January 29, 2006

Happy Chinese New Year

Gung hay fat choy 恭喜發財

November 21, 2005

Evolve AI releases Airbus A321...

Evolve AI has released their much anticipated a321 model.

Now many simmers find themselves asking the question: "Is it worth replacing my old FSpainter a321's for the new EVAI model?"

The answer is YES. Since the EVAI a321 looks better than the venerable FSp model, and has better framerates it's really a no-brainer, it's definately worth it.

The Evai model has more LOD models and less polygons which is the reason for the higher framerates. The fuselage textures are much larger than the FSp model resulting in a more detailed model. The EVAI a321 is available with CFM and IAE engines. In addition, EVAI has released a dedicated FS2002 version of the model for the 2 or 3 users still in the steam age of flightsimming.

Currently there are 23 repaints for the a321 available at avsim with more on the way.

Visit Evolve AI here: www.evolveai.com

October 22, 2005

World of AI opens...

World of AI opens it's doors for the first time today.

World of AI is an independent group of Flightsim enthusiasts whose aim is to provide the novice and experienced user with high quality AI traffic packages to enhance your virtual skies in FS 2004. With just a few clicks you can have your airports populated with AI traffic from around the world be it airliners, cargo, military or general aviation traffic.

WoAI is doing this in cooperation with developers that deliver high quality models, repaints and flightplans. And it's all free.

Their first release is Dauair (Germany) Winter 2005.
This should be available soon from Avsim and Flightsim.com.

While you're waiting, visit their website: www.world-of-ai.com

October 14, 2005

MD-90 released...

Continuing with our current practice of seeing what we can milk out of the MD-80 airframe instead of building something new, we release the MD-90. A slight stretch of the standard md80 fuselage, but with two huge IAE engines instead of the more svelte PW's. We included operating thrust reversers, which add almost 300 polys to the LOD1 model, but, that's 300 polys that are only drawn when the reversers are in action, which of course, is almost never.

The initial release includes 9 repaints, with more to follow in the next few weeks. Normally, we'd have chained our 'slave' painters to their computers, but several mumbled something about "real-life" and another showed up with a doctor's note, so this isn't an all inclusive release of repaints currently in use. Which isn't an entirely bad thing from the point of view of the lazy man who has to upload all the repaints, he'd much rather upload 5 repaints than 40 because it means more quality time snoozing on the sofa.

As usual, this model owes a lot to our beta-testers, also known as the "lets-wait-till-after-Dave-adds-all-the-LOD-models-then-we'll-take-a-closer-look-crew":

Arnaud, dfreed, Fokker, Iwazi, Skeptic_all and Trimotor.

September 23, 2005

MD-87 released...

Continuing with the McDonnell Douglas MD-80 series, Aardvark today releases the short one, the MD-87. It has all the same features as the previously released MD-8X, only in a stumpier package. But, with a taller tail.

Our talented group of painters has found the time to paint what we believe to be all of the current airline operators of the MD-87, as well as three of the privately owned MD-87's.

As usual, this model looks better than was the modeler's intent because of our ruthless beta-testers:

Arnaud, dfreed, Fokker, Iwazi, Skeptic_all and Trimotor.

September 16, 2005

Embraer 175 released...*

Today we're happy to announce the release of the EMB-175. As you'd expect, this model is based on the EMB-170 which we released last year. Besides the ever so slightly stretched fuselage, the EMB-175 has an added ventral antenna/housing that was not present on the EMB-170. (Thanks to Skeptic_all for pointing out that little detail, the slacker modeler certainly didn't notice it.)

There is only one repaint being released for the EMB-175, that of Air Canada, which is the only airline currently using the EMB-175. The Air Canada repaint with it's maddening halftone dot tail was skillfully painted by Federico Permutti.

For those who think that the release of the EMB-175, means that an EMB-190 can't be far behind, allow us to dash your hopes. The EMB-190 is more that just a simple fuselage stretch of the EMB-170/175. According to the Embraer website, in addition to the stretched fuselage, the EMB-190 has a wider wingspan, is taller, and has different engines than the EMB-170/175. Basically, the EMB-190 is to the EMB-170, what the 737 Classics are to the 737NG, same basic fuselage, and almost everything else is changed. That's a lot of work for one airline (JetBlue) and aardvark modelers are nothing if not lazy.

As usual, this model owes much to the hard work of our dedicated beta-testers:

Arnaud, dfreed, Fokker, Iwazi, Skeptic_all and Trimotor.

* What? You were expecting something else?

July 22, 2005

After 3 years, a MD-80*!

3 years ago David Rawlins starting building an AI model of the MD-88. For some reason it always got pushed aside for other aircraft. Time and time again it would be pulled out and the model brought up to whatever the current state of the art was only to be pushed aside for more glamorous aircraft like the 727, then the Emb-170, and finally the 737NG. Earlier this year while the 737NG was being finished up, the md-80 model was dusted off once again and this time there was no stopping it. The model was upgraded again using techniques learned from the 737NG, plus had some more tricks added. The model began actual beta testing in April and is finally ready for release.

The MD-80 model has the usual things you'd expect from aardvark, plus it's the first AI Aardvark plane to have compressing landing gear. Readers of the AIA forum will also be surprised to find out that this model has animated thrust reversers. How'd that happen? We worked out a way of making it so that all the thrust reverser parts that are only visible when the reversers are open are only drawn when the reversers are actually in use. The rest of the time, those parts aren't there. If you look at the poly count for the MD-80, you'll find that it's 2400 polys. Seems a little high for a twin engine jet, however, 176 of those polys are reverser parts that are only drawn when the reversers are open. So, at an airport full of MD-80's, most of the MD-80 models will be 2224 polys at LOD1, not 2400.

*We've been referring to this model at the MD-8X, because it represents a range of the MD-80 series which externally all basically look the same. This model can be used to represent the following aircraft in the MD-80 series:

DC-9-8x
Super-80
MD-81
MD-82
MD-83
MD-88

Because some of the earlier versions use a DC-9 type tail cone, we've provided 2 versions of the model, the older pointy tail cone, as well as the later and much more common low drag cone often referred to as the "screwdriver" cone. Some airlines use these tail cones interchangeably, on the same aircraft.

We've had a lot of help with repaints for this model, and the initial release of paints includes paints made by Tony Fosler, Federico Permutti, Denis Schranz, Phillip Tan, as well as Steve Tran, who we coerced into helping us out.

As usual, this model wouldn't be nearly as good as it is, if not for the hard work of our dedicated beta-testers:

Arnaud, dfreed, Fokker, Iwazi, Skeptic_all and Trimotor.

The only sad part about the completion of this model taking 3 years, is that there are no longer any Delta Airlines MD-88's flying in Delta's classic "widget" paint scheme. That didn't stop us from painting one anyway though.

June 20, 2005

And now for something completely different...

The Shrimp Boats are here! Shrimp boat traffic for FREEflow's Ultimate Florida Scenery is now available. If you haven't downloaded FREEFlow's Ultimate Florida Scenery, you owe it to yourself to do so as soon as possible. The Florida scenery is available from the FREEflow website as well as from AVSIM.

The AI Shrimp Boat traffic package adds substantial shrimp boat activity based in Apalachicola, Florida. The AI shrimp boats will travel as far east as Carrabelle, and as far west as St. Joseph peninsula. The AI Shrimp Boats were built specifically to be used as AI and have 3 LOD models. The most detailed model has 243 polygons, so you can be pretty sure that the framerate hit from this shrimp traffic will be almost non-existant.

The shrimp boats are rather small, about 70 ft. long, so you'll have to do some low altitude flying if you really want to see them. Once you find yourself skimming the waves you'll find that there are 12 different repaints for the shrimp boats.

The Shrimp Boat traffic will soon be available at AVSIM, but if you're in a hurry you can download it now from the FREEflow* website.

*A word about the guys at FREEflow, if you browse their forums you'll find that they absolutely love it when people find something wrong with their scenery. Why? Because they want to fix as many problems as they possibly can. We here at Aardvark are positively surly in comparison.

April 1, 2005

The End of the Line

Today aardvark released the last of the 737NG's, the 737-600. This is the end of the line for the aardvark 737's, at least until someone decides it's time to update the venerable 737-300. Don't hold your breath though.

There aren't many airlines using the 737-600, but eventually we'll get around to painting the 5 or 6 airlines that are.
Now available at avsim and flightsim.com.

This is a special livery featuring the illegible signatures of all the people who brought you the 737 NG's.
From nose to tail, here are the names scrawled on the plane:

Phillip Tan "FS Addict" - painter
Boback Shahsafdari - beta tester/painter
Arnaud Solvay - beta tester
Chris Reuter "Trimotor" - beta tester
David Carter "Carted" - FS2002 fde
Alexis Solvay "Digi Talex" - painter
David Rawlins "Grumpy" - model/FS2004 fde/hack painter
Federico Permutti "Venexiano" - painter
Tony Fosler "Iwazi" - beta tester/painter
Ralf Something-another "Fokker" - beta tester
Denis Schranz "Suhla" - painter
Mark W. Lupus "Skeptic All" - beta tester
(not shown) Peter Pavlin "Kefo" - x-files wonder-boy

This signature livery will not be released.