Metar URL in binary??!! What a rookie mistake!

[Octal450]

+1

[SkyBoat]

I'm completely confused (I know, so what else is new?). Is there a way to fix the METAR issue for Linux/Ubuntu with any of the FG 2016 variants or not? Or are the only fixes available at the moment limited to Windows?

[KL-666]

Hello Skyboat,

Even though i am on windows, i think it is possible for me to adjust your fgfs executable. For that you need to send it to me. It is the equivalent file of fgfs.exe in windows, somewhere in your installation. I reckon it is called fgfs.<some linux executable extension> Or plainly fgfs. The size of the file should be several MB's and the executable bit is set.

Kind regards, Vincent

[IAHM-COL]

A quick question: Skyboat, you USD the ppa, correct?

Can you try installing the latest version again? (update)?
Compiling again fixed this for me, and I'm also Linux.

The file Vincent needs to help you is fgfs

[Octal450]

They say 2016.3.0 fixed it.

[KL-666]

If people compile themselves, they can easily modify the metar url in the source beforehand. No need to wait for a new version.

Kind regards, Vincent

[HOM001]

Wouldn't it just make a lot more sense to make the METAR request through the FG website?
Like FG executable makes request to flightgear.org/METAR.php, then METAR.php makes a call to noaa.gov and sends the METAR back to the FG executable in the response. If the URL changes, all they have to do is take 5 seconds to change the PHP script and FTP it to the server, so everybody switches to the new URL.

[KL-666]

Not really, it is only generating extra traffic to the fg servers. If there is no gain from going via fg servers, then it only costs.

Examples of gain:
- Enriching the data
- Caching to alleviate the metar servers (when they complain about too much traffic from fg users)

None of such gain is applicable at the moment, so the clients can best go directly to the metar servers. That is not problematic whatsoever, if they had only put the metar url in a config text file. So people can modify it when the metar server is reorganized. (Not compile it hard coded into the program file).

Kind regards, Vincent

[KL-666]

I came across this BS on that other forum.

NOAA Servers Shut Down

Postby wkitty42 » Wed Aug 24, 2016 6:48 pm

@legoboy: that's why 2016.3.0 changed to using the tgftp.nws.noaa.gov site...

i'm waiting on everyone using old versions of flightgear to start complaining and blaming the devs for some sort of bug

https://forum.flightgear.org/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=30263&sid=9a2014dbc02e3ecc691b02e65d209c68#p293058

That wkitty guy is as far away from practical programming as a French snail to Australia. No, this is indeed not an accidental bug, but utter incompetence. It is best for all if wkitty refrains from commenting on matters he has no knowledge whatsoever about.

Kind regards, Vincent

[IAHM-COL]

the way I see it is that old versions should be stable by their own.
The bleeding edge (last version and git version) should be more error proning and be the realm of alfa and beta testers.

Apparently, wKitty thinks that the new version is the "stable" and everyone else is riding a world of bugs.


Rather concerning model of development.
(for those curious why I sometime call them the core-clown devs)