FGo! - A simple GUI launcher for FlightGear.

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REQUIREMENTS

- Operating system GNU/Linux
- FlightGear
- Python 2.7.8 *
- TKinter
- Python Imaging Library (PIL) 1.1.7 or Pillow (PIL fork) 2.5.1 
  with ImageTk module **
- Tcl/Tk 8.6

*  FGo! is compatible only with Python 2.x.
** This library is not mandatory to run FGo! but aircraft thumbnails
   will not be displayed without it.

Numbers given here correspond to versions of the software used in development
process. It's quite likely for FGo! to work with older (or newer) versions, but
the program was not tested with them.

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INSTALLATION

This program requires no installation, just unpack the archive anywhere
and make sure that all software requirements are met before the first start.

In Debian and Debian based distributions the following packages are required:
python, python-tk, tcl8.x and tk8.x; optionally python-imaging-tk or
python-pil.imagetk, depending on which is available on particular distribution,
may be installed. For easy installation choose python-imaging-tk or
python-pil.imagetk in your favorite package manager, and all other required
dependencies should be installed automatically.

For Slackware and compatible systems a SlackBuild for FGo! is available. The
included script will generate a package that allows for a clean, system-wide
installation of the program. The SlackBuild can be downloaded from the official
website: http://www.slackbuilds.org. On default Slackware systems (full) no
additional packages are required.

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RUNNING

Click "fgo" file in the main directory of the program, or run it in a console
with the "./fgo" or "python fgo" command. 

Running FGo! in a console is recommended as it gives access to FlightGear and 
TerraSync output messages.

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CONFIGURATION

In order to use FGo! you need to first set it up. Open preferences window
(in menu choose: Settings => Preferences) and fill in empty entry fields.
Filling the first three entries in "FlightGear settings" tab is necessary for
proper operation of the program - the rest is optional.

Tip: Hover mouse cursor over any option to see its description.

Changes in "FlightGear settings" tab are applied immediately after clicking on
"Save Settings" button, however changes in other tabs may require restarting
FGo! for them to be applied.

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MAIN MENU ITEMS

File:

    Load - load specified config file.

    Save as... - save settings to specified config file.

    Save & Quit - save settings and quit the application.

    Quit - quit the application.

Settings:

    Show installed airports only - only airports present in scenery actually
        installed on the hard drive will be shown on the airport list.

    Update list of installed airports - scan hard drive for installed scenery
        and update the airport list. It works only if "Show installed airports
        only" is selected.

    Preferences - open preferences window.

Tools:

    METAR - show METAR report for selected (or nearest) airport. These reports
        are downloaded from http://weather.noaa.gov/

Help:

    Help - open "Help" window.

    About - open "About" window.

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COMMAND LINE OPTIONS WINDOW

In text window at the bottom, you can write command line options that will be
passed to FlightGear.

Few options are provided by default, for more examples consult FlightGear
documentation or check Wiki at:
http://wiki.flightgear.org/index.php/Command_Line_Options

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TIPS&TRICKS

* If airport data source was set to "Scenery", then information about
  airport's park positions may not be available until corresponding scenery
  is installed.

* You can start a flight from an aircraft carrier. In the middle panel click on
  current airport ICAO code (right under aircraft picture) and choose one from
  available ships. ICAO code will then change to selected ship's name,
  and will be highlighted blue to indicate that you're now in "carrier mode".
  Corresponding scenario will be selected automatically.
  To be able to choose airports again, you need to click on carrier name,
  and from pop-up list select "None".

* In "Select Scenario" list, you can right click on any scenario to see its
  description (if available).

* Window resolution is saved when "Save&Quit" button is clicked.

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KNOWN BUGS AND LIMITATIONS

* FGo! does not track if TerraSync has been actually closed before starting
  a new instance of it. If "TerraSync" checkbutton is unchecked and checked
  again in short period of time, "error binding to port 5501" message may be
  shown in a console. It indicates that old instance of TerraSync does not
  finished downloading data yet. In that case, wait until download is finished
  and check "TerraSync" checkbutton again.

* Very long parking places names does not fit in parking button.

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                                             Thank you for using this software,
                                             Robert 'erobo' Leda  <erobo@wp.pl>
