DC-8 Engineer and overhead panel?

[project737]

Hello!

First off I'd like to thank you for your DC-8!
It's by far the best (and the only usable one for that matter) DC-8 out there.

However, your panel is very close to being complete, the only things that I feel are missing is the rest of the overhead panel and the engineer panel.

I do realise that the captain wouldn't worry about the engineer's duties IRL, but it would be a nice detail. However, there are no fire extinguisher handles in the panel. Without them, you cant practise engine fire situations and such.

If these items were to be added to the panel, it would be rather complete.

Now to the question.
Do you have any plans for adding more features to the panel in the future? If not, then why?

[christrott]

I'm not speaking for HJG, but as a longtime forum member, I can speak somewhat to your questions.

1) The overhead panel aft of what is shown is pretty bare in reality, mainly being taken up by circuit breakers. Adding it would be "nice", but doesn't really add much in all reality.

2) At this time any update is low priority for the team. The model itself is very old and as such, there's not a lot of push to update it or any other part of it over getting new projects out. They have been working on some FDE updates (as other threads show) but beyond that, I don't think there's any plan for a major panel upgrade unless and until the other current projects get done.

[project737]

I see your point, however, no one else seems to be interested in making a truly complete panel for this bird neither, which is sad.

[aerofoto - HJG Admin]

Chris is essentially quite right .... but .... I think a more relevant issue/interpretation occurs through some folk possibly tending to compare the panels hosted here by HJG .... and then wondering why some of these support featutures like operative/semi-operative F/E panels whereas other don't

The reason for this is primarily because most of the panels which HJG hosts each reprsent entirely different programming philosophies/concepta, and peferences, by entirely different designers over entirely different periods of time.

Our current HJG DC8 panels all represent what was essentially the preferences/concept of their principle designer back around 2002/3 .... and that's despite certain significant updating/improvement since then. Whereas our B707 panels are far more recent (since 2006) and represent yet another designers approach/preferences again .... which is why things are, the way they currently are, with some panels supporting features that the others don't have rather than their being some degree of uniformity throughout our range.

We've no plans to further "majorly" upgrade any the DC8 panels which we currently host .... for a multitude of reasons .... ranging from "time" to certain "authorizations" which can't now be acquired so easily.

Mark C
AKL/NZ

[project737]

I understand. Maybe Paul Golding could help you out IF you made the decision to remake the DC-8? He was working on a DC-8 project, but it died. However, maybe he still sits on material from the project and maybe he might be interested in cooperation? I don't know.

[Dee Waldron - HJG]

Chris and Mark have pretty much covered it, but I'll chime in here with some "historical" information (since I'm the real dinosaur around here these days!).

Your idea and want for an FE panel is not new. We liked the idea also (back when the HJG DC-8 was new and hot). In fact, we had a working FE panel in development back in the day when the current panel was in R&D. However, it didn't work out like we had hoped (for a lot of technical reasons and a few other non-ergonomic reasons), and so it was dropped from the project. It was sad to let it go, because several of us had high hopes for it. But reality is what it is.

Hope you find that interesting and helpful.

Dee (Mister DC-8)