DR> .... I  want to know if anyone has used those R/C
 DR> Control programs for the Home  Computer? Do they work? Are they worth
 DR> the price?? I see Tower hobby has 2  different IBM Trainer Programs.. I
I started flying RC aircraft 2 years ago and found that the 
Microsoft Flight Simulator was helpful in mastering the "control 
reversal" skill and the altered perceptions of flying an RC 
airplane as opposed to flying a full sized (Cessna 182) airplane. 
I suppose it should also be helpful in learning basic flying 
skills though, personally, I learned those earlier, not from MS 
Flight Simulator so I'm not well qualified to comment on that 
aspect. Flight Simulator was surprisingly realistic to me. You'll 
want to configure it for the Cessna airplane, the Control Tower 
view, and a reasonable (10 or so) zoom factor to give adequate 
visibility. I haven't seen or used the RC simulators you mentioned 
but one can speculate that they have been optimized for RC 
training wheras the Microsoft one hasn't. One problem you might 
face with the Microsoft choice is the scarcity of joysticks like 
the ones on RC transmitters--it seems that all of the computer 
joysticks these days are of the exotic, multi-buttoned, "handgrip" 
style which is less realistic. 
Be sure to join an RC club and enlist the aid of an instructor for 
your FIRST flight. No matter how competent you become with the 
simulator, those skills won't directly translate to competency 
with actual RC flying. If you fly without an instructor you'll 
crash and will have to spend extra time and money making repairs. 
(Of course, you'll crash anyway, but less often and less severely 
if you learn with an instructor.) If you have to fly without an 
instructor try to use a cheap, slow flying trainer (small engine, 
long wings) in a huge field with tall grass and no obstructions so 
as to minimize crash damage. The typical balsa wood .40 sized 
trainer is not particularly slow or crashworthy. Maybe an "Ugly 
Stick" or some such will survive long enough. 
After I augered in my Tower Trainer .40, I switched to flying RC 
gliders on a 50 foot slope at a nearby school. Gliders give you 
less opportunity for acrobatics but they are easier to fly, easier 
to repair and more forgiving in crashes and collisions. Of course, 
if you don't have a good slope or thermal site nearby, airplanes 
are your best bet. 
Happy Landings.
--- Blue Wave/Max v2.12
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