It's been an interesting year...

I suffered a certain amount of illness, was unemployed and found a new job. An amazing year really. And now I am back where I started, before I launched myself on the downward slide a little over two years ago.

And what has happened sim-wise? In my favourite pastime? i.e. painting planes?

Naff all (to use an "only fools and horses" quote). I am slowly getting not just disappointed with the aircraft modelling set, I am getting downright angry at the sheer laziness of model makers.

Those idle so and sos do not follow the ground rules that ACES set down as conventions in the FSX SDK. And because they don't follow the guidelines, the standards of FSX models is still barely better than TOTR models for FS9. If I was to analyse how many FSX models I had paid for, I would probably be horrified. For it would have been wasted money and I might as well have stayed with FS9.

Most of the "bad" FSX models are poor FS9 conversions. The rest are FS9 models exported with the FSX SDK and merely have poor quality bumpmaps and NO specular textures.

The use of specular texture mapping was the single most innovative improvement to FSX models and yet the modelling fraternity have ignored this. Only a few modellers actually use specular. IRIS for one of the fixed wing modellers and Nemeth in the rotary scene.

Of course I have worked my way through several aircraft betas where the models are non-specular, but in the end, I have never flown them after the beta closed. Not even the Aerosoft Catalina has made it into my heart - despite a jaw droppingly beautiful level of detail and love in the paintkit.

...and then you get the odd freeware model and there are gorgeous speculars included.

Guys, I am sorry, but if you can't build decent models which can be really loved by painters of my "bent" then I give up on you and your models, no matter how accurate. I am going back to those that do give you the freedom - like that beautiful little Bushhawk.