Without software any simulator is nothing else that a dead thing, an expensive, heavy and bulky collection of hardware; and without adequate software capable of reproducing faithfully what its designers intend to simulate, a simulator ins nothing else than an expensive, heavy and bulky arcade game.
Simulators are not toys and the difference between both categories is determine by several factors:
Design intentions:
A real simulator can be used for gaming and entertainment indeed, but a real toy cannot be used to simulate realities. If what you design and construct reproduces reality with some degree of fidelity, then you are on your way to having a real simulator.
Aesthetic and sensorial factors: If you decorate your perfect B747 sim like Flash Gordon's spaceship... well... You get the idea, I guess. An essential part of any simulation is the cluster of sensations transmitted by the immediate environment to the person undergoing the simulation; in the case of aircraft we would be speaking here about the cockpit and the simulation dynamics.
Software functionality: Ironically, what takes the biggest effort to accomplish is this last item because software for a modern cockpit simulator is a very complex thing and naturally, most cockpit designers rely heavily on off-the-shelf products simply because no one has the time and expertise to program every single thing related to a flight sim or create every single texture, process and colour. So, to a great extent, and perhaps to the greatest, getting into the software department of any cockpit project is more like systems integration than systems programming. Almost anyone can install software, so it may seem easy at first sight, but it isn't and if you know how to program a computer you can even do thing better.
As this topic in relation to the MLF simulator is very extensive due to the very high number of software units that we have integrated, we will divide our dissertation in different chapters accessible thorough the links found at the left side of this page..
The MLF configured as a DHC6 Twin Otter before departing on a mountain flight from Simikot airfield, in Nepal; this would not be possible without good software, because even the TATA bus is virtual.
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