Sky Dolly 0.17.0

This release provides keyboard shortcut support in the flight simulator, dark theme and SimConnect network support.

New features:

• Keyboard shortcut support in the flight simulator
  • Shortcuts can be re-assigned in the Sky Dolly application settings (no restart required)
• Desktop notifications about recording start and stop events (when triggered in the flight simulator via the new shortcuts)
  • Ensure desktop notification visibility in the Windows system settings (-> Notification Assistant), specifically when MSFS is running in full screen mode
• SimConnect network support
  • Sky Dolly ships with a SimConnect.cfg, providing three configurations
  • Edit the network options with a text editor, in order to match with the corresponding SimConnect.xml server configuration (located in the MSFS data folder)
  • They can easily be selected via the Sky Dolly application settings (no restart required)
• Dark theme support via selectable styles
  • On Windows 10: select the "Fusion" style (the default "Windows Vista" style does not support dark theme)
  • On Windows 11: select the "Windows 11" (default) style
  • In any case dark theme needs to be enabled in the Windows system settings

Improvements:

• The default logbook name is now Sky Dolly Logbook
• The flight number is now also shown in the Logbook table
  • Flights can also be filtered with the flight number
  • The flight number is now stored per flight (not per aircraft anymore)
  • The flight number can now be edited (both in the Flight dialog and logbook table)
• The Formation module settings (relative position, replay mode) are now persisted
• A flight recording in progress is now automatically stopped and the flight stored to the logbook in case the flight simulator is terminated (e.g. also due to a crash)
• The full range of flight simulator simulation rates 0.0625 up to 128.0 is now supported

• The Sky Dolly custom replay rate is rounded to the nearest simulation rate, one of 0.0625, 0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, ... 128 ("multiples of 2")
• The flight simulator simulation rate is now shown in the replay speed group
• The simulation rate may be limited in the application settings (note that the replay speed may still be higher)

Bug fixes:

• KML export: the first position point is now properly exported as well
• Flight condition is not overwritten anymore when recording additional formation aircraft
• Toggling the "active pause" in MSFS while recording now properly resumes/pauses recording and the flight itself [Issue #106]
• Prevent a crash that would occur when a flight is loaded and the replay mode in the Formation module is changed to "Fly with formation", but no connection with MSFS exists yet
• Remove last recorded flight or aircraft in case persistence fails (improved error handling)
• In the Formation module the reference aircraft icon is properly initialised
• During replay the replay speed is now properly set to the last "custom speed" (e.g. 0.1) when checking the "Custom" radio button (previously the actual replay speed was always wrongly set to 1.0, mismatching with the displayed custom speed value, e.g. 0.1)
• Seeking on the timeline now correctly re-establishes the current flap (and other control element) settings

What's Changed

• Feature sdcsv removal by @till213 in #101
• Feature default logbook by @till213 in #102
• Feature/flight number by @till213 in #104
• Feature/modset3 by @till213 in #108
• Fix/formation flight condition recording by @till213 in #109
• FIX: Properly pause/resume recording when toggling "active pause" by @till213 in #110
• Upgrade GeographicLib to version 2.2 (from version 2.1.2) by @till213 in #111
• Enable keyboard shortcuts in the flight simulator by @till213 in #112
• Bump actions/checkout from 3 to 4 by @dependabot in #118
• Bump jurplel/install-qt-action from 3 to 4 by @dependabot in #121
• Bump actions/upload-artifact from 2 to 3 by @dependabot in #122
• Bump actions/upload-artifact from 3 to 4 by @dependabot in #126
• Bump github/codeql-action from 2 to 3 by @dependabot in #125
• Feature/notif2 by @till213 in #131
• Feature/msfs shortcuts by @till213 in #132
• Feature/msfs shortcuts 2 by @till213 in #133
• Feature/123 skydolly on remote pc via simconnect by @till213 in #134
• Feature/settings improvements by @till213 in #136
• Feature/gui styles by @till213 in #137
• Feature/refactor handlers by @till213 in #138
• Feature/simulation rate by @till213 in #139
• Fix/msfs connect flaps by @till213 in #140

Full Changelog: v0.16.2...v0.17.0

Sky Dolly 0.16.3

This release fixes the following issue:

• Proper CSV validation of Flight Recorder and Sky Dolly (obsolete) CSV files

It also introduces an initial "crash handler" that handles exceptions that are unexpected and hence unhandled by the application logic itself - also known as "bugs" (programming errors).

The crash handler gathers basic application information and most importantly it tries to detect the location of the exception ("stack trace"), plus the nature of the exception. It also allows the user to copy this information and create a new issue here on github.com (free github account required).

Sky Dolly 0.16.2

This release fixes the following issue:

• Location import: Properly import Little Navmap userpoint CSV files having no header

Sky Dolly 0.16.1

This release fixes the following issues:

• Properly store the newly selected logbook file path in the application settings in case an attempt is made to open a logbook that has been written by a newer Sky Dolly version and the user chooses an alternate logbook
  • Regression introduced with v0.16.0

Sky Dolly 0.16.0

"Gregarious Gee Bee" introduces new Sky Dolly logbook export & import plugins, incuding time synchronisation for formation flights.

New Features

• Sky Dolly logbook (SDLOG) export plugin
• Sky Dolly logbook (SDLOG) import plugin

Note: the new Sky Dolly logbook import & export plugins render the existing Sky Dolly CSV import & export obsolete: the Sky Dolly CSV import & export will be removed in an upcoming release. However other CSV import & export formats such as the flightradar24.com, FlightRecorder and position and attitude formats will remain.

Improvements

• All export plugins: now only the effectively supported resampling and formation export options (as reported by the given plugin) are selectable
• All import plugins:
  • The "Add to current flight" checkbox has been replaced by an aircraft import mode combobox:
    • Add to current flight: all imported aircraft are added to the currently loaded flight
    • Add to new flight: all imported aircraft are added to a flight that is newly created
    • Separate flights: a new flight is created for each imported file
  • The aircraft type selection combobox is now disabled for those formats (such as the new Sky Dolly logbook) that already specify the aircraft type
  • Depending on whether the given plugin also reports the flight recording time the timestamp offset of newly imported aircraft can now be automatically adjusted:
    • None: no timestamp offset is being applied
    • Date and time: the timestamp offset is calculated based on the recording date and time difference between the current and each newly imported flight
    • Time only: the timestamp offset is calculated based on the recording time difference between the current and each newly imported flight, but ignoring the recording date. This can be useful when importing historic real-world flights from different dates in the past into the same "formation flight", but with the goal to replay them "on the same day" (as defined by the first imported flight)
  • Old plugin settings are migrated to the new import mode settings
• The Simulation Variables dialog (key V) now also shows the aircraft position as decimal latitude & longitude values (#89)
• The flight recording time in the Flight dialog (key F) is now empty for new flights (without any recording)
  • As before it is updated when the first aircraft is being recorded
  • The recording time text field tooltip now also shows the recording date and time converted to UTC ("zulu time"), including seconds
• The flight title and description are now also editable during recording. Because why not :)
• It is now possible to clear a flight via the menu Replay | Clear. Clearing a flight will simply unload it from memory, that is any persisted data in the logbook won't be modified
• A new recent logbooks menu allows to quickly re-open logbooks that have been opened in the past
• Drag and drop support: you can drag a Sky Dolly logbook from the Windows File Explorer onto the Sky Dolly application in order to quickly open that logbook
• The current logbook file name is now shown in the application window title
• The filter values in the Logbook module are now persisted in the application settings
• The filter and default values in the Formation module are now persisted in the application settings
• The filter values in the Location module are now automatically reset when a user location is being added, in order to make the newly added location visible
• Added five new New Zealand locations

Bug Fixes

• The timestamp for waypoints is now properly restored when reading waypoint data from the logbook
• The first aircraft position data is properly cached (not reset when timestamp is set to 0)
• Fix the flightradar24.com CSV import (wrong CSV data validation)
• Fix interpolation of first sample point in case the timestamp of the first sample point is > 0
  • which may occasionally happen if position data arrives a few milliseconds ("one frame") after e.g. the first engine data sample arrives (the arrival of the first sample data starts the timer)
• Fix internal SimConnect exceptions due to duplicate "frame" systemt event subscriptions

Under the Hood

• Flight import plugin API simplified, by introducing a new FlightData structure that allows to move flight data between Flight objects
• Modules now have module-specifc settings (like import & export plugins)
• Basic unit tests for selected import plugins

Sky Dolly 0.15.1

This release fixes the following issues:

• Prevents the creation of a logbook backup each time the application was started ("excessive logbook backup generation")
  • In order to reclaim storage space:
    • In Sky Dolly: File | Logbook Settings... | Show
    • In File Explorer: Open the Backups folder
    • Delete any backup files that are not required anymore
• Fixes an occasional crash upon quitting Sky Dolly, in case when the flight simulator had been closed before and an "active SimConnect connection" had been established (with a flight replay or recording)

Sky Dolly 0.15.0

This release is a no-new-features release. Instead it focuses on upgrading 3rd-party libraries, most importantly the Qt 6 framework.

Improvements:

• Besides fixing some quirks on Windows 11 the new Qt 6 framework also provides initial support for "dark mode"
• Dark mode is "work in progress" and hence not yet enabled by default
• However the following command line options explicitly enable dark mode on Windows, with either the windows (default) or fusion style
  • SkyDolly.exe -platform windows:darkmode=2
  • SkyDolly.exe -platform windows:darkmode=2 -style=fusion
• In either case Sky Dolly then follows the Windows user settings regarding dark mode
• Starting or resuming replay will now reset the internal event state
  • Some aircraft like the PDMG 737 update the flaps handle index (simulation variable) in "real time", that is the value changes asynchronously (together with the extension or retraction of the flaps)
  • Consecutive timeline seek operations may hence bring the internal Sky Dolly event state out-of-sync
  • With this improvement the state will eventually be in-sync again during replay (upon the next flaps event)

Bug fixes:

• "Orphaned create AI object" requests are now properly handled
• When importing a file (e.g. CSV format) without waypoint information the created waypoints have now guaranteed a unique timestamp
  • Specifically in the case when only one position sample ("parked aircraft") exist
• Properly restore the default "show replay speed" option (applied when entering minimal UI mode) from the application settings

Under the hood:

• Upgrade Qt to version 6.4.2 (from version 5.15.2)
• Upgrade GeographicLib to version 2.1.2 (from version 1.52)
• Upgrade ordered-map to version 1.1.0 (from version 1.0.0)
• Use the C++20 standard (from C++17)
• Use named database connections: foundation import/export plugins that use the database (Sky Dolly logbook, *.sdlog) format

Sky Dolly 0.14.0

This release focuses on improved 3rd-party aircraft support.

Improvements:

• Improved replay specifically with 3rd party aircraft, for:
  • Primary and secondary flight controls (ailerons, flaps, spoilers, ...)
  • Engine (thrust lever)
  • Aircraft handles (gear, wing folding, tailhook, ...)
• Improved replay for AI aircraft ("formation flight"):
  • Animated ailerons, elevator and rudder
  • Less SimConnect data sent
• New location categories, including improved CSV import & export with Little Navmap v2.8.8
  • Addon, Cabin, Carrier, History, Obstacle, Oil Platform, Settlement
• When pausing recording the simulation is now also paused
• No need to "repeat flaps" in settings anymore (improved secondary flight controls replay)
• Added new flight information simulation variables (dialog Flight -> Conditions):
  • Surface condition (normal, wet, icy, snow)
  • On any runway
  • On parking spot
• Increasing the replay speed now also increases the simulation rate (up to a maximum rate of 16x)
  • The simulation rate is a power of 2: 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, 8.0, 16.0 - the nearest simulation rate
    is chosen, given the current replay speed
  • Note: certain aircraft may reduce or even fix the simulation rate to 1.0 (for instance the Fenix A320)
• When the 'Add to flight' option is enabled and import fails then no empty (no recorded data) aircraft is left in the formation

Bug Fixes:

• Fix "ailerons reversal" (Asobo A320neo, F/A-18 and other aircraft with "PID controllers")
• Ensure that all "position" and "percent" values as reported by MSFS are clamped to the proper range ([-1.0, 1.0] and [0, 100] respectively)
• Fix a crash in the Formation module that would occur when trying to delete the last aircraft from the aircraft table

Sky Dolly 0.13.1

This release fixes the following issues:

• The mixture lever position is now properly initialised from "percent" (instead of "position") values:
  • during "flight augmentation" ("flight augmentation" is applied when importing flights from e.g. flightradar24 or flightaware)
  • during IGC import (when detecting "engine noise" in the IGC data)
• In the Simulation Variables dialog (and elsewhere) ensure that at least one recorded data sample exist before accessing the "last" entry
• Prevent access to invalidated data upon application termination when either the Flight, Simulation Variables or Statistics dialog was open before quitting the application (rare race condition)
• Properly spell "airport" in the location CSV export in Little Navmap format (fix typo)

Sky Dolly 0.13.0

Sky Dolly "Dapper Daher" (v0.13) introduces location import and export plugins.

New features:

• Location import and export in CSV format
  • Sky Dolly format
  • Little Navmap user points format

Improvements:

• Reducing the CSV flight export file size (Sky Dolly format), by rounding the digits to 2 decimal places (coordintes: 6 decimal places)
• Location module
  • User and imported locations can now be updated with the current position in the flight simulator
  • Table automatically scrolls to the newly inserted location
  • New system locations (now 101 in total)
  • Locations can now be filtered with keywords, by country, type (system, user, imported) and category
  • The engine state can be controlled: start, shutdown, keep
  • The location count is shown
• The system locations migration file, located at [Sky Dolly installation directory]/Resources/migr/Locations.csv, is now optional and can be deleted
• Added default aircraft types from simulation update 11 ("40th anniversary update"), for aircraft selector combobox (flight import)
• Position data is now interpolated within an "infinite interpolation window"
  • Imported flight plans (e.g. GPX flight plans from Little Navmap) with "sparse waypoints" are now properly replayed
• Flight Recorder CSV import now also imports "propeller lever position"
• The keyword search text line edit widgets now have a "clear text" button
• Performance improvements and bug fixes

Also refer to the full CHANGELOG.