How Do I Organize My Gauges?

From FlightSim

Q:

How Do I Organize My Gauges?

The problem when you download and try and install a lot of aircraft is the "gauges folder". As you should know, all the gauges must be "shared" in a single folder: the gauges folder. So when you install an aircraft, the aircraft itself has its own folder (easy to remove if you want to) but its gauges go into the main gauges folder. How can you know which gauges you need to remove, and are those gauges being used by another aircraft? When you install a lot of aircraft and then remove some of them, you will have a really big gauges folder, with a lot of gauges that are actually being used by nobody. That without talking about the hated "do you want to replace..." dialog box.

A:

SOLUTION:

The solution is really simple. You would not save a lot of storage space, but you could remove a plane (entirely) just removing its folder.

Imagine a 747-200 aircraft being installed in "\AIRCRAFT\747-200" folder. A correct installation would create the known folders just below the aircraft folder (\model, \texture...).

OK, instead of placing all the gauges in the main gauges folder, create a new folder below the main aircraft folder...

\AIRCRAFT
        \747-200
                \MODEL
                \TEXTURES
                \SOUND
                \PANEL
                \GAUGES <-- New folder
        \LEAR...
\..[more]
\..[more]
\..[more]
\..[more]
\GAUGES

...and put all the aircraft gauges in it.

Now edit the \PANEL\PANEL.CFG file (with Notepad). This file points to the gauges, and is expecting to find them in the main gauges folder.

Search for the gauges lines:

        ..[..]..
        gauge36=CONCORDE!Pitch-Trim,357,676,33,63
        gauge37=BOEING747-200.FPDA.FLSW.3,1141,53,25,32
        gauge38=BOEING747-200.FPDA.FLSW.4,1171,52,25,32
        ..[..]..

you should probably find gauges included with the aircraft, mixed with FS original gauges. You should not worry for the lasts, because they already are in the main gauges folder, but you should point the new gauges to the new folder. This is as simple as indicating the path from the main gauges folder (wich is where he is looking for them)

FS Original:

        ..[..]..
        gauge36=CONCORDE!Pitch-Trim,357,676,33,63

New:

gauge37=..\AIRCRAFT\747-200\GAUGES\BOEING747-200.FPDA.FLSW.3,1141,53,25,32

New:

gauge38=..\AIRCRAFT\747-200\GAUGES\BOEING747-200.FPDA.FLSW.4,1171,52,25,32

        ..[..]..

(note the new "..\AIRCRAFT\747-200\GAUGES\" before every new gauge)

As simple as this.

1. Now you don't need to mix third party gauges with the originals,
2. ALL the aircraft is in its own folder.
3. You can remove it just removing the aircraft (\747-200) folder (this will remove all the gauges).

Hope this would help somebody.

Kind regards, Ciro Pérez (ciro@ciro.net)