Transponder window overlayed on FSX causes screen-tearing

[Keith Smith]

If it's going to be for 5-10 seconds, we'll struggle to notice that it's happened, feel free, other than if you're in the pattern with other aircraft. If that's the case, though, you won't be asked to IDENT in any case.

[Mike133]

I just installed a new ATI card (Radeon HD 7850) in my system, a change from an nVidia card. I can confirm that I no longer get screen-tearing when I use the transponder window in FSX. This may be an nVidia issue.

***EDIT: I may have spoke too soon, at the beginning of a 50min flight there seemed to be no tearing, although I noticed it about halfway through. I will have to do more testing before I can make a determination. The type of tearing seems to have changed with my switch from nVidia to ATI though. There is still tearing across the whole screen, however, there is a particular "line" of tearing that never varies now, that I didn't notice with my old nVidia card. There is a line of tearing that never changes position and stretches across the whole width of the screen. This line cuts though the transponder (which is located at the bottom, right-hand limit of the screen) about 1/8th of the way up the transponder window from the bottom. The FSX screen tears but the transponder does not. EDIT***

[Nick Warren]

Is it possible, or do you think we may get to a point where we just use the dial on the actual transponder of the aircraft to change the mode negating the need for either of the above two methods? I am not having the tearing issue, but the topic prompted the question.

Nick

I know the Pilotedge program has many other pressing priorities, however I thought I would just ask if there's been any follow up on this?

Nick

[Keith Smith]

Hi Nick,

I haven't looked at it. My fsx test machine has an NVidia card and doesn't exhibit this behavior. Now that the AIM suggests pilots have their transponder set to altitude/normal whenever they leave the ramp, you won't need the PE transponder much during the flight. I would simply hide it and use the menus in the PE app to squawk stdby/normal as needed.

[Nick Warren]

Easy enough. I still change over the dial on the actual transponder just to maintain good checklist practice. I actually run PE in a separate window behind FSX so using the menus isn't really preferable. It is not a huge issue to push the button on the PE transponder display though and certainly doesn't distract from my experience.

Nick