FSX Tileproxy – fix for grainy textures
Just popped this here so I remember if I ever reinstall FSX & Tileproxy!
There is a setting in the fsx.cfg file which makes the scenery (and autogen objects) shimmer or look a bit grainy. Removing the MipBias=6 line from fsx.cfg fixes the problem for me (ATI Radeon 1900) 
Kitchen Disaster
First of all, I’ve realised that I’m absolutely awful at keeping any kind of regular update going on here. I’ve never really been a diary person. I set off with the best intentions and lets months slip by without as much as a whisper.
Flying-wise I’m further than I was last time but every time I have a lesson it widens the realisation of what I have to learn to become a pilot. Flying is simple – a plane will fly itself if you leave it alone, it’s doing it safely without crashing into things that makes it a bit fiddly. I’ve now got a whiteboard on the wall reminding me of a few things I need to do rather than a nagging feeling in the back of my mind (like booking a medical for one, I’ve heard they make you touch your toes – I don’t think I can do that!). I’ll elaborate on the whole flying thing another time.
For now, it’s coming up to Christmas and I decided to make a Christmas cake this year. I’m normally quite good in the kitchen, I can handle lots of things going on at once and can make a sunday lunch along with a few cakes all come together at once. I made a Christmas cake a few years ago and it worked out very well but this time I think I may have rushed things a but too much and I now have a Christmas cake disaster situation on my hands.
The cake looked okay(ish) after the 5 hours at gas mark 1. A bit sticky on top but I put that down to my very relaxed measuring of the treacle. Turning the cake upsidedown after a full day I seem to have a mushy, undercooked, raw mess which I’m currently trying to recover.
Cooking is 90% science and 10% luck/art. The luck/art element comes down to the individual differences in cookers, testing the damn thing is cooked afterwards and using a certain amount of judgement which I think I have lapsed on this time. The science bit is understanding why the individual ingredients bond together and knowing what happens during the actual cooking process.
I have gone against science on this occaision as I know the cake is a complete write off but, just in case, I tried to put the cake back in the oven for twenty minutes. Turning it upsidedown it appears to have started to fry the fruit-mix. I have now completely inverted the cake in the tin and it is now back in the oven – god knows how it will turn out, I’m ready to throw it in the bin.
Exciting day!
Half day today as a flying lesson was booked in the afternoon so spent a few hours at work going through processes etc then off to get some fuel as the fuel warning light appeared on the motorway on the way in.
As I was driving towards the local asda (closest to work), approaching a roundabout I hear sirens & saw a police car coming the other way. Letting it pass, I entered the roundabout and an ambulance car (one of those vauxhall paramedic things) overtook me on the left hand side and clipped the front wing (oh, that’s where the sirens were coming from!).
As they had the full blue flashing lights & sirens and were driving quite fast I continued right on the roundabout (thinking, “bloody hell, did that just happen?”) but saw the ambulance pull over just off the roundabout so quickly adjusted course to follow it & park behind.
The passenger got out, came over and asked if I was okay. The driver (a young woman, mid twenties) got out & started apologising. I was more concerned about the emergency call they were supposed to be going to but they said they couldn’t leave the scene of an accident and another unit had been sent!
They radio’d through to their gaffer who was on his way and we spent the next ten minutes apologising (them for driving into me and me for not checking my left mirror before pulling out) until a police volvo came screaming round the corner and pulled in front of the ambulance (my volvo, an ambulance and a police car so far – lots of flashing blue lights).
We explained the situation and the damage report (some slight scuffing to paintwork which disappeared when I rubbed it with my fingers). The police then pulled out the breathalyser and said as we had collided and the police attended they had to take a breath sample. At 12:15 on a Monday afternoon I very much doubt I would fail a breathalyser but I’d never done this sort of thing before so was a bit scared! At this point, the ambulance unit’s gaffer turned up (yes, sirens & lights) so we had two ambulance units & a police unit all parked up in front of my car. After doing the breathalyser (didn’t realise how much you had to “keep breathing, keep breathing) and exchanging details we all parted ways. I was slightly worried I’d run out of fuel at this point but managed the three point turn on the busy road (other drivers were loving the flashy blue lights and would have let me do anything at this point) and fill up the car!
Reported the “incident” to the insurance company when I got home but stressed I wouldn’t want to claim for the T-cut and the dry cloth I’d be using to effect the repair. I very much doubt the West Midlands Ambulance service will be pursuing this one but I’m supposed to report such stuff according to my insurance policy so will be left hanging for six months while my premium goes up – not to worry!
Eventually made it to my flying lesson where I ended up in a piper PA28 warrior (four seater, beast of a plane with manual flaps – very old-school but nice to fly). John (my new favourite instructor) had me do all the taxying, take-off and landing. The take-off was surprisingly easy after reading that the slipstream from the prop tends to yaw the aircraft to the left so lots of right-rudder correction! This time we covered climbs & descents so got some great views on a clear day at 5,000 feet – need to work on my navigational awareness a bit though as I pointed out the airfield in the complete opposite direction when it was time to return home!
The landing this time was a lot better – I’d done it once without turning into a ball of flame so I was okay with drifting in nice and low. Again, didn’t have to do circuits as it was very quiet so got the go-ahead to fly straight in. Lined it up, dropped the power, stall warning horn & on the runway & touchdown. Instructor, arms folded and feet off the pedals so it looks like I’m starting to pilot the plane both on and off the ground. Brought it in for the final checklist and parked it up. Nice lesson – was very worried I’d be forgetting stuff but it’s starting to click into place!
Piper PA-28