Condor 2 v 2.0.5 with VR Support

[Paul Remde]

Hi Condor 2 Soaring Flight Simulator Fans

Today the Condor 2 team announced the release of Condor update 2.0.5 with native support for Oculus Rift and HTC Vive (using Revive). This update is free for all Condor 2 users.

Also released today is our first glider with sustainer motor - the ASG 29 Es 18m in 2 variants with and without motor.

If you don't already own it, you can order Condor 2 here:
http://cumulus-soaring.com/condor2.htm

The ASG 28 Es Add-On sailplane is available here:
http://cumulus-soaring.com/condor2.htm#Condor2-ASG29Es

I also offer all the available Add-On sailplanes in a bundle for $88.
http://www.cumulus-soaring.com/condor2.htm#Condor2-All-AddOn-Sailplanes

If you already have Condor 2 installed, you can update it for free here:
http://www.condorsoaring.com/downloads-2/

I don't know much yet about the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive. Which one do experts recommend? What is "Revive"?

The idea of being able to look around while flying is very cool. I can't wait to try it!!!

Good Soaring,

Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.

[Chris Wedgwood]

Revive is a compatability layer to make Vive headsets work with software written for Oculus.

ReVive is here

https://github.com/LibreVR/Revive

[mmc...@gmail.com]

> The idea of being able to look around while flying is very cool. I can't wait to try it!!!

You can already look around while flying in Condor 1 or 2 using an inexpensive TrackIR 5.

[David Hirst]

>
> The idea of being able to look around while flying is very cool. I can't wait to try it!!!
>

I'd be interested to hear any feedback on how a VR headset feels to the pilot, particularly in regard to motion sickness. With the headset on, the brain doesn't get any 'stable' visual cues. Or maybe the brain adapts quickly. Dunno.

(Festive)cheers
DH
TX

[Chris Wedgwood]

On Sunday, December 23, 2018 at 7:38:27 PM UTC, mmc...@gmail.com wrote:
> > The idea of being able to look around while flying is very cool. I can't wait to try it!!!
>
> You can already look around while flying in Condor 1 or 2 using an inexpensive TrackIR 5.

Its a completely different level of immersion with VR. You should try it.

[Paul Remde]

Hi David,

I ordered and Oculus Rift and faster graphics card for my PC. I am really looking forward to trying Condor 2 with it in a few days. I'll post my review here. But, of course, I am biased because I sell Condor 2. Hopefully I also have a reputation of giving honest reviews of soaring products.

I found out that I needed to upgrade my PC's graphics card using the PC evaluation tool on the Oculus Rift web page here:
https://www.oculus.com/rift/ - Scroll down to the section titled, "Recommended PC Specifications" and use the white "Download" button.

A direct link to the PC evaluation tool is here:
https://ocul.us/compat-tool

Best Regards,

Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.

[Matt Herron Jr.]

Any chance DJI goggles will work with this?

[Chris Wedgwood]

It looks doubtful because I think they don't have head tracking.

[Matt Herron Jr.]

On Friday, December 21, 2018 at 5:10:18 PM UTC-8, Paul Remde wrote:

DJI goggles have gyro head tracking, but the interface is wireless to the drone, so not sure it can be hacked...

[Paul Remde]

Hi,

Well, today I flew Condor 2 in VR using Oculus Rift. Wow!!! I'm surprised at how much "being immersed" in the environment makes you feel like you're sitting in the glider. I zoomed and landed at the Nephi, Utah airport and felt like I was there. Very cool!

I think young glider pilots especially will love the VR functionality of Condor 2. Anyone learning to fly gliders will find it much easier to land that fly aerotow too.

Note: I sell and support Condor 2. I don't have any plans to sell Oculus Rift.

Good Soaring,

Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.

_______________________________________

[Stanislav Los]

I’ve been flying Condor 2 with Oculus Rift for last several days. It’s incredible! On my first try I got sever motion sickness after 10 minutes of flight, but on the second day I flew for 2 hours nonstop without much problems. Like with real motion sickness, it gets easier with practice.
Regarding immersion, it’s almost complete but lacks actual interaction with cockpit controls. I don’t have enough buttons on joystick, so in some cases I still have to use keyboard, which is impossible with googles on. Would be nice to do it in VR by using Oculus touch controller. That includes ability to reach game menu and settings.
A few words about Oculus Rift, it’s on sale now for $350 bundle with sensors and two controllers and definetely worth money spent. It also comes with free games that will make you feel like a kid, Robo Recall is one of them :) At first, I was concerned with field of view, is it wide enough? What about “door” effect? Well, it’s not an issue and it doesn’t interfere with immersion. You are “there”. The bigest problem is the clarity of the image. It’s just not clear enough due to low pixel density of the displays used in the headset. It’s bad to the point you need to lean toward dashboard to have a clear view of instruments and PDA. Imagine you’re short-sighted and you forgot your eye-glasses at home.
Hopefully, next generation of VR will address it, but even today it’s incredible. When I upgraded my rig, I had a choice to spend $900 on 38” wide screen monitor or buy Oculus. Oculus won with no regrets. Computer monitor just don’t make you feel like you’re there.

[Paul Remde]

Hi,

I've been playing with Condor 2 and the Oculus Rift more this week. Below is my latest review.

I am extremely impressed with the new VR functionality in Condor 2! I am using an Oculus Rift. I am surprised how much better it is than staring at a computer screen. The feeling of "immersion" is extremely cool! I feel like I'm sitting in the glider. I can glance back to see the runway as I fly down the downwind leg. I can glance up at the cumulus cloud overhead. I can even lean-out and look down at what is below me. I think it is worth the $349 for the Oculus Rift and about $300 for the PC graphics card upgrade.

I think every soaring club that wants to attract young soaring pilots should invest in an Oculus Rift, Condor 2, and any necessary PC upgrades ASAP. It is a great tool for teaching soaring on days when you can't go flying, or before or after flying. The PC monitor still shows the same 2D view it always has, but now it tracks the pilot's head movements. That way the instructor sees what the student is seeing.

There are 2 minor "nice to know" things that I should mention. At first, I found that I become motion sick when using the VR goggles - especially when I look around too much (which is easy to do when you're first amazed by the system). The great news is that the nausea improved with time. After an hour or two, it was no longer a problem. The 2nd thing is that the instruments on the instrument panel are slightly difficult to read in some of the sailplanes. Moving the goggles up and down a little to find the best focus helps a lot, but still, it is like my eyeglasses are slightly out of prescription. If I lean toward the instrument panel, I can read the instruments just fine. When I look around I can see objects outside the cockpit fine. These are not major issues, but ones worth mentioning.

Another cool benefit to buying the Oculus Rift is that the free Google Earth VR app is incredible! I can fly around soaring sites that I'm familiar with and feel like I'm there again. I especially enjoyed viewing the region between Nephi, Utah and Ely, Nevada - a journey that I haven't completed in a sailplane yet. It is very easy to use the Oculus hand controller to point in the direction you want to go, and fly off in that direction using the "hat switch". To fly faster, just pull the trigger. It is a great way to familiarize yourself with a soaring site before flying there. Also, my kids love the "Beat Saber" light saber and music beats app. It is a blast!

Best Regards,

Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.

[son_of_flubber]

Can you stick your head out of the vent window and look below the glider?

[Dave Nadler]

On Friday, January 4, 2019 at 7:48:07 PM UTC-5, son_of_flubber wrote:
> Can you stick your head out of the vent window and look below the glider?

Sure, if you're a pin-head.

[Paul Remde]

Hi Dave,

Actually, it is really cool to be able to stick your head out through the side of the canopy and look straight down. It works great. Our DG-1000 doesn't allow that, but it is cool in VR!

Paul Remde
_________________________

[Frank Whiteley]

Paul,

As some instructors are coaching with Condor Soaring, can an instructor have a display available while a student is using the VR?

Frank Whiteley

[Chris Wedgwood]

Yes, the VR view is replicated on the PC monitor.

[Matt Herron Jr.]

On Friday, December 21, 2018 at 5:10:18 PM UTC-8, Paul Remde wrote:

Paul,

does the condor program support head "roll", or is the horizon always level relative to the VR headset?

[Duster]

>
> does the condor program support head "roll", or is the horizon always level relative to the VR headset?

Don't have the system, but run a YouTube search. Appears to me it does have roll effect. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lErttcBKNws

[Piet Barber]

YES.
OMG YES.

This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen in computing since my IBM PCjr had 16 colors in EGA mode, back in 1984.

I just bought the Oculus Rift today. After spending a lot of time shooting a bow and arrow in my living room (and getting pretty good at it), I fired up Condor 2 on the Oculus Rift.

I have a club member who created a very realistic scenery in the immediate vicinity around Front Royal, VA. I launched the Duo Discus XL out of the airport, and did a quick pattern and landing. Somebody sitting behind me can see everything I see in the goggles by looking at the computer monitor; the display is duplicated.

In the pattern, I craned my neck to see just under the right wing as I was making my right turn from downwind to base. I looked up and to the right as I was making that turn from base to final. I did a very nice side slip to cancel out a stiff crosswind from the right. I had to hold control positions precisely while doing a roll-out on our very long runway (to get to the taxiway).

After a landing in difficult conditions, I sat there in the cockpit for a while. I leaned forward and could see the instrument panel more clearly. I leaned to the right and could read that little checklist that is on the right side of the fuselage. The only thing missing from my Duo Discus in real life is the pee tube coming out of the control stick. Once I get one of those installed at home, I may never get out of my flight sim chair!

How realistic was it?
I might have gotten a bit woozy from how realistic it was.
Seriously, this is amazing. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Paul Remde is right!

I bought the 2019 version of the Mach 0.1 simulator, which will be showing up in the next week or so. With all of these upgrades, our students will have no excuses about taking so long to solo.

I'm looking forward to having students come over and get some simulator time and see how well they do in real life after I give them the full instruction in the trainer.

I am REALLY excited about this.

I'm excited to see the possibility of students getting trained in much less time, I'm excited to see the possibility that the old timer grouchy instructors in the club who see flight simulators as a useless plaything finally get to see the instructional benefit of this device. I'm excited to see club members that I invest time and weekends (GOOD SOARING DAYS) in the back seat of the ASK-21 become full glider pilots, and not wander off after a few unsuccessful flying seasons. I'm excited to see the possibility of a student doing landing after landing after landing to get it right; instead of doing two flights per weekend, twice per month, and having his training program drag on for years. Most of all, I'm excited with the prospect that the students I train will one day be able to chase me all over the Shenandoah Valley, and not grow up to be round-the-pattern-and-no-further glider pilots.

I am REALLY excited about this.

[Paul Remde]

Well said Piet!

Best Regards,

Paul Remde

[Pete]

Piet,
If you don't mind, would you give us an idea of the specific computer setup you are running with the Oculus Rift? I'm going to have update my desktop to get it running but it sounds like it will be worth it!

[Chris Wedgwood]

On Friday, January 11, 2019 at 2:58:36 PM UTC, Pete wrote:
> Piet,
> If you don't mind, would you give us an idea of the specific computer setup you are running with the Oculus Rift? I'm going to have update my desktop to get it running but it sounds like it will be worth it!

Pete,

We have the requirements here:

http://www.condorsoaring.com/system-requirements/

[Pete]

Thank you Chris. However, I was specifically looking for Piet's setup since he seems to be having a good time of it!

[k...@cni.net]

I like to fly Condor using a PDA running XC Soar so that I can practice with the hardware and software I will use in my real glider. Can I do that using Oculus Rift?

[Piet Barber]

On Friday, January 11, 2019 at 9:58:36 AM UTC-5, Pete wrote:
> Piet,
> If you don't mind, would you give us an idea of the specific computer setup you are running with the Oculus Rift? I'm going to have update my desktop to get it running but it sounds like it will be worth it!

Graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 FTW (overkill, 2 years old)
Displayport to HDMI -> Monitor
HDMI -> Oculus Rift
CPU Core i5-2500K @3.30GHz (probably overkill, 3 years old)
Memory: 16.0 GB DDR3-1333 (probably overkill, 3 years old)
USB 3.0 PCI Card

Mach 0.1 simulator is "in the mail" (says Russell Holtz). My son permanently borrowed my rudder, throttle, joystick and TrackIR to play War Thunder, so it was worth it for me to buy the whole Mach 0.1 setup instead of piecing it together myself.

The system listed above is more than enough to handle Condor in full graphics mode, and most of the parts are 2 years old or more.

[Piet Barber]

On Friday, January 11, 2019 at 8:29:30 PM UTC-5, k...@cni.net wrote:
> I like to fly Condor using a PDA running XC Soar so that I can practice with the hardware and software I will use in my real glider. Can I do that using Oculus Rift?

I have an LX-8080 in my real glider, and would like to have it in the simulator, too. I haven't started to figure out how to do this yet, but this seems to me like it could be a limitation of the Oculus Rift.

It would be conceivable to have the LXSim software slapped to the cockpit on one of these mini displays: http://www.thrustmaster.com/products/mfd-cougar-pack but I've never tried it.

[Paul Remde]

Hi,

The Oculus Rift covers your eyes completely, making it tough to use a PDA. That is a down-side to VR.

Best Regards,

Paul Remde
_________________________

[Hal Woodruff]

I'm almost ready to pull the trigger on the Oculus Rift but it occurred to me that my vision might be a problem. I need glasses to read/work with a computer but am OK with my contacts for distance vision. Is this going to be a problem?

[David Lessnick 51P]

This article may help:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnet.com/google-amp/news/how-to-wear-an-oculus-rift-and-htc-vive-with-glasses/

[Chris Wedgwood]

On Sunday, January 20, 2019 at 3:24:50 AM UTC, Hal Woodruff wrote:
> I'm almost ready to pull the trigger on the Oculus Rift but it occurred to me that my vision might be a problem. I need glasses to read/work with a computer but am OK with my contacts for distance vision. Is this going to be a problem?

Its possible to get corrective lenses designed to fit into the Rift.


https://vr-lens-lab.com/product/oculus-rift-lens-inserts/

https://vroptician.com/prescription-lens-inserts/oculus-rift/

https://widmovr.com/product/oculus-rift-prescription-lenses-adapter/

[resi...@sbcglobal.net]

Many Best Buys stores have Oculus Rift and Go demo areas so maybe you can find a store near you and try it out before buying. I had the exact same concern as you, went to the store yesterday to try it out and found no issues whatsoever. I was so impressed with the Rift demo that I bought one on the spot.

I have extremely poor vision and require progressive focus lenses. I'm considered near sighted and can't focus on anything beyond about 4" from my eyes. I also have dual astigmatism. Even with all of that stacked against me, my glasses fit comfortably inside the Rift goggles and my ability to focus was not compromised. According to Oculus documentation, the designed focus distance of the Rift screens is about 5 ft. I did not experience any need to try to shift the view location on my progressive lenses to get into focus like is often required with bi-focals or progressives since the entire field of the goggle's view is tuned to 5 ft.

As others have already posted, there are several sources selling corrective lenses for the rift and worst case scenario is that you'll need to spend a little more and get one of those solutions.

Robert

[Hal Woodruff]

Thanks for the help re: my eyesight and being able to focus with or without glasses. I did take Robert's advice and went to Best Buy to demo the Oculus. Without glasses the imagery was in focus and did not present any problems. It turns out that the online help files describe the focus is similar to viewing an item at about a 5 foot range in spite of the fact that the Oculus Rift lenses are about 1 cm away from your eyeballs.

The demo was impressive enough that I, too, bought the Oculus Rift on the spot.

Now onto to Condor - but first I need to wait for the computer upgrades to be able to operate VR equipment.

[ripacheco1967]

Is this good enough to run Condor?

Intel Core i5-8400 - 8GB Memory - NVIDIA GTX 1060 3GB - 1TB Hard
Oculus - Rift S PC-Powered VR

[Dan Daly]

https://www.oculus.com/rift-s/ - there are min specs there, and a tool you can download to check if your system is good to go or not.

[Paul Agnew]

I believe he was asking if Condor would run on his system.

From the Condor Support page:

PC
To install and run Condor you will need

Windows 7, 8 or 10
Intel i3, i5, i7 CPU or equivalent.
5.5 GB of free space on hard drive or SSD
A dedicated graphics card with 1 GB memory. The graphics card should have benchmark (www.videocardbenchmark.net) result of 1000 minimum, 4000 is very good and 8000 perfect.
(Integrated graphics cards and cards with benchmark result below 1000 are usable, but with severely reduced graphics settings)
Internet connection required for activation
Virtual Reality
Condor 2 supports the Oculus Rift VR headset, and using Revive also the HTC Vive headset. Both of these have their own requirements, which can be checked for your system using tools on the Oculus and Vive websites.

Oculus: https://www.oculus.com/

>>>

Paul A.

[ripacheco1967]

Thanks for the information.
Im buying a PC just to run Condor 2
I understand that my Mac won’t work even with boot camp if using a VR headset.

[Chris Wedgwood]

MAC should work -- if the GPU is powerful enough.

The PC spec you posted above should be fine, but I would recommend SSD instead of hard drive.

[ripacheco1967]

Well... bunch of boxes arrived today... lets find out if this Condor 2 VR helps this pilot of planes with a fan on the nose become a glider pilot.

[Piet Barber]

On Thursday, June 20, 2019 at 6:25:55 PM UTC-4, ripacheco1967 wrote:
> Well... bunch of boxes arrived today... lets find out if this Condor 2 VR helps this pilot of planes with a fan on the nose become a glider pilot.

come join us for Condor 2 flights with teamxc.us . We fly twice a week and chat the whole time on Discord. Great fun, and has kept my skills sharp over the long winter break.

[Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot)]

OK.....I will ask the stupid questions....(sorta not stupid if asked....).
What version Condor?
Anything else from longer time personal/club usage we need to do your events?
I ask.....welp....my son ran the early version, account lapsed.
What is required, (OS and version, personal site hardware, connection speed, Condor version.....likely mine is unsupported....)...etc.....

[Paul Agnew]

Hi Charlie,

Condor2 with the latest updates and hangar updates is required for nearly all of the online/multiplayer servers I've checked out. The updates are free once you purchase Condor2 ($65 one-time fee on Cumulus Soaring - worth it!) http://www.cumulus-soaring.com/condor2.htm

System requirements are under the Support tab on CondorSoaring.com. Here's the latest from the site:

PC
To install and run Condor you will need

Windows 7, 8 or 10
Intel i3, i5, i7 CPU or equivalent.
5.5 GB of free space on hard drive or SSD
A dedicated graphics card with 1 GB memory. The graphics card should have benchmark (www.videocardbenchmark.net) result of 1000 minimum, 4000 is very good and 8000 perfect.
(Integrated graphics cards and cards with benchmark result below 1000 are usable, but with severely reduced graphics settings)
Internet connection required for activation
>>>>

Join us if you can! TeamXC.us

Paul A.
Jupiter, FL

[Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot)]

Thanks for info regarding joining an online group.