  The Angle of Attack indicator now starts reading
    positive numbers.  Again, making some assumptions, as you power
    back sufficiently, and keep your attitude at 0, you could be on
    a 10 degree glide path, and your AOA indicator would read 10 degrees.
    So, in effect, the AOA indicator is giving you a representation
    of Vertical Speed in this configuration.  Note that it is not a
    pure vertical speed indicator however, because the factors of attitude
    and airspeed must be considered as well.
    
    However, on a landing approach, we know our airspeed, and our attitude,
    so the AOA indicator should be sufficient for safe landings.  
    
    If you really want to be confused, just remember, that when on approach
    in a jet fighter, you control your airspeed with the stick and your
    rate of descent with the power setting.
    
    Cheers,
    
    Stu
    

    
    
    Has any one played the new falcon mission disk ?
    I've seen it reviewed in CU (commadore user).
    They say they have fixed some bugs and it's much
    easier to land .
    Also another nice touch is that when you destroy 
    somethings they stay destroyed for a few missions...
    
    I can't remember all the stuff .If anyones iterested i'll
    bring in the mag and put the main points here.
    
    Have there been reviews of this mission disk in American mags ?
    
    Steve 
    

    

    Gulp.......yes, You are right. A GMFU on my part with respect to angle
    of attack and attitude. Hope I didn't indirectly cause any of the latest 
    series of DC10 crashes because of this!!!
    
    Glenn (with mud on face)

I called S-H.  They said that the 68020/HD version of Falcon
ships today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

John

    Call them again in 24 hours and see if you get the same story!
        John Sauter

I had been learning Falcon at the O-2/O-3 level and I was getting very
bored/frustrated with it.  I thought that I would learn at the lower
ranks then move up.  You could not have dogfights because the MiGs would
just flash on the radar and flash off in an instant.  One very good
piece of advice I found in this topic was to move up to Major.  If you
are new to Falcon just use the O-2/O-3 levels to learn where the
controls are.

I managed to make my first Falcon landing today.  The thing I tried was
to use the pitch control to lift the nose up.

Some Falcon Questions?

The instructions say you get a flashing Diamond and an "in rng"
indicator when your missiles are locked on.  I have chased MiGs for
several minutes a very close range and I have NEVER seen these two
events.   How do you get them?  (Just getting close and firing the
missile works though!)

What is the "Official" method for aiming the missiles? Should the Target
indicator be in the circle?  Is there some other indication?  As I said
before, just getting close and firing the missle seems to work (at least
at O-4 level).

John

    This may simply be a case of the blind leading the blind, but here
    goes...
    
    On the right of the HUD is a vertical scale with a triangular indicator
    which shows the range.  When the indicator is all the way up at the
    top, the MiG is 5 or more miles away.  
    
    When I get the diamond, the range indicator is usually around 2 miles
    and I am riding somewhere in the MiG's 5-to-7 o'clock.   
    
    As I understand it, the diamond shows you that the missile has a good
    solid lock-on.  If you don't have the diamond, there is still a chance
    that the missile might lock-on while in flight -- but again it might
    not.  The 9Ls are *much* better at in-flight lock-ons than the 9Js.
    
    I'm told that if you are in a turn, you should aim slightly ahead
    of the MiG so that the missile has a shorter flight time.  Aiming right
    at a turning MiG means the missile has to turn, too.  Of course you can
    aim too far ahead of the MiG and miss completely...
    
    
    John B.

After making a landing at O-4 I have not gone 42 consecutive tries with
a crash.  The landing must have been a fluke.  The controls involved with 
landings do not seem to work the way one would expect.

The purpose of flaps is supposed to be to lower the stall speed.  In
Falcon flaps just seem to be an extra set of brakes.  Does anyone know
what the difference betweenthe to is in this game?

The AOA indicator behaves realy screwy.  When the bottom light is on I
pull up slightly and the green light flashes then the yellow light goes
back on.  I keep pulling up like that until the plane is straight up and
I can't get the green light to stay on.

The instructions say the the green light will be one when the AOA
indexer is around 10.  That doesn't always seem to be the case.

Another funny thing, the instructions show a perfect angle of attack as
having the nose pointer slightly up.  However trimming the nose DOWN is
what lines the AOA index propperly (10 degrees).  What gives?

I have had the plane lined up in the runway, the AOA perfect (How, I
don't know), the speed at 150 knots, and the gear down and the plane
still crashes.  What's going on here?

The plane's behavoir when it stalls is just plain goofy.

The one time I managed to land the plane I did a no instruments
I did it carrier-style with a belly flop at the end.

This better be fixed IF and WHEN the new version comes out.  If anyone
gets it please report here.

John

I think finally figured out how to land the damn thing.  The problem is
the game does not handle the flight characteristics at low speed.  For
example, at 50 kts the plane should fall like a rock.  In Falcon the
nose just drops.  When you yank on the stick the nose shoots back up. 
Think of a film of a bomb dropping from a plane.  The nose of the bomb
points forward until the downward velocity is greater than the forward
velocity.  This is not the case in Falcon.

The major points for landing the plane:

o Use the ILS only for lining up with the runway.  Ignore the horizontal
crosshair completely.

o Do not use the flaps or brakes until the plane is on the ground.

o Watch the velocity constantly.  It must be around 200 kts.  Lower is
better than higher.  Keep the velocity between 150 and 200 kts.  You
will be throttling up and down continually.


The procedure:

1) Line the plane up with runway 09 at the 2nd N/S road west of the
runway at an altitude of 10000 and a velocity of no  greater than 400
kts.

2) Pitch the plane completely DOWN.

3) Decellerate to 200 kts.

4) Point the plane so that the velocity vector is at -15 degrees.  The
HUD pointer should be at about -13 degrees.

5) Press the [ key so you look over the HUD.  Keep the airport about an
inch above the top of the HUD.

6) At 5000' lower the gear.

7) At about 500' the runway should come into the HUD. 

8) At about 20' pull up slightly.

9) The plane should hit the runway at 150-200 kts.

10) When the plan touches the ground lower the flaps, raise the air
brakes, and kill the engine.

    Hi,
    
    Since no-one seems to have put this in, I will.
    
    If you're in the air, and dogfighting, it can be made a lot easier.
    
    What I do sometimes is ctrl-D.  This puts you into automatic pilot.
    I power down to about 160-200 knots.  The plain will automatically
    find your target migs!!!!!!!!!!!
    
    If they're coming straight towards you , it may be better if you
    accelerate straight into afterburner 5 stage.  Then just squeeze
    a few rounds off while he's right ontop of you!  He'll blow up.
    Reduce your speed again, as this allows you turn a lot quicker.
    The plain will then turn you around for the next kill!!!!!!!!!
    
    If you go for an outside view, and then do 3, you'll have to set
    up Autopilot again by doing the ctrl-d.
    
    I found this good sometimes, but other times, wanted to tackle the
    planes by themselves.
    
    Still having problems landing at Major and higher ranks.
    I haven't tried it without ILS though, thanks for the INFO!!!!!!!
    
    Rob. b.
    
    Apologies if anyone has put this info in somewhere else, I didn't
    see it!
    
    

Haven't seen any recent FALCON notes here, so here goes.

I just picked up Falcon (latest version) and the new mission disk
(Operation Counterstrike). What a nice program. I have it on my HD
running on the 68020. The plane lands nice, flies nice, and in the
Lieutenant mode it can fly all day shooting up the country-side without
refueling or crashing! I have had a lot of fun in the training mode. Try
that if you haven't. The computer tells you to perform various manuveurs
while in combat.

If you install the Operation Counterstrike version on your HD, DO NOT
use the HD install procedure. Just install the program file in your
Falcon1.1 directory. It is the only file (besides the opening picture)
that is different between the two disks. No need to have two directories
both containing the same files. One directory with the Falcon1.1 and
Counterstrike programs is adequate.   
    

    I agree, it's a BIG improvement.  All the complaints I had about the
    original version are dealt with nicely.  The plane lands, and handles
    much more realistically.
    
    Operation Counterstrike also adds the much needed angle of achieving
    an objective, rather than just single missions.  I've completed it at
    Major level, however Lt. Col. is proving much more difficult.  I'm
    having trouble with the mobile SA-7 launchers.  Get too low, and you 
    hardly have time to release a flare before you have an SA-7 shoved
    right up your exhaust hole.
    
    To sum up, my hat goes off to Spectrum Holobyte for this simulation.
    It's definately worth the bucks to upgrade, and to buy the mission 
    disk.  Programs like this do a lot of good for the Amiga, I know two
    people in this office alone who have bought Amigas based on Falcon
    alone.
    
    I'd like to hear from anyone who has tips on tactics to deal with
    those SA-7's.
    
    Cheers,
    
    Stu
    

	Re: -.1,-.2

	I'm unsure of what Spectrum Holobyte is offering with the update
	to Falcon (supposedly called V1.1).  Can you buy V1.1 just by
	itself, without the Operation Counterstrike mission disk? 
	Or is purchasing the mission disk (in addition to the original
	Falcon) the *only* way to obtain Falcon 1.1?

	I'd heard SH was "shipping" 1.1, but don't know if it was a
	product unto itself...

I got a letter yesterday in response to a bug complaint from 
Spectron-Holobyte.   They said that they have fixed the bug where
the plane goes out of control a O-5/6 levels.  All I have
to do is send in my original disk.

John

    If, like me, you've got bored with the drone of the engines from
    Falcon, some great music to listen to while hacking away at migs
    is Captain Lockheed and the Starfighters by Robert Calvert. This
    is a concept album based on the rough deal the German test pilots
    had when testing the modified Starfighter. Its the Right Stuff.
    
    Are there any other records you listen to when gaming? If so drop
    the names in here.
    
    Baz.

    Nice question...
    
    ...anything wild by Hendrix for Operation Counterstrike, specially 
    Purple Haze... or even Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries ( shades of 
    "Apocalypse Now" )   (8^)
    
    How about Jean-Michel Jarre (sp?) for practising those Air Combat 
    Manouvres (sp?) ???
    
    Dave.
    
    P.S. Ghost Riders in the Sky ? ( Outlaws )... 

How about "Another One Bites the Dust" by Queen.

        Re: .113

                 -< What if you're upgrading from nothing? >-

        Well, you really can't upgrade from nothing, since the upgrade
        only replaces "Disk 1" of Falcon's two disks. To run Falcon, you
        need "Disk 1" and either the original mission disk (V1.0's Disk
        2) or the new mission disk (Operation:Counterstrike). I would
        imagine that the versions on the dealers shelves should be V1.1
        by now, but I'd double check to be sure. On the other hand, if
        you already own V1.0, you can get the V1.1 upgrade separately.
        SH was/is offering a deal to registered owners (from my own
        fragmented memory): $7.00 for the V1.1 upgrade and $24.95 for both
        the mission disk and the upgrade.

        BTW, did anyone ever order the book "Falcon Air Combat" offered
        in the mission disk package? Comments on the latter?

        Pete

RE:    <<< Note 2035.118 by CRISTA::CAPRICCIO "Those men inside my brain..." >>>

>        BTW, did anyone ever order the book "Falcon Air Combat" offered
>        in the mission disk package? Comments on the latter?

 I bought the book in a store in order to get something to read while
on a trip.  THe book is o.k.  It gives some interesting infomration
but it is primarily oriented to the IBM version of the program.
It's also very chatty with the author's war stories.

On the other hand it does provide more detailed information on some of
the controls and displays.

In summary if you are really into Falcon, and in light of the fact
there is nothing comparable, it would be worthwhile.

If you are flying around at 1LT level you might as well forget it.

John

    
    
    We're airborn!  The KIDS (i.e. Dad) just received Falcon V1.1 for
    Christmas.  Installs very nicely on the 200HD's hard disk with the
    instructions supplied thank you. I've modified the StartupII file to
    make the proper assigns, and the program runs fine.  I won't comment
    on the pilots [in]abilities yet, and it's too early to complain about
    landing, but I do have a question.  When the game has ended (i.e.
    someone has crashed, or just run out of time trying to find the runway)
    I hit the ESC key, and select 'QUIT' from the File menu.  A few seconds
    later a message appears on the screen to the effect "OK TO SHUT DOWN"
    (or something close to that), and that's it.  I mean the only thing
    that works is the mouse pointer!  At that point I have to reboot to get 
    the system back.  
    
    Is there something I'm missing or is this the only way out?  It would
    be really nice if the previous (to Falcon) screen would return.  Is
    there a file somewhere that could be modified, or can I write a script
    or something to accomplish this?
    

re: .-1


All you need to do is click the mouse button after you get burned.
THat will take you back to the duty roster.

John

    
    Thanks, but that part I know.  I'm talking about after you "QUIT"
    (i.e. selecting QUIT from the FILE menu).  The message that comes
    up is "OK to Shut Off".  After that message, the only way to get 
    any response from the system is to hit "Ctrl A A".  I know this is
    the case with many (most?) games/simulators, when they are finished you
    have to reboot to do anything else.  On floppy based systems I guess
    that's acceptable, but with a hard drive system, just seems that there 
    should be a better way to get back to the operating system.
    
    								Mike
     

Rebooting is the only way to get out of Falcon.

    Alas, far too many game producers still have that C64 mentality. 
    Several even insist that you swap floppies into one drive, ignoring 
    the fact that most machines now have at least two drives available.
    Really stupid!

    In the current issue of INFO (Jan/Feb 1990) there was a tip for Falcon. 
    Here it is.
    
    *********************************************************************
    
    Falcon:  At the higher levels, as you're coming in over the verge of
    the runway, ten to twenty feet above Smear City, press and hold the
    "HELP" Center/Level key and you're suddenly in what amounts to a
    Harrier jump-jet, which floats you down slowly to a landing soft as a
    kiss.  - Jim Hitchcock
    
    *********************************************************************
    end of tip

    		I have been flying at the Captain level for a few days now,
    and I would like to hear a few tips from the experts.
    
    	I've been very succesful in splashing Mig's with the following
    approach:
    	When I detect it in the Threat indicator, I hit Autopilot which
    will direct me in a heads-on course. By using the cannon, I achieve
    a fairly high success rate. However, if I miss it, I have a lot of
    trouble trying to get into position for either the Sidewinders or
    the cannon. The problem is I can't do a good job of following the
    MiG visually. With my two hands busy at the joystick, I can't
    manipulate the keyboard keys fast enough to change my viewing angle.
    I want to improve my technique for the higher levels, when the "going
    gets tough". Would you like to share your techniques ?
    
    	Second problem is using the MK84 bombs. After more than ten trials,
    	I have never been able to hit a target with them. I follow the
    	manual as close as possible (Lock, level your flight, after
        dissapearing from view do a 10 degree climb and wait for the
        release queue (a little + ) to cross the reticle before releasing). 
        Anybody else with the same problem ? Help ?
    
    
    	Miguel A. Alvarez

First of all you need to get a joystick that you can operate with one
hand.  Second, move up to Major level.  Only use LT can CPT levels
to learn the controls.  The F16 does not behaive instinctively
at the lower levels.

You will have to play with the sensitivity settings to get the one that
works the best.  As you get to the higher levels you need to set the
sensitivity higher.  By the time you get to COL you absolutely must have
the sensitivity set to 9 in order to engage MiGs.

The MiG have a great advantage in close combat because they always
seem to know exactly where you are.  It is best to get them when
they are at a distance.  As you get to the higher levels it becomes
harder and harder to shoot down the MiGs with missiles.  It seems
that on the average it takes two to three missiles to bring down a MiG.
I would say that about 60% of my kills come using the M-61.

The problem with the head-on approach is that the MiGs get you as often
as you get them.  One tactic I use to overcome this is to charge at them
head on with the AIM-9L selected.  As soon as the diamond starts
flashing fire the missile and switch to guns.  Then let the MiG have it. 
It seems that the MiG get too occupied dropping flares to avoid the
missile that it does not get a chance to fire at you.  Not always but it
works most of the time.

I would suggest that when you get in close you turn off your radar.  It
seems that the MiG use it to home in on you in close combat just as you
use your threat indicator to find them.  At COL level the MiGs turn off
their radars so you need to even up the odds.

For the bombs try the dive bombing approad.  Picket the target but aim
far rather than short.  As you get in close pitch the plane all the way
down and dive enought that you can see the CCIP circle in the HUD.
Steer the plane so that the targeting CCIP is on the target then
press drop the bombs.  There is too much of a margin for error in the
heads up approach.

John

    I got V2 of Falcon at Xmas, I'm really impressed with it but I have
    a few queries :


    1) Harddisk installation


	I copied both disks onto my hard disk and assigned
	"Falcon Version 2" and "f162" to the directory.

	When I run it everything behaves normally until I take off. Within
	a minute or so of taking off. I get a total systems failure, ie all
	the warning lights on the right hand side come on. I've played from
	the floppies for ages so I know they are okay.

	Is this their latest form of copy protection ??? Does anyone know a
	way arround it. I've tried ringing Mirrorsoft a few times but I can
	never get through.


    2) Ribbons

	The 'ribbons' displayed on the mission chart are , mostly, different
	from the ones in the manual.

    3) Does the F16 have a rudder ? I can't find any controls for it.


Thanks,
Adrian

>	When I run it everything behaves normally until I take off. Within
>	a minute or so of taking off. I get a total systems failure, ie all
>	the warning lights on the right hand side come on. I've played from
>	the floppies for ages so I know they are okay.

This is what happens when you enter the wrong letter from the code wheel
twice.

>	The 'ribbons' displayed on the mission chart are , mostly, different
>	from the ones in the manual.

Sometimes I have a hard time matching up the ribbons on the screen
to the ones on the manual.  They are close but sometimes ambiguous.

>    3) Does the F16 have a rudder ? I can't find any controls for it.

No, but if the best thing to do to simulate a rudder is to use the trim
controls.  Press the Key to the left of the space bar and the sensitivity
indicator will turn from green to yellow.  This is usefull when you are
landing.

John

>< Note 2035.129 by KYOA::MIANO "With ELF V2 I've learned the phonebook" >
    Like it.(or not as the case may be)


>>	When I run it everything behaves normally until I take off. Within
>>	a minute or so of taking off. I get a total systems failure, ie all
>>	the warning lights on the right hand side come on. I've played from
>>	the floppies for ages so I know they are okay.
>
>
>This is what happens when you enter the wrong letter from the code wheel
>twice.


    CODE WHEEL ? What code wheel, I havn't got one and the game never prompts
    me for any input like that ??? I think I've got the same game you have to
    go on missions like Milk run,black bandit,double trouble,dragons jaw...



Adrian

Falcon uses a code wheel form of copy protection, i.e.
you need the code wheel to put in a 'password' a the
start of the game so it will function properly.

It beats having the disks copy protected.

Mike

as to why your's doesn't ask for a code wheel input ???

    
>>as to why your's doesn't ask for a code wheel input ???
    
    I believe that some (most) of the versions sold in the UK at least were
    copy protected and had no code wheel. Dunno about anywhere else tho.
    
    					Alan T.

    >I believe that some (most) of the versions sold in the UK at least were
    >copy protected and had no code wheel. Dunno about anywhere else tho.
    Quite correct, European Falcons have disk protection(quite hard to
    break) and USA version has the Code-wheel.
    
    -Kari-
                              

Interesting, as here we have PAL machines (ala UK) but
get american style protection.... I wonder if my version
is NTSC ?

Mike

    Has those versions been  published by MIRRORSOFT, if so then you should
    have copy protection on disk.
    
    -Kari-

    Yes, both versions of Falcon i have were published by Mirrorsoft
    and are 'heavy' copy-protected. (First Track is a 'Longtrack')
    
    Ralf
    ====
    

    I expect this has been answered before,but here goes.I have just
    started playing Falcon,but the trouble is I would like to copy my disks
    so (UK version) that I don't have to keep using the originals.I only
    play the game for about an hour and a half each day,but if I keep
    loading the same disks I'm afraid I'm using them too much and that I'll
    get problems.
     Is there a solution?I only want to make copies for my own use,they
    would not begiven to someone else who has not bought the game.At least
    with Interceptor you could make as many copies as you like.
    
    TYRONE
     

    Have you tried copying them with diskcopy ?
    
    I have the PAL version of the game and it is not copy-protected.
    However I seem to recall that isn't true in all parts of the world.
    
    Mike
    	Adelaide, Australia

    Hi down under Mike!
                       Thanks for the quick reply.I did try with diskcopy
    but it didn't work.Now I did find some of the disks were faulty,but I
    got so confused I didn't know if it was the blank disks causing
    problems or some type of protection.
     But I've bought some new blank disks,so perhaps I'll give it a try
    with them.I just thought I'd try in this conference first and see how
    others had got on.If I get the time tonight I'll try copying them and
    post how I get on in this note.
    
    G'Day Mike
    
    TYRONE
    

    Raw copy used to make a backup that eliminated the need for the code
    wheel. In the states the disks were not copy protected, are the
    protected in the UK ? 
    								bill

    could you explain your first sentence,"raw copy used to make a backup
    that eliminated the need for the code wheel"?
    
    TYRONE
    

    Raw Copy is a backup utility that copies protected software. In the
    process it will remove the manual lookup, code wheel, and often the
    dongle requirement. When I made a backup of Falcon I did not need to
    use the coadwheel that came with the game. When asked for the code I
    simply hit return,and I was all set. I noticed that it did not work
    on some later Falcon disks.(I also never updated to the later version
    of raw copy)
    								bill

    Falcon v1.1 , disk 1 is copy protected in the UK.  I remember this
    question being asked before. I think the first track is a long track.
    dir/title=Backup or =falcon should provide the answer.  I've tried NIB
    amongst others and have not been successful in defeating the copy
    protection.
    
    Maybe one of the software/hardware gizmo's such as "Synchro Express"
    is waht is needed. but nothing is guaranteed.
    
    			Regards,
    				David
    

    Well folks,I tried a diskcopy last night,and that worked o.k.But when I
    loaded the game,got to the point of taking off,and all power was cut!
     Now by reading some of the previous replies,the power is lost just
    after take-off when a code wheel is needed.Now I have V2 of falcon
    which doesn't need one.
     Perhaps it would be worth trying this "raw copy",where do I get hold
    of one?I'll have a look for some notes on backup (pop Larkin!),but
    anymore suggestions on where I can go now would be welcome.Also I might
    give Mirror soft a ring.
    
    TYRONE Thanks for the replies guys

    I don't know if raw copy has been updated to work with ver 2.0 of 
    Falcon. I installes it on the hard drive but I could not get my version
    of raw copy to remove the protection scheme, so I just use the code
    wheel. I liked the code wheel HD combo better than no code wheel no 
    HD.
    							bill

    Well,I phoned Mirrorsoft.They confirmed that it is not possible to copy
    falcon,the guy worried me a bit,he said that my original disk might
    start crashing now,I will not be very happy if it does!
     He also said that it is possible to get a working copy of the disk
    from them,they cost 4 pounds,if anyone wants the address I'll post it
    here.
    
    TYRONE

    But (as pointed out in .143) it IS possible to copy the second disk. As
    this is the roster disk, it gets hammered a bit more than disk one, so
    it's worth copying.
    
    Phil Gill.

    Thanks for pointing that out Phil,as I'm still on the milk run I'm not
    that familiar with the game,but as you say the second disk gets
    accessed a lot during the game,so it would be worth copying it.Also it
    would be good to have more than one duty roster.
    
    TYRONE