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Commodity flight simulation: a SWOT analysis

Commodity flight simulation: a SWOT analysis
Commodity flight simulation: a SWOT analysis
The development of commodity flight simulation, in the form of PC game technology, continues to advance at a rapid pace. Indeed, the software industry is now being driven primarily by the requirements of gaming, digital media, and other entertainment applications. This has largely been due to the commoditisation of computer hardware, which is apparent when considering recent trends in CPU and graphics processor development. The Flight Simulation industry has benefited from this trend of hardware commoditisation, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. In this paper we present a SWOT (Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats) analysis of the commodity flight simulation software industry, including flight modeling, scenery generation, multiplayer technology, artificial intelligence, mission planning, and event handling. Issues such as data portability, economics, licensing, intellectual property, interoperability, developer extensibility, robustness, qualification, and maintainability are addressed.
Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX) is used as a case study of how a commodity flight simulator has been extended to include extensive programmatic access to its core engine. Examples will be given on how the base platform of this application can be extended by third party developers and the power this extensibility model provides to the industry.
This paper is presented to highlight particular technology trends in the commodity flight simulation industry, the fidelity that commodity flight simulations can provide, and to provide a high-level overview of the strengths and weaknesses thereof.
1-14
Takeda, K.
e699e097-4ba9-42bd-8298-a2199e71d061
Kenny, J.
612d96ec-a032-4a5f-bcec-37a85e136134
Zyskowski, M.
1a8711e3-72ce-4e4f-9c91-03b1c5c90d9b
Takeda, K.
e699e097-4ba9-42bd-8298-a2199e71d061
Kenny, J.
612d96ec-a032-4a5f-bcec-37a85e136134
Zyskowski, M.
1a8711e3-72ce-4e4f-9c91-03b1c5c90d9b

Takeda, K., Kenny, J. and Zyskowski, M. (2007) Commodity flight simulation: a SWOT analysis. Royal Aeronautical Society Flight Simulation Conference 2007, Flight Simulation Interoperability, Portability and Data: Achieving the user's dream, London, UK. 21 - 22 May 2007. pp. 1-14 .

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

The development of commodity flight simulation, in the form of PC game technology, continues to advance at a rapid pace. Indeed, the software industry is now being driven primarily by the requirements of gaming, digital media, and other entertainment applications. This has largely been due to the commoditisation of computer hardware, which is apparent when considering recent trends in CPU and graphics processor development. The Flight Simulation industry has benefited from this trend of hardware commoditisation, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. In this paper we present a SWOT (Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats) analysis of the commodity flight simulation software industry, including flight modeling, scenery generation, multiplayer technology, artificial intelligence, mission planning, and event handling. Issues such as data portability, economics, licensing, intellectual property, interoperability, developer extensibility, robustness, qualification, and maintainability are addressed.
Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX) is used as a case study of how a commodity flight simulator has been extended to include extensive programmatic access to its core engine. Examples will be given on how the base platform of this application can be extended by third party developers and the power this extensibility model provides to the industry.
This paper is presented to highlight particular technology trends in the commodity flight simulation industry, the fidelity that commodity flight simulations can provide, and to provide a high-level overview of the strengths and weaknesses thereof.

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More information

Published date: 2007
Venue - Dates: Royal Aeronautical Society Flight Simulation Conference 2007, Flight Simulation Interoperability, Portability and Data: Achieving the user's dream, London, UK, 2007-05-21 - 2007-05-22
Organisations: Aerodynamics & Flight Mechanics

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 48627
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/48627
PURE UUID: 09b88c5e-37a5-4a0c-8bc9-b9a537fffcb8

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 08 Oct 2007
Last modified: 11 Dec 2021 16:49

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Contributors

Author: K. Takeda
Author: J. Kenny
Author: M. Zyskowski

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