View System
Internal Views
There are many different viewing options within Targetware. Fixed Position (Snap) Views
This is similar to the viewing systems you are probably used to from other
flight sims. When you first enter your plane, you
will be looking straight forward from the position
of the pilot's head. You can "turn the pilot's head"
to the left by holding down the 4 key on the numeric
keypad, or by pushing left on your joystick's hat
switch if you have configured it for views. The game
comes pre-configured with a complete set of viewing
combinations that will let you see virtually any angle
available to a pilot in the cockpit. If you desire,
you can set up additional view keys using custom head
angles, head positions, and key mappings. Note that
unless the plane's designer has been very loose with
the design specs, you will not be able to stick your
head through the canopy glass to get a better view.
Here are the default viewing keys:
Combining Views. By pressing the Up or Down keys while pressing
a direction key, you modify the view. For example, Pad 1 + Pad 5
will show you the Left Rear Up view, Pressing Pad 9 + Pad 0 will show Right
Forward Down
Hat Switches work normally, the direction the you press the hat matches
the view you will see. The hat switch view can
be modified vertically. To toggle views with
the the hat switch views to show Up and the direction
pressed: Joystick Button 4.
View Cockpit. This view cycles through the different
areas within an aircraft's cockpit to show you all
the instruments in detail.
View Gunsight. This view allows you to see through
a gunsight if an aircraft has such a view defined.
This will be very useful for aircraft with off center
gunsights, tube sites, and the like. Custom Views
The views displayed by the key presses can be changed
to suit your tastes with the Save View function.
Move the view point to where you want it by using
mouselook mode and even the lean
keys then press F8. Then press the
key that you wish to save this view to. You can use
one of the current view keys, essentially
replacing a current view with
a customized
one. Or you can have additional custom view keys.
To set up a new custom view key, first assign a
'custom view' function to a key in the Settings
-> Keyboard -> View (or Settings
-> Joystick interface. In the [Views] section
are two new types of functions: View Custom
(1 - 8) and Sticky
View Custom (1 - 8). Assign a key or button
to the custom view you want. This makes the key or
button available to have a view assigned to it. Then,
go in game, get in a plane, move the view to the
spot you want, press F8 and
then the key you want that view assigned to.
Example: I want to have the 2 key on my keyboard
(not the 2 on the keypad, that is
Pad_2) to be a view leaning right and forward, looking
down in front of my right wing. First, I assign View
Custom 1 to the 2 key.
Then I load up an offline scenario and select an
aircraft. Then, I press Lean Forward (Up
Arrow),
Lean Right (Right
Arrow)
and
use Mouselook
to steer the view to the angle I want. I press F8 and
then 2. The message "View Saved"
is displayed in the text buffer. Ta da!
Custom Zoom Levels You can also customize the levels of
zoom in the Settings
-> General -> Game section of the
game interface. There are 5 levels of zoom available.
The default zoom settings are (in degrees):
Zoom 1 = 90
Zoom 2 = 75
Zoom 3 = 60
Zoom 4 = 45
Zoom 5 = 30
Sticky Views
Any of the views can be made 'sticky' by using the
ALT key to modify it. This means that the selected
view will persist until it is toggled off. It is
as if you were holding a particular view key down
the whole time.
Sticky View Forward = ALT+PAD_8
Sticky View Forward-Right = ALT+PAD_9
Sticky View Right = ALT+PAD_6
Sticky View Backward-Right = ALT+PAD_3
Sticky View Backward = ALT+PAD_2
Sticky View Backward-Left = ALT+PAD_1
Sticky View Left = ALT+PAD_4
Sticky View Forward-Left = ALT+PAD_7
Sticky View Up = ALT+PAD_5
Sticky View Down = ALT+PAD_0
Lean Views
You can 'lean' your point of view around in the
cockpit, as if you were moving your head or body
to see around obstructions or turn just another few
degrees to see better behind you. Simply use the
arrow and Page Up and Page Down keys on your keyboard
to manuever your view.
Lean View Forward = UP
Lean View Backward = DOWN
Lean View Left = LEFT
Lean View Right = RIGHT
Lean View Up = PAGEUP
Lean View Down = PAGEDOWN
The speed of the lean is set in the Settings
-> General -> Game section of the game interface. Slew Views
Views can be made to pan around up, down, left and
right through the Slew View settings. In this mode,
the view does not snap back to forward. Rather, the
view stays wherever you move it.
Slew View Up = SHIFT+PAD_8
Slew View Down = SHIFT+PAD_2
Slew View Left = SHIFT+PAD_4
Slew View Right = SHIFT+PAD_6
The speed of the slew is set in the Settings
-> General -> Game section of the
game interface. Mouse View Mode
You enter mouse view any time you move the mouse
while you are in the cockpit. While in Mouse View,
your view will follow the mouse pointer: where ever
you point, that's where your head will turn to look.
While in Mouse View, you can click on enemy planes
outside the cockpit for ID and to go into Padlock
View Mode. To exit Mouse View, simply press any key
or button assigned to a Snap View. Padlock View Mode
When you find yourself in a twisting, turning dogfight, it's easy to get "lost in your views" and lose sight of a plane. To aid players in keeping track of individual planes, you may have the option of using Padlock to automatically keep any one enemy plane in view. Any enemy plane that already has a label in view can be "padlocked" by left-clicking on the label. The padlock will automatically change your views to keep the aircraft in the center of your view.
The padlock can be broken in one of two ways:
- You again left-click on the padlocked label.
- The aircraft and its label disappear from view, either by leaving visual range, or being positioned in a spot that the pilot cannot see (e.g., "under the plane", "beneath the nose") for a period of time specified by the server parameters. Should a plane momentarily disappear from view (e.g., under your wing) your view will still be automatically changed (in this case, to a wing view), and it is up to you to maneuver your plane so as to make the label or plane shape viewable before the padlock is broken.
You can disable padlock view in the Settings
-> General -> Game section of the game interface.
External Views
There are 3 viewing modes available from outside the cockpit: External Airplane
View, Observer Mode, and Free Move Mode. In each mode, you can use the mouse,
the up and down cursor keys, and the zoom keys to adjust the view. Pres F5
to cycle between view modes.
External Airplane View
If the server you are playing on allows external airplane view while in flight, you can switch to external view by pressing the F5 key from within your cockpit. In this mode, you will be shown the external model of your airplane. The view will be centered on your airplane at all times. You can zoom in and out using the Up and Down cursor keys, and rotate the view around the airplane with the mouse. The FOV keys are also available in this mode.
Observer Mode
This viewing mode allows players not actively involved in a mission (including those already killed) to stay involved in the action by giving them an external view of other planes in flight. The server parameters will determine whether only planes friendly to a player, or enemy planes, can be selected. This mode is only available online, in a multi-plane environment.
Press F5 to enter Observer Mode: the view will be an external "chase view", directly behind the nearest friendly plane. You can rotate the view and zoom in and out with the mouse and cursor keys. FOV keys can also be very helpful here to keep on top of a twisting dogfight. To switch to a different plane, press F6 for the previous unit, and F7 for the next unit.
Observe Previous Unit = F6
Observe Next Unit = F7
Free Move Mode
This view is an external camera view that allows
players not involved in the action to roam around
the map at will. Unlike the other two external view
modes, this view is not centered on any airplane
at
all. You are free to navigate around the world, using
the Left and Right cursor keys to slide left and
right,
the Up and Down cursor keys to move forward and backwards,
and the mouse to control the direction you are facing.
The speed (km/hr) at which you can move is controlled
by the Free Move Speed parameter is set in the Settings
-> General
-> Game section of the game interface.
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