VRC Documentation

What's New

Version 1.2.1

For details on the bug fixes and feature tweaks included in version 1.2.1, refer to this page.

Version 1.2

The most significant additions in VRC 1.2 are certainly the Voice ATIS functionality and the new color profiles. Following is a full list of new features:

• Voice ATIS. You can now record a voice ATIS message and have it broadcast on a separate frequency and voice channel.
• Your text ATIS is now managed entirely within the ATISMaker window ... there is no longer a text ATIS box in the General Settings.
• Color Profiles allow you to define a set of color selections and then assign them to each scope window independently, allowing for ultimate flexibility in scope color configuration.
• New checkbox options for automatically adding, deleting, and pushing flight strips.
• New command for tagging up all aircraft owned by a specified controller. See the Command Reference for details.
• New command to reload the current sector file. This is useful for sector file authors while making changes and tweaks to the sector file.
• VHF simulation option for headset and speakers. This makes pilots more understandable when using speakers or headphones with lots of bass.
• Tabbed interface in general settings. The settings are now much easier to find and are less cluttered.
• Show aircraft route with waypoints. CTRL-F6 now shows the aircraft route, and displays the labels for all known waypoints on the route.
• Separation links allow you to link two or more aircraft together and see the separation between them, updated in real time.
• "Realistic Tags Mode" prevents you from seeing a full data tag for aircraft not squawking their assigned beacon code.
• Quicklook feature allows you to temporarily tag up all aircraft on the scope. There is a new button in the button bar to toggle this feature.
• Sticky Notes. You can now place a sticky note containing any text, anywhere on the scope. Sticky notes can be dragged to a new location as desired, even to a different scope.
• Aircraft info lookup. A new dot command allows you to look up information about a selected aircraft, such as engine type, number of engines, weight class, SRS category, etc.
• Flight strip annotations are now preserved when pushing a strip to another VRC user.
• The new incoming chat log shows all incoming chat messages in a single box, without having to open the chat window for each sender.
• Current oceanic tracks can now be downloaded from the web and plotted on your scope.
• Each scope can now have its own airspace floor and ceiling filters defined.
• Each scope can also have a defined radar floor, below which no targets will be shown, regardless of your filter settings.
• Scratchpad presets. You can now define a list of preset scratchpad entries, and select them from a list in the aircraft right-click context menu.
• STARS radar mode. VRC now simulates the STARS radar system used in many TRACONS and Towers in the United States.
• The aircraft's weight class (heavy, etc) is now shown in the target data block where appropriate.
• Entries in the Controller List and Arrival/Departure list are now be grouped with section headers. These can be disabled in the Controller List.
• The /v voice tag is now hidden, as it is the most common case. Only the /t and /r tags are shown. If the voice type is unknown, /? is shown.
• Chat and radio history can now be timestamped.

Version 1.2 also includes numerous tweaks to existing features, as well as bug fixes.

Version 1.1

The most significant additions in VRC 1.1 are certainly the Virtual Tower View and the new radar modes. (Simple, Park Air, TAAATS, PSR, and 3D) Following is a full list of new features:

• Virtual Tower View. VRC can now create an MSFS multiplayer session and populate it with aircraft. By connecting FS9 to this session, you can have a realistic "out-the-window" view of the airport environment.
• Simple radar mode. This mode is what used to be called the Ground mode in version 1.0.
• Ground radar mode. This is a new mode which shows the callsign, aircraft type, and ground speed.
• Park Air radar mode. This mode emulates the approach control radars used in the United Kingdom.
• TAAATS radar mode. This mode emulates the TAAATS system used within and around Australia.
• PSR radar mode. This mode provides basic "skin paint" primary radar targets without SSR information.
• 3D radar mode. This unique mode provides a 3D "wire frame" view of your airspace, with targets represented as basic 3D models.
• Colorized sector areas. VRC now supports the ability to draw filled, colored polygons on the screen, to represent airways, special-use airspace, bodies of water, etc. This is also useful for creating ground radar maps. These polygons, referred to as "REGIONs" are available in .sct2 format sector files.
• Static text labels. You can now define simple lines of text to display on your scope at a specified lat/lon. This is useful for labeling items such as taxiways, MVA values, special-use airspace names, etc. These labels are available in .sct2 format sector files.
• F2 <ASEL> allows you to quickly add a weather button for the destination field for the selected aircraft. This is handy when controlling aircraft flying into satellite fields, so that you can quickly pull up the weather and monitor altimeter changes.
• The new .center2 command allows you to quickly center both your scope and the range rings at the specified point.
• Right-click context menus. Most areas in VRC now have right-click context menus, allowing you to quickly access important functions with only the mouse. For example, by right-clicking a target on your scope, you can quickly initiate a handoff to another controller. Right-click context menus are available for targets on the scope, entries in the arrival/departures list, entries in the controller list, entries in the weather panel, entries in chat group member lists, and flight strips.
• Profile import/export. You can now easily share profiles and common settings using the profile import, export and merge functions.
• Reminder lights. A new button in the button bar contains four reminder lights. These lights remind you if you have a chat message waiting, a pending handoff, aircraft in your reminder list, or if your microphone is muted.
• Tool window hotkeys. Using the Alt key plus a number, you can quickly show or hide the various tool windows. See the Command Reference for details.
• The new CTRL+G key combination provides quick access to the Diagrams Window for the currently active scope.
• Callsigns in the reminder list are now sorted by how long they have been on the list, so you can quickly see which aircraft has been waiting the longest.
• The SELCAL window. VRC now provides a window listing all aircraft in range which have a SELCAL code in their flight plan remarks. By double-clicking an entry in the list, you can quickly send a SELCAL alert to the specified aircraft.
• Mutable microphone. You can now mute your microphone if you don't wish to have a hot microphone when being overridden.
• The new .fd command allows you to use aliases to toggle diagrams on/off.
• Session statistics. VRC now keeps track of various operational statistics during your session. You can view these stats with the .showstats command.
• New alias variables and functions. You can now insert additional data in an alias. The new variables and functions include $atiscode, $type(), $route and $aircraft.

Version 1.1 also includes numerous tweaks to existing features, as well as bug fixes.

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